The Stone of Elsira

by Scott Kennedy

  Suddenly, five forest elves popped out of stacks of fallen leaves. The moment I caught a glance of the look on their faces I immediately knew that they were furious and were out for blood. I quickly reached into my back pocket and grabbed an invigorating potion that I had made the previous day. I gulped it down within seconds, just before three elves came lashing out at me. The one that reached me first was much slower than the others in his attack; I could read his movements easily. I ducked and hit him with a rising uppercut that instantly knocked him out. The other two came at me with flying kicks. I ducked again, this time, much lower, limbo style and evaded the kicks. I was able to catch a glimpse of my brother who seemed to be handling himself pretty well. He summoned a ghost that possessed one of the elves. The possessed elf proceeded to attack the fifth elf.

  I quickly refocused my attention back to my assailants as I arose. They were not armed, besides their claw-like nails. One of them came at me, throwing multiple nail punches and kicks at me. An ordinary human would have likely been unable to deal with the speed and strength of these elves, but the potion I had made boosted my strength, endurance and senses tremendously. I dodged and evaded the first myriad of attacks that he threw at me. He came again, with more blows, this time I blocked most of them. By the time he had finished his second wave of attacks, he had grown tired. I saw an opportunity and motioned towards him and struck my knife, straight into his heart. The other elf that initially attacked with him looked at his fallen comrade in shock. He had also now lowered his guard so I threw my second knife, straight into his neck. I walked over to the corpse and pulled my knife out. “How are you doing over there?” I asked my brother.

  “No problem, let’s just leave these two here to settle their issues.” My brother looked over to the possessed elf fighting with the last elf and winked at me. We laughed. “We then headed back to the village and Elsje taught me how to make the potion.”

  “Wow. You're quite amazing I must say. So full of surprises!” Zupher said, delighted.

  “What sort of potion was it that you learnt?”

  “It is a potion that allows me to temporarily absorb various kinds of magic and use it against the caster.”

  “That’s indeed very powerful. I wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of you.”

  Zupher and Muriel laughed together and continued onwards towards Rocky Canyon.

  Chapter 8

  Rocky Canyon

  The rocky canyon was a massive, desolate plane. Zupher had a look around, and as far as his eye could see, there were no signs of life whatsoever. All he could see were heatwave mirages; gigantic boulders, some stacked on top of one another, and a hard dry ground surface that seemed to extend all the way up to the horizon.

  “You were definitely right about leaving early. Our water supply should last us if we moderate our use of it.”

  “I know it may seem like there’s not a soul around but keep vigilant, there can be strange creatures outside city limits.”

  “Was this canyon always so large?”

  “No one knows for sure. No one from my village ever comes here. I also haven’t heard about folk from other villagers coming here. It is a very mysterious place. Crossing it is just the easiest way to get to the Arcane Society. We will be travelling for days on end if we try to pass around it.”

  Zupher and Muriel continued on traversing the canyon. Every now and then they would sit down in the shade of a boulder and refresh. After their third chill-break Muriel was weary of the surface of the ground.

  “Don't you think that the texture and composition of the ground has changed rather unusually?”

  Zupher was just about to reply, but even before he was able to move his lip, he plunged straight through the ground with Muriel. They were now free-falling rapidly. Muriel seemed to hold herself together and wasn't panicking as much as Zupher during the fall. Zupher shouted, confused, thinking that he was falling to his death. Suddenly with a mighty splash, Zupher and Muriel were immersed in water. Muriel swam to the surface before Zupher and gave him a sharp look when he surfaced.

  “That was a trap. I realised it too late.”

  Zupher had a look around and analysed the environment.

  It seemed to be a sort of underground lake. The only light he could see emanated from the trap hole that he and Muriel had fallen from. After a few moments of trying to catch his breath and calm himself down, Zupher heard shouting, snarling and yelling.

  “What on earth are those sounds? Sounds like it’s from wild beasts.”

