The Hedge Wizard

There was little chatter as they surveyed the remaining tunnels for warlocks. They broke off into three groups: Bud and Emilia took one tunnel, Hump and Dylan another, while Celaine surveyed the area on her own. There wasn’t a huge amount more to the place. Hump came across another small chamber, this one with a single bed and essence stone lantern inside—perhaps the leader had stayed here. If they had, there wasn’t anything left to show for it. Clearly they had no intention of returning to this place. It was a common theme throughout the rest of the tunnels too. Everything was abandoned. No books or supplies remained. Other than the warlocks in charge of the spell, and the reinforcing demons, they were gone.

“Did you find anything on your end?” Hump asked as he and Dylan returned to the central chamber.

“Nothing,” Emilia said. “Not even a few copper coins.”

“Same here,” Celaine said. “The warlocks are gone. There are a couple of tunnels connecting to the one we found the gateway spell in. I reckon any we didn’t kill or capture managed to escape through there.”

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Dylan said. “Why would they go to all this effort only to abandon this place?”

“I imagine they were only ever a distraction to begin with,” Hump said. “The real target was the seal in the Temple of Sanctum.”

“You think the warlocks would just abandon their companions?” Bud asked.

“They would definitely do that,” Emilia said. “The real surprise is anyone volunteering for the job. I suspect they may have underestimated how quickly we found them.”

“In which case, let’s hope this wasn’t the only place they underestimated us,” Bud said. “I’m worried about the company, and the temple, we shouldn’t stay here any longer.”

They said goodbyes to Inquisitor Hartlen, reassuring her and her group that the tunnels were clear of demons and warlocks. Bud’s eagerness to be out and back with his company showed in his hurried pace, but Hump had to commend the knight, he never let his worries affect his duty. Only when they were satisfied that it was safe did they head back to the surface.

“They will be fine,” Dylan said to Bud. “You need to stop worrying. This is their job as much as coming down here was ours.”

“I know,” Bud said. “But it still bothers me to think that my people are holding the wall without me. I should be up there.”

“Henrietta is with them,” Emilia said. “And if the information from Wizard Aldric was correct, we saved far more lives here than we could on the walls.”

Bud shook his head. “I’ll feel better once I know how it all went. It’s the not knowing that I hate. Not just the company, but if the seal of the Temple of Sanctum falls, our entire time in Fort Nordric might as well have been for nothing.”

The comment sent them into quiet once more. Soon, they climbed a set of stairs, coming to the prison cells they’d passed before. Hump couldn’t help but glance at the skeleton inside. There were no sounds down here but for echoing drips in the distance and the eerie howl of the wind. How such a complex series of smuggling tunnels could exist for so long and go unnoticed was beyond him. Well, not quite. The answer was probably simple—there was corruption in every place. Fort Nordric would be no different.

As Hump moved ahead, he noticed Celaine hesitate.

“You alright?”

She turned away from the cell and caught up quickly. “Just can’t imagine a fate worse than being left underground here to rot while an entire city walks around above.”

The veil over the entrance to the tavern cellar was gone when they returned, its magic either depleted or undone. Stepping inside, Hump heard voices coming from the top of the stairs. Bud led the way up, the five of them coming to stand behind a bar as a dozen people turned to stare at them, surprise written across their faces.

“Sir Robert?” a woman asked.

There was an edge to her aura that made Hump pause. Her armour was well polished, and each piece carved with runes. There were no gaps between the plates or joints of the steel, instead, the entire piece appeared to be made of a single piece of metal, perfectly forged for her body, almost as if created from liquid metal. The only similar piece Hump had seen was the armour belonging to Prince Kassius, so he had no doubt about its price.

This woman was powerful, and looking at the party members gathering around her, they were too. At the same time, their eager eyes reminded Hump of some of the Chosen at Sheercliff Academy, as if they were excited for a fight. He would bet they’d not seen serious combat before.

“That’s me,” Bud said.

The woman approached and extended a hand. “I am Loraine Seahorn. Sir Darian reported that you had discovered a warlock artifact. We were on our way down to secure it.”

“I didn’t expect you here so quickly,” Bud said. “Inquisitor Hartlen is still down there keeping guard.”

Briefly, Bud caught her up on the situation, soon making excuses for them to depart. Their job there was done now, that artifact was the problem of people with more authority than them to worry about. For now, they made their way back to the walls.

The warehouse fire had been put out while they were down below. Gazing across the river, Hump sensed essence in the air around the Temple of Sanctum, but there were no longer any active sounds of battle.

