The Wand-Maker's Debate: Osric's Wand: Book One (29 page)

Bridgett had been sitting on the stair case, watching and waiting for an opportunity to assist them. At Osric's display of violence and defeat, she stood and walked over to him. She felt the conflicting emotions raging within him; fear and frustration, anger and purpose. She sensed his strong desire to free the dragons and an immense despair that their efforts seemed futile without the key.

She glared down at Thom, and then raised her eyes and spoke, “Stop it, Osric!” He met her gaze with a stunned expression.

“What?” He asked, confused by the scolding tone of her voice.

“Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Stop thinking that someone else should solve the problem and let you go back to your small life in Stanton.” He stared down at the ground, and she raised his chin so his eyes met hers, “Stop doubting yourself! You are the most powerful wizard who ever lived. You do not have to like it, but you cannot deny it. That amount of power comes with responsibility, and these dragons are counting on you to find a way to free them. So stop thinking about yourself, all of the things that have gone wrong, and everything standing in the way of freeing them, and start thinking about what will open these doors!” Osric stood in surprised silence as he considered her words. He was distracted from his thoughts by Gus' laughter. He glanced down at him as he stood on the table chuckling.

“She's right, my boy. If twelve wizards could concoct this irritating mess of a spell, then surely our collective powers can unravel it. So, what are we going to do?”

Osric stared at them both in disbelief, and then turned and walked out of the volcano without a word. Bridgett watched him walk away and was overwhelmed by sadness. She had believed that her words would sway him into action, but she had never imagined that he would abandon the mission altogether.

Gus stared intently at the doors for a moment before jumping down to a chair and then to the floor. “Come with me, my dear, and grab Kenneth and that crazy dwarf. I have an idea!” He scampered as quickly as he could toward the entrance. Bridgett shook her head, and then swiftly went to retrieve Kenneth and Machai.

When they exited the volcano, they found Osric standing just outside glaring down at Gus.

“Stop pouting, boy, and focus!” Gus yelled at him.

“What are you doing?” Bridgett asked.

“I am instructing him on how to make a wand.” Gus responded, glancing up at her.

“What?” Kenneth demanded. “He has the most powerful wand in existence if that prophecy is to be believed. Why does he need another one?”

“He isn't making a wand; he is learning
how
to make a wand.” Gus watched as Osric turned a small stick over in his hands. “That's it, boy! Do you think you can do it?”

“I don't know, Gus, but it just may be crazy enough to work.” He looked up at his companions, as his expression changed from one of irritation to hope. “The four of you, form a circle around me. If I can't do it with you, I won't be able to do it with the spell.” Bridgett exchanged a confused look with Kenneth and Machai, but they shifted to stand in a rough circle with Gus and Osric.

Osric held the stick out before him and activated his Wand-Maker gift. He stared at Gus for a long moment, who stood immediately to his left, and a look of intense concentration crossed his features. He turned his gaze on Kenneth, standing next to Gus, and then at Bridgett. When he focused on Machai, a thin sheet of sweat broke out on his brow and his arms trembled slightly, but he kept the stick steady. After a moment, his shoulders sagged and he broke eye contact, and he handed the stick to Gus.

“You did it, boy! Four separate variations of strands! I can't believe I never thought of it before. Honestly, I'm not sure I could have done it.” Gus looked up at him with an expression of awe and respect, “You truly are a wonder.”

“Let's just hope it is enough. Let's go.” Osric turned and walked back into the volcano with a renewed posture of pride and strength, and the others followed him inside.

They crossed the volcano to the first cage door, and stood watching Osric expectantly.

“Do ye need me to be getting ye another stick?” Machai asked, breaking the heavy silence.

Osric laughed, “That won't be necessary, Machai. I have no intention of preserving the strands of this spell to be used against anyone else.”

Osric lifted Gus to his shoulder, activated his gift, and looked once more at the intricate weave of the spell caging the dragons. He found the most obvious variation in the strands, indicating the power of the wizard that contributed to the spell, and followed the single strand with his eyes until it ended at a small indentation in the metal of the door. He walked closer to the door to get a better look, and realized that the indentation was exactly the same shape as the crystal that Thom had smashed.

