Eye of the Wizard: A Fantasy Adventure

by Daniel Arenson

  He looked at Cobweb.

  She nodded.

  Scruff burst out from the trees, brandishing Norman. "Halt!" he shouted, and Cobweb popped out beside him, an arrow drawn in her bow.

  The first thing Scruff noticed was that, as they had walked between the trees, they had come to a decaying stone tower. It stood by a hill twenty yards ahead, round and mossy, rising from burnt earth. The second thing Scruff noticed was that twenty other robed figures were leaving the tower, walking toward them.

  "Ohhhh...," Cobweb said, the air leaving her lungs.

  "Uhm, hi there," Scruff said to the robed figures. They stood, black and silent, watching him from the shadows of their hoods. "Sorry to intrude, but...."

  The figures pulled back their hoods, and Scruff's voice trailed off. The fear and memories flooded him, washing him with cold sweat, making his knees tremble.

  "Gwobbwers...," Cobweb whispered.

  Grobblers.

  Cobweb released an arrow. It slammed into one grobbler. The creature—half beauty, half crone—pulled it out and tossed it aside, laughing. The other grobblers, their faces half angelic and half monstrous, came stepping toward them.

  "Run!" Scruff shouted. He and Cobweb fled. The grobblers followed. Scruff's heart hammered. Behind, the grobblers screeched.

  Scruff slipped in the mud. His face hit the ground. He shouted, and an instant later, he felt grobbler claws grab him. He thrashed, blinded with mud, kicking and swinging Norman, struggling to get up. He felt claws wrench his mace away, and the screeches nearly deafened him.

  "Take them alive!" one grobbler screamed, voice inhumanly high pitched. "Dry Bones said to take them alive."

  "Cobweb!" Scruff tried to scream, but grobbler fists punched him. A few were kicking him; the grobblers' right feet were the dainty feet of young maidens, but their left feet were the clawed, gnarled feet of crones, bruising like clubs. They placed a sack over Scruff's head, tossed chains around him, and kept kicking. Scruff struggled well; he probably killed—or at least knocked out—a few of the monsters. But they were too many. Soon they had him chained up, a sack over his head, and he felt them lifting him.

  "Cobweb!" he called again, but heard no response. Had she escaped? Had the grobblers grabbed her too? Had they killed her?

  Scruff did not know, and he howled in despair.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Break Some Bones

  Dragging her feet along the forest road, her shoulders slumped, Romy whined. "We've been following the road for hours. I'm tired. I want to rest."

  Walking beside the demon, her sword dangling over her back, Jamie rolled her eyes. "What kind of demon gets tired? Aren't demons supposed to be fearsome?"

  "I am fearsome," Romy said and gave a tired growl. It didn't even scare the sparrows who chirped in the beech branches. "I'm fearsomely tired."

  "That"—Jamie said—"makes no sense."

  "It's a pun," said Romy, kicking stones and acorns that littered the dirt road.

  Jamie drew her sword and swiped it through the air, making whistling sounds. "No it's not. A pun would be, 'I'm tired as hell'. Just saying you're fearsomely tired is nonsensical."

  "I'm devilishly tired."

  "That still don't work."

  Romy moaned and stamped her feet. "Whatever, can we just rest?"

  Neev was walking beside them, wearing his new green cloak, his hood pulled over his head. He himself was tired. His new boots still needed working in, leaving his feet sore. His new spellbook, the one from Sandoory's Sundry Spellbooks and Scrolls, felt heavy in his backpack. He hadn't slept well last night, what with Romy cuddling against him, snoring and drooling on his chest. Worst of all was listening to Jamie and Romy bicker; the girls had been at it all day.

  "Girls, knock it off," he said, the first time he'd spoken in a while. His voice sounded hoarse, and he pulled a skin from his belt and sipped some ale. "We'll walk until that hill ahead, then rest."

  Romy sighed. She got on all fours in the mud, lowered her head, and sniffed the ground like a bloodhound. Then she rose, brushed mud off her knees and elbows, and nodded. "Yona walked here not an hour ago."

  "And you're sure it's him," Neev said.

  Romy tossed back her hair of flame and pouted. "Of course I'm sure. I'd recognize his smell anywhere. He smells... wrong."

  "So do you, Romy," Jamie said. "You still smell like old beer."

