“I still do not think this is possible,” Aedyn announces.
“Ionia can do it,” Nyx confidently argues.
“I will acknowledge that Ionia is a powerful caster, but we are still talking about resurrection,” the priest counters.
Ionia demurely clears her throat for Aedyn’s attention. “What is the hardest part of a resurrection spell, young man?”
“I would have to say the hardest part is reattaching the spirit to the body,” Aedyn answers, his voice filling with curiosity.
“An experienced and determined caster can gain the power to attach a spirit to a body. The hard part of any resurrection is summoning the correct spirit once it has moved on to the afterworld,” Ionia explains, magically holding a breath in her lung, so she can speak faster. “As you know, a spirit is brought to the afterworld upon death by a god’s messenger. The resurrection caster must be familiar with the deceased and their chosen deity in order to locate the lost spirit. Failed resurrections commonly result from the caster being unfamiliar with the deceased and doing one of two things. They either attach the wrong spirit to the body or lose part of their own spirit to the dead body. There are those special failures that the temples obsess about, but those are rarer than successful resurrections.”
Queen Ionia pauses and smiles at the bored look on Aedyn’s face. “We don’t have to worry about any of that. You see, there are occasions where the deceased retains enough mental clarity and refuses the messenger. They become a wandering spirit until they are ready to move on or go mad with loneliness. In these cases, one must simply reattach the spirit.”
“How did Luke avoid the messenger?” Nyx asks.
“If you’re talking about the black unicorn, I told him that I wasn’t going,” Luke declares. He tries to touch his body, but pulls back as soon as he feels the warmth of the green barrier. “I didn’t even know I was dead when it approached me, so I saw no reason to follow.”
Ionia grins with amusement. “He didn’t understand the situation and refused the messenger. Basically, dumb luck.”
“Sounds like Luke,” Nyx and Aedyn mutter.
“Excuse me, Queen Ionia,” Ilan interrupts from his corner. “Are you saying that you can bring my son back to us? If you can then I request that you to do so immediately.”
“Sadly, it isn’t that easy. I don’t know the spell to safely reattach a spirit to its body,” the caster queen admits with a sigh. “Also, I fear that Luke’s body is unable to accept his spirit at this time. We would need to reawaken the life strings that bind his spirit to his body.”
“I can revive the life strings, but it will take time,” Aedyn solemnly claims.
“I can help you make the spell needed to reattach Luke’s spirit,” Nyx offers enthusiastically, hoping to be of some help.
“That won’t be necessary, Nyx. The spell that we need already exists,” Ionia says. The great caster shifts in her throne and readjusts her dress. “All I need is for you to retrieve it.”
“Where is it?” Nyx cautiously asks.
“I believe I know where the spell is,” Talos interjects, an icy glare aimed at Queen Ionia. “You want this girl to steal Kalam’s spellbook. That is the only item in this region that could possibly hold a spell like the one you described. This method of reattaching a spirit to a body is obviously necromancy. Am I right, your majesty?”
“I always knew you were smart, Doubleblade,” Ionia declares with a crooked smile. “As you know, necromancy can be used for good in certain situations. This would be such a situation.”
“That is ridiculous! There has to be another way!” Aedyn insists.
Ionia flicks some violet hair out of her eyes. “I wish there was another way, but there isn’t. Luke’s spirit will be forever lost if we wait too long. I estimate that we have five days before his body rejects all attempts to reunite it with his spirit.”
“In that case, I will retrieve the spellbook. There is no reason to put Nyx in danger,” Talos sternly says.
“Nyx is our only option,” Ionia argues, her eyes meeting Talos’s glare with an equally chilling look. “Kalam’s lair is warded against the locals who he perceives as potential threats. This includes the two of us, Talos. We wouldn’t get through the front door without setting off a spell that teleports his lair to a pocket dimension. If that happened then your grandson would be lost. Nyx is the only one of us who can enter Kalam’s lair.”
Nyx wrings her hands nervously. “I don’t think I can do this alone. Is there any help that you could give me, Ionia?”
