The Will of Wizards

[Astrael]

The next day, Terras walked the halls of the castle with an extra spring in his step, his smile a little brighter than usual and greetings a little more jovial. It seemed the servants had seen him and Lila go off together and politely covered for their absence. Terras was grateful for it- although he had always dreamed about Lila, he never imagined a kiss being so powerful. Their passion seemed to multiply itself in ways he had never thought possible.

After sleeping the morning away and attending to his princely duties (swords, as the guards reminded him, could not practice themselves), Terras made for Lila's guest quarters, stopping by the gardens to pick up some select blossoms. He knocked on the door politely and stood back with a giant smile, his makeshift bouquet held gingerly to his chest.

To Terras' surprise, a man opened the door, not much older than Terras was. Dressed in deep purple silk with intricate golden embroidery, he could be no less than a noble, and his extra half a head of height combined with his confident stance made Terras feel like a child in his presence. The man cautiously eyed Terras without speaking a word, the moment of silence broken when Lila appeared in the doorway next to him.

"Oh! Terras!" Lila quickly darted over to Terras' side and gave his hand a warm squeeze, placing a light peck on his cheek. "I would like you to meet to whom I am betrothed, Lord Erankius of Rotherswood." At this, the man in the doorway gave a deep bow and Terras' heart stopped completely. His carefully curated boquet of flowers fell from his hand, forgotten completely.

"I am pleased to meet you, Terras," Erankus said, rising again to tower over Terras, "I am afraid I did not get a chance to speak with you at the reception."

Terras' breathing was shallow as his lungs resisted his effort to drop dead on the spot. Did she say betrothed? Had they, just broken up, or were they still together? Why would she kiss Terras in front of her betrothed? Though Terras was fair at the sword, Erankus' arms were huge, and he didn't look like a man who would take news of his fiancé cheating lightly. Terras' mind spun and he started to feel dizzy from the lack of air.

"Terras?" Lila wrapped her arm around his side, only worsening his symptoms. "Are you alright?"

Terras stepped back from Lila's embrace. Was she mad? Why would she show affection for him in front of her husband-to-be? Why didn't she tell him!? "Yes. I'm fine. Good. How are you? No. Wait- I'm sorry- I shouldn't have come."

"Nonsense," Lila said, pulling Terras through the door with considerable strength for her size, "I've been meaning to talk to you ever since last night." Terras' lungs seized up anew, but neither Lila nor Erankus seemed to notice. In fact, Erankus went into the connecting room as if nothing was amiss.

"I'm... I'm sorry about last night." Terras stumbled on his words, his eyes darting to the other room waiting for Erankus to pierce him with a crossbow bolt. "If I had known you were already engaged, I would never have taken advantage of you."

Lila gave him a curious look, "What are you talking about? Last night was amazing- I wanted to tell you that no man has ever made me feel that way before. In fact, I was wondering what you were doing tonight..."

Terras snapped to a standing position, his wits at the end of their rope, scanning the room for some sign he was dreaming. What was going on here? "I don't know who put you up to this," he said sternly, “but you are insane."

Lila stared blankly up at him with a genuinely confused look, "What do you mean, Terras? I like you, and I wanted to express that to you in the best way I could... What are you looking for?"

"You have a husband! Or at least near enough to one! Doesn't that mean anything to you?" Terras began pacing, torn between darting through the door and finding out why Lila was so strangely unruffled by the crime she had committed.

Lila glanced at the room where Erankius had disappeared and back to Terras, "Erankius? He is my betrothed, but surely he will understand if I were to be wed to you." Lila stood only to pull Terras back to his seat, where she promtly set herself on his lap. "I have kept my love a secret for too long, Prince Terras, and I want to make up for it."

Terras was transfixed by Lila's softness, the smoothness of her skin. He was paralyzed by his indecision. Slowly she looked up with a roguish grin and pulled his head down to meet hers, his resistance slipping against his desires... But some shred of his reason screamed out at the last second, every alarm in his head igniting in defiance. "No!" he yelled out and pushed Lila onto the bed. "You are betrothed! To Erankius... who is in the other room!...This is insane!"

Lila sat up, unfazed by Terras' reaction. Terras turned and ran for the door, fumbling with the lock for only a second before he was free to sprint down the hall. Lila's voice echoed down the hall behind him, "Wait! Terras! What did I do?"

