Vegenrage: The Magic User (16 page)

Vegenrage swings his open hand, throwing magical slaps at Alisluxkana, knocking her head back and forth, breaking her concentration, and Alluradaloni falls to the ground. “Alisluxkana, you have one chance to save your life. Tell me where you keep all the magical items you have stolen, and I will spare you.”

Alisluxkana’s face changes. All the scars fade away, and the color in her face changes to a very attractive woman with beautiful long brown hair. Her eyes change to a nice shade of green and blue, and she starts to cry. “Please don’t hurt me anymore. I always wanted to be just a normal girl, but the magic took me over and controlled me, changing my appearance and distorting my mind. I am not that evil witch. I was under the direction of the magic.”

Vegenrage is not swayed by her pleading and knows she is still very dangerous. Alisluxkana is very powerful indeed, not a master of magic but at the height of witchcraft. She could have been one of the most powerful female magic users ever, but instead of training and crafting her abilities for good, she chose to summon the powers of darkness. Instead of learning to be a leader, she chose the quick and painful route of following darkness and becoming a servant of evil. She is very crafty and is stalling so she can summon demons.

“Enough. Where are the magical items?” Vegenrage squeezes his fist, tightening the grip on Alisluxkana so she can’t breathe. He releases his grip a little, and Alisluxkana looks at Alluradaloni, who stands up with her head down and raises her head to look at Vegenrage. She opens her eyes to reveal solid bloodred eyes with a small dot of black in the middle. She points her open palms to Vegenrage and chants a spell. This shoots what looks like a mass of lightning bolts at Vegenrage and is very cool looking. It looks like blue, white, and red lightning bolts flying at Vegenrage but is actually a static discharge that sends burning electrical currents into him. He is struck by the magic and thrown back against the wall violently, breaking his spell on Alisluxkana.

She grabs her broom and summons a Trykenkyle. The floor opens up, and black lava rises in a ball that forms into four legs, a hunched back, and an intimidating head. It looks like a three-foot-tall rhinoceros with a gray shell covering its body. Its head has no horn, and its teeth form a
V
on top and bottom, reaching back almost to its neck. Its teeth are very long and sharp, forming shears that cut and slice as they are brought together. It takes a few moments for this creature to materialize, and while it is, Alisluxkana wraps her arms around Alluradaloni, squeezing her chest into her stomach. “My baby, my baby.” She gives Alluradaloni a deep open-mouth kiss, pulling their lips apart slowly. Alisluxkana looks at Alluradaloni with a smile. “My baby is back.”

Alluradaloni opens her eyes to reveal that her natural light-brown eye color is back, and she smiles. Alisluxkana turns to Vegenrage, and her hideous witch appearance returns. Vegenrage has been shaking off the effects of the magic cast on him, which left him hot and briefly scatterbrained. He stands just in time as the Trykenkyle has formed and mounts a charge on him.

The Trykenkyle is a 100 percent flesh-eating machine. It is the great white shark of the land. It charges him right for his leg, ready to take a bite, but Vegenrage bends to his knee and forms a magical barrier, creating an invisible ramp that rises over his body, and the Trykenkyle runs right up it. He throws the beast with his magic into the wall on the other side of the cavern and smashes out one of the lights in the process. It crashes to the ground and stands to charge again. Vegenrage rises in the air, and a magical blue spear looking like a javelin appears in his right hand. He throws and spears the beast through its shoulder, but it keeps running and jumping at him even though he is high enough to avoid its attempts. He creates another spear and another until there are six spears penetrating deep into the Trykenkyle, blooding its armored skin. It is starting to slow and show signs of the damage being done to it, when Vegenrage ends its suffering with a magical Blade of Sharpness slicing the head from its body. When the head falls, the body of the beast turns back into black lava and seeps into the ground.

Vegenrage’s spears simply dissipate. He turns to the witch and lowers himself to the ground and walks toward her. Alluradaloni steps in front of Alisluxkana. “Stop. Don’t hurt my mother. You stay back.”