  On the shore of the underground lake, Zupher saw hairy, horned figures standing like men. The noises were coming from them. The creatures were also standing on top of multiple rock formations that formed a bridge that bisected the lake.

  “We can't swim to the shore, they'll kill us; there are too many of them. Our best shot is to dive underwater and hope we can find a tunnel.”

  Just as Muriel had finished speaking, the shouting from the creatures got louder and Zupher could see some of the creatures on the shore pushing a wooden raft onto the lake.

  “It's now or never! If we wait any longer, they'll be able to stop us. Follow me.”

  Muriel submerged herself in the water and started swimming, Zupher soon followed. For the first few moments it was utterly dark and Zupher couldn't see at all where he was going. A light-green light then started emanating from Muriel's knife. The lake was not that deep and the bottom of it was a horrific sight. It was filled with bones and skeletons. Muriel frantically looked left and right until she finally seemed to have found a tunnel. Zupher and Muriel swam as rapidly as they could through the tunnel, with their breath gradually running out. Just before Zupher's breath was about to give in, he emerged from the water on the other side of the tunnel.

  Both Zupher and Muriel were panting rapidly but their adrenalin kept them on their feet.

  “Thank goodness I had brought a neon chameleon potion with me, or else we would have likely never found that tunnel in total darkness. I'm sure there is a way out of here; we'll have to be careful though. Those monsters are on the hunt for us.”

  Zupher looked ahead of him. The tunnel inclined up towards what Zupher reckoned was likely a section of the rock formations that he had seen earlier in the water. The tunnel was narrow and didn't appear to have any conversions; it went straight up.

  “We need to get to the top of this tunnel as soon as possible. We are too exposed here. Give me your light-bearing knife please,” Zupher said frantically. Muriel handed the knife over to him; he seemed dead focused and confident on what he was about to do.

  Zupher proceeded to run up the tunnel. Muriel was astonished as to how silent he was. She tried her best to match his pace without giving their position away.

  Zupher got to the top and Muriel arrived shortly after.

  “Nice one, I think they didn't hear us running up.”

  Zupher picked his compass out of his pocket and faced south-west. He could see dim light some hundred metres ahead of him.

  “We must be in a cave. Let’s sneak around on the side; there are a few rocks and ditches we can hide in.” They kept to the right side of the cave and then sneaked towards the exit. Three of the creatures rapidly ran past them from the exit and dozens of creatures were running across various other tunnels in the cave, letting out savage roars.

  Zupher and Muriel had walked about halfway towards the exit of the cave, before one of the creatures abruptly leapt from above directly in front of them. The creature let out an ear-piercing scream and got down on all four limbs. It then lunged at Zupher, with its mouth looking like an abyss from hell, opened abnormally wide. Just before the creature could strike Zupher, Muriel ducked under the creature and slashed it right from its chest to its groin. Zupher and Muriel then started running towards the cave’s exit, vicious roars edging from behind them. Three creatures stood guard at the end of the cave. Muriel charged towards them. Zupher stopped in his tracks and turned to face over ten creatures that were rapid
ly approaching him. Zupher had received a psychic sensation after his close encounter with one of the creatures. He could feel its psyche. It was weak and primitive, savage and dim. Zupher closed his eyes and stood perfectly still. The first creature that reached him, lunged at him exactly like the first one. This time before the creature could sink its jaws into Zupher’s flesh, he thrust his hand, directly at the creature. A purple aura flashed from his palm and the creature's motion came to a complete halt. Zupher spun around three-hundred-and-sixty degrees and slammed both of his palms on the ground. A circular wave of purple energy rushed from Zupher's palms and hit the remaining creatures. All the nearby creatures’ hostility was completely nullified and they began to retreat, deeper into the cave.

  Zupher turned and headed towards Muriel who had slain the three creatures guarding the exit.

  “Great job. We should get the hell outta here, before more of those monsters come,” Muriel said, giving a grim smile to Zupher.

