Adamagika: The Spirit Within - 19. Ch 19: Aenhol's Tale

CHAPTER 19: Aenhol's Tale

“Come on, push harder.”

“I’m pushing as hard as I can, why don’t you push harder.”

“What the hell do you think I’m doing, having tea?”

There’s no need to carry that tone young man,” said Magister Aenhol.

“Well, he’s starting to bug me,” Jacob said. I shook my head at Jacob and Javier’s bickering. They have been at it for the last ten minutes.

“Why can’t we just blow this wall apart?” Javier asked in a half-exhausted voice. I could see his face beaded with sweat in the dim light. A lone floating ball of light that Magister Aenhol summoned was hovering in the middle of the cramped space we were in. We were surrounded by what looked like roots that formed a dome over our heads.

It has been several long hours since we last saw the man on the horse, the one who called himself Lord Raezhul. When he threw those green balls of flames into the trees, something happened to them. It was as though they awakened and were extremely angry for the disturbance. Magister Aenhol managed to summon over the rug we used to sleep on which by some magic I still did not understand protected us from whatever the trees were doing outside our little haven.

The sounds we heard outside… let me just say the sooner I forgot about them, the better. I definitely heard scratching sounds. I also heard what sounded oddly like whining except it was gibberish and had an almost… evil feel to it.

Magister Aenhol encouraged us to sleep. I think the others got a few hours of sleep but I hardly got more than a few winks. The whole prospect of being in a cramped hole in the dark was unnerving to me. In addition, the sounds that would occasionally resonate outside would shock me back to full consciousness. I must have fallen asleep at one point though because when I once again became aware of my surroundings, it was perfectly quiet except for our own breathing (or in Jacob’s case snoring).

At some point, Magister Aenhol must have removed the rug that was covering us because we were completely encased in a giant dome of wood.

We’ve been trying to break through it for the last ten minutes, about the same time the bickering started.

“Well, this is a rare type of living wood,” Magister Aenhol said as he answered Javier’s question. “It has the very unusual property of reflecting magic. If we throw any kind of spell against it, I’m afraid it will bounce back inside and in all likelihood kill us.”

“Can’t you summon an axe or a hammer like you did last night with the rug?” Jacob asked.

He chuckled as though our imprisonment was the least bit of his concerns. “You can’t actually summon complex material things into being, Jacob. You can resize it or reshape it but you need to have the base material of the object with you. Less complex matter like water or energy can be multiplied but complex items like solids are difficult if not impossible to create by magic. I’ve been keeping that rug you saw in my robes and I’m afraid I forgot to pack the hammers and axes with it.”

“How did you keep that whole rug in your robes?” Jacob asked curiously.

“It’s a combination of a shrinking and enlargement spell, genius,” Javier responded to him. “Now get back to work and push,” Jacob scowled but went back to pushing against the wood.

“I think I heard it crap, I mean crack.” Despite the gravity of the situation, I had to laugh at myself for what I said.

A minute or two after I heard the first crack, I heard another which everyone heard. A few more punches and even a few kicks later and the first ray of light entered our little prison.

“Oh god, air,” Jacob said as he placed his face against the tiny hole we made.

“It should be easier now,” Magister Aenhol said. “Once the shell has been damaged, the rest of the wood becomes more brittle.

That made absolutely no sense to me but true enough the rest of the wood around the hole we made became easier to destroy. Soon, there was a gaping hole in our prison large enough for us to escape through.

“I never thought I’d be so happy to breathe,” Jacob said as he theatrically extended his arms outwards as though willing the wind to come to him.

The rest of us, on the other hand, were too busy contemplating the scene around us.

The entire forest around us was encased in a giant web of wood. Unlike our prison though, there were large random spaces in between the branches that stretched from the ground forming a net-like protection on the mountain side. These branches though were thicker than even most of the tree barks here and it would take a lot more than pushing and kicking to break through them. I looked over to the path that led down the mountain and the entire path was blocked by the thickest layer of wood I had ever seen.

“It will recede on its own,” Magister Aenhol said. “Unless I’m mistaken, it’s been under the sun for a few hours which should hasten its retreat. Until then, I would advise we stay in here and try not to disturb the forest.”

