Far away, there is a place where magic lives. Where it governs the lives and destinies of every living thing. Controlled by masters of the great magic realms, the world is observed, and watched over by ancient practitioners from the Djinn, the Sorcerers, and the Goluems…
Most mysterious of the Magic Tribes, however, are the Wishcharmers. Untrusted by all, it is unclear whether this shadowy group stands ready to save the world, or destroy it…
The Wishcharmer Saga
3
The Magi's Revenge
Cavrey’s green hills and lazy rivers washed the heat of the desert away in a matter of hours. The small country was home to a circular mountain chain called the pearl. The white, snowcapped peaks shone out for all to see, and marked the unavoidable turning point to the world. They were moving north, and things were cooling down.
Rajhu smiled to himself as he, and Will made their way down the well trod road. Grass stood defiantly against the dark earth. While put underfoot by many people, the little shoots still climbed skyward. It was the optimism of nature. Rajhu respected it, and felt something similar stirring within himself. Things had taken a turn for the worst, but he could now see the hope in all of it. That hope was centred in the city of Dwel.
‘Come on, Will… Nearly there now! Dwel we go, and we rid ourselves of this curse!’
‘Your curse, Raj. Not mine,’ Will smirked. ‘Honestly, I don’t know why you’re so set on getting rid of this magic, anyway. You saw how handy it was against those pirates!’
‘I’m not a magic kind of guy, Will. I know, all you young people like to talk about the days of Sorcerer wars and Djinn armies, but I don’t think like that. I’m a simple man. I have simple needs.’
‘Gold?’
‘Rajhu smirked, shaking a finger. ‘Lots of gold, my friend. Lots of gold!’
Will rolled his eyes but said nothing as he and Rajhu moved down the lane towards the white walled city of Dwel. Traffic picked up considerably as they neared. Carriages and travellers of every conceivable creed bustled about the entrance.
As he crossed through the gateway, Rajhu looked up at the massive white stone that made up the walls of Dwel. It was said that in times of war, those walls could withstand any attack. Kings had boasted that not even a sorcerer could break them down. Rajhu considered it a blessing on those kings that they had never need put their boasts to the test.
Moving through the crowds, Rajhu lead the way deeper into the city. The sun was well into the sky, and though there was heat to the day, it was far less oppressive than the desert. It was closer to his homeland, and the temperate climate made him feel at ease.
‘Where exactly are you leading us? I mean, I don’t have all day to be wandering around…’
‘Nonsense, Will. We’re fugitives with a fortune in our bags. We don’t have anything to do but wander!’ He paused. ‘Besides, before we do anything else… I want to rid myself of this magic. I have an old friend here in Dwel. He’ll set us on the right path. Before the spring is out, I’ll be my old, charming self once again!’
The city was circular in nature, with countless cross sections and winding paths cutting through the otherwise round roads. Rajhu knew the streets well, but hadn’t been to Dwel in some time. Though he wasn’t as confident as he would have liked, it wasn’t long before he recognised several landmarks.
They hurried through the streets, the crowds growing denser as they neared the castle, which towered over the city. Placed on a tall hill, the castle truly was the marvel of Dwel. As the city walls boasted impenetrable strength, the castle stood as a lone bastion against the harsh realms tat surrounded it. The seat of power stood out amongst warring factions as the strength of reason. At least, that’s what Rajhu’s friends insisted on telling him.
All he saw was another monument to nothingness.
‘Here,’ Rajhu croaked, turning down another backstreet. There were no people here, and a pungient odour swelled from the dimness. Two tall housing complexes rose four stories on either side of them, blocking out most of the sun. At the end of the short street, a building cut off escape, ending in a battered wooden door. A sign was hung lazily above the door, though Rajhu couldn’t read the script, he knew what it said. This was home to Garrot Weed.
‘It says this is a magic broker, Rajhu…’
‘Garrot deals in anything he can gain from.’
‘And magic is one of those things?’
Rajhu shrugged. ‘On occasion, I have been told.’
