Amelie: Wizards of White Haven

by Frances Howitt

  ‘They took my main pack, but I have some sausages here they didn’t find. Do you want one now, or will dinner suffice for the moment?’ He was aghast. No wonder she had hardly moved and hadn’t attacked him. She couldn’t have much strength. Would she be a help or hindrance in an escape attempt?

  ‘Keep them for the moment. Let’s see what’s served. Besides, if we do get away we’ll need them.’

  They listened silently to the food trolley clanking slowly down the corridor towards them serving each cell. The burly server gestured with a tin towards Jim. ‘You, here,’ and he shoved the tin plate through the slot at floor level in the door. Once Jim had picked up the tin, the man simply thrust a second plate through the door with a glance to her.

  Jim eyed the very unappealing congealed slop in his tin that only vaguely resembled a thin stew with strange lumps on one side, possibly potato. There was nothing as nutritious as meat or greens. He glanced at Amelie in disgust and caught her hand motion to stop. Once the guard had moved off out of sight, she swiftly came over and took his tin. She sniffed carefully and swiftly scooped the lumps out with a scrap of cloth. He noticed she put them aside then carefully wiped her hand.

  ‘Poisoned,’ she told him by way of explanation. ‘Rest should be alright.’

  He noticed her ration was only a quarter of his own and his was by no means as much as he would normally serve himself. ‘Here, you have mine. I think you need it more than me. I did have breakfast today.’

  ‘Ah, just making sure I got all the poison out of your meal?’ He shrugged not bothering to deny it, so she took his plateful and sniffed carefully before eating swiftly. Then she had her own dinner when he made no move towards it. His hesitation was understandable, and as it happened, she was not going to force him to eat. He had sufficient meat around his bones to go without the odd meal; she did not.

  ‘How quickly will they expect the poison to show its effects on me?’ he asked once she’d finished. He was astonished at how much stronger she appeared simply for eating a decent ration.

  ‘Anytime now I’d expect, since the shift is changing and the guards have just gone upstairs. I don’t remember the name of this poison, but I do know it works quickly and is none too pleasant a way to go. They certainly mean for you to die here and swiftly. They’ve more sense than to tackle a wizard head on, so they’re being sneaky about it. Anyway, they’re unlikely to come and check on the cells for a couple of hours now. They’ll be having their own dinner first, or as soon they come down. They’re obviously giving you time to stop shrieking, keel over and your death smells to clear. If you can open that lock, now would be a good time.’

  ‘Right now?’

  He waited for her nod, perhaps surprised she hadn’t given him any clue to the timetable or her plans as to how they were going to escape. Judging by his expression he was shocked and affronted by her callous and graphic description of his death, here where no-one would care. His expression reminded her that just because she’d been surrounded by coarsely spoken inmates and soldiers for years didn’t mean that was how she’d been brought up. ‘Sorry, I shouldn’t have said all that.’

  ‘It’s okay,’ he murmured, ‘I’d rather you spoke plainly so I know what I face.’

  She noticed he straightened though, obviously appreciating the sentiment of her apology. She watched closely as he simply rested his hand over the lock. He closed his eyes in concentration and a moment later a click rewarded their attention. ‘Stay here for a minute,’ she told him, ‘it’s safer for you.’

  He watched her pick up the scrap of cloth with the poisoned food and move silently from the cell. He hadn’t realised she was so tall. Were his eyes playing tricks on him? She seemed to become someone else as she receded down the dim corridor, someone bulkier and male, in short, one of the guards. Now that was a neat trick.

  She cursed under her breath that Jim may have seen something of her change, but it couldn’t be helped. She didn’t want the other prisoners to know something was up just yet. Fortunately most were still eating, there being no need for haste; they weren’t paying much attention to anything else. She slouched confidently down the centre of the corridor as the soldiers did, moving swiftly without appearing to be in a hurry. She paused just outside the guardroom listening, but the real guards hadn’t yet returned.

  She slipped inside the guardroom and found the food trolley meant for the guards sitting just inside the door, their plates all covered to retain the warmth. She swiftly appropriated a reasonably clean discarded cloth and removed all the meat from the two plates, replacing it with the lumps of poisoned potato. She gratefully put on someone’s change of tunic and breeches; they fit better than the rags she was wearing. She’d grown out of the clothes she’d come in since her imprisonment as a young teenager and lacking any replacements, her clothes were barely decent and in rotted shreds. She was relieved to discard them. Spotting a small dagger she tucked it in her belt. It was a weapon of sorts. She almost pounced on a sword hanging high on the wall. Its scabbard featured a handy shoulder strap so she slung it across her back. She was just deciding her time was about up when she spotted a large backpack. It smelt of Jim so she grabbed it. Well laden now, particularly with the surprisingly heavy backpack, she slipped out of the guardroom and up an adjoining corridor. She could hear the guardsmen approaching down the stairs and ran. It wouldn’t do for the man she was impersonating to see her.