We all agreed to that. Personally, I preferred trees unmoving.

Magister Aenhol pulled a tattered piece of cloth out of his robes. He twirled it in his hands and it grew in size turning into the rug we had used last night.

“Oh dear,” he said as he observed the many holes and stretched wool or cloth in the fabric. “Seems I’ll have to buy a new one when we get back.” He laid the tattered rug down on the grass where he invited the rest of us to sit. He then pulled a white bag which was tied up from his clothes. He waved at it and it also grew in size. He untied the knot and lowered it and its contents on the rug. Inside were different assortments of fruits – apples being the most abundant.

He asked us to eat and we did. We spent a few minutes of silence just chewing on fruit before anyone spoke up again.

Javier was playing with a piece of wood that must have come from the remains of our prison. “This would make a good weapon against mages.”

“No, it wouldn’t,” Jacob said hastily. I got the impression that regardless of what Javier said, Jacob would have disagreed with it. He must have caught the look I was giving him because his features softened a bit. “I just mean that the wood is too brittle. If it gets weakened when it’s damaged it wouldn’t serve well as armor.”

Javier was studying him as though contemplating how to answer. In the end, he merely nodded.

“That is a very good assessment, Jacob,” said my teacher. “The wood is only strong once it is generated by the trees around you. As soon as it hardens, it cannot be molded or reshaped anymore. Otherwise, it becomes brittle again. It makes working with this type of material very troublesome and impractical. Also, it seems to shy away from the sun as you will all soon see. But, Javier also has a point. Anything that has a natural resistance or protection against magic would be potentially dangerous to our kind.”

“What are these trees anyway?” I asked as I looked around at the forest. The trees were once again perfectly still and devoid of any angry faces.

“They’re called Devita Trees, which in an old language meant Trees of Life probably because of their rather unusual behavior of coming to life and defending itself when attacked. Some say that name was a misnomer referring rather more fondly to them as the Devil’s Trees. I’m sure you can imagine why.”

“I think Devil’s Trees is more appropriate,” Jacob said. I nodded my agreement.

We heard movement above us. I looked up and saw that some of the branches above were moving and pulling apart. A larger hole was appearing in the dome above us.

“Aah, it seems the process has started already,” Magister Aenhol commented.

“Where does all this wood come from anyway?” I asked. “It can’t possibly have grown overnight.”

“No, we’re actually standing in one large Devita Tree,” Magister Aenhol replied as he watched the wood move above. “Think of this forest as its hair and underneath it a network of living bark. This whole side of the mountain is actually alive.”

I looked down expecting roots to pop through at any moment.

“That… doesn’t sound safe.” Javier commented.

“It is unsafe if you don’t follow the forest’s rules. You must remember that this has also served as a protection for this place. It does not react that way to anyone who does it no harm.”

“It didn’t provide much protection against that undead lord guy,” Jacob observed.

Magister Aenhol looked over at the cave entrance as though he was waiting for someone to pop out from there. “No, they didn’t. That was rather unusual.”

“How did he even get in here? I thought this place was protected with wards and… stuff,” Javier said.

“Honestly, I’d like to know the answer to that myself,” Magister Aenhol said. He continued staring at the cave entrance again but nothing showed itself still. He sighed. “As soon as the opening is large enough for us to go, we should head out. There are things I need to take care of and I would rather you are safely in the city while I do them.”

“Sir, does it have something to do with going to the Derviks?” Jacob asked.

“Yes, Jacob. I will have to investigate what our unexpected guest said.”

“You don’t trust him, do you?” Jacob asked. Unless I was mistaken I detected a sense of uncertainty in his voice.

Magister Aenhol must have noticed the same thing because he was observing Jacob closely. It took him a moment to answer. “No, Jacob, I do not trust him and neither should you. He is conniving and deceitful. He only has his agenda in mind and he could care less if you were trampled along the way to attaining his goals.”

“And yet you’re still going to do what he said?” Javier said in disbelief.