  They kept walking, the forest thick around them. The rain, which had drenched them earlier, returned as a drizzle. The branches of the trees hung low with water, and Neev noticed deer running between the trunks. Once he thought he spotted a bear, but it soon vanished. As he walked, he thought about this merchant who sent them into a trap. Yona either worked for Dry Bones, or was Dry Bones in disguise, that much was obvious to Neev. The question remained: Why did he want them dead?

  A speck of color tore Neev away from his thoughts. Something blue lay ahead upon the mud. Neev approached the object; it was a frayed, plumed hat. Yona's hat.

  Romy sniffed the hat. "It's him." She stiffened and sniffed again. "And I smell fire."

  Jamie pointed south. "Look."

  Neev followed her gaze and saw smoke, as from a campfire, rising between the trees. It looked less than a mile away. "That might be him," Neev said, feeling a chill. It might be Dry Bones. Suddenly this quest frightened him. Dry Bones was a great warlock; they could not hope to defeat him in battle. Why were they chasing him?

  Because chasing is better than running, Neev answered himself. Because, if we run, he'll catch us, he'll kill us. There's no fleeing Dry Bones. But if we chase him, if we get him by surprise... we might just stand a chance. It's a one in a million, but we've got to try.

  "We split up," Neev whispered. "Jamie, you sneak up from the left and use your sword. I'll take the right with some fireball magic. Romy, you jump out behind him, and don't hesitate to use your pitchfork. Take position, then wait for my signal. Got it?"

  The girls looked frightened. Jamie was pale, and Romy bit her lip to stop it from trembling. But they both nodded. Good. Neev himself felt fear tingle, but he forced it down.

  They split up, leaving the road, moving between the trees as silently as possible. Even in her armor, Jamie was surprisingly silent, and Romy sneaked between the trees like a cat.

  Neev opened his new spellbook, leafed through the pages, and whispered the words to Sandoory's Silencing Spell. Sparks flew, landing around his feet, encasing them with silence. Though he snapped twigs and scattered leaves, his steps made no sound. Good spell, he thought. It didn't even irritate his jinx too badly; he coughed up a furball, but nothing else happened. I'll use the spell on Romy next time she sings.

  But for now he had to focus on the task ahead, not on Romy. As Neev moved, his fear tingled his throat, jerked his heart, and spun his head. He forced it down and kept moving until, after moments that seemed eternal, he saw the campfire between the trees. The fire burned on the roadside, and Neev saw a hunched figure sitting by it, hidden in a cloak.

  Neev took three slow breaths, then shouted, "Now!"

  He leaped onto the road, a spell on his lips, a fireball forming in his hands, ready to toss. The spell made feathers sprout from his head, but he barely noticed them. His heart hammered and his fingers trembled. He saw Jamie burst from the trees across the road, sword in hand, while Romy swooped down from a treetop ahead, fangs bared and hair flaming.

  The cloaked figure looked up, the hood falling from his head.

  It was Dry Bones.

  Neev stood, legs parted, hands flaming with a fireball. This was a fireball summoned from the depths of Hell, a fire that could burn through anything, white hot.

  "Dry Bones!" Neev said, heart racing.

  The skeleton warlock smiled—as much as a skull could smile. "Well hello, Neev!" he said. "How have you been? I see your jinx is still bothering you. And if it isn't the demon you summoned!"

  Neev remained wary, keeping the fire in his palms, ready to toss the fla
mes should Dry Bones make any sudden moves. Jamie remained with her sword raised, and Romy snarled in the air, wings flapping, fangs and pitchfork glinting.

  "What are you doing here?" Neev asked the skeleton, the fireball tingling his fingers.

  Dry Bones shrugged as if unperturbed by the sight of the weapons surrounding him. "I'm traveling to Queenpool to visit my favorite shop, Sandoory's Sundry Spellbooks and Scrolls. They sell the best potion ingredients, and I need some badger spleens. Ever been to to Queenpool, Neev?"

  Romy frowned and sniffed. "I'm confused," she said. "He smells like the merchant, but he doesn't look like him."

  Dry Bones rose to his feet, bones creaking. Neev raised his hands, preparing to toss the fireball. Just give me a reason to roast you, he thought. Make a sudden move, and your bones will burn.

  "Neev," Dry Bones said, this time his voice more stern, "you should return the demon to Hell."

  A glint caught his eye, and Neev noticed that Dry Bones wore Yona's ruby rings.

  It was him.

  "You tried to lure us into a trap," Neev said, a snarl finding his lips, the fireball still in his palms. "Why? Talk or I'll kill you."

  Dry Bones smiled. "Well, my boy, see—"

  Suddenly Dry Bones lashed a fireball at Jamie.

