There was a moment of stunned silence as all participants also paused to consider what just happened, though it lasted scarcely a second before an ear splitting roar of pure anger split the peace in two. The last remaining oggron leapt from his perch above Jared and Alicia, landing heavily on the trail a scant half dozen yards from Marcius. He roared again, throwing the spear he had been using to the ground in obvious disdain. Instead, the brutish creature reached up to the huge greatsword strapped to his back. He drew it forth easily, way too easily in fact. No human could have wielded the cumbersome weapon as naturally as this creature did.
Even the two fellow bandits that had been approaching Alicia and Jared from the front had to shirk away from the sheer unbridled power and wrath of an angry oggron.
That was a fatal error on their part, for Alicia used the distraction to unleash one of her quick casts, the bright blue flash of lightning cracked the air and struck the one distracted bandit before leaping in kind to his friend. They both shook violently for a second, suspended by invisible puppet strings, before falling to their knees in shock. The putrid smell of burnt flesh rose in the air from their smoking bodies as the strings were cut and they went face flat into the dirt.
Like their fallen oggron friend, they too lay unmoving.
None of this mattered to the angry oggron, who even now held Marcius's eyes with his own beady ones. Revenge flashed behind the orbs, a clear window to the promise of death behind them. With a throaty growl, the oggron hefted his sword high above him and charged.
Chapter 13
"Excuse me, Headmaster, a moment of your time please?" came the eager voice of Dentaige, a balding middle aged wizard giddy with excitement as he approached. The long black beard that spilled down to just below his chest was just beginning to show traces of pepper, and the simple gray robe the man preferred did much to hide how skinny he truly was. Judging by the state of his attire, it also would have been safe to assume the man hadn't slept much in the past few days. Still, the energy the wizard practically oozed would have been considered unexpected to those who did not know Dentaige well. In fact, to most people, it only seemed to increase the older he got.
Denician sighed inwardly. He didn't have much time to spare, and anyone who had ever spent a moment studying at the Academy would quickly discern that indulging Dentaige usually resulted in signing the next hour or so of your life away, as the excitable man could probably talk a dragon out of its own skin.
Still, as the Headmaster of the Academy it was his duty and Dentaige was certainly a well respected member. A bit eccentric, but a veritable prodigy when it came to magical discovery and theory. So with a strained smile of acceptance, he nodded. "Sure, old friend, please do tell me what has you in such an uproar? Surely it must be great news? Pray tell, keep it short though, I have an important meeting soon."
The wizard's head rapidly bobbed in agreement as he fell into step with Denician. They made their way through the huge halls of the Academy as the Headmaster walked to his office. Archways of enchanted swirling marble and old paintings of famous wizards bear witness to their passage as the old wizard prattled endlessly about the goings on within the Academy, detailing the various dramas that inevitably came to pass whenever people of power gathered under one roof.
Denician only listened half-heartedly, quietly bidding his time until the long-winded wizard got to the real reason of why he needed to talk to him, nodding here and there when the situation prompted him to do so. He had to keep an eye out for where they were heading.
To walk through the halls of this building without careful situational awareness could be dangerous. Only people so enraptured with their own business, such as Dentaige, could do so with any confidence. Whether or not it was wise was another argument entirely. Though there was the irrefutable proof of the wizard's old age, so he had to logically be doing something right.
The site the very building was founded upon was a nexus of energy, a place where nether gathered like moths to a flame, and it didn't help that the sheer amount of magic that was practiced here by the wizards only added fuel to the proverbial fire. Magic reverberated in the air like notes of music, tangible even to those without the gift to utilize it. The arcane saturated every facet of the place, from the very stone and marble that comprised the walls to the forks they used to eat, the end result of such a concentrated gathering of magic was a place where strange occurrences were common place.
There were things that went bump in the night here. In fact, it went bump pretty much whenever it deemed fit.
He didn't bother trying to explain some of the things he had seen spawn from the odd habits of these hallowed halls. After all, good wizards sought to perfect their control over magic, great wizards realized they had none. Occurrences ranged from the harmless, such as dancing lights randomly appearing and disappearing, to the dangerous, such as the time the odd peculiarities somehow summoned a drake to the very courtyard situated in the middle of this building.