[Astrael]

Terras ran through the halls of the castle as fast as his legs could take him. What was wrong with him? Better yet, what was wrong with Lila? In the many years he had known her, she had never said more than pleasantries, and now she was like a succubus come for him. Could she really have been that repressed?

The servants he passed darted out of the way as their prince came running through, casting their eyes reverently downward. Terras tore past them without giving them a single look or thought. Where could he go? He rounded the corner and found himself in front of the mystic's tower yet again, the plain cylindrical building dwarfing him in its shadow. Of course. Without thinking, he had come here again.

He entered the tower with almost as much apprehension as if he were going to meet his parents. Antarus had cared for him in ways that his parents had never been able to; loosing the wizard's respect was something Terras did not like to do often. Still, offending the wizard was less dangerous than offending his father, who would likely throw him out of the highest window without a second thought if he heard the news.

Terras knocked on the door and waited patiently again for Antarus to open it. The old man smiled as he opened his door, his eyes twinkling as they looked proudly on his pupil. "Ahh- my boy! I was wondering when you were going to be here for your lesson. Come, sit down, sit down." Antarius deftly maneuvered around the obstacles on his floor, but Terras, after shutting the door, knocked quite a few over in his rush to get over to the workbench.

"Antarus, I... I have something I need to tell you..."

Antarus continued absentmindedly shuffling around some papers and books, "You forget your line again at the coronation ceremony didn't you? I keep reminding you; land before king, or you'd better take wing..."

"Coronation? No! no-" Terras shook his head emphatically.

"I'm sorry my boy; I meant to be there, but there was just this one little experiment I had to observe." Antarus shuffled by Terras with an armload of papers, which he placed on a desk so he could swish the contents of a few beakers. "I just get so caught up in my work sometimes..."

"No! It's about Lila!"

Antarus paused from his antics and looked over his shoulder, "The Duchess of Marlon?" Terras nodded slowly and Antarus dropped his beaker, spilling a dark blue liquid all over the papers he had been carrying. With a dexterity that Terras found alarming, Antarus rushed over and began patting Terras on his back. "You certainly aim high on your coronation night! A duchess- I never thought you had it in you!"

Terras' head swam as though the entire world had been turned upside down (and he wasn't so sure that it hadn't). "What are you talking about? It's terrible! She's betrothed!"

"Oh, you've always been one for trouble," Antarus continued slyly, "but I never thought you would go quite that far. I think you've surpassed your father by quite a bit..."

Terras threw up his hands and shooed off the old wizard, "My father? What are you talking about?"

Antarius ran around to the other side of the workbench and sat down, "Oh nothing; nothing. Now, tell me what's bothering you so."

Terras gave Antarius an exasperated look, "I kissed the Dutchess of Marlon, and she is betrothed to another man! Why does everyone seem to be ok with that?"

Antarius gave Terras a mocking smile, "I don't think you'll ever learn anything unless I open up your dense skull and carve it in there myself. Your sword. It can do A-ny-thing."

Terras paused and thought for a moment. "The sword?" He looked at Antarius with complete confusion. "What does that have to do with this?"

Antarus rolled his eyes, "How many times must I repeat myself? Anything. Anything. Anything. The sword can do anything. Can I make it any clearer?"

"The sword didn't do anything!" Terras said, the frustration plain in his voice, "Lila expressed an interest in me and I took her up on it. I didn't use the sword and...stab her into kissing me!"

Antarus reached across the table and gave Terras a smart smack, "The sword is the tool; your will is its guide. It's not a weapon. It can't even hurt anyone; it's just shaped that way for aesthetic reasons."

Terras shook his head, "I didn't will this!"

"Oh, but yes you did!" Antarus said with a gleeful smile, "Who was it you were so infatuated with at your sister's birthday party? Who did you ask me to brew a love potion for five years ago when you heard the Lord of Marlon was visiting?"

"That was ages ago! Lila never showed any interest in me, and you spent many careful lessons impressing how futile it was to try to trick her into a relationship!"

