The Sorcerer's Return (The Sorcerer's Path) (9 page)

“Stop right there,” Wolf called out from the shadows of the nearby trees.

“Wolf, it’s Azerick!” Ellyssa shouted into the trees.

“Ghost says he doesn’t smell like Azerick.”

“Sandy said the same thing.”

“I’m starting to get a little offended by everyone commenting on my smell,” Azerick said.

“I thought you were locked up or killed by those wizards,” Wolf said suspiciously.

“I was, but Azerick came and busted me out,” Ellyssa explained.

“Sounds like something stupid Azerick would do.” Wolf and Ghost stepped warily from the trees. Wolf pointed his bow down but kept the arrow nocked. Ghost walked in a crouch, ready to leap, his ears flattened against his head. “Sandy saw him?”

“Yes. She flew south a few weeks ago to help us with the
Inquisitors who wanted to take back Azerick’s book.”

Wolf tallied the time in his head. Sandy had disappeared for a few days around the time Ellyssa mentioned. He did not know much about magic, but elves believed death was not an end to one’s existence, but
merely a transition to another life. If so, he supposed it was possible to transition back, especially since they were talking about Azerick.

“Azerick?”

“Yes, Wolf.”

“What was the first thing you gave me?”

Azerick smiled. “A bath, because you stunk too bad to eat next to. Then I fed you and Ghost. You might say I gave you a blanket, even though I’d say you stole it.”

“I guess it is you.” Wolf broke out in a devilish grin. “Are you going to throw out those Academy idiots?”

“Absolutely,” Azerick answered, matching Wolf’s eager expression.

“Oh, man, I gotta see this!” Wolf looked at Raijaun as if noticing him for the first time. “Who’s the kid?”

“That’s Raijaun, Azerick’s son,” Ellyssa supplied.

Wolf peered into the deep hood, studied Raijaun’s face, and looked questioningly at Azerick. “And his mother is…?”

“Gone,” Azerick answered shortly.

“Okay, well, nice to meet you, Raij. I’m Wolf and this is Ghost.”

“Hello,” Raijaun replied shyly. He reached out slowly toward Ghost when he came near, but the wolf put his ears back and slinked away.

“Don’t mind him. He lacks my
excellent social graces.”

“Speaking of your excellent social graces, how have you been getting on with the new Headmaster and his teachers?” Ellyssa asked.

“I fed a wolverine a bunch of pickled cabbage and locked him in Harvey’s office the other day. Last week I rubbed goblin wart nectar all over their robes while they hung out to dry. They never did figure out why the flies wouldn’t leave them alone. I once rubbed poison ivy on the inside of their robes while they hung on the drying line.”

“You would think they would post a guard after the first time,” Ellyssa said.

“They did.”

“Who?”

“James.”

Ellyssa laughed. “That’s like hiring a thief to guard your gold!”

Azerick searched his memory and recalled the boy’s face. Young man by now, he corrected himself. He was the lad who gave Ellyssa so much grief when it came to coming and going through the gates. He had made a bet with another young guardsman that Azerick would cheat before saying the passphrase “steel is real but magic is tragic” to be let through the gate.

Someone must have recognized him as they made their way toward the school. There was a significant amount of activity a
top the wall as they approached; far more than they would show for a typical visitor, even a stranger. Azerick was near enough now he could hear his name being spoken amongst the press of people on the walls.

The main gates swung wide and
a mass of people pushed through. Miranda held her hands clenched to her chest, scarcely believing what she saw as their eyes locked. Azerick finally looked down at Daebian and shuddered. He had hoped Daebian would look different from the boy he saw in the Valley of Lies, but it was the same face if a little older. Apparently not everything in the valley had been a lie.

Miranda started to step forward when a voice boomed, “Miranda, stay back!”

It felt as though a giant punched Azerick in the chest and then sat on him. Bands of magical energy wrapped around his body, pinning his arms in place and anchoring him to the ground.

