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Description
Geas

Lana gave Bishop’s hand a last squeeze, then she let go. “Ok”, she whispered. “First, we have do dig him up. We don’t need much, I think, but we’ve got to have some piece of his body, a bone or something.” She shuddered. “And let me add that this is very eeew.”

“And how do we dig him up? I don’t suppose you brought a shovel?”

“Of course”, she answered bitingly. “I always carry a shovel with me, in case I need to dig up some dead. You never know when you have to defile a grave. What do you think, wolf boy? Just use your hands, your memories should be worth breaking a nail over!”

“How about your pretty nails?”, he said, grinning at her.

“Oh, I am devastated, but I’ll have to miss out on the fun. I will sit here, and make myself familiar with the spell. We have only the one scroll, and we would not want me to miscast that, would we?”

“Me digging alone with just my hands will take a good while.”

Lana shrugged. “Why don’t you ask furface to help? Aren’t dogs supposed to be enthusiastic about digging up old bones?”

Karnwyr came up behind her, passing her by, nudging his body hard into the back of her knees in the process. Lana found her butt hitting the ground, while Karnwyr started burrowing into the earth on the spot he identified as Garius’ grave. Bishop grinned down on her.

“He does not appreciate being called a dog. I thought you could tell by his reaction when I did it.” With that he turned and went over to the wolf, to help digging.

Lana glared after them. “That’s the thanks I get”, she said to herself. She pulled the leather bag out of her breeches and took the Resurrection scroll. Then she diligently put the bag, now containing only the Teleport scroll, back under her clothing. She smoothed out the parchment in her hand as much as possible and started reading the inscription by the fortunately bright light of the moon.

Soon, she noticed Karnwyr plodding up to her. He opened his muzzle and let something fall into her lap. Lana looked down and saw it was a finger, the flesh grey and moldy, shrivelled, bones peeking out, the nail yellow, looking more like a claw. Some maggots were having a feast on what was left of the flesh. And it stank.

She barely repressed a squeak as she hopped to her feet, frantically patting on her clothes to get the disgusting thing off herself. Shivers ran down her spine and her body was covered in goose bumps as she fought the revulsion that threatened to turn her stomach.

“Eeeew, eeeew, eeeeew, eeeew!”, she uttered under her breath. When the offending object hit the ground with a little flopping noise that twisted her stomach once more, she turned to Karnwyr, sitting and watching her with a mien of utter innocence.

“You...”, she said quietly, but threateningly.

“Should not have called him a dog”, grinned Bishop, approaching.

“And you!”, she hissed. “Letting him do that! You’re lucky I can’t yell properly here, but this is not over, I promise! I’ll make you regret that as soon as we’re away from here. And stop grinning at me, you stupid mutt!”, she added in Karnwyr’s direction.

Bishop made a choking noise as he suppressed his laughter. Lana inhaled deeply, mustering all the patience she could gather, which was not much at the best of times. She waved the parchment in front of Bishop’s eyes.

“Are we going to do this or not?”

That shut him up. His laughter stopping abruptly, he swallowed. “We are.”, he said, quietly.

“Fine, then try not to act like an idiot. This is going to be dangerous. We don’t know how much of his power Garius used before he died. He is going to come back with all the spells he still had prepared at the time of his death. And something tells me he will be willing to use them. So we should be prepared for a hard battle. Keep yourself ready while I invoke the spell, and stop making childish jokes at my expense! Can you manage that, or is it too much to ask?”

“Fine, I’m sorry. I was just nervous.” He sighed. “Let’s get this over with.”

For once, it is not me apologising. That’s kind of nice for a change.

“Here we go”, she muttered, lifting the scroll to her face, starting to chant the words, as silently as she could, while Bishop made his weapons ready.

As the strange incantation rolled from her lips, the disgusting piece of flesh and bone on the ground started to glow in a soft white light. She could see it grow, stretch, elongate. A hand formed, then an arm, a torso, the head and the other arm, the legs, until a complete body lay at her feet, looking healthy and fresh. The familiar hated face under the bald scalp looked peaceful with the eyes shut, as if the Master of the Fifth Tower was merely asleep.

With the last word of the spell, Garius coughed, his eyes flew open, and he sat up, sucking in a deep breath. He looked dazed and disoriented as he coughed once more, his hands gripping at his chest.

And he’s naked – they should fix that in that spell! Eeeew again!