Antarus smiled, "Well, at least not all of my lessons fell on deaf ears. Now, let's think for a minute. I know it's hard. You are, after all, a prince- and there are plenty of people to think for you, but let's try to do this on our own." Terras muttered something under his breath, but Antarus ignored it, "The sword does anything you want it to do. Or rather, makes anything you want to happen, happen, depending on how you wish to phrase it. You decided to spend time with Lila whom you seem to still have that childish infatuation with, and now you're suprised at the outcome?"

Terras sat and paused for a minute. Was it really that simple? Did the sword actually work? As the wild storm of thoughts in his head settled, the pieces began falling into place. It was surprising that Lila had talked to him at all, let alone kiss him... and it was certainly strange that her betrothed would ignore such nervousness in him, especially when Lila began flirting with him. On top of that, Lila had been so passionate; so insistent...

Terras looked up at Antarus with a mask of guilt. He had been given a wonderful gift, and he had wasted it on a night fulfilling a childish fantasy. "I'm sorry Antarus... I should have listened more closely..."

Antarus looked over in surprise, "Sorry? For what?"

"Wasting your gift on me with a selfish thought." Terras replied, "All the good things I could do... or at least try to do, and this happens.... I expect you'll be wanting the sword back..."

"Back, why? The sword is yours; I have no right to take it from you. And I daresay you'll be needing it."
Terras' eyebrows hunched in, "What do you mean?"

"Well; unless you want the Lord of Marlon to drive you through with the nearest pointed object he can find, I expect you'll need to keep people from thinking that what you did was wrong."

"But... isn't that... wrong?" Terras gripped the pommel of the sword for support.

"You have the sword," Antarus pointed out, "You can make the rules whatever you want."

Terras was torn. Turning himself in would probably work him into loosing the crown, weather by his father ripping it off his head or the Lord of Marlon... well, better not to think of that. On the other hand, simply covering it up... well, no one would be hurt by it. Lila didn't seem to be hurt, and she had the most to lose from it.

Terras stood and thanked Antarus for helping him see the situation clearly. The wizard shook Terras' hand and reassured him that everything would be alright before seeing him out the door. Terras seemed too distracted by his own thoughts, however, to notice the mischevious grin on the wizard's face.

[Astrael]

The prince walked silently through the halls, his mind in a million places. If the sword actually worked... the things he could do! No, no; another part of his mind replied, he was in enough trouble already. If he was going to use the sword to cover up for his careless mistake, then he should do a proper job of it. The temptation to do wrong was so great...

"Terras!" An unmistakable, booming voice rolled down the hall that made Terras' heart stop for the second time that day. His father, the king, was a large presence in any room, both physically and socially, and it was unwise to cross him in either arena.

Terras' knees buckled a little as his father placed his large arm on his shoulders, pulling his son along through the halls. "So- I hear you kissed Lila last night. How did it go?" he said coyly. Terras' mouth moved, but he lost all capacity for sound. "There, there, son. First kisses are always a little awkward. Makes the second kiss seem that much better!" His father roared with laughter, but Terras turned a few shades paler.

"That.... was her first kiss... too?" Terras' words lacked any support.

"Well, originally Erankus was supposed to be given that honor, but you beat him to it!" His father gave him a pat on the back that felt more like a clubbing, which Terras would have gladly preferred. "I suppose we will have to get that arrangement annulled. No reason to pretend now!"

"Isn't..." Terras gulped, "Isn't the Lord of Marlon angry at me?"

"Angry? Why would he be?" the king stopped and turned to his son, "He, in fact, was the man who told me the news. He was actually quite pleased with his daughter for having such high aspirations. There is only one queen allowed, and it looks like Lila has a head start!"

"But, it's wrong... I never knew..." Terras muttered, but his father took little concern.

"Did she refuse you, or complain about it afterwards? Don't tell me she wanted her first kiss returned." the king asked mockingly.

"Well, no, but..."

"Well then there's no problem!" The king boomed out, his voice echoing up and down the halls and making Terras cringe again, "You are a prince; and soon to be king! Take what you want; make no excuses! Now, if you'll excuse me-"

Without another word, the king swung around the corner towards the throne room, leaving Terras to stare blankly at his back. Her first kiss? At this point his face was paler than snow. What had he gotten himself into?

