Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles 1: Wizard Defiant (20 page)

Geesh, Rick
, said Nickelo.
Why don’t you just give her your bank account number and password while you’re giving away all our secrets?

Hush, Nick
, Richard said.

Richard watched the elf as she appeared to try and absorb his explanation. Finally, she said, “I understand the word scout, but the words wizard and technology are unfamiliar to me. I must admit you are a strange one, Rick. Maybe I just haven’t met enough humans to understand them. There are certainly few enough in our land. But, I have a feeling you’d be strange even if I had met a thousand humans.”

“Well, you’re a little strange to me as well, Shandria,” Richard said. “You seem very powerful and skilled for someone who is only a few years older than me.”

Shandria gave a loud, good humored laugh. Nickelo joined in with a private laugh in his thoughts. Richard knew he’d said something wrong, but he wasn’t sure what it was. He suspected he would soon find out.

“Are you really so unfamiliar with elves, Rick?” said Shandria still laughing. “Perhaps you are different than the humans where I come from, but on my world, the lifespan of a high elf is twenty times that of a human. If I may be so bold to ask, how old are you, Rick?”

“I’m twenty-two in my world’s reckoning,” Richard said. “I suppose it would be different on your world.”

“Undoubtedly,” Shandria said, “but the ratio would be the same. Therefore, in your world’s reckoning, I would be in my late four hundreds or early five hundreds.”

Richard stared at her. He wondered how this beautiful creature before him could be hundreds of years old. It didn’t seem right to him, even if she was an elf. He suddenly realized he’d been building up hopes of a possible romantic relationship with her. That hope suddenly became a blazing starship crashing through the atmosphere on its way to certain destruction.

“Oh,” Richard said in response. “All I can say is that you’ve certainly held up well over the years. You’re the most beautiful four hundred year old person I’ve ever met.” Then to cover up his embarrassment, he tried to make a joke. “I don’t suppose you’d consider being courted by a younger man, would you?”

Shandria looked at him for so long he thought his joke had fallen flat. Then she burst out laughing. It was not a laugh of derision, but instead it was a joyful laugh. It was a laugh meant to release the stress of their situation. It was the laugh of one battle companion sharing a joke with another.

“Rick,” she said when her laughter had subsided, “we have babies in diapers in my village older than you.” Then more seriously, as if to make sure she did not damage his male ego too badly, she added, “Besides, I am betrothed to another. Once my quest is finished, I shall return home to bond with he who is the other part of my soul. But, if I was not betrothed, and if I was inclined to date younger males, then I could certainly do worse than you. Since we first met, you have shown yourself by your actions to be an honorable and worthy companion. If I may be so bold, I think you would make a fine friend.”

Ouch
, said Nickelo privately.
It’s the old we-can-still-be-friends gambit. This conversation is obviously not getting us anywhere. I can see I’m going to need to take a more direct approach.

“And if I may be so bold,” came Nickelo’s voice from the direction of the battle helmet, “what is a time-bubble, and what are those spheres? While you’re at it, why is the demon so interested in them?”

“Ah ha,” Shandria said as she turned her head to look at the helmet. “So the spirit in your helmet does more than tell stories. I wonder, is he your servant, or are you his?” She finished her comment with a conspiratorial smile, so Richard knew she was not serious.

“Rick is my friend, I’ll have you know,” said Nickelo in a voice that made it plain he was insulted. “Neither of us is the other’s servant.”

“I should warn you, Shandria,” Richard said with a wink, “he’s sensitive. But, we actually are a team. He’s saved my life often enough that if he did need me to be his servant, than his servant I’d be.”

“Well, Master Nick,” said Shandria still smiling. “You have my sincere apologies.”

Richard thought the elf had the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. He didn’t know who her betrothed was, but he did know he was a very lucky elf.

“But to answer your questions, Master Nick, and yours too, friend Rick, let me tell you a story. The Creator…, you do believe in the Creator, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Richard said. He wasn’t deeply religious, but being brought up in a church orphanage pounded a lot of religious doctrine into even the most stubborn of orphans.

“Of course,” said Nickelo. “It’s only logical.”