“What do you think?” Bud asked.

“It might be over,” Hump said. He turned to the north, looking over the tops of buildings toward the Red Fog. “Is it just me or is the fog receding?”

Dylan clapped his hands in excitement. “Now would you look at that! It’s working.”

Hump grinned, Emilia raised her arms and cheered.

“Do you think they’ve been behind the Red Fog all this time?” Hump asked. “Directing the monster waves to destroy Alveron’s cities for centuries.”

“You always think about the gloomiest things after a victory,” Celaine said.

“Come on,” Bud said. “It’s not a victory until everyone’s home for dinner.”

The hours after that were long. The artifact had left Hump drained, but he would not leave his party here. They returned to the walls, reuniting with the company as they continued the battle, their members still intact though a few were wounded. Even as the Red Fog retreated from the walls, some monsters continued to attack, while others that were trapped within the streets required hunting down. Yet when Hump looked up, he saw the Red Fog grow duller, fading back into the Fallen Lands where it had come from.

For hours, Hump remained there, keeping watch for creatures that tried to sneak inside or already within the walls. At some point, Bud and Emilia were called away to report to High Command. Only when they returned were they finally dismissed from their post upon the wall.

Marcela was with them now, along with her party member, Len. Despite their victory this day, they wore grave faces.

“Bad news?” Hump asked, his eyes widened in realisation. “Don’t tell me the warlocks succeeded.”

“No, actually,” Bud said. “Count Daston and General Korteg were both present at the Temple of Sanctum. For today, the warlock attack was thwarted. The seal is unharmed, and they were driven back.”

“Then why the long faces?” Dylan asked.

“Our counterattack begins the day after tomorrow,” Bud said. “We’ll be leaving Overseer Oswald’s command and joining the Sheercliff retinue. That morning, we leave Fort Nordric and go north.”

“I wanted to come and thank you for joining me personally,” Marcela said. “And to extend an invitation to your company. I’m hosting a gathering at a tavern on the south side of the river to celebrate the victory. I would like for you to join us.”

Now that was an offer too good to refuse. If there was one thing nobles got right, it was gatherings.

“One question,” Hump said, smiling. “Do you mind if I bring a dragon?”

***

Hump woke to a weight on his chest, making it difficult to breathe. He squinted to see Nishari standing over him, purple eyes staring down at him, mouth hanging gormlessly open. She let out a huff, shaking him with her paws.

“You need to go out?” Hump mumbled. His head pounded from a few too many drinks. She hopped off him and onto the floor, bouncing on her feet toward the door and looking at him expectantly. Hump let out a long sigh. “I’m coming.”

He threw off his cover and stumbled out of bed, pulling on a pair of trousers and shirt as he went barefoot to his door. The living room was dark, but for a small essence stone that glowed faintly over the fireplace, just bright enough to light the room. He made his way across the room, the luxurious carpet like velvet beneath his feet, and opened the door to get outside. The apartment was three floors up—great when it came to views, not so great for this side of things.

Too tired to bother with shoes, Hump followed Nisha down to the empty entry lobby and let her outside. While she wandered over to a nearby spot of grass, Hump hugged his arms across his chest and watched the dark windows over the street, suddenly feeling watched.

Once Nisha started sniffing around, Hump whispered at her to get inside. The crunch of metal tapped nearby as two guards on patrol strolled by, just as Nisha raced back into the building. They watched her go, the younger of the two with a face full of surprise.

“That’s a big dog,” the older man said. He had a twisted moustache.

“That was a dog?” the other asked.

“Got her down south,” Hump said with a smirk. “They’re all giant by the coast. Have a good night.”

“Good night, sir,” the older man said.

Hump followed Nisha back inside, forcing himself not to laugh as he heard the younger guard swear that he saw scales, only for the other to call him an idiot.

Groggily, Hump made his way back to the apartment and headed to his room, when Nisha looked curiously at Celaine’s door.

“What now?” Hump whispered. “That’s not your room.”

Nisha walked closer, sniffing at the gap at the bottom. She tapped at the door, scratching to try and get in.

“Stop that.”

Nisha tapped harder, urgency coming through their bond. A feeling of unease rose in Nisha that put Hump immediately on alert. His mind swam with a strange message—a scent that the little dragon had caught, but one he didn’t recognise. One that certainly didn’t belong.

