I walked up beside Alice, made sure my hood was in place and said, “How’s it going down here today?”
She said, “We have just over twenty penned down behind some rocks over th… Oh my stars! David what are you doing here?”
I said, “I couldn’t let you have all the fun, and since you’re our rock worker I thought you’d find this interesting.”
“Interesting? What’s interesting?” she asked confused.
I said, “Wave the girls over and let’s see how long it takes them to notice me. That should be interesting.”
She said, “Alright but anytime we quit firing the Orcs try to advance.”
I smiled and said that I’d handle the Orcs, I wanted to see faces. Alice waved Alba, Kiena, and Diana over to join us. They came in a crouch, firing energy bolts as they moved. I kept my back to them and called over the noise of the wands for them to follow me. I then started walking slowly directly for the Orcs and their hiding place. The girls were screaming for me to stop and come back. They just saw some idiot from town walking to he’s death! At thirty feet from the Orcs, the creatures broke cover using me as a shield. I watched them for a moment and then pictured dead Orcs. They all crumpled as if felled with a pole axe. I turned around and saw the girls still twenty yards behind me. I flipped back my hood and said, “I thought you were coming with me!”
Screams and squeals of delight rang through the woods that had just been a battlefield. Alba almost tackled me as she jumped into my arms to kiss me. She said, “I guess this means that our Master Wizard is back?”
I grinned and everyone giggled. “I think this means that he’s back and is bigger and badder.” I said.
I turned to Alice, “Now this is the part that I thought you’d want to see.” I looked at the one hundred fifty yard gap that was now called ‘Orcs Pass’. I saw debris from my failed attempt to close it a couple weeks before. I made sure that all the girls were standing behind me and then I built an impassible wall of rock in my mind. When I was happy with it I spread my arms and let the energy of my visualization flow and an upheaval came from the depths of the earth. I watched as a solid wall rose a thousand feet into the air blocking any entry from the south, except for birds. When it was high enough I lowered my arms and turned back to the girls. They were standing there awe-struck and in shock over what they had just witnessed.
I said, “Do you think that the king will insist that the wizards guard this spot now? Because, if not, I have hot showers and soft beds at my place and you are welcome to them.”
We walked back to where the officer in charge of the troop on duty sat astride his horse, staring at the rock wall that wasn’t there moments before. I asked him if he would go with us to the king and bear witness that there was no further danger from this place. All the poor man could do was nod. I asked him to step off his horse. I asked for the girls to join hands and I put a hand on the officers’ shoulder, and we were on the steps of the keep in Rosenwood. The officer looked around, shocked, for a moment and then led us to the doors of the throne room. I put my hood back up. I wasn’t exactly sure I’d forgiven the king for taking MY wizards.
We were granted audience and approached the kings’ dais. The officer started to give his report when the king snapped, “What are the wizards doing here? They are supposed to be out protecting us from their masters’ sabotage!”
The officer spoke, “But that is what I’m here to report, your majesty! Pass has been completely sealed and we won’t have to have it guarded anymore!”
The king jumped from his throne and stalked to the edge of the dais, “You’ve been fooled by a wizard trick! You know how deceptive and dishonest they are! They are just bored with their duty and have found a way to get out of it!” The king shouted.
From under my hood I spoke, “All three of your daughters are, and there is a good chance your grandson will be, a wizard. Are you saying the same things about them?” I growled.
“And so what if I am! They were perfect ladies of the court before they met that David. And who are you to speak to me in that tone from hiding?” the king boiled.
I removed my hood and said, “I am ‘that David’ and I’m the one who is going to show you that the pass has, indeed, been blocked.” I smiled to the girls and waited for my eyes to adjust to the sun. “You see, your majesty, off to your right is the group of Orcs that my wizards were engaged with when I arrived today.
The king was spinning in circles looking at the trees, clouds and dead Orcs. He was slightly in shock from being one place and suddenly another but I couldn’t find it in my heart to have sympathy for him.
He stopped spinning and looked at me. “David, Master Wizard, if you please…”
I interrupted and pointed to the massive wall of rock in front of me. “That, my good king, is where the pass used to be. Would you like to check it yourself and make sure that it is real? Who knows, it could just be a deceptive wizard trick!”
“Master Wizard, I am sorry. I spoke out of anger and in haste. I had listened too much to the local gossip and it had begun to sway me away from you and yours. Please forgive me and beg forgiveness from my daughters on my behalf.”
“Well, your highness is in luck. One of your daughters is in your throne room and heard your accusations herself. Perhaps you asking her, and the other wizards present, for their forgiveness would go a lot further than if I asked on your behalf.” I suggested almost kindly.
“I agree, and David, if I may…” I nodded and said ‘please‘. “David, you are a good man and I feel that I’ve wronged you. First, I wronged you by sending you to that terrible province without a warning. And then I wronged you again today, with my words of anger and mistrust. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me for the sake of an old grandfather.”
“I am a very forgiving person My Lord and I learned that from your daughters. Now let’s get you back before the gossip mill decides that I stole the king.” I chuckled.
I saw the king before his throne and me back in the spot I had been before we left, and we were there. The king quickly sat down and the guard started approaching behind us. The king raised his hand to stop the guard.