Vegenrage swipes his left hand toward the pool of water, and Alluradaloni is thrown into the pool of water once again. He then shoots a lightning rope at Alisluxkana, intended to burn a hole right through her stomach and pull her to him, but she uses her broom like a bat and swings at the magic, thwarting it off to the side. She raises her right hand, and a small fireball forms in her right hand, and she throws it at Vegenrage, who catches the baseball-sized fireball in his right hand. He holds the flaming ball in his hand and looks at it. It flames black, red, and blue flame, burning up through his fingers—so cool looking. Vegenrage winds up like a professional pitcher, and the fireball grows to bowling-ball size. He throws it very hard at Alisluxkana, who dodges just in time to avoid the much stronger fireball, which explodes into the wall behind her. Alisluxkana hops on her broom and flies for the opening, leading to the Mindsunk Bog. Vegenrage yells, “Cocoddlebrew,” and the broom flies into his right hand, leaving Alisluxkana falling back to the ground.

Alluradaloni gets out of the pool and raises her hands over her head, chanting a spell. She is so stunning with water dripping down her body and the next-to-nothing clothing she is wearing now completely see-through. Even Vegenrage pauses to gaze upon this beautiful sight, which quickly turns not so nice as a massively large sea serpent rises from the water behind her. It has a long menacing head followed by a twelve-foot-long narrow neck and then large front legs. It comes out of the water and walks by Alluradaloni as she sits folding her legs, facing Vegenrage, smiling. The serpent walks right above Alluradaloni, heading toward Vegenrage, and what an awesome sight this creature is. It has thick green scales covering its body with large webbed paws that have large claws on them. It has rows of sharp teeth and a huge belly, wide and sturdy. It walks at Vegenrage, snorting through its nostrils, and as he thinks about what to do next, Alisluxkana catches him with her telekinesis and throws him back against the wall very hard, knocking the wind out of him. She retrieves her broom and wastes no time flying for the exit. Vegenrage rolls over, gasping for air as the serpent lunges its head to eat him. Vegenrage points his hands, shooting searing flames that persuade the serpent to withdraw its attack, and it steps back. Vegenrage continues to throw flames as he regains his breath, keeping the serpent at bay. He finally can stand, and he walks toward the beast, forcing it back into the water, and it sinks into the depths of the pool. Alluradaloni has not moved; she is still sitting with her legs crossed in front of her. Vegenrage looks around, knowing the witch will not go far and is planning some sort of surprise attack on him.

Alluradaloni stands. “She is gone now, and her spell is fading. Please hold me, release me from this magic that she has over me.” The look of overwhelming sadness consumes Alluradaloni’s face, and tears roll down her cheeks.

“No problem,” he says, but he does not hold her. He points his palms at her, engulfing her with magic. “We will do this the old-fashioned way,” and he starts to chant. “Okeem Glos Blingbomdew Ryexing Ryexing Ryexing. Kobow Akleem release.”

Alluradaloni’s head stretches back, and her mouth opens wide. Her arms and shoulders sway back as her back arches forward and blue and green lights fly from her body into Vegenrage’s hands. This goes on for about fifteen seconds, and then all the lights vanish, and Alluradaloni is left looking around, confused and rubbing her face. She looks at Vegenrage and starts to cry. “Is it over? Please don’t let her take control of me again. The things she made me do, and I could not fight her. Somehow I did whatever she wanted, and she killed everyone but me. She did disgusting things to me.”

“Listen, she will be back soon. Do you know where she keeps all the items of the people she has killed?”

“She keeps some of them here in the walls. The rest I don’t know. This is where she has kept me a prisoner for I don’t even know how long, ever since I was a little girl. She keeps me here, but she lives somewhere else.”

Vegenrage closes his eyes and concentrates. Alluradaloni looks around as the walls start to tremble and earth starts to fall from the walls. Items start to pull out of the walls and float over to them. Alluradaloni looks on, surprised, as within a short while, Vegenrage has collected all the magical items from the walls and they lay in a circle around them. There are a lot of armors and swords and wands and staffs and all kinds of trinkets and really cool treasures, but not what he is looking for. Vegenrage looks at the treasure, disappointed, and Alluradaloni asks, “What’s wrong?”

