The complete series, p.114
The Complete Series, page 114
part #1 of The Hidden Wizard Series
Alrion pushed his Soul Power out as a barrier, just far enough to encompass all the tendrils of black attached to him. They shrieked in agony as it passed over them. But it did nothing more. However, he then used his Spark to build a light bomb. He mixed in a tiny bit of Soul Power, then triggered an explosion. A flash of white, a bang, then nothing.
Alrion pulled himself up off the ground. There was a ringing in his ears and he could barely see. His eyes had to readjust to the darkness. It took a long time. Or there was more darkness, which was just as likely. He couldn’t see or sense any more of those things. His body was battered and sore. He had some Spark left, and some Soul Power, but nowhere near as much as he would have liked.
Nothing ever works out as you’d like.
Alrion found his sword and sheathed it. The darkness beyond was still there, only it didn’t seem quite so dark.
Maybe those creatures had made it appear darker. He took a deep breath and pushed on. He created a tiny orb of light to help, but it did little to penetrate the darkness. Tentatively he kept walking. The geometry on the walls was here too, and there were some wild shapes that seemed impossible. But they weren’t why he was here. Soon enough he saw what he expected.
A wall of darkness, in slow but constant motion. At the same time, it looked like it was oozing yet also a void of nothing. He saw in his mind the image of his grandfather touching it. He could understand why. It defied logic. There was an irresistible urge to just take it in your hand and see if you could make sense of it. Alrion forced his hands to stay in his pockets. He didn’t want to be too rash.
Some of the elements of the spell came to the front of his mind. He would need to interact directly with the wall to enable the spell to work. As he considered the best way to do that, he noticed something odd. The wall itself was changing. Forming something. A head. No, more than that. An entire body stepped out of the wall, made of the same substance and connected to the wall by millions of tiny strands.
“Welcome, Alrion, we’ve been waiting for you.” The creature of black spoke to him.
“What are you?”
“I’m the Blight. The manifestation of consciousness behind all those connected to me. We have much in common.”
“I very much doubt that.” Alrion didn’t know what to think. He hadn’t expected this. Nothing mentioned this.
“We are both born of Granthion.” The thing smiled and Alrion shuddered.
“I don’t understand.”
“The great wizard Granthion caused all this, as you know. Our sentience is thanks to him. His power awakened the ability in us to act. And so we have. Developing our own people, our own ways. Strengthening our bond. And yet, here you are. Trying to take that all away from us.”
“You have no right to those gifts when you only have them by destroying human lives.”
“Destroying? No, we enhance them. Do you not believe that?”
“Of course not. I’ve experienced the terror myself.”
“You were just afraid and rejected the bond. In time, you would accept and find joy from it. Ours is just a different way.” The creature held out a hand. Alrion stepped back.
“What are you doing?”
“It doesn’t matter what you want to do, you need to interact with us anyway. Hold my hand, so that we may understand each other better.” The creature held out its hand. Alrion looked at it warily.
This doesn’t feel right. What do I do?
Alrion stepped back again and channelled his Soul Power into his hand as a precaution. The creature of the Blight did not move, perhaps it was restrained to the source. He debated in his mind on how to move forward. He doubted he could even interact with the source without touching the creature. Just as Alrion reached a decision he heard footsteps. He turned to see who was approaching.
50
The Missing Piece
Alrion saw a figure in the distance, approaching. It looked like a man in a hood. A wizard.
It’s him!
Alrion turned completely and ignored the creature of the Blight. He started walking away. The wizard kept approaching.
“Announce yourself. Who are you?” Alrion said.
“You know me as Aydan. We’ve been conversing for a while now.” The wizard kept approaching at a steady rate. His voice sounded strange, like it had been altered.
“So, you’re the one that’s been following me around everywhere. And sending me messages in that book. Finally, you show yourself.” Alrion was annoyed.
Now this wizard shows up, at the critical time. A time when I can’t use help from anyone else. A time when this wizard would just be a hindrance.
“I came at the appropriate time. I apologise for all the subterfuge, I needed to keep my identity secret.”
“I could have used your help before. Now, it’s pointless. Even five minutes ago would have been helpful. What comes next is just for me, as you should know.”
“I am sorry, I was supposed to be here. I thought you had returned to the battle, but I made a mistake. That delayed me getting here.” The wizard had approached Alrion and was standing right before him. His face was still hidden by his hood.
“Now you’re here, you could at least show me who you are.”
“Yes, you should know.” The wizard spoke without the voice masking. Alrion gasped.
“No, it can’t be. That’s impossible.”
“It’s not impossible. You and everyone else just accepted a false truth.” Alrion stepped forward and thrust back the hood. He was staring into his father’s eyes.
“I still don’t believe it. Prove it.”
“As you wish. We are safe for a time.” Vincent held out his hand and a small flame appeared above it. Alrion shook his head, not impressed. The flame grew larger then morphed into three different-sized flame spheres, all rotating at different speeds.
“Must I go on?” Vincent said. He let the flames dissipate.
