Spellscribed: Provenance

by Kristopher Cruz

  The king turned to him, surprised at the young wizard’s seemingly miraculous recovery. He had fully recovered all his power in the few seconds they were fighting? “Impossible!” he shouted, throwing his left hand forward and pulling his sword up to his shoulder.

  “Ignatius.”Endrance spoke, and from his hands fire raged. The sweep of fire slammed into the barbarian king, and he disappeared into the flames. The front of the longhouse disintegrated under the force of the fire, and the roof caught on fire.

  “This is very unbecoming of you, your highness.” Endrance said, his unflagging cheerfulness adding a pleasant tone to his voice. “I do not think this was a wise decision. The Spengur’s word is irrefutable when it comes to magic!”

  The flames and smoke cleared, leaving the edges of the blown out walls and ceiling burning. King Kalenden still stood, singed but shielded by some spell that he had thrown up to protect himself. “You wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for me, whelp!” He growled as he replied harshly. “I give you everything you could ever want, and this is what you give me in return? Betrayal?”

  “No.” Endrance said. “You seek to destroy everything. You put yourself here to prevent the prophesied hero from coming to fruition. I will not let you damn the world like this.” The ceiling fire was spreading, and embers were drifting down from above.

  The king snarled his face almost contorted into an inhuman mask. “I am going to kill you for this, Endrance!” he shouted.

  “Maybe so,” Endrance responded. “But not today.”

  “Take your child and go! But know that this is not over between us!” he shouted. He should kill the man, but he couldn’t without the people of Balator seeing him as an assassin himself. He needed to find a way to bring the man’s evil to light before his people.

  The king scoffed, and glanced at his child, who lay wrapped in cloth at the foot of the bed. He turned away from Endrance and strode over to the bed, maintaining a grip on his barbed sword. He looked at Endrance one more time, and then picked up the bundled child in one hand.

  “We aren’t done yet, Spengur.” He grunted, walking out the hole in the front as the roof above still burned. “We are going to finish this soon. Very soon.”

  The man was gone, but the assassin wasn’t. She back flipped out of the way of a three point strike concerted by the Draugnoa, landing near the ruined doors.

  “It looks like our little match is postponed.” She teased. “I will be seeing you all in due time.”

  Endrance pointed at her with a gloved hand and said simply, “No, you won’t.”

  Jalyin lurched backwards, trying to meld into the darkness, but the brilliance of the lightning spell abolished it before she could reach it. Thunder shook the timbers of the burning longhouse, and the bolt of lightning struck her low in the gut, crashing her through the remains of an already devastated wall and out into the darkening sky. A thud was heard several dozen yards distant, but no other sounds came from outside.

  Endrance chuckled. “I’m pretty sure I hit that time.” He said with relief. His buoyancy faded as the energy he had expended from the two spells had drained him below his maximum, and the sense of invincibility disappeared in an instant. The elf was gone, leaving the five in a burning building unopposed. The keepers panted from fighting, and Joven quickly moved to his charge.

  “We need to get out of here.” He said, and Endrance lowered his bow. “The building is burning.”

  The young wizard looked around the room frantically. The only person who hadn’t been evacuated when the fighting was over was the baby the General’s wife had delivered minutes before.

  The desire to protect life overrode his sense of self, and Endrance stumbled through the drifting embers and smoke to the baby while Joven and the women scrambled to retrieve what important items they could before the fire got to them.

  He found the bundle of cloth was okay. Gullin had swept in while everyone was occupied, snatched up the baby by his swaddling clothes, and laboriously hauled him out of the line of danger. Even as Endrance approached, Gullin remained perched above the baby, using his outstretched wings to shield him from most of the falling embers.

  Endrance carefully scooped up the child, who somehow, during the battle to the death, had stopped crying and was quietly watching the new events. He rushed with the child out of the longhouse, hoping the smoke hadn’t damaged the poor infant’s lungs. Exiting the building, he skidded to his knees and examined the baby for injuries.

