When he had finally finished, with Morweena's approval, he made a stop off at Mr Henders house before going to the docks to meet Lily at the afternoon market.
'Come in, sir,' Mr Henders said as he arrived. Thordric noticed that there were pins, all with brightly coloured bobbles on the end, poking through his jacket.
'Did I call at the wrong time?' Thordric asked as he was led into the lounge again, where he saw that Mr Henders had been making some new hats.
'Not at all, sir,' Mr Henders replied, taking one of the pins and making a final adjustment to the hat he'd been working on. 'Grale is in the dining room. I'm afraid that he hasn't spoken a word since last night. I haven't seen him behave like this since our mother died.'
'Do you mind if I try to speak with him?' Thordric asked.
'Not at all, sir. I hope you can get more sense out of him today,' he replied. Thordric hoped so too.
He left Mr Henders to work on his hats and made his way into the dining room, where Grale was sitting with his back to the door and still wearing the blanket that Thordric had given him.
Thordric decided to sit opposite him, but Grale had his head bowed and so didn't appear to notice. He eased his chair forwards, trying to get Grale to see him, but he caught the hem of his robes and found his face propelled into the table. The crack of his now broken nose seemed to ring throughout the house.
Grale looked up at this and chuckled. Thordric tried to scowl, but his nose was bleeding and he had to quell it quickly.
'That's the trouble with you Council wizards. You wear impractical clothes,' he said.
'It was just a slight mishap. Our robes are fine for everyday wear,' Thordric snapped, snapping his nose back in place at the same time. The pain vibrated through his body, but the bleeding seemed to be slowing now. 'Now, why did you attack Morweena's house last night? What's going on?'
Now that Grale was talking, he didn't want to waste the opportunity.
Grale shrugged. 'I paid my brother a visit and he told me that the Council now trained and accepted half-wizards and, even worse, the High Wizard was going to fix him up.'
'Why were you angry at that? It's all true,' Thordric said. Grale grumbled.
'We don't need your lot teaching us anything. I've been teaching myself for years and haven't come to any harm.'
'But your brother did.'
'That's because he wasn't determined enough. He was afraid of hurting other people, so he ended up hurting himself instead.'
Thordric raised his eyebrows, but said nothing.
'Besides, us half-wizards will never be as powerful as you lot. We're just not born with as much. You only want to train us to make you look better.'
'Mr Henders hasn't told you who I am, has he?' Thordric asked.
Grale shook his head. 'Why should he? Are you anyone special?'
Thordric smiled. 'I'm a half-wizard too. And,' he said, staring Grale in the eyes. 'I work directly under High Wizard Vey. He teaches me as well. Though I should call him High Half-Wizard Vey, if you want to be technical.'
Grale swallowed. 'A half-wizard isn't powerful enough to become High Wizard. This Vey you speak of must be lying to you.'
Thordric found he was angry. Not at Grale so much, but at Kalljard. If it hadn't been for him, all wizards would be seen as equal. He only hoped that Vey knew how many people still thought like this, though he was surprised to hear it coming from the lips of a fellow half-wizard.
'Vey is a half-wizard, just like his father was. Ask Morweena, she's his aunt,' he said, trying to relax the tightness around his jaw. 'Half-wizard magic is no weaker if the wizard has been trained properly. Your magic may never go wrong, but it can't be very strong if you think all half-wizard magic is weak.'
Grale made to protest, but Thordric forced his mouth closed so that all that came out was a slight humming. 'Now,' he said, releasing him. 'Tell me what you saw at the dig site.'
Thordric ran down to the docks, hoping that Lily was still there.
To his relief, she was, but he noticed that though she only had half a bucket of coins, her apples were almost gone.
'You're late,' she accused, staring at him coldly. 'You promised to help me move the cart again.'
Thordric couldn't remember making any such promise, but now was not the time to argue. If what Grale had told him was true, then he had no time.