“I don’t understand. Why do all this? You’ve spent your entire life lying to me, lying to everyone.” Alrion’s voice sank. This was not the revelation he expected, or even wanted.
“It was my father’s idea. At first, he was scared of me being targeted by the Blight. And then he wanted me kept secret to keep his progress on a cure secret.”
“What do you mean cure? You?”
“You know I can use Soul Power. My father knew that too. He intended on us curing the Blight together, as father and son.”
“But he died saving you?”
“Yes, because I left him alone. Then I was captured by Rindale and infected. My father knew he would lose his chance at saving the world from the Blight, but he could save me instead. That was his gift to the world.” Vincent wore a sad smile. Alrion thought about it, he let the thought sink in.
I know what it’s like to have that weight on your shoulders. Has he carried it all this time?
Alrion stepped back.
“I can’t believe you lied to me again. Is there anything else you haven’t told me?”
“No, nothing important. I left some papers with your mother, that will explain more than we can discuss here.”
“Does she know? Weren’t the two of you investigating the mysterious wizard?”
“We were. We parted ways so that your mother could continue the investigation. She found me out, as I had hoped.”
“But why not just tell her?”
“It is easier to come to the understanding yourself, rather than being told.” Vincent paused, thinking before he continued. “Also, there is a great danger in this information becoming widely known. I was genuinely interested to see if there was any evidence that she could find to tie me to that identity.”
“And was there?”
“Yes. But now it is safe with us.” Vincent looked past Alrion, to the darkness beyond. “You’ve seen it?”
“By it, do you mean the wall or the human-like figure?”
“The human one. Whatever you do, don’t hold its hand.” Alrion looked over at the creature, and back at his father.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s the wrong connection to make. You’ll be compromised too quickly, and unable to complete the spell.”
“What do you suggest I do instead?”
“Something else. Together with me. As my father intended.” Vincent smiled again, this time it was warm.
“Together? You keep saying that. There was no mention of two wizards in what I read.”
“The information from the Pool of Knowledge is quite selective. As you know, it tells you what you need to know, not what you want to know. It’s like a wizard in that respect.” Vincent chuckled. “It was always designed for two. One as a conduit for the Light, one as a conduit for the Darkness. Guess which one dies.”
“Knowing as much as you do, having lived this for your whole life. Are you willing to just resign to that fate? Why must death be a part of this spell?” Alrion challenged his father, daring him to keep up that line of thinking. Vincent looked thoughtful.
“Well, my son, I suppose we should keep an open mind. When my father designed this, he was imagining one wizard with Soul Power, not two. Perhaps there is a way.” Vincent gave Alrion a slight shrug.
“I’ll take that, it’s something I can work with. I’ve done enough impossible things already, that this can just be another one.”
“Very well, I won’t argue the point. You’ve certainly grown into a resourceful man and a wonderful wizard. As I always knew you could be.”
“Yet you kept trying to get me to be a blacksmith?”
“It’s a good life, you should try it. And remember, there’s a lot of overlap between what I taught you like the keys to blacksmithing and being a wizard.” Vincent looked distracted.
“Is something wrong?” Alrion looked around himself, trying to see what was happening.
“We can’t delay any longer. We need to do what we came to do.” Vincent held out a hand to gesture Alrion forward, and they walked side by side towards the darkness. The creature tilted its head, regarding them.
“Two wizards from Granthion, how odd. I did not expect this.”
“It’s not going to go down as you expect.” Alrion clenched his right fist then relaxed it.
“Whatever you think you are planning, you cannot avoid the inevitable. Your family’s history of sacrifice will be continued.” The creature spoke solemnly, but its eyes seemed to tell a different story. They appeared to be mirthful, almost laughing. Alrion stepped forward, but Vincent held him back.
“Don’t take the bait. The Blight is masterful at manipulation. We can engage on our own terms. Observe.” Vincent stepped forward and the Blight creature extended its hand again. Vincent stepped around it, and the creature couldn’t follow. Before Alrion could say anything, Vincent had thrust his hand into the darkness beyond.
51
Soul of Light
Vincent felt himself immersed in the other world, that of the Blight. It was overwhelming. But he didn’t let himself be taken in completely.
“Alrion, quickly now. Follow my lead and hold my hand.” Vincent couldn’t see clearly back into the space he had been, but he sensed the movement. A shining light weaved around the space then grasped Vincent’s hand. He instantly recognised his son.
“Well done, let’s navigate this together.” Vincent pulled Alrion with him, and the two were thrust into a dark void. After a few moments of disorientation, Vincent found himself in a different space altogether. Alrion thankfully was by his side. As they surveyed the strange stark horizon, they noticed a pool of darker substance to one end.
“Did you read about this?” Alrion said. He looked out in wonder over the strange place they were in. Vincent shook his head.
“No, I think this is new territory. Nobody has been here before. Let’s investigate the black mass over there.” Vincent led the way, his son staying close.
We can do this. Maybe he’s right about finding a better way.
As they neared the black mass, Vincent had a good idea of what it was. He stopped before and turned to Alrion.
“I think this is quite clear.”
