by Jeff Inlo
"A swallit."
Holli eyed the delver, not with suspicion but with expectation for an explanation, and Ryson did not disappoint her.
"It was interested in what happened to the elves, but it had nothing to do with any of this. It actually gave me more information than I expected."
Ryson went on to explain everything the swallit had told him. When he was finished, he turned to Jure.
"You can cast strong spells. Not too long ago, you basically did the same thing in the valleys. You opened portals and forced thousands upon thousands of goblins back into the dark realm. Could someone have done the same thing here?"
Jure considered the question, but only for a moment. He didn't wish to seem hesitant in his assessment or appear to be withholding information.
"Is it possible? Yes. But is it probable? I don't know what to say. It would take a great deal of magic. When I did it, I had an enormous reserve of energy available to me. If that much magic came together again, I think I would have sensed it."
"Maybe you did sense it," Holli posed. "You said you felt something come from the forest, an echo of powerful magic. Maybe you did not isolate the initial spell because it was originally cast in the dark realm, but the echo might have reached you in Connel. Could it be that is what you noticed?"
Again, Jure wished to answer quickly, to aid those who looked to him for advice, but he needed to consider the memory of past magic, a tremor that was felt quite some time ago that reverberated through his own magical spells. Isolating it was difficult. It was only a pulse through time and space.
"Give me a moment," Jure requested.
The wizard looked down upon the ground as he cleared his thoughts. He focused beyond the current flow of magic and beyond the remnants of the illusions cast by the swallit. He tuned in to the trace memories woven into the land around him, the distant remains of spell fragments and the past intentions pressed into magic that could never be destroyed, only harnessed or absorbed.
Jure stepped over to the clearing near the center of the abandoned elf camp, to the exact spot where Ryson noticed the strange wind driven patterns on the ground. Jure looked about as if searching for something hidden behind some door that no one could see. He held out his hands and waved them through the air, at times fanning it back into his face.
"I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the magical pulse I noticed, but there was a portal opened here not too long ago," Jure revealed. "It was opened and closed fairly quickly."
"That supports the swallit's story," Holli noted, her expression growing darker as it matched the unease in her spirit. She might have accepted banishment for the good of the camp, but she could never completely disconnect herself from her previous life, her role as an elf guard sworn to protect the elves of Dark Spruce.
"There are traces of teleportation spells as well," Jure continued. "A massive discharge actually. Maybe that's the true echo of the disturbance I felt. I can't ignore the existence of the portal, but the vast energy dedicated to teleportation still lingers here. It was quite a release of magic and it still resonates throughout the area."
"So the swallit was telling the truth?" Ryson asked, but he already knew the answer. The elves were gone and Jure was confirming what had happened exactly as it was told to him by the dark creature.
Jure was not ready to confirm the swallit's account. He remained guarded in his inspections of the elf camp, and he continued to concentrate on the echoes of the magic. Something deep within the remnants of the spells separated the sensations of energy from the surrounding magic. Even as a distant memory, it stood out with much greater vibrancy.
Holli noticed the wizard's concern.
"You sense something else?"
Jure responded quickly to the question, offering what knowledge he could.
"Not something else, but something within the magic that was used. I don't know how to explain it, but it is very… concise. The echo of energy was not only created by its vastness, but also by its makeup. The spells themselves were clearly very potent, but the magic was not only vast, it was also extremely distinctive."
Holli's skills as a spell caster were growing, and though she could not match Jure's sensitivity to the energy, she understood the subtleties of his explanation.
"Is there anything within the magic that may reveal who, or what, is responsible?"
Jure paused, as if trying to compose his thoughts, and then spoke almost apologetically.
"I'm having a hard time connecting with the magic."
Holli did not wish to challenge the elder wizard, but the statement left her confused.
"That seems to contradict everything you have said so far."
"Not really. The shards of spent magic stand out for me, but I'm having difficulty absorbing the loose residue. Spells do more than leave an imprint in the magic, even well after they're cast. Spells shape the magic, give it purpose. When the purpose is fulfilled, the majority of the magic is freed back into the land, waiting to be reclaimed, but the energy of the actual casting-the essence that came from within the spell caster that is separate from pure magic-falls away on its own. Sometimes it will hold to a small amount of the magic. Normally when I absorb that magic, I can analyze it beyond its basic intentions and gain greater insight to the spell as well as the caster."
"You are unable to accomplish this here?"
"It won't let me, and that's what makes it so strange," Jure admitted. "Most teleportation spells leave a trail. They can be followed, sometimes even days after they are cast. There's almost always a path due to the way magic condenses the effect between time and space. It's like a lingering memory and I can almost grasp each one… almost, but even the residual traces of the spells seem to be forcefully rejecting me, as if the energy used doesn't want to be a part of me. That's why it's so distinctive. It's like it's repulsed by my presence. I can tell it's there, but it won't let me take a clean hold of it."
"What of the portal?" Holli questioned.
