Fantasy The Clueless Wizard (Completed)

[ArcticFox]

"You are welcome." Mel responded with a smile and a blush that spread up to his ears. "Oh, yes, I've met her once. She was odd, even for a Wizard. I don't know if she was actually a goblin, but she looked like one. That is, her race would have been called 'goblin' in our world, but she came from a completely different realm."

The elf took another stroll through the library before settling in an armchair. He was deep in though for a couple of silent moment, before he turned to look at Arden again.

"At that time, I had just begun my service in the temple and I didn't go out much. But, I remember meeting Tazz on the road toward Blackcliffe. I am still not sure to this day, but I think she was trying to rob me." He smiled. "Of course until she realised that I was a priest and had absolutely nothing of value with me. I also heard other priests talking about her sneaking around the temple. I think she was scouting our place for valuables.

"I don't know what exactly happened to her. She was just gone one day and we had a new Wizard. My guess is that she tried to rob someone she wasn't supposed to."

- Read the journal.
- Ask something else.

 

[Yokai]

》Read the journal.

"Hmm," Arden hummed thoughtfully as she considered his words, bottom lip pulled nervously between her teeth. Personally she didn't understand the appeal of material belongings; sure it was nice to have pretty things but that was really the extent of it. Arden would rather spend her time with people or learning magic. The challenge of stealing sounded like more fun than the actual valuables.

"Well, that definitely sounds like the right wizard! Thanks again~" Arden flashed him a much brighter smile as she plopped down in her usual reading spot by the window. The huddle of blankets and pillows marked it as her own. "Now, I just need to read this and then become a glamour genius in the next three days and then everything will be fine..." She mumbled to herself, nose already planted securely in her book as she left Mel to his own devices.

 

[ArcticFox]

"You know where to find me if you need any help." Mel said, approaching her chair and kissing the top of her head gently, before leaving her to read in peace.

After reading a couple of pages from Tazz's journal, it became apparent that Arden was on the correct trail. Reading about her predecessor's thieving exploits, of which she boasted throughout the book, made it easier for Arden to connect the dots.

The Wizard had stolen many trinkets from Blackcliffe's residents it seemed, including a hairpin from the Queen at the time and a quill from the Yrantan ambassador. Apparently, she was seeking out a bigger challenge, which is why she chose Shiala's eggs as the next target. According to her notes, she worked on a glamour spell for a long while, as this was her speciality. It probably helped her with her exploits. But the glamour spell she talked about in the journal was not meant to prevent the babies from hatching. It was supposed to pacify both the mother and the children, so that Tazz could steal away with them without a trouble.

Obviously, this did not go as planned. Arden did find very details notes about Tazz's spell and the books she used to forge it. There were twelve of them. It was quite a large number, but Arden sped through her studies so far. She could go through the books to find out what exactly Tazz learned. Knowing her spell would make it easier to develop a counterspell.

That was everything of note she could learn from the journal. It abruptly cut off after the incident with the dragon, as if Tazz simply disappeared, or more likely, was killed during one of her heists.

- Find the glamour books.
- Focus on learning glamour from the basics.
- Ask the Queen about historical records of Wizards.

 

[Yokai]

》Find the glamour books.

That made things a little easier, surprisingly. Arden could at least be thankful that Tazz was thorough in her studies, especially when it came to recording her magical exploits. Also it made for entertaining reading! Which was an unforeseen bonus. Yet the question still remained: how should she approach this?

Knowing the exact spell was important for creating a counterspell. It could also open the door for analyzing exactly what level of glamour magic she needed to reach before Shiala returned. So, counterspell first and then glamour studies. Arden tried not to let her anxiety bother her -- it really was like cram studying.

"Alright," Arden said, muttering to herself again as she fluttered around the library in an attempt to find the twelve glamour books. Truly an excessive amount. "At least I'll be fairly talented at glamours after all this."

 

[ArcticFox]

She found the glamour books without much trouble. All of them seemed completely foreign to her at first, like all of the magical books were, but once she concentrated on the work she was able to make some sense out of them. Pictures and words formed in front of her eyes as she flipped through the pages, reading what her predecessor read and getting closer to her spell with each line.

After the sixth book Arden could feel her eyes watering and she developed a splitting headache. Even if she pushed herself as hard as possible, she would not be able to read any more for that day. And just as well, since it was sundown already and Miss Jacqueline came to the library to strictly order her down to dinner. She would have to make a break until tomorrow.

- Spend the night resting.
- Spend the night with Kogan and Jacqueline.
- Look for Mel.
- Look for someone else.