  Jim was watching for her and silently opened the gate for her when she got back. He exclaimed under his breath when she handed over his pack. She was only too happy for him to take it and thus carry it. She hoped it also contained some intact food supplies. While he checked his pack, she ate part of the stolen food. She was amazed at how much better she felt with a full belly; physically stronger and more able. She wrapped her weapons and the other half of the food into the rough thin blanket she’d also found. She then noticed Jim was watching her.

  ‘I put the poison into the guards’ food. Hopefully they’ll both have eaten it by now. I doubt between two it’ll be enough to kill them, but it should put them out of action for a while. Certainly the server had left already so they are the only two down here. You could go and open up the cells. With all the weapons in the guard room the other prisoners will have a chance to fight their way out. That’ll be good cover to slip away under.’

  ‘But going with them isn’t what you’re planning, is it?’ Jim asked her.

  ‘No. I decided long ago the Portal was for me. Goodbye Jim and good luck,’ she said and slipped out of the cell once more but in the opposite direction.

  Jim swiftly opened the cell next to theirs, told the suddenly alert prisoner in it that the guards were probably sick from poison and bid him go see and get the keys for the other cells. Jim also opened the cell opposite because the man was excitedly watching and listening and would help improve the odds if the guards weren’t already unconscious.

  ‘If all of you are free and have the weapons from the guard’s room, you have a good chance of getting out,’ Jim told them before turning and running after Amelie. Rounding a corner he found her at the locked gate to a small bare room beyond and out of sight of the other cells. Behind them were shouts and the clash of weapons. The other prisoners obviously weren’t using stealth to get out and judging by the screams, were already fighting their way out.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ Amelie asked.

  ‘Unlocking this gate for you,’ Jim said. ‘Assuming the lock still works,’ he added noting she’d been trying to pick the lock with a dagger, a wholly unsuitable item, particularly when used with the force of frustration.

  ‘Hurry,’ she whispered. ‘Someone’s coming.’

  Fortunately the lock succumbed to his magic. They entered the cell and she bid him lock it again just as a pair of escaped prisoners appeared. Jim waved her behind him and put his finger to his lips.

  ‘He must be down here somewhere Col. This is the way he went.’

  ‘I know, but d
o you see him? Damn wizard would have been handy. Check that gate. Hmm, locked like all the others. Brady isn’t going to be very impressed with us. He was counting on that lad. Maybe he isn’t as green as he looked. Come on, let’s get back, it’s a dead end and there’s nothing here. It sounds like we’re missing all the action.’

  Amelie stared from the men just outside the gate to Jim in astonishment. The corridor held shadows cast by the dim flickering lanterns, but it was sufficient light to reach them in the cell. Jim held out one hand towards the men, but his other had quickly gone to press against his brow. There was strain on his face.

  ‘You can make us invisible?’ she whispered once the men had gone.

  ‘Yes. But they could still have touched or heard us. It only worked because we’re safely back here in this room and not moving.’

  ‘They were looking for you,’ Amelie said evenly. ‘I’d imagine that particular skill would be very useful right now to the others. Was it hard to do?’

  ‘Not normally, but they hit me on the head earlier, trying to knock me out I think. It’s hard to concentrate with such a headache.’

  She pondered that for a moment, before noticing he was watching her, his attention reminding her they had to hurry. Those men had been looking expressly for Jim; someone might head this way again to double check. She could do without rioting or even panicked prisoners messing up their exit.

  ‘What can you turn into?’ Jim asked quickly. ‘Anything that can get us both down to ground level and in one piece?’ he added hopefully. There was no way he wanted to take his chances out the front door after hearing those two men. He’d heard horror stories of wizards being captured and forced to do all manner of unpalatable things at their captor’s whim. Then, once they’d served their purpose or tried to escape, were killed. Knowing that wizards were indeed as vulnerable to blackmail as ordinary men took some of the public’s respectful awe away. Wizards had the same flaws as regular people and were not above the law. The main difference was that if they became unhinged, they had the ability to become dangerous beyond regular people’s power to halt. They could also be turned into a scary weapon. It was why the authorities tolerated the wizard’s guild. One of its responsibilities was policing the activities of its members. As a registered member, albeit a student, he should have been brought before his peers for judgement of any perceived crime. Being thrown in a common jail instead, indicated he was in the hands of men who preferred to secretly destroy anyone with magic, whether he was guilty of a crime or not.

  ‘I don’t know. I’ve never changed into an animal before,’ she admitted, rather taken aback by his calm acceptance of her ability and also his lack of ridicule. ‘What creature do you suggest?’

  ‘Do you know what country this Portal comes out into?’

  ‘I believe its South Rosh. That’s what that symbol there means doesn’t it? In the old Erien tongue?’ she added, keeping a close eye on his reaction.

  ‘Where? Oh yes; now I see it. It’s not very easy to read carvings on stone in this amount of darkness you know. Well, South Rosh. There’s a lot of wild country there, mountains and forests. I’ve even heard tell of dragons there. How about that as a creature? They’re big and strong and have wings. If anyone sees you they could think you a local creature.’

