“What a phenomenal discovery.” Aridis leapt about with childlike excitement. “These archives, contained in unremarkable-looking rocks, could potentially contain a lifetime of knowledge for a caldereth. Obviously, they were not merely intended to teach children rudimentary concepts and skills.”
“How do you know that?” Orson inquired.
“They taught them everything from mathematics to metaphysics. Even the most adept children within a society must take years of study to form a foundation of knowledge before delving into such complex topics. Not to mention that it claims to explain the most complex areas of magic. These topics are unlikely to be entrusted to children.” Aridis picked up one stone, marveling at its appearance, and then another.
“Okay, so we know these are invaluable, but we still need to get them back to our hold.” Osric looked them each in the eye.
The diaphanous image had faded from the stone resting on the strange pillar, but the possibilities that could be contained in such a device left the three of them in silent reflection. The importance, Osric felt, had been revealed. At least most of it, he thought. Still, the pull on his gift indicated that danger persisted. It was all around them and growing quickly.
There was a possibility that greater magics or theories could have been stored in the array of glowing stones in front of them. The stones had been transported with the species that were in the caves, and they clearly treated them with a great deal of respect based on their placement in the room. Was it possible that it was a storehouse of their collective knowledge? The man had said many things that would lead to that conclusion, and Osric could not wait to get them all back to the barracks for further study.
“Aridis, let’s start loading all of these into our bags.” He turned to face Orson. “No offense, but I would rather have you watching the door for any signs of danger than helping with this. We need to make sure that they all make it back in one piece, and you don’t have the hands for delicate work.” Osric motioned to the broken stone on the ground.
“No offense taken. I really am sorry about the stone. My gift may help me get into places like this, but I typically load them straight into my trunk to avoid such mistakes. I’ll be happy to watch the door.”
“A good man knows his strengths.” Aridis raised his hand to Orson’s shoulder and patted it.
“We need to hurry. I sense danger all around us, and it’s getting closer. We may need to travel back at a moment’s notice, so keep your eyes on that opening.”
Orson took up a solid stance at the doorway as Osric began to fill a satchel, first with the pillar and then with the stones. No sooner had he loaded a few stones in his bag than he received an urgent pull to leave his current location in the room.
Instinct kicked in as Osric forced himself out of the visual spectrum and traveled to the other side of the chamber to observe the danger. Terror filled his mind as he observed Orson’s head tumbling from his shoulders while his massive, hairy body fell limply to the ground. A thick-muscled, grey beast leapt over the falling body, headed for Aridis, while two more began to dig with their dagger-like teeth into his fallen comrade’s belly.
Lagati and his wand had both found their way into his hands, and he cast a spell to make the creature charging at Aridis stumble. With his next spell, he caused Aridis and his bag of stones to be instantly transported to his living quarters in Stanton. He reacted just in time to save Aridis from the rapid recovery of the beast that now occupied the wise man’s former location.
Paun? There couldn’t be a worse time for this! Osric watched as the attacking paun stumbled and looked about with shock on its face. The three beasts had a yellow smoke-like aura about them in the invisible state. Osric considered the idea of traveling back to the barracks himself, but he had no idea how the paun interacted when they were in small spaces, and he needed the stones. His pack had already been knocked over in the attack, and he worried for the well-being of the stone pillar that unlocked the magic in the stones for all to see. So far, only one paun had attacked, and he hoped that would remain the case; otherwise, he would have to leave.
The paun’s confusion grew more intense when its gaze fell on Osric. Its head swayed from side to side questioningly. Osric’s own invisibility must have been unsettling for the creature, and it paced on all fours from one side of the room to the other, studying him while the other two fed on the body at the entrance.
For some time, Osric and the paun circled each other, sizing up the challenge. Its long, many-jointed limbs crunched the earth beneath them as the claws dug deep into the dirt. Not knowing what to make of a man who was able to see it while it hunted, the beast tested Osric’s defenses with an attempt to sever his leg.
Osric barely managed to sidestep the blow, shooting off a quick spell at the snarling creature as it rushed toward him. The paun rushed to a safe distance, retreating from the pain of a burst of sparks finding its mark on the side of its face. The spell had surprised it, and it appeared to lose a degree of confidence, walking tentatively in circles around Osric. The razor-sharp teeth of the gruesome opponent dripped with saliva as the paun growled in a high-pitched tone.
The growl penetrated Osric’s whole being; he felt it as much as he heard it. There was no doubt in his mind that the snarling vocalization held some manner of magic, but its charm was captured by the copper ring on his sword hand. Osric twisted the ring around his finger as it grew cold. He remembered the hunt that had brought him the artifact, and he silently said his thanks to Garron for the gift. Garron had been grateful for the treatment he had received as their prey, and he had gifted the ring to Osric during a hunt mere months earlier. Osric had been surprised to find out that the ring was spelled, giving it the ability to absorb many damaging spells cast at the wearer. The paun did not notice the ineffectiveness of the magic, and it leapt with arms wide to both sides to ward against another escape.