Ionia silently gets to her feet and smiles at the half-elf. She makes a quick slash through the air with her right hand and a rainbow hole appears in the air. The caster queen gingerly sticks her left arm into the hole to blindly rummage around the pocket dimension. After a minute of loud clanging and rattling, she stops moving her arm and pulls out a small crossbow. The weapon is made from a smooth, dark brown wood with a bright orange engraving of mist along its sides. A steel bow with no string is secured to the front of the weapon. Ionia tosses the crossbow to Nyx who awkwardly catches it in her hands.
“This crossbow should be a big help if you run into any problems that your magic can’t touch. It’s been a long time since I used it, so I don’t remember exactly what it does. I believe it had the ability to shatter magic shields . . . or was that my magic scythe?” Ionia rambles. She reaches out to seal the hole by wiping it away with her left hand. “Anyway, I’m sure this little gift will be of some use. I’m sure it will be more effective than your mundane weapons. I suggest testing it in Kalam’s lair. That way you won’t accidentally destroy anything important.”
“Thanks. I think,” Nyx mutters, tying the crossbow to her belt.
Talos crosses his arms and shakes his head. “I still believe that sending her alone is a bad idea.”
“That’s why I’m going with her,” Luke announces, rising to his feet.
“I was getting to that. As your grandson just stated, he will be going with Nyx to keep her safe,” Ionia assures the old elf. She taps her manicured finger on her chin while looking from Luke and Nyx. “The only problem is that she won’t be able to interact with him. I wish I knew how to make a spirit visible or audible. My interests never wandered to necromancy and spirit manipulation. I never thought I would regret that decision.”
Nyx suddenly snaps her fingers and grins. “I have an idea!”
“What can you do?” Aedyn curiously asks.
Nyx rummages through her pockets and pouches. “I bought an item in Gods’ Voice. It will work here if I can figure out which pouch I put it in.”
“That crystal star won’t be much help,” the caster queen states.
“It couldn’t hurt to . . .” begins Nyx, her voice trailing off. She suspiciously eyes the tall, elegant woman. “How did you know about my crystal star?”
“I sensed it on you.”
“Liar.”
“Am not.”
“Are too.”
“Impudent brat!”
“Crazy hag!”
“It was so much easier to trick you when you were a child. You used to believe everything I said,” Ionia mutters. She passes her hands over her face, which briefly transforms into the wrinkled, gray-haired face of Kalu the shopkeeper.
“That was a mean trick,” Nyx whines. She pulls the crystal star out of a cloak pocket and gently touches the smooth surface. “You should have told me that it was you.”
“There’s no fun in that,” Ionia claims. She shakes her head violently, transforming back into her youthful form. “I was hoping that you would be able to figure that item out and save me the trouble of toying around with it myself. I . . . found it earlier that day at a small shop in Gaia.”
Nyx grins triumphantly at the crystal star. “I know exactly what this stuff is. The crystal star is a vessel designed to mask the aura of its contents. The misty powder inside is the real magic. It's aura dust.”
“What’s aura dust?” asks ev
eryone, except Ionia.
“It’s a rare type of magical dust, which is said to have been born from the collapse of Mylrix,” Nyx explains, pushing some of her raw magic into the star. She smiles proudly when a hatch appears on its surface. “This dust attaches to an aura and catches the next spell that hits that aura. The effect lasts as long as the coated aura avoids being submerged in moving water for more than a minute. I believe I can use it to make Luke visible.”
“Will that work?” Ilan inquires hopefully.
“The better question is if she has enough energy,” Aedyn says with a calm hand on Nyx’s shoulder. “You have not slept since you started hunting for Luke. Even your magic has its limits, Nyx.”
“I can do this!” Nyx snaps, swatting the priest’s hand away.
“What do you think, Ionia?” Talos asks.
“That’s a better idea than anything I have,” the caster queen admits with an excited grin. “If you can make him visible then I can help out a little more. I can only hear Luke and see a faint outline, so I can possibly make him audible after you coat him in dust.”