“Allister, what are you doing?” Mira
nda cried out.

“That is not Azerick!” the archmage grunted out as he struggled to hold the demon in place. “Brother Thomas, help me!”

Brother Thomas said a quick prayer and saw what Allister saw. The Chosen of Solarian called upon his god for power and began a ritual of banishing. Azerick struggled to control his anger despite the rage demanding he crush these insects. He could feel Klaraxis fueling the fires of his anger and pride and refused to let the demon influence him. It was not until Brother Thomas was deep into his ritual banishing that Azerick felt true pain.

“Allister, stop!” Ellyssa shouted.

Azerick raised his head from the ground and looked at his old friend and mentor. “Allister, it is me. If I were truly the thing I appear to be, I would tear your restraints apart and destroy you and everyone else here.”

“If you are truly Azerick, how did you return here, and why in this form?”
he demanded.

“How I got here is a long story. As to my body, do you remember
the little problem I had with the demon? Our roles have undergone a slight paradigm shift.”

Allister looked to Brother Thomas, still unconvinced and very much afraid. The Chosen shifted into a slight trance and studied the creature Allister struggled to keep pinned to the ground and only
succeeding because it did not appear to be resisting much.

“Azerick’s soul does exist within the demon’s body,” he confirmed.

“Can you tell which is dominant?”

“It appears Azerick is at the core, but there is no way I can say with certainty. We did discuss this very possibility.” Thomas thought a moment. “There is something I can try, but it carries a measure of risk.”

“What is it?”

“I can bring the demon forth and question it directly. It cannot lie to me.”

“Thomas, no!” Azerick exclaimed. “He must be suppressed. If he takes control everything is lost!”

“The risk is not great. I will bring him forward just enough to allow him to speak with his own voice. It is the only way I can be certain he is not using your spirit to shield himself from my power. Please do not resist.
”

Brother Thomas recited a complex incantation and Azerick could feel Klaraxis slipping through his grasp. He felt a moment of panic and fought to maintain control. At Thomas’s urging, Azerick relaxed once more as he felt the Chosen’s grip on Klaraxis next to his own.

“Tell me your name, Demon,” Thomas commanded.

“To the abyss with you, priest!” Azerick shouted with Klaraxis’s deep, gravelly voice. “I will enjoy devouring your soul when I am free of this wretched prison!”

“Tell me your name, demon!” Thomas shouted again and held forth his brightly glowing sun symbol.

Klaraxis screamed in pain and rage. “You know me as Klaraxis, master of the fifth circle, but you will never get my soulname!”

Brother Thomas knew better than to try. Extracting a demon’s soulname was a monumental task and a battle he was not prepared to wage.

“Is the sorcerer, Azerick Giles, in control of you and this form?” Klaraxis snarled and curled his lip in disgust. “Is the sorcerer, Azerick Giles, in control of you and this form?” Thomas demanded and shoved his holy symbol at the demon.

“Yes, but I swear his time is limited, and when I break free I will destroy him and everything he values! I will tear his soul to shreds and consume it bit by bit, savoring every piece for a thousand years until he is no more!”

Brother Thomas stared into Azerick’s eyes and commanded, “Back to your cage, demon.”

Azerick felt Klaraxis being shoved back into his mental and spiritual prison. He breathed a sigh of relief when the demon lord was firmly under his control once more.

“Let him up, Allister. It is Azerick,” Thomas said.

Allister looked to Brother Thomas who nodded. Azerick felt the invisible bands slacken and then vanish. Azerick stood and dusted himself off. He spared Raijaun a smile to tell him everything was all right as he hid behind Ellyssa, clinging to her traveling cloak.

“You still pack a punch for an old man,” Azerick said glibly.

“I think we both know you took a fall, and I thank the gods for it.”

“Azerick?” Miranda called out hesitantly.

Azerick smiled and extended his hand. Miranda rushed forward and into his arms, holding him as tightly as she could as if he might turn into smoke and disappear at any moment.