“What I am looking for is not here.” Vegenrage looks at all the quite valuable treasure, rubbing his chin with his right hand, and looks at Alluradaloni. She is so attractive—all wet and showing a perfect body—and Vegenrage can’t help but be distracted. “Do you have some clothes around her to put on? I mean, you are very distracting.”

“Oh, yeah sure.” Alluradaloni walks around the pool to the back where the water flows down the rock wall and walks through the back of the waterfall and into her personal bedroom.

Vegenrage continues to rummage around through all the items at his feet and touches them, learning of the men and women they were stolen from. He can hold a magical item, retrieve its name, and see visions of glory and the persons they belonged to and the adventures and battles they were a part of. Vegenrage learns a lot, but there is nothing of importance to him here. He needs to find Alisluxkana and her lair to get the items he is looking for.

Alluradaloni returns from the room behind the waterfall, and it is so neat the way she walks through the water without getting wet. She walks over to Vegenrage, who is looking over the treasure, and he looks at her, shrugging his head. “Is that what you consider clothing?”

“This is the most concealing clothing I have.” She is wearing a white button-up shirt and white pants that fit her very comfortably, but they are nearly see-through and a very thin material. “I have no underwear and nothing other than sexy clothing. That’s the way Alisluxkana wanted it, and she controlled everything.” Alluradaloni starts to weep, suddenly overtaken with shame and covering her breasts with her arms.

“It’s OK. Do you know when she is coming here? I mean, if she were to fly down the entrance right now, would you know before she entered?”

“I used to, but now that her spell has been lifted, I don’t know.”

“Well, I have to find her.”

“You mean
we
have to find her and kill her. You know how many people she has murdered? A lot, and she stole their magic and items. She has killed men and women and gets stronger every time. She is very powerful.”

“Can you take me to her home?”

“I don’t know where it is. I have never been there.”

“She has never taken you there?”

“No, she brought me here before I can remember. At first, she would use my young age to get people to try and help me, and then she would kill them. Then as I got older, she would use me like a sex toy to attract people to me and kill them. She used me to distract people while she stole their life force, giving her eternal life.”

“Well, that is about to change. We have to figure out how to find where she lives, where she keeps all her stolen treasure, and put a stop to her and her wicked ways. I’ll be back. I must go find her.” He starts to fly out of Alluradaloni’s lair.

“Wait! Don’t leave me here. Wait!” Alluradaloni feels this great hurt spread inside her as Vegenrage starts to leave, and she starts to cry. “Wait, don’t leave me.”

Vegenrage settles back to the ground, and Alluradaloni runs up and hugs him, resting her head on his shoulder, and she feels safe and calms down.

“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Hey, relax, I’m not going to leave you here, but I bet Alisluxkana has left a trap near the entrance, and you will be safe here no matter what. She will not hurt you.”

“She won’t hurt me, but she will make me do horrible things!” Alluradaloni hugs Vegenrage tightly. “Don’t leave me. Please take me with you.”

“Alluradaloni.”

“Don’t call me that anymore. That is not my name.”

“OK! OK! I will get you out of here, and we will think of a new fresh name for you, one that is all you, OK?”

She motions her head up and down while it is held tight to Vegenrage’s chest, and she continues to hug him tightly. Vegenrage stands there with his arms hanging straight down and slowly wraps them around Alluradaloni, returning her hug, and lowers his cheek to the top of her head.

CHAPTER 13
Glaborster Dwarves to the Rescue

It is a long and painful night in Erkensharie. The sun rises, and the mourning has already begun for the elves. The Erkensharie elves have lost their beloved King Estine and his nephew Tenzon, who was thought of as the finest elven warrior in the land. Shandorn, the oldest and wisest of the elven mages, along with the king’s guard, all murdered by the hands of Cloakenstrike and for no reason other than theft. The Erkensharie elves are a strong race and are not crying and weeping, but they are very saddened and quiet on this morning. There are no bodies to bury, no belongings to adorn with, since all were incinerated by the wicked Cloakenstrike.

