“Alrion! Lara! Wow, this is a surprise.” Caleb looked thrilled.
“Caleb, you haven’t changed a bit.” Alrion reached out and shook the scholar’s hand.
“We thought maybe you would have a beard or something,” Lara said. Caleb laughed.
“Not for lack of trying. Come in, come in.” Caleb turned around and ushered them into the main building. It was empty, as expected. But Alrion could still remember when it had been full. He chuckled to himself as he remembered his antics on that day.
“Have you spoken to your parents?” Caleb said.
“Not for a while. Are they here?”
“Oh, no. They were here, but they left. They did say you might be coming, but I didn’t know whether to expect you or not. I must say, this is a happy reunion!”
“It is. I’m curious, did they leave because they got what they were after?”
“I don’t know how to answer that one, but I don’t think so. It’s something we should discuss further.” Caleb led them through the hall and over to a small door at the back.
“How have you been? Studying hard?” Lara asked.
“Oh yes. I have been working closely with my mentor to master my ability to manage the knowledge from the Pool, and coach others in its use. There is a great deal we can share.”
“Great, that’s why I’m here. When can I start?” Alrion held the door open for Lara and entered last. They were walking down a narrow corridor and ended up at a desk, with a man sitting there.
“More visitors?” he said.
“Yes, they’re with me.” Caleb turned to Alrion. “We can start as soon as you want, but I need to introduce my mentor to you. We will be working closely together.” Caleb beamed another big smile.
Wow, he must really like this mentor. I guess that’s good, it may speed things up if he’s good at what he does.
“Off you go, you know the drill.” The man waved them away, and Caleb led them through another door. A short walk later they found themselves in another chamber. An old man sat at a desk at the rear, wearily turning the pages in a hefty book. As he looked up Alrion stood dead in his tracks.
“No way. You died. I tried to save you.”
“I appreciated the effort. But I wasn’t going to let myself go that easily.” Falric smiled a little sheepishly.
“Falric!” Lara ran over and hugged him.
“Have we met?” Falric said with a laugh. Lara stepped back and looked at him curiously.
“I don’t think you ever met me. But I’ve been with you all for a while.”
“Since Carford,” Alrion said with a wry grin.
“Yes, Vincent mentioned you. There is a lot we must discuss.”
“I agree.” Alrion couldn’t quite share Lara’s enthusiasm at finding Falric. Yes, he felt an overwhelming sense of relief. And happiness that his mentor was alive. But it was also accompanied by a sense of emptiness, of abandonment.
Why did he stay here and say nothing? Or is he that mysterious wizard, trying to help me in other ways?
Alrion walked over to talk to the master wizard at length.
34
Diving In
“Come take a seat, so that I might tell you a tale.” Falric gestured to the empty seats. Caleb brought them closer to the desk and waited at the edge of the room. Once Alrion and Lara were seated he began again.
“Alrion, your father had almost the same reaction.” Falric sighed and shook his head. “I feel like this is just a repeat of that scene.”
“What explanation did you tell him?”
“The truth. At heart, I’m a scholar, not a warrior. I made a pretty good administrator as well, and researcher too. This place was my home, so when things played out the way that they did, it made sense for me to stay here.”
“What do you mean played out the way they did?”
“I confronted Branthor. Once he was close, I knew it was him, although I didn’t understand why. When you saw us, I couldn’t risk you being dragged into the conflict. I hoped that by succumbing to him, that he would be satisfied and move on.”
“Then why didn’t you just rejoin me straight away?”
“I overdid things. My own ruse, whilst protecting me, helped hinder my escape. It was quite an effort to emerge from that rubble. You know better than anyone. I sensed your efforts on the surface.”
“I’ve never felt more powerless. It has followed me ever since.” Falric bowed his head when he heard the words.
“I am deeply sorry for that. I never wanted you to feel that. You should never feel responsible for an old wizard like me, I can take care of myself. I’m accountable for my actions and decisions, nobody else is.” Falric paused and coughed. “I see now the impact it had on you. More than I foresaw. Which is my oversight.”
“I am at least glad you’re alive.”
“Oh, I know that. I know that. I also expected that you would return, for one reason or another. Because you would need to seek clarification here before moving forward.”
“Why would you think that?”
“The Pool works in mysterious ways, but there’s a strong theme of protection within it. It hides knowledge from you that you aren’t ready to know. It’s mostly a practical measure, to protect the mind from being overwhelmed. But the more we study it, we believe it to be more nuanced than that.” Falric looked to Caleb. He nodded.
“Especially when it comes to wizards. The knowledge of spells can be catastrophic. There seem to be additional protections in place.”
“Such as?” Alrion asked.
“You know how a spellbook will have blank pages until you have the skill and capability to handle the spell?”
“Yes.”
“Similar to that. Knowledge pertaining to spells within the Pool will be hidden from you until you are ready to receive it.”
“You’re talking about the final spell. The one to cure the Blight for good?”
“Yes. I know just about all there is to know about it. But even for me, it didn’t all come at once.”
