Circles Within Circles Chapter 9
By Of Quirky Excellence
A/N: WOW! It's been quite a while, but this will likely be one of the harder chapters, memory-wise for me t write. Here goes!
Caroline's vision grew blurry and fuzzed a few times, more every time she blinked. She became short of breath, then it was all smooth, almost familiar, as if she was simply going into a deep sleep, only she was still standing up, and she was aware of it. She knew now that she was in the Fade, and she could see much better, but her vision was still slightly blurred.
She massaged her temples, rubbing the aches away, and then she took one step forward.
"Ah, another apprentice, thrown to the wolves." said a voice. Caroline nearly jumped out of her skin.
"What? Who said that? Reveal yourself!" Caroline demanded.
"Down here!" said the voice. She could here faint whispering in the distance, not one, but many voices, and the words weren't clear enough to understand.
She looked down, and a few feet away from the tips of her toes was a fairly large rat. It was an ugly thing, with beady eyes, and a long, thin tail.
"You're a talking rat." Caroline stuttered, still in quite a bit of shock.
"Yes well, that is the form I have taken to hide from the demon that lurks in this Realm. I was once an apprentice like yourself. The Templars killed me, though. " said the rat. Then all of a sudden, the rat's image faded and he took the form of a young man, maybe a few years older than Caroline.
"You failed your Harrowing then?" she asked, less surprised than she should have been when the rat changed to a man. She remembered wise Irving's words. Trust nothing but your will.
"So that is what they're calling it now. I took too long on their wretched test. I have seen many others pass through the realm, and fail the Harrowing." said the man, whose hair was the same color as hers, but much shorter, and unmanaged.
"Others? What were their names?" Caroline asked, thinking immediately of Jonathan.
"Oh, I don't remember. I've been here far too long, the Fade will do that to you, you know."
"Well, my name is Caroline, and I don't plan on dying." She was too proud to show her fear, and she looked the man in the eyes.
"Allow me to welcome you to the Fade," he said. "You can call me, well, Mouse."
"Not your real name, I Take it?" she asked.
"No. I don't remember anything from...before."
The apprentice nodded plainly and was about to continue along her the path which she could now see before her, but she heard a squeak. She looked down at Mouse, who was now in his rat form.
"So, what exactly am I supposed to do?" Caroline asked.
"You've got to face the demon, and resist it if you can. Otherwise, you'll end up like me." She frowned. This was no fate for any mage. It was pathetic.
"That's your way out, or your opponents, if the Templars wouldn't kill you. A test for you, a tease for the creatures of the Fade." Mouse continued.
"Why pit me against such a creature anyhow?" Caroline asked.
"That's a question for those at the Tower. Maybe you'll be lucky enough to ask, and maybe someday, so will I. There are other spirits here, who can tell you more, if you'll believe what you see. I'll follow, if that's alright, my chance was long ago, but you may still have a way out."
Caroline didn't like the sound of the last phrase, but she did not wish to anger Mouse. At least not yet. So she nodded, and she continued on the path for a while, the large rat following close behind her. A large wisp floated quickly towards her all of the sudden, and she cried out as it shot a weak lightning bolt at her. She froze it in its place in midair with a quick Winter's Grasp, a new spell Karl had taught her only weeks before.
She then turned a corner, and another wisp began to approach, but she didn't wait for the painful shock this time. She took a deep breath and released an Arcane bolt, and as the spell whizzed out from her fingertips, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. Was it...a Templar? No, a spirit of a Templar. Perhaps this was the demon? Now, how ironic would that be? Caroline thought to herself. The wisp fell to the ground, defeated by her spell, and she smiled proudly. Then she approached the armored spirit with great caution, with Mouse at her side.
"Another mortal thrown into the flames and left to burn, I see." Said the spirit. His voice sounded distant, and she began to doubt there would be a human face under his helm. "Your mages have devised a cowardly test. Better to pit you against each other to prove your skill, than to be cast unarmed against a demon." She shuddered as she thought of facing one of her friends in combat.