"The portal was large, but almost insignificant in comparison to the energy used to teleport the elves to this spot. Still, I can follow the path of the portal, for it's not just the magic that leaves the trail but the distortion created between planes of existence. It was definitely here, and it definitely led to the dark realm."
Holli accepted the information from the wizard without reluctance and began to set a new path for their investigation. Before she revealed her intentions, she requested an opinion from the delver.
"What about you, Ryson? Is there anything that concerns you about what Jure has told us?"
The delver placed everything he learned together. He considered information obtained from the goblin, Okyiq, as well as what he was told by the swallit and Jure. Most of it fit together as a series of events, but the process itself and the reasoning behind it left him confused.
"Not so much about what he told us," Ryson admitted. "There's no contradictions I can find, but I just don't understand the logic behind any of this."
"We have seen many things lately that defy logic," Holli responded.
"Can't argue with that, but there always seems to be some reasonable explanation. I guess what I'm trying to say is I don't understand why someone would abduct a camp full of elves."
"That is beyond my understanding as well," Holli revealed. "Perhaps we will understand it better when we know who is behind it."
"It has to be someone who can cast powerful spells," Ryson added. "We know that much. But even with that, things still don't make sense. Maybe Jure knows." The delver then looked to the elder wizard. "One thing that bothers me is the teleportation. Why teleport elves into a portal? I'm not an expert on magic, I admit that, but I've watched enough to get an idea of different spells. These teleportation spells basically compact space, create paths from one place to another by using magic to remove the constraints of time and distance. Right?"
"That is a very good way to put it," Jure responded.
"Then that's what has me
confused. The portal was right here in the middle of the camp. Most of the elves were very near it. Using teleportation doesn't make sense to me. Why not use the magic to bind the elves and then force them into the portal? Wouldn't it be more difficult to teleport all the elves at once?"
"Actually, it depends," Jure answered. "Mass teleportation can be very efficient. As long as the spell caster can track each elf, there is no wasted magic. A portal is opened, the elves are instantly teleported into the dimensional breach, and the portal is closed. The process can be completed in the blink of an eye."
"But you seem surprised by the amount of magic used," Ryson noted.
"I am. It would take a great deal of energy, but it would be an instantaneous use, not a continuous flow."
"Is that kind of spell difficult to cast?"
"Absolutely. Tracking every elf before hand would take a great deal of patience and concentration. The caster would have to have a very organized mind, very deliberate. It would also take a great deal of control to teleport to an exact spot, especially so many elves all at once. If the caster had that kind of control, then it would be possible, as long as a generous supply of magic was available for one instantaneous disbursement of spells targeted at each elf."
Holli offered an explanation of her own.
"That may be why the magic is eluding you," she noted. "If the teleportation energy was focused on each particular elf, it might reject you because it was meant to be used on someone else."
The wizard did not like to contradict the elf guard, but he sensed something in the magic beyond the remnants of a particular spell.
"Maybe," he allowed, but he also needed to express what he believed, "but I really think it goes beyond that. It's the magic itself, not so much the spell that molded it. I think the magic almost wants to return to its original caster, as if it belongs to that individual."
"You believe the magic is not pure?"
"Actually, quite the opposite. It seems very pure. If anything, I sense it views me as a possible taint to its purity."
Holli nodded as she began to recognize a common thread forming. She believed it was time for them to move forward to confront the individual responsible for the insidious assault on the elves of Dark Spruce.
"As there is now too much evidence to dismiss the swallit's story, we must accept the probability that the elves have been abducted against their will." She then turned to the wizard. "You said you could follow the path of the dimensional rift. Can you match the portal… create one that would lead us to a similar point in the dark realm?"
"I can, if that's what you wish. It won't be exact, but the entrance into the dark realm will be close enough for our delver friend to locate the elves, if they're still near the area where the portal led."
"So we're going to the dark realm?" Ryson asked.
"That is where we will find the individual responsible," Holli answered.
"Blast," Ryson muttered.
Chapter 10
Under a gray sky which never altered between day and night, an entire encampment of elves from Dark Spruce Forest struggled against the hostile environment. The rocky ground was near devoid of life. The scent of decay lingered in every crevice, and the pungent odor was fanned by a hot and heavy wind that brought neither comfort nor relief. The landscape appeared unnatural, something forced from a confused and harrowing dream. Shadows bent across barren rock and seemed to move with a life of their own.
The dim, burnt amber glow that created the long, menacing silhouettes did not come from some bright orb in the heavens. It was spit out of fiery pools fed by the burning core of an angry, twisted land. It was the blazing flame of hate, not the spark of hope, the illumination of warped desires, not the breaking rays of a new dawn. Sadly, it was the only source of radiance in an otherwise dismal existence.
Along with offering the only ambient light, the enormous lakes of smoldering rock exuded a sulfurous stench that would smother a normal bird in flight, but in that realm, there were no normal birds.
