Piers Anthony - The Source of Magic

Startled by another thought, Bink drew out the bottle again. Was Crombie still in there? In what form? With magic gone, he could be dead-unless some magic remained corked in the bottle-

Better not open it! Whatever lingering chance Crombie had, resided in that bottle. If he were loosed and the magic dissipated into the air-would Crombie emerge as a man again, or a griffin, or a bottle-sized compressed mass? Bink had just gambled enormously, freeing the Demon; he was not about to gamble similarly with the life of his friend. He repocketed the bottle.

How drear it was, this depth of the hole. Alone with a bottle, and a defunct golem and his own mortification. The ethical principle on which he had based his decision was opaque to him now. The Demon Xanth had lain prisoner for over a thousand years. He could have lain for another century or so without harm, couldn't he?

Bink discovered he was not at the bottom of the hole, after all. The rubble opened into a deeper hole, and at the bottom was dark water. The lake! But the level had lowered drastically; now the dank gray convolutions of a formerly submerged structure lay dimly revealed. The brain coral! It, too, was dead; it could not exist without the potent magic of the Demon.

"I fear you were right, Coral," Bink said sadly.

"You let me through, and I destroyed you. You and our world."

He smelled smoke-not the clean fresh odor of a healthy blaze, but the smoldering foulness of incompletely burning vegetation. Evidently the Demon's departure had ignited some brush, assuming there was brush down here underground. The intense magic must have done it, leaving behind a real fire. It probably would not burn far, here deep in the ground, but it certainly was stinking up the place.

Then he heard a delicate groan. Surely not the coral! He scrambled toward the sound-and found Jewel wedged In a vertical crevice, bleeding from a gash on the head, but definitely alive. Hastily he drew her out, half-carrying her to a brighter place. He propped her up against a rock and patted her face with his fingertips, trying to bring her to consciousness. She stirred. "Don't wake me, Bink. Let me die in peace."

"I've killed everyone else," he said sullenly. "At least you will be able to-"

"To return to my job? I can't do it without magic." There was something strange about her. Bink concentrated and it came: "You don't smell!"

"It was magic," she said. She sighed. "If I'm alive, I'm alive, I suppose. But I really do wish you'd let me die."

"Let you die! I wouldn't do that! I-" She glanced up at him cannily. Even through the blood-caked dust on her face, she was lovely. "The magic is gone. You don't love me any more."

"Still, I owe it to you to get you home," Bink said. He looked up, trying to decide on the most feasible route, and did not see her enigmatic reaction.

They checked through the rubble a little longer, but could not find the Magician. Bink was relieved, in a fashion; now he could hope that Humfrey had survived, and had departed before him.

Bink peered up at the Demon's exit. "We'll never make it up there," he said glumly. "Too much of it is sheer cliff."

"I know a way," Jewel said. "It will be difficult, without the diggle, but there are natural passages-oh!" She broke off suddenly.

There was a monster barring the way. It resembled a dragon, but lacked wings and fire. It was more like a very large serpent with legs.

"That's a tunnel dragon-I think," Jewel said. "But something's missing."

"The magic," Bink said. "It's changing into a mundane creature-and it doesn't understand."

"You mean I'll change into a mundane woman?" she inquired, not entirely displeased.

"I believe so. There really is not much difference between a nymph and a-"

"They usually don't bother people," she continued uneasily. Before Bink could react, she added: "They're very shy dragons."

Oh. A nymphly nonsequitur. Bink kept his hand near his sword. "This is an unusual occasion."

Sure enough, the legged serpent charged, jaws gaping wide. Though it was small for a land dragon, since it was adapted to squeeze through narrow passages, it was still a formidable creature. Its head was larger than Bink's, and its body sinuously powerful. In the conditions of this cavern, Bink could not swing his sword freely, so he held it out ahead of him.

The serpent snapped at the blade-a foolish thing to do, since the charmed blade would likely cut its jaw in two. The teeth closed on it-and the blade was yanked out of Bink's hand.

Then he remembered: without magic, the sword's charm was gone. He had to make it work by himself-completely.

The serpent flung the sword aside and opened its jaws again. There was blood on its lower lip; the blade had done some minor damage. But now Bink faced the monster barehanded.

The head struck forward. Bink danced backward. But as the strike missed, and the head dropped low, Bink struck the serpent on the top of the head with his fist. The thing hissed in furious amazement as its chin-less chin bashed into the floor. But Bink's foot was already on its neck, crushing it down. The serpent's legs scraped across the stone as it tried to free itself. But Bink had it pinned.

"My sword!" he cried. Jewel hastily picked it up and extended it point-first toward him. Bink was already grabbing for it before he noticed, and then almost lost his balance and his captive as he aborted his grab. "Other way!" he snapped.

"Oh." It had not occurred to her that he would need to take hold of the handle. She was a complete innocent about weapons. She took it gingerly by the blade and poked the hilt in his direction.

But as he took it, the serpent wrenched free. Bink jumped back, his sword ready.

The thing had had enough. It backed away-an awkward maneuver when slithering-then dived into a side-hole. "You're so brave!" Jewel said.

"I was stupid to let it disarm me," he said gruffly. He was not at all proud of the encounter; it had been fraught with clumsiness, not at all elegant. Just a stupid, indecisive brawl. "Let's get on before I make a worse mistake. I brought you out of your home, and I'll get you back there safely before I leave you. It's only right."

"Only right," she repeated faintly. "Something wrong?"

"What am I going to do without magic?" she flared. "Nothing will work!"

Bink considered. "You're right. I have wrecked your livelihood. I'd better take you to the surface with me." She brightened, then dulled. "No, that wouldn't work."

"It's all right. I told you the potion has no effect now. I don't love you; I won't be bothering you. You can settle in one of the villages, or maybe work in the King's palace. It won't be much without magic, but it has to be better than this." He made a gesture, indicating the dismal caverns.

"I wonder," she murmured.

They continued. Jewel did know the labyrinth of the caverns fairly well, once they were out of the Demon's depths, and brought them steadily if circuitously upward. Beyond the immediate region of the Demon's vacancy there had not been much damage. But everywhere the magic was gone, and the creatures were crazed. Rats tried to zap him with their rodent magic, and failed, and resorted to teeth. They were no more used to naked teeth as weapons than Bink was to using an uncharmed sword, so the sides were fair. He drove them back with slashing sweeps of his sword. There might be no magic in the blade, but the edge remained sharp and it could hurt and kill.

Still, it took a lot of energy to swing that sword, and his arm grew tired. There had been another charm to make the sword lighter and more responsive to direction, without making it self-willed like the one that had attacked Bink in the gardens of Castle Roogna. The rats crowded closer, staying just out of range and coming in to nip at his heels when he climbed. Jewel was no better off; she lacked even a knife of her own. and had to borrow Bink's knife to defend herself. A monster could be killed but these smaller creatures seemed inexhaustible. They weren't nickelpedes, fortunately, but they were reminiscent of them.