The Last Wizard of Eneri Clare (4 page)

Xaarus rose from his makeshift chair, his tall frame slightly bent beneath the low ceiling, and paced away from the hearth. “Tvrdik, listen to me. My time is very short. I will not be here to join forces with those who are working to save the kingdom. Trust me, I would give a great deal to be able to offer assistance to those good folk, but it is simply not possible. And the stakes are much higher than you could even imagine.”

“What are you saying?’

“I promised to tell you where I had been these long years, and why I left you alone.” Xaarus issued a long sigh. “I think it is my turn to tell you a story. I pray you will believe it. When Benjin and Ailianne perished, I was as distraught as you. Perhaps moreso, if that is possible. As their teacher and mentor, I was responsible for them. I had cared for them and had high hopes for them. And how do you think it made me feel to know that I could not even keep them safe from their own folly? Like you, I thought there might be a way to undo what was done – to pluck them back from the edge of disaster. I was desperate to find it. What you did not know was that I had already been studying and experimenting in time travel. My son, on higher planes than ours, there is no such thing as time, as we know it. In theory, one should be able to transcend the bondage of linear time, and then control at what point one might re-enter the time-line. I had been researching the subject for years, and had made some promising breakthroughs on a minor level. But after the tragedy, I became obsessed with the idea that if I could just leap back before the accident, I could use every means at my disposal to prevent it from ever happening, saving Benjin and Ailianne from themselves.

“I was arrogant enough to believe I was close to success, but I knew there was a limited window within which my powers would be effective. With each passing day, we moved further from the event, and from the possibility of reversing it. If you found me distant and unresponsive in those days, I deeply regret it. In fact, had I been wise enough to pay attention to your needs at the time, things might have happened in a very different way….but, never mind. All is in the hands of a Higher Force anyway, and as you will see, there is a larger plan in play. At any rate, I was consumed with the desire to succeed in my quest – forgot sleep and food, friends, teaching, and recreation. I lost perspective, and in my desperation and haste, I fell prey to the very errors in judgment that had been the undoing of my pupils. I rushed my work forward with neither wisdom nor caution, and then, one night, just a month after Benjin and Ailianne’s disappearance, I attempted the leap.

“I had made a foolish error in calculations, and somehow, instead of moving a short distance into the past, I found myself catapulted far, far into the future. And, of course, as you might guess, the doorway I had created disintegrated behind me, beyond recall. When I came to my senses, I realized the grave consequences of my pride and rashness. I was trapped in a strange time and place, without my books or my equipment, without friend or sustenance. I thought of those I had left behind without a word of explanation, you foremost among them. And I must tell you, Tvrdik, no man could have condemned himself more harshly or suffered more remorse than I at what I had done. From your perspective, I realized, I had just disappeared. And I was trapped – no way to return or even to get a message to you.”

Tvrdik had been following the tale with rapt attention and growing amazement. “But, Master,” he breathed, “however did you survive?”

Xaarus allowed a little crooked smile. “By my wits, boy, much as you have done. Men are still men, even in the future, and I am not without resources. I keep a low profile and support myself in various ways, as I may, and I observe. But you must believe me that almost from my arrival there, all my intention and skill, and every scrap of intellect I could muster has been bent on finding my way back to you to make amends for my error. Twelve years I have worked without respite to bend time to my will, so that I might come home…”

“But, if you are here now, it must mean that you have triumphed. Master, this is a feat of great wonder!”

“I have not triumphed,” Xaarus replied bitterly, “I have failed.”

“But…”

“Only by bending every ounce of skill, energy, and power at my disposal toward my intent, have I been able to temporarily stretch the timeline back like a bowstring. But you cannot conceive the effort required to remain intact, physical and present in this moment. In fact there are instances even now when I lose my concentration and am pulled back to the future, where I am still chained…”

As if to demonstrate his point, suddenly Xaarus flickered and vanished from sight. Wide-eyed, Tvrdik leapt to his feet. But in a moment the older man reappeared, tottered, and would have sunk to the floor if he hadn’t been caught by his former student and lowered onto the nearest bench.

“My apologies – I confess I am growing a little weary after the journey, and the hour is late.”

“Perhaps it would be better if you rested now and we continued this conversation tomorrow?”