The elves all gather near the entrance in the great courtyard, beautifully dressed, carrying beautiful flowers and dropping brightly colored petals all along the ground as some of the elders speak of the loss on the previous night. The Erkensharie elves are as proud and strong a race as any, and although sad and stunned to what has happened, they are by no means in a panic. There is no disarray to their lives, and they take the events of the previous night step by step.

The king is gone; next to succeed him would have been Tenzon since the King had no offspring of his own. The next in line to lead the elves is Tenzon’s younger brother Ulegwahn. There is no dispute or debate; it is just known that Ulegwahn will be king and everyone accepts it, but that is not even talked about right now. Now everyone is quietly trying to move past what has happened, and this will take some time.

Logantrance is highly respected in the elven community and had very good ties with the now late king and, of course, the magical brotherhood within the Erkensharie elves. Logantrance, Tunull, and Whenshade have spent most of the morning talking among the elves and decide it is time to plan and discuss the future of elven magic. As the magical class start to head into the forest, the blaring of a horn is heard outside of the great wall, and the guards on top of the wall announce the advance of King Glimtron and a small band of Glaborster dwarves approaching. Ulegwahn accepts responsibility and orders the gate open. The large doors pull open, and King Glimtron rides up on his pony-sized steed to greet the new Erkensharie king, Ulegwahn. Glimtron dismounts and extends his hand to Ulegwahn.

“News travels fast, King Ulegwahn. I am truly saddened by your loss, and we are here to help in any way we can.” King Glimtron bows to the new elven king.

“No, King Glimtron, I bow to you.” And he bows to the dwarven king. “King Glimtron, you and your people have always been our strongest allies, and you have always been there for us in time of need, and now is the perfect example. I am greatly appreciative of your help in this terrible time.”

“Ulegwahn, we need to talk. Is there somewhere less crowded where we can discuss matters?”

“Yes, of course.”

As the two turn, they are approached by Logantrance, Tunull, and Whenshade.

“King Glimtron, your arrival is a most reassuring feeling.”

“Logantrance, it has been a long time since we have seen each other, old friend.”

The two shake hands happily. Glimtron turns and waves his entourage to come into the gate. The fifty or so dwarves dismount their smaller-than-average-sized horses and enter the gate, which closes behind them. This is a sight seen nowhere other than on the planet Fargloin, dwarves and elves happily greeting and exchanging old stories and memories together. They love to trade, and it is almost instinctive the way that each race pulls trinkets and necklaces and jewelry and whatever they have on their person and trade with the opposite race. It’s fun and interesting and a great way for the two races to pass the time in a happy, harmonious way.

As the tension is eased and happier feelings set in on the saddened elves, King Glimtron pulls Logantrance and Ulegwahn aside. “We have some things we should talk about.”

Logantrance and Ulegwahn at the same time nod their heads. “Agreed.”

Ulegwahn leads the way. “Come with me.” Ulegwahn is followed by King Glimtron, Logantrance, Tunull, Whenshade, and four of the most experienced dwarven Dagi. They head into the Erkensharie, to a large tree hollowed out to form a large room. This is awesome how this tree has been carved. A large hole has been carved right into one side of the tree, and it tunnels right through the other side of the tree. There is a large table in the center of the tree, which is actually the tree itself. Everything here is carved from the Erken tree. The table is the actual Erken tree, and the bench seats are as well. It is simply a hole carved through the tree with a large table and bench seats, and the grain and color of the wood are beautiful. The nine men sit down to discuss the events of the past evening.

“King Glimtron, thank you for helping us.”

“It is our pleasure, Ulegwahn, your people and ours have been allies since before I became king, and the Erkensharie elves have always been our friends. We are here to assist in any way we can. My people will fight alongside yours in order to return the Octagemerwell to its rightful place. Now what army attacked and killed King Estine?”

Logantrance enters the conversation. “Glimtron, it was no army, it was one man.”

“One man! No one man could enter Erkensharie, slay the king, and steal the Octagemerwell!”

