Wizards' Exile

by Colin R Parsons

  Suddenly there was a dull thud! The whole ship shuddered and was followed by the sound of grinding wood. Rhidian was slightly shaken by the impact and looked out of the window again but still couldn’t make out anything. He had to investigate, but there couldn’t be any damage because they were barely moving, he assumed.

  He opened the cabin door and steadily walked onto the deck. The wisps of cold mist wet his face and he angrily wiped them away from his mouth in disgust, as if it were cobwebs. The darkness combined with the grey made it difficult to see. He stood silently and wondered if the impact had woken the others. He was also intrigued as to what he might find – it scared him.

  The fog began to thin and Rhidian felt that something strange was about to happen. The mist swirled before his eyes and revealed a large darkened shape. He realised right away that it was another ship.

  ‘Oh crap,’ he rasped. He didn’t know what to do. Should he wake up the others, if they weren’t awake already? But none of his crew came running onto the deck.

  His thoughts went back to the matter at hand. Where were the crew? If this ship had been following them since the break out, why wasn’t he already arrested and his friends rounded up? No, there must be some other explanation. Rhidian noticed that the vessel had kind of wedged itself against their ship.

  He approached the handrail and peered onto the deck of the other craft. It was really difficult to see anything specific. The blackness engulfed everything like a blanket. It was quiet too, an eerie and unnerving silence except for creaking timbers, which he was getting used to. Rhidian was more curious than scared at this point. It appeared, though, that there was no one on board – a ghost ship!

  What should he do? Should he leave it and start his own engine back up and pull away? There was a deep urge for him to board the empty vessel and investigate. What harm could it do? He couldn’t really travel anywhere tonight in this thick fog anyway.

  ‘H-Hello,’ he called out tentatively, hot air rising from his open mouth. But his thin voice was swallowed in an instant by the denseness of the air. He could feel his heart race in his chest. Rhidian decided that a quick investigation wouldn’t hurt. He breathed in deeply and a smile masked his nervousness. He climbed over the threshold and planted his feet on the inviting deck.

  ‘H-Hello.’ He stopped and cleared his throat. ‘Hello, is there anyone there?’ he called out with more purpose to his voice, but nothing came back. There can’t be anyone on board, surely, or they would have responded by now, he reasoned, and decided there was nothing else to do but to explore further.

  He was totally damp from the swirling mist and the cold feel of his clothes made him shiver. A watery moon grinned through a fading patch of clouds, slightly illuminating the deck. Then… what was that?

  *****

  Red flicked open his tired eyes, not quite sure what he’d been dreaming about. He sat up and his head hit the upper bunk with a numbing jolt.

  ‘Aw, great,’ he groaned, and rubbed the sore spot vigorously. He felt thirsty and tried to swallow, but his throat was too dry. He suddenly thought of the fridge in the kitchen and relished the idea of a cool drink and maybe a snack too. The youngster forgot about his sore head and climbed out of his bunk. The good thing about this ship was the fact that everyone had a room each. He opened the cabin door as quietly as possible, but it still let out a high-pitched squeak, no matter how gently he pulled at it. He creased up his face and squinted his eyes, as if that would stop the noise happening. When the gap was wide enough, he slipped through.

  Strangely, when he closed the door behind him, it didn’t make any noise. He shook his head in disbelief. Once outside, he tiptoed along the dark corridor and out through another door onto the deck. Every time he was out here it made him feel calm for some strange reason; he couldn’t explain why. The moon was beaming down and the mist had thinned. There was a breeze and he drank it in as if it were a glass of water. He then realised that the sky ship wasn’t moving! Why hadn’t he noticed this before? The calm throb of the engine was a comforting sound, but now there was just dead air. He stood pondering – something was wrong, he could feel it.

  Then, came the realisation! How hadn’t he noticed it sooner? He looked up and the sight made his jaw fall open.

  ‘Good grief,’ he gasped. There was a ship, right there. The first thing he felt was panic. He was trembling, but wasn’t sure if it was the sudden cold or his nerves. Then he thought… Rhidian!

  ‘Rhidian, yes, Rhidian would know what to do,’ he mumbled. The boy quickly made his way to the control room. But Rhidian wasn’t there. Where was he? He stepped back onto the deck and scuttled around in a bid to find him.