“No! No. I have found my focus again, and there is still so much more I need to tell you tonight. At any rate, you can see my dilemma. I have calculated that, giving all I have to this venture, I should be able to remain in this time just long enough to accomplish my goals, but only this once. After I am pulled back to my future position for good, it could take years to accumulate the strength and power needed to try again. Unless of course, I find the key I seek to unlock my prison and return here once and for all. I fear I may still be far from that hope, though. I have already spent some of the precious days I have here seeking you in this remote place, and I cannot know with any certainty when my visit will end.”

“But, hold on. Do you mean to say that you were able to choose this place, this moment in which to appear?”

“Of course. Years of study have enabled me to aim more accurately at a given time frame. I at least had that benefit this time.”

“But if you knew you could only do this one time, why did you not go back to a time before the accident, as you originally intended? Why not stop all of this from happening to begin with?”

Xaarus was hoping to be asked that question, “Because, in the interim, I have discovered a far more important mission demanding our attention.”

Tvrdik threw up his hands in exasperation, “What could be more important than having a second chance to put everything to right? To give Ailianne and Benjin back their lives and free yourself to come back where you belong?”

“Changing the future.”

“Say again?”

“Tvrdik, we may have one chance to change the course of history for good.”

The hoot of a very distant owl could be heard in the silence that followed. Tvrdik stared at his master, speechless for a moment, and then found his voice. “Is that wise?”

“If you had been there with me, son, lived among the people, you would not have to ask that question.”

Xaarus motioned for his student to sit, and leaned in close to him, “Tvrdik, the future is a gray and grim place, filled with fear and violence, divisions and inequities. We see all of those things in our own world of course, but in the time to come they have grown to such overwhelming proportions that they are nearly irreversible. There is no balance, no light, no magic anywhere. The people hate, exploit, and enslave one another; war breaks out everywhere, often over greed and lies and folly. It is only a matter of time before they all wipe each other out. To make matters worse, they have treated their lands selfishly and without wisdom. Only a small remnant of the ancient forests still stand, and the seas are all poisoned. Many creatures have perished; all the naiads and dryads have long gone away. There are no dragons, no unicorns, no talking beasts, and most certainly no wizards. It is a time of great hopelessness and joylessness. Oh, folk still laugh and sing, form friendships, fall in love and bring babes into the world. But these things seem as flickering candles in a very dark room. The downward spiral has begun, and in that time, I fear, cannot be reversed.”

“From your description, Master, I…I am greatly relieved not to have to exist in such a world. And more than ever, I am disturbed at your own misfortune in finding yourself there. But what does any of this have to do with here and now? And with the reason you have come to find me?”

Xaarus leaned even closer. “My recent explorations in time theory have taken me into the matrix of possibilities more than once – the field of chaos where causality, probability, and free will meet to summon forth our physical experience. And after some searching and pulling at the threads of time, I have found a parallel reality – an alternate story, if you wish, one which is as radiant and joyful as my current prison is grim. It is not so far-off or unlikely that it cannot be retrieved, but is fading, almost by the minute, as human choices and errors tick by. I have tracked its strands backward over the warp and woof of history, through crossroads and missed opportunities. And I have discovered, through some grand stroke of irony, lo and behold, they originate here and now. Here is the intersection of roads. This is the moment, my son, when we are gifted with one last dazzling possibility of changing the very fabric of the future, and all the lives it touches, for the better.”

Tvrdik was silent for a moment, the enormity of that last pronouncement filtering into his consciousness. When he spoke, it was barely audible. “And just what exactly do ‘we’ have to do in order to accomplish this incredible task?”

“That, my boy, if you will allow me, I was hoping to divulge to you over the next few weeks that we are together. The hour is late for me to go into detail, but suffice it to say it will require a great many dangerous and unorthodox choices. Those who sign on must have enormous faith, courage, and resourcefulness. There may be heavy sacrifices as well, but the rewards that stand to be gained are immeasurable.”

“You speak as if there were a number of folk already committed to this scheme, whatever it is. I must ask again why you have come to me?”