Preparing herself for battle, Lana reached out to her own powers as her eyes went to Bishop, who stood behind the freshly risen mage, looking frozen to the spot. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, she saw him shake himself like a dog, and his eyes went to the man at his feet, the corners of his mouth twisting downwards in disdain.

“Garius!”, Bishop said sweetly. “I remember you leaving me a farewell present. Please allow me to return the favour. I would hate to fall short.” With that, the ranger let go of one of his scimitars, grabbed the mage’s forehead with his free hand as the man was still trying to get his bearings, pulled his head back and slit his throat in one swift motion. Then he let go and stepped back, looking down at the mage with a sneer on his face.

Garius made a gurgling noise, his hands going to his throat, his eyes wide. Then he sank back, his eyes dimming, and he died – again.

“A slit throat turns the mightiest mage into a rather ordinary person”, Bishop said with satisfaction, picking up his second scimitar. “He would have done good to remember that.”

Lana stared down at the dead-again body. “Well, that was quite... anticlimactic”, she said.

Bishop looked up at her and lifted the bloody weapon in a mock salute. “Hello, Captain”, he said. “Care to explain to me what the hell is going on?”

Lana stared at him, wordlessly, for a moment. He sounded very much like the Bishop of old. And the memories seemed to be back, judging from his words.

“Well, he put a Geas on you, that took your memory until we brought him back to life”, she said.

“Thank you very much. Now, can you tell me anything I don’t know? The last thing I remember is that bastard gloating in my head in the Vale of Merdelain, and now I’m finding myself at this place, which, no offence, I very much hoped never to see again, in your company, for which goes the same. So, would you please explain to me what is happening?”

Lana felt his words like needles in her heart. This was the old Bishop. Very much so. And he did not seem to remember what had happened after the Geas set in.

What about the man I travelled with?

Was he gone? Just like that? As dead as the mage who created him?

The thought was surprisingly painful, and she stared at the ranger standing before her, not knowing what to say, opening her mouth, and closing it again, as no words would come.

“What? Cat got your tongue?”, he snapped. “I did not think my question so difficult. So spill already, will you?”

Suddenly, a light appeared between them, swirling and slowly taking form. After a few seconds, a figure shimmered in the air, a malicious smile on full red lips. Lana stared, not believing her eyes.

What the friggin’ hells does that mean?

“I can explain what’s going on, my little one”, Jaluth purred “Now, you’ve been a very bad boy, Bishop.”

“You!” , Bishop hissed, a world of hate in that single word. His eyes narrowed to slits, he fell into a fighting stance, slightly crouched, his weapons ready in his hands.

The woman’s delighted laughter sent a shiver down Lana’s spine.

“I see my little one is back. That makes me so happy. But I will have to punish you for being naughty. You ran away from me, little one.”

“You bet I did! And if you think I will ever let you touch me again, you must be even crazier than I thought!”, he snarled, the hair on his neck standing on edge. Literally.

“Oh, but you will. You will come to me. And you will bring her with you.”

Bishop gave Lana a short glance and sneered. “Her? What do you want with her?”

The contempt in his voice felt like another stab at Lana’s heart.

“That’s my business, little one. She is a very precious pawn in the chess game the powers are playing. And she’s such a pretty little kitty. Maybe I’ll just amuse myself a bit with her. Or make her watch while I amuse myself with you.” Her laughter pearled again, making Lana shudder.

She’s completely, utterly mad.

She saw Bishop shudder in time with herself, his face paler than usual. “You think I’ll just walk into your clutches once more, willingly? Well, think again! Find someone else to play your little games with. I’m out of here. So long, Captain.”

Without another glance at Lana, he turned to leave.

“Oh, but you will come to me, my little one”, Jaluth said, silken menace in her voice.

Bishop faced her image again, sneering. “Oh? And why is that?”

She made a crushing motion with her right hand, and his face contorted in pain. He fell to the ground, groaning, convulsing, clutching at his chest.

She opened her hand again, and he stilled, gasping for breath. “Because I laid a Geas on you, little one. I thought the idea of our dear deceased friend Garius so refreshing, I just had to try it myself, and I even added my own small twist to the spell. Doing spells after the book gets so boring after some time. You will come, and you will bring the kitten.”

“Stop... messing with my life, bitch”, Bishop coughed, trying to sit up. “Stay the hell away from me!”

