|
|
|
Ben Medinets / story2f | |
| Chapter 6: Quest for the Mirror After stopping at the market again for something to eat, they went back to the dock on the edge of the bay. Benny was quite nervous about “parting the sea”. But he knew if he was to have faith in the RUBY STAFF later, he would need to try out its power here. o o o Meanwhile, there was a strange situation enveloping across the bay. The same roguish female that had rented the unseaworthy boat to them was telling her fellow MAGE to unleash his power on them as they were crossing the bay. Both MAGES were completely unaware that Benny and Cletus held in their possession the RUBY STAFF, nor did the MAGES realize that Benny and Cletus would not cross by boat but by harnassing the power of the RUBY STAFF. o o o Anyways, while the MAGE was trying to plan to stop the two from crossing back onto the main land again, Benny held out the STAFF and barely touched the surface of the water. In a loud voice, he called out “PART”. Slowly, starting where the STAFF touched the water, it began to part. There soon began to open up a pathway wide enough for two people across the entire length of the bay, which was separated by two walls of water. The path went down, levelled out in the middle, and then ascended up the other side, much like a shape of a valley. When the waters ceased their parting, Benny and Cletus stepped off the dock, and stepped on the path. Remarkably, it was as dry as the desert. They descended down the “hill”, which was fairly easy, and then slowed the pass down as they reached level ground. o o o On the shore, the MAGE that was told to stop them from crossing over, was deeply troubled. He had assumed that the two would cross by boat and not by “land”. His strategy was to strike the path and hope to drown them by merging the “walls” of the sea. So he raised his wand, and began his magical incantation. All at once, the walls started to slowly rumble, but they would not move closer together, nor would they sway. His first plan was a hopeless failure. It was either that his magic was weaker than the two, or else the STAFF held greater powers than the MAGE anticipated. However, Benny and Cletus continued to cross the bay by walking the path. o o o As they ascended, they saw the MAGE and knew it couldn’t be good. They also knew he wasn’t a welcoming party, since the walls continued to vibrate. What caught Benny’s attention was that this MAGE was no stranger, but he was no other than Benny’s old school mate, Tommy the BLUE MAGE. Benny at once gasped. He wondered how involved in the plot Tommy was, or if Tommy was just acting out in blind obedience for the “good” of the MAGIC GUILD. He also wondered how much Claus knew about the “rescue” conspiracy. He felt the deep hurt and sting of betrayal. o o o Tommy began to stamp his feet in utter disgust. He was a future powerhouse in the GUILD even though he was still very much a rookie in the organization. To be bested this early in the conflict, rattled his confidence. His doubts turned to blind rage. All he had been told was that these two were threats to the power of the GUILD. Perhaps, if the GUILD could find one last member, the WHITE MAGE, Tommy’s power would increase infinitely. But that wasn’t the case. Tommy then pointed his wand to the sky, and cursed out another magical incantation. The clouds began to appear, which were dark and charcoal looking, which would soon bring torrential rains, loud thunder, and bright lightning. It soon began to pour. By causing a severe storm, Tommy thought he could disorient the two “threats”. o o o Unfortunately for Tommy, Benny and Cletus were too determined to let a “bit of rain” stop them from accomplishing the mission. The path, itself, was still as dry as a desert. The RUBY STAFF was still stronger than the magic performed by Tommy. Not only did Tommy now fear that his life was endangered as Benny and Cletus approached the coast, but as Benny and Cletus were ascending up the “valley”, Tommy could now see that the two “threats” were actually his friends, in direct opposition to what the GUILD had said. So before he fled the scene, he pointed his wand up, for the third time, again up to the sky, and chanted the counter-hex. Very shortly, after he began to run away, the skies cleared, and it was sunny once more. The severe storm had abruptly stopped. As Benny and Cletus made it to shore, there was now no trace of the MAGE, Tommy. He had fled back to parts unknown. Shrugging at one another, Benny pointed to the clear path that was once the bay floor. With