  Chapter 9

  The Arcane Society

  Zupher and Muriel reached the outer boundary of the swamp that enclosed the sanctuary of the Arcane Society. Mist and fog started building as they ventured deeper into the swamp. The humidity shot up substantially compared to the Rocky Canyon, which brought them relief from the bone-dry conditions of the canyon.

  “I don't think we are going to run into any major trouble here. Just keep on the lookout for things like snakes.” The swamp had a gloomy vibe to it. There was not much colour and most of the trees were sagging down, as if they were sick and resting. The water had a sheet of mist that floated a few centimetres above it. It looked as if it had been enchanted. Zupher and Muriel sat down next to one of the larger trees in the swamp, which had a dry patch of grass around it.

  “I think we should talk about Elsje now and my aspirations to join the Society.”

  Zupher took off his shoes and left them in a ray of sun in an effort to dry them. He then faced Muriel and gave her a nod of agreement.

  “Since my mom had died when I was a child, I had no mother figure in my life, until Elsje came to the village five years ago. She was one of the only people I had ever met who could genuinely understand me. We had many similar interests and she revealed to me my own powers and capabilities in magic. I was able to cultivate them with her help. She tested and grew my courage and will with all the adventures she had sent me on. She helped me so much to better understand myself and my environment. Since my brother has disappeared, I have felt like a part of me has disappeared, but deep inside I know for sure that he hasn't disappeared forever. Joining the Arcane Society will put me in a better position to rescue him. I'll gain knowledge, learn new things and have fellow mages to assist me. I am not unfamiliar with magic; I have been trained by Elsje in Herbal Alchemy and Healing and have experience practising my crafts. My brother trained me well in combat. I can handle myself alright.”

  Zupher was silent, his gaze transfixed on Muriel's unyielding eyes.

  “Once I met you and heard of your aspiration to join the Society, a dormant spark was ignited in me. A spark that spurred me to join you. Before I met you, I was held down by my fear of Elsje. I always wanted to join but there was a link of fear that was holding us together until I met you. I still love her dearly and appreciate all she has done for me, but since my brother’s disappearance, her attitude towards me has changed. She started to become controlling and limiting. I know she may have given you reasons as to why she doesn't want me to join, but I have to do this. I can't turn my back on the voice of my soul crying out.”

  Zupher closed his eyes and slightly tilted his head down. He then looked at Muriel with a big smile. “Let's meditate and find out the location of the sanctuary.” Muriel smiled back and then joined hands with him. Zupher's heart rate increased, a little overwhelmed initially with emotion, but he eventually settled down and started to meditate. After Zupher got into a meditative wavelength, he could feel Muriel's energy flowing through him from her hand; it was warm and invigorating, soothing and nourishing. Her energy started travelling all throughout his body and finally reached his heart. The moment it reached his heart there was a flash of light and Zupher felt as if he had left his body. Once the light eased Zupher looked around. The colour of the swamp had completely changed. It was a lot more colourful now. The swamp also became far less dense in appearance, and some of the trees appeared translucent. Zupher faced the tree that he'd initially sat by and he could see waves of energy billowing up and down its trunk. Zupher looked down and saw his meditating body alongside Muriel's, which appeared to be frozen in time. He raised up his hands and saw pure white light. He turned around and saw Muriel, also appearing in a body of pure white light.

  “What happened?” asked Zupher.

  “We're in our astral bodies now, viewing the world from a higher frequency. We'll be able to see exactly where the sanctuary is now,” said Muriel.

  They wandered around in the proximity of the swamp for a few minutes and then met back at the tree near their physical bodies.

  “Did you see what I saw?”

  “No doubt.”

  Zupher and Muriel walked back into their physical bodies and got up and headed towards the sanctuary of the Arcane Society. They reached a large rectangular rock formation, coming out of a moss-covered mound. It had no apparent entrance and was almost fully concealed by reeds.

  “This must be the cave entrance to the Arcane Society,” Zupher said, walking towards it.

