The Sorcerer's Return (The Sorcerer's Path)

by Brock Deskins

  Azerick searched the Codex for answers regarding his son’s affliction, but nothing like Raijaun has ever existed. He studied abyssal magic and gained some knowledge of Guardian and dragon magic, but no one had ever combined them before. Azerick eventually decided that his theory regarding the conflicting magic was sound. There was simply too much divergence from abyssal and Guardian magic. Forcing the two to form a magical weave, although extremely powerful, was also painful if not dangerous to the wielder.

  “Are you ready to practice?” Azerick asked Raijaun after they finished their supper.

  Raijaun was hesitant but nodded. “Yes, Father.”

  “First, I want you reach for the Source. Pull in as much as you feel comfortable doing.” Raijaun nodded and began gathering the Source to him. “Keep going, I know you can do more than that.”

  Raijaun’s eyes darted nervously as he gathered a little more power into him. Azerick knew he was not coming close to his potential but decided to let Raijaun set the pace for now.

  “Shape your spell.” Raijaun plucked at the individual strands of summoned energy and shaped them into a spell. “Good, now reach for the other magic. Let us do the Guardian magic.”

  “Father, I would rather not. I am afraid it will hurt me again.”

  “You do not need to fear it, Son. It is the black abyssal magic that conflicts with your Guardian magic. This will not hurt you.”

  Raijaun looked uncertain, but he trusted his father and obeyed. Plucking at the strands of golden power surrounding all things in nature, he threaded them into his sorcerous weave. Visible only to those able to see beyond the physical and into the ether, his spell form glowed with an almost blindingly silver and golden radiance.

  Azerick examined the spell his son held in stasis. Still just a child, he easily controlled as much power as a competent wizard and was not close to stressing himself. Raijaun’s weave began to tremble and errant arcs of energy began sparking chaotically as his nerves began to fray.

  Azerick pointed to a scrubby bush. “Release it over there.”

  Raijaun unleashed his spell in a powerful ray of gold and silver light, incinerating the bush and setting fire to the surrounding foliage. He looked to his father worriedly.

  “It is all right. Use your magic to put the fire out.”

  Raijaun grabbed at his Guardian magic like a miser scrambling after a fistful of dropped coins. He clawed the magic, forced it into a weave, and released it. Clouds rolled in, black and angry, thundering their displeasure. Ellyssa shrieked as a torrent of rain washed down from the sky, inundating the land. The rain instantly extinguished the small fires, but now their camp was awash in several inches of water.

  “Raijaun, please stop the rain before we drown,” Azerick said dryly.

  “I’m sorry!” Raijaun exclaimed and plucked apart the strands of magic holding the unnatural storm together.

  Despite no longer being magically driven, it took several minutes for the rain to stop and almost an hour for the clouds to disperse. The camp was a mess. Their fire was snuffed out and washed away, and everything was soaked. Fortunately, being wielders of magic meant their discomfort was only temporary. It was a simple matter for Azerick and Ellyssa to dry out both themselves and their things. The sodden ground all around was a much greater problem, as water seemed to trickle in from everywhere.

  “Sorry,” Raijaun said again.

  “We will have more time to practice. Keep working on drawing, forming, and holding your magic. Just remember not to work the conflicting sources just yet.”

  Raijaun shook his head vehemently. “I will not forget, ever.”

  ***

  “So Harvey walks into his office and finds a wolverine tearing the room apart,” James said, regaling his friend as they shared a guard shift atop the wall. “And the smell! That thing sprayed everything! It was hilarious until they found wolf prints around the sally port I was guarding. They blamed me for letting Wolf in despite my protests of innocence. Now I’m pulling double duty for a month.”

  “Did you do it?” Dustin asked.

  “Of course I did! Harvey’s an ass. Several of us old-timers have been letting Wolf in to harass those Academy jerks since they showed up. They never did figure out who disabled the wards on Harvey’s door. My guess is Roger.”