He started walking again towards the royal quarters, where he could sit and think undisturbed. He knew his father had been acting under the influence of the sword, but rather than making him feel less guilty, it made him feel more ashamed of what he had done. He was commanding the world around him, but was it better for it? He wasn't sure. He fingered the sword in the scabbard at his side as though seeking its protection. He knew it acted covertly, but somehow he felt a little safer with his hand around it.

Terras' room was on the opposite side of the castle from the mystic's tower, facing down the hill over the countryside. He was thankful for the fact that there were few servants allowed in that part of the castle, and could slip in with relative privacy. He made a beeline for his bed and collapsed on the mattress, rubbing his temples for relief.

After only seconds of silence, the door creaked in a low moan, the timbers betraying the secrecy of the opener. Terras shot upright, fear running through his veins at the possibility of being killed from behind. An all-too-vivid image of the Lord of Marlon running him through with a spear played through his head.

But the head that poked through the doorway was far too short to be the Lord of Marlon, or his mother, or Lila, or anyone else in the castle, for that matter. Except for his sister, Annabelle. Terras sat back down on the bed, rubbing his temples again to relieve his stress. "Go away, Annabelle." Terras said in a pleading tone, "Not today."

Annabelle, however, was not accustomed to obeying Terras' orders, and instead brought the rest of her body into his room and shut the door behind her. "What's got you so moody, Terras?" Annabelle said playfully,running up to the bed next to him. She seemed to excel at aggravating her older brother at every opportunity.

"It's none of your business, Annabelle. Go away."

Annabelle, again following her own desires, began jumping around the bed instead, "I heard from dad that you did something really, really bad last night, and he was going to... ehem," Annabelle politely cleared her throat and came up with the deepest tone she could muster, "rip that crown off your head, and take most of your hair, if he could manage it." Terras began massaging his whole forehead, but it didn't seem to be making much of a difference. Annabelle continued without a pause, "He said the marriage was supposed to the end the fued between their houses and restore peace to the eastern kingdom, and now you've ruined it! He was roaming the halls looking for you, in fact."

Terras groaned. Was that why his father was out wandering the halls? Why didn't he do as Annabelle had reported? Her story sounded more like the truth than what his father had actually said. Marlon and Rotherswood had been locked in a blood fued for more than a hundred years. It was only recently that the tension had calmed enough that a marriage arrangement was even thinkable. Why did he have a clap on the back instead of his rear? It wouldn't be the first time in recent memory that he had recieved one.

Annabelle continued, gleefully bathing in her brother's disgrace as only a sibling can, "I even heard rumors from the servants that Lila is saying you forced her into the kiss. The lord of Marlon is gathering his men-at-arms to return to his kingdom and prepare a reprisal."

Terras froze as Annabelle's words sunk in. If the wizard's sword was supposed to make the world to his will, why hadn't it fixed all of this? He certainly didn't will any of these outcomes to happen. Why didn't the sword work? Annabelle began jumping up and down on his bed, bored now that she had delivered all of her bad news. "Just go away, Annabelle. Go bother someone else."

There was a polite knock at the door that Annibelle rushed to answer. She opened the door a crack and whispered softly to a servant before closing it and running straight back to the bed. "Father says he wants to see you!" She began jumping again, making Terras wonder if little sisters were the world's way of keeping the world insane. "He's in the throne room with the lord of Marlon. He says to come now."

Terras sat up and snapped out his arm to grab his mocking sister, but she was too quick. Like a bolt of lightning, she was out the door before he realized his hand was empty, her mirthful giggles echoing down the hall. With a deep sigh, he made his way to the door and to the throne room, praying his sword would protect him from his father's wrath. As awful as this was sure to be, making him wait would only make it worse.

The throne roml was unnaturally empty for the middle of the day. The cavernous chamber could comfortably fit hundreds, and when so many were gathered at the castle, there was always some activity to entertain the lords and ladies . The silence and emptiness only added to Terras' uneasiness as he slipped in through the side door. Seated in the throne was his father, his face stern, but betraying none of his emotions beneath. The lord of Marlon stood just off to the side, his eyes following Terras' entry. Neither of them spoke.

