| And So...It Starts |
| Evil Wizard Keenan Series - Two |
 |
 |
 |
| Keenan opened his eyes and glanced at the beautiful woman beside him. Never in his wildest dreams could he have imagined that Elayne would want him for her consort. She knew that he was not a full master and still wanted him. She even knew that he was a Contact Wizard and still wanted him. What bothered the young wizard was what she still didn�t know about him. He had a familiar � a sign of inferiority among wizards. Would she cast him aside when she learned this fact? He sat up in bed and began chafing his hands � not with worry � but because it was the first step in his teleportation spell. It was a prearranged signal to Bartholomew that he wanted to teleport to a preset location � in this case, his own chambers. Clapping would activate the spell. Keenan was so lost in his thoughts that he didn�t realize that Elayne had woken up. Seeing him chafe his hands, she caught them and locked her green eyes on his violet ones. �You gave your word, Keenan,� she reminded gently. Keenan blinked at her; then gently pulled his hands away. �That I wouldn�t try to escape you using magic,� he corrected. �I�m just going back to my chambers, so I can get dressed.� Elayne scowled. �The spell takes you back to your room?� she asked. �It takes me back to the last place I teleported from,� he replied. �In this case � my chambers. Unless I reset it afterwards, the next time I use the spell, it will take me back here.� �That�s a high level spell,� Elayne stated. �Are you certain that you�re only an apprentice, Keenan?� Keenan sighed and looked down at his hands. �I was only twenty years old when Master Bartholomew was killed,� he stated softly. �I�d been his apprentice for close to eight years by that point.� The young wizard looked into Elayne�s eyes. �How much do you know about Loyalian Wizards?� �Not very much,� Elayne admitted. �I know that you tend to be small and physically weak, but you make up for the weakness with your magical power. Loyalian Wizards are among the most powerful and versatile there are.� �We also have what is called �Manual Raising�,� Keenan explained. �That means my master would have had to say a spell and touch my hat to check if I was ready to be a master. If I was, my hat would glow and I would be a master.� Elayne nodded her understanding and Keenan sighed deeply. He thought back to that horrible day in the forest when he and his master had been attacked and his master had died. ** �What�s this plant called, Keene?� Bartholomew asked, pointing to a plant with shiny leaves and bright red berries. Keenan grinned. �That�s poison ivy, Master,� he answered dutifully. His master had already tricked him into touching the plant once � much to his regret. However, the experience had served its purpose. The wizardling now recognized the plant immediately and stayed far away from it. �Very good,� Bartholomew replied, grinning impishly. He traveled deeper into the woods, with Keenan quietly trailing along behind him. After several minutes, the old man froze and looked around suspiciously. �Master?� Keenan asked worriedly. �What � what�s wrong?� �I sensed a dark presence,� the wizard explained. �Keenan, you need to �� Whatever the older man was going to say was cut off when both wizards were lifted off their feet and pulled into the branches of a large magic tree. Keenan�s tall peaked hat fell off his head and drifted down the forest floor. �Master!� Keenan called fearfully as the tree brought him close to its trunk. �Don�t struggle, Keenan,� came the immediate reply. �It�s a Wizard Tree. Struggling will only make it angry.� The young wizard choked back a sob and tried not to fight as the strong branches pinned him against the rough bark of it�s trunk. �It � it�s not a wild tree, Master,� he stammered. �I know, Keenan,� Bartholomew replied. Keenan blinked back tears of fright and asked, �Who sent it for us, Master?� �Not us, Keenan,� his master corrected. �It�s after you.� �Why�d it grab you then?� he asked in confusion. �Because �� Bartholomew started. Before he could finish the thought, he broke off in a cry of pain. �Master!� Keenan cried, looking down to where the sound had come. He could see this his master was struggling against the branches that held him. He could also see that one of those branches was plunged into his master�s chest and Keenan could tell that the older man was dying. �No!� he cried, trying to free himself from the tree�s clutches. �Keenan, be still,� Bartholomew ordered weakly. The young wizard nodded and went still. He could see that his master was not merely trying to get free from the tree�s deadly clutches, he was trying to reach something that was just a little too far away. Squinting, Keenan could just see his hat lying next to the base of the tree. Keenan�s eyes grew wide as he realized the implications. Master Bartholomew was trying to tap his hat to see if he was ready to ascend to the level of master. Keenan watched as his master�s hand glowed a pale violet color and the old man tried to touch the hat. Just as the hand finally reached its objective, the glow died however. Fresh tears welled in his eyes. Not only was his master dead � a man that had practically raised him since he was twelve years old � but with him had died any chance of Keenan achieving mastery of powers, unless someone else would be willing to take on a half-trained apprentice. Keenan silently let the tears fall from his eyes and looked around for whatever evil mage must have been behind the attack. He found the object of his search standing a few feet away. �What do you want with me?