“But it’s not something you’ll tell me, is it?” Alrion looked Falric directly in the eyes. He looked surprised.
“Oh, yes you are quite correct. Why did you say that?”
“Branthor said the same thing to me. That he knew what lay ahead, and he couldn’t share it either. That there was something missing if I didn’t yet have the knowledge.” Falric closed his eyes and looked to be deep in thought.
“You’ve worked wonders, young man. You didn’t just cure Branthor, you saved him. That is the advice I would have expected from him, from the old Branthor.” Falric looked like a weight had been lifted from him.
I didn’t think about it, but he must have been carrying the weight of Branthor’s fate too. Although, he mustn’t know how it ended.
“I’m sorry to say that Branthor has passed.”
“What? How?” Falric sat upright, keenly attentive.
“He destroyed Rindale but took a fatal blow. I wanted to save him…”
“But he asked you not to?” Falric sighed and closed his eyes again. Alrion saw a single tear escape them.
“He really is at peace then.” The master wizard gave them a weak smile, and he looked older than he ever had before. “Thank you for sharing that, and for treating him with such humanity. He walked the wrong path, but it was something easy to do and hard to turn back.”
“I know,” Alrion said quietly.
“Well, I guess you’re keen to get on with things. But before we do, it’s appropriate that I briefly mention what your parents are doing.”
“Sure.”
“We discussed the idea that a wizard has been sending you messages via the notebook you took from the academy.”
“Go on.” Alrion wondered if Falric was going to be making a revelation.
“It’s not me.”
“Oh, I thought that it might be since you’re alive.”
“Although that’s a good theory since I’m confident that the wi
zard must have handled the notebook to be writing in it!”
“Really?” Alrion burst out. That narrowed down the list of people substantially.
“Don’t get too carried away,” Lara said.
“Why not?”
“Didn’t you lose that notebook for a time?” Lara looked at him sceptically.
“Yes, you’re right. I recovered it from one of those Trackers. But I was getting messages long before that.”
“Let’s not get hung up on that detail, for now, there are many ways that a wizard could access your personal belongings, especially if they’ve been trailing you.” Falric gave Alrion and Lara serious looks. He seemed intent on getting back to the topic he had introduced.
“Sure. Please continue.”
“I will. We determined that a wizard named Aydan accessed the Wizard Store in Paperton. That is likely an alias, and there’s good reason to suspect it is the identity of the wizard that is watching you from afar.”
“Aydan. That’s his name. Or at least what he calls himself.”
“Can’t say that I’ve ever heard of it,” Lara said.
“It’s in the old language. It means ‘Lost One’.”
“Interesting. What’s this got to do with my parents?”
“We jointly decided that the best way for them to help with your quest was to determine the identity of this individual. So that there were no surprises when you were ready to perform the final spell.”
“Is that because you can’t tell them things about my quest?”
“Primarily, yes. Although your mother was quite concerned about the risk of this wizard interfering more directly.”
“That’s why we saw her name in a nearby Wizard Store,” Lara said.
“Oh, you found that one?”
“We came in through that Wizard Gate,” Alrion said. Falric looked surprised.
“I’m surprised that it’s still working. They aren’t used much anymore, too prone to failure.”
“I’ve discovered that also.” Alrion instantly thought about Alyx, trapped somewhere far away.
“Where are Vincent and Celes off to?” Lara said.
“They’re following an old trail. Aydan first passed through here around twenty years ago. They believe that there’s more chance of unlocking a clue to his identity in the past.”
“That’s a good idea. Do you know where they were heading?”
“I know where they will end up.” Falric paused for a moment, looking from Alrion to Lara. “They will end up in Valrytir.” Lara let out a short gasp but quickly hid it. Alrion still noticed.
“Why Valrytir?” she said.
“The conclusion of Alrion’s quest is nearby, and there’s also a notable Wizard Store there.”
“All roads lead to Valrytir. It all ends there.” Alrion’s voice was more solemn than he expected. Falric gave him an odd look.
“In a sense, not necessarily a literal one. Right, now that I’ve brought you up to date, I think we need to address your training. Caleb?” Falric beckoned for the scholar to come over. He strode over immediately.
“Caleb will be your primary instructor in this. I will provide additional instruction and advice from a wizard’s perspective.”
“How long will this take?”
“As long as it needs. You are the decider of that.” Caleb bowed to Alrion.
“You talk like a wizard,” Alrion laughed. Falric chuckled too.
“He’s right though. A good deal of this is up to you.”
“I get it. Can we start?”
“Absolutely. Come with me.” Caleb walked back to the doorway and waited for Alrion.
“Here we go. Don’t let Falric off too easy on the questions.” Alrion winked at Lara and joined Caleb. In moments, they were walking back through the building.
“Are we going back to the Pool?”
“Oh no, there’s no need for that. I don’t think it’s recommended either. What we’re going to do is visit the immersion room.”
