Myrkron (Volume Two of The Chronicles of the Myrkron) (22 page)

Merric wiped his mouth with his napkin and set it aside.
  “The Garoliths are an ancient evil.  They were created a very long time ago by some extremely powerful wizards.  Wizards that believed as Mortow does; that wizards should rule and that all others are beneath them.  These wizards created the Garoliths to combat magic.  Instilling in them an immunity to all but the most powerful magics.  Only a wizard that has opened the ninth door can stand against them.  This is what Mortow has set loose on our world; for only a ninth key could have released them from their prison.”

“Now that you have succeeded in scaring the hell out of me, what is it that I can do to fight them?”

“As frightened as you may be now, you have no idea of what their mere physical proximity will do to you.  As for fighting them, I have no idea.  What material there is on them is vague and foreboding.”

“Great
.  What do these creatures look like?”  Michael asked.

“Here, let me show you.”
  Merric stood and faced the empty space before the serving window.  “
Phasmatis Garolith
,” Merric intoned.

Michael shuddered as the creature before him turned glowing red eyes on him.  The upper body was reminiscent of what he had
always envisioned a grim reaper would look like, skeletal, covered in decaying black robes and wielding a large scythe, only the scythe looked to be made entirely of bone.  What really shocked him was, from the waist down, the creature had the scaled body of a giant rotting snake.

They heard a scream from the kitchen and the sudden shattering of crockery hitting the floor.  Merric quickly dismissed the illusion and hurried to the kitchen window, Michael and the two Avari followed him.  Once at the window, Merric looked through to see Tess lying on the floor amid the remains of a tray of
broken mugs.

The four of them hurried around the corner and Merric knelt beside the prone Tess and raised her head and shoulder
s up off the floor.  Merric placed his right forefinger on Tess’s forehead.  Her eyes immediately snapped open.  She opened her mouth to scream again, but Merric sent a soothing wave of calm through her mind.

“I am truly sorry about that T
ess.  I am so tired I didn’t stop to think that you would see that illusion as well.  I was merely giving Michael a quick lesson,” Merric explained as he helped the shaken woman to her feet.  “You are not injured are you?  You took a nasty fall,” Merric inquired, trying to distance Tess’s thoughts from the terrifying vision.

Tess wobbled a bit as she stood and felt the back of her head.  She grimaced as her finger found a tender knot where her head hit the floor.
  “I’ll be fine, just bumped my head,” Tess answered, still holding her head with her right hand.

“Here, let me have a look at that, Tess,” Michael said
, as Merric lead her to a chair so she could sit down.

“I’m alright
; just had the sense scared out of me.  What was that horrible thing, Merric?”

“Nothing you need worry about.  It was merely an illusion I conjured as a demonstration,” Merric informed Tess in a soothing voice.

Michael walked around behind Tess and gently parted her hair.  There was a goose egg on the back of her head.  Remembering what Mason had told him, he cupped his right hand gently over the knot and closed his eyes.  “
Vigoratus vulnus
,” Michael chanted softly.  He felt a strong wind blow through his mind.  He saw the swelling from the inside and blood leaking slowly from a rupture.  The wind blew harder and Michael watched in fascination as the blood flow ceased, the rupture mended, and the swelling rapidly faded.  He breathed out a deep sigh of satisfaction.  Mason was right.  This ability was a weapon against all other weapons.  Michael opened his eyes as he heard Tess gasp in surprise.

Merric was watching him with keen interest
, but Tess was staring at him in open wonder, as she tentatively ran her hand along the back of her head.

“The pain is gone.  I can’t feel the lump anymore,” Tess exclaimed.

Michael smiled down at her and nodded.  “Glad I could help.”

“Michael, how did you do that?  You
're a wizard.  Wizards can’t heal,” Tess asked in astonishment.

“I am no longer a wizard.  I have become something else entirely,” Michael replied
, somewhat hesitantly.

Tess
, noticing the strange look on Michael’s face, smiled up at him.  “Well, I hope you don't learn to cook or I will be out of a job.”

“You need not worry about that.  I couldn’t boil water with dragon’s fire,” Michael said with a grin.

Tess saw the broken crockery all over the floor and clucked her tongue.  “What a mess I have made.  I better get this cleaned up.”

Michael looked down at the shattered pieces strewn across the floor.  He passed his hand in a sweeping gesture over the floor.
  “
Reparo
.”

The pieces began sliding across the floor to gather together before him.  They made a clicking sound as they reassembled themselves.  In less than a dozen heartbeats, all of the cups were
whole once more and lay neatly on the tray.  Michael bent down, picked the tray up, and handed it to Tess.  “I would not want to be the cause of more work for you.  It is bad enough you were injured during one of my lessons,” Michael explained, keeping to Merric’s explanation.  He did not want to frighten Tess further with the truth.  Michael was scared enough for the both of them.

“Thank you, Michael,” Tess replied looking at the tray of cups.

“I think we should move your lessons to a place where we will not disturb anyone else, Michael,” Merric said.

Michael thought he detected a trace of sadness on Merric’s face
, but it was gone quickly as Merric again addressed Tess.  “Once again, I apologize,” Merric said with a smile.

“Oh
, that’s quite alright.  No harm done and I can honestly say I am fully awake now.  Nothing like a good scare to keep one alert,” Tess replied with a beaming smile.

Merric chuckled and
bowed to Tess.  As he straightened up, he spoke the words of transport that would take Michael, himself, and the two Avari up to his study.  Merric sat down heavily in his chair behind the desk.