“Yes. That’s the essence of the Blight. It’s that substance they use to turn people really quickly.” Alrion looked disgusted. Vincent looked out over the expanse. He couldn’t see where it ended.
“There’s nothing else here.”
“Not quite,” a voice said behind them. Vincent whirled around quickly. A black figure was standing there, watching them. It had to be the same one that had confronted them outside.
“It was clever of you to infiltrate our space. But you still won’t succeed.” The figure moved in a bit closer.
“We may need to take our chances.” Vincent looked at Alrion. He was staring intently at something in the distance.
“Agreed.” Alrion dove into the blackness, surprising Vincent. He didn’t hesitate and joined his son. They were engulfed in the thick black liquid, which was like tar. It was very hard to move through and seemed to pulse with a regular beat of energy. It felt alive. Vincent wanted to say something, but he couldn’t. He dragged Alrion back up to the surface and they managed to get their heads above the inky substance.
“This is not good. But I see an opportunity further ahead.” Alrion didn’t wait for confirmation, he surged forward.
He’s got good instincts. Let’s see where this takes us.
Vincent followed along, turning occasionally to see if the figure was following them. It was. Soon enough though, Vincent saw what Alrion was hinting at. There was a platform in the middle of the Blight. It was simple stone and had a tiny altar upon it, also made of stone. Atop the altar sat a strange orb.
“That’s the ticket.” Alrion powered ahead and reached the platform first. He bent over the orb but didn’t do anything. Vincent sped up and reached the platform as well. The black figure was still advancing, hovering over the black substance.
“Look in here. What do you see?” Alrion said, peering within. Vincent looked and gasped. It looked like people. Images of faces flashed by fast.
“This must be the link to all those who are infected. What do you think?”
“This is it, this is how we can help them all.”
“I doubt you have enough Soul Power for all that. You’re going to need help.” Vincent looked around. He knew there had to be something else. There was a tugging on his mind, reminding him of an extra element that they would need. He walked around the platform staring out, then he saw it. A glimmer of white amongst the sea of black. He instantly knew what it was.
“Alrion, I know what we must do. Look out there and tell me what you see.” Vincent directed Alrion’s gaze. After a few moments, he almost jumped.
“There’s something down there. Soul Power?”
“Precisely. It’s all coming together now. You need to reach it and drag it back here. We can use that to cure all those people.”
“It’s pretty deep, I’ll be drowned in that stuff. Unless.” Alrion concentrated and focused on the deep sea of Blight. Vincent watched with curiosity. Nothing was happening.
“This isn’t right. Try using your Spark on the Blight there.” Alrion kept staring at the spot he had been focused on. Vincent gathered his Spark and tried using a wave of force to part the Blight, making a path. The flows were absorbed by the black mass. He tried again and looked closer. It was more like the Blight was drawing in the spell. Vincent tried flames, and it was the same result.
“Still trying those old tricks?” The figure of Blight was close now, but it didn’t move onto the platform.
“We get it, old spells don’t work in your place.” Alrion didn’t bother turning to look at the creature. It burst into horrific laughter. The sound was like loud gongs being banged right near their ears.
“You don’t get it at all. Why do you think we made Shade Wizards, but not Shade Mystics?” The figure regarded them with curiosity. Alrion looked thoughtful.
“It was easier for you, no Soul Power.”
“Close, but you’re so far away from the truth. Why do you think your first experience of your Spark was triggered by feelings of frustration and anger?” Alrion turned and looked at the creature, shocked. Vincent was starting to put it together.
“We don’t just target wizards for no good reason. Your grandfather wasn’t involved for no good reason. Everything needs an equal and opposite force. Soul Power fuels the Mystics, the Blight Source powers your Spark.” The figure leaned its head back and cackled, delighting in the revelation.
“That’s why our spells are ineffective. That’s why I needed to use Spark as a method for transmitting Soul Power.” Alrion was nodding along.
“Don’t be fooled by this creature. It speaks the truth, but it omits what it wants. There is a greater truth here.” Vincent approached Alrion and put his hand on his son’s shoulder.
“The source and origin of your gift do not reflect on you, nor what you can do with it. Take away the utility of that knowledge. Your Spark cannot be a weapon against them here, at the source. We must use the other tools that we have.” Vincent gave Alrion a reassuring smile. He nodded one more time.
“Soul Power it is. Let’s go get some more.” Alrion concentrated for a moment, and Vincent did the same. Soul Power, when channelled correctly, should keep the Blight at bay, for a time. Alrion climbed down, the Blight parting just enough to avoid touching him. Vincent followed then grabbed his son’s hand.
“Let’s be quick about it. Support each other and we can make the trip.”
“We just need to make it there, no need to conserve for the way back.” Alrion set off, slowly drifting through the space. The Blight parted for Alrion’s path and stayed back. Vincent tried reducing the amount of Soul Power he was emitting, and it worked.
Good, we may need some extra down the road.
It was slow going, and hard to gain glimpses of where they were headed. But they kept going and reoriented themselves when required. Finally, they reached something.
Before them was a stone circle, floating amidst all the Blight. It was glowing with Soul Power.