“This man could and did. He is Cloakenstrike, master of magic and now master of all elven magic.”

The four Dagi look at each other and quietly talk. The elven mage Whenshade looks to the dwarven mage Blythgrin. “You know of Cloakenstrike?”

“Yes, we know of him. He is the eyes of the night, the shadow mover, and the stealer of life. He has made many attempts to steal the secrets of the Dagi. He has made many attacks on us, trying to steal the life force of any one of us in order to learn our secrets. Fortunately, we have been able to thwart his attempts so far. This is a very clever and dangerous man, and now with the Octagemerwell, his strength and wealth of magical knowledge is limitless.”

“Blythgrin, do you think Cloakenstrike will target you and the Dagi?” asks Logantrance.

“We have done all we can to hide our secrets and ways from him, but there is no way to know what he knows.”

“What can he need to know from the Dagi?”

Blythgrin looks to Glimtron, and Glimtron nods his head. Blythgrin looks to Trybill and Grenlew. The two Dagi lift up a midsized chest and put it on the table. The curious elves and Logantrance look at the chest, and Ulegwahn asks, “What is this?”

Glimtron looks to Blythgrin. “Open it.”

Blythgrin opens the chest, which has a thick pillow lining throughout, and in the center is a bowling-ball-sized solid sapphire. It is shaped like a golf ball, and when lifted out of the chest by Blythgrin, the light sparkles beautifully within it. All the dimples in this natural wonder reflect light within the sapphire, and it commands attention. It is a little smaller than a bowling ball but easily weighs ten pounds. It is dark blue in the middle, and the shimmering light does not penetrate here but bounces and gleams through the outer part of the jewel, where the blue color lightens and lightens to the outside, which is beautiful crystal blue.

Logantrance, Whenshade, Tunull, and Ulegwahn look on with open mouths to this wonder that had been unknown until now. Ulegwahn is the first to speak. “Glimtron, the stories are true. The Octagemerwell has a sister, and I have heard stories of its name, the Sapphirewell. So it is true, the Sapphirewell really does exist?”

Glimtron looks to Blythgrin. “Quickly put it back.”

Blythgrin puts it back in its chest and locks it tightly. “Yes, Ulegwahn, it is true. The dwarven miners found it in the Glimwill mines some forty years after the Octagemerwell had been found. We kept it a secret until now, knowing that should the day ever come that the power of the Sapphirewell was needed, it would be safe and under the guidance of the Glaborian dwarves. We share this with you, King Ulegwahn, because you are our greatest ally and friend, and we will help you get the Octagemerwell back. With this Sapphirewell, we can locate the Octagemerwell. However, the reverse is true as well. With the Octagemerwell, the location of the Sapphirewell can be revealed. This chest will conceal the magical presence of the Sapphirewell, but it also prevents the Dagi from using its strength.”

Logantrance leans back, running his hands through his hair. “Glimtron, you and your kin are a remarkable race. I had no idea, no feeling, no sense of its existence. You have done remarkably well in concealing this magical treasure. Blythgrin, have you and the Dagi mastered the Sapphirewell?”

“Yes. However, Cloakenstrike, with the Octagemerwell, is equally powerful—if not more powerful—and he has the daring to use the power in whatever way he sees fit to advance his rule.”

Ulegwahn looks to Glimtron and asks, “Will you help us retrieve the Octagemerwell?”

“That is what we are here for.”

Logantrance rubs his face with both hands, and you can see he is smiling. He lowers his hands, rubbing them together. “Blythgrin, I have to ask. When the elves provided the dwarves with the gift of magic, it is well-known that you worked on the magic of earth and stone. You have great alliances with the Stone Giants and Golems, because through your magical ingenuity, you learned to speak their language. You are famous throughout the realms for being the only dwarven race to have magical abilities, and you have mastered the use of earth and stone magic. So how does the Sapphirewell help you?”

“It is true, we mostly use our magic to strengthen our mines by manipulating the earth, making it stronger and pliable where needed. We can never thank the elves enough, because the introduction of magic to the Glaborian dwarves has eliminated cave-ins and the loss of life to our miners due to the collapse of our mines. Also, we have been able to use our magic to provide fresh air throughout our underground world.” Blythgrin bows to King Ulegwahn. “We thank the Erkensharie elves for this gift.”