  ‘Rhidian? Rhidian?’ he called out as quietly as he could. Where is he? That was when he thought he saw something move on the other ship. He stopped panicking and stared out onto the other deck. The moon had just disappeared behind a bank of clouds and so everything was left in twilight. But there was definitely something moving over there.

  ‘Rhidian, is that you?’ His voice was louder than he’d intended. The figure didn’t respond. Red, filled with curiosity and fear, wandered over towards the port side of his ship. Maybe he’s in trouble, he thought. ‘I’m coming over,’ Red said with conviction.

  *****

  Rebus roused from slumber; he’d been in a deep sleep but, whatever woke him, it wasn’t good. He, being a wizard, felt certain forces and this definitely felt evil. It had been such a long time since he’d last felt something spiritual. His magical powers had lay dormant and now were tingling. But strangely he felt two sources of power – one good and one evil. He quickly got to his feet and made his way outside. He was also sensing someone else was already out there and saw that it was Caleb.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Rebus asked, his voice filled with suspicion.

  ‘I don’t really know, except for that,’ Caleb said, and pointed directly to the ship that had drifted into them. ‘I can’t find Red or Rhidian,’ he continued. ‘What are you thinking?’

  ‘I’m thinking that you are a wizard and what woke me woke you too,’ Rebus said simply. Caleb stood for a moment and said nothing.

  ‘OK,’ he finally relented, ‘I am.’

  ‘I knew it,’ Rebus hissed, as if he’d won some bet. ‘I had that feeling when we first met, but I haven’t used my powers for so long that I wasn’t sure.’

  ‘Well, now you know. So?’ Caleb said, expecting a reply.

  ‘So, you and I know what is on that ship,’ Rebus said, peering straight into Caleb’s eyes. He peered back unblinking.

  ‘Ghosts, spirits – trapped for eternity?’

  ‘Yep, I believe so and they’ve probably got Rhidian and Red held prisoner,’ Rebus assumed.

  ‘I think you’re right,’ Caleb agreed.

  ‘How are we going to do this? You got a plan?’ Rebus asked.

  ‘Well, they don’t actually know we’re wizards, do they? That at least gives us the upper hand,’ Caleb said.

  ‘We need to do something first though,’ Rebus added.

  ‘Yes, we have to protect ourselves,’ Caleb acknowledged.

  ‘Not here though,’ Rebus continued.

  ‘No, it has to be away from sight,’ Caleb agreed. The two figures moved around the control room, away from the ghost ship. They stood on the starboard side, out of the moon’s rays. The two sorcerers reached out and touched each other’s hands. There was a yellow glow that passed between them. It only lasted a matter of seconds before it dissipated, but that was all they needed.

  ‘Now we’re ready,’ Rebus said with confidence.

  ‘Let’s go then.’ Caleb wasn’t one to wait around.

  The wizards made their way to port side and climbed over onto the other vessel. Once there, they were immediately confronted by a series of glowing figures.

  ‘A welcome committee,’ Rebus said. A grin formed on his face.

  ‘Yep, looks like.’ Caleb held the same look.

  ‘How do we c
ommunicate with these, uh, beings? I’m a little rusty,’ Rebus admitted, feeling awkward. One of the luminous figures glided forward. Caleb looked at it. It was the shape of a man but with a blurred glow around the edges. The skull face was a milky-white and the soft shimmer around its body soon disappeared into the murky black robe of its torso.

  ‘Yep, ghosts,’ Caleb announced.

  ‘Come on… really? How did you work that one out?’ Rebus mused.

  ‘You are our prisoners now,’ came the thin rasping voice of the skeletal captain.

  ‘Um, err, I don’t think so,’ Caleb responded sharply. ‘You may have our friends, but you won’t take us any time soon.’

  Suddenly more of them came from the shadows and immediately circled the wizards. Once all eight of them were in place, they linked hands and forged a solid connection – a white circle. Rebus rolled his eyes in Caleb’s direction with a look of concern. Soon, a white light emerged from the pirate crew that bleached everything around the two ships.

  ‘We need to work against this now, Rebus,’ Caleb said, but he wasn’t looking so smug now.

  ‘Agreed,’ Rebus said. ‘Deflecting spell?’ the old wizard added quickly. There was a quick nod of reaction from his colleague. They worked together for the first time as a team by pressing their index fingers to their temples. Rebus could instantly feel his fellow wizard swim through his mind. And, Caleb had exactly the same experience with Rebus. The connection of mind transference emitted a magical, invisible beam. This counteracted the ghosts’ attempt to overpower them. The two opposite energies pushed against one another in a light display of sharp, exploding sparks and a thunderous boom.

