Chapter #17 - assembling
Fully dressed Carr takes the mace outside of the room. The top landing of the staircase being the largest unobstructed space for Carr to practice swinging the mace, trying to find his range of motion.
Finding the desired spell in the tomb Cornelious memorizes it.
Seeing torchlight rounding the corner of the tower’s spiraled stairs Carr stops. Resting the mace on shoulder he waits to see whom it is. Junior and Dell, I bet.
Moving the swiftest up the stairs Junior reaches the top, in half plate and a leather tunic with a burning torch in hand.
“Hey.” Panting Junior leans on Carr’s shoulder handing over the lit torch.
“Hello.” Carr adjusts his weight for balance.
Half a minute behind Paul comes into view red faced and mouth open. He drops to all fours to crawl up the last few steps.
Still hearing someone on the stairs Carr guesses, “I take it Dell wasn’t into a race?”
“Childish he says.” Junior catches a breath, “Avilo’s right behind him, he says he’s getting too old.”
Paul rolls over on the cold stone floor, “Me too.”
Junior laughs and helps Paul up.
The trio of youthful males enter the wizard’s chambers.
Carr and Paul take a seat on the bed. Junior checks things out, causing Cornelious to keep an eye on him.
Spotting an engraved silver handle of a covered mirror, Junior pulls it from a shelf and starts to remove its cover.
“Hey!” The old mage, still swift, snags the mirror from Junior’s hand before he looks into it, “Fool.” He recovers it, “This isn’t the kind of mirror you go looking into.”
“Oh sorry.” Junior inquires, “Why keep it in the open if it’s dangerous?”
“Burglar trap.” Cornelious grins at Carr. “Guess you’ll think twice?” Putting it back he informs them, “Those people that go missing around the castle. They end up here going through my stuff.”
Noticing it is the most valuable looking thing Carr surmises, “I see leave something attractive enough to appeal to any eye and turn them to stone. Or something.”
“Stone?” The wizard likes the idea being easy to revert, “It catches them and traps them in a dimension behind the mirror.”
They look at the wizard with confusion mainly about what a dimension is.
Reaching the top Avilo and Dell see the group being lectured by the mage.
Explaining it to them as best as possible Cornelious tries to inform them. “The space we stand in could be seen from different times. Where we’re traveling to a plane in Hell, a different dimension. As the Heavens would be. A being’s spirit will naturally find their way in death.” Pointing to the marked wall, “This will become a dimension door. Allowing us a place to step into the next dimension. Like walking into a room across the hall. Or in our case we’ll be opening a door into the Hag’s home.” He looks at the men and sees Junior was lost along time ago.
Avilo jests with the mage, “Is this how you plan to put our rogue to sleep?”
A little confused too, Dell inquires, “I thought we were teleporting there?”
“Well its’ like that.” Cornelious explains a bit further, “Teleporting is okay for about twenty leagues. I have no idea how far this plane actually is. But if it makes you feel any better this is how you get demons and devils out.”
“It doesn’t, now.” Avilo attempts to memorize the markings on the wall. “Even if I could summon arch angles, I’d still find it dangerous.” He queries aloud, “This has been here as long as I’ve known you. And not once has something evil come through?”
About to say no Cornelious ponders the possibilities, “I guess it could always be possible.”
With raised brow Avilo jests, “Well won’t that help us sleep better at night knowing that?”
Cornelious knows he’s just being teased. “Perhaps when we get back, I’ll put some protective markings up.”
Dell has to ask. “Shouldn’t you already have done that or have you ever?”
The mage tallies the years gone by, “Oh, I haven’t used the protection spell in about twenty-seven years.”
Junior jokes. “That was the year I was born. After that there would have been no need for such protection with me here.”
Finding Junior amusing Avilo hides it. He does feel any prevention would be worthwhile, “Maybe you should.”
Reminded of something talked about magical portals Carr relays it, “I was told it still takes a skilled wizard to open it anyway. I could read the spell but nothing would happen.”
“You can read the writings?” Cornelious inquires.
“Just the old human language and maybe Orc,” Carr lets them know, “I’ve yet to see any parchments or books written in Orc.”
Cornelious shares a mage’s joke. “Orc mages can’t use scrolls. An untrusting race they read the scrolls to ensure they’re not being ripped off. Orcs that read mouth the words. So Orc mages prematurely cast the spells.” The old wizard laughs alone. Carr gets the humor and smiles.
The men just look at each other posing the question can Orc’s read.
Avilo points out that the name of Orc villages and towns are scratched into wood and stone.
