At long last, I stand at the base of the Forbidden Tower with Katherine. Sidney wanted to come with us, but I wouldn’t let her. Fighting alongside Katherine and Sidney would surely improve my chances of survival, but if anything were to happen to either of them, then it would nullify any good that might come out of this day.
“Do you understand your part?” I ask again.
“Yes Master. I’ll wait until you pull the gargoyle away from Nadine. Then I’ll apply the immortality elixir to her. The moment that the stone releases her, I’ll take her and flee the tower.”
“Okay good. Say Katherine, before we go up there, I want you to know how grateful I am to you for staying with me for this long. Despite our agreement, you really didn’t have to. Also, I’m sorry for being mean to you at first, and I’m sorry for getting drunk and acting like a fool, and I’m also sorry that I let Master Simon hurt and insult you. I know that I wasn’t a very good master, but I meant well. Here. I want you to have all of my money and inventory bags.”
I hold out a palm full of little bags all in their shrunken form. Katherine takes a little glance at my hand, and then sternly looks me in the eyes. “Souladonis, is this your way of trying to say goodbye?”
She folds my fingers shut and pushes my hand back at me. “Put your bags back into your pocket and listen to me.”
I comply not knowing what she has to say. She tells me, “Everyday that I spent with you was wonderful. And yes you messed up at times, but I don’t hold it against you. I know that we’ve only known each other for a short time, but I feel like we have a special connection, like we just get each other. Do you know what I mean?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re the sweetest, nicest guy I’ve ever known. I’ve often wondered why it is that so many bad things happen to you. It seems so unfair, but I feel like it’s your destiny. Like all those bad things had to happen to make you who you are. The world needs you Souladonis. I need you. That’s why you can’t say goodbye. I’ll understand if you fight your hardest and don’t win, but don’t say goodbye. Please.”
I take my right hand and gently slide it onto her left cheek. She does the same to me. Silently, we speak to each other with our eyes. I hear the words of her heart and she hears mine. Then I let my arm fall softly to her side while bringing the other around to embrace her. She in turn wraps her arms around me and we hold each other like we did the first time outside of Cornucopia. Delicately, I sweep my fingers through her plush brown hair while taking in her perfect lavender scent. Finally, I kiss her lightly on the forehead and let her go. “I’ll come back to you if I can Katherine.”
She quietly nods in acceptance. Then, getting to business, I tell her, “There are monsters in the Forbidden Tower. None of them are very powerful. I was easily able to beat them when I was fifteen. However, fighting them would still drain my mana. I need to preserve all of my strength for the gargoyle at the top.”
With determination on her face, Katherine equips the wand of Shaman Terranostra in her right hand and Traveler in her left. “Leave it to me.”
“Let’s go.”
We storm into the tower running full speed. A small militia of skeletons armed with scimitars tries to block our path. Katherine makes short work of the group with her Vine Whip spell. Behind them in the far right corner of the first floor, are the stairs leading to the second floor. There are six floors in all with the stairs always being on the right at the opposite end of the floor. On the second floor, it’s more of the same with another group of skeletons. However, on the third floor the monsters upgrade into shrieking banshees. Katherine eradicates them in a cloud of Thorn Darts and pays them no further mind. At times like this, I’m glad that she’s on my side.
The living statues on the fourth floor, we mostly evade. The ones that do manage to get in our way, Katherine beats back with her wands. When we’re confronted by the somewhat powerful ghouls on the fifth floor, Katherine obliterates them in the blink of an eye with a single flash of Life Magic energy. We then climb halfway up the fifth story stairs, where I stop Katherine’s advancement.
“The gargoyle familiar is just above here.”
I fish through my script bag until I find my newest one. “I want you to use this.”
“What is it?”
“Do you remember the quest reward that I got from capturing Sidney? It was this Status Guard script. I didn’t use it against the Golden Cockatrice because I wanted to save it for the gargoyle. If it works the way that it’s supposed to, then it should prevent petrification. Here.”
Katherine shakes her head defiantly. “No. You’re the one who has to fight it, so you use it. Just don’t let it put the petrification curse on me.”
I hesitate for a moment, but ultimately agree. Channeling my mana into the parchment, I cast the spell, praying that it works. Then, I take one last deep breath and charge up the rest of the stairs to face the great nemesis of my life. When I climb the stairs, and turn around the gargoyle stands at the edge of the tower lookout reading a book.