  ‘We’ve got to keep a hold of this!’ Caleb yelled, the brilliance of the enemy surge bleaching his face to a ghostly skull.

  ‘Keep your mind free of anything else and let yourself immerse in the moment.’ Rebus’ tranquil voice calmly washed through the younger wizard’s thoughts. The ghostly crew intensified their force but it was no match for the wizard’s magic and, eventually, their strength of mind overwhelmed and destroyed their ghostly powers. The once-blinding supernatural magic of the ghost crew diminished into a milky glow and finally absorbed back into them. Rebus’ and Caleb’s spell had worked. The captain’s eyeless sockets peered back as the being stood defiant. Caleb returned the glare, unflinching, but inside he and Rebus were weakened by the tussle.

  ‘Who are you?’ the stunned captain bleated. His crew parted, broke away and floated in line behind their leader. ‘You are not true men.’

  ‘No, we are wizards,’ Caleb said with pride, ‘and your deathly powers are no match for ours.’ Caleb felt Rebus in his head again. ‘We can’t sustain another attack. We need time to build our magic.’ Caleb knew this too.

  ‘Give back our friends,’ Rebus ordered.

  ‘We will not give up our prisoners, but you are free to go,’ the ghost captain insisted.

  ‘That’s never going to happen,’ Caleb shot back. ‘Do you want us to show you exactly what we can do?’ He raised his shoulders and puffed out his chest. Rebus looked on with suspicion.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Rebus mumbled out of the corner of his mouth.

  ‘Shut up and follow my lead,’ Caleb said, still looking straight into the gaunt, bony face of his enemy. Caleb started waving his arms and howling like a demented wolf.

  ‘The powers that be will diminish thee,’ Caleb ranted. Rebus followed his lead. The ghosts themselves looked disorientated; they knew that the power they held didn’t work.

  ‘Stop… do not continue,’ the zombie captain screeched in surrender. ‘We will return your shipmates.’ The two sorcerers ceased their ridiculous charade and knew it had worked. They momentarily glanced at each other with a look of relief.

  The captain must have given a couple of his men a signal, because some of them broke away from the others and disappeared below deck. Rebus and Caleb stood in silence and out of breath. Sure enough, the captain’s men returned with the two prisoners – Rhidian and Red. They slowly walked behind the ghosts – the both of them were in a kind of trance. They were engulfed in a swirling, smoky veil. Rebus looked at them, then half squinted with a look of distaste at the ghost captain.

  ‘Release them,’ he ordered. The dead crewmembers somehow urged the humans forward to the centre of the deck. They circled them in a clockwise motion – Red and Rhidian didn’t even blink. The ghosts swirled and picked up speed as they danced around their victims in a grey blur. Eventually, there was nothing more than wisps of mist. The hypnotic hold that trapped Red and Rhidian lifted. It was as if they’d been frozen and instantly defrosted. The engineer and the boy fell to their knees, the weakness in their limbs obvious. The wizards moved in to help them.

  ‘Rebus… Caleb… What happened?’ Rhidian mumbled, trying to find the strength to speak a full sentence. Red couldn’t even do that – he was drained. Caleb looked up and saw that the ghosts were slowly evaporating into the woodwork.

  ‘Rebus, we have to get them out of here now,’ Caleb said with urgency. They helped them quickly to their feet and dragged them to the side of the ship. Without looking back they flung them onto the deck of their own ship. Rebus and Caleb quickly followed, and as soon as they cleared the ghost ship, it began to fade. Rhidian and Red lay on the deck, still in a stupor. The wizards stood side-by-side, witnessing the final remains of the ghost ship vanish. Then there was almost nothing, only the groans of the released prisoners.

  ‘Rebus, what happened?’ Rhidian asked when he could eventually find his voice.

  ‘We were nearly all captured, that’s what happened. From now on, if you see anything suspicious, inform me straight away,’ Rebus said bluntly.

  ‘Yeah… yeah, we will,’ Rhidian said.

  ‘Right, I have to tell you something,’ Rebus announced. By now, Rhidian and Red were on their feet, but still unstable.

  ‘What’s up Rebus? Besides another near-death experience?’ Rhidian said flippantly.

  ‘This is just to inform you that Caleb… well, he’s the same as me.’