  Endrance felt a sudden shock of worry as he saw that a burning ember had landed on the baby's cheek despite Gullin’s best attempts. He quickly wiped it away, and saw that though the babe's cheek had been burned he did not cry. He drew up the energy he needed, and carefully chanted out the healing spell he had used on the queen. It wasn't really meant to treat burns, but it was the only thing he had that would help.

  He stared down at the child as the spell finished its work. The long finger thick burn drew in on itself, becoming a thin line. His hands trembled and his mind reeled as he couldn't believe what he saw. He looked down at the burn, which had healed so that all that remained was a reddish scar in the shape of a sword.

  Inadvertently, the Spengur had given the hero the identifying mark, not found it.

  Joven burst from the house, the smoke thick and the house visibly burning from the outside. He was dragging a pair of trunks, and had almost all of his weapons strapped to his person. Depositing them, he whistled for his horse which arrived almost as if it had been waiting nearby.

  “We need to get out of here, Endrance!” Joven shouted. “I’ll get us a small cart to pull our things!” and with that the big man rode down the path to the main road.

  Endrance looked up, and the eclipse had begun to come apart, though they were still almost entirely merged. The people of Balator were still in their homes, and even the men on guard were nowhere to be seen. The king could have ordered them away, Endrance realized. No one would be coming to help them.

  Anna came out the front doors, coughing and spitting. She carried a large bag haphazardly stuffed full of clothes and other essentials. Bridget was right behind her, carrying a large bundle of the kitchen’s food supplies and dragging the trunk with their weapons behind her. Endrance walked up to the two as they deposited their collected things beside the trunks Joven hauled out.

  “Selene?” he asked frantically. The fire had gotten to the point where almost the entire thing was burning.

  Anna shook her head. “She was right behind us!” she coughed.

  Endrance held the child out to her. “Take him! I have to find her!” he exclaimed, and deposited the child into the eldest woman’s care.

  He ran into the now burning longhouse, and immediately the heat and smoke burned his eyes, forcing him to squint as he stumbled around the falling timbers of the rafters towards the back of the longhouse.

  “Selene!” he shouted, trying to tell where she was. Heading towards the wrong end of the house would be fatal for her and possibly him.

  She didn’t respond, but he thought he heard coughing from the bedroom. He charged over to the door, which was hanging loose on a single hinge and had flames dancing across the surface. He shouldered through it, and found Selene collapsed in the doorway between the storage room and the bedroom. He rushed over to her and knelt, touching her shoulder. She was still alive, and conscious.

  “I’m sorry, my love.” She whispered, cradling a rectangular bundle wrapped in the cloth of her cloak. “I went to get the books you wanted so badly.” She coughed, and tried to stand. “It would be a shame if such old books were destroyed in the fire, right?”

  He concentrated, and cast the strengthening spell on himself. He scooped the girl up, trying his best to not double over himself due to the smoke. He nodded to her, assuring her. “Yes, it would be very sad, you did good to find it.” He said, looking about for an exit.

  The house was falling apart rapidly, and fire was everywhere. He had one chance of escaping
, and that was out the door in the back that led to the hot spring. He quickly worked his way across the room, carrying his wife across the bed to the door to the back. He didn’t have the hands free, so instead kicked at the door. He nearly put his foot through it, but it didn’t budge on his first try, coughing, he stepped back and delivered one more kick, his heel impacting with the door latch. This time the door flung open, and he barreled through into the cold night air, not stopping until they were near the water of the spring.

  Selene looked up at him, her eyes watery and blurry. “Are we okay?” she asked.

  Endrance nodded and looked over his shoulder. The roof of the building had collapsed in the center, and the rest would soon be following. “Yes, were clear of the fire.” He assured her.

  Selene smiled weakly. “Good.” She whispered. “I’m going to fall asleep now, wake me up when it’s all over.” Her eyes drooped, and her form went limp in his arms. As things faded to black she could hear him calling out to her.

