Author's Note: Welcome to new followers TheNovelistGirl and Akora17. I hope you'll enjoy the rest of the story. Thanks to Jimli and Akora17 for the reviews.

THE WIZARD'S PRICE

CHAPTER 4

The Queen had still not left her son, so Carl brought the Wizard to the dungeon and explained on the way how his friend had changed into a beast. The Wizard realised what had happened, but when Queen Kalanta asked him to help Artus, he had little comfort for her.

He asked her, "Your Majesty, did your husband ever tell you that he asked for my help in the war against Eburon?"

"Of course he did. He said that without you Peratha would have been lost."

"Did he tell you about the agreement we had and the price I asked for my help?"

"No. I presumed all debts were paid. But what has all that got to do with my son?"

Then he told her what his price had been and what was agreed upon the night King Ludovick had appeared at his tower with his baby son to pay his debt.

He ended, "I am sorry, Majesty, but there is nothing I can do. Twenty-five years have gone since and the debt has not been paid. I cannot undo this curse; it is a standard part of a Wizarding contract."

"Do you mean that an innocent must suffer for ever, because you got the price wrong? Are you a mighty Wizard or a charlatan? Undo this sorcery!"

When it became apparent that the Wizard could not do anything to help Prince Artus, the Queen was furious.

"You 'men of power' with your 'unbreakable contracts' and 'curse securities', why do you toy with forces you do not understand? Swear to me that this will never happen again, or I'll keep you prisoner for as long as my son is cursed."

"Majesty, I swear that since that terrible night I have always clearly stated the price for my help. I swear that I will continue to do so in future. I swear that your son will be the last person to suffer this fate through me. I call upon the forces of nature to witness this oath. May they punish me if I do not hold to it."

"They will," said the Queen. Then she was silent, thoughtful.

After a short while she spoke, slowly, as if she was not sure yet of her idea.

"Wizard, you might have helped already by calling the forces of nature. Do you really believe in them, Wizard, or is it just a phrase for you."

Then, for the first time since her son had become a beast, Queen Kalanta left the dungeon and went outside, out of the castle grounds and into her private park, an untamed area of woodland with a little brook running through it and wildflowers growing everywhere. She took of her jewellery, her crown and the veil that covered her hair; she took of her beautifully embroidered dress, her shoes and stockings. With her silver hair flowing free, dressed in nothing but her chemise, Kalanta stood barefoot in the water. She raised her hands, palms turned upwards, to the sky and in a loud voice cried out,

"Powers of nature, spirits of air, water and land, my sisters come to me and help me in my need! Powers of nature, spirits of air, water and land, my sisters come to me and help the one I love! Powers of nature, spirits of air, water and land, my sisters come to me and undo the injustice of men!"

Then she waited. The water of the brook slowly soaked her shift. She started to shiver. Her arms were still held high and began to ache. Where were they? Why did they not come? Didn't they realise that she was not a young woman anymore? But that was it; they did not grow old, they did not understand the decay of a human body. Or perhaps they did. Perhaps they wanted to punish her for daring to love a man and choosing love above immortality. Just as she thought she could hold on no longer, a warm breeze – like a caress – touched her face and played with her hair. A fog – not damp and cold, but dry and warm - rose and spread among the trees. It whirled around and in the swirls shapes appeared. The mist lifted and surrounding the Queen were eleven beautiful ladies. It was impossible to say whether they were young girls or mature women. They all had their hair loose, wore simple flowing dresses and walked barefoot.

"You don't have to keep your arms up any longer, Kalanta. We are here."

Two of them helped the Queen out of the brook and when they touched her, the pain stopped and she felt dry and warm again.

"Why did you call us, Kalanta? You know we don't mix in human affairs anymore."

"It is my son; he has been cursed by a Wizard. I beg you, help him."

Then the queen explained what had happened, how and why her son had changed into a monster.

"Why don't you ask the Wizard? Clearly it is his doing and it must be his to undo."

"He can't. Please, Orelia, you are my son's godmother, help him. Didn't you promise you would be there for him if he needed you? He does now, more than he ever will."

"We will see what we can do," Orelia said. "Come, my sisters, I will need all your help."

The fairies – for that is the name they have among humans – talked for a long time while the Queen waited and hoped. She sat quietly on a rock near the brook and remembered her first meeting with her husband. She had been happy with Orelia and her other sisters and she had never considered falling in love with a human. But it had happened. It had been love at first sight between her and Ludovick. Both had been warned that it would not last and both were determined to prove everybody wrong. And they had; they had been happy together, even when the longed for children did not appear. Then Artus was born, unexpected but very welcome. It had been the luckiest time of their lives, cut short by Ludovick's death. No, she did not regret the choice she had made. She did not regret the vow that had made her Ludovick's wife and a mortal.

The Queen was interrupted in her musings when Orelia came to her.

"We may be able to do something, but first we have to see your son."

Queen Kalanta and her sisters went to the castle and she showed them what her son had become. Then she introduced them to the Wizard. The fairies asked him about the kind of help he had given to the king, why he had asked a price and a few other questions. Then they looked at each other and nodded their heads.

"I'm sorry, Kalanta, but we have bad news." said Orelia. "There was no malice intended; not from the king and not from the Wizard. This makes it a more difficult curse to break. Evil is only a destructive force and we can counter it with ease. This is an agreement that went wrong. No malice was intended by your husband or this Wizard and your son is an innocent victim. "

"But you said you would be able to do something. Are you now saying that you can't?"

"No, I said 'we may be able to help'. I also said that it will be difficult to help Artus. We are lucky though. You have helped him to fight the curse and it is already weakened. He is a beast but he did not become the vile, murderous brute you first saw. What we need now is a woman who is willing to share his fate. The curse will be broken after a year if love grows between Artus and this woman. It seems simple but it isn't. I doubt that you will find a woman willing to do this."

The Queen was optimistic. "Of course we will find somebody. If they love each other the girl will be my son's wife. It is not a difficult task if marrying Artus is the price. We'll make sure they're married beforehand. It is an honour and the girls will come from far and wide."

"If you say so, Kalanta. We will stay in the castle for a while longer to appraise the prospective brides. We have to make sure your son gets the best chance possible to break this curse."

ooOOoo