The Phoenix Ring(29)

       

The wizard turned and walked swiftly away, followed by the three amoghs,  the last carrying the sack that could only contain one thing.

Aidan followed them more slowly, though every molecule of his body told  him to let forth a volley of spells. As powerful as he was, Aidan would  never be able to take on three trained amogh assassins and a wizard at  once.

They took a twisting path through the streets and side alleys of the  city, leaving Aidan hopelessly lost. As they travelled deeper into the  heart of the city, Aidan began to see that the massive, richly built  houses were vastly outnumbered by small shacks and huts that were built  from cheap, rotten materials. They finally stopped at a squat, one story  house made of stone that was slightly smaller than the orphanage where  Aidan had grown up.

The wizard murmured a spell and the door, which radiated with a strange spell, clicked open.

"Bring our guest downstairs," the wizard said, "And then go recheck the  woods. You probably stumbled over them and didn't even notice it."

"I'll warn you, she's a fighter," said the amogh who had been carrying  the sack, after he had deposited it inside, "You might want one of us  here."

The wizard laughed. "I can take care of myself. Go do your job, and let me do mine."

The assassin shook his head, but didn't try to argue. As soon as all  three were gone, the wizard disappeared into the house, leaving Aidan  alone.

The boy breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know how he had managed to  stay unseen, but now he felt fairly certain he could handle the wizard.  The man was far less powerful than a warlock or dragon, and Aidan had  already defeated both of those.

The young mage pointed his staff at the door and closed his eyes. He  could feel some sort of locking spell, but didn't know what it was.

"Mahor yok wenne."

The spell flowed out of the wood with only minimal resistance. Aidan  hesitantly pushed on the door, which creaked open on rusted hinges. The  young mage squeezed the Phoenix Ring against his staff and stepped into  the dark house.



"Why hello, Aaliyah," said a sickeningly familiar voice. "You've turned out far more …  attractive than most of my experiments."

The girl's head snapped up. She was chained to a chair, gagged but no  longer blindfolded. She was in a torch lit room built of stone, with  cluttered tables lining the walls. She noticed her bow and other weapons  lying on a table tantalizingly close.

A few feet in front of her was a face she had hoped to never see again, unless it was decorating a sharp stick.

"We don't have much time to talk, your mage boyfriend is almost here. It  took a lot of spellwork to keep him hidden from your assassin friends,  but it was worth it. Can't have them taking all the credit for his  capture, can we?" the wizard laughed. "I'm going to take this gag off,  but if you scream then I will be forced to remove your tongue. Are we  clear?"

Aaliyah nodded her head. The wizard stepped forward and pushed the cloth down just far enough for the girl to be able to speak.

"If I recall correctly, the last time we were in the same room I  received these," the wizard said, pulling down the neck of his robe to  reveal huge burn scars.

"They're an improvement," Aaliyah said.

She saw the wizard's fist a moment before it slammed into her cheek.

"Ow, that tickled," she said, giving him a cocky smile.

The man's eyes narrowed. "You've been trained well. In fact, I'm quite  sure that nothing a human could inflict on another human would make you  talk. But as we both know, I am well aware that your kind is far from  human."

He walked to one of the tables and picked up a jar full of red liquid.

"You remember this stuff, don't you? It's been perfected now. And I am  the only person in all of Sortiledge that knows the antidote. One sip  and you'll be …  dying to tell me your secrets."

"That was the worst play on words I've ever heard. And you told me some  bad ones," Aaliyah said, the smile never leaving her face. But for the  first time in nine years, she felt truly afraid.

The wizard smiled and poured some of the vile liquid onto the gag. It was at that moment that they heard the door open upstairs.

"Aidan, don-" Aaliyah was cut off by the soaked rag, which had been  thrust back into her mouth. The wizard smiled and leaned back into the  wall, whispering a spell that made him shimmer and almost disappear.

"Let's see what happens when the bearer of the Phoenix Ring meets the amogh slayer."