She smiled, clenching her fist, and he screamed, his body arching from the ground. She opened her hand again, and he sagged, whimpering, pale, sweat on his face.

“You were always so delightfully stubborn, never surrendering without putting up a fight first. But remember the pain, little one. There’s no place so far I can’t reach you now. And if you don’t obey, I’ll just crush your heart. But slowly. Don’t keep me waiting too long.”

The image faded, and all Lana could hear were Bishop’s gasps, reminding her eerily of sobs.

That bitch!

Her heart going out to him, Lana ran over to the ranger, falling to her knees by his side. She ran her fingers through his soft hair, asking anxiously: “Are you all right?”

He sat up, coughing, flicked his head back, away from her touch, and snarled: “Keep your hands off me! If you want to paw someone, go find the tin can. Where is he, by the way? Normally he glues himself to your butt. How come he let you out of his sight, especially with me around?”

Again, Lana could only stare wordlessly.

Gone, she thought, numbly. I thought I found a friend, and he’s gone. Just like that.

“What?”, he sneered, noticing her stare. “Missed my face? I know the human plate mail can’t compete. Where did you leave him? Got enough of him in the end? Got bored? Can’t say I’m surprised.”

Every word sent a dagger through Lana’s heart.

I suddenly remember why I did not like him before. He nearly made me forget what a bastard he had been.

“He’s dead”, she said tonelessly. “The King of Shadows killed him.”

Bishop grinned. He had the audacity to grin. Lana felt her blood starting to boil, her anger overcoming the numbness of shock.

“Well”, he said. “Guess that’s what you get for dragging people on suicide missions.”

Something in Lana snapped. Her hand shot out and caught him across the face, slapping him hard, making his head snap around. Retracting her hand, she backhanded him on the other cheek, then she sat, her hands balled into fists, breathing heavily, her eyes shooting daggers at him.

“Don’t. Ever. Speak of him again”, she said, softly, menacingly.

Bishop touched his stinging cheek, smiling evilly. “Thanks”, he said. “That makes this so much easier.”

And with these words, his fist shot out, a motion so quick it turned into a blur, and before Lana could react in any way, it connected with her chin. Hard.

The world went dark.

Description
Geas

Lana gave Bishop’s hand a last squeeze, then she let go. “Ok”, she whispered. “First, we have do dig him up. We don’t need much, I think, but we’ve got to have some piece of his body, a bone or something.” She shuddered. “And let me add that this is very eeew.”

“And how do we dig him up? I don’t suppose you brought a shovel?”

“Of course”, she answered bitingly. “I always carry a shovel with me, in case I need to dig up some dead. You never know when you have to defile a grave. What do you think, wolf boy? Just use your hands, your memories should be worth breaking a nail over!”

“How about your pretty nails?”, he said, grinning at her.

“Oh, I am devastated, but I’ll have to miss out on the fun. I will sit here, and make myself familiar with the spell. We have only the one scroll, and we would not want me to miscast that, would we?”

“Me digging alone with just my hands will take a good while.”

Lana shrugged. “Why don’t you ask furface to help? Aren’t dogs supposed to be enthusiastic about digging up old bones?”

Karnwyr came up behind her, passing her by, nudging his body hard into the back of her knees in the process. Lana found her butt hitting the ground, while Karnwyr started burrowing into the earth on the spot he identified as Garius’ grave. Bishop grinned down on her.

“He does not appreciate being called a dog. I thought you could tell by his reaction when I did it.” With that he turned and went over to the wolf, to help digging.

Lana glared after them. “That’s the thanks I get”, she said to herself. She pulled the leather bag out of her breeches and took the Resurrection scroll. Then she diligently put the bag, now containing only the Teleport scroll, back under her clothing. She smoothed out the parchment in her hand as much as possible and started reading the inscription by the fortunately bright light of the moon.

Soon, she noticed Karnwyr plodding up to her. He opened his muzzle and let something fall into her lap. Lana looked down and saw it was a finger, the flesh grey and moldy, shrivelled, bones peeking out, the nail yellow, looking more like a claw. Some maggots were having a feast on what was left of the flesh. And it stank.

She barely repressed a squeak as she hopped to her feet, frantically patting on her clothes to get the disgusting thing off herself. Shivers ran down her spine and her body was covered in goose bumps as she fought the revulsion that threatened to turn her stomach.