Without turning to face me he says, “Ambition and ruin go hand in hand. Those who overstep forbidden boundaries are swept away with the tides, like castles in the sand.”
He squeezes his book closed in one hand, and then turns to face me. Nervous yet unafraid, I peer steadily into his blank stone eyes through which he has vision despite his lack of pupils. Additionally, he not only sees without pupils, but also speaks without his mouth moving. He wears a black tunic covered with a midnight blue toga, has stone skin, stone hair, and large stone wings similar to an angel, or perhaps in his case, a demon. His appearance grants him an air of sophistication and wisdom much like that of an ancient philosopher. Yet for all of his pretenses of civility, I know that in the end he is nothing more than a ruthless, dangerous monster.
“I am Souladonis, and you, you’re the familiar of the first Arch Lord of Winterspring are you not?”
“You request an exchange of introductions? Long has it been since one sought to engage me in parlance. To honor such a rare occurrence, I shall indulge your capricious curiosity this one time. I am indeed a familiar, eternally bound in loyalty to my master Arch Lord Horatio. My name is Cornelius. Nice to meet you Souladonis.”
“No, this isn’t our first encounter. I came here six years ago with a young girl.”
I look over to the left. Scattered about on this top floor of the Forbidden Tower are a number of frozen figures who suffered the same fate as Nadine. In the middle towards the back, I see Nadine. The terror she felt in her last moment is still chiseled on her face. Likewise, she still grips the wand that she used to heal my injuries, reminding me all too clearly that the only reason she came up here was to help me. I am absolutely and unequivocally responsible for what happened to her.
I point at Nadine’s stone figure with my staff. “That girl is innocent. She only came here to help me. I was the one who came to steal Arch Lord Horatio’s treasure. I was just young and arrogant. I wanted to boast about taking the Forbidden Tower’s treasure without even knowing what it was. It was a mistake and I’m sorry. Please, let me take Nadine with me and I will go and never return.”
Unmoved, Cornelius answers, “I’m afraid that I cannot allow that Souladonis.”
He motions with his hand to a large treasure chest near his feet. “Before my master died, he charged me to protect his possessions forevermore. This treasure belongs to him. Everything here in this tower belongs to him. These people trapped in stone belong to him. You shall not take away a single thing from this tower. Now leave here lest you join your friend.”
Butterflies riot in my stomach and my knees wobble. I had hoped to reason with Cornelius. I have no desire to fight him. Especially knowing that it’s a fight I can’t win. But at the same time, I came here determined to save Nadine or die trying. If it’s my life that is required, then it’s my life that I shall give.
“Cornelius I offer you myself in trade for Nadine. Let me release her from her stone captivity and you can have me instead.”
Even toned, he answers, “A noble gesture, yet a futile one. Her life is forfeit forever. You may join her if you please, but she shall remain here.”
I close my eyes and draw in a slow breath. Then, speaking to myself, I say, “Well Soul, the day has finally come. You’ve seen this battle in your mind’s eye 10,000 times. Never once did it end well in your imagination, and surely it won’t end well in reality. But saving Nadine is what you have lived for. If a man’s not willing to die for what he has lived for, then he’s never been truly alive. Like a fluttering candle, I want to burn myself out for my loved ones and expire in a blaze of glory.”
“Cornelius!”
“Hmm?”
“I’m taking back Nadine!”
“You’re most welcome to try.”
I cast the Comet spell. As my fireball cannons at Cornelius, he doesn’t even bother dodging. He crosses his arms over his chest in an x-shape and takes the hit. The explosion pushes him back two steps and I silently hope to myself that he’ll fall over the tower’s edge. Of course, he doesn’t. He unfolds his arms completely unharmed. This is the same problem that I had with him before. It’s not the fact that I can’t hit him that makes me doubt my chances. It’s the fact that my hits don’t hurt him. This time, however, I can cast more than Elemental Magic. Maybe if I’m lucky, something else will work.
Calmly, Cornelius begins to walk towards me without the least bit of hurry. I turn to the side and summon the Ruby Red Dragon. It emerges sucking in air to prepare for its breath attack. At the same time, I ready Rosette at my side. The moment that my dragon breathes out its flames, I triple cast the Comet spell. Again, Cornelius crosses his arms over his chest to block.