  Damn it!

  The warlock was fast. Neev hadn't even see him move. As Jamie raised her shield, blocking the fireball, Neev hurled his own fireball at Dry Bones.

  Jamie screamed, her shield encased in flame. Growling, she lunged forward with her sword. Neev's fireball slammed into Dry Bones, and the warlock's cloak caught flame. The skeleton howled.

  Jamie was on him with her sword, slashing. Romy thrust her pitchfork, screaming, "Take that, Bony!"

  The girls kept stabbing, and Dry Bones burned like a torch. The flaming warlock fell to the ground, and the girls began stomping him. They jumped up and down on the flaming robes, howling. From the fire, Dry Bones screamed, his bones cracking.

  "Be careful!" Neev shouted to the girls. "Stay away from him!"

  But he was too late.

  Stomped under the jumping girls, Dry Bones shouted a spell. Magic crackled. Black lightning flew.

  The bolt of black power hit Jamie's leg. She screamed, blood gushing on her thigh, and fell.

  "Jamie!" Neev screamed. His heart seemed to shatter. He ran forward and began kicking the fallen Dry Bones.

  "Bad, bad warlock!" Romy shouted, still jumping on top of Dry Bones. Tears in her eyes, she stabbed her pitchfork down hard, screaming. Dry Bones cried in pain. He shouted more spells, and more magic crackled.

  "Jump away!" Neev shouted and grabbed Romy, pulling her off the warlock. He pushed her onto the ground and leaped onto her, shielding the demon with his body. Dry Bones' magic boomed, rustling the leaves in the trees, nearly deafening Neev. For a moment the world seemed black.

  When he could see again, he pushed himself off Romy and turned around. Behind him, he couldn't see Dry Bones, only the warlock's smoldering robes. The skeleton was no where to be seen. Jamie lay beside the burning robes, clutching her bleeding leg, her face pale.

  "Where is he?" Romy asked, leaping to her feet, her fangs bared and her claws glinting. She breathed heavily, chest rising and falling.

  "He teleported away," Neev said, the wind ruffling the feathers that grew from his head. "I've seen him do it the night he burned Burrfield. It's a spell few warlocks know, but Dry Bones has mastered it." He rushed to Jamie and knelt by her. "Jamie. Let me see."

  Jamie lay on the ground, trembling, her hands covering her wound. Her face was pale and ashy, and the flames had blackened her armor and boots. "It hurts," she whispered through clenched teeth. Suddenly Neev realized how young she was; only fifteen. She always seemed so mature, like an adult, but now she was but a child, tears in her eyes.

  Gently, Neev moved her hands and examined her wound. It was a deep cut, gushing blood; Neev thought an artery might be cut.

  "Got a little bump on the leg there," he said.

  Jamie moaned. "Am I going to die?" she whispered.

  Neev snorted. "Yes, because I'm going to kill you. Jumping on a warlock? You should never get too close to a warlock."

  Romy nodded. "But at least we squished him good."

  Neev rummaged through his backpack and found his medical kit. Fingers trembling, he bound Jamie's leg in a tourniquet. Next he gave her a stick to bite, wiped sweat off her brow, and splashed her wound with alcohol from a bottle. Jamie screamed, biting her stick, and tried to kick him with her good leg. Struggling to steady his fingers, Neev threaded a needle and tried to ignore Jamie's screams as he stitched her wound. Finally he bandaged her leg, wiped his hands, and took a deep breath.

  "How you feeling, sis?" he asked.

  "I am going to kill you!" Jamie said, trembling, and tried to kick him again.

  He patted her brow with a handkerchief. "Stay off that leg for a while, and you'll be fine," he said. He brushed the damp hair off her forehead. "You fought well, sis. I'm proud of you."

  She gave him a faint smile. "Thanks, big bro."

  Romy sniffed and wiped a tear from her eye. She leaned down and hugged Jamie, who still lay on the ground. "I'm so glad you're alive," the demon said, and Jamie weakly hugged her back.

  Neev straightened and sighed. Dry Bones, he knew, could return any moment, or at least send grobblers after them. The warlock was wounded, but far from defeated. And now—with Jamie hurt and Dry Bones aware of their whereabouts—they were in greater danger than ever.

  Neev shivered.

  "Help me find two strong branches," he said to Romy. "We must build Jamie a litter, then get the hell out of here."

