| |
|
| |
| |
"I had an idea..."
The Tale of the Mad Wizard of Imbroglio
By Pukaq
Chapter 10
Days later, the news was all over town about Anniu's attack on Itilli. All efforts to locate him had ended in utter failure. For all intents and purposes, he had disappeared. Itilli, too, was a popular topic of conversation. Her emphatic assertions that Anniu had disappeared through a solid rock wall were met with condescending disbelief or by chuckles and stares. While other Draegoni who have had years of study in the magical arts are able to make themselves invisible, no one of Pukaq's age-group or level of experience could. And of all things, to claim he had walked through a wall? That was just impossible. Whispers of "liar" were common, but it wasn't until later that I learned how all these things affected her.
I could certainly empathize with what she was going through because I was getting similar treatment. My outburst in front of the town's councilman had also been widely circulated as everyone in town began to believe Anniu's lunacy was some how catching, causing further grief for Quello as well who had to firmly deny that possibility.
Aurora was clearly worried about Itilli. She finally told me what Itilli had been going through: the embarrassment, the self-doubt and the fear that perhaps what the town's people were saying might be right. I had no idea how many nights Itilli had cried herself to sleep. I was also not entirely surprised when I heard that Itilli had also left town and that the very next day, Aurora had left too to follow after Itilli.
In the space of a couple of weeks, all my closest friends were gone. They were the people I had learned with - the ones who knew everything about me and had considered me to be their friend and now I was more alone than I had ever been before.
* * *
Against my parents' wishes, I moved to Candolis. There I got work at the tavern clearing tables and washing dishes for room and board. I wanted to be there to learn the news of what was happening in the world. In all of Irinveron, news of world events was heard there first.
The work itself was not all that taxing, but the hot water used to clean the dishes was very uncomfortable for me. Then one night, after I had turned out the light for sleep, I felt Anniu's presence in my head and heard him crying, "It wasn't me. It wasn't me..."
"Where are you?" I asked.
"I don't know, but somehow I made them bring me here and now I'm alone," was his reply. I realized I could sense he was somewhere to the East.
"Make them bring you back," I said.
"I can't."
"Why not?"
"I destroyed the ship and killed them all."
"You what?" I cried back, but only silence filled my head and the connection, as well as my sense of his direction, was gone.
|
| |
|
|
|