'Please,' he panted, resting his hands on his knees. 'Lily, what do you know about the hotel?'
Lily shrugged. 'It closed about a week ago. I saw them put the notice up.'
'Do you know why it closed?' he asked.
'Yes, but no-one likes to say it. It's because those archaeologist men didn't come back. Everyone thinks that they went out and lost their memory like the Strange Seven, except that they haven't found their way back.'
'Who are the Strange Seven?' he asked, though he thought he had a good idea.
'No one knows who they were before, but they wandered in from the Valley Flats with amnesia. It was a long time ago, before even mother and father were born, so they're all old men now.'
Thordric had been right. The Strange Seven must be the wizards that Kalljard sent after the Wanderers. If the people here simply thought that the archaeologists had just lost their memories and would end up coming back at some point, then that was why no one had shown any serious concern over it.'
'Lily, didn't you say that your brother went up to a dig site?'
'Yes. He's probably got amnesia too, though mother says if he's that silly then he deserves it.'
Thordric blinked. 'You're not concerned about him?' he asked.
Lily shook her head. 'I told you what he was like. It's probably his fault anyway.'
She looked at him, then back at her cart and the remaining crowd of people drifting away from the market. 'It's time to go. Mother will have supper on by now.'
Starting to walk off, she turned and looked at him. 'Well? Aren't you going to help me home with my cart?'
Despite his panic over Hamlet and the other archaeologists at the dig site, he couldn't help but grin. He took down the banners and folded them neatly away in a compartment he had just thought to add and started moving the cart along with his magic.
Lily lived even further away from the docks than he'd thought, well past Morweena's house and that of Mr Henders, turning out to be just opposite the hotel. So this was why she had known so much.
He had just helped her put the cart away in a small, wooden shed next to her house when he saw Tome strolling up to him. He was wearing the same disguise as he had when he had introduced Thordric to Morweena.
'Shifty Tome!' Lily said, standing protectively in front of the shed.
'Don't worry, girl,' he said to her. 'I'm here to speak with the boy, not steal your apples; though from what I've seen you don't need any help with doing that.'
Chapter Fourteen: Finding Hamlet
'I heard that someone attacked Morweena's house last night,' Tome said as he and Thordric left Lily's house and started to back.
'Yes, someone did. I think you knew him as the drunken man,' he replied. 'He heard I was here to help all the half-wizards get training. He didn't like it very much.'
'So he was a half-wizard then…' Tome said, scratching his chin. 'But where was he getting his alcohol from? To have a bottle that never needs filling is an easy trick for anyone, but magic like that always needs a base first.'
Thordric shrugged. 'He lived up in the mountains , so he probably swindled some across the border from another country.' He stopped and looked at Tome seriously. 'There's something else too. He said he came down from the mountains a few weeks back because he heard news of some discovery of an ancient tribe of magic users. When he got to the dig site though…'
Tome had stopped. They were right outside Morweena's door, but that wasn't the reason. 'This dig site…is it the one a few miles from our hideout?'
'You know of it?' Thordric asked suspiciously.
'Yes. Yim went missing there.'
Morweena brought them both two steaming plates of meat and vegetables but, as she set them down on the table, she misjudged her strength and sent peas rolling about in every direction. Tome smiled warmly at her, but Thordric sighed and swept them all up with a small gesture of his hand.
'It's nice having a guest round for dinner, isn't it Thordric?' she asked, as though he'd been living with her for decades. He grunted a reply and went to get the knives and forks that she had forgotten to put on the table. As he sat down, he saw that she and Tome were still mooning at each other so, wanting to eat his meal without gagging, he coughed loudly.
Morweena jumped as if suddenly remembering he was there and turned to him. 'Oh yes,' she said. 'What is all this mysterious talk about that dig site out in the Valley Flats? What's going on there?'
'That's what I'm going to find out,' said Thordric, stabbing mercilessly at his meat.