The dragon’s flames pour over Cornelius while my Comets explode in his face. When the onslaught ends, Cornelius is still in the same position with his arms crossed. He unfolds his arms and checks himself over. “Unless I’m mistaken, I almost felt that.”
Suddenly, he kicks off of the tower floor, cracking the stone beneath his feet. Rapidly, he shoots towards my dragon and pulverizes it in the head with a descending hammerfist. It instantly disappears in a puff of smoke. I jump away frantically to distance myself from Cornelius. He says, “Of course, I’m obviously mistaken. My stone body knows nothing of pain.”
I cast the Bugs illusion spell on him. Centipedes, spiders, and maggots crawl all over his body. He looks over himself and snickers unimpressed. Then out of nowhere, he flies at me with his right arm outstretched in a lariat. I tuck and roll under his arm. To be entirely made out of stone, he’s ridiculously fast. Back when I was fifteen, I was light and nimble. I was also a smaller target than I am now. He never once managed to hit me before. Our fight only ended because he turned Nadine into stone and I ran away to get help. Arch Lord Aerolyso, Master Simon, and a few other teachers came answering my desperate supplication. Together, they were able to fend off Cornelius easily enough, but none of them could undo the petrification curse. The only consolation that they were able to offer me was the return of my staff Rosette in its petrified form. I’ve kept the same staff for all these years as a reminder of my guilt. The guilt that I shall erase with my next spell.
There exist certain Elemental Magic spells that are even beyond the scope of a grandmaster elemental mage. They’re spells that require the mastery of both Elemental and Script Magic. For each element, there is a spell for a single target and a spell that targets an entire area at once. The advanced version of the Comet spell is called Meteor. It’s essentially the same thing as the Comet spell only giant-sized. However, that’s not the spell that I’m going to cast. The spell that I’m going to cast is even more powerful than Meteor. It’s a spell that simultaneously invokes the elements of earth and fire. This spell is called Volcano. It’s like casting the Boulder and Comet spells at the same time, resulting in a gigantic molten boulder. Cornelius might be able to shrug off my Comets, but this spell will even knock him on his butt.
I summon my script bag and take out the first page. Casting this spell will sacrifice more than half of my mana, but at least I’ll know whether or not it’s even possible for me to hurt Cornelius. Funneling my mana into the page, I cast the Volcano spell. A tennis ball sized rock shoots out of the paper. If Cornelius could move his mouth, then I’m sure he’d smirk. I almost wish that he could just so I could watch the smug expression on his face melt away into fear. I guess I’ll just have to settle for the sound of his stone body crumbling into dust.
The molten boulder presses on towards Cornelius. Each millisecond that it spends in the air it expands. In less than three seconds, it goes from the size of a tennis ball to the size of an elephant. Caught up in its trajectory, Cornelius has no chance to move away in time. Instead, he stretches out both hands as if to try to catch the giant molten boulder. Nevertheless, the size difference between him and the boulder renders his action useless. As soon as it hits him, he gets carried away with it until his back slams against the stonewall lining the hole in the ground where the stairs descend.
Realizing that Cornelius is trapped and that Katherine is beneath him, I call out her name. She runs up the stairs and comes around the wall, immediately spotting the molten boulder. “Katherine pour the immortality elixir on Nadine! She’s that one over there.”
Katherine quickly runs towards Nadine’s stone figure while Cornelius struggles behind the Volcano spell. I watch Katherine’s every move in breathless anticipation. She reaches Nadine and takes the top off of the test tube filled with the immortality elixir. My eyes grow wide and my heart beats a million times per minute. All of a sudden, Cornelius unleashes a roaring battle cry. As I turn to see what he’s doing, the molten boulder explodes, sending pieces of flaming hot rock everywhere.
I dodge each piece carefully while keeping an eye on Cornelius. He looks completely unscathed and is covered in a strange purple aura. I don’t recall having seen this aura before when I fought him. Whatever it is doesn’t matter. All that matters is that his attention has turned from me to Katherine. He starts to bring his arm up towards Katherine and I start running in her direction. From the middle of his palm, he unleashes the same pink ray of energy that the Golden Cockatrice emitted.
I dive through the air placing my body between his spell and Katherine. It hits me dead center and I fall to the tower floor. “Master!” Katherine screams.
“Pour the potion!” I order.
