Nicholas adjusted his sight as he came to a stop before a dormant white field. The wall with his father’s spell was at the other end, and it shimmered bright and strong to him alone. From there he glanced around, surprised he made it without another sign of guards. Without a sign of bounty hunters. It had to be too good to be true.
“All clear,” drifted over a small voice.
“Same here.”
He blinked away the magic and followed the voices to two guards walking in timed step along the top of the wall. It was quite far up, no way to climb it even if it wasn’t being watched.
So what do I do now? His attention went left and right across the field. It was so open and naked, and an eerie haze was beginning to slowly drift across it. Then he returned to the bare, flat wall that possessed no other entrance or exit except the one he failed to reach. He took in the earth under him from there, which was hard as stone. I definitely can’t dig. Back across he looked, the shimmering entering his peripheral naturally, and he inhaled until his chest puffed out. Not even in good weather would that be possible. And it became clear just like that what he had to do.
There was only one way out, though he was sure he would regret it whether he succeeded or not.
He looked up at the guards again just as they passed each other once more with only a nod this time. Then to each guard in the near distant watchtowers.
No one looked his way. It really did feel too good to be true.
Oh well. I guess I will find out. So he took on the field, his feet moving cautiously as his gaze remained on the guards. It was possible no one above could hear his boots crunching in the snow, but it was better safe than sorry as the only sound for miles was his boots.
Then his head began to tilt back to its limit, so he stole a final look around the bare field. Twisted to see only his own footprints forming a trail back into the village. But that sensation that all was not as it appeared gripped him until he trembled beyond the shivers of cold, and he halted before the wall.
He shifted his sight again, nervously as his pupils were darting with every shadow of light, and the shimmer of magic appeared inches from his face. Each piece of the spell was clear for him here, so he slipped his palms along the wall as he had read in his father’s books.
The smooth surface zapped him instantly. Tingles escaped across his skin, nerves, blood. The world he knew lit up black and silver as he gasped, his heart stuttered, and he barely managed to jerk away.
What the…
He stumbled back, the tingles still lingering in his fingers and arms. Breathing didn’t feel right. The way his chest thrummed didn’t feel right. On top of that, the spell before him was dancing and fading out of his sight. That jolt – he had forgotten about that part – had been designed to stun attackers, yet, somehow, he stood there conscious.
Hmm. He risked a shaky step forward once more, an increasing tremble not meshing well with his current state, and set his features stern. It was hard to say if there was a fault in the protection spell, which caused it not to stun him, or if the spell simply needed updating. Either way, it was worth the risk. So he reached out.
Except he hesitated, fingertips an inch from their goal, and twisted slightly to spot the castle far in the distance. Right at the head of the village. The grand structure towered over everything with its ever-protecting gaze, and the window that led to his father’s workspace was just visible from where he stood.
There is no turning back. This is the only way. And he found himself wondering if his father was watching at that very moment. Knew it was him down there about to escape the wall illegally.
His eyes fell back onto the wall, a tear escaping down his cheek as the desire to cry returned. “Goodbye,” he whispered. “I love you.” And he inhaled, determined to get this done and not feel guilty for his choices. Then he pressed his palms onto the wall.
The zap got him again, the tingle stronger as it escaped through every fiber of his being with a speed never before known. As it leaped across into his chest to steal his breath.
No! He slammed his eyes shut, lids crinkling and forehead scrunching, before the spell could get the better of him.
The chapter said to assert command, he recalled. He didn’t feel he had any anymore as he stood there now, desperate. A true criminal for the first time. It made him wonder if maybe he never did if his own right-hand man betrayed him. But this protection spell was his father’s work and that he figured was something.
I am Isaiah’s son, he chanted with that thought, his subconscious praying this plan would work while also praying the spell didn’t notice his lack of confidence. You shall let me pass. And with that he visualized the essence that was his father. A piece of that essence would have been stored with the spell for extra strength.
It appeared before him readily. The blue-gold shade he, himself, held flickered with life.
Perfect.
He sent forward his own essence, and the wall folded inward. At least it appeared that way when he felt cold stone not just under his palms but around them. It had become some strange form of water. From there the warping wall inched its way across his arms brick by brick. He could almost hear it all building along his frame with liquid precision.
And then the world went black and silver all over again.
His body stiffened painfully. No… the wall hardened. He was aware his jaw flew open for a silent scream as all around crushed downward with intent purpose, allowing his hold on the jolts to release and let them escape across every fiber of his being.
This is it, a thought managed to escape. I’m dead. The chapter had clearly marked how those who weren’t stunned died by this point. The wall literally squished and shocked them to death. This was the most dangerous spell even for a master caster.
And just like that his body dropped. It was as if something had swiped the wall away… and the ground. Everything was simply gone. The jolts and tingles, the trembling and shaking. His heartbeat. There was nothing to say he lived. That he had made it through the wall. For all the gods knew, he had been sucked away to never be seen again.
There were worse things, he guessed. Having his life redirected away from his plans was one. Disappointing his father was another.
Will he figure it out?
An icy cold swept him. His body hit something hard, yet soft. He hadn’t realized he had been falling the entire time, and he gave in to the dark silvery world that danced through his vision.