The Circles of Magic

by Gabriela Fišerová

  “I thought so.” How could he know that? Feyrith felt cold dread spread through him when he realized that he’d implied it to the man’s niece. Why hadn’t he just kept it to himself?

  Feyrith continued trying to get out of his bindings but stopped when he saw the man pick up his staff. He stared at it in horror, shaking his head. No human was ever supposed to touch it. No other elf was supposed to, even.

  “I can’t use this, can I?”

  Feyrith shook his head. That was the only small comfort in this situation. It was one thing to have the staff taken away from it, but it was another to let a human go around casting spells for their own gain. And Feyrith had no doubts that was the goal of his capture. These people must have been bandits. He felt so stupid for not realizing that in time. It should have been suspicious that they lived in a cave, instead of Feyrith feeling empathy for them.

  He felt anger fill him yet again as he yanked at the rope with all his strength, making his wrists all the sorer. His eyes widened when he felt the slightest give in the rope. If he could loosen it enough….

  “I don’t mean to keep you from whatever task you are supposed to be doing right now,” the man said, thankfully putting the staff where it had been, propped against the wall. “I am willing to let you go immediately. All I want from you is to turn some rocks into gold. Or diamond. And then you can be on your way.”

  Feyrith scowled at him. He had been expecting something like this, but it still sounded ridiculous. To think he would ever use the Goddess’ gifts like this…. It was more insulting than anything Feyrith could think of.

  “Not going to make it easy for yourself, eh?” Feyrith expected the man to threaten him with the knife again, but surprisingly that didn’t happen. The man just shrugged and headed for the door. “Suit yourself. I’ve got time. A few days without water will change your mind.”

  Feyrith flinched as the door slammed shut, leaving him alone in the small, bare room. The elf renewed his efforts to get free, biting the rag in his mouth as pain stabbed through his wrists. He knew the pain was only temporary—as soon as he got free he could heal himself with a few words. But he was having a hard time ignoring it. He’d never actually been seriously hurt at any point in his life, and while this wasn’t serious, he was also actively making it worse.

  He froze when he felt something warm flow down his fingers, dripping onto the stone floor. Right, of course, blood. Feyrith’s stomach churned. He breathed in and out a few times, leaning back against the wall. His wrists burned even more now that he’d stopped trying to get out of the rope, continuing to slowly bleed, but he did his best to try to drown that out through thinking.

  He technically didn’t need to get free. All he needed was to get the gag out of his mouth. He craned his neck, his eyes scanning the wall behind him for anything that could help him get the tight knot pushing against the back of his head. But there was nothing within reach, aside from the slightly rough wall.

  Feyrith did his best to try to make use of at least that, pushing his head against it and trying to drag the gag’s knot up and over his head. But it was stubbornly staying in place, barely moving an inch one way or the other. But Feyrith kept trying, even as the cloth cut deeper into the corners of his mouth, hoping to manage to catch it on some sharper part of the wall. It was less painful than trying to get his hands out of the rope, at the very least.

  What would the Council do after he told them about this? He couldn’t lie or just not tell them. That felt wrong on every level. But Feyrith had gotten captured by some humans. The Council might demote him for simply that. And maybe he would deserve it. He hadn’t been taking the rules seriously enough. Maybe this was his punishment.

  Feyrith let out a shuttering sigh before shaking his head and pulling on the rope again. He would just have to keep trying. If he didn’t lose too much time by being stuck here, whatever he found at that ruin might be important enough to completely overshadow this humiliation.

  He wouldn’t give up just yet.

  It took what seemed like forever. There was no way for Feyrith to tell the time with barely any light at his disposal, aside from a few candles here and there. But he could finally, finally feel the rope loosening. Be it from him actually undoing a few of the knots or from it gradually snapping, he was almost about to get free and put this entire ordeal behind him.

  But then he froze when he heard voices beyond the door.