He didn’t need to look. He could feel Will tensing behind him.
‘I’m as willing to go into shady places as you, Raj… But something feels funny. You sure you want to go through with this?’
‘Infinitely.’
Rajhu lead the way into the cramped building. The smell of incense hung heavily in the air. Squinting against the dim light, he stumbled forward.
‘…Anybody home?’ Will asked, stopping just behind him.
‘Nobody you’d like to meet, boy…’ a voice croaked out.
Rajhu peered into the depths of the room as a form trundled forward, stepping close to them, but staying well back from the light cast from the open door.
‘Raj… It’s been a while. You didn’t bring guards with you, I assume.’ The man’s voice was harsh and low. Rajhu couldn’t be sure if he’d only just woken up, or perhaps the man was a little angrier than usual. Either way, it was of little import. Rajhu wanted answers, and he would have them.
Slipping the bag from his shoulder, he let it hit the ground, kicking up dust in the process. Hastily, Rajhu undid the drawstring and removed the lamp from it’s home, then held it out.
‘Tell me what this is… Go on. Give me an answer, Garrot. Tell me exactly what I’ve done, and how to get out of it…’
Silence pressed on the room as Raj held the lamp steady. Garrot, still veiled in shadow, shifted on his feet, drawing a tattered robe tighter about his thin frame. Slowly, he took a step forward, his ragged face entering the edge of the light. Deep, fresh scars wound their way from his forehead to the lowest part of his chin. Rajhu tensed as he took in the shape of the man.
‘Time… hasn’t been good to you, my friend…’
‘The world has changed, Rajhu…’ Garrot hissed, grabbing the lamp and stepping further into the light of the day.
Will edged away from the man, giving Rajhu an uneasy glance.
‘Maybe the world has changed… but…’ he hesitated. ‘Who gave you those scars?’
Garrot had his back to Rajhu, but slowly looked over his shoulder, a smile crawling into a sneer. ‘Djinn…’
Will took a step back. ‘The Djinn did this to you?’
Garrot shook his head. ‘No, boy… Soldiers did this. Dwel has taken a harsher stance against the underworld, as of late. I’ve become a statistic of their handiwork.’ He threw the lamp back to Rajhu, who only just managed to catch it.
‘The lamp… That’s Djinn. That’s what I was trying to tell you. That there… It’s a Djinn lamp, Raj.’
‘I don’t understand…’ Rajhu whispered. ‘I didn’t wish for magic. I didn’t wish for help… Why then… Why am I cursed?’
Garrot scowled, moving back into the darkness. ‘What’s he yammering on about?’
‘Rajhu has magic. He destroyed a caravan of pirates, just outside the city. He thinks he’s been cursed or something.’ Will explained, folding his arms across his chest and leaning in the doorway.
Garrot turned suddenly. Even in the darkness, Rajhu could see the man’s eyes blazing. Was it fury, or fear that consumed the man?
‘Where exactly did you acquire that lamp, Rajhu?’
Raj shifted, stuffing the lamp back in the bag, and hoisting it onto his shoulder. ‘Doesn’t really matter… I just wanted to know if the lamp was connected…’
Garrot shook his head. ‘You meddle, Rajhu! You always meddle! Don’t you understand that there are powers beyond reason in our world?’ He walked up to Raj, his eyes wild. The man grabbed hold of his shoulders, shaking him. ‘If you took that lamp from a Djinn… If you split his magic…’ He shook his head, but released Raj, stepping back into the shadows.
‘Garrot… I need your help!’ Raj insisted.
‘Go from here! Tell no one I spoke to you! …I want no part of it, Raj! I want no part!’ he hurried away, into the depths of the building. A door closed in the distance, and silence enveloped them.
Cavrey’s cool air put the mood of the soldiers at ease. Gwen wasn’t sure if she liked the idea of it, really. The last thing she needed was for her men to be taken off guard, now, when they were so close.
The Wishcharmer was here, in this very city. Babo had confirmed it, though Gwen herself was still unsure how.