Ready to get on with it Cornelious brings the bowl with the ground herbs to Carr, “Just let your finger get dusty. It should be enough to do the trick.”
The others watch wondering what it’s about.
“Alright,” Carr sticks a dusty finger in mouth.
“What’s that about?” Asks Avilo.
Emptying the remainder of the powder into a vial, the mage replies, “Oh, just something I crushed up to help him get to sleep.” He turns to Carr, “You may want to lay back.”
“Why, how faass,s,s…” Carr’s vision blurs and his body goes limp. Falling back the top of his head connects with stonewall.
Gasping Paul and Junior both rub the tops of their heads in sympathy.
Dell chuckles, “Ah sounds like he’s got a thick skull.”
“Can you wake him?” Avilo wonders.
“In an hour for sure.” Cornelious speaks to Junior and Paul, “Lay him out on the bed, then open the window over it. Then stand over here by your Captain.”
“Sure,” Junior lifts Carr’s legs.
After assisting him into position Paul opens the wooden door covering the window.
“Is an hour too long?” The Captain pictures the Hag arriving within minutes.
“We’ve got time.” Cornellious gets another book out to memorize an extra spell, “You men try and stay back as far as possible from Carr and quiet.”
Junior, Paul and Dell go out to the landing and close the door to talk quietly.
Avilo remains hoping to understand the wizard more, as he rarely gets such opportunities. Bidding time Avilo reads the titles on books on the shelf.
Closing the book Cornelious hands it to Avilo, “Just stick it some where in there.” Rummaging through some drawers reading titles of scrolls he finds one wanted and returns to the table, “This one is so the Hag can’t see us.”
Avilo listens to the words read on the scroll. Waiting for something noticeable to happen.
Done reciting the scroll the wizard sets down a now blank scroll.
Avilo picks it up inquiring, “Where are the words you read? Did anything happen?”
Cornellious whispers. “That’s what happens to spells written on scrolls. The spell it self is bound in the inks. It doesn’t use any of my power to cast them. I need power to get us there and back.”
Liking the sound of that Avilo nods, “Good idea then. Can anyone cast spells with a scroll?”
The mage grins, “Sure, but if you can’t say all the words nothing will happen. If you miss pronounce the wrong or too many words, well anything can happen, it isn’t usually favorable.”
Having heard an incantation Dell sticks his head in quietly asking, “Anything happening?”
Avilo shakes his head no.
Cornelious quietly informs him, “I just shielded us from the Hag. We just have to stay quiet.”
Nodding Dell closes the door and explains to Paul and Junior patiently waiting on the landing.
Time passes soon Avilo becomes impatient opening his mouth to inquire. Quickly raising a finger Cornelious stops Avilo. Using the same finger, the mage points out a dark vapor seeping in through the window.
Under his breath the wizard recites the open book page, concentrating on the crystal ball.
Stepping back opening the door Avilo puts a finger to his lips silencing the men, before using it to point out the vapor.
Getting the proof needed Dell enters the room gazing at the darkness hovering over Carr.
Paul and Junior stay on the landing fearful they could be targeted next.
The cloud settles onto Carr’s body, disappearing inside. The men’s eyes widen glancing over to see what the wizard is doing. The crystal ball looks all cloudy to the men.
Slowly Carr begins mumbling in his sleep. Ready and made for action the men find it difficult to just stand by.
Getting behind the mage, Avilo can see a fuzzy view of the grasslands moving towards the Ironwood Forest in the crystal ball.
The view is obscured darting between trees. The Captain glimpses a large body laying on the ground before the image hits into ground. The view looks all twisted black and red to Avilo. He looks over to check out Carr.
Encountering Tetra while dreaming of the Tua Woodlands again. Carr tries to out maneuver the dream Hag. The men see his body twitching about.
The mage is following hellish caverns in the ball. Avilo can’t see anything else in the ball and focuses on the dreaming rogue.
Caught in her grasp Carr fights the Hag. Cursing her blackened soul loud enough the group can hear. They know he’s in a battle with the Night-hag.
Tightening her grip on Carr’s throat she laughs. Dell and Avilo hear faint evil laughter ringing in their minds. Carr struggles to breath, the men glance at their wizard.
All Cornilous sees is twisting caverns and strange beings quickly zip by. He certainly hopes he’s got enough power to get them back. Walking it would seem to take a year or longer.
Gasping for air Carr’s body losses it’s fight. Avilo looks to the wizard pointing to an hourglass. Even Dell is becoming concerned. Junior wants to help but doesn’t know how. Dell points out the color in Carr’s face and the finger depressions in his neck.