Wizards on a Rampage: A Tale of Two Realms (Mayr Stories Book 1)

by Lee Walsh

  “You're getting ahead of yourself,” said Melody. “They would kill us upon seeing us.”

  “True,” I replied. “We've thought of this before.”

  For the rest of the evening, we spoke about our plan but the truth is, it didn't matter where we were or whose company we were in, we really were rubbish at coming up with plans.

  Thankfully, the dwarves of Raggar were very welcoming to us and the bartender provided us with a place to stay for as long as we wanted. Tourists didn't often come to Raggar and the fact we were wizards, a witch, and a dwarf on a rampage meant a lot to them. We could stay for as long as we needed.

  +

  EXPLORERS RETURN

  Percy Sunsword, a wizard determined to bring down the oppressive regime that had controlled and pressed him and his race into nothing but insects in their home town. Imprisonment had pushed the rebels to become the most notorious and evil minds around.

  “It costs you nothing to not be like this,” said their leader.

  +

  AFTER SPENDING A week in the tavern, and not wanting to outstay our welcome, Eric, Melody, and I left with the best wishes of everyone in Raggar. Everyone knew of our quest by that point and Brownbeard was happy to be a celebrity in his town. Brownbeard wanted to avenge the lack of fame for his son, Melody wanted revenge on John Pietta, Eric wanted his own name back, and I was tagging along for the ride. We all had one mutual goal, to bring an end to the elven empire and once and for all free Ecklewood, Raggar, and the whole of Mayr from its evil grip. And, of course, reduce the price of the beer.

  Brownbeard's friend, Whitebeard gave us some staffs which all wizards needed when on a quest and Melody a wand to cast her magic. Brownbeard was quite happy with his faithful axe.

  We left Raggar and headed directly for Ecklewood. Our party of four needed more members to bring down an entire empire and we still had little in the way of any plans. We needed more members who could come up with plans. It was a mightily long and deadly quest to Ecklewood which would surely bring us dangers and excitement along the way.

  “That's at least a three-week walk,” said Brownbeard who was itching for a fight.

  “Needs must,” I replied.

  “Don't be daft!” said Melody with a grin on her face shortly before the hot-air balloon we'd had used to escape Hanging Gardens arrived in front of us. Eric and I might be wizards but it seems we had forgotten to use our magic at the more convenient times. Melody hadn't and used her magic to bring the balloon towards us and to a safe landing just outside the gates of Raggar.

  We each jumped into the basket and floated up into the sky. Ecklewood-bound, I took in the sun-washed fields and hills which rolled all over Mayr. After spending a mere hour in the skies above Mayr, we heard some noises.

  SWOOSH.

  “What was that?” I asked.

  SWOOSH.

  “No idea, but I didn't like the sound of it,” Eric answered looking over the edge of the basket.

  Melody joined him, “I can't see anything.”

  SWOOSH. SWOOSH. The noises became louder and closer.

  “Where's it coming from?” Brownbeard asked.

  SWOOSH.

  The sound went on for some time before I felt a sudden rush of blood to the head.

  “Are we going down?” I asked.

  Melody replied, “Yes, but I don't know why so I can't use magic against it.”

  SWOOSH. SWOOSH. SWOOSH.

  SWOOSH.

  The balloon floated slowly towards the ground and we couldn't for the life of us work out why. Sinking from the sky to the ground. Without the knowledge of what had happened, we couldn't use any magic to fix it. We fell at a graceful pace before landing in a field in the middle of nowhere.

  “Finally,” said Brownbeard. “Just what I needed.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “CENTAURS!” yelled Eric. “RUN!”

  Centaurs came into the field in which we had landed and the four of us ran for the trees in the opposite direction – away from the arrows. Centaurs were the hunters of Mayr and were never controlled by anyone. They had lived uncontacted by anyone for millennia. Anyone who dared approach them was killed by their archers before they could get close.