“Good,” said Shandria. “That makes it a little easier. The Evil Ones are determined that the entire universe should be covered with their foul darkness. They have spread into many galaxies and dimensions, but still they crave more. Fortunately, there are many places where the Creator’s light still shines bright. My home world is one of those. Judging from my brief association with you, Rick, your world must be also.”

“Well,” Rick said. “I’m not so sure it shines bright, but at least it’s not completely covered in darkness either.”

“That is well,” said Shandria. “You can never relax. Sprinkled throughout the universe are weak spots that can be used as gates from the dwelling place of the Evil Ones. At one time, all the gates were shut tight and guardians were placed over them. But as the eons passed, some of the guardians grew weak. The armies of the Evil Ones broke through their gates and devoured the gate’s planet, its galaxy and its sister galaxies. My village is near one of those gates, and the guardian has grown weak. If the gate fails, my village, my planet and my galaxy will be overwhelmed by the armies of the Evil Ones.”

She paused, and her silver eyes shimmered with a wetness that had not been there before. The elf looked at Richard a long time before she added, “As will yours.”

“Mine?” Richard said. “What does my world have to do with it?”

“Listen, friend Rick,” Shandria said in low voice that drew him in, “and you shall soon understand. The Creator did not leave his people at the mercy of the Evil Ones. Whenever a guardian grows weak, the Creator sends another. But, the people must be strong enough and determined enough to care for the new guardian. Many years ago, the Creator sent a new guardian for our gate in the form of a seed. The seed bided its time while it waited until it was needed. However, the seed was stolen by minions of the Evil Ones before it could be planted. They could not destroy it, but they were able to divide the seed into three pieces. They hid each of the seed parts in time-bubbles which they filled with dark things to guard against any rescue of the parts. These time-bubbles exist outside of time. They actually exist in all time at the same time. For those with the knowledge and Power, they are accessible from all times. We are in one of those time-bubbles now. The two spheres I have in my pack each contain a seed part. I seek the third seed part. I seek the blue sphere so that I may return to my home and time. When I am home, the seed parts can be reunited. If the seed is planted soon enough before the gate fails, then the new guardian will grow and protect the gate, and our people will be safe once more.”

Richard wasn’t sure what to make of the elf’s story. He didn’t think she was lying. He was sure she believed what she said, but that didn’t make it true. He did think there were some flaws in it.

“How does all this affect me?” Richard asked her.

“The armies of the Evil Ones will not stop at my village or even my galaxy, Rick. They will also overwhelm our sister galaxies in the adjoining planes. That includes yours.”

Rick opened his mouth to interrupt, but Shandria gave him his answer before he could get his question out.

“I know you are from one of the sister galaxies, Rick, because you are here in this time-bubble. It is accessible from any time, but only from an adjoining plane, and only from a world in a galaxy occupying the same point in space as mine.”

“Assuming that’s true,” Richard said in an attempt to find a reason he was not involved, “are you implying that we may not be from the same period in time?”

“In all likelihood, Rick, we are from different points in time” she answered. “For all I know, we are from times a million years apart. Either one of us may have been turned to dust before the other was ever born.”

“Then the battle may already be over,” Richard said hoping he had scored a point. “Perhaps the gate has already been strengthened, or it has failed. In either case, it may not involve me after all.”

Uh, bad logic, Rick
, came a thought from Nickelo.
The fact that we’re here means the world we know has not been overcome. But, that does not mean it will not happen if we do not help this elf.

You want us to help her now, Nick?
Richard thought back.
A few days ago you advised me to kill her. Are you saying you really believe all this time-bubble mumbo-jumbo?

“Perhaps you are right, Rick,” agreed Shandria. “Maybe we have already failed our quest and both our worlds are doomed. But does that mean we should not try?”

She’s slick, Rick
, came Nickelo’s thought.
Did you notice how it’s suddenly our quest?

I did catch it, Nick
, Richard said.
What do you think? Are we involved? Do you buy that crap about gates and seeds? According to her, the fate of multiple galaxies depends on her quest. I’d say that’s a little much to put on one little girl’s shoulders, even if she is an elf.