 

[Yokai]

》Spend the night with Kogan and Jacqueline.

"Aww, you take such good care of me~" Arden cooed sweetly as she followed Jacqueline downstairs. However, the comment lacked her usual enthusiasm and the headache behind her eyes was splitting. It'd be nice to simply eat and enjoy their company for now. Being around pleasant people -- somehow Kogan fit into that category -- actually helped her energy to recharge. Also, it'd help to calm her nerves.

"So, did anything exciting happen while I was gone?" Arden prompted them curiously, mind slowly clearing as she attempted to push the magic of glamours aside for the night. She couldn't help but feel a little stressed and hearing about Jacqueline and Kogan's days would actually help.

 

[ArcticFox]

"I am your housekeeper, dear, the most excitement I have in my days is cleaning dust off of cabinets." Miss Jacqueline smiled. "But, don't get me wrong, I like it that way. I would not want to be in your place and parley with dragons."

"Yeah, what the hell was that all about?" Kogan added, giving her a scornful look. "Half the guards worked most of the day to clean the mess your dragon made. What are you going to do about it, Wizard? You know that people are going to point fingers in your direction if the beast visits Blackcliffe again."

Some of the people did admire Arden for "taming" the dragon that day, but what Kogan said was true. The people would blame her for any further disruptions, since the dragon had asked for her specifically.

- Say you've got it under control.
- Say it's not his problem.
- Ask for his help.
- Change the subject.

 

[Yokai]

》Say you're working on it.

"My dragon!?" Arden hissed, unable to keep the irritation out of her voice as her dark eyes flashed. She was tired, she had a headache, and she was already beginning to regret looking for 'pleasant' company. Pressing her knuckles to her temple she couldn't be bothered to school her expression into something more palatable.

"Would you rather I have fought the stupid dragon?" Arden demanded darkly. "Because as much as you think wizards are disposable I'd rather not die." Then she sighed, dismissive again as she turned back around to grab a plate to fill it with food.

"I'm working on it, alright?" Arden mumbled, grip tight on her plate as she turned to take her meal back to her room. She was wrong in the end; her lack of patience was just making her grumpy and that definitely wasn't how she wanted to act toward anyone. "Sorry, I'm tired. I'm going to eat alone tonight," Arden flashed them a smile. "Everything will be fine; I'll figure something out."

 

[ArcticFox]

Kogan scowled at her words at first, but the more she spoke the softer his expression got. When she stood up from the table, he was looking at his own plate, pushing the food around disinterestedly.

"Look what you did." Arden heard Miss Jacqueline say as she exited the room. Kogan was silent.

--

Tomorrow morning she continued her examination of the books, prepared that it would take her the whole day. That was already two days off her deadline. She would have only one left to catch up on glamour.

This part of her investigation proved more fortuitous though. Sometime late afternoon, after Jacqueline brought food into the library, she had finally starting to piece together the words of the spell that Tazz used. Like with other magic, there was no actual line she could read to cast a spell, it was more a point of concentration and deeper spiritual understanding. She would have a hard time explaining the way magic worked to anyone else that was not a Wizard.

The important thing was that by the time her late lunch was finished, she knew the exact spell Tazz used on the dragon's eggs. The spell she was supposed to used to pacify them, to be exact. The spell that probably misfired due to Tazz either not knowing glamour that well to cast it, or being inexplicably distracted at the moment. Considering how much Tazz spoke about glamour in her journal, the latter was more plausible.

There was another thing. At the end of the last book Arden read, she found a tattered note in Tazz's handwriting that simply stated "treasure". On the other side of the note was a flimsy treasure map like one she would see in pirate movies and cartoons back home. It seemed to point to a spot somewhere in the purple forest.

Reading all those books upped Arden's understanding of magic the same it would had she started learning it from the beginning. But still she had absolutely no idea how to perform a counter spell. She could trust in her understanding of magic and simply go with the dragon, examine the eggs again and hope she will get the solution then. She could try getting to the bottom of Tazz's fate, to see if finding out about her life would provide any insight into the slip up she made. Or she could take that map and go search for the treasure.

- Study more glamour magic.
- Go look for the treasure alone.
- Look for the treasure with someone.
- Ask the Queen about historical records of Wizards.

 

[Yokai]

》Look for the treasure with someone: Alexei.