“That must be where the key was placed to stall the spell.” Gus mused.

Osric focused all of his power on the beginning of that single strand, and drew it out from the spell, the same way Gus drew a strand from Archana to create a wand. The same way he had drawn specific strands from his friends when they stood outside. He felt resistance from the spell, fighting him to retain the strand and stay intact, but Osric was stronger and it finally gave way. He watched with his gift as the strand untangled itself from the weave of the spell and coiled into his open palm. Gus exhaled audibly as he watched Osric achieve what no Wand-Maker before him had ever even attempted.

Osric found a second strand with the same variation as the first. He wanted to eliminate the power of a wizard entirely before moving on to the next. He traced the path of the strand back to the indentation and again focused on drawing it out of the spell. He felt the same resistance, but it gave way much faster than the first, and as it coiled in his hand, it melded itself to the original strand as though they were actually only one. It took him a moment, but he was able to locate a third strand, and it too melded with the others as he drew it out of the spell. Osric looked down at the strand of power lying in his hand and then looked at Gus.

“Uh, what should I do with it?” Osric asked him. Gus laughed out loud, and jumped onto Osric's outstretched arm, causing his hand to drop and the magical strand to fall to the ground. Osric watched, intrigued, as the power was absorbed into the stone at their feet.

“Give it back to Archana, my boy!” Gus exclaimed happily. “This is incredible! Do it again!” He shouted, to looks of astonishment and confusion from their friends behind them. Osric grinned, and turned back to the spell.

He had managed to withdraw all of the strands of seven of the wizards when he started feeling very fatigued, and his head began to pound terribly. Kenneth and Bridgett looked on with concern as he broke out in a sweat and his body began to shake.

“I don't know if I can finish this.” Osric said through gritted teeth.

“Just a bit longer. You have to do this, Osric, no one else has the power.” Gus responded.

Bridgett didn't know exactly what Osric was doing, but she could see the strain it was putting on him, and she could not stand back and watch him be destroyed by his own power. “Osric, where is my amulet?”

“Don't distract him now!” Gus exclaimed. Bridgett walked up beside Osric and reached into his tunic, pulling the amulet up and over his head. She ignored Gus' glare and motioned for Kenneth and Machai to join her at Osric's side.

“I want you two to focus on this amulet. Pour all of your energy and power into it that you can. Will your strength into the stone, for Osric's sake, and for the dragons' sake. He needs us more now than he ever has before. You must channel your desire to help him, and your will. Do you understand?” Machai gazed at her with a deep respect, and nodded his head.

“I can't say I understand, but if it will help him, I will pour my soul into that damned stone!” Kenneth stated, and Bridgett smiled over at him.

“Good. Just focus on the amulet, and think about putting all of your strength and power into it, so Osric can use it.” They did as she asked, and she used a technique she had learned from the Araseth Empaths to channel their power from the stone to Osric.

Just when Osric thought he would collapse from the effort, he felt a surge of strength and power envelop him. He put everything he had into drawing out the strands, and suddenly the woven strands still feeding into the doors began to quiver in his vision. The structure of the spell had become so unstable that it could no longer sustain itself, and the remaining strands fell to the ground, disappearing back into Archana. Osric sat shakily on the ground, breathing heavily, and Gus jumped down from his perch on his arm. Bridgett dropped to her knees at Osric's side, and Gus climbed up onto her shoulder and kissed her cheek.

“Brilliant, girl! Just brilliant!” Gus jumped back to the ground and ran up to the door of the cage. “Somebody open this thing up!”

Kenneth stepped forward and braced his shoulder under the massive bar that crossed the door. He stood with a grunt and swung the bar out of its cradle. He hesitated a moment before opening the door.

“I think you should all step back, and someone should probably go get that dragon to tell his friends that we are the good guys.” Kenneth waited for them to retreat, and as he caught sight of Stargon flying down from the mouth of the volcano, he heaved the door open and dived to the side. Fire came spewing out from the cage, and a green dragon much smaller than Stargon burst out into the chamber. The larger dragon leaped between it and the rest of the volcano's occupants.

