that
the elementals had returned when they did. The weather took a turn
for the worse and winter storms roared around the tower for days on
end, heaping snow up to the first floor windows and dropping the
outside temperatures to bitter lows.
Simon's visits to the
outhouse were painful, but Kronk at least kept the pathway clear so
that the run from the tower and back was unimpeded.
Fortunately, the wizard's
days were now filled with studying again. His spell-casting ability
was terrible and once the happiness of regaining his magic had faded,
Simon found himself back to being a frustrated novice wizard.
He could only memorize one
spell at a time and only the easiest ones at that.
The first spell Simon cast
for practice, just to prove to himself that he could, was Sparkle. It
created little sparkles in the air like fireworks and was the least
difficult spell that he had.
Trying to be disciplined
in his approach to practicing, Simon spent an entire morning just
memorizing Sparkle, casting it, memorizing it again and on and on. By
the time he was done, the thought of casting the damned spell one
more time almost made him sick.
The frightening part of
his new status as a beginning wizard was his lack of stamina. Spells
used magic, but the magic was drawn from the wizard and left him
fatigued after casting. For the brief time that Simon had known
master-class wizard spells, he rarely felt tired even after casting
several powerful spells in a row.
Now, however, he had to
lie down after his morning's practicing and sleep for several hours.
He felt like he had run a marathon and could barely stumble to his
bedroom.
“ This is
ridiculous,” he complained to Kronk a few days later. After the
Sparkle spell, Simon had begun casting other simple spells.
Stone-Skin was a
protective spell that covered his body with a rough, stony coating.
It was flexible and fairly easy to cast. Unfortunately, after casting
it three times in a row, Simon had passed out.
“ I can barely
function as a wizard now. I think I'm less powerful than I was when I
first learned I could use magic and began casting spells.”
He had glanced in the
mirror that morning, and was shocked to see black circles under his
eyes. His cheeks were sunken in and he had begun trembling at any
chill in the air. In short, he was frail and becoming weaker by the
day.
Kronk listened
sympathetically to Simon's complaints as the wizard sat near the
fireplace wrapped in a thick blanket. When Simon paused to sip some
tea, the elemental tilted his head and stared intently at him.
“ Master, you are
working yourself too hard. You are trying to regain your old skill
more quickly than you should. Take your time, pace yourself or you
will become ill.”
“ I can't,”
Simon replied. “Don't you see, Kronk? I'm the only wizard that
we know of, so far. I have to learn quickly, to be able to fight
back. The evil gods have noticed me. That means that I might be
attacked again. Or worse, they may threaten Clara and her people.
They helped me, after all, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that
those gods know that.”
Kronk stared at him
helplessly and Simon felt a sudden wave of sympathy for him. He was
only saying what he was saying because he cared. But before he could
speak, a voice from behind him cut him off.
“ As much as I
dislike agreeing with him, in this case Kronk is correct.”
Aeris floated into view
and hovered at eye-level near the fireplace.
“ Meaning?”
Simon asked shortly.
“ Meaning, my dear
stubborn young wizard, that you are endangering yourself. And others,
if they must depend on your skills to protect them, as you say
Clara's people must.”
Simon simply watched him
silently, waiting for the elemental to continue.
“ Do you not remember
the story I told you several months ago? About that young wizard from
the old days who tried to cast spells that were too advanced for her
and lost her magic?”
The wizard looked away
from Aeris and into the
the elementals had returned when they did. The weather took a turn
for the worse and winter storms roared around the tower for days on
end, heaping snow up to the first floor windows and dropping the
outside temperatures to bitter lows.
Simon's visits to the
outhouse were painful, but Kronk at least kept the pathway clear so
that the run from the tower and back was unimpeded.
Fortunately, the wizard's
days were now filled with studying again. His spell-casting ability
was terrible and once the happiness of regaining his magic had faded,
Simon found himself back to being a frustrated novice wizard.
He could only memorize one
spell at a time and only the easiest ones at that.
The first spell Simon cast
for practice, just to prove to himself that he could, was Sparkle. It
created little sparkles in the air like fireworks and was the least
difficult spell that he had.
Trying to be disciplined
in his approach to practicing, Simon spent an entire morning just
memorizing Sparkle, casting it, memorizing it again and on and on. By
the time he was done, the thought of casting the damned spell one
more time almost made him sick.
The frightening part of
his new status as a beginning wizard was his lack of stamina. Spells
used magic, but the magic was drawn from the wizard and left him
fatigued after casting. For the brief time that Simon had known
master-class wizard spells, he rarely felt tired even after casting
several powerful spells in a row.
Now, however, he had to
lie down after his morning's practicing and sleep for several hours.
He felt like he had run a marathon and could barely stumble to his
bedroom.
“ This is
ridiculous,” he complained to Kronk a few days later. After the
Sparkle spell, Simon had begun casting other simple spells.
Stone-Skin was a
protective spell that covered his body with a rough, stony coating.
It was flexible and fairly easy to cast. Unfortunately, after casting
it three times in a row, Simon had passed out.
“ I can barely
function as a wizard now. I think I'm less powerful than I was when I
first learned I could use magic and began casting spells.”
He had glanced in the
mirror that morning, and was shocked to see black circles under his
eyes. His cheeks were sunken in and he had begun trembling at any
chill in the air. In short, he was frail and becoming weaker by the
day.
Kronk listened
sympathetically to Simon's complaints as the wizard sat near the
fireplace wrapped in a thick blanket. When Simon paused to sip some
tea, the elemental tilted his head and stared intently at him.
“ Master, you are
working yourself too hard. You are trying to regain your old skill
more quickly than you should. Take your time, pace yourself or you
will become ill.”
“ I can't,”
Simon replied. “Don't you see, Kronk? I'm the only wizard that
we know of, so far. I have to learn quickly, to be able to fight
back. The evil gods have noticed me. That means that I might be
attacked again. Or worse, they may threaten Clara and her people.
They helped me, after all, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that
those gods know that.”
Kronk stared at him
helplessly and Simon felt a sudden wave of sympathy for him. He was
only saying what he was saying because he cared. But before he could
speak, a voice from behind him cut him off.
“ As much as I
dislike agreeing with him, in this case Kronk is correct.”
Aeris floated into view
and hovered at eye-level near the fireplace.
“ Meaning?”
Simon asked shortly.
“ Meaning, my dear
stubborn young wizard, that you are endangering yourself. And others,
if they must depend on your skills to protect them, as you say
Clara's people must.”
Simon simply watched him
silently, waiting for the elemental to continue.
“ Do you not remember
the story I told you several months ago? About that young wizard from
the old days who tried to cast spells that were too advanced for her
and lost her magic?”
The wizard looked away
from Aeris and into the
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