� he choked out. �You have great potential, little one,� the dark cloaked figure replied. �In the right environment, you could be the most powerful evil wizard that ever lived.� �I don�t wanna be evil,� Keenan argued. �You have a choice, little one,� the figure replied. He stepped closer and the tree dropped Keenan down to him. Pulling Keenan�s chin up, the evil mage said, �Either you come with me or you join your master.� Keenan hesitated for a moment, then he heard a soft voice say, �Go with him, Keenan.� Keenan scowled slightly and looked over the evil mage�s shoulder. Sitting in the grass a few feet away was a small brown rabbit with piercing blue eyes. �I�ll be with you,� the rabbit added. �I�ll keep you safe, but you have to trust me. Your master would not want you to die. While you live, there�s a chance your potential can be fulfilled the way he wanted.� The young wizard nodded and said, �I � I�ll go with you.� �Call me Master, little one,� the cloaked mage added, setting Keenan on his feet. �You killed my master,� Keenan stated defiantly. The other glared beneath his hood and snatched the apprentice hat from the base of the tree. Handing it to Keenan, he said, �Then remain an apprentice, little one. Either I teach you or no one does.� �So be it,� Keenan replied, settling the hat on top of his head. ** �Master Bartholomew nearly ascended you,� Elayne breathed, brushed the hair away from Keenan�s brow. �Nearly only counts in horseshoes,� Keenan replied morosely. Elayne nodded and then asked, �Who was the rabbit?� Keenan shrugged and shook his head. �I don�t know where he came from, Elayne,� he admitted. �But he � he was my familiar.� Elayne scowled. �Your familiar?� she asked, her eyes narrowing slightly. Keenan�s chest tightened and he looked up at the woman somewhat fearfully. �Are you going to cast me out?� he asked softly. Elayne shook her head. �No,� she stated. �I�m enjoying the idea of having you in my bed far to much for that.� Keenan smirked. �Let me tell ya, it warms my heart to hear you care so much,� he said sarcastically. Elayne chuckled and then frowned thoughtfully. �I must say it explains a lot,� she said. �Your spells are so�nonstandard. This explains why.� �I beg your pardon?� Keenan asked in confusion. �You have a code worked out with you familiar, haven�t you?� Elayne asked. When Keenan nodded, she said, �Most familiared wizards still have to do incantations � though they can shorten them since they always work with the same spirit. Most contact wizards have to do the same incantations as all wizards, but also have to perform a specific motion to tell the spirits what they want to do.� �Of course,� Keenan added. �Those are the basic parts of all magic spells � physical, somatic and verbal component.� �Keenan!� Elayne said softly. �You have a familiar and have more of a somatic component than any other wizard � because you are a contact wizard. This is one time when having a familiar is an advantage. You don�t need a verbal component at all. Once you perform a specific motion � your familiar knows what spell you�re doing!� Keenan smiled and looked eyes with Elayne. �Maybe that�s why I can do spells before people realize that I�m getting ready to do them,� he said. �They wait for incantations that I don�t use� or even need.� �It gives you an advantage over most mages,� Elayne pointed out. �I think I chose my consort wisely.� Keenan smiled and shook his head. �I never thought you�d take it this well,� he whispered. Elayne chuckled and suddenly stood up. �Return to your chamber, leave this one as your return position, by the end of the day this will be your chamber anyway. I�ll make the announcement later and we�ll install you to the council directly afterwards. Wear your formal robes.� Keenan blinked in surprise and nodded. Smiling slightly, he chafed his hands for a moment, then clapped and vanished from the room. A moment later, he was in his room. He looked at Bartholomew, who was stretched out across his bed. �I can�t wear my formal robes,� he told the familiar. �I know,� the rabbit answered. �Wear the ones that look like them, but don�t change color � Elayne will never know.� �I don�t like lying to her,� Keenan whispered. The rabbit sat up on its haunches. �Keenan, if she realizes that you aren�t evil, she will kill you. It�s better to hide it for now and let her form an attachment. Meanwhile, I�ll inform Shadow of what has occurred.� �Right,� Keenan said softly. Going to the wardrobe, he withdrew a heavy robe of dark violet, with blood red piping. He slipped it on over the pants he still wore from the night before. Sighing, he held his left palm out before him and gently touched it with his right hand. Instantly, his jeweled cloak pin appeared and he used it to hold the heavy blood red cloak in place on his shoulders. He set the dark violet peaked hat on his head and headed out of the room to meet with Elayne and the other members of her council. End |