  “I’m just glad they pretty much leave us martial students alone. I feel bad for the wizards though.” Dustin squinted at the road in the distance and brought a brass spyglass to his eye. “Looks like three people approaching on foot. One woman, a man, and a kid. The woman kind of looks like Ellyssa.”

  James peered through the spyglass when Dustin passed it to him. “That’s definitely Ellyssa. Who’s the man?” James watched the small group approach and nearly dropped the glass over the wall. “Holy crap! Kimberly, come over here, now!”

  A young woman posted at the northwest corner stalked briskly over. “James, you better not be screwing around again.”

  James thrust the spyglass into her hands. “Look at who’s coming up the road and tell me who it is.”

  Kimberly studied the trio intently. “The girl is definitely Ellyssa. The man…no freaking way!”

  “Is it Azerick, or am I completely insane?”

  Dustin looked at his two comrades. “Are you talking about Azerick who used to run this place and died like five years ago?”

  The two older soldiers ignored the younger. “I would say it was someone who looked a lot like him, but that is his staff. That would explain how it came up missing a few months ago! If he came back, he could have magicked it to him.”

  “Wait,” Dustin exclaimed, “people don’t just come back from the dead.”

  James looked at his friend and smiled. “You don’t know Azerick. Kim, watch the wall. I’m going to go tell the tower.”

  James sprinted down the steps two at a time, raced across the grounds, and ran up the steps to the new tower. He wrenched open the doors and burst into the dining hall a moment later. As he had expected given the time of day, he found Lady Miranda and most of the original school staff sitting down for lunch.

  Alex looked at the intruder sharply. “James, I hope there is a good reason for leaving your post and barging in here like a madman.”

  James braced his hands on his knees and took several deep breaths. “Coming up the road…Ellyssa…,” he gasped out, pointing behind him.

  “Ellyssa? Could they have let her go?” Miranda asked.

  “It is highly unlikely,” Allister replied.

  James shook his head vigorously. “Azerick is with her!”

  Allister’s face reddened and his brow grew even more furrowed. “James, if this is one of your jests, it is in extremely poor taste.”

  “No, I swear! I asked Kimberly, and I saw the staff!”

  Miranda clutched her chest. “Is this possible?”

  All eyes turned to Aggie, the resident expert on transdimensional magic. “I thought it might be, especially after Azerick’s staff vanished. But I have no idea how it could be done, and I did not want to raise any false hopes with speculation.”

  “Imposter or not, we had best see to it,” Allister said.

  By the time the assembly moved outside, people were already speaking excitedly as word quickly spread. Headmaster Harvey was observing the applied magic class when a student burst in.

  “Azerick is back!”

  The younger students looked at each other quizzically, but the older students jumped from their desks and pushed for the doors, speaking animatedly.

  “You students get back to your seats if you do not wish to be expelled!” Headmaster Harvey shouted. “If you know what’s good for you, you will sit down this instant!”

  “Go kiss a troll, Harvey!” someone shouted from the mass pressing through the door. “If it really is Azerick, you will have your things packed and be on your way if you know what’s good for you!”

  Harvey was forced to wait for the students to clear the door before exiting the room. He
cursed them all for crude, low-born riffraff as he hurried to his office. He swore once again to bring that accursed wildling to heel when the still pervasive odor of wolverine spray assaulted him. Thus far, his attempts to capture the half-elf resulted in humiliating failure. His people were not experienced woodsmen, and that lack of skill resulted in defeats every bit as painful and embarrassing as his attempt to bring in the girl. Once again, he wished The Academy had given him leave to shut down this school. It was nothing but a warren of vagabonds and criminals, in his opinion.

  Wolf and Ghost had been watching the three travelers almost since they left the major trade road. The pair kept their distance from the school since Wolf had snuck a wolverine into the Headmaster’s office. Wolf mentally reminded himself to check his badger traps later. He also had a good plan for a huge fire wasp nest he found. It would have to wait until the weather cooled and the wasps went dormant before he could move it into the Headmaster’s office, where the warm room would quickly make the hibernating insects very active. He hated waiting. Maybe Sandy could help him again with her magic. She was getting very good at controlling the weather around her.