  ‘OK, I’ll have to think about it. You have a look at the Portal, see how it opens.’ She hoped he’d concentrate on that, rather than watch her first attempts to change. Whilst her parents had assured her she had the ability, she’d never been allowed to try it. She moved into the deepest shadow and removed her clothes, tucking them into her bundle. Then she knelt and concentrated on a memory of a real dragon she’d seen as a child. She remembered her father’s words that it took concentration and perfect recall of her chosen creature’s form to change successfully. That meant remembering all the details, and being able to visualise them correctly. For instance, exactly what kind of feet did her form have, how many toes, were her ears round or pointed? That required feat of memory, alongside an extra powerful talent, was one of the reasons few people could change into more than one form. He had also said that once the correct anatomical form had been achieved, something in the magic settled and it was easier to maintain the shape. Being a horse with deer hooves would feel wrong magically and be difficult to maintain. She only need experiment until she felt right; assuming she had the time and strength to keep amending herself. A quick change was best and took least strength.

  Just thinking about it like that, her whole body shimmered strangely. She was wrenched into a different posture and she was suddenly radically altered. She was so shocked she lost her concentration and became fully human again. She took a shaky breath; she could do this. She had to do this, for both their sakes. Perhaps she should start with one part of her body first? She stared at her arm and it burned and blurred. A moment later she was staring in glee at an arm covered in blue scales and tipped in long shiny black talons. Her confidence boosted, she concentrated on each part of her body in turn until she stood on four legs and gingerly flexed large powerful wings one at a time in the confined space. She glanced at Jim and found him wide eyed and staring. ‘Do I look right?’ she asked, her voice deep and strangely inflected now she had a dragon’s long toothy snout and tongue.

  ‘I can’t see you too well,’ Jim stammered and stepped back as the rest of the dragon came out of the shadows.

  ‘Quickly, we haven’t much time,’ Amelie urged, hearing shouting closer than before down by the cells. It sounded as though a pitched battle was taking place down there. Sooner or later, someone would come this way again and might see them use the portal. She really didn’t want that information and where they were headed to be known for sure. Ideally the guards might assume she had escaped out the front, in the general confusion.

  ‘Tie my bundle round my neck.’ She waited to be sure it was securely attached before tapping a small square on the wall that had a faint glow. A large circle of glowing white light appeared in the wall.

  ‘I don’t know if I’m going to be strong enough to catch you,’ she warned honestly. ‘You can still go out the other way,’ she suggested, aware of his hesitation. ‘Thank you for your help.’ She glanced once more at him then jumped through.

  2

  Freedom

  She was suddenly almost blinded by the late afternoon sun blazing in her eyes. She hadn’t seen the sun in over two years. She’d almost forgotten its brilliance and the warmth its light bestowed. Wind whistled past her ears and she realised she was actually gliding. Her adopted form’s nature had automatically opened her wings, tilting them to turn her away from the sun so she could then see where she was. She circled below the strange spot of shadow in the sky, waiting for Jim. She kept part of her attention on that and part on learning to fly. She also scanned the new landscape checking for possibly dangerous denizens or people below. Anything could be lurking in such a wild extensive forest. But the multiple shades of green, fresh air and natural vista calmed her and made her feel welcome. Close by was a cleared area and she wondered if the tumbled blackened stone were the ruined remains of a village. The portal would have come out just here for a reason. She wasn’t sure how they would mark the position of an air portal from this side but they must have somehow. She knew that as soon as Jim came through, or indeed left, and the presence of magic next to the opened door was gone, the door would automatically close on the prison side. The strange shadow she could see would vanish too. She hoped he came through soon, the longer the portal was so conspicuously open, the more chance there was of discovery.

  A shriek announced Jim’s arrival. His swiftly falling body just missed slamming into and probably breaking one of her wings. She hastily pointed her nose in his direction, tucked her wings back and dived. He fell horizontally face up, his blond hair whipping round his face whilst he tried to reach out to her. Panic was written all over his face and he wasn’t even seeing how terrifyingly fast the ground was coming up to meet them. It s
eemed to take forever to reach him, but could only have been moments. She grabbed hold of him with all four feet and immediately opened her wings. She gasped at the savage wrench in her wing muscles but grimly held on to him. Her wings helped slow them a little but they’d built up considerable speed. Jim was very heavy and awkward to carry which didn’t at all help matters. She desperately beat her wings attempting to slow the speed of their descent. She was glad this form had four legs; she needed all of them to keep hold and spread the weight of a man taller, broader and far heavier than her. All she could do was circle, spiralling down over the only open space she could see. She was exhausted by the time she was able to drop him close enough to earth not to shatter him. She swept on and touched down awkwardly, nearly falling on her face. Her legs were wobbly with fatigue and her whole body was jarred by the impact of landing. She sank to the ground where she lay, gasping for breath.

  She managed to catch the bundle from round her neck with a front paw and drag it off over her head. Her talons cut the single tie and she nosed inside to the slices of meat she’d brought. She ate everything there and knew she could have eaten the same again several times over. Fortunately the food did help revive her somewhat. Her body had burned through her earlier food in minutes; but it had been worth it. She’d even managed to save Jim’s life. After all these years, she was finally free!

  She picked up her bundle and slaked her thirst at the small river she’d spied from above in amongst the trees. The cool water was deliciously fresh and clean.