He said, “The Master Wizard and I had some talking to do and he wanted to show me how he’d fixed the pass. It can no longer be called a pass!” He stood and walked to the edge of the dais and then knelt. There was disruption and minor uproar as the people of the court attempted to get their heads lower than the king. “My daughter Alba and all of you young lady wizards deserve my apology. You heard me say some terrible things about wizards and I want to beg your forgiveness. If there is ever anything that I can do to help any of you, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
He stood and said to me, “Master Wizard. If there is nothing else that you need to bring to my attention, you may all return to your keep, with my blessing.
I nodded goodbye to him and asked the officer if he wanted to rejoin his detail. He nodded yes and he was there, standing beside his horse. I asked the girls if they were ready and they nodded yes and we were on the keep roof.
We walked downstairs and into my room. Isabel came out holding James and was surprised to see everyone. She asked if it was time for shift change already and Alba grinned. She happily informed her sister that we didn’t do guard duty anymore because David had built a mountain to keep the Orcs at bay. Isabel was quite, and understandably, confused but Alba was more than happy to fill her in on the story.
10.
A New Mission
Alba recounted the story of how I’d slain twenty Orcs by looking at them and then pulled a wall of rock from the earth by spreading my arms. The part that got the most reaction was when she, giggling, told that I’d abducted the king right out of the throne room. She said that the guards were talking about executing the wizards when that happened but the queen held them at bay. She said that when the king and I had returned the king had taken a knee, at which Isabel gasped, and begged for forgiveness from the wizards an
d his daughters.
At the end of the story my wife said, “David, I believe that it’s time to talk.” She handed the baby to Alba and led me to our room. “I know that something has changed. You look… different. I can’t say how exactly but there is defiantly something…not the same.”
I said, “I’ve just finally discovered how it all works! The magic that I’ve been teaching you and the girls is powerful and useful but it is just the doorway. It helps you grasp the basics but it isn’t the end. You know how you can cast chain lightning without the words? Just by thinking of the target and what you want to happen?” Isa nodded. “That’s the real power. Perhaps it’s just going to take more time and practice but I’m sure that you’ll be here too.”
“Where is ‘here’, David? What do you mean? What can you do now that you couldn’t do before?” she rambled, confused and scared.
“I’m not sure exactly what I mean yet, my love. I know that, even with you ten feet away I could transport us both to wherever you chose. I know that if I wanted Wizard Keep to be on a five thousand foot mountain, I could put it there. The mountain would come from beneath our feet! What I can do is amazing and honestly, a bit frightening. But what I’m most interested in is what I can’t do.”
Isabel looked at me more confused and scared than she had been when we came in. “So, where do we go from here? What do we do?”
I smiled and put my arms around her. “I’m still David, the man who loves you. I suggest that we just continue on as we have been with the wizard training and helping the people. I’m sure that as everyone advances they will see the light and know what I know. Everyone seems to specialize in one skill or another with time. I was the ‘jack-of-all-trades’ and didn’t have one special skill. All this is new to me too, so I’ll train just like everyone else.”
She whispered, “I love you and think you should know that your new power frightens me. Not because of what you might do with it, but of what it might do to you. Never forget who you are, my love.”
“I have you, James and the girls that I consider more important than myself. I understand your concern and want you to help me keep an eye on myself. Just call my attention to anything stupid that I do!” I smiled
“So, what now?” she asked.
“Now, I think that we should have a meeting with everyone. Let’s round up the girls and meet in the meeting room downstairs.” I said.
She nodded and we walked out the door. She went downstairs knocking on doors and I took the third floor and then went to the roof. I teleported over to the range, grabbed Alba and the two new girls, and told them of the meeting. Alba recalled us to the roof and I had already forgotten how slow recall was! By the time we got downstairs everyone was in the meeting room. There were many different reactions when I walked in. I saw relief on some faces that I was up and about, fear on the faces that had seen me pull a mountain out of the ground, and an almost worshipful awe on the youngest of our company.
I went to the front and everyone got quiet. I said, ‘I have been hearing a lot of rumors. I’ve heard that the wizards have tried to sabotage the country and I know the basis for that rumor. The things you might not know, because of your border watching job, is that there are stories that the wizards have gone bad and, not only are they opening the kingdom up to the Orcs, but they are attacking and robbing the citizens! There are stories of wizards breaking in to rich manors in the north and removing everything they can find of value. These people are killing the reputation that we have worked hard to gain. I don’t know who they are, and I want to. We need to locate one of them and bring them here to be questioned. Most people in the kingdom have heard that I’d lost my magical ability and only a very few know that I have a little of it back.’ That brought giggles from a few of the girls. ‘So, if you ladies ever need something to do, hunt wizards. But be very careful because, I doubt that they will have the same values as we do. Always be shielded and there is no shame in running.’ I stopped and waited for questions.