It seemed that Arden had reached the end of the journals far sooner than she'd originally anticipated. That dumped her at another crossroads. So, while she may understand the spell -- and have improved her glamour skills marginally in the process -- she still wasn't any closer to creating a counterspell. Which was the whole point of this excursion into magic. Which was why, when dark eyes settled on that map, Arden decided to take it at face value for what she believed it to be; a clue.

Maybe this would bring her closer to a counterspell? Understanding Tazz could figure out what exactly changed or caused her to slip up.

Arden was swift to depart the tower after that and set out in hunt of Alexei. He was the first person that jumped into her head when it came to protection in the woods. He was one of the original two who'd found her there after all. And, if she was being honest, she was avoiding Kogan. Arden didn't like being short-tempered with people and Miss Jacqueline would've given him an earful for her trouble.

Once this dragon business was over she'd apologise properly but for now? Arden was going to be a little childish.

 

[ArcticFox]

"A treasure hunt?" Alexei raised an inquisitive eyebrow when Arden approached him, but he was soon laughing. "I don't know why, but I have a feeling that this is really your thing. You have a glint in your eye." He said, tracing her cheek with his gauntleted hand for a brief moment before moving away. "Yes, let's go."

--

The purple forest was actually called Shadi's Forest, for their god of darkness and night, which did not sound pleasant at all. It did not help when Alexei casually explained that besides wolves and wendigos nothing really dangerous lived there. They had only killed one manticore here in his lifetime, he said.

Alexei was far too casual about the potential scary monsters hiding in the purple forest and the shadows that the fluttering of leaves caused to dance, as well as the odd whispers carried on the wind, would make anyone jumpy.

"What kind of dangerous animals live in your realm?" The knight asked with obvious interest.

- Answer.
- Ask about the creatures in the forest.
- Ask about other creatures.
- Ask about non dangerous creatures.

 

[Yokai]

》Answer: ask about other creatures.

Almost immediately it became clear that Arden had made the right choice in bringing somebody else along. Especially Alexei as he seemed to know the forest well and, as a bonus, he didn't appear intimidated at all.

Arden had been squinting at a particularly suspicious leaf that had crossed her path when Alexei asked his question. Dark eyes jumped up at his face questioningly before she tilted her head to the side in a considering look.

"Nothing as scary as dragons or wendigos," Arden admitted as an amused smile tugged at her lips. "We have wolves, bears, large cats like tigers and panthers and lions. But I'm from Australia and essentially everything there can kill you," She laughed now, hand cupped around the back of her neck as if she'd said something embarrassing. "Not because they're big or scary creatures but because we have so many venomous ones. Snakes, spiders, jellyfish, octopus..."

Arden cleared her throat and looked away; thinking if home had made her a little melancholy. Which was bizarre as she literally just named a bunch of animals that would try to kill her. "Um, what about the nice creatures of the forest? What are those like? ...You do have nice animals, right?" She teased.

 

[ArcticFox]

Alexei watched her with complete attention as she talked about the Earth's animals. He looked like a little kid with his eyes widening and his pupils focused like she had been telling the most interesting story in the world.

"I haven't heard about most of the creatures you mentioned. I know of wolves and bears, snakes and spiders, we have them here too." He let out a amused sound. "Who would have thought. This realm and your own have quite a lot in common when you think about it.

"Nice animals?" He smiled at her question and nodded. "Yes, of course we have them. You've seen cats and dogs in Blackcliffe. We keep them as pets. As well as some lizards and birds. As for the bigger ones... well... there are gryphons and pegasuses. Proud beasts, but not hostile toward us. I used to dream about befriending a pegasus or a gryphon when I was a little child, and ride them to great battles like the knights of old." There was a faraway nostalgic look on his face. "Ah, but, I have only seen a gryphon once and that was from quite a distance."

- Ask about dragons.
- Ask about the location of those beasts.
- Ask about Alexei's childhood.
- Focus on your search.

 

[Yokai]

》Ask about Alexei’s childhood.

Arden’s expression brightened with genuine delight at the mental image of a baby Alexei dreaming about becoming a knight. It seemed so innocent and childish in comparison to the composed man beside her. Arden wondered what would’ve become of her had she grown up in this world instead of her own. Somehow she figured she’d be pretty similar; still strangely flirtatious, more than a little weird, and still completely lost.

“You know, that’s completely adorable, right?” Arden laughed without malice as her smile grew until her eyes crinkled at the corners. “When I was a kid I wanted to be a bird. So, out of the two of us, I think you had the much more realistic dream.” Her smile dimmed slightly. Of course Arden had wanted to become a bird so that she could fly away and simply disappear... but she carefully didn’t mention that.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what was it like growing up here?” She asked, peeking up at him curiously. “It’s just… very different from what I’m used to.” She shrugged one shoulder noncommittally.

