The High-Wizard's Hunt: Osric's Wand: Book Two (21 page)

“Well,” Kenneth forced a weak smile, “did you bring me some dinner?”

“I will buy you whatever you want, just as soon as we get out of here.” Osric held Kenneth’s arm and spoke softly again, “Eo ire itum.”

They stood in front of the table as the restraints clamored against the stone wall, and Osric helped Kenneth to the chair. The pain from his beating was obvious as he cradled his ribs. Osric grabbed a dusty bowl from the shelves behind the table, and held it under the trickle of water to get something for Kenneth to drink.

“This won’t taste very good, but you need to drink,” Osric said after a small amount had been collected.

“Okay, but next time, ask them for some mead to take the edge off, please.”

Osric forced a weak smile and set the bowl down after taking a drink. He watched as Kenneth suffered with each cough while struggling to swallow the water. Osric had a moment of regret that his father had died before his new talent to absorb abilities had developed; he wanted to examine Kenneth for injuries but couldn’t without his father’s gift.

“Let me check your ribs.” Osric motioned for Kenneth to lift his arms.

“They are broken. No need to check them,” Kenneth replied.

“Trust me, lift up your arms.” Osric’s tone, though quiet, was obviously not a request. Kenneth raised his arms and Osric placed his hands over the ribs. He closed his eyes and spoke as silently as he could, “Emendandum.” A warming sensation flowed over his hands, and through them.

“What was that?”

Osric opened his eyes to see amusement on Kenneth’s face. He had spent a lot of time reading the mysterious book that Ero had entrusted to him, and it occurred to him that he had not shared the information he learned with Kenneth.

“It was one of the spoken spells I can remember from the book.” Osric took his hands off of Kenneth’s chest and shrugged. “So, how do you feel?”

“Well,” Kenneth stood slowly, running his hands over his shirt, “I think his effort to tenderize me worked.” He cleared his throat, testing the extent of the spell’s effectiveness. “I’m not quite ready to dance, but coughing won’t hurt nearly as bad as it did a moment ago.”

Osric packed up his sword, and all of his supplies that were left on the table. Everything, that is, except his wand. Curiosity got the better of him as he wondered why they would leave the supplies in the room with them, but he was grateful for their lack of planning as he pocketed the book.

“Great, then what do you say we get out of here so I can buy you that steak?” Osric helped Kenneth to his feet. “I could use a few glasses of mead myself, and I think I owe you a drink at The Rusty Wagon, anyway.”

“Well then, let’s get going. I need a softer bed than this place has to offer, but the scars should get me some much appreciated attention from Jane.”

Osric steadied Kenneth and supported him as they turned to the door. He pictured Stanton in his mind, and as he spoke the spell, the familiar sensations began. A sudden jerk, and the feeling of being dragged backward sent his mind racing with panic. A sharp, crushing pain coursed through his face and consciousness slipped away rapidly, leaving nothing but a cold, familiar blackness to end his pain.

Magical Musings

Bridgett closed the book she was holding and placed it on the table in front of her. She could remember Eublin reading those same tales to her when she first came to the Grove. She had always thought of them as myths, children’s stories, and Eublin had seemed like an eccentric, old uncle who believed in the impossible. Having seen what she had over the past few weeks with Osric, though, she was beginning to reassess what Eublin’s tales might mean for the uses of magic. It had been years since she had read Eublin’s research, as he called it, and she was struggling to focus on it. As much as she enjoyed the memories the stories provoked, she just couldn’t keep her mind on the words in the book. She was torn between being furious with Osric for kissing her and wishing she hadn’t reprimanded him for it. She was confused and frustrated by the rapid changes her life had undergone.

Her responsibilities were to the Grove of Unicorns. She was supposed to insure that the secrets of the Grove were not exposed. She was supposed to use her abilities to assist the unicorns in maintaining balance. Up until she met Osric, she thought that maintaining balance meant tending to the inhabitants of the Grove. Not only were there unicorns, Maidens, and Eublin living within the protection of the Grove of Unicorns, there were also a seemingly endless variety of plants and animals that flourished in the perpetual summer within the mysterious spell. While they would probably go right on thriving without her, Bridgett had always felt that it was her responsibility to watch over them.

