Delminor's Trials

by Stephen J Wolf

  “To what end?” Lorresh asked. “We have not placed serious demands on you until the unrest starting here. We needed your help to quell the upstarts before we become another Magitorium.”

  “You would do well to bring one of these ‘upstarts’ to your Council and open yourselves up to an alternate view. How much would one voice affect your decisions?”

  One of the other members muttered. “I told you all he would flee at the first sign of conflict. He has always run from it.”

  “I know the Council was split accepting me, though we have all worked well together over the past few years. But for now, I must step down and tend to my family.”

  Shona was upset. “I don’t want you to leave the Council. We will leave the position open to you for a time. Once our error in calling you here has been forgiven, perhaps you will continue to serve.”

  Kerlot spoke up. “Why not raise your child here?”

  Other members gasped and Delminor drew on that. “We petitioned long ago to have a child here and were met with much resistance. I have seen no children during this visit and can’t help but assume that the same restrictions are in place.”

  “We could make an exception…”

  “No, but thank you. It means much that you are willing to bend tradition to accept my situation. But the Council needs to be willing to bend tradition for others now.” He paused. “Master Pyron, you have been silent during all of this.”

  His voice was cold. “You know my opinion on this matter.”

  He did. And he knew that leaving would cause a rift between them, but the more he considered it, the more he knew that he had to free his obligations so he could tend to his unborn child. “I will leave tomorrow.”

  Pyron closed his eyes, crushed. “So be it.”

  Chapter 59

  Petition

  Delminor hurried to Mage’s Rest and returned with one month remaining until the birth of their child. Donya welcomed him with open arms, then placed his hands on her belly.

  “Feel that? The baby is kicking. He’s a feisty one.”

  “He?”

  She laughed. “I don’t know why, but I keep feeling like it’s a boy.”

  He smiled. “Mothers are always right. How have you been feeling?”

  “Tired, mostly. And hungry. Gallena said it took Arenda months to recover from all the excess food she had taken in. And, of course, Arenda said it took Gallena even longer. But I’ll stay the size of a house if the baby is just healthy.”

  “He will be,” Delminor assured her. “Have you been visiting with Essalia?”

  “Yes.” Donya did not elaborate.

  “Then all is well. I resigned from the Council for this.”

  She gasped. “Del? Are you sure? You’ve enjoyed being in the inner circle.”

  “They brought me there to settle peasant arguments. There was no uprising. They’re just nervous about the new mages coming in and wanted me to stand firmly on their side. They didn’t expect me to side with the others most of the time. But to call me away with such urgency for that? Their priorities are skewed. I want no part of it.”

  He changed the subject. “What about you? What have you been doing?”

  “I’ve been knitting, of all things. Arenda said it helped her pass the time. But I’ve been resting a lot. I backed away from my other duties and others have gladly taken up the slack. It’s nice we’re respected enough for that sort of thing.”

  “We did give them a home here. Not that they all had a choice.”

  Donya fetched more tea. “The fighting at the border has intensified. Word comes all the time from soldiers who find their way here.”

  “I feel I should speak with the king regarding this and help find a way to put a stop to it all. We’re only racking up casualties by dragging this out.”

  “Who knows? He may even listen this time.”

  Delminor barked a laugh. “I could only hope.”

  * * *

  He took some time trying to puzzle out what wording would have the best chance of swaying the king, but he knew Pennithor was stubborn and proud. It didn’t stop him from trying.

  Your Gracious Majesty,

  I hope this letter finds you well. You may already have heard, but I have resigned my post on the Mage Council. My child is due soon and I have need to focus upon my family.

  With regard to that, I fear the growing reports of fighting with Kallisor. Men and women from Marritosh and mages from Magehaven are being pulled to fill the ranks of those who are dying on the frontlines. Surely the other side is also losing many good people.

  What good is the fighting when all we do is lose our best citizens? I implore you to find a way to resolve the battles. There is little to gain at this point.

  I have two proposals. First, allow me to have access to all the shards of the Red Jade. I believe unifying them is the key to unifying our kingdoms.

  Second, I propose a truce. Create a contest between the kingdoms. Make it an event where both sides can showcase their best talents. Our mages can perform grand shows for entertainment. The soldiers can compete in archery or fencing. Turn the conflict into a means of gaining trust between the kingdoms.

  There is no reason we cannot be allies after all the time we’ve spent looking at each other from across the border.

  For the sake of our families, I beg you to consider.

  With hope,

  —Delminor

  He sent the letter on a sheet of parchment encased in a thin sheet of glass, protected inside a wooden case. Because it was impossible to imbue inanimate objects with magic for any length of time, he included a small beetung and a citrine, enwrapping them with an air spell to act as a cushion for the glass. The spell wouldn’t hold for long, but it should make the flight. He assigned the task to a large eaglon, securing the package tightly.

  The response came a week later.

  Master Delminor,

  It is curious that you have removed yourself from matters related to the protection of the kingdom by resigning from the Council, yet you then speak to His Highness as if he sought your opinion.