Denician shivered at the memory. The large creature had taken wing, but instead of escaping through the open roofed courtyard, it had directed its anger at the nearby first term apprentices, scattering them like ants as the hot steam issued forth from the great maw of the beast threatened to sear the flesh from their very bones. He had been among those apprentices, but instead of running to get help from a Magus, he found himself entranced by the fierce beauty of the creature. A creature that gave most wizards pause. It was humbling to the say the least.
He had to have it.
By the time a Master capable of handling a drake had arrived on the scene, they found that Denician, using a little bit of ingenuity, a lot of luck, and the Academy's penchant for huge, ornate chandeliers, had managed to trap the beast.
After the astonishment wore off, the issue came up about what to do about the drake. They had wanted to slay the beast and be done with it, but Denician had argued fiercely, instead insisting that he had another use for the proud, but dangerous, creature.
Another use indeed, nothing less than a drake familiar would be acceptable for one such as you! Yhgolanic, his familiar, interrupted. The voice was large and powerful in his head, as one might expect from a creature several hands taller than large horse, but it was something he was used to.
No doubt the creature was high above the Academy as usual, large wings beating against the air as it glided among the wind currents. The emphatic link allowed him to feel the sheer bliss that accompanied such actions, the pleasurable sensation of biting cold air that flowed over his familiar's body, rustling the bright blue scales as it banked for yet another dive through the clear azure sky. He briefly entertained the notion of how the citizens of Aralene would react if they could see the invisible drake above their city.
Don't be so coy, Yhgol. You know you enjoy it!
Indeed, the familiar admitted. It does have certain. . . perks. Still, I long to travel alongside you, something which the size of this form does not always allow.
I could always shrink you. There are spells that could help you there.
Spells that could get past my scales? the drake countered smugly. The ones that can are unnatural at best, and still painful. The reshaping of bones and tissue is a feeling that cannot be described.
True, my friend. I'll look into it. See what I can find.
Yhgolanic snorted, Alright, I'll hold you to it then. Though I think it would be prudent to do so hurriedly. Who else will protect you from yourself, if not me? Also, if you even think about turning me into something like a rat, I will wrap my tail around you and squeeze until such notions no longer exist! Or you pop like an overly ripe grape, whichever comes first.
I've done well so far, my friend, and I'm sure your concerns are not biased at all. Plus, I think you would make a cute mouse, or perhaps a chipmunk. The image of a drake's dragon-like head on the body of a rodent he imparted along with the comment caused a great roar of conceding laughter from the familiar, the deep voice echoing in Denician's head like it was an empty cavern.
"Well? What'd you think?" Dentaige's voice managed to pierce the haze, the large brown eyes wide in anticipation of Denician's answer.
"Sorry, I missed the last part," he apologized, "My familiar was-"
"Carrying on in conversation?" the wizard offered, chuckling with good humor as Denician nodded. "No worries there, Headmaster. Trust me, we all have such things in our heads, and we all have had that blank glassy look on our face at some point! To begrudge another fellow wizard for such a thing would be hypocritical at best!"
Denician smiled back. "Caught me there, old friend. Allow me to make it up to you. What was it that you asked?" he nodded to a few members who gave greeting to the pair as they walked by.
"Well, like I said, I found this most curious entry in the archives, which you know I love to peruse from time to time." Denician rolled his eyes at that statement. Dentaige practically lived in the archives. "I found a rather interesting thesis on the nether from some unknown wizard. The name seemed to be erased from the records, for I tried to cross reference it, of course."
Denician nodded, it wasn't an uncommon punishment for wizards who had betrayed their oath. When an apprentice was inducted into being taught at the Academy, they were required to pledge their abilities towards furthering the quest for knowledge of magic. They were not allowed to use their power for political gain. Martial involvement, such as fighting in armies was not discouraged however. Denician always found it morbidly amusing. A wizard was allowed to use his power to light groups of soldiers on fire, but not to become king.