Wizard's Key (The Darkwolf Saga Book 1)

by Mitch Reinhardt

  Jane shot to her feet.

  “Will you teach me? I could do so much for others if I knew which spell to cast!

  Ariel regarded Jane for a moment. Jane’s mind was racing with possibilities.

  “Perhaps,” said Ariel. “We shall see. It takes time to learn those spells. Humans do not usually have the compassion or desire to help others unless circumstances are dire.”

  Jane felt the air leave her lungs. She couldn’t believe what she had just heard.

  “But didn’t Jane just prove she has what it takes to cast healing spells?” asked Sawyer.

  “Yes,” said Ariel. “One healing spell does not prove anything. As I said, we shall see. The sun will rise soon. We must resume our journey if we are to find Geoff. Come.”

  Jane watched Ariel turn away and continue tracking the same hoof prints they had been following since they emerged from the catacombs. Jane was irked. How could Ariel be so untrusting? What’s the harm in healing people or animals? Jane lowered her head as she thought.

  “It’s okay, Jane,” said Sawyer.

  She felt him wrap an arm around her shoulders and gently pull her along with him as they followed Ariel.

  “That’s why we have doctors, right?” asked Sawyer. “I bet that mumbo jumbo spell stuff won’t work when we get home anyway.”

  “Why doesn’t she trust me? Does she hate all humans?” said Jane.

  “Not sure about that,” said Sawyer. “But she did show you that spell and she got us through the catacombs. And I think she is trying to help us get home.”

  Jane frowned. Ariel had done much for them already, but her manner and refusal to teach more healing spells confused her.

  “Yeah,” she said. “But why won’t she teach me more healing spells? I know I can do it. I showed her I can cast spells. She should trust me, at least. Otherwise, why even bother?”

  Jane walked along with Sawyer, his comforting arm still around her shoulders. In the distance she saw Ariel waiting for them again at the top of a hill. Jane imagined she was annoyed with their slow pace and slowed down even more. Too bad, she thought. We’ll get there when we get there. You just wait.

  As she walked, Jane saw the sky begin to lighten and she realized they had been traveling all night. A wave of exhaustion rolled over her. She blinked to stay alert and awake.

  “Dunno,” said Sawyer. “But I guess she has her reasons.”

  Jane just shook her head.

  “Well, as I see it, we need to get back home, and we need Geoff in order to do that,” said Sawyer. “So let’s tough it out ‘til we get home. This whole place is so weird.”

  As Jane heard Sawyer’s words she grasped what he said. He’s right, she thought. We do need Geoff so we can go home.

  “Okay,” she said. “Let’s find him and go home.”

  Jane and Sawyer quickened their pace. When they reached Ariel she said nothing. She simply turned and continued on. They marched in silence for a couple of more hours with Ariel in the distance, bobbing in and out of their sight as they hurried. They rounded a bend and saw Ariel had made camp beside a small grove of trees.

  A small fire burned, giving off wisps of white smoke as Ariel laid out a small breakfast of bread, cheese, and raspberries.

  “You should rest,” she said without looking at them. “We will resume our search for Geoff before midday.”

  “All right,” said Sawyer. “How much further? Do we have any idea where the bad guys are taking Geoff?”

  “The tracks head northeast,” said Ariel. “I suspect the brigands’ camp is not far.”

  “What if they don’t have a camp?” asked Jane. “What if they already packed up and left?”

  “Brigands are outlaws,” replied Ariel. “They must move from place to place in order to escape justice. If they have moved on then we will follow them.”

  Jane frowned at her answer.

  “You know,” said Sawyer, “I was really looking forward to sleeping in a warm bed. Too bad that werewolf tracked us down. Now I have to find a nice comfy rock to rest my head on. Hey, Ariel, why didn’t my sword warn me about those carrion mites like it did with the werewolf?”

  Ariel shook her head. “I do not know. Your sword will reveal what it wishes. Perhaps in time it will warn you of other dangers.”