Caroline crossed her arms and frowned slightly. "Fight each other? We're not warriors!" She said.
"They would have you battle a demon. With magic or weapons, to be the victor makes you a warrior still. That you remain means you have not yet defeated your hunter. I wish you a glorious battle to come."
Caroline had a feeling this spirit knew more than he was telling her, so she went ahead and said what she was thinking. "I need your help."
"Of course. You are not the first mortal to seek my aid. I am not here to assist you, however." Of course he's not going to help me. It would make the Harrowing too easy. she thought to herself. She sighed and was about to say something when the spirit continued. "My purpose is to seek perfection in creating the ultimate weapon for the pursuit of valor."
Caroline rolled her eyes. "I should go." she said. She walked off before she could hear whatever the spirit had to say next. This was perhaps the first time she had blatantly disrespected anyone, or anything, representing a Templar. He was dressed like a Templar, but what was he, really? Caroline never would understand.
As she strode off, with Mouse scurrying at her side she encountered two wolves in spirit form. She quickly readied herself and fired three fairly powerful bolt at the first wolf, and it vanished with a loud yelp. Then for the second one, she shot some icicles at it, and the wolf staggered back, then with one more bolt for good measure, it joined its pack mate in oblivion.
Her fingers relaxed and she continued along her path as she discovered a vase. She opened the vase and out floated a shimmering orb of light. "I think if you rub it, you will be healed of any injuries, apprentice." mouse must have already forgotten her name, so how'd he remember this detail?
It didn't matter for now, Caroline didn't want the Templars killing her. Especially poor Cullen. She assumed it was he who was supposed to strike her down if she failed, and she shuddered at the thought. She grabbed the orb, and placed it in the small bag she always kept strapped to her robes.
She froze one more spirit wolf in place, and then she saw a large, shadowy figure lying dormant on the ground, right in her path. Upon closer inspection it looked like some sort of bear, like the corrupted ones she'd read about in books at the Tower. The beats was quite ugly, and it had even beadier eyes than Mouse, as it opened its eyes slowly and stood up.
"Hmmm..." it groaned, looking up at Caroline. Its unsightly face frightened the mage, and she backed up a little. "So you are the mortal being hunted. And the small one...is he to be a snack for me?"
Mouse changed form quickly, almost sounding panicked. "I don't like this. He's not going to help us, we should go."
The creature looked at Mouse, who now appeared human and stood a little taller than Caroline. "No matter. The demon will get you eventually, and perhaps there will even be scraps left." it said.
"Are you here to help me?" Caroline asked.
The bearlike creature laughed. "Help you? Nothing can help you." it said, sounding mocking. Caroline was getting the feeling this creature was going to be no help like Mouse said, but she stood still where she was, and waited.
"Begone. Surely you have better things to do than bother Sloth, mortal I tire of you already." Caroline sighed. She was getting sleepy just looking at this thing. She could not imagine how the creautre felt about her. Then, just like that, the animal- if one can even call it that, lay right back down and almost fell asleep right before her eyes! Caroline was shocked, if not a little offended. She looked at Mouse and then back at the creature whom she now recognized as a sloth demon.
"He looks powerful," said Mouse. "It might be possible he could teach you to be like him..."
"Like me?" the demon asked, as if unsure if it heard Mouse correctly. "You mean teach the mortal to take this form? Why? Most mortals are too attached to their own form to learn the change. " Turning its head, the demon looked Mouse in the eyes. Caroline watched them both carefully, and then Sloth continued. "You, on the other hand, Little one, might be a better student. You let go of your human form years ago."
Mouse looked hurt. "I...I don't think I'd make a very good bear. How would I hide?"
Caroline whipped her head round to face Mouse full on, and she could feel her blood start to boil. "Hiding doesn't solve anything. We must face our fears." She said.