We’re here, Rick
, answered Nickelo,
so I’d say we’re already involved. And, I’d say it’s not just on her shoulders. I think she’s been sent a helper
, Nickelo said with a laugh,
and he’s right in front of me.

Really?
Richard said.
Well, if I’m involved, so are you, so maybe you shouldn’t be laughing quite so hard.

“You’re talking to your friend, aren’t you?” said Shandria. “To Master Nick?”

“How’d you know?” Richard said curiously.

“Your face got a kind of vacant stare,” said the elf. “I’ve noticed the expression before on you, but I passed it off as a trait of someone who gets confused easily. No offense intended.”

Woo hoo!
said Nickelo in a fit of laughter.
She’s got you pegged for sure.

“You are correct, Shandria,” Richard admitted. “I was talking to Nick. He is my battle computer, and we talk about thinks before we make major decisions.”

“Have you made a decision, Rick?”

“We have, Shandria. Nick and I have decided to help you in your quest. The three of us will either leave these tunnels together alive with the spheres, or we will not leave at all.”

_____________________

Once the decision was made to help the elf, Richard wasted no more time on subterfuge. He quickly told her the location of the blue sphere. While she seemed glad to know the location, he was surprised when she did not demand to see it immediately. He’d thought she would want to tuck it safely away in her leather bag. But as Shandria explained it, she was concerned the shield around the room might be compromised if the sphere was removed from its resting spot. When Nickelo agreed with her logic, Richard submitted to their will. As a result, the sphere remained tucked safely away in the alcove.

The elf was in a talking mood. Apparently, she had remained quiet so long that she relished conversation. She told Richard about her life as a priestess in a small, country village. In return, Richard told her about his life, or lack thereof, in the Academy. She was as confused and impressed with his stories of technology as he was of her tales of magic and creatures he had assumed only existed in fairy tales.

Richard was mildly surprised when Nickelo joined in the conversation. Nickelo used the battle helmet’s speakers for the elf’s benefit. Nickelo and the elf seemed to hit it off in spite of their obvious differences. Richard didn’t mind his battle computer hogging most of their side of the conversation. He’d never really talked much until he’d gained his friends at the Academy. He enjoyed just listening to the voices of both the elf and his battle computer. He listened for quite some time until Shandria and Nickelo began discussing their theories about time-bubbles, planes, dimensions and galaxies.

Richard quickly became bored, so he busied himself making supper. When he asked Shandria if she was hungry, she responded she was famished. Since she could now move her hands and arms enough to take care for her basic needs, Richard decided to go all out on making a nice meal. While the elf and his battle computer chattered away in the corner, Richard pulled a small, folding table out of his pack along with a set of dishes and eating utensils. The pack was an amazing piece of equipment, and Richard was glad for it. Although the pack was small, its flap opening could stretch wide enough to accommodate whatever he summoned. He pushed the limits of his dimensional pack by imagining a variety of food items. Richard found he could get just about anything he desired in the way of food products that could be stored long term, but he was unable to get any fresh products such as meats, fruits, or even fresh dairy products. But, any preserved items such as canned meats and vegetables were no problem, especially if they were of an Earth variety from the twentieth or twenty-first centuries.

Since Richard’s Power reserve had been fully replenished, he ignored Chief Instructor Winslow’s advice to conserve Power. Consequently, he summoned more food than the two of them could possibly eat. Using two camp stoves, Richard prepared a delicious stew along with a hot apple tart. He took a risk and imagined a quart of ice cream. A second later, he was pulling a box of vanilla ice cream out of the dimensional pack accompanied by a bag of dry ice to keep it cold. Using canned milk, Richard made hot chocolate. He was even able to get marshmallows. Hot chocolate with marshmallows had been one of the few treats he’d enjoyed at the orphanage. Long before he finished cooking, the aroma of the stew and hot chocolate filled the air in the room. After setting the food on the table, Richard turned to the elf and found she had halted her conversation with Nickelo. Her attention was fully on the food-laden table.

Well
, said Nickelo.
I guess she thinks more of your cooking than she does a titillating conversation with me.

Richard gave a silent laugh and said,
I suspect if all I’d had to eat for the last week was nutrients out of a bag and warm broths and porridge, I wouldn’t feel like talking either.