  ‘What, old?’ Red joked, but when he saw the look from Rebus, bowed his head sheepishly. Caleb bit his lip in a bid not to laugh.

  ‘He’s a wizard.’ Rebus rolled his eyes from one to the other, waiting for either Red or Rhidian to give a smart quip. ‘If it hadn’t been for Caleb, then we would all have been captured,’ he added. ‘The power from that ghost ship was too much for me to handle alone. My powers are still building.’

  ‘Well, err, that’s good that we have two wizards on board,’ Rhidian realised. ‘Twice the experience and power.’ Rhidian looked at the boy. ‘I thank you both for your help.’ Rhidian prodded the boy.

  ‘Yeah, me too,’ Red said with a vigorous nod. Rebus turned to Caleb.

  ‘Do you want to continue with us? I mean, you have the power to do and go as you please really.’ Rebus waited for a response from his new colleague.

  ‘I’m willing to help you find whatever you’re looking for,’ Caleb spoke up. ‘I’ll have to see what my future holds after that.’

  ‘Caleb, can you teach me,’ Red chipped in, ‘to do magic?’

  ‘You can’t teach someone magic, young lad,’ Rebus interrupted. ‘It has to be something already inside you.’ Red rolled his eyes. Rebus, it seemed, was always putting him down.

  ‘We’ll see, Red,’ Caleb said, realising the tension between them. ‘Maybe I can teach you a little.’ Red’s eyes lit up and a real smile filled his face.

  ‘We have to get out of here, now. Time is of the essence,’ Rebus said, as he made his way to the control room. ‘Come on, you lot, we’ve a mission to fulfil. No dawdling, get a move on.’ The rest of them rolled their eyes and nodded in compliance.

  ‘Come on,’ Rhidian urged as they followed the old wizard.

  ‘That was close,’ Red whispered to the engineer. ‘I don’t want to go through that again.’

  ‘Too close, lad. We’re lucky. It could have turned out
a lot worse,’ Rhidian said. Rebus shouted to them from the control room. ‘Come on, we don’t want another telling off, do we?’ He grinned. Once they were all inside, Rhidian started the engine and the big craft pulled away.

  ‘I’ll take over now,’ Rebus insisted.

  ‘Look, why don’t you two get a full sleep?’ Rhidian insisted, pointing to Rebus and Caleb. ‘I’ll continue steering through this fog and I’ll keep Red with me for company. I feel totally awake now anyway. In the morning, you and Caleb can take over while we sleep. It’ll be easier to pilot the ship when you can see clearly ahead, don’t you think?’ Rhidian looked at the two wizards and they agreed with a nod. So Rhidian gripped the wheel as Red sat in one of the chairs, whilst the others went back to their rooms.

  Chapter 12

  The Vision

  The early light of morning cracked through the thinning cloud line. The awakening sun lazily cast a pale yellow rectangle on the cabin floor. The heat was already rising and by midday it would be scorching. Rhidian was leaning against a side panel, half asleep; all the fear and excitement had taken its toll. Red was dozing in the corner.

  Caleb walked in and stood by the side of the skipper.

  ‘Morning, Rhidian,’ he said. Rhidian flinched. He hadn’t realised Caleb was standing there.

  ‘Oh, good morning, Caleb,’ Rhidian replied, eyes still at half-mast. ‘So, you’re a wizard, too?’ He tried to make conversation and stay awake at the same time, but still stifled a yawn.

  ‘Yes, Rhidian, sorry to have been so secretive,’ Caleb replied. ‘I couldn’t reveal who I really was until I knew exactly who I was dealing with. I was lucky to get away from Jenta-Lor.’ As he said the name, a jolt of nerves shot through Rhidian’s stomach. ‘I would have probably ended up in the same position as you and the others if I’d been caught,’ the wizard continued.

  ‘I totally understand. Jenta-Lor imprisoned me under false pretences. He’s imprisoned a lot of innocent people and wizards.’ As Rhidian said the words, he went quiet for a moment. He looked straight ahead but didn’t really see anything, only the blue, hazy sky. All he could conjure was an image of his beautiful wife, Mia – her eyes glazed, and lips pursed. He felt a lump in his throat and swallowed it down. He was tired and at his most vulnerable. He snuffled up the streams that began to form in his nostrils and wiped his nose on the back of his sleeve. He came back out of his thoughts. ‘Oh, thanks again by the way.’