The half-elf nods before she focuses her magic and her eyes turn into golden orbs. She gazes at Luke’s body to see the sparking aura of his wandering spirit standing next to the bed. Nyx pours the sticky, magical dust into her hand, making a tight fist once the crystal star is emptied. A few seconds of silence pass before Nyx throws the aura dust into the air around Luke and casts a quick spell. At first, the others think that she failed until a vague form begins to appear in the curtain of dancing dust. Everyone stares at the form in amazement as it grows more defined features. A stiff breeze suddenly rushes into the room through an open window, blowing the aura dust into Nyx’s face. The form in the curtain of dust is nowhere to be seen.
“It looks like it failed,” Talos sighs, slamming the window shut.
“Good try, Nyx,” Aedyn whispers before turning to her. “You okay, Nyx?”
“I can see Luke. My spell worked,” the young caster gasps, rubbing at her eyes.
“Are you sure? I do not see him,” the priest contends.
Ionia fixes her hair and dress. “Her spell seems to have worked, but the dust was blown into her face before she finished. By the time the aura dust absorbed the entire spell, it was on Nyx. This does make my last gift more difficult to create. I need to borrow your eyes for a second, firebug.”
“Why do you . . . at least let me say yes!” Nyx angrily exclaims, her eyesight abruptly turning off.
“Luke’s aura is definitely strong enough to handle a few minor alterations. We can’t have him going into battle without a weapon after all,” the caster queen says as she examines Luke. “I can see that you’re a fan of twin saber style. Very good. It will cost me less aura to arm you. If you were into large weapons then this would be much more complicated and tiring.”
“I already have weapons,” Luke states, drawing twin sabers from his belt. The weapons are barely visible blades of red that one could easily mistake for flickering candles.
“That’s strange. I never met a disembodied spirit with weapons before,” Ionia mentions, her hands frozen in mid-spell. She lets her hands drop to her sides and stares curiously at the ghostly warrior.
“It isn’t as rare as you think. Spirits can have phantasmal versions of objects that they have a strong enough connection,” Aedyn politely explains. “Luke’s sabers were made specifically for him and he has trained with them for years. One could say that they have become an integral part of his being. His aura created those blades in order to make his spirit feel whole.”
“Really? I guess there’s a lot that I still don’t know. Anyway, it means even less work for me,” Ionia says, returning Nyx’s eyesight to her. The half-elf rubs at her sore eyes and glares at the violet-haired woman.
“So, is everything ready?” Ilan asks with a glimmer of hope in his dead voice.
“Aedyn will remain here to prepare Luke’s body. I will have to meditate and gather my energies. I have a feeling that this spell is going to take a lot out of me. I recommend that everyone be ready in case Kalam attacks again. We can’t be certain that he’s out of action like Isaiah,” Ionia advises everyone. She ties her hair up with a white ribbon and her dress transforms into a yellow gown of silk. “The hard part is up to Nyx and Luke. There will be a lot of dangerous traps and monsters in your way. You will probably get into a few skirmishes once inside and that will get his attention. You’re going to have to push your limits when facing him, firebug. Sorry, but I can’t sugarcoat your part in this endeavor.”
Nyx moves her new crossbow onto a different belt loop. “It isn’t like I expected it to be easy. I’m assuming traps, undead, demons, and some fun with illusions.”
“Excuse me, Queen Ionia, but they don’t know how to get to Kalam’s lair,” Ilan points out, his voice growing bolder. “If you and my father stay here then there is nobody to show them the way.”
Ionia smiles warmly at Ilan. “I can shift spell them to a location where one of my local agents can meet with them and guide them to the entrance.”
“Then, let’s stop wasting time!” Luke shouts, excitedly spinning his swords.
“I agree with Luke,” Nyx states, smiling at the sound of her friend’s voice. “I can sleep once you shift us into the forest. It’s almost morning and it might be easier to sneak in during the evening.”
“Let’s hope this turns out for the best. Everyone should pray to any god and goddess who might want to help us,” Ionia suggests.
