Pure Choice dm-6

by Jeff Inlo

  He was a human standing in the forest waiting for instructions from a captain of the elf guard. It was not something many humans would ever experience. He watched the progression of elf movements both in the trees and around the nearby clearing with a newfound appreciation for what he could see and learn.

  And it didn't end there. Goblins were in the woods.

  Goblins!

  When did the land turn so twisted that he would treat such a revelation with casual acceptance? Goblins and elves, wizards and magic; his life had become a most interesting adventure. He wasn't a young man, but he wasn't so old that the thought of such things left him yearning for days past. His back might have ached a little more and his knees creaked a little louder, but how could he not be amazed at the spectacles around him or at what he had become?

  While Jure reflected upon the fascinating events surrounding the elf camp, Birk returned to take council with Holli.

  "Scouts in the trees have located several goblin packs in the area. Guards have been dispatched to deal with them first. The rogue is being watched. I believe that it is best to avoid direct conflict with the creature. Many in the camp are tired and we need to secure the immediate area as quickly and peacefully as possible. With your ability to sense dark creatures, I hope you can remain here for a while to ensure we do not miss any threats."

  "I will be happy to help."

  "Is there anything I can do?" Jure offered.

  Birk quickly regarded the human wizard. He was aware of Jure's ability to cast white magic and in a perfect circle-he had seen Jure cast spells in the dark realm as well as the teleportation spell that sent Ryson back to Burbon-but the elf captain was unsure of the human's full capabilities. Wary of unknown costs, he did not wish to set the wizard loose to help clear the campsite, even though it might have been the most efficient way to remove the bevy of dark creatures roaming the forest.

  Still, Jure was a potent asset and there remained a menace which the elf captain could not ignore. Though the elves were released from the dark realm, Birk would not believe the threat of Ansas had been completely removed.

  "I am concerned about the sorcerer," the elf captain admitted. "There are things we can do to protect our camp, but I believe he has the power to offset any defenses we can muster."

  "You believe Ansas might recapture the camp?" Holli wondered aloud.

  "It is a possibility I should not dismiss. He did it once. He may well do it again."

  "I believe he obtained what he needed," Holli revealed. "I do not see a reason for a second abduction. I also do not believe Ansas would waste his energy unless he could profit from the endeavor."

  "That might be, but I would feel better if I knew more about how he was able to accomplish the task in the first place." Birk then turned back to Jure. "Can you shed some light on this matter?"

  Jure explained everything he had learned from previously examining the camp as well as from the information offered by the swallit that discussed the event with Ryson.

  "Everything points to a very determined effort by Ansas to take your camp-in its entirety-as bait to attract Holli," Jure summarized. "I believe, based on Ansas' ability, that kind of effort could be duplicated, but as Holli said, it would take an enormous effort and I fail to see what Ansas would gain from a second abduction."

  Birk rubbed his chin as he considered the new information.

  "That makes me rest a bit easier, but I still feel somewhat vulnerable."

  The elf captain grimaced as he looked about the camp. The elves remained grouped together, safe for the moment from predators in the forest, but not from the onslaught of some magical assault from a distant realm. As they stood in one large mass, they seemed so exposed to the sorcerer's power. His gaze fell back upon Jure as he made one last request.

  "If you would, please examine the entire camp once more. Let me know if there is anything that might assist us in avoiding another abduction or if there is something I have overlooked that might leave us susceptible to any magical attack."

  Jure looked first to Holli to ensure his acceptance would meet her approval. When she gave him a slight nod, he offered his service without exception.

  "I'll do everything I can."

  "I will remain here," Holli added. "Even now, I can sense most of the goblins leaving the vicinity. Once I am certain this area is clear, I will move with the outer guards to locate additional creatures."

  "That would be most helpful," Birk affirmed. "Let me know if either of you need anything."

  "Just let everyone know what I'm doing," Jure requested. "I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable."

  "Done."

  Jure turned to his appointed task with renewed attention on the underlying aspects of the abduction. He knew how the elves were seized. Despite being spread out across their camp and in the trees, they were plucked from the land in one single wave of instantaneous teleportation. Ansas completed this task from an entirely different realm, so he must have been able to create some anchor point within the elf camp. Achieving such a result was a staggering display of concentration and control.

  Creating the anchor would have been the easiest challenge. Opening a portal in the center of the elf camp would have allowed for an immediate point of reference to all the elves in the area. The difficulty would have been teleporting the elves the moment the portal was created. There could not have been even a moment's delay, or the elves would have been forewarned of the assault.

  While Jure considered the attention necessary to complete such an objective, he wondered if he could duplicate the spell. Opening the portal would be child's play. Even teleporting a massive number of elves into the portal would be within his power, but it went beyond simply a great number. It had to be every single elf. He would have to grasp every individual simultaneously, and that was the single most challenging issue.

  Jure recognized that the time of the abduction was not necessarily a constraint. The moment was chosen by Ansas himself. The sorcerer could have waited until the conditions were perfect. The question was, what were the necessary conditions?