At once, Katherine splashes the elixir over Nadine’s statue. Nothing happens. I push myself off of the floor and shake my legs. Even though, I was hit by the petrification curse, I don’t feel any different. It seems that the Status Guard script is working. The only question is why the immortality elixir isn’t working. Just as despair starts to creep up inside of me, a small crack ripples through the statue of Nadine. When I see the crack, I remember how little cracks formed on Dr. Sterblich’s arm before the stone casing completely shattered. Considering that Nadine’s entire body is petrified and not just her arm, it may take a while for the complete stone casing to come off. No matter how long it takes, I have to buy Katherine and Nadine the time.
I shout my own battle cry and charge blindly at Cornelius. Instantly, he appears next to me. Before I can react, he swings his right arm and sends me catapulting away from him. I soar all the way into the distant tower wall and ricochet off of it before I even know what hit me. From on the ground, I watch powerlessly as Cornelius approaches Katherine.
Bravely, Katherine uses her father’s wand to shoot Cornelius with a barrage of thorn darts. Unfortunately, the darts do nothing more than deflect off of his stone body. He continues towards her menacingly while bringing up his arm at her. With a furious cry, I release the physical limitations my nervous system places on my mana circulation by supercharging the energy center of my body that lies just beneath the navel. This is the method by which a mage uses Soul Magic. My body begins to glow with a thick purple aura, similar to that of Cornelius. Then, with a slight kick off of the ground, I travel from my position to just in front of Cornelius in a split second.
My sudden appearance catches him off guard. Just as he starts to react, I roundhouse kick him in the head, sinking the ball of my foot into his temple. Cornelius groans and staggers to the side. Once he stops staggering, he slowly raises his hand and touches the side of his face. Little pieces of rock chip out of his head. “I’m damaged?” he asks himself in disbelief.
While Cornelius struggles to figure out what just happened, more cracks form in the statue of Nadine. Given the rate at which the cracks are forming, it will take four or five minutes before she can completely break out. I don’t know for how much longer I can sustain the use of Soul Magic, but I’m going to find out.
Cornelius roars and charges at me. I twist into a spinning back kick and send Cornelius sliding across the floor on his backside. While he slides, I catch up to him dashing, leap into the air, and land hard on his face, pushing his head completely through the stone floor. Standing on his stomach, I lift my leg to stomp the rest of his body through, but he kicks me off of him before I can.
I fall forward while he pulls his head out of the floor and recovers to his feet. Immediately, I brace for him to attack me again, yet he doesn’t. Instead, he looks over at Katherine and Nadine, then back at me, and then back at them. He’s clearly conflicted about who to focus on. To help him decide, I attack him. Amplifying my power with Soul Magic, I cast a Comet no less than five times bigger than my normal ones.
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My attack catches his attention. To defend against my massive fireball, Cornelius counters with the Water Shark spell. When his aquatic missile connects with my fireball, the two cancel each other out. Next, Cornelius takes one step towards me. At that moment, the loud creak of a heavy gash forming in Nadine’s statue fills the air. Recognizing that Nadine is about to be free, Cornelius decides to ignore me once more. In his purple aura he starts to fly towards the girls.
Using Soul Magic, I leap through the air and land on Cornelius’s back. I take my staff and wrap it around his throat, pulling it upwards just under his chin. I don’t know if it’s possible to choke out a gargoyle, but here’s to trying. I pull as hard as I can while Cornelius wiggles trying to shake me off of him. When that doesn’t work, he starts driving his elbows into my side. Each hit hurts like the dickens, but I hold on nonetheless. Continuously, he bashes me with his elbows until there’s another loud cracking sound.
The rock around Nadine’s body shatters. For the first time in far too long, I see the full flesh and bone form of my 14-year-old former girlfriend. In a fit of rage, Cornelius quickly leans his upper body over while throwing me with his arms. I fly through the air and land in a summersault right in front of Nadine.
“Souladonis?” she asks. “What’s going on?”
“Katherine get Nadine out of here.”
“Come on!” Katherine orders, taking Nadine by the hand.
“Nobody leaves here!” Cornelius shouts.
Katherine tries to run away, but Cornelius uses his stony feather-like wings to fly through the air after her. I rocket through the sky and bring Rosette down on the base of Cornelius’s left wing. The force of my blow causes his entire wing to break off and he spirals to the ground in a heavy crash. Likewise, due to its sheer weight, even his solitary wing echoes a percussive thud when it hits the ground.