“Be still, Treethorn! These men have freed us from our bondage!” Stargon roared, and the smaller dragon stopped and looked around in amazement. Treethorn let out an ear-piercing cry, and then she shot up the vent of the volcano and into the open air, spreading her wings wide and streaking back and forth across the sky.

“Let's hope they are all that happy to see us.” Kenneth said, as he levitated the bar from the next cage with his wand.

“Stargon, with the spell disabled, can ye be telling ye'r kin that we be freeing them, and not to be roasting us?” Machai asked the dragon.

“Already done, stone dweller. You should have no more resistance from us. Please, release them from these cages.” Stargon's voice was thick with emotion.

Osric, Bridgett, Machai and Gus all aided him in unbarring the cages, and soon all fifty stood open and the dragons had flown up and out to celebrate their freedom. When the last two doors were opened, and nothing emerged, Osric approached the cages tentatively. He looked inside the first cage, and it stood empty, no doubt meant to hold Stargon. Upon peering into the last, he smiled in relief; it was occupied by a familiar face.

“Contege Thamas, we were wondering where you had gone off to.”

22 – Homeward Bound

Machai took great pleasure in locking Aron and his seven remaining men in one of the cages, and he asked several of the eagles to stand guard outside the door. He left the volcano and went to find the others. They were standing outside speaking with Thamas, and Machai headed in their direction.

Thamas stood beside Osric shaking his head. “I can't believe you found a way to free the dragons! Don't misunderstand me, I am elated that they will no longer be held captive and tortured, but how will the people of Archana travel without them?”

“No single race should suffer for the convenience of the others.” Osric replied. “We will just have to find a way to get along without forcing them to fly us around. Perhaps, if we ask nicely, they will still take us where we want to go.” Osric winked over at his friends, and walked toward Machai, leaving Thamas to ponder the repercussions of the day's events.

“The guards be secured. I be hoping they enjoy their time in the cage. They will be having a while to think about what the dragons have been going through all these years.” Machai told Osric and inclined his head toward Thamas. “Ye be knowing the Contege they had caged?”

“Yes, I was promoted to replace him when he went missing. I am truly glad to find he is alive, and we have much to discuss, but we need to plan our next move. I don't think it would be wise to inform Thamas of all we have learned, until we know if he intends to take back his position as Stanton's Contege.” He glanced back over his shoulder. “Will you join me in speaking with the dragons before we go?”

“Aye.” They walked over to Stargon and several other dragons where they were laying in the warm sunshine. They all stood and lowered their heads to the ground in a respectful bow as Osric approached.

“High Wizard, we are forever indebted to you for our freedom.” Stargon gazed up at the sky. “The dragon elders have regained the skies, and our race will never be controlled and obligated to serve others again.”

“What is a high wizard?” Osric asked.

“No wizard should ever have been able to unbind that spell. You have the power of a wizard of a higher capability than any other ever born. You are a high wizard, Osric;
the
High Wizard.” Osric was shocked, but after all that had happened he could not argue with the dragon. He bowed slightly in acknowledgement.

“I am just grateful that we were able to free you, and I certainly did not accomplish it alone, but I would like to speak to you about the future of your race.”

“Our race has a future, thanks to you. What would you like to discuss?”

“Well, actually, I have a favor to ask of you. Dragons should be free to decide where they fly, and why. I hope that you never feel obligated to fly passengers against your will again,” Osric took a deep, calming breath before he continued, “but I would like to request that you aid our cause in preventing a massive world war.” He looked up at the dragon towering above him with a hopeful expression.

“We may not be very sympathetic to the races that have held us here for so long, but a world war would be devastating for all of the races who have never caused us any harm. What is it that you need from us?”

“I believe that the men who have been overseeing your captivity are the same men that have amassed an army and intend to initiate the war. Without the dragons to fly the troops, the army will be forced to move slowly, and it may buy us enough time to find a way to stop them altogether.”