  “Selene!” he cried, shaking her gently. “Selene, don’t leave me! Selene!”

  It felt like the last time he would hold her in his arms, but this time his voice accompanied her into the darkness.

  Chapter 32

  Her husband’s voice echoed in her head as she fell into darkness. The descent was dark and frightening as wind rushed by her and her stomach plunged. She fell unimpeded by anything, and felt like she was plummeting forever. Above her somewhere she could hear her husband call her name, his voice echoing down to her from countless miles away. Air rushed through her hair and around her, whistling by at great speed.

  Her descent slowed, and she felt her feet dip downwards as her head came up. Her feet felt something firm beneath her, and she almost fell over as gravity returned, setting her standing upon a surface as smooth and as cold as polished stone. All around her was an endless expanse of black. She could only see herself reflected in the surface she stood on. She looked around the darkness but she could not see anyone, or anything else. Only her own heartbeat pounded in her ears as panic started setting in.

  She was wearing the simple white dress she had worn during the night of the sacrifice; the one she wore when her life in Balator ended and her life with Endrance began. She was barefoot, and she did not carry the knife on her arm as was her habit and tradition.

  She took a step, and she did not fall through the darkness. That was good. She walked forwards, trying to get somewhere in the darkness. Her footsteps echoed faintly through the void, a delicate pat pat pat. She wasn't sure where she was, but she vaguely remembered being in Endrance's arms not a moment before. The thought was fleeting, and she could not keep a hold of it and it was soon gone.

  She ran, and the darkness continued on as far as she could see.

  “Hello!” she shouted as she ran. “Is anyone out there?”

  The undefined nature of the place prevented her from telling how far she had run, nor whether she was any closer to reaching anything resembling a destination. Her breath never became harsh, and her legs never grew tired no matter how long she ran. Her steps slowed, and eventually she drifted to a stop, losing the will to continue trying.

  She sank to her knees, her despair rising as she realized that she would not find her way out. Tears welled in her eyes, and she cradled her face in her hands. She felt so entirely alone, and in the darkness she found only despair.

  She cried for longer than she ever had before, but never did she start feeling better. Her tears fell upon the polished surface, pooling before her knees in little dancing balls of water. She could barely see through the film of tears in her eyes but something in her reflection caused her to pause and wipe the tears from her face.

  The reflection put her hand against the smooth surface below her, as if only against a clear glass window. She scowled as she wiped her palm across the underside of the surface she’d been crying on. The tears pooled before her skittered away, as if her own hand had wiped them from the glass.

  Selene leapt back to her feet, and would have left the floor entirely if it weren’t the only surface to stand on. The sudden change in something she thought was normal startled her from her depression.

  Her other did not move. She remained kneeling, and her eyes were narrowed as she glared at herself on the other side. Selene stared wide eyed as the woman who looked like her changed first subtly, then more dramatically.

  Her eyes were different from her own; they were a deep red that seemed almost luminescent, with square pupils like a goat’s. Her hair seemed to turn violet from the roots, and the color bled through her hair to the tips. Her lips twitched, and a sultry smirk grew on her face, an expression Selene had never used before.

  The double dipped her head towards the surface, and her head passed through it. The world seemed to flip for her, and Selene took another step back as her duplicate now stood before her instead of below her.

  The double looked down at her white dress and frowned. Looking back up at Selene with a smirk, she snapped her fingers on one hand. As if suddenly drenched in crimson blood, her dress turned from white to scarlet, bleeding from the shoulders down to the hem at her feet. As Selene stared, the back of her double’s dress tore, and two reddish, webbed demonic wings rose behind her.

  “So,” the duplicate said. Her voice Selene’s own, but somehow different. It had a confident tone that she didn’t possess. “We finally meet, at last.”

  Selene took a defensive pose. She didn’t have her weapons, but she was a capable hand to hand fighter, her hands would have to do. She gulped as she watched her darker self.

  “Who are you?” she asked.