‘You’re unsure of how to proceed?’ the cat-like creature asked, from near Gwen’s feet. She bristled, looking down with a scowl.
‘I’m perfectly capable of completing the mission, Babo. There is a reason Salvadi trusted me to this.’
‘And there is a reason he invited me to come along, as well. Please don’t be combative, Gwendolyn. I am but a servant of the cause. We are on the same side.’
Gwen sniffed, looking across the city as they marched on. Trees grew in manicured lines throughout the streets, hugging the curved roads and caressing the sides of the taller buildings. In the air, birds chirped in the morning light. They were still a day behind this Wishcharmer, and though it was still early in the morning, Gwen was on edge. They needed to find him. She hoped Babo was right. She hoped they had arrived in time.
‘Do you know of any way we can locate this Wishcharmer?’ she asked, looking to the cat.
Babo tittered. ‘We will be made aware of his location.’
‘We will?’ She smirked. ‘And do you mind telling me how this will be done?’
Sighing, the cat stopped, forcing the column of soldiers to do the same, just behind him. He shook his head and looked up at Gwen. ‘Perhaps Salvadi should have told you more… Never mind, I suppose….’ He nodded, before continuing. ‘The Wishcharmer is wild, and has no idea how to control his powers, yet the vengful Djinn has not been contained by their council. This was done in good faith.’
Gwen furrowed her brow. ‘I don’t understand. I always thought the councils of Powers didn’t care for eachother.’
‘They do not have any direct animosity toward one another. However, you are correct in your assumption. There is no official distaste between the ruling councils of the Djinn, Sorcerers and Goulems… However, time has given way to… diverse disagreements.’
‘They hate each other silently.’
Babo nodded and started forward once more. ‘Very astute. In regards to the appearance of a Wishcharmer, however… They have managed to put aside their various differences.’
‘So they let this angry Djinn wander around… I don’t understand how it is supposed to be a boon for us.’
‘This is the very same Djinn who was wronged by our wayward Wishcharmer. While I’m not permitted to discuss details, I will tell you, that the Djinn is partly responsible for the creation of the Wishcharmer, but because of this, he has lost nearly half of all the magic power he possessed.’
‘Half Djinn? Then it’s a Magi…’
‘A very vengeful Magi, my dear. One who pins the blame of his lost power squarely on the shoulders of the man we seek.’
Gwen scoffed as they moved deeper into the quiet streets of Cavrey. It was a bold plan, but there was no guarantee it would work.
‘My scouts have seen the Magi wandering the edges of Cavrey. Undoubtedly, he has found our Wishcharmer for us.’
‘So we wait for him to pounce on the prey?’
‘Precisely. With any luck, we will be able to subdue them both with relative ease.’
‘But… He will be out for blood! I thought we were meant to bring this Wishcharmer back to Geb alive!’
‘That would be the ideal outcome. We must discover exactly how he came to be. If for no other reason, then to assure it never happens again.’
Gwen sighed. ‘I still don’t understand why these Wishcharmers are so dangerous!’
‘The answer is simple, my dear Gwen… The Wishcharmers threw the universe into chaos eons ago. They are the soul cause of the misery of war. The archetypes of destruction. They were the enemy in the last great war of the universe.’
Gwen felt something catch in her chest. The burning heat of fear washing over her as Babo’s words wound their way through her mind. She had read the sacred books. She had learned of all the wars, but none had been more terrifying to her than the last great war. The war to end all wars, it had been called. The three great powers of the universe, locked in immortal combat.
She had read of their foe. A force more powerful than any that had ever been known. Their name had been whispered on the wind for as long as she had sensed it’s passing. The horde of darkness. The Star-Killers.
‘Sufficed to say, we have little time to waste,’ Babo insisted, hurrying forward. Gwen nodded, though she knew the cat hadn’t seen it. He was concerned with the task at hand, while she still couldn’t comprehend what she had learned. If it were true, if this Wishcharmer was one and the same as the Star-Killers spoken of in the Holy Books… Their world, and every other life in creation, across the oceans of heaven, was in danger.