Chloe asked, ‘how should we go about locating them? They seem to be all over the north.’ I replied, ‘Perhaps you all could work with Elaine. Her remote viewing skill would be much faster than trying to hop from place to place.’ Elaine nodded her agreement. Kiena asked, ‘if we catch one how do we get them here? Won’t they just recall?’ I suggested, ‘If you grab one of them and recall I would imagine that you could drag them here. The existence of these other wizards is a new thing so I think that they can’t be very skilled. Each of you knows that the more that you work with magic the stronger it gets. Over-powering them shouldn’t be a problem. The only issue that I could foresee would be if Diana or Jennifer were the ones that tried to bring them in. That’s why I want you to work in teams with the more experienced wizards working with the less.’ Isabel spoke up, ‘David, when we get them here, how are we going to prevent them from recalling out the second that we don’t have hold of them? How will we hold them long enough for questioning?’ I smiled and said, ‘when you get them here, I’ll keep them here.’ Alba laughed playfully, ‘and how is the ‘big, bad Master Wizard going to do that?’ I looked at her and gave my cheesiest grin, ‘Well, why don’t you recall away from the big, bad Master Wizard and I’ll show you!’
Everyone in the room turned and looked at our playful, ornery wizard. At first we saw the focus on her face and then she looked startled. She focused again and whispered receptui and nothing happened. I put my arm up like I was draping it over the shoulder of an invisible person and teleported her to my arm and squeezed her. There was a gasp from everyone in the room and I leaned over and kissed Alba on the cheek.
I looked around the room and said, ‘Are there anymore questions?’ If we’d had crickets in the keep, I’m sure we would have heard them. The only noise was the sounds of shaking heads. I leaned over and whispered to Alba, ‘Did the big, bad Master Wizard actually render you speechless? Magic must be more powerful than I thought!’ She giggled and that broke the tension.
I looked at everyone and grinned, “Well, if there are no more questions I suggest we eat!” I walked out and told the kitchen staff that we were eating in the meeting room this evening.
11.
To Catch a Friend
A very quiet and happy month went by. At least it was happy for me. I could feel the tension in the air and knew that I was the cause. I didn’t know how to fix it. I was no threat to anyone but, as the word had spread of my actions at Orcs Pass, an invisible wall seemed to go up between the wizards and the citizens of the kingdom. We’d had a friendly, but respectful rapport, but as the rumors grew and the twisted retelling of rumor happened, that changed. We had all liked it better when we were thought of as friends and people that cared about everyone. The trouble in the north did nothing to help us befriend the people. The wizards in black had proven more elusive than I’d hoped.
Speaking of ‘wizards in black’ and ‘wizards in brown’ I’ve given up my wizard’s uniform. I had the tailor put a hood on my cape and I’ve taken to just wearing it with my appropriate attire. I’m still recognizable enough, because of the cape. The girls had asked if they were going to be changing too and I had rejected that idea. They still looked much better in the wizard’s uniform than I ever had, and I told them that often. Sometimes I wondered if I was going to have the first sexual harassment lawsuit in the kingdom, but the girls knew that I that I meant my comments as compliments. I was loved, if not by the people of the kingdom, by the people that actually knew me.
“David! On the roof!” The call cut through my quiet reflections, and I was standing on the roof. A young girl of twelve or thirteen was being held in place by a grim looking Alba. The girl would mumble then shimmer, Alba’s face would look determined and the shimmering would stop. I walked toward her and took her ability to recall. I then nodded to Alba, who released her. Alba warned, ‘David, she still has her wand.’ Exactly at that same time the girl raised her hand with her wand and fired an energy bolt directly at me. I noticed tha
t it didn’t have the pure white light of the energy bolts that my girls produced. That made me wonder…. Later. I smiled at the girl as the energy bolt hit my tunic and dissipated into nothing.
I said, “Well, we know that you know recall and energy bolt. That’s a start. How long have you been training to be a wizard?”
The girls’ voice was shaky and shocked to be talked to in a friendly tone after an attack, ‘just over a month.’
I smiled my most friendly smile and said, “We have a couple young ladies that have been training just a little longer than you. If you don’t mind, I’d like to see something. You won’t be harmed as long as you are in my care. You have my word.” I nodded to Alba who went to fetch Diana and Jennifer. “It should just take a few minutes for them to get here so I’d like to get to know you. My name is David and this is my keep. I’m sorry we had to drag you here like this, but you have been quite difficult to locate!
The girl nodded, “That’s because of the invisibility spell from the Lady Melodie.”
I fought off a grin and said questioningly, “The Lady Melodie?”
“Yes” she said emphatically, “She joined up with Sir Gildon and helped him with magic. She is a master of invisibility and taught it to all of us!”
“So, there are a lot of you then? We had heard of a few.” I said calmly trying to dig for information without seeming to.
“There were ten of us last time we all got together, counting Lady Melodie and Sir Gildon. Sir Gildon didn’t want to get to many, to fast because he said that you’d capture, torture and kill us.” tears sprang to her eyes, “You aren’t going to do that, are you?”
Sucker for tears… I walked over and knelt in front of her, “You remember what I said. No one will harm you as long as you are in my care. Sir Gildon wasn’t honest with you when he said I’d harm you. I have never intentionally harmed anyone, unless you count Orcs.”
The Wizards of Eredwynn 02 - Another Typical Day, Too Page 6