The creatures that soared through the grim skies were hatched in blood soaked nests and abandoned early in their bleak infancy. They sang no comforting song, offered no lyrical whistle. Instead, they shrieked and screeched with ravenous hunger and vicious intent. When they flew, they cut across the gray horizon high above the jagged cliffs only to plummet in chaotic dives and fall upon some hapless creature of equally dire existence.
The elves trapped in that unforgiving environment never got used to the smell of burning rock that surrounded them or the shrieks of the twisted birds that soared overhead. The noise and the stench created a hardship that added to their misery, but the burden of surviving was so great, that they forced the anguish from their minds. They had no choice, for if they were to live, they needed to place all of their attention upon overcoming the harsh conditions of the dark realm.
Even as the thick air choked their every breath, they managed to coax water from the ground and purify it with magical spells. They employed emerald energy to quickly grow edible plants from the putrid soil. They managed to do just enough to stay alive. Still, they focused on more than just survival. They yearned for escape, clung to hope that they would find their way back to their lush forest home.
Some, however, felt that their path back to Dark Spruce would be one they would have to forge themselves. One such elf, Birk Grund, understood that the elves he was charged to protect would only be safe when they fled that plane of tortured existence.
As the elf guard captain, he positioned his guards around the bleak terrain and guided them in tactics that would increase their safety, optimize their resources, and offer a small degree of hope. Despite his actions, he knew that more than a burning stench hung in the thick, humid air. Desperation and ultimate surrender waited to claim them all, and both were far too near for his comfort.
Shantree Wispon yearned to return to Dark Spruce with equal desire. Whereas Birk was in charge of security, she was the final word in all matters. As the council elder and leader, the entire camp's well-being fell upon her shoulders. She was the decider of the elves' present course and the director of the camp's future; a task that often fatigued her aged frame, even when they stood upon the much more inviting lands of the large western forest of Uton.
Despite the weariness that gnawed at her consciousness, she remained attentive to every last detail. She folded her hands patiently behind her back as she listened carefully to the report from the elf captain.
"The guard continues to patrol the region," Birk offered. "The trees, if you can call them that, offer little in the way of cover, but they serve to mark the limits of the barrier that holds us to this place. Everything remains fixed. The obstructing field neither contracts nor expands. It has held constant since we marked its borders."
Shantree knew that the field of magic that blocked their escape also served as a shield against the horrors that abounded in the dark realm, but as her focus remained on details, she always requested confirmation.
"Contact with other creatures?" Shantree asked.
"Also remains constant. We cannot get out, but they cannot get in. I surmise the birds of prey above can see us, but they cannot reach us. As for dark creatures on the ground, we have spotted several of various sizes in the distance, but they do not get as close as the birds. I believe they can see us. I cannot imagine how they would miss us, and yet they show no desire to test the barrier. At least they have not come close to it. I have found that… interesting."
"Why?"
The captain pointed to the skies above, to the birds that circled and soared wildly overhead even at that very moment.
"The birds maintain a constant presence above us while the creatures on the ground ignore us almost completely. Shags and rogues pass us with regularity, but they do not linger near the barrier's edge. They continue on their travels as if seeking new territories to claim without giving us a second look. We are trapped and apparently easy prey, yet even the giant monstrosities move qu
ickly past. They do not even approach the barrier wall." Birk then gave another quick glimpse to the darkened skies. "But the razor crows and hook hawks have shown a more patient tendency. The birds may be there for a reason beyond their unending hunger."
"You think the birds serve as a watch?"
"That, of course, is something we must consider, and it would explain the behavior of the winged monsters."
"A simple sight spell overhead would be much easier than controlling several prey birds and linking with their consciousness," the elder elf suggested.
"Agreed, but if forcing us here and creating the barrier that imprisons us is within the sorcerer's power, then controlling several birds would be of minor consequence. We know very little about the sorcerer other than what his brief visits have allowed us to observe, but his strength should not be underestimated."
"Point taken, but we have discussed the fact that we are probably being watched. Even if the sorcerer is utilizing hook hawks and razor crows, you seem to be more concerned by that prospect now."
"That is not completely accurate. While I wish to understand all threats, I am concerned with the inconsistencies in the beasts that surround us. Why do the birds remain overhead while creatures on the ground refuse to come near the edge of the barrier?"
"Do you have any speculation on the matter?" the elf elder questioned.
"I do."
Shantree raised an eyebrow offering an expectant expression of curiosity.
"There maybe a secondary barrier," Birk continued, "something that is deliberately discouraging the creatures on foot from remaining in this area. Perhaps not a physical obstruction, but a deterrent nonetheless. That would explain the buffer between us and them."
"You think the sorcerer would place a second barrier to keep the dark creatures away from us?"
"It is a possibility."
"That sounds rather inconsistent," Shantree noted as she considered the concept of the devious sorcerer acting as both their captor and their benefactor.
"Not necessarily."