  The centaurs gave chase but stopped when we got into the forest. From our books, we knew centaurs never went into the forest so we were safe there. Centaurs were frightened by trolls who occupied the forests of Mayr, but trolls were frightened of wizards who hunted them. Trolls were similar to orcs in the sense of intelligence – they had none. They could have swallowed the four of us whole but were too timid to even attempt such a feat.

  +

  “Centaur archers must have punctured the balloon with their arrows,” Melody said.

  “And you didn't think of using a spell to fix it?” Brownbeard said.

  “It doesn't matter now,” I replied. “What's done is done and we have to find a way to get through the centaurs to get to Ecklewood.”

  “They won't leave the balloon now,” said Eric as he watched the centaurs walk around the balloon and turn to the forest we were hiding in. “They'll wait for us to return to it. They know we need it.”

  The four of us sat down and tried to muster up some sort of plan. We had magic which wouldn't have deterred the centaurs. Killing them off was strictly illegal and would have brought us the worst of punishments – the life of a human.

  “I think I've got a plan,” I said after some time. “Knowing that trolls like the taste of centaurs, we could bait a troll into thinking there was a centaur for the taking in the forest, the troll could see all the other centaurs around the balloon and we'd make a run for it as the troll and the centaurs battle it out.”

  “No good,” said Brownbeard. “There are far too many centaurs. They'd just fire their arrows at the troll and kill the poor soul.”

  “Pour soul?” I said. “Have you ever met a troll?”

  “Yes, I've fought many in my time single-handedly unlike you wizards who hunt in packs,” replied Brownbeard.

  “I've got a better idea,” said Eric. “Let's travel around the forest borders until we get to the other side of the centaurs.”

  “It would take weeks,” Melody replied. “Any other bright ideas?”

  We were stuck. The only hope we had was to walk through the forest, in a straight line and head right back to Raggar.

  “I'm not going back there,” said Brownbeard. “I've told everyone I'm on a quest and a quest is exactly what we shall have, even if it kills me. I'd rather die a hero than live a coward.”

  After some more time passed, the sun was beginning to set in the forest which would only cause us more problems. At nights, in the forests of Mayr, nocturnal beings come out to play. Nocturnal beings were a black force of nature that spread panic in the minds of any creatures throughout the realm. They are shadows that lurk out of the light during the day and steal the souls of anyone in the forests, regardless of race, at night. We had to think fast and that's exactly what our dwarf friend did.

  Brownbeard stood up and climbed onto a rock to begin singing an ancient dwarven song the rest of us were completely baffled by. The ancient language of dwarves was something to behold.

  “Why are you singing?” asked Melody.

  “Shh,” commanded Eric. “Let him finish.”

  Brownbeard's singing voice wasn't exactly suitable for a talent show but it certainly brought the crowds to the forest. The song had summoned countless dwarven ghosts from the spirit realm who gathered around and listened to his song.

  “He has summoned ancient warriors,” Eric said.

  “This is amazing,” I looked on in sheer astonishment. The centaurs listened on as the ghostly apparitions sang along to the song, led by our friend Brownbeard.

  The sky had darkened. The transparent dwarves were ancient warriors and were finally ready. There was a sudden rush of light blue as the ghosts charged out of the forest and directly towards the centaurs at great speed. Brownbeard was
quick to jump off his rock and run behind his ghostly buddies. A sea of glowing light and transparent blue rushed the centaurs who retreated in the opposite direction.

  When the centaurs began retreating, Brownbeard stopped and stood by the balloon, pushing his ghostly friends to keep chasing the centaurs.

  “Quick! Come on!” he shouted for us to come out of the forest and we did so in an instant.

  “Fix the balloon, and quickly,” Eric said to Melody.

  “Why the rush? We're obviously well-protected,” she replied.

  “Well, don't turn round now but there's a nocturnal being right behind you leaving the forest and we have approximately ten minutes before it's dark and our souls are taken,” said Eric.

  Melody paled and immediately got to work. There were five tears in total around the balloon from the arrows of the centaurs and the nocturnal being was creeping its way towards us, out of the forest and gaining ground. I felt an urge to try some magic but decided against it, I wasn't the battling type, especially when it came to things I knew very little about.