  As Jure examined the camp for a second time, he placed greater focus on the elves themselves as they were not available during his first assessment. He found it easier to lock onto individual elves than if he had to do something similar with humans. He believed it had to do with the magical essence inherent in each elf. That would have assisted Ansas, but it would still take great concentration to take hold of so many elves at one particular moment, to place their existence in his mind in a manner that would allow him to teleport them to a particular spot without their cooperation.

  With that thought, Jure wondered if some of the elves might have in some way assisted in the matter. He did not believe it was some conspiracy, but the magic could influence individuals into making choices that they might normally avoid, and Ansas' ability over black magic gave him particular strength in the areas of alteration.

  It was worth considering, but it seemed a weak explanation. Several of the elves were talented magic casters. A sorcerer trying to alter their judgment to subconsciously assist devious plans would almost definitely be uncovered by at least one of the more perceptive elves.

  No, the answer had to be more subtle.

  If Ansas could not influence the elves, he might have sought to influence the magic, to use the energy that surrounded the elves as a map to each individual's location. If Ansas could have manipulated certain energy waves without actually linking to the elves' magical cores, he could have created the necessary anchors and also avoided detection.

  It was only speculation, but it held merit. Jure wondered if he could accomplish the task himself. He considered the options available. Certain spells seemed more likely than others, and particular hues seemed to have inherent advantages. Spells of light or shadow would be easier to disguise than spells of fire or water.

  Placing the strategy with regard to Ansas' abilities led Jure to a reconsider his assumptions. Ansas would not have
used fire or water, or light… but shadow was a distinct possibility. Ansas would have remained true to the ebony energy of his essence. With the black magic so pure that it defied Jure's grasp, it would potentially be beyond the notice of even the most sensitive elf.

  A theory took shape in the wizard's mind. Ansas could have cast his ebony magic across dimensional planes and into Uton, but it would remain dominated by his unique control. The magic could reach across the land and isolate each and every elf of the camp without ever being noticed because no one would be looking for it. It was not a spell that shaped the magic, but Ansas' force of will.

  With a recollection of the ebony energy that he could not absorb, Jure reached out to the magic pulsing across the land. Instead of trying to analyze the energy that would willingly flow into his being, he searched for the magical residue that would oppose him.

  It was difficult at first, but eventually he tuned out the free flowing energy that was willing to be shaped by his skills. As he began to clear his mind of what he viewed as positive energy, his inner being filled with an almost totally neutral sensation. There was a blankness forming within him, and that's when he noticed the first hint of an abnormality.

  It wasn't like a disease in the energy, a sickness taking hold. It was more like a reverse current in a stream, as if a small section of a waterway decided to flow in the opposite direction. A small glint of energy was trying to avoid him. It wasn't the actual magic he felt, but the reverberations in waves around him.

  The sensation was difficult to isolate but impossible to ignore, and Jure began to follow it. He stepped about the camp, blocking out every curious stare of the elves around him. He walked in circles and in disjointed angles, all the while with his face turning toward some obscure vibration. As he moved about the camp, he realized the source was not coming from some part of the land, but from one of the elves.

  Jure didn't wish to be obtrusive, but he couldn't ignore the implications. One of the elves was emanating magic similar to the energy he sensed that actually belonged to Ansas. Jure slipped through the gathering of elves, trying not to offend, but also understanding the importance of his search. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to isolate the strange wave. It was as if he was trying to find a dead fish hidden deep in the pocket of one individual in a crowd of fishermen.

  Within moments, his actions became too curious to ignore. Every elf knew he was searching them, but they could not guess the reason, save for one, and she spoke up without hesitation.

  "I think you are looking for me," Shantree Wispon stated calmly, but with clear determination to take control of the somewhat tense situation.

  Jure was slightly taken aback by the authoritative tone, but he remained certain his finding was important.

  "Forgive me," the wizard noted as he stepped up respectfully to the camp elder, "but I was asked to check the camp for certain… irregularities that might point back to the sorcerer."

  The wizard paused to make a more thorough assessment. Without a doubt, he had found what he was looking for within the elf leader.

  "There's something within you that belongs to Ansas."

  "Are you certain?" Shantree demanded.

  Jure, in order to confirm his suspicions, took a moment to seize upon the emanation. There was no doubt there was a strand of energy within the elf elder that contained curious properties. It was more than simple magic residue or even shards of a decaying spell. There was firm substance within Shantree, and despite its magical essence, it rejected Jure's grasp.

  "Yes," the wizard confirmed.

  Holli and Birk had both noticed the commotion and arrived together to review Jure's findings, but it was Shantree who took command.

  "Ansas placed his energy within me," the elf elder explained. "I was able to manipulate it, but only to a degree. I used it to assist the camp when we were trapped in the dark realm. He gave me enough to keep everyone alive, but I could only use it for purposes he seemed to allow. It would not completely bend to my will. When we exited the dark realm, my connection to the magic ceased. I believed he took back what he felt was his. I can no longer touch it, or even sense it within me. I thought it was gone, but it seems you are telling me it is still there. Is that correct?"