My teacher gave a small smile. “Just because he’s deceitful, doesn’t mean he’s not right.”

Jacob looked thoughtful and I wondered if Magister Aenhol might have said the wrong thing. “Sir, who is he exactly? How come he kept calling you old friend?”

Magister Aenhol looked up at the ceiling above us. It had moved several more feet since we last checked. “I suppose we have time,” he said softly. “It is perhaps best if you understand what you were up against.” Magister Aenhol looked at each of us. “Know that what I’m about to tell you is an account of my experience based on what I know. I could be mistaken but somehow I find that unlikely. He was once known as Victor Cross. He used to be a teacher in Arantiva and a member of the Mage Aristocracy. The Cross family was once a famous influential force in the city.”

Javier clicked his fingers and his face lit up. “I’ve heard of them,” he said excitedly, “but didn’t all the Crosses die in the Siege of 2266?”

“Yes, all but one and you just saw him last night.”

“What’s the Siege of 2266?” Jacob asked.

Magister Aenhol looked over at me expectantly. I immediately knew what he was expecting.

“It was a tragedy that occurred that year,” I said as my recitation mode kicked in. “Mage families from different communities gathered to celebrate the birth of magic. They called it the Laudic Lunar Festival. No one really knows for sure when magic, well at least the kind of magic we have, started but it’s been tradition for mages to celebrate it in the seventh full moon of each year which means it usually happened in July.

“That year, mages had gathered in the Thaal Lagoon. A large body of inland water found several hundred miles to the southwest of Arantiva. They say it was a beautiful place and was the perfect location for the celebration. Families from all seven mage cities came to celebrate and it was a grand one if the records were correct.

“However, tragedy struck that night. From the west came an attack from non-mage humans. They wielded powerful weapons of technology. They had explosives that could be propelled from large distances away. They had armored metal vehicles they referred to as tanks. In moments, entire mage families were killed among them was the Cross family of Arantiva.

“Couldn’t the mages have defended themselves?” Javier asked. “If there were so many of us there, then it wouldn’t have been too difficult, right?”

Magister Aenhol broke in at this point. “There are many speculations regarding what may have happened that night. Some believe that we were merely caught off guard and were unable to act quickly enough. However, there should have been protective spells or wards around the entire area that would have at least warned us if not deflected most of the human weapons. Some believe it was a trap and that our defenses were sabotaged by someone from within. Only mages could have undone those spells without us knowing about it.”

“Were you there, sir?” I asked.

“Yes, I was Adam. I honestly couldn’t tell you much about my experiences there. I spent most of my time trying to keep my parents and cousins and… everyone else I cared about safe.” As he said the last few words, there was an almost unnoticeable pause in between them. I wondered if it meant anything.

“I’ve never seen us use those weapons you were talking about,” said Jacob. “I’ve seen guns but we never used anything that exploded in the village much less those things you called tenks.”

“Tanks,” Javier corrected. Jacob glared at him and the other boy looked away quickly.

“There was… a violent response,” Magister Aenhol said to interrupt the coming bickering from Javier and Jacob, “against non-mages in the days following that night. It was easily agreed among the Mage Councils of the different cities that it was time to strike at our enemies. The war between humans and mages escalated that night and tens and thousands of humans were slaughtered in the aftermath. Dozens of human settlements in the west were destroyed. Humans, both guilty and innocent, were slaughtered in the name of vengeance. It wasn’t until a prominent mage named Horus Khael put a stop to the senseless slaughter.”

“Horus Khael?” Javier asked. “As in High Mage Lord Khael?”

“Yes,” my teacher nodded, “of course he wasn’t High Mage Lord then but his actions and charisma during those times undoubtedly have played a significant role in his rise to power. He is a good man though and because of him, the mindless crusade against humans ended. The war continued though as there were still many human kingdoms scattered in the outer regions with the west taking the brunt of the damage. Fortunately for us, the northern and southern kingdoms did not necessarily see eye to eye with one another or else we might have expected a retaliation by their combined forces. From then on, our efforts became more defensive rather than offensive.”