“I have as yet told no one else my fantastical story, and shared with no one else my hopes. Success will depend on the concerted efforts of those at the Palace of Theriole, along with a wide array of supporting players. But they will not win the day, Tvrdik, without the help of a gifted mage. I regret I cannot be here in the critical moments. My job this time will be to pass the torch. The real work ahead will fall to you.”

Another long silence, while Tvrdik stood, head down, wrestling with his very soul. He looked up to meet the elder wizard’s eyes. “Surely there is someone else you can seek out – another, more powerful wizard – somewhere in all the world?”

Xaarus regarded him with compassion, and his voice was soft, “My dear boy, when we began our studies together all those years ago, it was the proudest moment of my life, but also one of the most anxious. Long before that, I had watched my own teachers and the few colleagues I had known, age and pass into oblivion. Our kind ages differently from ordinary men, but we are not immortal. We wrestle time, face disease, accident, and violence like any other. Finding myself alone, I set forth to scour the countryside, searching, searching for anyone, especially for young people, with something of the spark – some talent and potential. I questioned thousands of families from castle to humblest cot, tracked down rumors, followed every lead and every tale, tested hundreds of candidates. And when I finally brought the three of you together to form our little school, I had such high hopes for you all. You were so bright and eager and talented, all of you. You were my insurance against the future in precarious times. You were my hope and my legacy. You will begin to understand now why the loss of Benjin and Ailianne affected me so profoundly. It was a greater blow in many ways than you could have known then. Tvrdik, I …I could be wrong…I pray I overlooked something, someone, somewhere in my search. But as far as I know, you are the last wizard in the world. There is no other to whom I may pass my knowledge or plead my cause. It is a heavy responsibility, I know, but it is for you alone to either put on the mantle destiny has assigned you – or to allow a great and ancient tradition of service to fade and die. The choice is yours.”

Tvrdik was stunned. “I am the last?”

“It is not certain, but I think so. Tvrdik, come outside with me.”

The young hermit looked up, startled, then snatched one of the threadbare blankets up from his corner pallet and threw it around the old wizard’s shoulders as they edged through the low doorway out into the clear, chill night. Xaarus shrugged into the extra wrap with gratitude, as he strode into the center of the clearing, stopped and stood gazing up at the sky, his protégé right behind him. It was an uncharacteristically clear night for early spring. There was no breath of wind, and the invisible new moon left the cloudless sky dark and clear, sprinkled liberally with tiny bright lights in an explosion of glitter. Familiar pictures began to form themselves from some of the most prominent among them, and stood out from the sky-scape in three-dimensional relief. On a night like this, you could almost follow the subtle movements of these night-time wanderers as you watched, or hear the music they were said to sing on their journey. Xaarus pointed up.

“What do you see, boy?”

Tvrdik shivered, “Boundless sky…stars…the ancient constellations by which the wise may navigate, divine the weather, the seasons, the whims of providence and fortune…”

“The old books tell a story of the race of wizards being star-seeded.”

“Star….seeded?”

“What if I told you that each of those bright lights is a distant sun, and that under many of those suns are worlds upon worlds like ours, peopled by civilizations of every kind, like ours, and not like…”

Tvrdik’s mouth fell open in awe. He could not reply, but felt the tingle of truth resonate throughout every corner of his being. Xaarus went on.

“It is written that long ago, travelers from a great race of wisdom and power far exceeding that of men, sojourned to this place and found it good. They lingered in the pleasant woods and valleys, enjoying the warm sun, sweet waters, and peaceful peoples of whom they grew to be quite fond. Like gods they were to the local tribes, and taught them many useful skills. Some of them partnered with the native folk and begat children, who were firmly of this world, but had inherited something of the qualities of their star-fathers and star-mothers. The visitors wished to bless their adopted home with something of themselves, so that when they died or returned home, there would be those who could serve and help men as visionaries, creators, guides, and guardians. It is said that the original half-bloods were radiant beings, and very powerful. Over millennia, the bloodlines have been diluted, scattered, and hidden. But the gift of those star-people has always survived somehow in our race of wizards. We, who have found ourselves to be inexplicably different from our fellows, who have discovered hidden talents and unusual powers, who find ourselves drawn to the old texts and ancient wisdom, we are descended from those visitors from the stars. And it is bred into our bones to learn and grow, to create, to discover, to exercise power, and above all, to serve.