Terras approached the throne in as calm a manner he could muster, his hand clenched to his sword for reassurance. Blood pounded in his ears while Annabelle's report echoed through his head, he was going to rip that crown off your head, and take most of your hair, if he could manage it. Terras stopped ten paces from the throne, next to the Lord of Marlon, and bowed to his father. He gripped the sword tighter, praying that its power would save him. The sword had gotten him into this, hopefully it could get him out as well.

"The lord and I came to an agreement, Terras." His father was calm and spoke in his courtly manner. Was that good or bad? The king paused for a few moments, letting his words hang for further effect. He cocked his head one way, then the other, as if weighing his next words on a scale.

The lord of Marlon made no sound and no movement, waiting for the king to respond. Terras clenched his sweaty fist to his sword, fearing he would have to defend himself at any second. The king finally looked his head and inhailed deeply, "But I see no reason to follow it! You shall marry Lila tomorrow! Family blood fueds come and go; a wife you can only choose once!"

Terras' eyes snapped between his father and the lord of Marlon to see if they were joking, but both broke out in huge grins and moved to congratulate him. "What was the agreement you reached?" Terras relaxed his grip on the sword. It had done its work again.

The lord of Marlon responded casually, "You were to be exiled from the kingdom while I sorted out the issues of the arrangement with Rotherswood, but that hardly seems fair to such a responsible young man! You will make an excellent addition to my family."

Though the words were encouraging, they did little to put his fears to rest. How did they work out an arrangement, then abandon it as soon as he had walked in? If the sword worked constantly, they they would have never made an arrangement in the first place. Something seemed foul about what was happening around him, and the lesson that 'wizard's gifts were not to be accepted lightly' rang truer in his head than it ever had before.

"If you will excuse me, there is someone I must tell this to." Terras slipped away from the two men and made a stately, if hasty, retreat back to the side door.

As he released the door handle behind him, the lord of Marlon's voice boomed through the solid wood, "You see no reason to follow it! Are you mad? My men will march on this castle in a fortnight if you do not set this matter straight!". Terras took off for the mystic's tower at the fastest sprint he could.

Antarus opened his door with his usual exuberant smile, "Terras! Twice in one day? I am blessed to have such a devoted student!" The wizard shuffled back to the table that was covered with a new experiment. Terras shut the door behind him and followed, his mind too wrapped up in his own problems to notice.

"I have a question about your sword, Antarus."

"Your sword, you mean?" Antarus shot back

"Yes, I suppose. My sword. How far does it work? I mean, what is the range of its influence."

"Your influence, you mean?" Terras shot his mentor a glare, but the old man was too engrossed with the flasks of liquids on the table to have noticed. Antarus poured one flask into another, then set it over a candle before replying, "The room you're standing in, there abouts. Ten paces? Perhaps fifteen, if you are Annibelle's size."

Terras' jaw dropped, "Ten paces? What use is that! The moment I walk away from an issue, my solution will undo itself! How am I supposed to maintain control of the situation if everyone involved needs to stay with me at all times? This isn't a tool worth keeping." Terras reached down and unbucked his belt in frustration. The scabbard slid smoothly off of it, dropping it unceremoniously on the floor, "All it will do is cause the people around me to tell me what I want to hear! The moment I step away, my problems will only fester."

Antarus stopped fiddling with his experiment and stood to his full height. The room took on an icy chill. The wizard fixated on Terras with an intensity usually reserved for his experiments. He spoke softly, but his words rolled like thunder, "The crown on your head- will you drop that too?" Terras paused at that thought,letting the realization of the wizard's words sink in. "Why not?” the wizard continued, “It is a tool too. It performs the same function. The people immediately around you will be more inclined to please you than tell the truth. When the lords and ladies make their reports to you, they will always slant it in such a way so as not to offend you. Those who report to you will respect you when you are in the room, but that does not mean they will do the same once the door is closed behind you. A king's crown distorts reality just as much as a wizard's sword. What will you do when that happens?"

The two of them seemed to stand there for an eternity while Terras took in what the wizard had said. He was right. How often had he hid the truth in fear of enraging his father, or softened his story so as not to offend his mother? He lied to his swordmaster about how long he had been practicing outside his lessons so as not to dissapoint. He fudged the number of books he had read so Antarus would praise him. Surely others would do the same.

"Do you understand?" Antarus continued, "Or do you wish for me to continue thinking for you?"