  Wolf could barely believe his eyes when he recognized Azerick. When Ghost sniffed the air and let out a low rumble, he did not believe them at all. He pulled an arrow from his quiver, set it to the string, and took careful aim.

  “Stop right there,” Wolf called out from the shadows of the nearby trees.

  “Wolf, it’s Azerick!” Ellyssa shouted into the trees.

  “Ghost says he doesn’t smell like Azerick.”

  “Sandy said the same thing.”

  “I’m starting to get a little offended by everyone commenting on my smell,” Azerick said.

  “I thought you were locked up or killed by those wizards,” Wolf said suspiciously.

  “I was, but Azerick came and busted me out,” Ellyssa explained.

  “Sounds like something stupid Azerick would do.” Wolf and Ghost stepped warily from the trees. Wolf pointed his bow down but kept the arrow nocked. Ghost walked in a crouch, ready to leap, his ears flattened against his head. “Sandy saw him?”

  “Yes. She flew south a few weeks ago to help us with the Inquisitors who wanted to take back Azerick’s book.”

  Wolf tallied the time in his head. Sandy had disappeared for a few days around the time Ellyssa mentioned. He did not know much about magic, but elves believed death was not an end to one’s existence, but merely a transition to another life. If so, he supposed it was possible to transition back, especially since they were talking about Azerick.

  “Azerick?”

  “Yes, Wolf.”

  “What was the first thing you gave me?”

  Azerick smiled. “A bath, because you stunk too bad to eat next to. Then I fed you and Ghost. You might say I gave you a blanket, even though I’d say you stole it.”

  “I guess it is you.” Wolf broke out in a devilish grin. “Are you going to throw out those Academy idiots?”

  “Absolutely,” Azerick answered, matching Wolf’s eager expression.

  “Oh, man, I gotta see this!” Wolf looked at Raijaun as if noticing him for the first time. “Who’s the kid?”

  “That’s Raijaun, Azerick’s son,” Ellyssa supplied.

  Wolf peered into the deep hood, studied Raijaun’s face, and looked questioningly at Azerick. “And his mother is…?”

  “Gone,” Azerick answered shortly.

  “Okay, well, nice to meet you, Raij. I’m Wolf and this is Ghost.”

  “Hello,” Raijaun replied shyly. He reached out slowly toward Ghost when he came near, but the wolf put his ears back and slinked away.

  “Don’t mind him. He lacks my excellent social graces.”

  “Speaking of your excellent social graces, how have you been getting on with the new Headmaster and his teachers?” Ellyssa asked.

  “I fed a wolverine a bunch of pickled cabbage and locked him in Harvey’s office the other day. Last week I rubbed goblin wart nectar all over their robes while they hung out to dry. They never did figure out why the flies wouldn’t leave them alone. I once rubbed poison ivy on the inside of their robes while they hung on the drying line.”

  “You would think they would post a guard after the first time,” Ellyssa said.

  “They did.”

  “Who?”

  “James.”

  Ellyssa laughed. “That’s like hiring a thief to guard your gold!”

  Azerick searched his memory and recalled the boy’s face. Young man by now, he corrected himself. He was the lad who gave Ellyssa so much grief when it came to coming and going through the gates. He had made a bet with another young guardsman that Azerick would cheat before saying the passphrase “steel is real but magic is tragic” to be let through the gate.

  Someone must have recognized him as they made their way toward the school. There was a significant amount of activity atop the wall as they approached; far more than they would show for a typical visitor, even a stranger. Azerick was near enough now he could hear his name being spoken amongst the press of people on the walls.

  The main gates swung wide and a mass of people pushed through. Miranda held her hands clenched to her chest, scarcely believing what she saw as their eyes locked. Azerick finally looked down at Daebian and shuddered. He had hoped Daebian would look different from the boy he saw in the Valley of Lies, but it was the same face if a little older. Apparently not everything in the valley had been a lie.

  Miranda started to step forward when a voice boomed, “Miranda, stay back!”