Katherine and Nadine reach the descending staircase. Cornelius gets up and tries to chase after them. Again, I attack him from behind breaking off half of his right wing. The blow to the wing distracts him long enough for Katherine and Nadine to disappear into the lower floors. Lost in rage, Cornelius whips around at me. With a quick spin, he catches me with a surprise tornado kick to the right shoulder. The kick sends me skidding across the ground in a sideways barrel roll.
I get up to my feet as quick as I can, but by then Cornelius is already on me. He hits me in the face with a hook punch followed by a left body blow to my stomach. I try to retaliate with a straight right, but he parries my arm with his left arm. Spinning into his parry, he comes around with a spinning backfist. I dip down low and kick him as hard as I can right between his legs. It doesn’t have the desired effect. Instead, he reaches down and grabs my leg. Then with a quick twist, he swings me through the air by my leg and slams me into the ground. Three of the ribs on the right side of my body snap like twigs.
Wincing from the pain, I summon my medical supplies bag as fast as I can. I grab the first red potion that I see and pop the top off of it. Just as I start to bring it to my mouth, Cornelius kicks my hand sending the potion bottle breaking against the tower floor. I rotate myself to my back and try to cast the Chain Lightning spell into his face. Anticipating my intention, he dodges before I even cast the spell. It misses him and he steps around me. Then he barbarically stomps on my medical supplies bag, crushing all of my potions and remedies.
I was in desperate need for both a health and mana potion. Now that I have neither, my chances of escaping, much less winning this fight, are now gone. As I lie on the ground, Cornelius takes me by my hair in his right hand, and my coat in his left hand. He slings me through the air like a rag doll. I land on my stomach with some of my broken ribs colliding with the floor. I try to grit my teeth, but fail to keep myself from screaming from the incredible pain. Desperately, I twist around to my back to try to launch another spell. To my surprise I don’t see Cornelius in front of me.
The reason why becomes clear when he drops out of the sky landing on my stomach with his left leg. The heavy stomp of his body is so great that the stone beneath me cracks into the shape of my body. Unable to move or breath with him on top of me, I can only think of one thing to do. I quickly shoot my legs around his left leg and pull him to the side. Because my physical strength is not enough, I again have to rely on Soul Magic to get the job done. But get the job done I do. Cornelius falls to the side and I immediately use my leverage to twist his foot in a tight ankle lock. I twist as hard as I can until I hear a pop and his foot spins around backwards. For the first time, Cornelius lets out a wail of agony. If he didn’t know anything about pain before, then he definitely does now.
I let go of my hold and scramble to my feet. Cornelius also rises limping with a broken foot and two broken wings. I feel dizzy and I’m close to losing consciousness, but he’s not faring too much better than me. The only problem is that I’m squishy flesh and bone while he’s solid rock. I can’t win in a war of attrition. I have to take him out in one single powerful attack. But if even a dual-elemental spell can’t destroy him then what can? Perhaps, an All-elemental spell?
The All-elemental spell is a spell that combines the natures of wind, water, fire, earth, and lightning. Ice can be omitted since in the midst of the conflicting elements, it would be reduced to water anyway. At least that’s the theory. Most mages believe that the idea of an All-elemental spell is nothing more than a myth. Yet back when I was a child, I was obsessed with Elemental Magic. I used to try combining all of the different elements into one. I got as far as being able to place a different element at the tip of each of my fingers, but I could never combine them all.
While I try to recall my experiences of combining the elements, Cornelius casts the Tornado spell on me. I get swept up in a powerful rotating wind that lifts me high into the air and then slinks me across the tower. I shift my body in the air to make sure that I land on my left side instead of the right. Ironically, by trying to avoid the broken ribs on my right, I break some on the left in addition to fracturing one of the bones in my forearm. This battle has to end soon. I’m literally getting killed. However, unlike in the battle with Des Chevaliers, Cornelius won’t just declare this fight a draw all of a sudden. Nor can I expect a little dove to swoop in and save me. This time I’m on my own.
I’m on my own, and I’m scared. I’m not scared because I’m going to die. Far from it. For years I wished that I would die so that I could be freed from my guilt and my never-ending quest. Rather, the reason that I’m scared now is because I’m afraid of being separated from Katherine. She told me that she felt like we have a special connection. I don’t know if that means that she loves me like I love her, but I don’t want to lose our connection. Picturing Katherine’s gleaming puppy dog brown eyes in my mind, I have a sudden epiphany. I know how to cast the All-elemental spell!