  Jure didn't wish to burden the old elf woman with such news, but he couldn't lie to her probing eyes. He didn't quite understand the politics of elves, but he quickly realized he was speaking to an individual of authority, one who spoke for the entire camp when a single voice was needed.

  "It is."

  "Am I a danger to anyone around me?"

  "That would be difficult for me to say," Jure admitted.

  "Do not worry about difficulties, worry about the truth."

  Jure accepted Shantree's direction and concentrated on what he could sense with certainty.

  "I don't think you are a hazard to anyone else at this moment, but Ansas certainly left a portion of his magic inside you."

  "So you do not think I will explode?" Shantree asked with a very slight smile.

  Jure knew the elf never believed such a calamity was possible, that she only asked the bizarre question to lighten the mood. It worked, and he gained a greater appreciation for Shantree's approach.

  "No, you won't explode."

  "Excellent," she replied with a slightly more obvious smile. Her good humor quickly faded, and she returned to the seriousness of the matter. "We still must address why the sorcerer would leave a small portion of his power within me. What does he hope to gain? What advantage does this allow him?"

  The elf guard captain entered the conversation as the security of the camp remained his absolute concern. He required further information and he questioned the human wizard.

  "What exactly do you sense? Has he placed some spell upon her?"

  "No, there isn't a spell. A spell would imprint direction on the energy."

  "But can you be sure?" Holli asked. "You said that Ansas' magic has the ability to defy you."

  "Yes it does, and maybe I can't be completely sure, but a spell takes magic and gives it characteristics of some desire. That's all a spell really is. Magic is the fuel for the aspirations of the caster. I don't sense any such direction in the energy."

  "But could such direction be hidden from you?" Holli pressed.

  "I suppose it's possible."

  "Then we have to remain cautious."

  "I can't argue with that," Jure allowed.

  "Can you remove it from her?" Birk requested, hoping to be free of the threat.

  "No, that I can't do. I'm sorry, but the magic won't let me take hold of it in any way. To tell you the truth, that's why I don't think there's a spell involved. If there was, I would think I could counter it, but there's just nothing there for me to combat."

  Birk turned his questions to Shantree. He did so with great respect for her authority over the camp, but he knew she understood his responsibilities.

  "Do you believe you are in danger, or that you might pose a danger to this camp?"

  "No, I asked the wizard that question for the same reason you ask it of me now. The safety of the camp must remain paramount."

  "Your safety is also vital," Birk announced with pure honesty.

  "Only with regard to how I serve this camp," the elf elder replied. Once more, she looked to the human wizard who was powerful in the ways of magic in his own right. "Tell me this, why do you think Ansas would leave a mark upon me?"

  "A mark?"

  "In essence, that is what he has done."

  "I never really looked at it that way," Jure revealed, "but I guess 'mark' is as good a description as any. He may just want to keep some kind of connection to you."

  "So I am a potential danger," Shantree noted.

  "Not really," Jure explained. "I know that might not make sense, but I'm guessing here. The truth is he doesn't need that kind of link. He was able to teleport the lot of you without that kind of permanent anchor before. He created his own at the precise moment he needed it, so h
e really doesn't need the one inside you."

  "Then why is it there?"

  "Maybe he's using it to keep watch over us," Birk offered.

  "Possible," Jure allowed.

  Holli, however, divulged the truth she could not deny.

  "While it might be possible. It is not probable. From my limited contact with Ansas, he does not like to waste his time or his energy. While I believe he will test his abilities in order to expand his talents, he tends to have deliberate reasons for his actions."

  "Keeping watch over the camp would not be deliberate?" Birk questioned.

  "It would be deliberate, but as Jure pointed out, it would not be necessary. Ansas was able to abduct the entire camp without marking a single elf with his distinct energy. Leaving it in Shantree would be inconsistent with his previous behavior."

  "Then what do you think he's doing?" Jure asked.

  "It is as Shantree said;" Holli declared, "she is marked. It is a reminder of what happened in the dark realm. Ansas is freed of his self-enforced exile and he's expanded his grasp back to Uton. This camp is a trophy for his victory and the mark on Shantree is his claim to that triumph."

  Jure was amazed at the explanation, but it all fit together. There was arrogance in the sorcerer. He couldn't deny it. It actually made quite a bit of sense.

  "So what do we do now?" Jure wondered.

  "We secure the camp," Shantree announced. She then directed her wishes to the elf captain. "Once the immediate area is safe, I want you to find a spot for me away from the others. Even if this strange magic within me is nothing more than some seal of victory, the camp should not be placed at risk for my comfort."

  "It will be as you say," Birk acknowledged.

  Shantree directed her final request to the wizard at her side.

  "I would ask that you stay with me during this time. I believe you are the most qualified in monitoring me."

  Jure was ready to accept, but he looked to Holli again for a final determination.

  "He can stay with you while I assist Birk in securing the outer perimeter of the camp," Holli allowed, "but after that, he must accompany me back to the human town of Connel. I must seek council with Enin and I will need Jure to explain what he has sensed here."