  “I know brigands are outlaws,” snapped Jane. “How do you know they have a camp? Do you know who they are?”

  “Hey Jane…,” said Sawyer.

  “Just a minute,” said Jane with a flushed face. “I’m getting tired of you putting us humans down. If don’t trust us by now then you never will. Why are you helping us? That’s what you’re doing, right? Helping us poor humans?”

  Ariel stood up and glared at her. Jane could see her nostrils flare, and the elf’s green eyes drilled into her. Jane swallowed and continued. “You show me how to cast one small healing spell and a spell to make flowers grow. But when I ask you to teach me more spells you say ‘Perhaps’. Why won’t you trust me?”

  “Have we not covered this before?” Ariel asked as she approached Jane. “Your manner is ungrateful, which is characteristic of your kind. Humans are greedy, disrespectful, selfish, and have no honor. You think that because you have an aptitude for casting druidic spells you are entitled to learn more. But you have no idea of the power that resides within you. None of you do. I choose what I teach and to whom. I did not refuse you earlier, but given your temperament perhaps I should. Your selfish nature betrays you. Our order has never had a human within our ranks. Why? Because humans cannot be trusted with power. Invariably they want more and that lust for power always dooms them.”

  Jane opened her mouth but closed it. She took a deep breath. Her knees were shaking as she spoke.

  “I didn’t start any wars here! Neither did Sawyer or Geoff! You unfairly lump all humans into a big pile and label us. We aren’t all bad. All we want to do is go home, so if you’re looking for a thank you then I’ll say it. Thank you. Believe me, no one wants to see us go home more than we do. If you don’t want to teach me more spells so I can help others then don’t.”

  Jane glanced at Sawyer. His eyes were opened so wide they looked like they were going to pop out of his head. Suddenly Ariel was in her face, looking down at her.

  “Do not,” she said through clenched teeth, “ever speak to me like that again. You need to learn to channel your anger into something useful. Take heed; I will not tolerate another one of your tantrums.”

  Jane was trembling, but she tried to conceal it. Ariel maintained eye contact as she stepped around her and disappeared into the forest.

  Jane could only watch as Ariel walked away.

  “Holy crap, Jane!” said Sawyer. “Are you crazy? She could cut us into little bits and feed us to the rabbits. What’s gotten into you? She’s trying to help us. Okay, so maybe she won’t show you how to cast more spells, so what? We don’t plan on being here much longer anyway. Just tough it out till we get home.”

  “Oh shut up, Sawyer.”

  Jane sat down by the small fire Ariel had made and crossed her legs.

  “I know,” she said, her eyes welling up. “I know she is trying to help. But look at us. Things aren’t getting better. We aren’t any closer to going home and Geoff has been kidnapped. So you tell me, where is the silver lining in all this?”

  Sawyer looked away from Jane and put a handful of dried twigs on the fire.

  “Yeah,” he said. “Things aren’t good. We’ve been through a lot. Werewolves, elves, orcs, killer mites. Seems like everything wants to either kill us or eat us.”

  Jane put her head between her knees and let her tears fall to the ground. She wished she hadn’t blown up at Ariel like that. It was stupid.

  “Hey, do you think she’s coming back?” asked Sawyer.
<
br />   Jane couldn’t help but chuckle at Sawyer’s question. She realized he had a knack for saying just the right thing to cheer her up. She lifted her head and brushed her hair back, then looked at Sawyer, smiled, and wiped her eyes.

  “No idea,” she said.

  “So what do we do if she doesn’t come back?” he asked.

  “No idea,” she repeated.

  Sawyer laughed. Jane looked up at the sky.

  “Looks like a sunny day,” she said. “We should try to get some rest before our commander returns—if she returns.”

  “Yeah,” said Sawyer. “After what you said to her that’s a big if.”

  “You know me,” she said as she laid her blanket beside Sawyer and settled down on it. “Greedy, selfish, and ungrateful.”

  Sawyer laughed and put his sword aside. He kicked off his shoes and lay on his side facing Jane.