She had spent fifteen peaceful, pleasant years among the unicorns. Although she remembered her early childhood and her years in training with the Healers of Araseth fondly, she felt as though she had spent nearly her entire life devoted to the Grove and the unicorns. Most of her time had been spent collecting herbs, tending to the gardens, and studying with Eublin. She had often traveled outside the Grove with the unicorns on brief trips, healing the sick or blessing the births of newborns around Archana, but she had never been gone for more than a few days until she climbed up onto that dragon with Osric. He had changed her entire world, truly he had changed her, and she wasn’t sure if she should curse him or thank him for it.

Osric was an enigma. He had more power than any wizard born on Archana in the history she was aware of. He had somehow acquired multiple innate abilities, which Bridgett had never considered possible. Each inhabitant of Archana was born with one ability-one measure of magic-so how could Osric possibly have so many? Yet, as powerful as he had become, Osric was often careless, hasty, and uncertain of his own abilities. He was too inexperienced to have such responsibility thrust upon his shoulders, but he always managed to find a way out of trouble. From the first day she had met him, she knew the unicorns were interested in him. She hadn’t had the faintest idea then of why that may be. Now, it seemed obvious that they must have known that Osric’s fate would be tied to the future of Archana. She wished she could discern how his fate was tied to her own.

She had always expected that her life would be quiet and peaceful, a safe existence within the protection of the Grove. She had never expected that she would someday be caught up in a struggle for peace or entwined in the fate of all of Archana. She had spent her entire life distanced from others, yet all she could think about was getting closer to Osric.

Bridgett wished she could speak with the unicorns. For the first time in her life, her Empath ability seemed completely inadequate for her to do her job. She could feel a sense of something great from the unicorns, as if the world were on a tipping point. It was as though they were watching these events with excitement and awe. Change was in the thoughts of every unicorn mind she touched, and they were unsure for the first time in her memory.

Bridgett cradled her head in her hands and took a deep breath. Pining over Osric would do her no good, and it may keep her from finding something important that could help him. She was about to pick the book back up and resign herself to getting through it without thinking about Osric when she heard voices outside the room. She glanced out into the hall just in time to see Eublin and Gus disappear into the main library. Glad for the distraction, she grabbed the book and followed them.

Gus and Eublin were already seated and engrossed in their discussion about the explosion at the palace in Stanton. Eublin smiled at her as she entered and indicated with a nod that she should take the chair next to him.

“If the unicorn would just speak, it would be a lot easier for us to determine what in Archana is going on! Isn’t there anyone here who can talk to them?” Gus ranted.

“Alas, they do not speak; not to any of us anyway,” Eublin spoke knowingly at his outburst and nodded in Bridgett’s direction. “I am sure they do communicate, but for whatever reason, they do not do so with those of us who use words.” He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms with a smile. Gus looked at Bridgett expectantly. She smiled at the irony of how her recent thoughts paralleled that same concept.

“How about it, my lady? Have you anything to add to our last discussion about these majestic creatures?” Gus’ ears were twitching slightly with anticipation. “Are you ready to tell me how the unicorn communicate with you now that you know I can be trusted?”

“Oh, Gus. There is nothing more for me to tell you. The unicorns do not speak to me. They can only express what they want from me through their emotions. I was just thinking that I wish there was something I could do to communicate with them more clearly.”

“Strands! There has to be a way to get some information out of them.” Bridgett smiled suddenly as realization struck.

“Actually, I believe there is a way,” she said, provoking an excited expression on Gus’ small face. “Unfortunately, until they want us to know, it seems they will not allow it. Why do you think the unicorns will not let Osric approach them? His power is growing quickly, but I do not get the impression that they fear him for it. They are simply avoiding him. Perhaps the secret to learning from the unicorns lies in Osric’s new abilities.” Gus nearly fell off of her lap in his excitement.

