The Heavenly Host

“It appears to be some form of link extending” — Maelen’s eyes traced a path up into the air — “somewhere off plane perhaps?”

“Yeah, Trevin noticed it last night and complimented me on it,” Gastropé replied sourly.

“What is it?” Jenn asked curiously.

“It’s a demon binding going off to the Abyss,” Gastropé told them.

“A demon binding? You mean like a conjuror would use to bind a demon?” Jenn looked at him, puzzled. “I didn’t know you had any bound demons; you’ve never mentioned it. You know that’s sort of a big deal, given what’s been going on.” She sounded like she was starting to get annoyed.

“I didn’t! I have never actually cast a demon binding, ever! I’ve studied them and practiced them, but I’ve never actually bound a demon to myself before!” Gastropé waved his arms to emphasize his point. “I didn’t even know it was there until last night when Trevin pointed it out. That’s why I couldn’t sleep; I was trying to figure out how it got there!”

“So what or who is on the other end?” Maelen asked.

Gastropé frowned. “Well, it appears to be an older-style link for a second to third-order demon. Sort of like they used to do a hundred to two hundred years ago.”

“And it goes to...” Jenn prompted.

“I’ll give you one guess... it smells like funky pipe smoke!” Gastropé exclaimed.

“Tizzy?” Jenn asked in shock. “How could that be? Demons cannot bind themselves to wizards, it’s the other way around, and even then, a fiend like Tizzy could not. He’s said he doesn’t have any magical abilities, unlike Tom.”

“I know,” Gastropé gestured broadly. “That’s why I have no idea how it would have got there. I have never heard of a demon able to bind itself, and it is a traditional one way binding with me as the master, let alone one of that order. Have you?” Gastropé looked at Maelen.

Maelen was still staring at the link, apparently. “No, never heard of that, but following it, I am pretty sure you are right and that Tizzy’s on the other end of it. When did it appear?”

Gastropé shrugged. “I have no idea. I don’t usually go looking at myself with wizard sight. So it could have been there for quite some time.”

“Do you suppose the demon Tom did it?” Jenn asked.

“When? You’ve been with me whenever he’s been around.” That was a lie, of course; he and Edwyrd had spent a lot of time together, but neither Maelen nor Jenn knew that Tom and Edwyrd were the same person. However, Gastropé had never seen Edwyrd casting any spells. Besides, Edwyrd was an animage, and this was definitely a classic wizard spell in structure; not something an animage would do. At least, he did not think so.

Further discussion was cut off as Elrose and Trevin entered the hall. “Good morning, everyone!” Trevin greeted them. She was wearing what appeared to be a leather and fur-lined version of her normal attire. Much warmer, more rustic but still way too revealing for her age, Gastropé noted. That was one thing he and Jenn could completely agree on. Particularly when the enchantress started running her eyes up and down his torso while looking at him.

The two wizards took some wooden plates and began filling them, and Gastropé decided to do the same.

“Jenn and Maelen, I think your travel clothes for today are fine, but my dear Gastropé, as much as I love your outfit, I fear you may get a bit cold this morning,” Trevin said as she speared a large chunk of melon to put on her plate.

“I’ve got a jacket in my backpack I can put on,” Gastropé said.

“Good, you’ll want it. We are taking the lift up to the western landing, which is about a league straight up!” She smiled and looked at all of them. “We will then enter the western gate and take the tunnel through the mountain to the eastern front. From there, I will open the Fierdal Bridge at dawn, which will transport us into the Grove.”

“The Fierdal Bridge?” Maelen asked.

“Yes, it’s not dissimilar to a Prismatic Bridge, except that it only works when Fierd is at certain positions in the sky, and those positions determine where the bridge goes. At different points during the day, opening it will take you to different locations within the Grove.” She paused and smiled. “Some of those locations aren’t particularly pleasant, so you are all advised not to try to force the gate’s guardians to open it, or you may find yourself in a less than ideal spot.” She chuckled. “Like inside of Fierd herself!”

Gastropé made a sour face at that thought. Jenn was not looking exactly comfortable either. They were definitely going to be at the mercy of the wizard.

∼

“What are we going to do?” Iskerus asked Barabus.

“I don’t know about you, but I plan to try to get some sleep before Fierd rises. Perhaps an hour or two?” Barabus put his head in his hands, elbows on the table. They and the two knights had spent the night being debriefed by a sword. A sword, for Tiernon’s sake!