  * * * * *

  The dungeon was small, round, and moldy. Scruff sat on the stone floor, his wrists chained behind his back and fastened to the wall. Cobweb sat across from him, similarly chained. Spiders crawled in the dark, weaving their webs, oblivious of the two prisoners. The only light came from Cobweb's glowing hair, an angelic gleam.

  "Well, at least we're out of the rain," Scruff said, hoping to cheer things up. Cobweb smiled faintly, a smile soon gone. The grobblers had slapped her face, giving her a fat lip, and had torn her dress, leaving one shoulder bare, but she was otherwise unharmed. Scruff himself was bruised and battered, but that bothered him less than his clothes that would not dry, clinging to his skin, clammy.

  Worst of all: he knew that Dry Bones was on his way.

  He'll kill me and enslave Cobweb, Scruff thought. They had been in this dungeon for hours, and Scruff had time enough to reflect, to figure things out. He was not as clever as his siblings, but when he thought things over, he could often reach the proper conclusions. Yona and Dry Bones were one person; that seemed obvious to Scruff now. The skeleton loved Cobweb and wanted the other Bullies dead. They had escaped until now, but it seemed their luck had run out.

  "I wonder if he captured the others," he said. "Jamie and Neev and Romy."

  "Wet's hope fow da b-best," Cobweb said. "Jamie has a stwong bwade. Neev is a wawwock himsewf, or awmost a wawwock. And Womy is n-n-nobody to mess wit, what wit hew f-fangs and c-cwaws and p-pitchfowk." Sweat beaded on her brow as she struggled with so many words, but Cobweb plowed on. "As faw as we know, dey'we wooking fow us now and wiww save us." She blew out her breath in exhaustion and smiled.

  "Yeah," Scruff said, but didn't feel optimistic. It would take more than his siblings (and Romy) to storm this tower. Scruff lowered his chin to his chest. He had not felt this helpless since five years ago, when he was only thirteen, when Dry Bones burned Burrfield and killed his parents. What does he want from us? Dry Bones had referred to Father as an old friend; the warlock probably had some feud with Father, but it seemed unfair that he should also hunt the next Thistle generation.

  Scruff wished he still had Norman. At least he'd be able to fantasize about bashing Dry Bones' skull. But the grobblers had taken the mace, along with his armor, backpack, and Cobweb's weapons.

  A spider
began crawling across Scruff's shoulder. He shifted in his chains, trying to shake it off. The spider climbed onto his nose. Scruff was about to blow his breath at it, knocking it off, but remembered that Cobweb loved spiders and let it be.

  I'm sorry, Mom, Dad, he thought, eyes closed. I promised to avenge your deaths, but I failed. The despair washed over him.

  He opened his eyes and looked at Cobweb. Looking at her comforted him. Even in the dark, wet and battered, she looked beautiful, the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. It seemed crazy that her elders had banished her, all because of how she spoke. Scruff did not see how that detracted from her purity; she was perfect the way she was.

  "My c-cwan wouwd suwe be pwoud of me now," Cobweb said with a sigh. "A fine adventuwe I'm having; I d-didn't wast twee monts away fwom my fowest. If dey saw me now, I'd be da joke of da cwan."

  Scruff shifted, the chains chaffing his wrists. "Wouldn't they try to save you?"

  Cobweb shook her head. "Oh no. Dey'd tink me weak for getting c-c-caught, and if anyting is wowse den tawking wike a b-b-baby, it's weakness."

  "Well, I like how you talk. It's... cute." Scruff felt himself blush. He could imagine Jamie's voice in his head: "Smooth one, Don Juan."

  "Tank you," Cobweb said, smiling shyly. "B-b-but I wish I c-couwd tawk pwopewwy."

  A second spider climbed onto him, and Scruff tried to ignore it. "Have you ever heard of Moses?" he said.

  Cobweb shook her head.

  "Well," Scruff said, "he was a human who lived thousands of years ago. When he was a baby, he bit an ember, and it burned his tongue. For the rest of his life, he talked like you. But he became a great leader, despite his clumsy tongue." Scruff smiled. "If any spiderling makes fun of how you talk, just remember that story."

  "I wike dis stowy," Cobweb said, smiling and lowering her eyes.

  She's so cute, Scruff thought. Just looking at her made him all tingly. He shifted again and cleared his throat. "So... do you have a spiderling boyfriend?" He felt his ears burning, and he bit his lip, cursing himself.

  Cobweb laughed. "No... dewe are no b-boy spidewwings. Onwy giwws. We awe bown fwom watewfawws."