  “Uncle, this is too risky,” said the muffled voice of the woman who had led Feyrith here in the first place. The elf felt anger rise within him. All he wanted to do was to try to break his bonds here and now, but he couldn’t. If he didn’t manage to get that gag out of his mouth in time, he might end up right where he started, so he willed his rapidly beating heart to slow down and tried not to move.

  “It’s worth it,” the man replied, sounding annoyed, as if they’d had this conversation several times already. “Do you think that elf is going to blab about a few feeble humans capturing him?” A scoff followed. “He’s going to make us more money than we will ever need and in return, we’ll let him go. And then buy a proper house in Lightkeep and forget about all of this.”

  Even though Feyrith knew the Council put great emphasis on a lack of emotional expression, he couldn’t help but glare at the two bandits with pure hate as they walked inside the small room, bringing with them weak candlelight from the corridor beyond. To her credit, the woman grimaced, avoiding his eyes while the man simply stared him down.

  “Have you changed your mind, elf?”

  Feyrith just glared harder, but once the man came over to him, he froze, barely able to breathe at that moment. Feyrith shut his eyes as the man looked behind him, no doubt seeing the damaged rope, likely stained with his blood as well.

  “Clearly not.” Then the man turned to his niece. “Bring some shackles, Yrin.”

  The woman said nothing, only giving her uncle a dirty look before walking out of the room. Feyrith swallowed. He wouldn’t be able to break metal, so it was now or never. He pulled at the rope with all his might, biting back a cry as the ropes bit into his wrists again, but the pain was quickly overshadowed with a sense of triumph as the rope broke, his hands free at last.

  But before he could finally get the gag out of his mouth, the man was grabbing his wrists and slamming him against the wall. Feyrith let out a muffled groan as his back collided with the hard, uneven surface, biting into the gag as the man squeezed his injured wrists.

  “I see I was almost too late,” the man grumbled as he scowled at Feyrith’s hands. Feyrith gritted his teeth, trying to push the man off, but a combination of exhaustion, pain, and being physically weaker made him lose very quickly.

  Feyrith hung his head, feeling tears of frustration prick at his eyes. He should have broken the ropes before they even came in. Maybe then he could have made it, but it was too late now. He was well and truly trapped.

  8

  Everything had been going fairly well until the storm hit. They had managed to get to Everward just before that, which was all well and good, but Edwyr couldn’t help but feel frustrated that they were now stuck here. Rationally, he knew that it was unlikely that Feyrith was traveling through all of that rain and lightning, but still, simply sitting here in an unfamiliar inn was making Edwyr antsy.

  And Arbane and Lanna weren’t helping with their insistence on being all upbeat and jovial. Edwyr fully realized that he was in the wrong here, which was the only reason he hadn’t said anything to them, but he still couldn’t help but feel annoyed with them.

  He wondered why, though. He didn’t remember being irritated with them often, and he’d known the two for years. But then he quickly realized what was now different. They had never been together for this long. Yes, they spent a lot of time together, but they also spent a lot of time apart. Edwyr hoped that the reason for his annoyance was his frustration at not being able to continue the journey, though, and not simply being around Arbane and Lanna. He truly didn’t li
ke the latter possibility.

  “Hey, come on, it will be fine,” said Arbane, putting the piece of bread he’d been eating aside. Lanna nodded emphatically, likely not talking only because her mouth was full of fried meat. “We’ll catch up with him. And we can’t go out there right now, anyway. Just relax.”

  Edwyr huffed. That was easier said than done. And not helped by the fact that both of his friends seemed to have no issues at all with it, unlike him, who found simply sitting around and waiting incredibly difficult.

  He looked away from them and around the room, which immediately made everyone who had been staring at him look away. Edwyr scowled. Typical. They likely expected him to solve all of their problems with magic, much like the people of Sunwood had back when he’d arrived. Edwyr remembered that well, as well as the collective disappointment when they’d found out he couldn’t use magic. He wasn’t planning on sticking around Everward long enough for that, though he was getting the sense some of the people here had already put together something was off about him.