Hump rushed to the door, pulling the handle down and pushing it open. A figure was inside, standing over Celaine on her bed, their hands held on either side of her head. Dark wisps of essence rose from Celaine, siphoned off by the figure. The figure turned and snarled at Hump. Even in the dim light, Hump made out the twisted features—warlock. And it had Celaine under its spell.

“What have you done?” Hump’s voice rose from somewhere dark in him, resonating with power that shook the air.

His soul erupted in the air around him, blazing with his anger, filling the room with flickering purple light. Hump stepped into the room, directing his power at the figure with an overpowering desire to crush. The figure’s magic weakened at his pressure; their essence disrupted by Hump’s intent.

The figure leapt off of Celaine and backed against the wall. They were male, a little taller than Hump, and a good few decades older than him.

“A mistake,” the man said. “You’re the wizard.” He slapped themselves on the head. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” His head whipped to the side, fast enough Hump thought it might have snapped. “I told you she was no wizard!”

Nisha growled at his side, hunched forward and furious.

“What did you do to her?” Hump snarled.

The warlock looked at Hump with frenzied eyes, elongating his neck like a turtle. A cackle escaped him, echoing as if there were many voices on top of each other.

Hump’s patience was at an end. He raised his hand, gathering essence to it. “Focused Beam.”

A bolt of pure essence shot from his hand, aimed at the warlock’s chest, yet without his staff, the spell lacked activation speed and power. Before it struck, the man vanished, leaving nothing but a flash of white essence where he’d been standing. There was a deafening crash as his spell struck the wall, splintering it into pieces.

Footsteps sounded behind Hump and he whirled around, catching a glimpse of the figure as he ran into his room. Hump gave chase, pursuing the warlock inside, Nisha close behind. His eyes went to his nightstand where his spellbook was stowed inside, still safely beside his bed, but the warlock was gone.

A weight dropped onto his back, sending Hump crashing to the ground. Pain shot through him as the warlock jammed a knee into his spine, hissing and huffing with the effort. Hump fought to get out from under it, when the warlock’s hands gripped his head, essence gathering.

“Where… is the… book?” it seethed. Hump felt the heat of the man’s breath on his neck—smelled the stench of it.

Hump roared, trying to force himself up and use that strength of his dragon blood, yet his body didn’t move. It didn’t obey him. He felt gripped in its clutches, yet he couldn’t sense a spell on him, nor any intent to break.

Suddenly, the weight was dragged from him. Nisha snarled viciously at his back. Hump scrambled to his feet, turning to see the dragon with her jaws clamped around the man’s ankles, dragging him back as he screamed. Hump went for his staff, grabbing it as the creature kicked Nisha aside with a squeal.

Hump saw red. Essence erupted from his staff, filling the room with fiery light. The warlock raised a hand to shield its face, but it was too late. The darkness of the room was pushed back as fire erupted.

“Lava Coils,” Hump barked.

Three tendrils of molten flame burst from his staff and wrapped around the warlock, binding him tight. He screamed in pure agony as they seared through his body, the stench of burning flesh filling the room, yet Hump did not release him. Seconds passed, and the coils dug deeper, smoke and steam hissing from the wounds as flesh sizzled. A few seconds later, and the scream stopped. Hump let his spell fade, the body dropping to the floor with a thud. Black spots flickered in his vision from the bright light of his magic. He swallowed back the urge to gag, disgusted at what he’d just done to a person, even if they were just a warlock.

Then his mind cleared. Celaine. He stepped over the body and rushed to Celaine’s room. She was still in bed, eyes closed and unresponsive. Dropping to his knees beside her, Hump leant in close, listening for her breathing.

He let out a relieved breath and dropped back at the sound of it. His heart raced and he took a few moments to calm himself, pressing a hand to his chest. The warlock had been after him. It had attacked at just the wrong moment and mistaken Celaine as the target while Hump was out, but the book was what it really wanted. Had Karlac sent them? Or was this simply another person that had managed to track it down?

A warning rose from Nisha, an image of the front door appearing in Hump’s mind. He stood, bringing his staff with him and preparing for the next part of the fight, when frantic banging sounded at the door.

Hump went to open it, staff at the ready as he peered through the gap. The two guards from before stood there.

“We thought we heard some…,” the older guard trailed off as he saw the body on the floor.

“That would be me,” Hump said. “We had an uninvited guest.”

“I… I’ll need to report it,” the guard said, then his face snapped round, his face a mess of confusion as he looked at something else.

Nisha came to stand beside Hump, watching the two guards with caution.

“I told you it wasn’t a dog!” the younger guard muttered.