“That’s it! You are brilliant, my dear! So how can we convince the unicorns to let Osric get close to them?” Gus mumbled the last bit to himself. “Hey, why don’t we send Kenneth over to take a look at them? He somehow has the same gifts growing within him.”

“The unicorns do not demand he stay away as well?” Eublin leaned forward anxiously with an arched eyebrow.

“No, they didn’t seem to care one way or another what he did.” Gus threw his paws in the air as he spoke. “It does not make sense to me why they would refuse Osric, but not Kenneth.”

“Well, I suppose that would be worth a try, but Kenneth is no longer here. We can consider that more when they return. I see you have one of my books with you, dear,” Eublin said. Bridgett nodded, shifting in her seat to reposition the large book in her lap.

“I was reading some of the stories you shared with me when I first arrived. There is one in this book that seems to refer to spoken spells. Do you know anything more about it?”

“Oh, those are not just stories, my dear. Those books hold the collection of all of my research on the history and uses of magic. For my long life, the evidence of spoken spells is frustratingly sparse, but I seem to recall hearing a little about them.” Eublin sat a bit straighter in his chair as he continued. “There was an ursidae who discovered the method while in a competition with the first Wand-Maker. Obviously, the Wand-Maker won. I found it surprisingly difficult to learn much more than that about the technique. It seems the ability died out with the ursidae and no one remembers how it worked.” Gus and Bridgett exchanged a knowing look.

“I always thought they were just stories, but I am beginning to believe there is more to it than that. Osric recovered an old book from the eagles that contained the secret to spoken spells. We used some of them to infiltrate the volcano and free the dragons from their imprisonment.” Bridgett sensed the growing excitement and fascination within Eublin as she spoke.

“You mean to say that spoken spells have been reintroduced to the world of Archana? Why, this opens up so many new possibilities. I can barely contain my excitement! Would it be possible for me to take a peek at that book?” Eublin was bouncing in his seat with anticipation.

“Sure you could, but it wouldn’t do you any good,” Gus chimed in. “The book is blank.”

“I don’t understand. How can the book be blank if Osric was able to use it to wield spoken spells?”

“Somehow, Osric has acquired the ability necessary to see the spells in the book. It seems that Kenneth has gained the ability as well. As far as we know, no one else on Archana is able to see the writing it contains,” Bridgett responded, “and we are hesitant to allow anyone else to know of the ability. For now, we would like to keep the advantage of using spoken spells within the group of individuals we know that we can trust.”

“Of course, of course. The implications of that power in the wrong hands is fearful. I will keep your secret, my dear, but I hope that someday Osric will entrust me with the knowledge of such a fascinating method of magic,” Eublin said wistfully.

“We can ask him more about what he has learned from it when he returns. Although, I am wondering if there are other methods of wielding magic that we are unaware of. Perhaps there is something else you can tell us that would be helpful,” Bridgett suggested.

“There are several avenues of magic that have been explored throughout the ages, but none of them have been very successful.” Eublin rubbed a hand over his head and stared at the floor as he thought. Bridgett could see his mind racing as he traced the lines between the stone blocks on the floor with his eyes. Eublin cocked his head and looked at Bridgett with a wry smile. He hopped down off his chair, waving a finger in the air as he disappeared into the shelves that filled the room. “I will be right back,” he said as his footsteps were muffled by his surroundings.

Bridgett looked at Gus with a shrug, not knowing what Eublin was after, but sensing an almost amused sort of curiosity from him when he left to retrieve it.

Gus grew tired of waiting after a time and hopped down from Bridgett’s lap to pace the floor, while murmuring to himself in a disgruntled tone. Bridgett could feel his frustration and found it difficult, as usual, to keep herself from being drawn into the emotion of someone with such strong feelings. She found her anchor in her thoughts of Osric and the kiss. She did not want to dwell on her feelings for him, but it was easier to focus if she used her own emotions to override the feelings she was picking up from her companions. Her own frustration grew as the waiting continued, until finally the sound of naked footfalls on stone brought her back to the moment. She was relieved when Eublin made his way around the final bookshelf carrying an old, leather bound book in his hands.