  At least none of them had asked him for anything yet. Still, Edwyr didn’t like how many people there were in the relatively small inn due to the storm, which was still raging outside. It made him feel on edge, but he obviously couldn’t simply go outside to clear his head right now.

  As Edwyr’s eyes scanned the crowd of faces, lit only by the candles on the tables and the simple, metal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, he noticed someone in a dark corner, watching him. That wouldn’t be so odd itself, if not for the cowl the person was wearing over their head.

  Edwyr narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better look, but the person was already getting up, avoiding his gaze as they walked past all of the tables and reached the back door, which Edwyr hadn’t even noticed before. And just before they left, they locked eyes with him.

  Edwyr continued staring at the door long after it had been closed, frowning into space as he tried to figure out what had happened. Why was he so entranced by some stranger staring at him? Without really thinking about it, he’d stood up, already about to follow behind them when Lanna’s voice stopped him.

  “Where are you going? Everything okay?”

  Edwyr almost sighed. It was admirable that Lanna cared so much, but he wasn’t always on the brink of a catastrophe.

  “Yes, I’ll be back soon.”

  Lanna and Arbane both frowned at him, but they didn’t protest as he left, following in the figure’s footsteps and leaving through the small door. They might have said something when they saw him exit, but over the noise of talking, clinking of tankards, and the storm, Edwyr didn’t hear anything.

  He frowned into the thick rain outside, which was making the previously dry, dirt paths between the houses wet and muddy. At least the wide roofs of these houses offered some protection against it, but they also made Edwyr’s surroundings even darker. There was barely a speck of sunlight coming through the dark, ominous clouds above.

  He was about to look around and hopefully find whoever it had been at the inn, but then he stopped. Why did he even want to find them? They were likely simply another villager, though it was very odd that they’d kept their face covered up like that. And that no one had seemed to notice it or them, now that Edwyr thought about it.

  Edwyr sighed, already walking down the path on his left, looking around cautiously as he tried to avoid mud and rain. As he reached the end of the house on his left, and therefore his shelter from the storm, he frowned as he looked around the buildings he could see, squinting into the dark corners between them as cool wind and rain hit him every so often. But despite all of that, and the noise of thunder, Edwyr was still more comfortable here than at the inn, if only because it was more peaceful here. Which was truly saying something.

  But while he didn’t want to go back, he also didn’t feel like crossing the road and getting completely soaked before he made it under another roof. And he didn’t even know if this was the right way to go, anyway. The person could have gone the other way, and he had no way of knowing.

  As soon as he thought that, though, Edwyr saw the figure again, watching him from behind a house on the other side of the street, almost out of sight. They stayed there for a moment longer before disappearing behind the house’s wooden wall. Edwyr scowled and set his jaw, hesitating only for a moment before setting off.

  He grimaced as the heavy rain hit him, forcing him to put his arms over his head and run as fast as he could. It wasn’t far at all, and yet making it over to the other side felt like it took far too long. As he finally reached another roof to hide under, he ran his hand through his hair, trying to get some of the water out of it before looking around, hoping to find the person who had clearly wanted him to follow them.

  And indeed, at the end of the alley he had found himself in, the figure seemed to be waiting for him, leaning back against the wall. Scowling again, Edwyr made his way over to them, staying under the protection of the roofs as he went, but he didn’t walk up to them immediately. This could very well be a trap of some kind, even though he had no idea what its point would be.

  “Who are you?” he said, making sure to speak loudly so he would be heard over the rapidly falling rain and occasional thunder.

  The person looked over at him, finally letting him see who he was dealing with. It turned out to be a human woman, wearing a black mask over the lower half of her face along with the cowl. Edwyr wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting, but somehow, he was surprised. But then, of course, it was a human—an elf wouldn’t be here, hiding like this.