  “You know,” he whispered, “she may be wrong about the three of us, but on the whole she is right about the human race, isn’t she?”

  Jane closed her eyes and nodded. “Mmhmm.”

  She drifted off into a deep sleep and awakened a few hours later to the sound of birds chirping. She opened her eyes to find that she had snuggled herself into Sawyer’s arms. She felt warm and safe. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath. Suddenly, her eyes flew open. Huh? What the heck? She quickly slid away from Sawyer and looked around. The sun was shining overhead and there was the slightest hint of a breeze.

  She was relieved to find Ariel had returned while they slept. She had even prepared a meal consisting of dried meats, cheese, bread, and berries for them. A cup of water was sitting beside her, and there was a small stack of firewood by their blanket.

  “I am not your enemy, Jane,” said Ariel from an overhead tree branch.

  Jane sat up and rubbed her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but a belated yawn prevented her reply.

  “I have no love for humans,” Ariel said as she dropped silently to the ground beside her, “and perhaps I never will. Your race is a scourge on these lands. But I will honor my promise to help the three of you return home.”

  Jane put her hands on the ground to push herself up, but Ariel knelt and presented her with a small brown leather pouch.

  “In this pouch are more components needed to cast stronger healing spells,” she said, her eyes fixed on Jane’s. “I do not know when I will be able to get you home, but you should learn to use the gifts I believe you have. If you wish, I will teach you how to understand the ways of nature and how to communicate with both plant and animal.”

  Jane took the pouch and stared at it. Ariel stood and walked to the campfire.

  “Thank you,” said Jane quietly.

  She looked at Ariel.

  “I’m sorry I got angry. I have a bit of a temper. And I was tired. I was wrong to argue with you.”

  Ariel knelt by the fire. “Apology accepted. I did not expect that from you,” she said. “Perhaps I should not speak ill of your kind so often.”

  “No,” said Jane. “You have your reasons. To tell the truth, you’re pretty much right about us…in general. I suppose our race has a lot of growing up to do.”

  “Perhaps,” said Ariel. “But maybe not the three of you, I think.”

  She pointed at Sawyer with a smoldering twig she had taken from the campfire. “I will also continue to teach him how to fight with a sword. After all, we cannot have the Stormlord always dropping his weapon during a fight.”

  Jane looked at Sawyer and giggled. He was still fast asleep. A thin line of drool seeped from the corner of his mouth.

  “With Geoff having been taken,” said Ariel, “I realized that you need to learn to use your talents.”

  “Will you also teach Geoff how to cast spells?”

  “No,” said Ariel. “I cannot. If my suspicions are correct about Geoff then he will need to learn his craft from a wizard.”

  “You mean there are wizards here too?” asked Jane.

  “Most assuredly,” said Ariel. “And witches, sorcerers, necromancers, warlocks, and—”

  “And druids?” interrupted Jane.

  Ariel smiled. “And druids, of course.”

  She has a beautiful smile, thought Jane, smiling back at her. Maybe everything will be okay after all.

  “Okay, so wizards are different from druids and all those other spell casters you mentioned,” said Jane. “So if you can’t teach Geoff how to be a wizard, who can?”

  Ariel stoked the fire.

  “There is a wizard,” she said. “His name is Maelord. He does not live far. He is not likely to take on a new apprentice, but if he chooses to teach Geoff the ways of a wizard it will be a difficult path for your friend. Do you think Geoff is strong enough for such a rigorous undertaking?”

  Jane thought for a moment before answering. “I don’t know.”

  Ariel nodded.

  “But I think if Geoff did cast that fireball in the catacombs, he almost killed us. So he needs to be taught and he should be given a chance to learn.”

  “I agree,” said Ariel.

  “Me too,” said Sawyer.

  He had awakened but chose to lie still and listen to Jane and Ariel.

  “Otherwise,” he said as he sat up, “he might be more dangerous to us than that werewolf or any carrion mite. He could fry us. We’d be crispy critters, ya know?”