Osric whispered his incantation and vanished, appearing behind and to the right of the paun. The move brought an expression, remarkably close to bewilderment, to the vicious animal’s searching face.
This creature is definitely a hunter, and it is learning how to defeat me rather quickly. If it weren't for the traveling spell, I would not have escaped that last assault. Osric kept a wary eye on the beast, hoping for a sign of weakness.
It lunged like sparks from a fire before it had even turned to face him, burning with the desire to taste Osric’s flesh. Again, Osric appeared behind it and to the right. Before it had gained a secure foothold on new ground, the paun leapt at the wall without a moment’s hesitation, knocking several stones to the ground and rebounding in Osric’s direction.
The cycle continued; Osric managed to escape just in time with the use of the traveling spell, and the paun got closer each time it ricocheted from the wall. It seemed to anticipate the next location where he would appear, and it was timing its rebound in response. Osric stood guarded each time as he materialized, not sure if the next leap would force him to use his sword to extricate himself from the situation—or worse, abandon the stones altogether.
He watched carefully, having no luck finding any weakness as the beast met him high and to the right, low and to the middle, high and to the left, low and to the right. Too many precious stones sat perched precariously on the shelves for him to leave. He had to find a way to end the contest so that he could deal with the other two paun and get out with the information he sensed was so important to their cause.
Several times, he found himself stumbling over broken stone when he turned to find a new location for his appearance. Other times, he found himself facing the wrong direction. With danger so close on his heels, he was unable to gather the focus he needed before initiating the spell. Still, the attacks continued.
Osric found himself faced with the possibility of a necessary retreat. His stumbling was occurring more often, and blind traveling was very dangerous. He couldn’t afford to die in such a place. To bring resolution to the war, he needed to
get back to Stanton alive. He needed to discover all that he could about the way magic was unfolding before him and the brilliant minds that were working alongside him in the barracks. He needed to help secure the fate of his world. He needed to see Bridgett again.
Suddenly, the pattern of attacks the paun was launching sprang into his mind. They had been coming steadily and quickly for some time, and he finally discovered that he might be able to predict the creature’s next movement. He needed to test his theory without putting himself at even greater risk.
The next attack came high and to the middle. Then the beast lunged for his right leg. It tried again for his head. The fact that the attacks were coming from one side or the other was merely a result of the creature’s inaccurate intuition, but there was a distinct pattern of high and then low.
He needed to get closer for his plan to work. Closer meant using his sword, and no doubt, experiencing a great deal of pain. His timing would have to be perfect.
Osric waited half a breath longer as the paun tried for his legs again. He needed it to be overconfident. It had to believe it was about to win. Without much effort, he donned a convincing expression of panic. He swatted clumsily with his sword at the outstretched claws and appeared across the room. As he had hoped, the paun leapt high.
Osric raised Legati over his head and dropped to his knees, whispering the traveling spell and imagining himself a half stride in front of his current location. Then he swung his sword down with all of his strength.
It wasn’t a perfect plan, as part of the sword's intricate cross-guard materialized within the paun’s rib cage, but his strength allowed him to pull the sword free. The resulting motion caused a putrid mixture of entrails to rain down on his head. The paun fell heavily, its full weight pressing down on him. Osric traveled once again to the other side of the room, poised for the next attack.
Warm blood trickled down Osric’s gouged back, and his legs and arms protested with deep wounds. Which attack had given him the damage, he did not know. He was thankful for being able to defeat the animal, but tending to the lacerations would have to wait.
The two remaining paun looked up from their meal at the howling death screech of their brethren. They cast uncertain glances between the fallen paun and Osric, giving little indication that they would continue the attack. Timidly, they stepped out from the entrance and lowered their heads. Their approach was not what Osric had expected. They sniffed the air and looked up at him with the chastised eyes of young pups.
Osric traced the familiar paths of his mind. He felt for the trace of danger brought by his Portentist gift, but he found none. He remained poised for the attack, but the combination of his gifts told him none would come. Yet, a lingering pull of importance remained in the room, and it came from the two young paun that stood before him. Unease swept through Osric’s mind as he thought, Why do I feel I have just adopted two terrifying children?
15 – Perception
“He has been gone for seventeen days! You want to stand there and tell me you think he is not being an idiot?”
“Gus, it’s not like Osric has been out of communication, and you are partly responsible for sending him out in the first place. Besides, I hear you’re having a great time recruiting in his absence. Last month, you had some ninety men. This month, you have hundreds and you are growing at an amazing rate. How can you say he’s not doing his job?”
“I sent him to retrieve the stones,” Gus said, dodging the question. “That should have taken a few hours. Unless there are another hundred stones that he has been trying to retrieve this whole time, his absence is irresponsible. Our department needs him for more studies and so do the imitators of my craft. Macgowan needs him to approve what he has planned for the next time Pebble arrives. And if I have to tell Serha that I don’t know how to reach him again, I am going to show her how good a Wand-Maker is at using his wares and seal her mouth shut.”
“Hasn’t he been in communication? And I know half your vault is full of items he has found for study. Isn’t that enough to keep you busy until he returns?”