*
Rajhu wandered out of the inn, letting the cool summer breeze wash over him as he took in the sights of the city. It had been many a year since he had wandered this close to his homeland. Even now, with it countless leagues away, it felt close.
Still, ever since he had been confronted with this curse, this magic power that seemed to be ebbing and flowing just beneath the surface of his conscious mind, Rajhu hadn’t had a moment’s peace. He couldn’t have kept the fact that he was shaken from Will. Least of all, he couldn’t have hidden his terror at the reaction of Garrot. Whatever had gone amiss in Durjen, had done more than Rajhu had ever feared it could. Things were out of his control, and it seemed as though they would never be made to yield to his will again.
‘Maybe we should just move on, now…’
Rajhu turned to see Will walking up behind him. He had Rajhu’s bag slung over his shoulder. A worried look flickered through the boy’s eyes, though Rajhu pretended not to notice it. Will wasn’t one to let people see his concern. The fact that it was showing, spoke to Rajhu of the situation he had put them in.
‘Eeh…’ he shrugged. ‘I don’t know what to do now, Will. It’s all gone bad.’
‘So… Let’s just get out of here. There’s nothing left to see anyway.’
‘You’ve seen all Cavrey has to offer in a day?’ Rajhu asked, smirking.
‘We spent the night in a dingy inn,’ he shrugged. ‘I can get that anywhere I go.’
‘I still haven’t figured out what’s wrong with me, Will!’ Rajhu relented, frustration flashing through him in a rush. ‘I want to be normal again! I don’t like all this magic, you know. Never cared for any of it. Life is life, and I just want to get on with living it…’
Will shrugged. ‘I gotta tell you, Rajhu, I think you’re making a big mistake.’
‘What do you mean?’
He shifted, moving the bag from his shoulder, and setting it on the ground in front of him. ‘Well… Maybe what happened isn’t as bad as you’re making it out to be…’
‘Oh, come on, Will! Giant blue hands came out of my back! That’s not being normal, man!’
Will smiled. ‘No… No, it’s not normal… But it’s pretty cool, too…’
Rajhu canted his head, narrowing his eyes in observation of his friend. Had everyone gone mad but him?
‘Look… You’ve been given incredible powers, Raj. I mean, you don’t even know what you can do, do you? This could be good for us, you know. And who knows? This might be fate.’
‘I’m fated to be cursed?’
‘Don’t think of it like a curse, Raj… Maybe you’re supposed to have this magic, this… power.’
Rajhu paused. He hadn’t thought of it like that. In fact, if he were honest, he hadn’t given any of this much thought since it had happened. Garrot’s reaction had scared him, but the fact was, he had been faced with a horde of Akrian Pirates, and came away with barley a scratch. Against a dreaded Kilrot, Rajhu had been victorious.
‘You’re actually thinking about this, now, aren’t you?’
Rajhu waved off Will’s comment with a flip of his hand. ‘Shush. Let me think about this for a moment, okay? There is a lot to consider…’
A gentle breeze ruffled Rajhu’s clothes, whispering through the manicured trees that hugged the side of the inn. The warm summer air seemed to calm him all the more, and yet, he still could not decide what he thought about all of this. Magic had been given to him, but at a cost he couldn’t quantify. What had he become? Was it something good, or something very much the opposite?
‘You took something from me, Rajhu Heroh…’
The voice cracked through the air, as if it were the soul sound in all the world. As it fell into silence, Raj could feel every nerve in his body coming alive. His skin tingled with terror as a figure walked up the street. Raj stared at the sight of the man. Dressed in dark, loose clothing, the man was large, with golden skin, and a trimmed white beard.
‘Do I know you?’ Rajhu asked, hesitantly.