He then turned to Jacob. “Make no mistake, Jacob. They likely still have those weapons hidden within their most heavily defended cities. Perhaps they have even developed more powerful weapons since then. But our actions back then have likely made them think twice about using them again in this war. Their casualties were far, far greater than our own.”

“So is that why you’re going to the Derviks?” Jacob asked. “You think they might be developing a new weapon against us?” I liked how he used the word us.

“That is possible,” Magister Aenhol said. “Which is why I must find out what he means.”

Somewhere above us, the branches creaked in their recession.

“But sir, that doesn’t explain what happened to Victor Cross,” I said. “How did he turn into one of the undead?”

My teacher’s eyes seemed to drop and flashes of sadness crossed them. “He was devastated by the events of that night. He lost his wife, all his children and the rest of his extended family.”

“His wife?” I asked. “How old was he then?”

Magister Aenhol went into deep thought. “I suppose he was in his late fifties, early sixties.”

My mouth dropped open. “But… that would make him over a hundred years old by now.”

“I suppose it does,” he said nonchalantly. “As you might have noticed, he’s not looking very young at the moment. But he wasn’t always like that. Before that day, he was always happy. He was an amazing teacher. I was once his student. In fact,” he paused, “he was the one who escorted me and the other students to this mountain in our time. He had changed drastically by then of course but if my memories as a boy still serve me correctly, he was once a very happy man.”

“So, what happened to him, sir? I mean after the attack,” Javier asked.

“Oh, he withdrew to himself. He wasn’t the same boisterous, happy fellow we used to know. He continued to teach in the Academy and for the most part he was very mechanical about it. He would leave his room only to eat and teach. Outside those tasks, he spent all his time in his quarters. Many teachers and even students offered their condolences of course. But in the end, he turned them away also. It was such a shame because I… grew to like him before that time.

“There came a point though when he started acting strangely. Most people have always thought of him as a bit wild to be honest but he started talking to himself. Sometimes other students would see him wandering the hallways talking to himself. He argued senselessly over things no one could understand. Naturally, the other teachers grew wary of his mental health.

“I, on the other hand, tried to comfort him. For whatever reason, I…” he paused and for the briefest moment I sensed something change in his eyes “…felt drawn to him as though I needed to help him. So I did. I tried talking to him where others would ignore him. He spoke with me many times and sometimes I would see that sparkle in his eyes that he had before. A little bit of joy would seep into those eyes during our conversations and I knew he was not as broken and hopeless as the others thought. In fact, I found him to have a brilliant mind whenever he wasn’t lapsing into depression. He seemed to know things that others have only speculated on. Some of the things he taught me would eventually become foundations of magical studies in the years to come.

“But something happened after a few years,” again I saw something flash in his eyes. I looked to the others to see if they noticed anything but they didn’t seem to see anything strange happen. “It was a few days after he brought us here that he just vanished. Rumors say that he was heard yelling in his quarters the night he disappeared. The entire thing was kept quiet though as though they would have rather just preferred to forget. I refused to let it happen though. I searched for him for years especially after my studies in the Academy. But in the end, all my efforts met dead ends; even I could not find him.” He sounded really sad when he said this last bit and it became obvious to me that they must have become really close friends even if one was a student and the other a half-crazy teacher.

“It wouldn’t be until a decade later that I would see him again,” my teacher continued. “He came to my house. By then though, he no longer called himself Victor Cross. He referred to himself as Lord Raezhul and I knew then that what I saw standing before me was only a corpse of the man… the teacher I once knew. I looked into his eyes and saw nothing of the kindness he once had or even the emptiness they contained after he had lost his family. They were cold and, for the lack of a better word, evil.”

“Why did he come to visit you?” Jacob asked.

Magister Aenhol stared into the distance as though trying to recall the details of that day. Eventually, he spoke up again but all he said was, “he had his reasons.”

At this, we heard the wood around the forest creek again and the ground beneath us trembled. Jacob, Javier, and I tried to maintain our balance on the shaking ground while Magister Aenhol looked steadily at the path that led down the mountain. He even looked bored.

“Aah, here we go,” he whispered.