"We? I have learned more in this place than you can imagine. Fear is just one more thing." Mouse said with a slight frown. "But...you are right, hiding doesn't solve anything. I'm sorry, it's the Fade. It changes you." Mouse then looked straight ahead again, down at the demon, who had not even bothered to stand up again."I'll try. I'll try to be a bear, if you'll teach me."
"That's nice." Sloth said, sounding more and more tired. "But teaching is so exhausting. Away with you now."
Caroline scowled. Mouse sighed and told her, "See, I told you he wasn't going to help us."
Caroline was a little angry now, for the demon had been very rude. Well, what could one expect from a demon, anyway, besides possession?
"Mouse wants to learn. Teach him!" She demanded.
"You want to learn my form, little one? Then I have a challenge for your friend. Answer these riddles correctly and I will teach you." said the demonic creature. "Fail, and I will devour you both. The decision is yours."
"I accept you challenge, Sloth." Caroline said boldly.
"Truly?" asked the demon. "This gets more and more promising." Te disgusting beast licked its lips."My first riddle is this...I have seas without water, coasts with no sand, towns without people, and mountains without land. What am I?"
Caroline pondered it for a moment, looking at mouse for hints, not that she expected to get any. "Hmm, are you a map?" Caroline asked.
The demon laughed. "Correct. Let's move on. My second riddle; I'm rarely touched but often held, if you have wit, you'll use me well. What am I?"
Caroline chuckled nervously. "Easy, my tongue." she said with a straight face.
"Yes, your witty tongue. Fair enough, one more try, shall we?" it said with a tired sigh. "Often will I spin a tale, never will I charge a fee, I'll amuse you an entire eve, but alas, you won't remember me."
"A dream?" Caroline said, after a few seconds. The creature grunted, Caroline jumped back, thinking her answer was incorrect.
"You are correct. Rather appropriate here in the fade, no? But you've won my challenge and proven yourself an amusing distraction. So I shall teach you my form. Now listen carefully..."
Mouse stepped closer and the two spirits exchanged whispers so softly Caroline could not hear, try as she might. Then the bearlike creature stood up, and Mouse changed his form to a bear's body. Caroline gave him some space, as she'd never seen a bear in person before, not even in a dream.
"Like this? Am I a bear? It feels ... heavy..." Caroline nodded at her companion's question, then the demon spoke.
"Hmm, close enough." Said the scarier, more corrupt looking creature. Mouse looked like what Caroline had seen in storybooks when she was a child, but bigger. One swipe with one of those front paws, she'd be dead. She reminded herself not to get on his bad side unless her life depended on it.
"Now go on, and defeat your demon, if that is what you intend to do. I grow weary of your mortal prattling." said the sloth demon as he lay down again. Caroline turned on her heel and headed back in the direction in which they came, for the sloth demon only sat at a dead end.
There was another spirit wolf, and Mouse quickly disengaged it from attempting to attack Caroline. She stood and watched as the large black animal reared up onto his hind legs and swiped at the smaller creature with a paw She had been right about one thing, bears were good in a fight, and even better to have on one's side.
After the wolf was dealt with, three more appeared. Caroline quickly took out two of them with a few swift arcane bolts, then the third tried to bite Mouse, who whirled around, roared and knocked the last wolf off its feet.
As they continued on, Caroline took the fork in the path they'd taken before to find a clearing, surrounded by flaming beacons.
Then, pulling itself out of the earth...or what looked like earth to Caroline, was what appeared to be a Rage Demon. She learned about them after a few years at the Circle, and she also knew one of these had made young Helena an abomination, and ultimately cost the child her life. Caroline frowned as it spoke in a very deep, chilling voice.
"So it comes to me at last." Said the flaming thing as it threw its arms into the air and looked down at Caroline with its bright yellow eyes."Soon I shall see the land of the living with your eyes, creature, and you shall be mine, body and soul." it said.