  “Who am I?” the scarlet keeper asked, touching a hand to her chest. Her dress had somehow changed the cut and dimension, hugging her curves tightly, and the neckline plunged dangerously low to a point. The woman in red laughed prettily, but still conveyed a mocking tone. “Why, my pretty little thing. I am you.”

  Selene shook her head, denying what she saw before her. “No!” she exclaimed. “I can’t be you!” She shrunk back as her opposite took a step towards her. “I don’t want to be like you!”

  “Oh?” the duplicate intoned, her eyebrow raised. “I think the truth is you want to be me, but you’re too afraid to make. That. First. Step.” Her words matched her steps as she came closer and closer to Selene. “It’s not all that bad, being who I am. It just requires that you…” the crimson doppelganger looked up and out the corner of her eyes as if she were thinking of a word. She leveled her gaze upon the frightened keeper. “How do the humans say it? Open up a little.”

  “What do you mean?” the white clothed Selene asked, remembering to keep her guard up.

  Her scarlet opposite smiled knowingly as she reached out and placed a fingertip on Selene’s outermost fist. Almost delicately, she pushed her hands out of the way as she came into Selene’s personal space. The smell of spring rain permeated the air around her, and still somehow Selene couldn’t resist as her opposite placed her hands on her shoulder and waist, as if they were about to dance.

  “It’s really simple, my sweet self.” The demonic duplicate explained, reaching down and setting Selene’s hands on her own waist. Her skin was surprisingly warm in the dress, and she was surprised that the crimson fabric was dry after all. She half expected it to actually be soaked in blood.

  “I am the demonic half of you.” She said sweetly, pulling her in close and wrapping her arms around her. “I am what you will grow into. Even if you resist, eventually you will be the one on the other side of the looking glass reflecting back at who you are now.” The smell of rain was everywhere, and Selene couldn’t help but breathe it in. It seemed to be almost intoxicating, and she couldn’t move of her own accord.

  Her scarlet self pulled her in close, and she could feel the heat of her body pressed against hers. “I am very certain things would be better if you just accepted me… into you. Then you would be able to stand strong against what’s going on… out there.”

>   She looked her double in the eyes, her alien gaze disturbing but also alluring. “You would even be able to stand next to your husband, and not feel as you have before. You could be as strong as him, even stronger.” She inclined her head towards her other’s, her lips just a hair from Selene’s ear. Selene shuddered as her duplicate spoke, whether out of fear or rising attraction she couldn’t tell.

  “So what do you say,” she whispered. “Let me in?”

  Selene was paralyzed as thoughts ran through her head. Was she feeling turned on by herself? Was that just a demonic ability? The other version of her was confident, strong, and powerful. She had wings, and with them she could fly, and would have the strength to carry her husband with her.

  But what about her husband? What would he think? She struggled to remember Endrance’s discussions with her about her heritage. Somehow she was unable to even think past the moment, her thoughts drifting away on rain-scented wind.

  “I…” she started, finding resistance impossible. She opened her mouth to accept, and she felt a warm hand touch her shoulder.

  “I think you should let her decide this on her own terms.” A familiar voice came from behind her. “Besides, seducing yourself? Even among demons, that has to be odd behavior.”

  She looked over her shoulder and felt relief as her husband stood behind her. However he looked different than he usually did. He wore only a simple pair of pants, and soft leather shoes. The most unusual part of his appearance was his upper body. The arcane tattoos that normally lay nearly unnoticeable on his skin glowed golden, hovering an inch off of his skin. Every inch of his exposed body was covered in geometric arcane patterns. Behind his head hovered a glowing ring of a spell circle that looked almost like a halo of golden light. As she saw into his emerald eyes, she saw even his irises were scribed with golden arcane script.

  The scarlet Selene released her hold on her white-dressed self, and eyed the newcomer hungrily. “Well, she’s taking so long to come about it herself.” She said defensively. “I am only giving her a little push, that’s all.”