“That sounds interesting.” Alrion tried to picture what it looked like but wasn’t sure. He kept imagining something like the Vault of Silence but figured it had to be different. Caleb brought them back to the main hall, but he led Alrion to another door, almost hidden around the other side of the stage.
“We’re almost at the entrance,” Alrion commented.
“Almost, but not quite.” Caleb stood before the door and waited. “Please enter.” Alrion pushed the door open and walked inside. There was a tiny window in the ceiling letting in the sun’s rays, otherwise, the room was quite dim. It looked like a pool in the middle. The walls were all painted white.
“What is this room?”
“This is a tool to help your mind relax and detach from the everyday. You will see a chest over there, that’s for your clothes.”
“Really?” Alrion looked back at Caleb.
“You would not be comfortable with them weighing you down. We also recommend you scrub yourself down over there.” Caleb pointed to a bucket and stool at one end of the room.
“Are you going to stay in here?”
“Oh no, we have thought of that. There is an adjoining room that I can use to talk you through what you need to do. Your privacy will be respected.”
“Sure. I guess I better get started.”
“Please. I will await your signal.” Caleb left the room, closing the door softly behind him. Once the door closed the space seemed extremely quiet.
“It’s worth a try,” Alrion muttered to himself. He removed all his clothing and dutifully used the bucket and brush to scrub down. He rinsed himself as best as he could and approached the water. It was nicely warmed somehow and felt comfortable. He stepped in and found himself standing at the bottom, the water up to his neck.
“Lay back,” a voice said from somewhere else. Alrion looked around and couldn’t find the source.
“Lay back, you will float.” Alrion realised that it must be Caleb, and he tried leaning back. With careful manoeuvring he was able to lie on his back, floating in the water. He was fully submerged except for his head.
“Good, close your eyes and start to picture the Pool of Knowledge.” Alrion closed his eyes and thought back to that day. He had been terribly injured by Branthor and had stumbled over to the Pool. While drinking, he had tumbled into it and blacked out.
I don’t think you get more immersed than that.
He kept waiting for Caleb’s voice again, but there was nothing. Just quiet. He started to lose track of time, and where he was. His limbs too were almost indistinguishable.
“Imagine that you are diving into the Pool of Knowledge. All that you need is there, right at the bottom. You are diving deeper and deeper.” Alrion tried to follow along, and imagine the story that Caleb was speaking.
“What does the Knowledge look like?”
“A chest. But it’s locked,” Alrion said. He could see the chest now. It was made of wood and reinforced with steel. A large keyhole adorned the front. He knew he couldn’t force it open.
“Where’s the key?” Caleb’s voice said. Alrion searched all around, there was no key. He banged his hand on the chest in frustration. The pain coursed through him, way more intense than expected.
“You must find the key.” Alrion held his hands up in annoyance. There seemed to be markings on them. He searched his arms and found more markings.
The key is on me somewhere.
Alrion kept searching, checking his shoulders, legs, and head. Finally, he saw it. The key was emblazoned on his chest. He tried touching it and the heat almost burned him.
Ouch. How do I get it?
He tried again, reaching out. This time he kept his hand on the key, embracing the heat. He let it pass through him. The pain lessened. Dark thoughts started to bombard him. Fear. Doubt. Regret. Anxiety. Rather than resist, he let them pass through as well. He didn’t need those, they could go. Suddenly he had the key in his hand. Without any hesitation, he thrust it into the chest and turned
sharply.
35
Closing In
Celes stumbled to regain her footing and looked around. She looked like she was in a cellar, with some light leaking in from nearby. The gate itself was almost invisible.
That snake Ashra, he played me. Bloody wizards.
Ashra was right about the gate though, it didn’t look like it was working at all. The space felt oppressive, and she didn’t want to return to the desert, so she ignored the gate and cautiously walked towards the stairs. They were cut from stone and headed up to somewhere well-lit.
Might as well see where I am.
She took each stair one at a time and listened carefully. It seemed quiet above her, although she did hear the occasional sound of footsteps. As she reached the end of the staircase, she noticed a shadow up ahead.
“Hello?” Celes said.
“Please show yourself,” an older male voice said. It sounded strong, but also a bit apprehensive. Celes approached slowly with her hands up, trying to look non-threatening.
“Can I ask who you are?” the man said. He looked like a retired farmer, his grey hair belying his age and his simple work clothes looked faded and worn.
“My name is Celes. It sounds rather incredible, but I just walked through a Wizard Gate.”
“Yes, that’s the one. Clearly, you’re no wizard though.” The man eyed her suspiciously.
“No, a wizard activated it for me. I had no idea it opened up in your cellar?” Celes paused, offering the man a chance to introduce himself.
“I’m Lyle, and this is my home. I’m no wizard either.” Lyle looked her up and down. “You seem harmless enough, come over and have some tea and you can tell me why you ended up here.” Lyle beckoned for her to follow and walked off. Celes cautiously followed, looking around the home. It seemed quite nicely built, but old. It seemed a bit too grand for a farmer’s home.
Soul of Light (The Hidden Wizard Book 4) Page 25