  “Hurry up, Melody,” I said, shaking with fear.

  “Easier said than done,” she replied. “I'm going as fast as I can.”

  After a few minutes, I felt a sense of despair. A sense of lost life. At this exact moment, there was no more magic that could have been used to help me. My life was being sucked away by the nocturnal being and in less than another minute or two, my life would have drained away and my soul trapped forever in purgatory.

  Just as I felt a cold rush through my bones, I heard Melody shout, “PERCY! NOW!”

  Her voice echoed like a distant memory but had come just in time. I came to my senses and jumped into the basket immediately and the four of us floated up into the sky as quickly as we possibly could. I heard a scream from the nocturnal being. A scream that I would not wish my worst enemy to hear. It tore through my ears like the shriek of a thousand banshees. But, at last, we were safe.

  “Can all dwarves do that?” Melody asked.

  “Don't know,” Brownbeard replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “I'd never tried it. Didn't know the words, to be honest, only the tune.”

  The rest of us looked at each other in amazement while Brownbeard whistled away as calm as a Sunday afternoon cup of tea.

  +

  We hovered over Ecklewood for some time and watched the rain trickle down on the rooftops before bringing the balloon down to the ground just outside. Melody looked strange. Like a woman who didn't want to be back in Ecklewood.

  “I don't want to be back here,” she said. “I'm not going in.”

  “Nonsense, woman. You're one of the party on the most important quest your kind has ever seen,” said Brownbeard giving her a pat on the back. “It doesn't matter what history you have. We all have a reason for being here and you're one of the party, one of us.”

  “I don't care,” she replied. “I quite enjoyed being in the skies and looking over Mayr. Beats a broomstick any day.”

  “Melody,” Eric said. “If you feel your mission is complete, then leave. If not, then join us.”

  I didn't know what to say. After what she had done in the past, after the carnage she'd caused in the human realm, I didn't want her to go but I didn't want her to stay. This party was a party of good people with good intentions. Melody was a trouble-maker and had nearly lost me over a century of my life.

  “I'm going,” she said. “But I will be back one day and I will help bring down the elves and get my revenge on John Pietta, I promise you.”

  Melody climbed back into the basket of the hot-air balloon and it lifted up a small amount.

  “Goodbye, my friends,” she said with a tear rolling down her face. “I will not forget you.”

  The three of us looked on as Melody Rangalf, a broken-hearted witch, formally with a mission, flew up into the sky before the balloon became nothing but a dot.

  “Right,” Brownbeard said. “Why don't you guys show me your home town?”

  We crept into Ecklewood on tiptoe. We didn't want to be caught by the orc-guards and smuggling a dwarf into Ecklewood was unheard of. People wanted to get out of Ecklewood, not in.

  Brownbeard brought a lot of attention to himself. Suited in his armour and carrying a battle-axe around like it was nothing more than a suitcase.

  People looked at the three of us, whispering to one another as we walked through the street towards the old pub we frequented in the past.

  “This place has changed,” Eric said. “So many years in Hanging Gardens really does give a new perspective of what you had before. Feels a bit smaller too.”

  “Wait until you see the prices of the beer now,” I replied. “Preposterous, I tell you.”

  Entering the pub, I looked around for John Pietta, just in case. He wasn't there but sat on his own in the corner of the room was Billy Tart.

  We approached Billy while he was sat on his own near the bar area.

  “Guess who?” I approached him from behind and covered his eyes.

  “Is that you, John?” he said.

  I removed my hands, “John?” I asked.

  “Erm... err...” Billy hesitated.

  “What do you know about John?” Eric asked.

  “I don't know no John,” Billy replied. “Who are you?”

  “I'm Eric Grindstone, and you've just used a double negative so you must know John.”

  The man might have been away for a long time but his genius didn't leave him.

  “I'm telling you, John Pietta is a stranger to me,” said Billy. “Oh, bugger.” He sighed and lowered his head in shame.

  “Look, we'll go easy on you, Billy. Tell us what you know,” I said.