 

[ArcticFox]

"I can relate to that." Alexei chuckled. "Wanting to sprout wings. I think that's part of why I wanted a gryphon for myself.

"I don't know what would be familiar for you and what would be strange. For me, my childhood wasn't anything special. It was just the same as it was for countless other human children. I was born in a military family, both my father and mother were a part of the army. My mother was a scout until two years ago when she retired, and my father still is a Knight Commander. It's, uh... a complicated title. Knights are a special unit in Traethia's army, stationed all over the Kingdom. I am lucky to be here in Blackcliffe where my home is, but my father is serving on the border with Yranta, in our main outpost. Both of them were and still are very strict. But, since I am their only child, they spoiled me quite a bit." He smiled with remembrance. "It was only natural I follow in their footsteps. Being raised by two soldiers doesn't leave you any space to fantasise about becoming a baker. No wonder all my dreams were about knighthood. And I guess I managed to reach them. Still no sign of flying mounts, though."

Alexei was easy to talk to. He had Mel's patience, but not his bashfulness or nerdiness. It seemed like he was the type of a person able to get along with practically anyone.

During their talk they had traversed into the forest quite deep. This caused the shadows to become longer and the sounds to be just a touch more ominous. Arden only realised this when Alexei stopped talking and looked over her shoulder at the map in her hands.

"Well, if I know anything about treasure hunting, I'd say that your little X mark should be just there." He tapped the map with a finger and then pointed a couple of meters in front, between two large, gnarled, willow trees, with its leaves brushing the ground.

- Go ahead.
- Let Alexei go first.

 

[Yokai]

》Go ahead.

Alexei's words sounded uncomfortably familiar to the life she'd left behind. Except while Arden had attempted to please her parents by pursuing a tertiary education instead of ballet, she hadn't been able to force herself into becoming straight. Repression only worked for so long before she'd almost buried herself in it. And they all knew how that ended. With her in the emergency ward and her parents refusing to pick her up. Swallowing the sudden lump in her throat Arden was grateful when the conversation shifted back to the treasure hunt.

"So, shall I go first?" Arden asked, though she didn't wait for his acceptance as she tucked the map away. The trip down memory lane pushed her forward as she fully focused on the situation at hand. Heart in her throat she carefully approached the X point. "Hopefully this goes well and doesn't end with me in a snake pit." She mumbled, thinking back to all the action movies she'd seen; namely Indiana Jones.

 

[ArcticFox]

She ducked underneath the tree branches, approaching the market spot. Alexei followed her close behind, moving the willow leaves aside so he could get close. The ground was reddish brown at the spot and there was no grass. It looked like someone had dug there pretty recently.

"Another treasure hunter?" Alexei raised an eyebrow as he knelt down to examine the dirt. It was very fresh. He needed only move the top coat aside to reveal an envelope made out of rough yellow parchment and folded crudely. "Um, this is addressed to you." He said, handing the note to Arden. A word Wizard was written on the back of it in something that eerily resembled blood.

- Read the note.
- Give it Alexei to read.
- Look through the dirt more.
- Leave.

 

[Yokai]

》Read the note.

"Well... that isn't ominous at all," Arden mumbled under her breath as she delicately accepted the letter. She remained crouched as she glanced over the yellowed parchment with obvious intrigue. This was genuinely turning out to be like a treasure hunt after all. Maybe this letter would give her a riddle that would lead her to the next destination? Though that didn't explain the recent disruption of the earth. It sent a small thrill down her spine that she carefully ignored in favour of opening the letter, angling herself so that Alexei could read over her shoulder.

 

[ArcticFox]

The enveloped proved be just a folded parchment with the actually letter written on the same paper on the inner side. It was just a simple note.

Hope you are smarter than the last one. Meet me at the docks at midnight.

"A secret admirer?" Alexei asked, his tone teasing, but his look serious. "I'm coming with you either way. Whoever wrote this has clearly been following you. And Thomas too, by the looks of it. If they had something to do with his death..." He gritted his teeth. "We have to get to the bottom of this."

Suddenly Arden's investigation became "their" investigation.

But before Arden could say anything, there was a rustle of leaves and a cracking of branches, and a body lunged at her. Alexei pushed her out of the attacker's path and she hit the ground hard. When she opened her eyes, she saw a creature locked in a fight with Alexei, the knight unable to unsheathe his sword as he tried to keep its claws away from his face.