I start by creating a swirl of fire energy at the tip of my pinky. Next, I add a swirl of earth magic at the tip of my ring finger. When I start to channel wind energy into my middle finger, Cornelius springs at me. I throw out a lame excuse for a punch with my left hand. Cornelius simply moves through it letting my hand deflect off of his hard body. He clenches his right hand around the back of my head and starts punching me in the stomach repeatedly. Again and again, he punches me and catches me one good time in the liver. I would go to sleep from the pain were it not for his hitting me keeping me awake. Finally, he relents from the body blows and instead smacks me in the chin with a left elbow. Somehow, I remain on my feet, but I couldn’t even tell you whether the sky is up or down at the moment. I’m so completely knocked silly that Cornelius has no problem casually picking me up over his head. Then turning in the direction of the stairs, he tosses me like a javelin and I go headlong to the ground.
Every inch of my body tells me to just stay down and give up. At this point, I’ve sustained such terrible injuries that I don’t know if even the best doctor in the world could heal me now. I no longer have any chance of leaving this fight alive. But that’s what I expected, and that’s why Arch Lord Aerolyso taught me Soul Magic – the supernatural magic that allows a mage to go beyond his physical limitations at the expense of his life. Using Soul Magic, I fill my body with energy until I glow purple again. Then relying on its power like a crutch, I stand up.
I hold Rosette in my left hand and begin to work on the All-elemental spell with my right hand. Again, I swirl fire magic energy into my pinky, earth into my index finger, wind into my middle finger, lightning into my index finger, and water into my thumb. This is as far as I’ve ever gotten with the spell. I know that it’s the right sequence of elements, but I’ve never been able to combine them. Whenever I tried before, the conflicting elements would go crazy and cause the energy to furiously dissipate from my hands. What’s needed is some kind of way to force them to stay together. Something like a shell or outer layer of a ball. To create the shell, I tried to use ice before. Unfortunately, ice isn’t strong enough. It just melts. However, I doubt that soul energy can melt.
In the palm of my hand I create a sphere of Soul Magic energy. Then curling my fingers, I place each of the five conflicting elements into the sphere. I feel the wild energy ripping away at the shell in my hand, but I don’t let the shell break. Instead, I apply even more Soul Magic energy and forcibly condense it into a tiny orb. Suddenly, the orb changes from purple to effervescent white. The immense power of the orb causes it to grow as large as my hand, yet it no longer feels wild and out of control. Now the energy is serene and harmonious and beautiful. When I look at the quiet, sparkling white orb, I know by intuition that I hold in my hand the epitome of all magic power.
Cornelius takes a step forward at me. I thrust my palm forward and release the orb. I expect the orb to fly off at Cornelius like the Comet spell, but that’s not what happens. The instant I spread my fingers, the orb projects into a consuming beam of white energy that completely engulfs Cornelius. The unfathomable force of energy projecting from my hand starts to push me backwards even though I dig my feet into the ground. Meanwhile, inside of the white light, Cornelius tries to defend himself with his arms crossed over his chest. Small pieces start to chip away from all over his body and I know that if I can just hold the spell long enough, I’ll win.
To boost my power even more, I drain energy from Rosette. Cornelius groans in pain inside of the light, and I strain to keep it going. Invoking the unnatural power of Soul Magic, I strain out every last bit of mana from my body and from my staff. The white beam of energy grows even more intense. Cornelius starts to break apart even faster. He releases his guard to try to counterattack me with a spell. I scream and strain some more once again increasing the intensity of the beam. Cornelius stretches his hand out towards me and wails, “Master Horatio!”
Finally, his body gives way and he completely evaporates inside of the white light. I release the spell and notice that not only was Cornelius evaporated, but so were parts of the tower floor, wall, and anything else that the white light touched. Truly, that was the mother of all spells. I had wanted to go out in a blaze of glory. I think I accomplished that goal. Too bad, I can’t accomplish my other goal of returning to Katherine.
I collapse to my knees. The damage that Cornelius did to me from his spells and strikes is bad, yet the damage that I did to myself from my overuse of Soul Magic is worse. I look over to my right side and see the treasure chest that Cornelius had been guarding for centuries. This all started because I wanted whatever was in that box without even knowing. Now that it’s all over, I have to at least know what everything was for. I start crawling on my arms and knees until I get to the box. There’s no lock on it. I just flip the lid and it opens readily.