"I understand. I think." Terras said slowly, "but I can't quite put it into words."

"Let's walk back through our minds and sort things out then. Everything the sword did, you agreed with, yes?" Terras nodded. Even though the situations were awkward and bizarre at best, they were the best case scenarios he could expect. "But you didn't agree with the outcomes, correct?" At this, Terras gave an emphatic nod. "Then what can you say about the power of your new crown?"

Terras froze for another minute while he processed through all that had happened under the lens of this revelation. "I can control the decisions I make and the desires I express," he recited slowly, "but I cannot control the outcomes that result from them. Authority distorts the truth, and I must decide for myself what reports have merit."

The wizard broke into his usual beaming smile, proud of his pupil for taking in such a large lesson, "How will you correct this distortion, my prince?"

Terras chewed his lip before responding, "By not being afraid of dissapointment." The wizard waited while Terras formed the rest of his thought into words, "By not being afraid to hear what might upset me, I mean. If I am afraid of hearing what is actually happening, the reports I hear will be skewed to please me. If I welcome hearing the bad with the good, I can make better decisions and be more informed of their outcomes."

Antarus gave an exuberant cheer, ran over to hug Terras, and picked up the sword in one continuous motion. "I suppose you no longer want this anymore?"

Terras smirked, now fully understanding the danger of wizard's gifts, "I suppose not. You may have it back, Antarus." The wizard gave a mocking bow and shoved the sword into a different chest than he had pulled it out from. "What about my current mess? How can I fix that now that I no longer have the sword?"

Antarus swished his hand dismissively, "That? Oh, right- I've already cast a spell to reverse its effects. Can't you tell? Don't you know anything about magic?" Terras breathed a sigh of releif and made for the door. He turned as he crossed the threshold of the wizard's study as if to ask a question, but Antarus had already resumed toying with his experiment. Terras lost his thought and left without saying another word.

[Astrael]

That night, the King's study rang with laughter and the clash of full goblets. "Did you hear his footsteps after I threatened you?" the lord of Marlon shouted, "It sounded like tap dancing!"

The king roared in reply, "You should have seen him in the hall, I have never seen parchment as pale as his face was! Your daughter is an excellent actress!" They clanged their glasses together and drank deeply to their well-devised plot, refilling their cups from the decanter that sat between them.

"I suppose that wizard is brighter than he looks," conceided the lord, "which explains why you keep him around." The lord of Marlon drank deeply, but paused in the middle of his glass, "Do you beleive he has any real magic?"

"His wisdom is worth more than any 'magic' he claims to have performed," the King replied. He paused as the thought sunk in and his brow furrowed, "As to weather he has any real magic.... I wouldn't be too suprised if he did."

The lord of Marlon raised an eyebrow, "I never took you for a beleiver in the mystic arts."

"I never thought myself a beleiver either," The king admitted, "but Antarus shakes even my disbeleifs." The lord of Marlon waited for the King to continue. "As old as the man seems, he doesn't seem to be getting much older. Have you ever noticed it?"

The lord shook his head, "Why no, sire. I suppose I never gave it much thought, but now that you mention it..."

"Yes," The king continued, "come to thik of it, my father made the same observation a few years before he passed away. It was the same time he told me about the truth of my own princely coronation." The two contemplated the thought a moment more, then looked at each other and smiled mischeviously again, "We did make a wonderful farce, didn't we?"

The two great lords of the land laughed and continued their lighthearted confession. Neither of them noticed the old wizard with an old leather scabbard belted to his waist slipping out of the room.

[James]

((Holy Ben Kenobi. Good to see you around here, Astrael.

I will get around to reading this at some point. It's a fair bit to read, but I haven't actually got any books in front of me at the moment.))

[Astrael]

Hmmm.... re-reading this I'm still not happy with the point of revelation. It's a bit heavy-handed (I think I've read too many sword of truth novels) and I'm not sure it ties in to the rest of the narrative too well. I need to either trim down the revelation to just the points that are expressed well in the story (power distorting truth/reality), or edit the story and possibly add a scene to better express the second point (that the only way to know truth is to not be afraid of disappointment). The trouble is, I really like the second point better than the first, but as it is, the story doesn't really support that conclusion at the moment.

I shall have to ponder this further, but I'm open to suggestions.