“Hungry?” Richard said out loud.

“Starved,” said Shandria. “If I could walk, I’d already be at the table.”

Richard helped her to the table. She could actually move her legs some now, but they were not yet strong enough to bear her weight. Richard had summoned a chair with arms for her. He propped her in place with a couple of pillows. The elf was able to sit comfortably without fear of falling. Once he’d taken his seat on a stool at the opposite side of the table, Shandria bowed her head. Richard waited patiently while the elf said a silent prayer to whatever deity she worshiped. He didn’t ask, and she didn’t volunteer. Richard rarely prayed. He wasn’t against praying, he just didn’t do it very often. Normally, he only said a desperate prayer when he was in trouble, but even then he didn’t go overboard. He supposed it was because the sisters at the orphanage had stressed prayer so much that he just naturally rebelled against it. Still, he always tried to be respectful of the rituals of others. And, he did have solid beliefs of his own.

They were both mostly silent during the meal. The elf ate heartily, and in spite of his suggestions to limit her servings, she ate like a woman starved. Shandria absolutely loved the hot chocolate, and she became downright ecstatic over the apple tart and ice cream. After their meal was done, Richard cleared the table. It was an easy task since it only consisted of tossing everything back in the pack. Once the flap was closed, the inside of the pack was instantaneously cleaned. When all was done, Richard and Shandria sat silently at the table for several minutes. They were both contentedly lost in their own thoughts. Even Nickelo was quiet for a change.

Eventually, Shandria said, “I’ve been thinking, Rick. By tomorrow morning, enough of the ghoul’s poison should be out of my system for me to relearn my spells. We could begin preparations for our departure after that. Unfortunately, we will probably have a fight on our hands the moment the blue sphere goes in my leather bag. It may well be a different battle than we fought previously, Rick. I’ll admit, I’m concerned about you.”

“Me?” Richard said a little affronted. “I think I did all right the last time. I wasn’t the one paralyzed, you know?”

For a moment the elf reminded him of one of the sisters preparing to stem off the protests of one of the more stubborn children. She seemed determined to be patient, but Richard sensed an irritation in her. Still, he had a feeling she was genuinely concerned for his wellbeing.

“That was out of line,” Richard apologized. “Still, why the concern?”

“The guardians of this place were caught by surprise the last time,” said Shandria. “You have an excellent stealth shield. I don’t think they even knew you were around. I certainly didn’t. I also have a good stealth shield, but my Power reserve was low when we met. I was unable to adequately shield both myself and the two spheres. I believe that is the reason you sensed my presence before I sensed yours.”

“Actually, I didn’t have all that much warning you was there,” Richard said. “I got lucky. But, you said you were low on Power. Is that why you nearly drained your jewelry and staff during the fight with the demon?”

“Yes,” she said. “You detected that?”

“I sensed it,” Richard said. “So did Nick.”

“Well, if you can detect Power flows, Rick, then you must know that almost all of my Power went into maintaining my defensive shield. The demon would have destroyed us both if my shield had failed.”

Ignoring his own ego, Richard nodded his head in agreement with her assessment.

“Rick, I do not wish to belittle your part in the battle, but I noticed you didn’t put up your own defensive shield. You remained hidden behind mine.”

Richard was momentarily too embarrassed to admit he had to be protected by a girl, but he shoved his outdated, masculine ideas about gender roles back into the depths of his self-consciousness where they belonged. The elf, this priestess, was better than him in many ways. He’d be a fool not to admit it.

“I’m still a cadet,” Richard said. “In other words, I’m still a student. I haven’t been trained in defensive shields yet. I could have thrown up something and called it a defensive shield, but it would have been a waste of energy in that battle. I figured I could help most by keeping the riffraff off of you.”

“You did wisely, Rick. I would have dropped my shield if that hell hound had found my throat. When I saw you move to intercept it, I somehow knew I could trust you to protect me. I’m not sure why, but I did.”

That mollified Richard’s bruised ego a little.

“I suppose we could attempt our escape from this place in a couple of days, Rick. However, I would like to propose an alternate plan. I too am skilled at monitoring Power flows, the same as you. I am also well versed in defensive shields. Would you be affronted if I offered to train you in their use? It might take a month or more, but the time spent might mean the difference between the success and failure of our quest.”