Michael looked at the worn expression on Merric’s face and turned his head slightly to the two Avari without taking his eyes off Merric.
  “Reek, Branik, would you two wait out in the hall for a few minutes please?”

Both men looked from Michael to Merric.

“Of course, Michael,” Branik replied without argument.

When the door was closed behind them, Michael seated himself in one of the chairs in front of Merric’s desk.
  “Merric, what is it?”

Merric’s unfocused gaze shifted to Michael
, and he shook his head slowly.  “Foolish, wishful thinking, Michael, that is all.”

“I find it hard to believe that anything you would ponder could be considered foolish.”

Merric smiled slightly at the comment.  “When I saw you heal Tess, it made me think of all those I might have been able to save had I your gift. So you see? It was foolish.”

“I see it as noble
, not foolish.  The fact that you thought of the welfare of others should never be considered foolish, Merric,” Michael said earnestly, settling back in the chair.

“The ideal is a noble one.  The wishful thought of having something that the Great One chose not to bestow upon
me is foolish.  It wastes time better spent on more important matters.”

“What else can you tell me about the Garoliths?”  Michael asked, changing the subject.

“As I said, the material I have found on them has been sparse and vague.  I did find one source indicating that twelve of them were created and that they were all imprisoned deep in a sealed cavern.  Those facts, and that it takes a ninth key wizard to face them, are all I have been able to dredge up.”

“But nothing that tells how a ninth key may combat them?”  Michael asked.

“No.”

“Merric, what can I do to help?  I feel useless.”

“You are far from useless, Michael.  You may very well be our only hope in this war.  As for what you can do to help, well right now, just don’t go teleporting off into the middle of any more battles,” Merric replied with a weary sigh.

“I promise,” Michael said, noticing again how tired Merric looked.
  “You need sleep, Merric.”

“There is little time for sleep now.  Mortow and his army near the Slot and soon we must go to aid the men of Branna.  What time is left I need for more important things than sleep.”

“Then I know what I can do to help,” Michael said stretching his right hand out toward Merric.  “
Tribuo
.”  As the word left his lips, Michael felt the familiar breeze slip through his mind.

Merric cocked his head slightly and sat up straight in his chair
.  His mind went back to the day he taught Michael about wizard shields.  This is what Michael had done after Merric expended a great deal of energy trying to assault Michael’s shield.  The exercise had left Merric very drained.  Michael had used the energy Merric poured into the attack to bolster his own shield.  After seeing how tired Merric was, Michael had transferred that energy back to Merric.  It was one of those things Michael could do that defied one of the basic principles of magic, to which Merric had always adhered.  Now he felt the same tingling flow of energy and it sent a refreshing wave throughout his mind as well.  As the flow of energy stopped, Merric found himself smiling broadly.

“I don’t know how you do that
, but thank you, Michael.”

Seeing the smile on Merric’s face, Michael smiled back.
  “If there is nothing I can do to help in the preparations, then the least I can do is see to it that you have the strength you need to complete them.”

“Why don’t you go down to the classroom and sit in with the students.  Maybe you could help Martin a bit.  That would help out considerably.  I know Martin and Miles would be happy to see you,” Merric suggested.

“I’ll do that.  I have had little time to talk to any of them these past few days.  I don’t know how much help I can actually be, but it will give me something to do without getting in your way.”

“Thank you, Michael,” Merric said
, as he rose to his feet.  Merric gave a single nod of his head as he spoke the words of transport and vanished from the study.

Michael, who had stood as Merric did, also spoke the words of transport, remembering to include the two Avari outside the door, in his spell
.  He appeared outside the door to the classroom with Reek and Branik in tow.

Branik raised an eyebrow at Michael.

“Merric thought it would be a good idea if I joined the class for a while.  He had other matters to attend, so I agreed,” Michael explained.

Both Avari took up position; Branik across the hall facing into the classroom and Reek flanking the door.

As Michael walked into the room, he saw Melora, a young, blonde magician, the red sash at her slim waist displaying two black stripes.  She was working at an illusion of a wall of fire, seemingly confident and at ease.  Michael moved quietly and sat in the back of the room so as not to interrupt.

“Very good, Melora.  Now bend the wall around you into a complete circle,” Martin instructed.

Michael watched as the wall shifted smoothly and encircled the girl.

“Excellent!  You can dispel the illusion now,” Martin exclaimed.

The flaming circle vanished and, as Melora turned to take her seat, Michael saw the pleased smile on her face.  Martin was a good teacher.  He always seemed to be as proud of a student’s accomplishments as they were themselves.

Martin caught Michael’s eyes as he looked out over the students.
  “Have you come to help me with the day's lessons, Michael?”  Martin asked casually.

At mention of his name, Miles’ head
quickly spun around.  His young face lit up with a huge smile as he saw Michael.

“I just came to watch.  You are a much better teacher than I could ever be.  Just pretend I
'm not here,” Michael said softly.

“Nonsense.  As the highest rank
ing apprentice, it is your place to teach the lesser ranks, and I know from personal experience that you are an excellent teacher,” Martin replied holding up the end of his yellow sash to display the two black stripes.

Michael gave a half smile as he remembered the trouble the fifth key had given Martin.

“That was not teaching.  I merely shared my insight on a common problem.”

“And that insight led me to the fifth key.  Teaching takes on many forms, Michael.  Sometimes it is the smallest bit of inconsequential knowledge that give
s us our greatest epiphanies,” Martin explained.

As Martin was talking
, all the students turned to look at Michael.  He felt decidedly uncomfortable to be the center of attention.  He knew his robe and sash had been the focus of many discussions since his return.  He should probably tell them something.