The branches that were stretching up into the sky swiftly retreated back into the earth. They shook the ground heavily where they entered and I was worried a landslide would come down from the mountain side to smash us. I looked up though and for whatever reason, the walls around us looked stable despite the massive quakes.

It must have been a full three minutes before the quakes subsided. By then, three boys were sprawled on the ground. Only Magister Aenhol was still seated as though nothing happened.

When I looked up, the path was completely devoid of any Devita branches and the forest was once again still. It almost looked like the night before hadn’t happened except the grass where Lord Raezhul’s horse stepped on – they were still dead. The ground looked mostly undamaged, another magic of the mountain I supposed.

“We should head out,” Magister Aenhol said. He was already standing up and brushing dust from his robes. “We have much to do.”

The rest of us got to our feet. Magister Aenhol tucked his tattered rug into his robes. I made a mental note to ask him how he did that.

“Leave nothing behind,” he said. “It won’t be here if you decide to come back for it.”

We made sure all our belongings were tucked away. As I was closing my bag, a thought occurred to me. “Sir, can we come back here anytime we want?”

“Well, Adam, you can try to but unless the Seer wants to see you, you will be unable to pass through the barriers that defend this place.”

“Like that wind?” I asked.

“That’s one of them, yes. You probably won’t notice the others if you are meant to be here. If not, you’ll know.”

“How do you know if you’re not supposed to be here?”

“Simple,” he said, “you die.”

I wasn’t sure if he was kidding or not.

We made our way down the mountain. This time, no wind assaulted us in the same steep path we took two days ago. The journey was just as dangerous though because now we had to climb down a steep mountain with hardly anything to use for support. Whoever sold walking sticks there would probably make a lot of money. Then again, I’d probably not have enough on me to pay for one.

We made it back to the desolate hut where we left the horses. Samson was sitting in front of a small campfire. He was stirring what must have been stew in a very large pot. His jagged spear was plunged into the ground spear side up.

“Aye, Aenhol,” Samson said. “Care to have a bite before you go?” He then lifted his mixer revealing a large dipper in the end with brown, murky liquid floating in it.

I was about to ask what it was when a frog leapt out of the dipper and ungracefully smacked itself against the side of the pot on its way down, presumably in its bid for freedom. It fell back into the pot of stew and disappeared within the brown liquid.

“Hrm,” Samson said, “I don’t remember adding that.” He then proceeded to taste the liquid in his dipper. “Tastes mighty fine to me. You folks want any?”

I looked over at Magister Aenhol who seemed to be deeply contemplating the offer. Jacob on the other hand had a shocked look on his face and his mouth was hanging open. If he wasn’t careful, the frog might find its way there. Javier was with an opposite expression. He had his mouth closed and he seemed to be making the effort to hold something back in his mouth. He was turning greener by the second.

“That’s alright Samson,” Magister Aenhol said finally. “We must get going. I’m sure your soup is… lovely.”

I heard Javier puking out his breakfast of fruits somewhere behind us.

“If we could have the horses please,” Magister Aenhol continued as though he didn’t hear anything behind him.

“Of course,” Samson said. He was eyeing Javier warily as though he might catch something contagious. He snapped his fingers and we heard horses whiney from behind his hut.

A few seconds passed before the three horses we rode in earlier came strolling down the side of the hut to face us. One of them looked like he was chewing the hut in his mouth.

“Oy! That ain’t yours. Put that back!” Samson yelled to the horse with the straw in his mouth. The horse disappeared behind the hut for a moment as though it actually understood. “Horses these days. Too much freedom I say.”

The two adults then engaged in some small talk. Magister Aenhol was curious about Samson’s family in his town while Samson was curious about the changes in the city. Our uninvited guest in the night wasn’t mentioned between them.

It didn’t take long for the third horse to get back which I realized was the horse I rode in coming here. His mouth was straw-free. We mounted our horses and, once again, Javier was sitting with me. I asked him if he was alright and he said yes. He just hated frogs like the plague.

I looked over at Jacob to see if our seating arrangement made him uncomfortable. He just smiled a shy smile at me and I knew that it was okay with him. I couldn’t resist, I smiled back.