R. Salvatore - Echoes of the Fourth Magic

The next day proved difficult for Mitchell. As anxious as he was to get this whole business over with, certain that its end would somehow bring about a reasonable explanation and a return to normalcy, the frustration of sitting and waiting quickly became more than he could bear.

That day was anything but boring for Reinheiser. He set to work with enthusiasm, testing the limitations of the room’s power. That would have been absorbing enough to satisfy him if the parchments and scrolls on the desk had not been a constant torment to his insatiable curiosity. He stayed away from them, though, for he believed in this magic he had witnessed and, not yet understanding it, respected it enough to heed Belexus’ warning.

Del and Billy spent the day recuperating from the trials of their weeks on the road. They were both excited and charmed by this strange world in spite of its dangers, in spite of their recent losses. Especially Del. But being forced to accept one impossibility after another had created intense pressures, and both of them needed to unwind. They talked with nostalgic fondness about old times and wondered what was yet to come, all the while enjoying the show provided by Reinheiser’s experiments.

“Maybe I was wrong about him,” Del said, noting the physicist’s enthusiasm as he worked the lights and illusions.

“No you weren’t,” Billy answered with flat certainty.

“But look at him.” Del smiled. “He’s thrilled about this whole thing.”

“His old rules are defective. They don’t explain what’s going on, so he’s trying to find new ones that can. That’s all there is to it.”

“I don’t know,” Del argued. “He threw out that Mr. Computer act of his and got emotional last night, even defended this completely impossible place against Mitchell. That’s not the Reinheiser I know.”

“Emotional?” Billy replied. “No, you’ve got it wrong. He got excited, but he never lost control of his emotions. He found a new toy to play with, a new frontier to explore. It was the same way on the Unicorn when he figured out the time distortion and thought we were going to find an advanced society. There’s nothing wrong with being curious or wanting to learn, but Reinheiser’s got this self-destructive need to know absolutely everything about absolutely everything.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Del sighed. “I just thought there might be hope for him.”

“Believe me, buddy,” Billy said, “that snake is as cold-blooded as ever.”

No one visited the men that day. But that night as they slept, Bellerian came and woke Del. He motioned Del to keep quiet and led him out into the torchlit tunnel.

“By the words o’ me son, I can put me trust in ye,” Bellerian said after he had silently closed the door.

“You can,” Del replied, intrigued, hoping that Bellerian would ask something of him. Though he knew little of the rangers and their ways, and understood not at all their dedication to the unknown duty that Andovar had hinted at, Del realized that these men were unquestionably honorable. And recognizing in them the qualities of the proud and principled heroes that his calculating and mysteryless world so desperately needed, he was anxious to prove himself worthy of their company and respect. “I owe the rangers my life. I won’t betray you.”

“Good in hearing,” Bellerian said. “Then I beg a small favor of ye.”

“Name it.”

“Take this.” He handed Del a bone cylinder, both its ends capped with cork. “When ye be in the realm of Illuma, seek ye the Silver Mage and give him this. Tell him I gave it to ye and that it is from our friend o’ the wood.”

“Mage?” Del asked. “You mean wizard?”

“Ayuh, a very great wizard indeed is Rudy Glendower.”

“Wow.” Del whistled, thrilled at the prospect of meeting such a man. This world was growing more and more fantastic to him every minute. What would a wizard be like? he wondered. What kind of power could this Rudy Glendower command, if any at all? Remembering his immediate surroundings, Del looked at the venerable and iron-willed man before him with a surprised and questioning expression.

Bellerian read the look on Del’s face and smiled. “No, me friend, I am no enchanter, but only a mortal man akin to yerself. None but four wizards be chanting spells in Aielle.”

“Of course, the Four trained by the Colonnae,” Del said, remembering Calae’s tale. Bellerian’s nod confirmed Del’s guess, and Del pressed on, even more excited.

“Tell me how to find this man.”

“Ye should’no’ huv a difficult time of it,” Bellerian replied, “Glendower bein’ the only one in all Illuma whose blood runs pure to human. And unless the ways of the dancing children huv changed, Ardaz, as they name him, is ever about.

“Show that to no one,” Bellerian continued soberly, indicating the bone case. “And bechance someone sees it, tell him ye found it by the roadside. Keep it our secret.”

Del assured the Ranger Lord that he would carry out the task. As Bellerian turned to leave, Del called him back. “You’ve trusted me and I thank you for that.” He studied Bellerian’s every reaction as he spoke, hoping to word his request just right. “Could you trust me some more? Could you do me a favor?”

Bellerian nodded cautiously.

“I want to know about the room,” Del asked. “Is it the magic of one of the Four? Did the Silver Mage create it?”

Bellerian hesitated for a moment, but then nodded, for having asked a favor of Del in the name of friendship and trust, he had no choice but to return the courtesy. “Suren the mark of Ardaz is upon it,” he said. “But in troth ’twas more the spellcasting of another. No more can I tell ye.”

“I understand,” Del said, satisfied. “And I thank you for saying as much as you did.”

“Go now and rest,” Bellerian said. “Tomorrow finds ye on the road.”

Del rejoined his snoozing companions and quickly fell into a sleep filled with heroic dreams of magics and sword-play and rescues from the fiery jaws of evil dragons. But then one image held him, dominating his train of thoughts with disturbing incessancy.

An eye was watching him.

A green eye, studying his every move and penetrating deeper to scrutinize his thoughts and the very feelings within his heart.

Finally the eye released him from its probing and Del dreamed that he was floating in the air. Up he went, past the trees and clouds and beyond to a million stars-stars that spoke to him with their flashing lights and showed him fleeting glimpses of wondrous secrets and powers. They limned the edges of his consciousness, teasing him with unimagined knowledge, but he could not decipher their flickering code.

Then, abruptly, he was back in the Emerald Room, weightless still and hovering beside the crystal ball that hung above the bridge. And the eye was in the ball!

He awoke in darkness, the others breathing deeply around him, and all as it should be. He looked above the bridge and thought that he saw a flicker of green before all went black.

Del did not sleep the rest of the night. He wasn’t afraid, just curious. Something was calling to him and he longed to know what, or who, it might be.

REINHEISER PREPARED A little surprise for his companions the following morning. He had learned much about manipulating the powers of the Emerald Room, even to the extent of coinciding its magic with events in the outside world. Confusion greeted Del, Billy, and Mitchell when they were awakened by the illusionary light of a sunrise within the room at the same moment that the real dawn was breaking outside. They barely had time to stretch the restful sleep out of their muscles and reorient themselves to their surroundings when Andovar opened the door.