  Zupher placed his hand on a certain point on the cave rock; Muriel proceeded to do the same. The energy emanating from the cave stood out significantly from anything else in the swamp and they were drawn to its energy in their astral bodies. They saw energy imprints, representing hand marks in their astral form on a certain part of the cave. This is where they had put their hands in their physical bodies. After about five minutes there was a strong vibration from the cave. They could still see no entrance to the cave, but the outer rock of the cave was definitely hollow.

  “I'm sure the vibration indicates that they are aware we wish to enter, but from where exactly?”

  Zupher placed his left palm on the cave rock and closed his eyes.

  “I know. They have concealed the door to the cave with an illusion spell. Zupher walked over to the other side of the cave and placed his right palm on the rock. Moments later a door appeared.

  Zupher opened the door and walked inside; Muriel followed shortly behind him.

  Right at the moment that Zupher closed the door, two torches in the upper corners of the cave lit up. A few metres beyond the torches Zupher could see a semi-transparent blue forcefield that marked the end of the rocky and rugged cave. Beyond the forcefield was a wooden floor with busts lined up throughout, and a second door at the far end.

  “It appears that we are in the entrance hallway of the sanctuary. Something tells me we are not going to be able to pass that forcefield unless we pass the admission task.”

  The door at the far end of the hallway beyond the forcefield opened, and a tall man, dressed in black and gold robes approached Zupher and Muriel. As he got closer to them, Zupher noticed a large scar, cutting diagonally across his face. The scar cut across one of his eyes, which had a blood-red iris. The man walked straight through the forcefield and stood in front of Zupher and Muriel with no expression. His gaze was fixed on Zupher.

  “What is it you seek?”

  The man's voice was deep and unusual. Muriel shifted her posture, feeling slightly intimidated.

  “Knowledge and clarity,” Zupher said, trying not to express any fear.

  He then shifted his gaze to Muriel, for the first time since he'd come.

  “Deliverance,” Muriel said, looking straight into the man's red eye.

  The man was silent for a few seconds and then redirected his focus back to Zupher.

  “I am Xenos, Master Mage of the Arcane Society. To join, you need to prove to me that your magical talents are adequate. We have an Archmage, the hea
d of the Arcane Society and two Master Mages. We have six schools of magic: Summoning, Environmental Sorcery, Illusion, Herbal Alchemy and Healing, Enchanting, and Destruction. Each school has a maximum of two members – an adept and an apprentice. Should you pass your admission test and your preferred school already has two members, you'll have a showdown with the apprentice of that school. The winner shall replace the loser and the loser shall be banished from the Arcane Society.

  So tell me, what are your names and what are your magical talents, and what would your preferred school be?”

  Zupher gave a confident smile. “My name is Zupher Cordak. I am a swift, crafty and versatile trickster. I'm stealthy and can prove to be useful at infiltration. I know spells that can pacify and sedate my enemies. Illusion.”

  Xenos looked over towards Muriel.

  “My name is Muriel Saether. I am a skilled Herbal Alchemist and Healer. I know how to make beneficial potions and harmful poisons. I know healing spells that can cure the sick and mend the wounded. I am skilled in combat and often use the potions I make to enhance my physical ability. Herbal Alchemy and Healing.”

  Xenos nodded and retired into the sanctuary without saying a word. After a few moments, he returned with three scrolls.

  “Muriel, Earl, our adept Summoner, was on a mission last week in the southern woodlands when he was suddenly ambushed by a band of necromancers. The necromancers then fled to an old abandoned fort in the woodlands with Earl's enchanted ring. It is silver with an emerald gemstone. If you can successfully retrieve his ring, you'll pass your admission task.”

  He handed Muriel a scroll.

  “On this scroll is writ a spell. A spell that shall summon a horse. A scroll spell can only be used once, so I advise you to take good care of the horse. Off with you now. We shall await your return if you are successful.” Zupher gave Muriel a concerned look but she didn't seem to be too phased by the task. She then headed back out of the cave.