Richard was shocked the elf would delay the completion of her mission for a month. She had the object of her quest in her grasp.
Why would she wait?
he wondered. He was confused. Sometimes he felt like he was in a continuous state of confusion.

“Shandria, I wouldn’t be affronted. But, wouldn’t it be prudent to get out of this place as fast as we can. You have the third part of the seed. For all you know, the gate may be failing at this very moment. Surely time is of utmost importance.”

The elf smiled and gave a good-natured laugh.

Nickelo also laughed aloud via the battle computer’s speakers. “Rick, you really need to pay more attention to what people say. You can discover a lot of things if you listen more and put the tidbits of information you hear together.”

Richard ignored his battle computer. At this moment, the elf seemed the kinder of the two.

“Okay, Shandria,” Richard said, “I’ve obviously said something wrong again. What’s so funny?”

“It’s not an unreasonable mistake, Rick,” Sandria said with a smile. “You admitted you had no knowledge of time-bubbles. The three time-bubbles created to hide the seed parts are all connected together. They are each separate and apart, but at the same time, they are one and the same place. The time that you and I spend inside this time-bubble does not exist. It is outside the normal flow of time. Master Nick told me you had been here a little over a week. I have spent over a year in each of the other two time-bubbles, and I have been in this one for almost six months. Yet when I exit the time-bubble, I will appear back at my village at the same moment I departed. No time will have passed.”

Richard had trouble digesting the elf’s information. He was no dummy, but he had never been a fast thinker. He normally needed to absorb and mull over information before he could fully grasp it.

Never mind, Rick
, came Nickelo’s thought.
I’ll explain it to you later.

“Shandria, are you saying we could spend a hundred years here, and then we could go back to our own time and nothing will have changed?”

“Actually, Rick,” she said. “I could spend a hundred years here, but you could not. Time moves on for us inside the time-bubble. We will age while we are here. You are a human. You would be dead in a hundred years. Although I am an elf, I would still be a hundred years older.”

“I guess I understand,” Richard said. But he wasn’t ready to give up his argument to leave immediately. “But if we stay another month, won’t that give the demon and his servants that much more time to find us? We’ve been lucky so far, but who knows how long that will last?”

“Shandria and I,” said Nickelo over the battle helmet’s speakers, “have discussed the room’s stealth shield at length. From the data collected by both your active scans and my electronic scans, we believe the shield is more than adequate to hide us for a considerable amount of time.”

“I agree with Master Nick,” said Shandria. “I only found the other two seed parts by the use of a spell created especially for that purpose. Even then, it took me over two years to find the other spheres. Master Nick explained to me where this room is located. I’ve been down this same tunnel twice during the last six months without sensing anything. I was headed to these lower tunnels for a third pass when you encountered me.”

Richard was impressed. He assumed the elf must have one heck of a stealth shield when she was at full Power to hide for months from the creatures in the tunnels.

“Okay,” Richard said. “I’ll admit, we almost passed by it as well. But, surely someone knows where this secret room is. I mean, someone had to build it and hide the sphere here. Right?”

“You are correct, Rick,” said Shandria. “But, I believe the creation of this secret room and of this time-bubble is well beyond the abilities of even a powerful demon like Efrestra. No, I believe the skills of a master demon, possibly even a demon lord, were needed to build this place. All I have learned suggests that demons are not trusting of each other. In all likelihood, the demon Efrestra and his servants were only given the responsibility to guard this place. I suspect they were not told its secrets. As long as the original builder does not return, I believe we’re safe.”

Richard was unconvinced, but he could not argue against the elf’s logic. His knowledge of demons and magical creatures was a little on the thin side.

*       *       *

The next morning, Shandria awoke refreshed. She was able to move about by herself, although she was still weak. Richard summoned a portable bathtub and filled it with hot water and bubble bath. After he set up a privacy screen, Shandria spent over an hour getting rid of the accumulated filth of the past week. Finally, she stepped out from behind the privacy screen. She had put on her robe and jewelry. Richard had thought she was beautiful before. He thought she was even more stunning now.