  “I only found out when we were in the human realm. He told me that he'd kill me if I ever said anything to anyone.” Billy replied.

  “Go on,” said Eric.

  Billy went on, “Well, I overheard them talking about their ideas to kill off all fantasy writers. Melody called him John and I asked her about it later.”

  “She called him John?” I asked.

  “Yeah, and John said he was meeting Agatha the next night and would bring down the whole gang, except Melody. He said he'd talk to Agatha to let Melody off and just catch the rest of us. Me, you and Wanda,” Billy said.

  “So, Melody knew he was John all along?” I asked.

  “Yep,” he answered. “Without a doubt.”

  “That witch,” Eric said.

  “Should've taken her head when I had the opportunity,” said Brownbeard.

  Billy continued his story and as Billy was Billy, we knew it was the truth. Billy might be utterly brainless but he was completely incapable of lying.

  “That Pablo guy, who used to work here, he knew about it all along too. He told John when people were talking about doing bad things so John could join them.”

  “And are you waiting for him tonight, Billy?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” Billy said, “he's supposed to meet me here in about half an hour. Apparently, he has a job for me.”

  “Perfect,” I replied.

  We left Billy at his table and took our seats on the other side of the room. The pub wasn't well-lighted and we sat at a table in the darkest corner of the room. My back was to Billy and John most certainly wouldn't recognise the others, although Brownbeard was quite a hot topic of discussion within the pub. It didn't matter, as soon as John Pietta arrived, he would definitely know exactly who we were.

  +

  Within a number of minutes, true to Billy's word, John Pietta walked into the pub with a big grin on his face. I wanted to get up and beat the wizard to a pulp but Eric held me back.

  “Let's listen,” he said before using his staff as a speaker so we could each hear what was being said.

  “Billy, my old man,” said John. “How the devil are you?”

  “All right, thanks, John. Listen, I've got something to tell you,” Billy answered.

  My face went pale, our plan was about to fail.
/>
  “That rat,” I said, “I'm going to actually kill him.”

  “Shh,” replied Brownbeard. “Wait.”

  “I've been thinking about the offer to work with you. I know you said Agatha would pay me well but I just don't think it's me. I didn't know what was going to happen to Percy and then you turned in Melody too, I don't know if I can trust you,” Billy said.

  “The silly little genius,” Eric said with a grin.

  We listened on.

  “Why not buddy?” asked John. “You've seen what I do and I reckon you'd be a great recruit. Think of the pay and lifestyle and women you could get.”

  “It doesn't matter, John,” Billy answered sternly. “I saw what you did to my friends, Percy and Wanda. I don't want anything to do with it. I just want to live my life in peace.”

  “You'll never know what you've turned down and what's going to happen to you, Billy!” John shouted before standing up from the table, knocking the chair to the floor, and leaving Billy.

  We waited for a minute before we stood up and followed John Pietta out of the bar.

  Eric had an idea. “You two, hide there,” he instructed before quickening to catch up to John.

  “Good evening, sir,” Eric said. We just could about make out what was said.

  “Do I know you?” John replied.

  “I'm Eric Grindstone,” said Eric.

  John said nothing. All we could hear next were quick footsteps. Footsteps as if someone was running towards us. We were hidden in a side alley close to the pub we had been in. Brownbeard stepped out and the footsteps stopped.

  “Out of my way you mud-eating barrel-body,” commanded John.

  “Absolutely not,” Brownbeard said with a slight chuckle to himself. I stepped out to face John Pietta.

  “How's Agatha these days, John? Doing well is she?” I smiled at him.

  John froze and Eric Grindstone came towards us from behind him. There was nowhere for John to run. He had to face us once and for all.

  Eric gripped John from behind and dragged him into the alleyway where we had been hiding moments before. He pinned John up against the wall. “You better start talking,” Eric said.

  I'd never seen Eric Grindstone like this before. He was acting like a man possessed, or like a man who'd had his name stolen by a stranger and developed a bad reputation because of the acts of that stranger.