Delver Magic: Book 06 - Pure Choice (51 page)

The weapon in his hand revealed
another answer. The breaking of the portal and the release of the hollow magic
helped to bring the dark realm slightly out of its shadow of despair. It
remained a barren land of nightmare and horror, but an act of conviction and
trust opened a potential path to new light... new understanding.

Filled with optimism, Ryson raced
back to his wife. Linda remained unconscious in the arms of the cliff behemoth,
but with the Sword of Decree in his hand, the delver knew she would recover.

Dzeb looked down upon Ryson with a
gentle smile and then looked up to the stars above.

"You have brought hope to
this land," Dzeb acknowledged.

Ryson knew it wasn't just him that
brought out the stars. It was all of them. They had come together to help one
another. From Dzeb looking after his wife to Jure trying to reach a renegade
elf, they all followed what was in their hearts. The path might not have been
as clear as he hoped, but they did not turn away from it.

"I also figured something
else out," Ryson admitted. "You came to help Linda because it was
what you believed you had to do. You can't explain it, you just knew. I'm
starting to understand that myself."

"I know you are," Dzeb
replied.

"Indeed he is," Enin
added, eminently proud of the delver's display of faith. He placed a hand upon
Ryson's shoulder. "You did everything you needed to do. That's why I told
you to focus on saving Linda. Ansas was only concerned with himself, not with
all that was around him. You were never like that, and I wanted to make sure
you remained so."

Before he could respond, Ryson
heard the other spell casters stirring from unconsciousness. He made no move to
confront them, but watched carefully as they rose to their feet.

It was Neltus who first realized
that Ansas had been defeated. The sorcerer's body was limp on the ground. More
importantly, Neltus knew the dark magic that once allowed him to cast spells of
enormous power was gone. He looked across the plateau and saw foes he knew he
had no chance of defeating. In a fit of fear, he cast his own portal and leapt
into its center.

The sorceress, Rivira, and the
infern also created portals for their escape. They retreated with the same
urgency as Neltus.

"Should we follow them?"
Jure asked.

"No," Enin answered.
"They are back to what they were, but hopefully somewhat wiser. Let's hope
they don't waste this second chance."

Ryson turned to Enin.

"What do we do with Ansas'
body?"

"There's nothing we can do
for him," Enin disclosed. "It will remain here, perhaps for an
eternity. This plateau will become a tomb for his soulless body. In all
honesty, I think it's somewhat fitting."

"There is one other we have
to consider," Holli added as she nodded to Scheff who was slowly rising to
his feet.

The elf had not seen everything
that had transpired, but he knew the dark magic was no longer within his core.
He looked at Ansas' limp body and somehow understood the sorcerer had come to
an empty end. It was all a misguided waste, until he considered the outcome of
his battle with Jure.

Scheff had been defeated, but he
was still alive. As Ansas once said, it was important to learn from defeat. The
elf realized the sorcerer had been wrong about many things, but not that.

The elf thought back on his
initial decision, his desire to become legendary in skill and power. He was
told to focus only on the natural hue of his magic and to ignore everything
else. That portion of advice was ill-conceived, and Scheff understood he had to
carefully consider everything that had happened in order to find his way.

Attempting to place the proper
perspective on his experience, the elf remembered how Ansas spoke of good and
evil. The sorcerer appeared to understand each, yet chose no clear path to
either. Instead, Ansas tried to raise himself above both, to make his own
enlightenment the ultimate quest. It might not have been intended evil, but it
was selfish and arrogant, and eventually led the sorcerer to corruption.

Scheff had taken a similar course,
and it was a path the elf no longer wished to travel. It was time for him to
change directions, to consider something besides himself, something bigger.

Walking humbly toward Birk Grund
and Shantree Wispon, he spoke in an apologetic tone.

"I am sorry, and I wish to
return to the camp."

"We will be happy to have
you," Shantree responded without hesitation.

"We should all leave this
place," Enin advised. "Holli, please take the elves back to their
camp. I will take everyone else back with me to Connel... the Church
of Godson. I think that would be
best."

Two days after the encounter on
the plateau, Ryson traveled alone to Burbon in order to pick up a few essential
items for himself and Linda. Before he left to return to Connel, he decided to
stop at the guard headquarters in the center of town.

He asked to see Sy, but he did not
go inside. He didn't want to speak to the captain in the confines of his
office. He wanted to do it out in the street, out in the open. The delver
didn't care if people passing by heard what he had to say. He had nothing to
hide.

Sy came out and actually smiled.
He did not bury the fact that he was thrilled to see his friend. He had been
worried... greatly worried about both Ryson and Linda.

The captain asked how Ryson had
fared. He did so not as a commander seeking a report, but as an anxious friend
genuinely concerned about Ryson and Linda's welfare. Sy stood quietly as the
delver revealed to him everything that had happened.

"Is Linda okay?" the
captain asked when Ryson completed the tale of events.

"She's conscious, but still a
bit tired. She doesn't remember everything, but probably more than she wants
to. I've got a few things that I'm bringing back to her... to make her more
comfortable."

Sy hesitated, but only for a
moment. As was his way, he decided to face the delicate issue head on.

"So are you staying in Connel
permanently?"

The question caught the delver off
guard.

"Permanently? No. Enin just
wants to keep an eye on her for a while longer. He believes she's fine, but he
wants to be certain there aren't any complications."

"So you're coming back,"
Sy said without even trying to conceal his relief.

"This is our home,"
Ryson stated.

"I'm happy to hear that. It
wouldn't be the same without you."

The delver then decided to bring
up an issue of his own, one that he knew needed to be addressed.

"Before I go, I want to talk
to you about the river rogues that got into town."