Ulegwahn returns a bow and asks, “How does the Sapphirewell help you?”

“Amazingly, the Sapphirewell has given us command of air and water. We have learned to summon earth, air, and water elementals. This is a great power that we have never used in real combat, only in sparring with each other, but the result is very powerful. And if need be, we will use our powers to return the Octagemerwell to its rightful home within Erkensharie.”

“Thank you, we will get our Octagemerwell back.”

Glimtron stands. “Excuse me, gentlemen, I will be right back,” and he exits the hollowed tree.

“Blythgrin, have the Dagi spent time learning defensive magic and healing magic,” asks Logantrance.

“Oh yes, offensive magic as well as the magic of concealment. Our magic users have devoted their lives to the study of all magic. It’s just that earth, wind, and water are most prominent to us, and we use the natural elements the most since the Sapphirewell grants us so much energy in this way.”

“Well, it is good to know that in this confrontation brought on by Cloakenstrike, you will be at our side.”

“Thank you, Logantrance, we just wish we were here to help prevent this disaster.”

King Glimtron has returned to the room with a dozen of his steeds guided by sturdy- and happy-looking Glaborian dwarven riders. “King Ulegwahn, I bring and proudly present a valuable treasure for you and your master craftsmen.”

Ulegwahn and the others at the table walk out to see what Glimtron is talking about. As Ulegwahn exits the tree, a dozen Glaborian dwarves bow in front of their steeds, which are all in a line facing him.

“King Glimtron, what is this?”

“Come look.”

Ulegwahn walks to the first Glaborian horse, which is a horse but only a little bigger than a pony. By the way, these horses are very powerful, capable of very fast bursts of speed. They have great stamina and can travel long, long distances but at a much slower pace than a larger horse.

King Glimtron opens the saddle bag on the left side of the first horse to expose its contents. Each horse is saddled down with as much Foarsbleem as they can carry, upwards of eight hundred pounds per horse. Ulegwahn’s eyes light up as the unmistakable charcoal glint on this dark-silver metal meet his eyes.

“King Glimtron, I cannot repay you for this.”

“No worries, King Ulegwahn, this is my gift to you, and may your rule be long and prosperous.”

Foarsbleem is the most durable metal on Fargloin. Only the Glaborster dwarves know how to extract this metal from the earth by using dwarven solutions and the right heat source. They literally melt it from the earth itself and contain it in such a way that it becomes perfect for the Erkensharie elven master craftsmen to craft the most beautiful and deadliest of weapons. It’s not just the craftsmanship used by the elves that is unmatched, but it is the use of elven magic along with the craftsmanship that makes these weapons the rarest, most deadly, and most sought after weapons in all the realms. This metal is so rare that it is much more valuable than gold, but being that it is so rare, it is used solely for making weapons by the elves. When the dwarves presented this metal to the elves long ago, the elves were so grateful they offered the knowledge of magic to the dwarves, and this trade has united the two races and made one of the strongest alliances ever.

Ulegwahn is overcome by the great wealth Glimtron has just gifted to him and announces that the finest dwarven battle ax ever made is going to be made and presented to him by Ulegwahn and the master craftsman and master mages that make the weapon. The elven craftsmen are naturally drawn to the metal like bees to honey, and their eyes light up. They cannot wait to form, mold, and create with this once- or twice-in-a-lifetime amount of the precious metal. There is enough metal here to create dozens of weapons, and Ulegwahn gives the OK for the dwarven riders and his craftsmen to take the metal and begin their work. Whenshade and Tunull go with them to add the elven magic necessary to begin the work on the metal.

The dwarves and elves are exchanging gifts and pleasantries, and this is a very uplifting and surprising boost for the elves, taking their minds off the events of last night. As the elven magic users and elven craftsmen walk out of sight with the dwarven riders and their horses, Ulegwahn looks around and is proud of the kingdom and people he has inherited.