With a wave of her hand, Ionia sends Nyx and Luke into a vortex of nauseating energy. Talos’s guest room melts away until there is nothing around them, except for a swirl of colors. Minutes pass before the greens, browns, reds, and oranges of the forest come into view. A small pop in Nyx’s ears signals the end of the spell and the adventurers find themselves in a quiet forest clearing.
“If this doesn’t scream calm before the storm then I don’t know what does,” Luke mutters.
*****
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Luke asks.
Nyx ignores his question as she continues trying to climb up a thick oak. The lower branches easily support her weight, but she is forced to stop climbing when a branch halfway up the sixty foot tree splinters. She watches the branch bounce among its brethren and crash to the ground with a muffled thud. A sick feeling passes over her when she realizes that Luke was standing directly under the falling branch. Nyx sighs in relief after she sees Luke waving to her, his legs standing in the branch.
“Forgot that he’s only a spirit,” Nyx whispers to herself.
“What was that? You hurt yourself?”
“I’m fine!”
The caster wraps her arms and legs around a sturdy branch while she carefully casts a spell. Nyx’s body gently slides to the underside of the branch before she can finish casting. Instantly, her cloak tightens around her body, fastening her to the tree. The color of her cloak and skin slowly change into a mottled brown, which perfectly matches the bark of the oak. Her dangling, black hair fades to light green and takes the appearance of hanging moss. From the ground, Nyx looks to be nothing more than a fat oak branch.
“Where did you learn that?” Luke asks curiously.
“I saw a circus performer do this once, so I thought I would give it a try,” Nyx says, her voice coming out of a knot in the trunk. “The spell camouflages me to the point where even my breathing is masked. Now, I can sleep with the knowledge that I’m hidden.”
Luke watches Nyx, worrying about her safety. “I can’t catch you if you fall.”
“Well, I didn’t plan on being upside down,” Nyx admits, a yawn making it hard to understand her. “I had to alter the spell at the end and merge my body with the trunk and branch. It will wear off in seven hours. Now, let me get some sleep. I used my last bit of magic to pull this off.”
Luke sits on the grass at the base of the tree. “You keep saying that you’re running low, yet you keep casting power
ful spells. How strong are you, Nyx?”
“Strong enough, I guess. Casters don’t really have a system for gauging strength. You’re either a weak caster or a strong caster,” the hidden half-elf explains. She can feel her eyes begin to close. “Now, shut up and let me sleep. Ionia’s agent is supposed to meet us here, but we never asked how long we have to wait. If he isn’t here within thirty minutes of me waking up then we’re on our own.”
A faint rumble of thunder rolls in from the south and Luke watches dark clouds gather in the distance. A breeze passes through the clearing, carrying a mournful song that echoes among the trees. Luke looks up to see Nyx’s moss-like hair whipping madly in the wind. Without warning, a bolt of lightning strikes the ground in front of him. Luke is about to draw his swords when the wind abruptly dies down and the sky clears. He freezes and stares at a glowing stag that is standing where the lightning should have left a charred piece of ground. The enchanting beast gazes at the half-elf with deep, sapphire eyes.
“Let me guess. You want me to follow you,” Luke cautiously says.
“No!” booms the stag in a deep voice.
“Can you tell me who sent you?”
“I serve the mistress of the wild.”
“You mean Uli,” Luke whispers in awe and fear. “Am I in trouble for killing that griffin? I really wanted to find a way around killing it. I took a piece of it to honor its memory. Was that wrong? I’m really, really sorry if I did anything to offend her.”
“You have nothing to worry about,” sings a steely, female voice behind Luke.
He refuses to turn around, so the beautiful elf in polished, leather armor steps around him, putting her angular face a few inches away from his nose. Her golden eyes inspect his features while her warm, sweet breath invades his nostrils. The chocolate-haired elf maiden finally stands up straight and smiles at Luke. She silently turns on her heel and strides over to the stag, which bows before her. It rises only after it receives a gentle stroke on the top of its head and the goddess turns back to Luke.
Legends of Windemere: 03 - Allure of the Gypsies Page 25