"It's two against one, do you really want to fight us both?" asked Caroline, trying to hide her fear and any other sign of weakness.
"Amusing." said the demon. "Have you not told it of our...arrangement, Mouse?" Mouse looked smug as the demon finished, and before Caroline could say anything, he spoke.
"We don't have an arrangement. Not anymore!"
The demon swam forward in the air. "Aww. And after all the wonderful meals we've shared? Now suddenly the mouse has changed the rules?"
Mouse laughed a little, triumphantly, as he changed into his bear form."I'm not a mouse now. And soon I won't have to hide. I don't need to bargain with you!"
"We shall see." Said the evil thing, as Caroline prepared herself for battle. She rushed off to the side to dodge one of the demons fiery punches, then she cast her favorite spell, Winter's Grasp, and froze the demon solid for a few seconds before it burned its way through. Weakened, the terrible thing lunged forward in a desperate attempt to reach the apprentice, causing Mouse to miss hitting the demon with his large clawed paws. She shot some well-aimed bolts at the demon, and it roared angrily, and this bought her some time, but not enough.
The demon knocked her down, and pressed its red-hot hands to her throat. Caroline screamed, and had never been in so much pain. She thought she was going to die right then and there, and she might have, were it not for Mouse, who, with one swipe to the demon's head, bought her enough time to scramble out of the way, and she quickly remembered the shimmering orb in her pack. She clutched her burnt throat with one hand and slipped her other hand into her bag and rubbed the orb, quickly. She felt a tingling sensation in her neck, healing magic. She wanted to sit down and rest, but Mouse couldn't hold off the opponent for long. So she turned to face the demon and she rushed towards it and shot a more powerful bolt t it, then Mouse managed to get it onto its side and continued to strike it with his massive paws until it moved no more.
One more frost spell and Caroline was satisfied that her task was complete.
Now in human form, Mouse turned to face her. "You did it! You actually did it! When you came, I had hoped that you might be able to...but I never thought any of you were worthy!"
"Sounds like your help was unusual. Why?" Caroline asked.
"You made me believe in you. You're a true mage, one of the few. The others, they never had a chance. The Templars set them up to fail, like they tried with you. I regret the part I played in it, but you have shown me that there is hope. You can be so much more than you know."
Caroline smiled at his compliment. Was it a compliment? It sounded like one, but she wasn't sure, so she smiled anyway. But then her smiled faded.
"What is it you think you can get from me anyway?" She asked, suspiciously.
"You defeated a demon, you completed your test. With time, you will be a master enchanter with no equal." He looked her with a hopeful gaze.
"And maybe there's hope for someone so small and as...forgotten as me. If you want to help." Caroline's stomach turned. When the test was over, she was supposed to wake up, right?
"There may be a way for me to leave here, to get a foothold outside. You just need to want to let me in."
Caroline gulped. Wait. Could it be possible the rage demon was only the beginning? she asked herself.
"Let you in?" She asked.
Her companion frowned. "Back! Help me back! They killed me, right? Just like they kill all who fail in here. They'll kill you too. Can't you feel the sword at your neck?" Caroline gulped. Cullen must be in some state now, if he really was holding a sword to her neck. "They believe all magic evil, the Fade evil. Once you are here you become what they fear."
"Like you? Were you ever even really an apprentice?" Caroline asked, feeling betrayed.
"What? Yes! Of course! I mean, I think I was. Isn't that enough? It should be enough, for you." Mouse's expression darkened, and he frowned, his voice getting deeper and deeper with each word. "Maybe they were right about you. Simple killing is a warrior's job. The real dangers of the Fade are preconception, careless trust...pride." Then as his...as its voice deepened, it got taller, and uglier until it was no man at all, and Caroline stepped back.
"Keep your wits about you, mage, true tests never end."
A/N: One boring chapter...can't WAIT to write about the real world, I hate the fade and it's getting late. Once again, sorry for keeping y'all waiting for so very long!
Toodles for now! :)