The man inclined his head, then swept his arms about his body. ‘I admit, my appearance has changed since last we met, but I am one and the same. You took something from me, Rajhu Heroh… I would very much like it back…’
There was no doubt of it in Raj’s mind now. Though he had changed, though his body was chorded with lean muscle now, the eyes held the same dark glint.
‘Raj… Who is this?’ Will asked, stepping closer. Raj could see the boy tensing, readying himself for a fight. He had no idea what good it would do, though.
‘My lamp… Raj. My lamp!’ The man growled. ‘I want it back!’
Taking a step back, Rajhu looked the man over once more. To him, here and now, he looked like a man, and nothing more. Could it be true that this elder was actually a Djinn?
It didn’t take long for the man to reach Rajhu. He grimaced as he reached out with strong hands, grabbing Raj’s collar. ‘If you won’t give it to me, I will take it from you!’ he spat.
The man lurched to one side, tossing Rajhu away with incredible strength. He tumbled through the air for but a moment, before crashing to the hard ground. He rolled to a stop, groaning as scrapes and knocks of pain flashed across his person. Rajhu struggled, but pushed himself up off the ground. He was a good four meters away from the old man now. As he looked across the distance, he saw Will striding forward, shouting at the man. Rajhu wanted to call out to him, to tell him to stop, but everything was happening so fast.
The man’s hand struck out, catching Will in the side of the head, sending him tumbling through the air. He collided with a nearby fruit stand, and slumped to the ground.
Rajhu forced himself to his feet, his head spinning. As he worked to steady his footing, the man moved across the street, to Rajhu’s bag, ripping it open.
‘Hey!’ Rajhu called, stumbling forward. ‘You can’t just do such a thing!’
The man straightened, pulling free the glittering form of the lamp. He flicked his free hand, snapping his fingers. Instantly, a burst of flame sailed forth, bursting at Rajhu’s feet.
‘You dare object to this?’ the man growled. ‘After you take my property form me, after you defile this sacred vessel! I am Ferro, Once Djinn over the Eastern Sea… Made Magi, by your violation!’
‘I paid you!’ Rajhu countered. ‘It’s all a legal transaction!’
‘I should tear out your tongue for speaking to me in such a manner! Do you not know who you’ve crossed? You and your little friend here have taken the lamp of a Djinn!’
The man rushed forward, with inhuman speed. Before he could react, a hand was firmly clamped around his throat. Rajhu tried to breath in, but it was impossible. This Ferro was far too strong. Beyond anything a human should have claim on.
‘Take…’ Raj gasped. ‘Lamp…’
Ferro tossed Raj to the ground. He lifted the lamp in one hand, looking down on Raj with wild eyes. ‘Unfortunately it’s not that simple, Rajhu Heroh. I’ve already tried to bond with my lamp with no success… You have taken something from me that cannot be returned…’
Rajhu tried to stand, but a scowl from Ferro told him it would be better if he stayed on the ground. Still, he forced himself up, onto an elbow, rubbing at his throat tenderly.
‘I give it back to you, freely. Whatever it is I took, I give it back. Just leave us in peace!’
‘Leave you in peace?’
‘Let us be!’ Rajhu insisted.
‘You still have no idea what you’ve done, do you?’
Rajhu shook his head. ‘I’ve wronged you… I am sorry. But please, I… I want no trouble. Take what you’ve lost, and go… Please!’
‘My dear boy…’ Ferro laughed. He stepped forward, a hand reaching down. Rajhu felt himself hauled to his feet, his attention drawn to the rage of the Magi’s eyes. ‘You’ve harmed me… In a way I cannot express to you. Even my harshest punishment wouldn’t suffice to show you the pain you’ve caused…’
Ferro flicked his wrist, and again, Raj went flying through the air. He didn’t know where he was tumbling to, until his back collided with the stone wall of the inn. Something cracked under the assault, though Rajhu was sure it wasn’t his bones.
Pain snapped through him as he fell to the ground. When he finally looked up, the Magi was there, the lamp grasped in his hands, his eyes seeming to flash red as he glowered down on him.