“Eeeew, eeeew, eeeeew, eeeew!”, she uttered under her breath. When the offending object hit the ground with a little flopping noise that twisted her stomach once more, she turned to Karnwyr, sitting and watching her with a mien of utter innocence.

“You...”, she said quietly, but threateningly.

“Should not have called him a dog”, grinned Bishop, approaching.

“And you!”, she hissed. “Letting him do that! You’re lucky I can’t yell properly here, but this is not over, I promise! I’ll make you regret that as soon as we’re away from here. And stop grinning at me, you stupid mutt!”, she added in Karnwyr’s direction.

Bishop made a choking noise as he suppressed his laughter. Lana inhaled deeply, mustering all the patience she could gather, which was not much at the best of times. She waved the parchment in front of Bishop’s eyes.

“Are we going to do this or not?”

That shut him up. His laughter stopping abruptly, he swallowed. “We are.”, he said, quietly.

“Fine, then try not to act like an idiot. This is going to be dangerous. We don’t know how much of his power Garius used before he died. He is going to come back with all the spells he still had prepared at the time of his death. And something tells me he will be willing to use them. So we should be prepared for a hard battle. Keep yourself ready while I invoke the spell, and stop making childish jokes at my expense! Can you manage that, or is it too much to ask?”

“Fine, I’m sorry. I was just nervous.” He sighed. “Let’s get this over with.”

For once, it is not me apologising. That’s kind of nice for a change.

“Here we go”, she muttered, lifting the scroll to her face, starting to chant the words, as silently as she could, while Bishop made his weapons ready.

As the strange incantation rolled from her lips, the disgusting piece of flesh and bone on the ground started to glow in a soft white light. She could see it grow, stretch, elongate. A hand formed, then an arm, a torso, the head and the other arm, the legs, until a complete body lay at her feet, looking healthy and fresh. The familiar hated face under the bald scalp looked peaceful with the eyes shut, as if the Master of the Fifth Tower was merely asleep.

With the last word of the spell, Garius coughed, his eyes flew open, and he sat up, sucking in a deep breath. He looked dazed and disoriented as he coughed once more, his hands gripping at his chest.

And he’s naked – they should fix that in that spell! Eeeew again!

Preparing herself for battle, Lana reached out to her own powers as her eyes went to Bishop, who stood behind the freshly risen mage, looking frozen to the spot. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, she saw him shake himself like a dog, and his eyes went to the man at his feet, the corners of his mouth twisting downwards in disdain.

“Garius!”, Bishop said sweetly. “I remember you leaving me a farewell present. Please allow me to return the favour. I would hate to fall short.” With that, the ranger let go of one of his scimitars, grabbed the mage’s forehead with his free hand as the man was still trying to get his bearings, pulled his head back and slit his throat in one swift motion. Then he let go and stepped back, looking down at the mage with a sneer on his face.

Garius made a gurgling noise, his hands going to his throat, his eyes wide. Then he sank back, his eyes dimming, and he died – again.

“A slit throat turns the mightiest mage into a rather ordinary person”, Bishop said with satisfaction, picking up his second scimitar. “He would have done good to remember that.”

Lana stared down at the dead-again body. “Well, that was quite... anticlimactic”, she said.

Bishop looked up at her and lifted the bloody weapon in a mock salute. “Hello, Captain”, he said. “Care to explain to me what the hell is going on?”

Lana stared at him, wordlessly, for a moment. He sounded very much like the Bishop of old. And the memories seemed to be back, judging from his words.

“Well, he put a Geas on you, that took your memory until we brought him back to life”, she said.

“Thank you very much. Now, can you tell me anything I don’t know? The last thing I remember is that bastard gloating in my head in the Vale of Merdelain, and now I’m finding myself at this place, which, no offence, I very much hoped never to see again, in your company, for which goes the same. So, would you please explain to me what is happening?”

Lana felt his words like needles in her heart. This was the old Bishop. Very much so. And he did not seem to remember what had happened after the Geas set in.

What about the man I travelled with?

Was he gone? Just like that? As dead as the mage who created him?

The thought was surprisingly painful, and she stared at the ranger standing before her, not knowing what to say, opening her mouth, and closing it again, as no words would come.

“What? Cat got your tongue?”, he snapped. “I did not think my question so difficult. So spill already, will you?”

