MAGNUS

“Where’s the big guy?” the redhead asked ash she dropped to the ground next to us and started recovering her arrows.

I watched as she let her aether flow into the glyph on her crossbows again, and noticed that I was mistaken previously, The glyph was similar to the one the old man used, but it wasn’t quite the same. I didn’t have time to analyze it though as it faded into the crossbow as she cut the flow of aether. It did remind me that she had asked a question, so I answered, “I wouldn’t worry about the ogre. I think it’s new name is breakfast.”

“Something bigger came along? Damn it, I was trying to lead it away, but it doubled back when I took to the trees,” she said.

I smirked and Richard chuckled and said, “Yeah, something bigger came along.”

“Then why are you still alive?” she asked.

The messenger spoke up, his voice a little raspy, “Because i wore my denim today.”

She turned to glare at the messenger as Richard and I laughed. Varis flew over to me and faded into wisps of light as she went back into the crystal that was her new home. I spoke up before she decided to shoot the messenger, “Did anyone tell you about Fenris?”

“Spawn of the Trickster, said to herald Ragnarok when he is freed,” she said looking back at me.

“Okay, not an answer I’ve heard before,” Richard said.

“Same here, but Fenris is a Blood Moon Wolf that’s been on this mountain for decades. He keeps the trail clear, and regularly steals the pants of messengers that come up for no good reason. He doesn’t like canvas though, says it tastes like moldy socks,” I said.

“It does taste like moldy socks,” Fenris said as he trotted back onto the trail.

I looked over to him as the young woman tensed, visibly restraining herself from pointing her crossbows at the draft horse sized predator. “I’m not even going to ask how you know what moldy socks taste like,” I said.

“If he tries to eat my pants, I’m feeding him arrows,” the redhead said with a slight tremor to her voice.

“Tell the puppy that if she wants to play we can play, but if she tries to kill me I’ll drop her down west of the cabin,” Fenris said, though his tail was wagging like a dog as he did so.

Considering his favorite spot to mark his territory was west of the cabin it could mean that he would eat her and use her for his next marking, or he would literally drop her into his latest marking. It would probably depend on if she actually managed to injure him.

Assuming she would misunderstand a direct translation I said, “He’ll play if you want, but you might end up dumped in a pile of wolf droppings if you escalate beyond play.”

“Awww, you're spoiling my fun,” Fenris said with a chuff of laughter.

I just shook my head and helped the messenger to his feet before asking, “So what was so urgent that you decided to come up the mountain when we were already coming down?”

The messenger responded, still a bit unsteady on his feet from the injury and rapid healing, “The crown princess arranged transportation for each of the academy students,” he said as he pulled a card out of the bag slung at his side.

I examined it recognizing it as an image binding for a spell known as ‘Hearthstone’ that would teleport the caster to a designated safe zone. It wasn’t a commonly used spell even for spellbinders as it was costly to use, took time to build up, and had to have the destination inscribed as part of the binding. The name came from the fact that the inventor actually made the target of his spell a foot tall stone obelisk that he could move around to different locations, and he would return to a point in relation to it though he usually set it upon the mantle of his fireplace.

“I’m surprised the old curmudgeon would let her Highness make an image binding of the spell,” I said.

Richard and the redhead both looked at me funny, probably not understanding that I knew the spell’s creator from when I lived in Haven as a child. The messenger laughed and said, “Archmage Vulmar wasn’t happy about the idea in the slightest, but even he wouldn’t disregard a royal command. I heard he was told that he could either help in the process of creating the cards, or he could go collect the students himself.”

I laughed and took the card before saying, “I still don’t see why you couldn’t have waited in Mountain’s Rest.”

“Well I hoped to catch you before you left, but I also had a package for your grandfather,” he answered.

“Well I assume Richard and, I’m sorry we weren’t introduced. I’m Magnus Ward,” I said to the red headed archer.

“Jessica von Eisen,” she answered.

“Nice to meet you. I assume you and Richard already have the cards?” I asked.

At her nod I continued, “First why didn’t you use them already? Second I’m sure Fenris can escort you the rest of the way.”

Richard shrugged, “I wanted an excuse to pick Morgan’s brain about other materials.”

I chuckled, ever since Richard had first spoken with the old man he was obsessed with discussing materials and bindings with him. He had apprenticed as a blacksmith with the intent to bind spells to equipment that would always be in effect. So far he hadn’t managed to do it, but he had created some interesting bindings that he could use in a hand to hand confrontation. Considering he couldn’t see clearly past ten feet that was a good thing.

“I just wanted to meet the reclusive hermit that was given a mountain by three separate nations,” Jessica said.

“He wasn’t given the mountain. They just agreed not to try and claim it after he built his cabin there. I never could get him to explain that,” I said.

The messenger looked at Fenris and said, “Am I going to be returning to Nilavs pantless?”

Fenris snuffled at the messengers pants before making an exaggerated whimper and back up rapidly, to laughter from both Richard and I/ He then stopped playing around and turned to head back up the mountain.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” the messenger said.

“Probably a wise idea,” I said.

Richard and Jessica pulled their own Hearthstone cards out and activated them. I activated mine and waited as the power built around me. Since I was still channeling the aether to my eyes I saw the spell slowly form around me and reaching out to an aspect of existence I didn’t understand, yet somehow knew it was based on the location I was in and going to.

I heard Jessica mutter, “Oh I hate this effect.”

Streams of light, scintillating colors that spanned the range I could see with my normal vision strobed around me. A twisting sensation like falling, but without any momentum turned my stomach. Then suddenly I was no longer on the forest trail of the mountain I had known for most of the last decade. I was in the courtyard of a beautiful stone building, trees lined pathways leading to a tall central structure of polished grey granite. The banners of four separate nations hung from the walls, flanking the banner of a green shield with a white starburst, the newly recognized heraldry for the Aegis Academy. The doors opened and a young woman with blonde hair, a swordsman's lean muscular build, a white with blue trimmed tunic covered her, a white leather belt held a rapier ornamented with blue crystals. She looked familiar, which was confirmed a few moments later when she said, with eyes blazing in fury, “Magnus Ward, where the hell have you been.”

I studied the blonde critically, her blue eyes were fierce as she glared at me, the rapier was clearly high quality, but not something that had a gear binding to it. The crystals attached to her belt marked her primarily as a beast binder, but I could see runes etched into the gemstones on the guard of the rapier.

“Well, aren’t you going to say something after a decade of being gone,” she demanded in an imperious tone.

It was the tone that gave her identity away. I knew that tone of voice even after this long.

“Vara, how good to see you again,” I said blandly.

She stepped forward and slapped me across the face, “That’s for the Blink Mouse you left in my chambers before you ran away to hide on a mountain.”

I could hear Richard and Jessica stifling giggles behind me as I stammered out, “Hey I didn’t choose to stay on a mountain, and the Blink Mouse was in a cage. It was an apology for the toad.”

“You idiotic, scatterbrained, man. It is a Blink Mouse, cages can’t hold them. They teleport, I thought you knew that,” she ranted at me.

Thinking back on it I realized I hadn’t known enough about various creatures to know why it was called a Blink Mouse. The chagrined look on my face must have convinced her more than words could ever have, as her face softened and she stepped forward to embrace me.

“It’s good to see you again Magnus,” she whispered into my tunic.