‘You’ve split my magic… Broke an ancient seal. You may have harmed me, most foul… But you’ve done worse to yourself, yet!’ He crouched down, a fist hammering into Rajhu’s face. Darkness crept at the edges of his vision, but he pushed back against it. He wished it back with all his might.
Slowly, his vision cleared.
The fist came again, and Rajhu lifted a hand, but before he could block it, himself, a wave of blue energy washed in front of him, taking the brunt of the impact. The shimmering magic hung in the air, before his eyes, like a bubble.
Ferro laughed, pulling his hand back. ‘And there… you see? It’s already begun…’
Rajhu glanced from his hand, to Ferro, something stirring inside. ‘What’s begun? Do you… Know what’s happening to me?’
‘You’ve cursed yourself, Rajhu Heroh… you’ve split my magic, and awakened a dark power within yourself…’
‘What do you mean?’
‘You’ve become a Wishcharmer… Rajhu. It would be in my best interest to kill you, right now…’ He lifted his hand again, rolling his thumb across the tips of his fingers. As he did, electricity crackled into life. Soon, its form grew, curving into the unsteady visage of a scimitar. The Magi stood, a smile curving across his lips.
‘Goodbye, Rajhu… Know your death will bring me a moment’s purest pleasure!’
The electric blade plunged downward, and Raj held his breath, bracing for the end, when a voice cut through the street, loud, clear, and angry.
‘Hold, I say! By the authority of the Sorcerer Council, and in directive action for the Djinn Hierarchy! Desist!’
Raj waited a moment, but when no horrible pain pierced his chest, he cracked his eyes open, looking in the direction of the voice. As he let his eyes open wider, they beheld a young girl, dressed in polished leather armour. She had long brown hair that hung, braided, to the base of her back. Strong, dark eyes held him, and the Magi like a vice. Her soft features, while fair, were cold as she observed the scene. A large cat sat at her feet, it’s tail coiled around itself. Behind the two of them, a very large number of armoured soldiers stood. In a great ringing of steel, they drew their swords, taking one step forward, past the girl.
Raj glanced to the Magi, then gasped. The blade of the conjured scimitar hung only inches from his chest, but Ferro was not paying any attention to him, at the moment. His dark eyes bore through the empty street, lingering on the young girl.
‘What say you, girl? Do you think I care what authority you claim hold on? I am Magi! I fall under no direct council! The Djinn do not want me, and your pathetic Sorcerers… Hah! They would as soon kill me, as this beast that lays before me!’
‘Ferro… You don’t want this fight.’
‘You are right, girl. I have no wish to engage you. Perhaps you would let me do what I came here to do, and then you would owe me a favour!’
The girl’s voice came again, a grumbling edge to it, now. ‘You know I can’t let you kill him, Ferro.’
The Magi chuckled, furrowing his brow. ‘And why should I suppose to know any such thing? He is a Wishcharmer! By the very dictate of every council you have claimed privy power from, he is sentenced to death, by very fact of existence! Tell me I’m wrong, and I will lay down my sword… Otherwise, let me finish this, and have my revenge!’
‘The council’s have dictated that the Wishcharmer be kept alive… for now.’
Rajhu couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Whaatever this Wishcharmer business was, these two people seemed to think he was one. Whatever a Wishcharmer was, he was certain he didn’t want to be thought of as one, considering the callous nature in which the Magi and this girl could discuss his eminent, or eventual demise.
‘Don’t I have a say in this?’ Rajhu asked.
‘Quiet, whelp! Lest I slit your throat before hearing the young Sorceress out…’
There was a silence from the ranks of soldiers. In another moment, the girl pushed her way through the line of men, planting her feet and staring at the Magi.
‘I propose a trade…’
Ferro smiled. ‘But you have nothing to offer me, child. I am a wanted man, ever despised by the Djinn for this revenge I sought. A fallen Djinn, and you speak of a trade… Trade of what, dear girl? Stories? You have nothing I want, and I have everything you desire.’
‘We won’t take you, if you hand us the Wishcharmer… Alive!’