Suddenly, a light appeared between them, swirling and slowly taking form. After a few seconds, a figure shimmered in the air, a malicious smile on full red lips. Lana stared, not believing her eyes.

What the friggin’ hells does that mean?

“I can explain what’s going on, my little one”, Jaluth purred “Now, you’ve been a very bad boy, Bishop.”

“You!” , Bishop hissed, a world of hate in that single word. His eyes narrowed to slits, he fell into a fighting stance, slightly crouched, his weapons ready in his hands.

The woman’s delighted laughter sent a shiver down Lana’s spine.

“I see my little one is back. That makes me so happy. But I will have to punish you for being naughty. You ran away from me, little one.”

“You bet I did! And if you think I will ever let you touch me again, you must be even crazier than I thought!”, he snarled, the hair on his neck standing on edge. Literally.

“Oh, but you will. You will come to me. And you will bring her with you.”

Bishop gave Lana a short glance and sneered. “Her? What do you want with her?”

The contempt in his voice felt like another stab at Lana’s heart.

“That’s my business, little one. She is a very precious pawn in the chess game the powers are playing. And she’s such a pretty little kitty. Maybe I’ll just amuse myself a bit with her. Or make her watch while I amuse myself with you.” Her laughter pearled again, making Lana shudder.

She’s completely, utterly mad.

She saw Bishop shudder in time with herself, his face paler than usual. “You think I’ll just walk into your clutches once more, willingly? Well, think again! Find someone else to play your little games with. I’m out of here. So long, Captain.”

Without another glance at Lana, he turned to leave.

“Oh, but you will come to me, my little one”, Jaluth said, silken menace in her voice.

Bishop faced her image again, sneering. “Oh? And why is that?”

She made a crushing motion with her right hand, and his face contorted in pain. He fell to the ground, groaning, convulsing, clutching at his chest.

She opened her hand again, and he stilled, gasping for breath. “Because I laid a Geas on you, little one. I thought the idea of our dear deceased friend Garius so refreshing, I just had to try it myself, and I even added my own small twist to the spell. Doing spells after the book gets so boring after some time. You will come, and you will bring the kitten.”

“Stop... messing with my life, bitch”, Bishop coughed, trying to sit up. “Stay the hell away from me!”

She smiled, clenching her fist, and he screamed, his body arching from the ground. She opened her hand again, and he sagged, whimpering, pale, sweat on his face.

“You were always so delightfully stubborn, never surrendering without putting up a fight first. But remember the pain, little one. There’s no place so far I can’t reach you now. And if you don’t obey, I’ll just crush your heart. But slowly. Don’t keep me waiting too long.”

The image faded, and all Lana could hear were Bishop’s gasps, reminding her eerily of sobs.

That bitch!

Her heart going out to him, Lana ran over to the ranger, falling to her knees by his side. She ran her fingers through his soft hair, asking anxiously: “Are you all right?”

He sat up, coughing, flicked his head back, away from her touch, and snarled: “Keep your hands off me! If you want to paw someone, go find the tin can. Where is he, by the way? Normally he glues himself to your butt. How come he let you out of his sight, especially with me around?”

Again, Lana could only stare wordlessly.

Gone, she thought, numbly. I thought I found a friend, and he’s gone. Just like that.

“What?”, he sneered, noticing her stare. “Missed my face? I know the human plate mail can’t compete. Where did you leave him? Got enough of him in the end? Got bored? Can’t say I’m surprised.”

Every word sent a dagger through Lana’s heart.

I suddenly remember why I did not like him before. He nearly made me forget what a bastard he had been.

“He’s dead”, she said tonelessly. “The King of Shadows killed him.”

Bishop grinned. He had the audacity to grin. Lana felt her blood starting to boil, her anger overcoming the numbness of shock.

“Well”, he said. “Guess that’s what you get for dragging people on suicide missions.”

Something in Lana snapped. Her hand shot out and caught him across the face, slapping him hard, making his head snap around. Retracting her hand, she backhanded him on the other cheek, then she sat, her hands balled into fists, breathing heavily, her eyes shooting daggers at him.

“Don’t. Ever. Speak of him again”, she said, softly, menacingly.

Bishop touched his stinging cheek, smiling evilly. “Thanks”, he said. “That makes this so much easier.”

And with these words, his fist shot out, a motion so quick it turned into a blur, and before Lana could react in any way, it connected with her chin. Hard.

The world went dark.