Inside I find a golden magic staff. I take it out and inspect it. It seems to be well-crafted and its top layer is 24-karat gold. The magical head of the staff is a large globe of blue topaz held in place by a fixture made of diamonds. At the very least, this is an expensive staff. But I don’t know what it does. I look back in the box and notice that there is a tag inside. I take the tag out and look closely at it. The tag reads:
Given Name: Sophia
Technical Name: Sage Golden Staff of the Mystic
Prefix: Experience Rate, Divine-Grade: Sage: +150% EXP Rate
Suffix: Experience Rate, Divine-Grade: of the Mystic - +150% EXP Rate
I’m not familiar with these affixes. I don’t know what the tag means by EXP Rate. It really doesn’t matter though. I lost my entire life over this magic staff. I lost my girlfriend, my friends, my family, my home, my education, Katherine, and everything. I rest my body against the treasure chest and let the staff fall to my side. I finally have the stupid thing, and yet it will never be mine.
My body is filled with pain, but the pain isn’t the worst part; the exhaustion is. I feel more tired than should be humanly possible. It’s not the sort of tired that one can simply sleep off. This tiredness I feel permeates my mind, body, and spirit. Maybe it’s the consequence of using Soul Magic, but more likely it’s the feeling of imminent death.
It’s funny. In this moment all that I can think of is the pushy little village girl who took me by the coat sleeve and demanded that I go with her to cure some sick woman. I’d laugh were it not for my many broken ribs.
In reality, Katherine kind of annoyed me at first. Then she nearly got me killed. That wasn’t a good moment. Yet somehow she quickly grew on me. I appreciated the way that she sincerely listened to me, and the way she joyfully wrapped her arms around my arm while we walked around. Even while she was tricking me with her cunning, there was always something playful and affectionate about her. And then there were her brown eyes. I’d be content to spend a lifetime gazing into those brown eyes.
Yet it wasn’t just her beauty, joyfulness, and affection that led me to adore Katherine. It was also her strength of character. Her compassionate sense of mercy saved me from making a grave, irreversible mistake. Then she chastised me for drinking away my problems. I’ve never felt more ashamed of myself than when I had to face her disappointed brown eyes. But I deserved it, and she was honest with me. It hurt, but I respected her all the more for it. There are so many wonderful things about her that I could go on forever. I hate to disappoint her again by not coming back to her, but maybe it’s for the better. I know what kind of man I am. She’s probably better off without me. Yet before I close my eyes, I promised her a song. I’m not a very good songwriter, but it’s the best that I could do for her.
I reach into my coat pocket and take out a folded sheet of parchment. On the front of the parchment, I wrote my old song Winter Soul. On the back of the parchment, I wrote my new song, Spring Soul. I don’t know if the lyrics will properly convey my feelings about Katherine to her, but I hope she’ll understand what I was trying to say. I lay the paper down by my side. Then whispering the words, “I love you,” I close my eyes.
Winter Soul
As a boy I met a girl
her hair was black.
We’d smile and sing and play
joke and laugh.
Each shining winter day
was better than the last.
But unparalled joy
is never meant to last.
We rolled hand in hand
tick for tack.
I took her breath away
but couldn’t give it back.
So now those happy days
have all passed.
The joys of a child
never come back.
I’ve since traveled the world
searched high and low.
I’ve spun around in circles
with no place to go.
Can a sinner find redemption?
I really don’t know.
But she’s entombed in stone
and my heart is snow.
Spring Soul
Voices all around me
Although I can’t speak.
I have no right to joy
Until I find what I seek.
My heart lost in darkness
My soul cased in stone
Cursed in each moment
To walk the world alone.
But then I met a girl
Who made my life sweet.
Despite the wretch I am
She had true love for me.
Brown hair made of earth
Brown eyes gleaming of the sun
Somehow this pushy girl
Soon became my cherished one.
My heart bloomed with flowers
My soul brimmed with spring
Each moment spent with you Katherine
Was worth everything.
The time has come for me now
To answer for my past.
If you find these words
Then it means I won’t be back.
Don’t cry for me darling
Don’t shed a single tear
This sinner found redemption
I die with my conscience clear.
My heart blooms with flowers
My soul brims with spring
My love for you Katherine
Is the new song I sing.
Unparalleled joy is never meant to last
But thanks to you Katherine
At last I’m free from my past.