  “That’s true,” said Jane.

  Sawyer hopped to his feet, dusted himself off, and wiped his moist chin. Then he looked at Ariel.

  “Okay,” he said. “Let’s eat and go get Geoff.”

  After their meal, the three of them set off again, Ariel again outdistancing Sawyer and Jane as they journeyed through the forest. Every now and then she would stop and examine the ground for tracks. After another couple of leagues, Jane became winded and fell behind. She stopped and held up her hand for the others to stop.

  “We’ll make a long distance runner out of you yet,” said Sawyer.

  Jane sat on a fallen tree and took a long drink of water from her water pouch.

  “How much further, do you think?” she asked between gasps for air.

  There was no answer.

  Jane looked at Ariel. She had dropped to one knee and was closely examining something on the ground.

  “What is it?” asked Sawyer. “What do you see?”

  Ariel stood and placed her hands on the pommels of her scimitars. She looked at the clearing ahead and then turned to Sawyer and Jane.

  “We are not the only ones tracking Geoff.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Escape

  The only light in the tent came from a dying candle on a rusty holder hanging in the center. Geoff saw several closed chests stacked on top of each other along the left wall. To the right, an assortment of weapons and a few pieces of fine silk rested on three wooden tables. Geoff watched Ishara walk to one of the tables without hesitation and pick up a bow and a quiver full of arrows. She quickly and quietly slung the bow and quiver over her back, then strapped a curved sword and knife around her waist.

  Ishara glanced over at Geoff and smiled. She motioned for him to follow her, and they crept to the back of the tent. Geoff heard slight snoring coming from a low cot. The source of the snoring was buried beneath a blanket. Geoff stopped. Even before Ishara pulled the blanket back he knew who was sleeping there. Geoff shook his head but he was unable to move. He watched as Ishara stood over the slumbering Aiden, leader of the brigands.

  Then, to Geoff’s horror, Ishara pulled the dagger Ariel had given him from Aiden’s belt and held it to his throat in one fluid motion. Aiden started and woke, looking up at Ishara. Geoff saw fear in his dark, evil eyes. Aiden raised up on his elbows and opened his mouth to speak.

&n
bsp; “Shh,” said Ishara, holding a finger to her lips.

  Aiden closed his mouth and remained quiet. Ishara removed the knife from his throat, turned to Geoff and smiled. Then she whirled back around and punched Aiden in the face, knocking him unconscious. She handed the dagger to Geoff and smiled. “Here,” she whispered. “This belongs to you.”

  Geoff took it and looked at Ishara. The look on his face must have amused her because she grinned.

  “I could not help myself,” she said. “That felt good.”

  “I thought you were going to kill him,” whispered Geoff.

  “Me too,” answered Ishara. “He deserves to die.”

  She walked to a back corner of the tent and took out her knife. Geoff watched as she cut an opening along the seams and stepped out into the night. He glanced over his shoulder to the front of the tent. He didn’t see or hear any movement from the rest of the brigands. He swallowed and walked to the opening and peered through. A slender hand emerged from outside and grabbed his shirt collar. Before he realized what happened he was pulled through.

  Outside Geoff found himself face to face with Ishara, who was smiling from ear to ear. She seems different now that we’re out of that cage, he thought. She is kind of friendly. Happy, maybe? Before he was able to further consider the elven girl’s change in demeanor he found himself dragged along behind her as she dashed into the forest. Geoff crunched and crashed through the underbrush and trees, unable to keep silent as they ran. He looked back at the brigands’ camp to be sure they hadn’t awakened any of them. When he didn’t see any movement he let out a sigh of relief.

  They ran until they came to a small meadow. Ishara released Geoff and sped ahead of him. Geoff stopped, put his hands on his knees, and tried to catch his breath. Ishara twirled about and leapt into the air with exemplary grace. She was elated to be free of her captors. She’s like a ballerina, Geoff thought. She’s so graceful, so fluid when she moves, just like Ariel.