“Oh, my love, I knew you would return to me! I knew not even death would keep you from me!” she sobbed into his chest.

Azerick did not respond, could not respond, as he held her just as tightly. In his heart, he knew he did not return for her, but to save the world. He felt like a fraud and a liar. Love was an illusion created by selfish want, guilt, and a sense of duty. Images of his journey through the Valley of Lies flashed before his eyes as Krade’s taunting laughter echoed through his mind.

Deep within Azerick’s subconscious, Klaraxis rejoiced. The demon relished in his small victory, landing the first of many strikes yet to come against the sorcerer. His doubts, fears, and guilt made it easy for Klaraxis to slip in and tweak those sensitive emotions ever so slightly
and heighten their reality. Despite the sorcerer’s incredible will and strength, he was still human with all their emotional inherent weaknesses. Klaraxis gave up on trying to win the battle for his body and focused on the war. His body was his kingdom, and he would win it back inch by inch.

Miranda forced herself to turn away and beckoned for Daebian to come to them. “Azerick, this is our son, Daebian.”

Daebian took a few steps forward. “Hello, Father.”

Azerick felt the weight of Daebian’s dark, almost black eyes upon him, studying him, judging him down to his soul. He took in the slight smile on the boy’s face, a smile
hinting at knowledge and secrets untold. Could Daebian have truly experienced what Azerick had done in the Valley of Lies? Was part of him really there? No, it was all a construct of Krade and the valley. He was just a boy, unsure of this sudden change in his life.

“Hello, Daebian. I am very glad to meet you.” Azerick turned to Ellyssa and Raijaun. “Miranda, this is also my son, Raijaun.”

With some coaxing from Azerick, Raijaun peaked around Ellyssa’s waist and gave Miranda a shy wave. Miranda touched her lips and gasped, but she quickly composed herself. She walked over, smiled a greeting to Ellyssa, and knelt.

“Hello, Raijaun, my name is Miranda. It is nice to meet you,” she said and extended her hand palm up.

Raijaun slowly reached out as if trying to stroke a butterfly’s wings and touched the tips of his fingers to hers. “H-hello.”

Miranda stood and took him by the hand. “Welcome to your new home.”

“We should get inside,” Azerick said. “There is much to discuss and even more to do. Our greatest opponent right now is time.”

Azerick led the way back through the gates as Rusty and Allister flanked him on b
oth sides and everyone else filed in behind them. Azerick passed through the gates amongst a chorus of cheers and welcoming.

“Azerick, there have been some changes,” Rusty began explaining as they entered the inner courtyard.

Azerick nodded. “I know. Ellyssa filled me in.”

Azerick had barely made it through the gates when he saw a man wearing the robes of a headmaster
rapidly approaching and trailing nearly a dozen wizards whom he did not recognize. A few he thought he may have seen during his brief stay at The Academy, but none were his regular instructors.

“Lord Giles, welcome back,” Headmaster Harvey said with an obviously forced smile. “I see not even death is able to thwart your reputation. My name is Headmaster Robert Harvey.”

Azerick stared stone-faced at the man. “Get out.”

Harvey’s smile fell as if slapped from his face. “I am afraid that is not possible. There have been some changes since you…left, and I am now Headmaster of the school.” Harvey extended a writ at arm’s length. “As you can see, Duchess
Mellina and your wife have both signed this accord under the jurisdiction of The Academy placing me in charge. Of course, the tower and grounds are still technically your property for use as a personal dwelling, but any instruction in magic is entirely under my control.”

“Miranda, did the Duchess revoke any property, titles, or rights upon my death?” Azerick asked.

“No, she did not.”

Azerick looked back at Harvey who still held the piece of paper in front of him like a shield. “Since I am not dead and retain all rights of title and property, any agreement made regarding the disposition of this school or its students is invalid.”

Harvey thrust the paper at Azerick again. “But this writ…”