the STAFF touching the path, where they had treaded over, he cried in a loud voice, “Merge the Sea”, and almost as quickly as it parted, the walls of water merged, and the path disappeared. They both knew that the current events, the boat sinking, the peculiar magical happenings, and even possibly the skeletons were the work of the MAGIC GUILD. They would need to consult Soren one last time before embarking on the RESCUE Mission. So both slowly walked through the harbour, wishing for the return of their horses. They endured the hike, and soon crossed into the city proper, and eventually to the Imperial Palace, where the Royal Townhouses were, and where the private chapel of the Emperor was. They also needed to stop here before finishing their mission. After passing the guards, which this time didn’t given them too much trouble, they went to the Royal Chapel. The priest, Jean-Paul was preparing his message for the weekend, when they entered. The Priest Jean-Paul 
Another Picture of Jean-Paul, the Priest 
Both of them stopped by a strange mirror at the back of the chapel. Benny quietly gasped at what he saw in the mirror, but decided to keep it to himself. Cletus still didn’t look into the mirror, but was warned not to by Benny. So Cletus didn’t look. The commotion was enough to distract the priest. “Hello my little lambs, welcome to my humble chapel. What manner of business brings you to the house of the Lord?” the priest asked. “We seek the holy mirror, father” Benny replied, feeling more confident than ever. “You mean the very mirror that you just gasped at after looking at it. Surely you don’t think your worthy enough to take possession of it. Besides, the mirror must decide to let you take it, not the other way around,” the priest said. The priest continued, “I see you possess the SPECTOR’S BOX, and also the RUBY STAFF. You will need the mirror to aid you to rescue the prince. I will permit you to attempt to take possession of the mirror. I, however, CANNOT be responsible for any effects from taking it. So Benny went to pick it up off its mount, which was a stand. There were electric-like shocks when he touched the mirror’s handle, but like static shock these were quick and relatively painless. After a few moments, the shocks subsided. Apparently, Benny was deemed worthy enough to weld the HOLY MIRROR. (The shocks were a simple purifying process which will be explained later by the priest). The priest warned not to let anyone take possession or even to touch the mirror, including Cletus. Benny assured the priest that he alone would handle the MIRROR. The priest was still amazed about the whole process. He hadn’t known there was one who was worthy to hold the HOLY MIRROR. He was also very curious about what Benny had seen in the MIRROR, but decided not to pry. So he just congradulated Benny that he was able to take possession of the MIRROR, and then wished the two good luck with the rescue mission. They had finally obtained the three vital items. Before leaving for the GUILD HALL, Benny and Cletus stopped by Soren’s Abode to go over last minute strategy with the old Sage. Soren knew that both men could accomplish the earlier tasks, and hoped that their early success would not make them over-confident in their next and final task. Soren agreed that it was definitely creepy that the GUILD knew of their plans to rescue the price. But, he announced to their surprise, that three of the key members of the GUILD were again appearing before the Imperial Council, this time not just to press their case but to answer to some of the rumors and to answer to the charge of breaking an imperial ban on recruiting. This was the key opportunity, they were looking for. Soren advocated an immediate departure and to start the rescue attempt. Benny and Cletus agreed, and immediately left, after being wished good luck for their hopefully successful mission. Unfortunately, as Benny and Cletus arrived at the GUILD HOUSE, there were also 4 human guards securing the HALL. So in addition to the fortifications of the HALL, and the very likely presence of undead magical creatures, there were 4 physically strong human guards, putting a definite crimp in their rescue plans. So they remained fairly hidden as Benny and Cletus formulated a new line of strategy. Click HERE to continue SAGA |
|
Primary content in this document is © Ben Medinets. All other text, images, or trademarks in this document are the intellectual property of their respective owners. |
| |
©2005 LUGNET. All rights reserved. - hosted by steinbruch.info GbR |