‘My freedom?’ Ferro laughed. ‘Young Sorceress, I hope you haven’t yet studied the arts of negotiation. Elsewise, your instructors have sorely done you a disservice. I have my freedom!’ he insisted, throwing his arms up. ‘You cannot bargain with it, when you haven’t the power to take it from me.’
‘I will, if I have to…’ the Sorceress growled.
‘And I will kill the Wishcharmer before you raise one hand to strike me,’ Ferro countered, smiling as he returned the point of his blade to Rajhu’s chest.
Things were spiralling out of control. If he didn’t do something quickly, he would be dead. If he waited for these two to settle things, they would end up fighting each other, which would likely mean he would be dead.
He hated the Powers… They never let anything remain simplistic.
While the Magi and the Sorceress continued to throw threats at each other, Rajhu desperately tried to think. There had to be some way out of this! Some kind of escape he hadn’t thought of already…
For a moment, Rajhu wished he’d had powers, magic… Like the kind he’d used in the desert, against the Kilrot…
Magic…
Rajhu cursed himself under his breath. Of course! He had power! He had magic! While these two argued over it, Rajhu remembered with alarm, just the kind of magic he had.
Was this what all the fuss was over? This magic he had used… This was what a Wishcharmer was?
It was the escape he wanted, and needed. But how could he use this magic? How had he done it in the desert? Thinking back, he realised he hadn’t really thought on it all that hard… It had simply been reflex.
‘Reflex…’ Rajhu whispered.
‘Shall I cut out your tongue to keep you silent?’ Ferro barked, turning to stare down at him.
Rajhu smiled. ‘You forget, my boy… You’re dealing with a Wishcharmer!’
He threw his hands forward, willing the magic forth, from whatever ancient well it sprung from. He envisioned huge ethereal hands launching forward, and blasting the Magi across the street.
As it was, nothing at all happened.
Ferro looked down on him with increasing disgust.
With a glance to the Sorceress, the Magi scowled. ‘Do what you will, young one. For now, I shan't stand in the presence of this abomination a moment more. Now, he dies, by my hands!’
Rajhu cursed under his breath.
‘I really wish that had worked…’
The Magi thrust the scimitar towards Rajhu’s heart, but as the magic blade drew near, blue energy burst free from his palms. The smoke-like magic swirled and formed into huge fists. They rushed forward, throwing the Magi across the street, and through the stone wall of the adjacent building.
‘Stop him, now!’ the young Sorceress cried, but Rajhu was already climbing to his feet and dashing across the street.
Rajhu bent low, scooping up Will in one arm, as he threw the other skyward. More of the blue magic streamed forward, as soldiers, rushed them. Rajhu suddenly felt the magic that wound it’s way across the sky, connect with something. Looking up, he could only just make out the giant blue hand, as it seemed to grab onto thin air. With another thought, Rajhu felt himself pulled from the ground in a rush of speed. The magic was drawing him up, and forward, over the city, toward the sky, as it wound itself up, like a fishing line being drawn back, in a rush.
Below him, Rajhu saw the Sorceress and the soldiers looking on, helplessly, as he shot higher and further away from them. They grew smaller as they receded into the distance. Looking about, Rajhu could see he was sailing high above the countryside, the walls of Cavrey nearly an hour’s distance away, already. The lush green meadows of Cavrey’s farmlands fell away rapidly into thick forest, and rolling, steep hillsides.
Suddenly, the magic flickered, then faded away altogether.
Rajhu hung in the air, for a moment, Will’s unconscious form held firmly with one arm.
‘Koliba!’ he cursed. They slowly began to plunge toward the earth. Fear clawed at Rajhu’s mind, as he shifted in the air, trying to position himself better, for what little good it would do… Below them, a forested hillside sped up to meet them.
Rajhu felt himself impacting the hard ground. He felt trees shattering around him, he felt rocks digging their way into his skin. Then, he didn’t feel anything.
Then… Everything went dark.