She watched him for a moment and then looked at Tome for an explanation.
Tome cleared his throat impressively. 'Those guests staying at the hotel disappeared there, as did one of my friends and, we think, a young boy from around here. Thordric's friend also left for the dig site the same day he arrived here, but—'
'I haven't heard any news of him, so I'm not even certain if he got there,' Thordric interrupted, taking a great gulp of tea. 'And you still haven't told me what Yim was doing there.'
'Oh yes,' Tome said, scratching at the short grey beard of his disguise. He pushed his plate back and folded his arms across the table in thought. 'Last thing I heard, he went out for supplies for his, er, project,' he said, looking awkwardly at Morweena.
She swooned back at him, her hands clasped together by her face with her elbows resting in the gravy boat, having no idea that he was talking about the potion that had made Thordric so ill the morning after he'd taken it.
'Some of the things he needed were located by that special cave I told you about, boy. As it turns out, it's not very far from where the dig site is and, being the curious sort, he went to investigate. When he didn't come back, I was called out to have a look, but when I got there, there was no dig site at all. It just looked like some strange jungle or forest had sprouted in the middle of the Valley Flats. It had such a strange feel to it that I didn't want to get too close.'
Thordric put his fork down. Tome's story matched with what Grale had told him. 'I'm going there tomorrow. I have to.'
'Well, that's your choice, boy. But I'd be careful around there,' Tome said.
'You should go with him, Tome. A young man like him might need the help of someone dependable like you,' Morweena said, leaning in towards him.
Thordric thought he might be sick. Even Tome looked uncomfortable.
'Now, now, Morweena, he's a wizard from the Council. I'm just a humble old man trying to keep active,' he said.
Thordric snorted, but Morweena scoffed at the same time. 'What if he finds his friend injured over there? How would he carry him back?'
Had she not been watching every time he'd levitated something? And, more to the point, how could she trust such a crook as Tome?
'Alright,' Tome gave in, squirming under her goggle eyed stare. 'I'll go with him.'
The next morning, Tome somehow managed to procure a carriage without payment. As long as they got there, Thordric thought it best to ignore such an illegal act. After all, his money purse was feeling rather light after he had bought those hats for Lizzie and his mother.
Once again he had decided to wear his Crystos Mentos around his neck, for if the situation was as bad as he thought, he would need his head calm enough to think properly.
Like the last carriage, this one bounced about so much that he started feeling ill again, but this time he had no potion left to take it away. Instead, Tome threw another kind of powder in his face, which, though it took his travel sickness away, now made Thordric sneeze every few minutes instead.
'Even magic has no cure all, boy,' Tome said rather cheerfully. Thordric thought he was rather enjoying the situation.
After a few hours they stopped. As Thordric stumbled out of the carriage, he saw Tome loosen the harness on the horse's back and summon it a large bucket of water and a bag of super oats, patting its neck affectionately.
So Tome wasn't that bad after all.
'Where is it, then?' Thordric asked, looking around for the dig site.
Tome pointed behind him. Thordric turned.
A wall of giant trees were sprouting out of the ground perhaps half a mile away and, as Thordric looked closer, there seemed to be more sprouting up. They were growing from small saplings into great giants in a matter of minutes and were spreading further and further out.
'I didn't want to take the carriage too close,' Tome said, still patting the horse.
Thordric understood why. Even from this distance it was disturbing and, if the horse bolted, they would be stuck there on foot.
'Let's go then,' he said, trying not to think about what he might find there.
They made their way over to the trees, with more still growing by the minute. The rest of the Valley Flats were still dusty and barren. It didn't make sense; not even a powerful spell could make that many trees grow in a place that just wasn't fertile.
The closer they got, the more Tome complained that they should head back. He said there was a strange feel to the air that wasn't like any magic he had ever felt before. Thordric felt it too, but for some reason it compelled him to carry on instead of turning away.