  His Majesty will not consider the use of children’s games to settle the adult matters that plague our kingdoms. Perhaps you are unaware of the imbalance of resources between our lands and are therefore blind to the important factors that remain.

  It is not my purview to explain such things to you in detail. You are a man of research and can discern the truth for yourself. Kindly keep your thoughts private on this matter and continue to serve the crown as required by all who live in Hathreneir. Your service has been invaluable, but it gives you no right to speak thus.

  Regarding the Red Jade, we see no benefit at this time to procuring the shards for you. Certainly, you already have other methods of research available to you.

  On Behalf of His Royal Highness, King Pennithor of Hathreneir, Protector of the Realm,

  Chancellor Ieran

  Delminor shook his head, exasperated. He petitioned the Magitorium next and sent a similar letter to Magehaven. Both ignored the missive.

  “What did you expect?” Gallena asked. She walked around her shop, tidying up. The bakery was her pride and joy, though Arenda did most of the baking. “You just abandoned your post.”

  He groaned. “This has nothing to do with that.”

  “Pyron’s silence certain does.” She looked at him fully. “I wonder if he’ll ever forgive you.”

  Delminor shook his head. “It has nothing to do with him.”

  “That must hurt worse,” she said. “It’s like long ago. His part didn’t factor in to what you had to do. He was dragged out of the Magitorium. Left behind at Magehaven. Even now you abandon him to the Council.”

  “You’re not helping,” he groused.

  “Of course I am,” she said, wringing out a towel. “You’ve always done what you’ve had to do. You’ve always sought to do what’s right and sometimes you’re wrong, but you still persevere.”

  “Definite
ly not helping.”

  She threw the towel at him. “All I’m saying, Del, is that you follow your heart and it’s gotten you this far. You even angered the king.”

  “But he still sends support. That has to account for something. I’ve stood my ground and some have accepted me for it. Even you came to understand I was just a naïve kid.”

  “I’m wise beyond my years.”

  Chapter 60

  Laboratory

  Rothra and Altran grew tired of playing variations of Elemental Confluence and they told Delminor as much. “There’s no point to it,” Altran complained.

  “We’ve discussed the point many times, but I understand your frustration. Come.”

  He surprised the two as he headed out of the house and toward a shed beside the barn in the back of the yard. They piled into the small structure and Delminor cast an incantation. “Fethrikkar b’joulicht.” The squeaking of pulleys sounded dully as the floor around them swept upward, encasing them in a wooden box. Then the box moved, carrying them below the surface. The boys stood in awe.

  They arrived in a foyer with an expanse of stones before them. The passage was relatively narrow and the ceiling looked as if it would drop at any moment.

  “Be careful here and watch your steps closely. Do as I do.” He took a step onto the first stone, then onto the second and third. He then hopped over the next stone, then stepped onto the next two, before leaping over two more stones onto a third. He continued until he was across.

  The boys made the jumps as carefully as possible, but Altran grew impatient and grunted in annoyance, refusing to jump over the next stone and walking on it outright. A clicking sound was heard and the ceiling above him opened and a thick tarlike substance poured down on him, pinning him to the ground.

  “Essence of sheeliope,” Delminor said. “Take your time dealing with that.”

  He led Rothra to a brick wall, where he tapped out a predefined pattern. A crevice opened in the wall, but he bade Rothra wait for Altran. The young mage was struggling, so Delminor cast a water spell to help him clean off the tacky substance.

  They pushed the wall open and Delminor asked Rothra to light the wall sconces. The boy eagerly launched small fireballs to the walls and delighted in the playful fire that erupted from the oil.

  They looked into the room at a wide row of bookcases. Altran’s jaw hit the ground. “We don’t want to play the game, so we have to read instead?”

  “If you’d like.” He stepped toward one of the bookcases and leaned against it. It pivoted and slid to one side, revealing darkness behind it.

  Rothra stepped forward, squinting into the inky blankness. “More books?”

  “Go on. I’ve given you a hint.”

  The two boys spent the better part of an hour pressing against various bookcases, watching some turn and others slide out of the way. They needed to twist several of them for other bookcases to slide past, then untwist them so they could slide on their own tracks. Eventually, they made their way through the labyrinth to a door on the other side.

  Four pedestals stood in the small chamber and Delminor went up to each one, each time casting a spell of a different element. When all four were satisfied, a final door opened in the wall.

  The inner chamber was a vast expanse with some sunlight beaming in from careful holes that had been set in the high ceiling. It was barely enough light to see by, but wall sconces abounded and Rothra delighted in igniting them all.

  Around the perimeter of the room were doorways leading to smaller chambers. One housed a basic bed, whereas others were laboratories of sorts. One had a collection of gemstones, and another was loaded with various plants and herbs. Yet another room had scraps of metal and glass and the boys realized that these were all rooms loaded with spell components. A kitchen was off to one corner, with another lift contraption connecting it to the kitchen in the house. He had an exercise room littered in dust, a library loaded with tomes, and another room covered in scorch marks from spells he had tested.

  “Welcome to my laboratory,” Delminor said grandly.