- Cast a spell.
- Attack it with the staff.
- Wait.
- Run away.

 

[Yokai]

》Cast a spell: fireball.

What the actual fuck is that!? Is... is that a wendigo!?

Arden blinked at the creature with wide eyes as she scrambled backwards, desperately trying to create some distance between herself and the fight. Managing to get back onto her feet -- only slightly winded from the fall -- she focused on the first spell that jumped into her head. Naturally it was fire inclined. Alexei needed to grab his sword and if the fireball couldn't wound the creature then she hoped the flames would distract it long enough for him to draw his weapon.

 

[ArcticFox]

Her fire spell worked so well, that not only did she cast it with ease, but the fireball exploded against the creature's back and the flames caught its fur. It let out a blood chilling shriek and released Alexei. The blonde knight quickly drew his weapon and pierced the creature's heart.

"Well, that was unexpected." He said, wiping the blood off of his weapon and sheathing it again. The wendigo was dead on the ground, unrecognisable after the fire. "Thank you." Alexei gently squeezed Arden's arm. "Best to get out of here, wendigos like to hunt in pairs."

They got out of the forest without further interruptions. No one ambushed them and no one left other strange notes on their path. But there was still the question of the meeting of the mysterious sender. Who will Arden invite to go with her?

- Alexei.
- Kogan.
- Jace.
- Mel.
- Revy.
- No one.

 

[Yokai]

》Alexei.

"Thank you for pushing me out the way," Came the quiet reply. Arden's answering smile was surprisingly soft before she turned her attention away. It was time they left this creepy forest and met their mystery sender. She was already decided on bringing the knight along to the meeting. He'd practically invited himself anyway and she wasn't going to refuse help. Also, she didn't want to have to explain the situation to anyone. Imagine how that would go down:

'Yeah, so instead of working on my glamour magic in order to help everyone I'm actually doing a treasure hunt. Also, I'm about to meet up with a possible stalker because there was no treasure under the X marked map; only a creepy blood note and a wendigo.'

Terrific. Alexei it was.

 

[ArcticFox]

Meeting some on the docks at midnight was easier said than done. First of all Blackcliffe's docks were very large, in comparison - they'd take up as much space as five blocks of a large city - and finding someone on that large of a space in the middle of the night was no small feat. Arden had to rely on her stalker being more attentive than she was. If they had been following her around, then they surely would follow her into the docks and attract her attention.

Alexei was not dressed in his knight uniform. He said he did not want to be inconspicuous so he dressed in civil clothes, a tunic, pair of pants and cloak. He also left his sword at home, citizens of Blackcliffe did not wear weapons out on the streets after all. But he brought a hunting knife with him which he kept concealed. Still, not wanting to risk their mysterious person not showing up on his account, Alexei took a spot at the corner of two streets, by a fishermen's storage, and tried not making eye contact with Arden as she moved across the open square of the docks.

Of course, just as she hoped, after some time waiting in the dark, she saw a glimmer of light to her right, coming from a lantern. The source of light swayed slightly, and most definitely on purpose, three times, before disappearing into the alley.

- Follow it alone.
- Call Alexei to come with you.
- Signal Alexei to follow.

 

[Yokai]

》Signal Alexei to follow.

Now, Arden was no master of stealth but she didn't understand the secrecy of the entire meeting. Surely this mysterious, possible stalker already knew of Alexei's existence and assistance in the treasure hunt? Still, she liked to roll with the punches as they say. And if that meant feeling a little lonely and bored while waiting for their new friend to show themselves then fine. Arden could do that.

When the light disappeared down the darkened alley her gaze snapped over to Alexei briefly; signalling for him to stay close before she followed after it. Maybe it was dangerous -- what wasn't dangerous in this world? -- but Arden would rather see what happened first. It was such a bizarre situation she'd found herself in that she genuinely wanted to see it through.

 

[ArcticFox]

Arden stepped into the alley only to see that the lantern was gone and everything around her was dark. She did not hear Alexei's footsteps behind her, but she'd have to trust that he was around still.

"Hello there." A hoarse female voice called out from the darkness, followed by a giggle. "Sorry, I grew an affinity for drama." There was a snap of fingers and a flicker of light and Arden could now see her mysterious pen pal.

"I'm Tazz, nice to meet you." She grinned, looking half mad under the light of flames dancing on her fingertips.

- Ask how is she still alive.
- Ask about the note.
- Ask about the dragon.
- Ask about the need for secrecy.