'I don't like this, boy,' Tome said, stopping as they reached the first few trees. 'I have this strange feeling in my bones, like they're stiffening somehow.'
Thordric grunted and pushed Tome further in. 'It's just your age,' he said.
'Nonsense, boy, my body is in fine condition. I'm telling you it's something to do with all these trees.'
It was dark amongst the trees, so Thordric tried to summon a fire, but for some reason it just wouldn't come. Frowning, he rummaged around in his bag and produced a small globe with liquid inside. He shook it and it lit up, relieving some of the gloom for them.
'Here,' he said to Tome, and gave him one too. Now with the light from both globes, they could just make out the ground, covered in giant roots and creeping plants.
They went deeper in, where the trees grew closer together and there was no clear path through them. A loud cracking sound came from in front of them and they saw some of the smaller plants move. Thordric went forward slowly, but somehow he caught his foot in a root on the ground and ended up with his face in the dirt.
He sat up, checking that he hadn't broken his nose again and saw that it hadn't been a tree root that had made him fall at all. It was the strap of a large, leather bag. 'Tome, lift your orb higher,' he said, bending over the bag. Inside it were tools similar to the ones that Hamlet had had. 'Tome, what do you think…'
But he stopped, looking around. Tome had vanished.
In his place, with the orb tucked between its branches, was another tree. That was odd, Tome wouldn't have gone without saying anything…surely?
However, as Thordric looked closer, he couldn't help but cry out in horror. He stumbled back over the bag again, falling to the ground once more.
The tree was shaped like a man, with a gap in its trunk to make up the legs and two thick branches at the top, one curiously growing down, the other held out with the orb attached, as though lighting the way. Growing from the two arm branches was a thinner one that then bulged out into an oblong shape, just like a neck and head. Long spindly branches grew from the top like hair and, where a chin would be, some kind of lichen had grown to form a beard.
Thordric could only come to one conclusion. Tome had turned into this strange tree.
There was another loud snap behind him, making him jump up against the tree, knocking the light globe from the branch. He heard someone behind him and turned in time to see that whoever it was had picked the orb up and was holding it out to him, hiding their face.
&nbs
p; He took it, his arm shaking, but then blinked. 'Hamlet?'
'So it is you, Thordric,' Hamlet said, his eyes shut. 'I've been in the dark so long that I'm afraid that light is too bright for me.'
Thordric put the globe away hastily, picking up his own one and putting a dimming spell on it. The light shrank back to a soft, pale glow that only let him see Hamlet's face. His pale skin was covered with dirty smudges and there was a large scratch above his eye.
'What happened here?' Thordric said, still staring at him.
'I'll tell you when we get closer to the main excavation area. It's this way.' Hamlet turned, taking the sleeve of Thordric's robes and led him deeper into the forest. 'Don't worry,' he added. 'If you've made it this far then nothing will happen to you.'
Despite being reassured, Thordric felt rather weak. Still, he let Hamlet pull him through the trees, hoping that he would explain all of this.
Some of the trees had fallen over so that they had to climb over them. Here and there, Thordric saw more equipment scattered about on the floor. At one point, when Hamlet stopped to let Thordric catch his breath, he could have sworn that he saw veins of gold running through the ground.
When they finally reached the place where Hamlet wanted to stop, Thordric found that they were in a small clearing, hardly big enough for the tent that had been set up there. Unzipping the opening, Hamlet went inside. Thordric followed.
'Tea?' Hamlet asked, propping up a miniature cooking stove and a kettle.
'Yes, please,' Thordric found himself saying, despite thinking that this was hardly the time for it. He looked around nervously, peering out of the tent flap every few moments.
'The trees won't grow in this area. I'm not sure why, but they don't seem to like it. That's why I kept the tent here.'
He poured the tea and gave it to Thordric. Thordric took a long drink, noting that it was one of the newest brews Wizard Myak had developed. Unfortunately, it was one for alertness, so far from calming him down it made him worse.
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