  “It’s amazing,” Rothra said. “I don’t even know where to look first.” Delminor gave them time to wander around and get their bearings before he brought them to the center of the main room.

  “You asked me about the importance of the game. Here, I hope to show you some part of it in reality. I have spent years unlocking magic of all kinds, as you know. Here, I plan to bring them all together. I will need your help, of course.”

  He waited for the boys to focus in on him entirely, then he set them with instructions. At first, they balked, but he assured them it would be worthwhile.

  Rothra fetched a shovel and dug into the earth in the back corner of one of the component rooms. He lugged the dirt to the center of the main hall and created a large pile.

  Altran was tasked with smaller jobs, more fitting to his rash personality. He rummaged through the rooms and obtained the materials Delminor insisted upon. All the while, the mage himself took each piece and cast a spell upon it.

  A pair of earthworms were added to the dirt pile. Delminor then dug a shallow bowl in the center and solidified the edges of it so it could contain an amount of water without it seeping into the soil. Flowers and grass were planted next, all tucked beneath the surface of the dirt, the flower petals stretching up into the air.

  Delminor infused each piece with more energy, recalling inspirations he’d had with the jades themselves, though he carried none of them with him now.

  “Altran, the metal. It’s your turn now to extend that into a large circle, wide enough encompass the entire pile of dirt, but only about a knuckle high.”

  “What? That’s impossible.”

  Rothra laughed at him. “Aren’t you the one who complains we don’t do more magic?”

  The black-haired boy grumbled and brought the scraps of metal together, casting a spell to bind them. “Ellikorish wrash’bnar presh combronnitur.” The pieces fused together in places, but it wasn’t enough to make them secure.

  “Now,” Delminor said, “grab some of the leaves and bark.”

  “But I’m not finished with this.”

  “Come on.”

  He obliged and Delminor laid them on the ground. “Fabrithius oskallor benirrilo nosh karrai.” The leaves and bark reached together and sealed along the edges, creating a solid sheet. “Nature intertwines more easily than metal. Think of a blacksmith. He needs great heat to soften the metal so he can work with it.”

  “Oh!” Rothra chimed in. “I can heat the pieces!”

  “Yes, that will help, but also…” He pointed from the metal scraps to the leaves. “These are opposing forces, yet we can use them together to help complete what we need.”

  “They’re opposites, like you say,” Altran frowned. “They can’t work together.”

  Delminor fused the two combination spells, adding some connective keywords, and chanted, “Ellikorish kaie oskallor fabrithius presh naarestigar benirrilo combronnitur retricorius karrai.” The sheets of metal reached together and solidified into a thin bar.

  Altran gasped. “I don’t believe it!”

  “Elemental Confluence isn’t just a game. You’ve always believed that one element should overpower another, but here I’m showing you that opposite forces can work together. With Rothra’s help to warm the pieces, get the task done.”

  It took two days for the apprentices to finish the large metal circlet, which they then laid around the dirt pile. Gemstones were added next, tucked under the soil to hide them from view. They installed a larger crystal on the ceiling, where Delminor cast a lightning spell to illuminate the area. It wasn’t enough, so they added more gemstones and some shards of metal that kept the lightning springing around in a zigzagging circuit.

  Shadow energy was harder to add, but Rothra asked if it should counterbalance the lightning and therefore float above with it. They tried and the energies worked together to create a rapid sense of night and day in the area
.

  “What’s missing?” Delminor asked at the end of the week.

  “No beasts,” Rothra said.

  “What about the earthworms?”

  “True. But aren’t they more nature beings?”

  Delminor baited them. “Is that possible?”

  Altran answered, surprising them both. “Of course. Their energies are able to work together and allow them to be both. Earthworms are different than other beings. If you cut one in half it grows back, and that’s a lot more like a tree than anything.”

  “Great,” Delminor said. “What of fire and air?”

  Rothra blushed. “How could I forget about fire?”

  “You’ve been delving into all the other elements in a balanced way. It makes some sense to me.” He smiled. “So what about it?”

  “I think fire would be too strong here,” he said. “But maybe a mild heat instead? And the air could swirl around and circulate it.”

  “With herbs to make it smell better!” Altran added.

  Delminor laughed. “Let’s get to it, then.”

  With a host of gemstones buried in the dirt and a pair of swallomers the boys caught outside, the creation was finished. They stepped back and marveled at their work.

  They had created a living, breathing space underground that was entirely self-sufficient.

  Altran turned to Delminor. “Maybe we could play Elemental Confluence again?”

  “Could we?” Rothra asked. “I had an idea about how we can adapt it again. See how we have the ground and the middle and the ceiling? What if we did that with the playing board? What if we made it different tiers?”

  Delminor’s brows furrowed. “What indeed?”

  Chapter 61

  The Day of Change

  “Del, it’s time!” Donya shrieked, clutching the bed.

  He awoke instantly and ran downstairs to awaken his apprentices, who had been staying in his house for this purpose. Rothra went to fetch Essalia, who arrived shortly after with a bag of gemstones and jades, while Altran ran to Arenda’s, who had volunteered to help with the birthing.