  “That is none of your concern for now,” she replied. Despite her calming, melodic voice, Edwyr narrowed his eyes, feeling more than a little annoyed. He would not be spoken to like this, by a human or an elf. “Who are you is a better question, anyhow.”

  “I don’t have to tell you anything,” Edwyr grumbled, glaring at her. He wasn’t sure why that had been his immediate reaction, though. He had nothing to hide, and he was no one important. He had nothing to lose by saying as much.

  “Of course you don’t,” the woman replied. She took a few steps towards him but didn’t walk up to him completely. There were still at least six feet between them. “You are a magicless elf, correct?”

  Edwyr frowned, this time in confusion rather than suspicion or irritation. Magicless? He’d never heard anyone use that term for his condition. It was always Cursed, and nothing else. And what did this human even know about it, anyway? From his own experience, humans didn’t seem to know that certain elves had no magical aptitude in general.

  The woman seemed to take his silence as confirmation as she continued. “I know of someone who would be interested in meeting you. And all elves like you, if you know of any.”

  Despite getting new information, Edwyr felt like he understood less and less. Humans tended to stop being interested in him the moment they found out he couldn’t fix their problems. And yet this one seemed to be doing the complete opposite. “Why?”

  “No need to be so suspicious,” the woman said, sounding a little amused. “It’s nothing bad. Quite the opposite.”

  “And what does that mean, exactly?” Edwyr was getting very impatient, even though he had nowhere else to be.

  “Where are you heading?”

  Edwyr was almost shocked at her sudden change of topic, so much so that he answered without thinking, or even questioning how she knew he was going somewhere. “An ancient ruin in the mountains.”

  “Oh, you are?” Her voice suddenly lacked emotion. It had almost sounded ominous. “Interesting. I wonder why.” Edwyr wanted to tell her he wouldn’t answer any more of her questions, but then she simply shook her head. “No matter. Go there. And when you get there, tell them that Genrith sent you.”

  Edwyr was about to ask what in the Goddess’ name any of this was supposed to mean, but the woman was already running away, disappearing behind the corner and into the rain. Edwyr ran after her, trying to catch up, but by the time he’d also reached the corner
she was gone, no sign of her anywhere.

  Edwyr muttered a few curses, running a hand through his still soaked hair. What had all of that been about? He was so confused that he couldn’t even form any actual questions right now, though he already knew he would have many of them.

  He knew one thing though—that had been no ordinary human. She clearly knew much more than a normal human would. And she knew about the ruin, also. She wanted him to go there to meet…someone. Who could be interested in a Cursed elf like him? His own people didn’t want him.

  Still, even though Edwyr wanted to completely reject everything he’d just heard, he couldn’t help feel intrigued and curious. And since they were already heading that way, there was nothing to lose.

  Who had she said he was supposed to say had sent him? Oh yes, Genrith. He would make sure to remember that name. Though now Edwyr’s mind was going a mile a minute, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

  Why would anyone want to talk to him? What could he offer to anyone? And had this woman been following him, or was this simply a chance meeting? She hadn’t seemed to even know who he was, nor had she seemed to have been aware he would be here. But if she hadn’t come here to talk with him, why was she here in the first place?

  Edwyr shook his head. He would have plenty of time to think about it still, as they still had days of travel ahead of them. He leaned against the wall of the house he’d been standing next to and folded his arms, frowning in thought. Despite not really wanting to, he should probably head back, if only because being out here wasn’t likely to help him dry off and the longer he stayed out here the more likely it was Arbane and Lanna would have questions, which he for some reason didn’t feel like answering.

  He would tell them about what had just happened, of course, but only after he made some sense of it himself. There was no point in sharing what had happened when he knew he wouldn’t be able to explain anything anyway. But he would have to tell them before they caught up with Feyrith. If this somehow involved Cursed elves only, it was unlikely it would be something the Council would approve of, and if Edwyr knew one thing about the elven society, it was that they never lied or withheld important information.