Aidan had only been in the house for a few seconds when he heard his  name being screamed. The home, if it could be called that, had no  windows, no bed, and no fireplace. The only objects Aidan could see were  a table with two chairs, three torch hooks holding lit torches, and  another door, far more protected than the first.                       
       
           



       

"Hang on Aaliyah, I'm coming!" he yelled back. Throwing caution to the  wind, Aidan didn't even bother to remove the second locking spell, but  smashed through it with a quick "Eslang!"

The wood cracked down the middle and the door fell off its hinges at the  strength of the mage's onslaught. The door fell back and clattered down  the steps, followed closely by Aidan, a red haze filling his vision.

When he saw Aaliyah, his anger only grew. The girl's face and arms were  bruised and cut, and her eyes were wide. She hadn't even been given the  dignity of a dry cloth for a gag, the rag was soaking wet. She was  trying to tell him something, but he couldn't make out was she was  saying. He ran across the room and pulled her gag down so she could  speak.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"You idiot, he's behind you!" Aaliyah yelled.

Aidan spun around, the blade on his staff clicking into place, just in time to see the wizard shimmer into existence.

"Hello, boy. I hope you came ready to die."





14





The wizard flicked his wand nonchalantly, sending Aidan crashing into  the wall. The young mage heard a crack as his left wrist slammed against  the cold stone, while his vision exploded with white light. Somehow he  managed to hold on to his staff.

"Well, technically I'm not allowed to kill you," Aidan heard the other  sorcerer say through the pain, "But I can certainly make you suffer."

The mage instinctively rolled to the side as a blast of heat seared the  place where he had been laying. His vision returned just as the wizard  raised his wand.

Aidan was faster, but only barely.

"Ingo!"

"Morka!"

The two spells collided in midair, forming a ball of magic not unfamiliar to Aidan.

I have him, the mage thought, if I can defeat the most powerful warlock in a duel, then this traitor will never stand before me.

But then the boy felt a change in the magic. In every other duel he had  fought, the enemy felt like a wall, or a house. If Aidan pushed hard  enough, then he would eventually come crashing through. But this was  different. As the wizard began to speak in The Sorcerer's Tongue, far  too fast for Aidan to comprehend, it was as if a hole opened up in this  wizard's wall, allowing all of Aidan's magic to drain into it. But this  hole didn't lead to the back of the wall, instead it turned and twisted,  becoming a chaotic maze that Aidan's power was soon lost in. And the  more power the mage pushed into it, the more he lost.

"I expected more," the wizard said, "It is true that you are strong, but  you know nothing about magic. And knowledge, not magic, is true power,"

Finally, the mage pulled back, though much of his magic was lost in his  opponent's web. As Aidan's power faded, he was suddenly struck by the  wizard's spell.

The pain was so sudden, so strong, that Aidan didn't even have time to  scream. It seemed to come from every part of his body, but from none of  it. Soon, everything ceased in Aidan's mind, except the light and the  pain. He wanted nothing more than to curl up and die, but he was not  granted even that small mercy.

And then, from somewhere deep within him-no- on the ring finger of his  right hand, he felt one word. And that word, somehow, through the pain,  sprung from his lips.

"Reklatorr." Open.

The pain ceased as quickly as it had come, accompanied by a scream. Aidan opened his eyes, his brow dripping with sweat.

Aaliyah was standing, her padlocks open and on the ground. In her hand  was a long, bloody knife. The wizard was retreating backwards, holding a  stump that had once supported his hand. Aidan nearly threw up when he  saw the severed limb on the floor, still clutching its wand.

"If you think that was bad," Aaliyah said, fire in her eyes, "Then you should see what I'm going to do to you next."

The wizard began backing towards the stairs, though he did not seem to be afraid. In pain and annoyed, but not afraid.

"If you think this is over, mage," he spat, "then you are wrong. For I  promise you that one day, I will be the one to take what is most dear  from you."