“Yes, he does report in from time to time, but the items he has been sending us are hardly worth a great deal of study. True, there is a great deal of interest in the stones, but we have had them for the entire time he has been absent. It would take us years to go through all the information on them. Most of it seems to be mundane chatter about political events happening in their day, though we have learned with certainty that it came from the caldereth. It seems to be a record of their collective knowledge, but it was knowledge from ages ago, so I don’t see how any of it could be of use to us. If humans could wipe them out over three hundred years ago, and understanding has progressed since then, then it would be foolish to study inferior knowledge for the sake of wasting time. The way they made them is amazing, but I have little hope for gaining anything from what they contain. Osric should be the one poring through hours of historical drivel.”
Toby looked down at Gus and sighed. “I know I could use Osric around here lately too, so I can relate to your frustration. We have garnered a great deal of attention from townships to the west that want to offer their allegiance. It seems the story has spread about the Kallegian defeat, and the residents there are looking to align themselves with Stanton. News is that Rowain is beginning to suffer from a lack of leadership, and some of the eastern provinces are thinking about joining us as well. It would go a long way for the leaders to get to meet Osric and see that they have nothing to fear from us. I think a lot of them are flocking to our banner from fear alone.”
“Wait.” Gus was not convinced by how quickly Toby had passed over his announcing Rowain’s troubles. “Rowain is having trouble?”
“So our eyes are telling us. Over the last few months, the wall patrols have grown to half their usual number. The few spies we have who know the traveling spell tell us that the enforcers have dwindled to about the same number. Crime has jumped to an alarming level in the city, and homes are putting bars on their windows due to the lack of patrols.”
“Well, if they manage the city in such a way, maybe their soldiers have been cut in half by now.” Gus felt a bit of short-lived excitement at the thought that the conflict might be resolved quickly.
“Unfortunately, that is not the case. Their force continues to grow, and it is so large that they have to camp outside the city walls. We estimate that the count has risen by ten thousand men in the last few months. And last month’s report pointed to a departure by boat anytime now. We suspect that the reason the number of men on the walls and on street patrol has dropped so significantly is that Dredek is focusing all his resources on building an army. He has been neglecting all other responsibilities.”
“Do we have any idea how soon they will be able to disembark? I hope we have enough time for Osric to get his mind on important things before they set sail.”
“Our last report came just before the last time we spoke in this very office, and they were close then. My men are a few weeks overdue with the last report now. For all I know, my men were captured or killed in a hunt, and the ships set sail over a month ago. I have been debating whether I should ask for a couple more men from the barracks to go and take a look, but I know you have a lot happening with the book translation and all the clever devices coming out of there. Besides, a ryhain should be responsible for recruiting his own intelligence force. It was asking a lot for him to train the two I had in magics that need to be kept secret for a time.”
“I still think that was a mistake. We need to get a grip on the current situation before we start introducing new potential dangers.” Gus harrumphed. “But just about anything I oppose will be thrown aside these days. I remember when being a famous Wand-Maker meant something.”
“Ha!” Toby smiled and slapped his hand on the desk, startling Gus to his four feet. “You are jealous of Osric?”
“What? That is just about the most…” Gus stammered, scrunching up his brow and looking back at Toby. �
��Until this moment, I thought Osric made the right choice telling Stanton to raise you to this position, but you are equally as daft as he is if you think that is true!”
“Oh, come now. I can relate to those feelings. Once the word ryhain meant something as well, but everyone who walks in my doors wants to know about Osric. Did he really defeat the Kallegian? Did dragons and eagles really come to defend him? Can he really fly?” Toby drained the cup on his desk and leaned forward, his breath thick with the smell of brandy. “One of the men wanted to know if he was really the son of an elemental. You wouldn’t believe the stories that have come through those doors.” Toby motioned behind Gus.
“It sounds like you’re the jealous one.” Gus glared back at him.
“Fair enough.” Toby smiled. “But I don’t begrudge the lad. He is a good man, and there is something to be said about the young setting out on these types of journeys.”
“Why should the young have all of the good mysteries?” Gus’s scowl deepened.
“Oh, Gus, you know that neither one of us has the time or energy to take on something like this. We have families to look after.” Toby tapped a thick finger on his desk. “We are both more than a little stuck in our ways, as well. I have Stanton to look after, you have your wands to keep you busy, and neither one of us would have the balls at our age to chase after the answers with all the other things we have going on.”
“I would have more than enough energy to take on anything Archana could throw at me!” Gus stood, feeling more than a little silly for the volume in his voice.
“You can hardly walk.” Toby leaned forward with a sympathetic expression. “And don’t forget that Osric had to kill a paun to save all of you—that has to earn him some leeway.” He sat back again with a satisfied smirk. Suddenly, he leaned forward and shouted, “And you don’t like anyone. The boy has to endure countless conversations every day and be examined by your sorts.” He pointed at Gus, indicating those with the Wand-Maker gift. His tone softened again as he continued. “Everyone wants to be him, and he would gladly give it away if he could. So much attention wears on a man who doesn’t want any of it.”
The Well of Strands (Osric's Wand, Book Three) Page 18