  It felt as though a giant punched Azerick in the chest and then sat on him. Bands of magical energy wrapped around his body, pinning his arms in place and anchoring him to the ground.

  “Allister, what are you doing?” Miranda cried out.

  “That is not Azerick!” the archmage grunted out as he struggled to hold the demon in place. “Brother Thomas, help me!”

  Brother Thomas said a quick prayer and saw what Allister saw. The Chosen of Solarian called upon his god for power and began a ritual of banishing. Azerick struggled to control his anger despite the rage demanding he crush these insects. He could feel Klaraxis fueling the fires of his anger and pride and refused to let the demon influence him. It was not until Brother Thomas was deep into his ritual banishing that Azerick felt true pain.

  “Allister, stop!” Ellyssa shouted.

  Azerick raised his head from the ground and looked at his old friend and mentor. “Allister, it is me. If I were truly the thing I appear to be, I would tear your restraints apart and destroy you and everyone else here.”

  “If you are truly Azerick, how did you return here, and why in this form?” he demanded.

  “How I got here is a long story. As to my body, do you remember the little problem I had with the demon? Our roles have undergone a slight paradigm shift.”

  Allister looked to Brother Thomas, still unconvinced and very much afraid. The Chosen shifted into a slight trance and studied the creature Allister struggled to keep pinned to the ground and only succeeding because it did not appear to be resisting much.

  “Azerick’s soul does exist within the demon’s body,” he confirmed.

  “Can you tell which is dominant?”

  “It appears Azerick is at the core, but there is no way I can say with certainty. We did discuss this very possibility.” Thomas thought a moment. “There is something I can try, but it carries a measure of risk.”

  “What is it?”

  “I can bring the demon forth and question it directly. It cannot lie to me.”

  “Thomas, no!” Azerick exclaimed. “He must be suppressed. If he takes control everything is lost!”

  “The risk is not great. I will bring him forward just enough to allow him to speak with his own voice. It is the only way I can be certain he is not using your spirit to shield himself from my power. Please do not resist.”

  Brother Thomas recited a complex incantation and Azerick could feel Klaraxis s
lipping through his grasp. He felt a moment of panic and fought to maintain control. At Thomas’s urging, Azerick relaxed once more as he felt the Chosen’s grip on Klaraxis next to his own.

  “Tell me your name, Demon,” Thomas commanded.

  “To the abyss with you, priest!” Azerick shouted with Klaraxis’s deep, gravelly voice. “I will enjoy devouring your soul when I am free of this wretched prison!”

  “Tell me your name, demon!” Thomas shouted again and held forth his brightly glowing sun symbol.

  Klaraxis screamed in pain and rage. “You know me as Klaraxis, master of the fifth circle, but you will never get my soulname!”

  Brother Thomas knew better than to try. Extracting a demon’s soulname was a monumental task and a battle he was not prepared to wage.

  “Is the sorcerer, Azerick Giles, in control of you and this form?” Klaraxis snarled and curled his lip in disgust. “Is the sorcerer, Azerick Giles, in control of you and this form?” Thomas demanded and shoved his holy symbol at the demon.

  “Yes, but I swear his time is limited, and when I break free I will destroy him and everything he values! I will tear his soul to shreds and consume it bit by bit, savoring every piece for a thousand years until he is no more!”

  Brother Thomas stared into Azerick’s eyes and commanded, “Back to your cage, demon.”

  Azerick felt Klaraxis being shoved back into his mental and spiritual prison. He breathed a sigh of relief when the demon lord was firmly under his control once more.

  “Let him up, Allister. It is Azerick,” Thomas said.

  Allister looked to Brother Thomas who nodded. Azerick felt the invisible bands slacken and then vanish. Azerick stood and dusted himself off. He spared Raijaun a smile to tell him everything was all right as he hid behind Ellyssa, clinging to her traveling cloak.

  “You still pack a punch for an old man,” Azerick said glibly.

  “I think we both know you took a fall, and I thank the gods for it.”