Sy was not so sure that was the
best of ideas. He didn't like sweeping issues under the rug, didn't want to
simply pretend that nothing had happened, but he didn't want to renew any
conflict between them.

"Maybe this isn't the best
time," Sy offered. "I don't think either one of us is looking to have
another argument right now."

"Actually, it is a good time,
because I don't think we were ever arguing about the same thing, and if we both
realize that, then there wasn't really an argument between us at all."

"I think it's pretty clear we
had a disagreement," Sy stated.

"Maybe it is, but I still
want you to hear me out. I believe I owe you an explanation."

To the captain, it sounded as if
the delver was prepared to make an apology. Sy wouldn't have rejected it, but
he didn't quite understand it, either.

"Are you saying you were
wrong?" Sy asked, revealing his confusion.

"Not really, not about
everything. This was never about whether you were right and I was wrong, or
even about killing or not killing. It was about sticking to what you believe
in. You had your opinion and I had mine."

"Differing opinions is
usually what causes arguments."

"Maybe," Ryson allowed,
"but not when you see both sides. For what it's worth, I give you credit
for doing what you thought you had to do. It has to be tough to be in that
situation, trying to decide between life or death—not only for river rogues or
even a sorcerer—but for an entire town. That's what's on your shoulders, and I
get it. You believe in what you do and you stick to that belief."

The guard captain nodded in
appreciation. The delver appeared sincere. More importantly, Ryson seemed to
understand that every decision Sy made was with the best interests of the town
in mind. Still, he recalled that it was Ryson's open defiance that got under
his own skin. If they were going to resolve the issue, that had to be
addressed.

"Then why did you fight
me?"

"I didn't. I just didn't want
to be a part of it. I knew you had your own perspective, one that other people
valued. I guess it's why the people of Burbon put you in charge. They trust
your judgment. I realize that when I go against you, I'm pretty much going
against all of them as well. I'm making a tough situation that much tougher for
you, and I don't want to do that."

"If you understand all that,
then why did you get so mad at me?" Sy wondered.

"Things got out of hand. It
was tense. I didn't like what happened with the large goblin. We were both
upset at what happened that night. That doesn't change the fact that this is
all still only about a difference in opinion. For me, it's not so much about
agreeing or disagreeing. I understand your perspective. Like I said, I even
respect it, but it's still different than mine. I'm hoping you can understand
my opinion, because the only time I really got mad at you was when you tried to
force me to give up my beliefs... to change my opinion of what was right."

Sy wanted to debate that
assertion. He believed he allowed everyone their own beliefs and that he didn't
infringe upon them. He wanted to say that he never attempted to alter his
friends convictions, but he couldn't. The truth was that he
did
want to change Ryson's mind. Deep
down, he couldn't deny it.

"You're right," Sy
admitted. "I did want you to see things my way. I value you too much, both
as a scout... and as a friend. I was afraid I couldn't count on you, and I
wanted you on my side. I still do."

"I
am
on your side."

Sy frowned slightly. At first, he
wanted to simply agree with the sentiment and move on, but it wasn't the
complete truth.

"I know you're not against
me," Sy acknowledged, "but when we don't agree on the best way to handle
a problem, then we're not necessarily on the same side."

"But I won't get in your
way."

"And that's how we leave
it?" Sy wondered. "Because I'm not sure if this situation is any
different than what it was before. I still have to give orders and I expect
them to be followed. If a river rogue gets inside of the town again, I'm not
going to risk my soldiers to protect its life. I realize you have your beliefs
in what's right, but I can't let them interfere with what I have to do."

"Then don't let them. All I'm
asking is for you not to give me an order you
know
I won't follow. And I won't put myself in a position where I
might question your orders... like with Okyiq. I tried to make a deal with him
for my own purposes. I was wrong. And then, I didn't like how you handled the
situation. Wrong again. I'll try not to make those same mistakes. I know you
don't want me to question your orders, but I still think I can help you, help
this town... my home."

"What is it exactly you
propose?" Sy asked.

"Let me do what it is I do
best. Let me scout the lands around Burbon, let me find the threats for you
before people are in danger. Just don't use me as a tool for unnecessary
killing."

"And that may be our
problem," Sy admitted. "That was our problem on the night we argued.
Who gets to decide what's necessary?"

"I guess that's what we'll
have to figure out. Maybe we can discuss things before they happen, work out a
general idea ahead of time."

"I have no problem with being
better prepared, so maybe we can work it out. Still, I need you to understand
that the safety of this town is the most important factor, not my reputation,
or even your beliefs. Nothing can get in the way of defending the people that
live here."

"Like I said, let me help
with that. I can be more active in my scouting. We can do more to keep threats
out of Burbon."

"I can't argue with
that."

There was an uneasy pause. They
had seemed to find a potentially feasible solution, but both knew they would
have to work at it and only time would tell if they would succeed. Ryson ended
the silence as he didn't wish to delay his trip back to Connel any longer.

"So... when Linda is well
enough to travel, we'll be back."

"You'll both be welcome.
You've both been missed."

When Ryson returned to Connel, he met
with Enin at the entrance to the Church
of Godson. The wizard had made one
last check on Linda and gave a glowing report to the delver. Ryson rushed
inside to give the good news to his wife. After a much more joyful and
affectionate meeting than they had had in the past few days, the delver bubbled
with enthusiasm.

"Enin thinks you're
fine," Ryson revealed to his wife. They stood in a back office of the
church and were able to converse in complete privacy. "He said if there
were any lingering effects of the arasaps, we'd know by now."

"I know," Linda replied.
"He just told me."

"Did he also tell you we can
go home any time you're ready? He said he would teleport us back to Burbon. He
said he could send us right back to our house."