Chapter 2

Music: Kakishi's Theme

I must be careful...first the tiger, then the elephant, and now the ox...

The robed figure sat in the absolute darkness of his tent. Grim and serious, his hands wove arcane gestures in the air. The giant five-pronged star etched into the ground before him began to glow a deep purple.

"Yes! YES! I can feel it!" he cried exuberantly.

The air inside the room became very heavy. A tingling sensation rippled across the wizard's entire body, threatening to ruin his concentration. The stone began to pulse with a life of its own.

"It comes! It comes! The slayer of starvation! The killer of craving! The foe of famine! IT COMES!"

An unnatural wind burst inside the room. Tables, books, and flasks slammed against the walls. Inside of the summoning circle, a dark form began to coalesce. Tears streamed down the robed figure's face as he took in the ecstasy of magic.

At last! After all those years of research! My life's work!

Suddenly, the winds surged and sent the figure flying across the room, slamming him into one of the many bookcases lining the walls. He blacked out for a moment as the bookcase fell on top of him, pinning him to the ground.

The experiment...did it work?

The winds began to die down and the air returned to its normal state. The wizard groaned in pain, and he struggled to get out from underneath the bookcase.

Suddenly, the door to his inner sanctum burst open, and a man rushed into the room. "Artimus!" he cried, "Are you alright? I heard the commotion!"

The wizard pinned underneath the bookcase let out another groan. "Calmar! The summoning circle, is it intact?"

Calmar glanced over at the summoning circle as he went over to the bookcase. A small pie sat in the middle of the summoning circle. "I don't see any extraplaner beings, if that's what you're asking. It looks like there's a pie inside the circle." Calmar grabbed the edge of the bookshelf and heaved it off the trapped wizard easily.

Artimus coughed up some blood as he stood up shakily. His eyes shone with excitement as he limped back towards the summoning circle. "Don't you understand my genius? The pie IS the the summoning!"

Calmar shook his head as he dusted off his hands. "All this work to summon a pie? It looks like you tried to summon a class four demon from the mess you caused."

Artimus started to laugh, which ended in a wheeze as he coughed up more blood. "Ha! This is no ordinary pie, my friend. You have heard the child's tale about ambrosia? I have called forth something better than that."

Calmar rushed up to support Artimus. "Take it easy now," said Calmar, "we'd better get you a cleric right away. You can eat your pie later."

Artimus protested as Calmar dragged him out of the room. "You fool!" he coughed, "the pie will get cold! I must taste the fruits of my labor immediately!"

Calmar shook his head as he carried Artimus out the door. "It'll be here when you get back. Nobody would be crazy enough to take anything from your room."

Artimus started to protest again, but Calmar heaved the weak mage over his shoulder. "You were lucky that I was coming to see you," continued Calmar, "I had just finished teaching your soldiers the fireball scroll. I don't mind filling in for you once in awhile, but you should really take care of your own troops."

"Must...have pie..." groaned Artimus.

Calmar smiled, and adjusted the mage on his shoulder. "Ah well. Now, tell me about this new summoning spell of yours..."