Magic
Chapter 6
She had nowhere else to turn. "Hi, Dad."
"Katie, come in. Why so sad, sweetheart?" Jim was concerned about her.
"He's gone, Dad. He left, and I love him. I didn't get to tell him that. Now he's gone." Kate broke down, sobbing again.
"Let me guess. We're talking about Rick, aren't we?" Jim watched as she nodded since she couldn't talk.
"So, why didn't you follow him?" Jim asked her, thinking all the man did was move to another city. He knew nothing about where Rick was really from.
"I couldn't, I just couldn't," Kate told him while she calmed down a little.
"Why ever not? You would follow him no matter where he went if you loved him. You don't have a job, do you?" Jim asked and watched her shake her head. "Then, why not follow him? Please tell me it's not because of me. It isn't, is it?"
She shook her head. "No, not really." Though, he was part of why she said no.
"Good, because your mother and I only wanted you to be happy. So go be happy with him wherever he went," Jim told her.
"It's too late, Dad. He's already gone." But then, her cell phone rang. Caller ID said it was Rick. "RICK! You came back!" She was so relieved and happy.
"No, I didn't, not really. I had to stop and dig up my gold pieces. I called to say goodbye. It didn't feel right leaving you a note, Kate."
It was that moment when Kate made up her mind. "I want to come. I love you, and I want to come with you."
"You love me?" Rick asked her.
"Yes, I love you and want to come with you. Let me know what to do and where to go, and I'll be there. Please, Rick. I love you and want to come."
"I… All right. Go and get a backpack, a camping-size backpack. Fill it with clothing, food, and water. Buy a bedroll, tie it to the bottom, and meet me at South Point Park in Roosevelt Island. I'll find you. You've got two hours, Kate. I've got to feed Alexis and change her diaper right before I go."
"I'll be there. Please, don't leave without me," Kate pleaded. "Please, Rick." She hung up and looked at her dad. "I have to go, Dad. I don't know when or even if I'll be back."
"Then, go. Go on, Katie. If you love the man, you should follow him wherever that takes you."
"Goodbye, Dad. I have to run. I've got two hours to meet him on Roosevelt Island." Kate hugged him, kissed his cheek, and took off running.
First, she had to go home to get his credit card. Then, she went to a large outdoor equipment outlet where she did some shopping: a mountain sleeping bag, a North Face pair of boots, a cookware set, a water bottle, water treatment pills, a North Face winter coat, six pairs of panties, six pairs of socks, three t-shirts, two shirts, a camo jacket and pants, legionnaire's hat, and rope.
That done, she went somewhere that sold Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) and bought a case. After that, she went home, packed and changed clothes, and thought about anything she might be missing.
She couldn't think of anything, so she put on her coat and picked up her backpack. Then, she left her home and didn't look back. She took a taxi to reach South Point Park, paid the driver, put on her backpack, and began wandering around, looking for Rick.
Kate got lucky. She spotted someone wearing a smaller backpack and he had a baby. She started jogging his way and finally saw that it was Rick and took off running. She stopped only when she put her arms around him as best she could and kissed him. "I love you and I want to come with you. Please?" Kate told him. "Hi, Alexis." She stroked her cheek.
"You're sure about this? I can't guarantee you can come back here, Kate."
"I love you, Rick, and yes, I'm sure, so where to?" she asked patiently.
"I love you, too." And he kissed her. She was ready to start crying. He loved her. "Follow me," Rick told her and began walking.
"What are you wearing?" she asked him.
"This is my outfit, the one I was wearing when I came to your world," he replied.
"The staff I've seen before, but that's a rather small backpack," Kate commented.
"It's larger on the inside than the outside," Rick told her.
"Oh, like the bag?" Kate inquired.
"Very similar, yes," Rick nodded. "Follow me closely. I don't want you to get lost."
Eventually, she found herself underground, led by a light glowing from something Rick had. She could get lost down there if she wasn't careful.
"This is it." Rick held up the rock, which glowed a light.
Kate saw a portal, all right. It was large, ornate, and oval-shaped.
"Before we go, though, I have a few things for you." Rick reached into his backpack, pulled out a potion bandolier, and put it on her. Then he took out ten potions, told her what each one was, and put them into the bandolier. After that, he took a dagger off of his belt. "This is your weapon. It's magical, so it should allow you to hit something – or someone – with it. You didn't cast your spells for today yet, did you?"
She shook her head. "No, not yet."
"Good, you may need them. Here, you take Alexis. Keep her safe, and don't be afraid of anything you see on the other side, but be ready to throw one or more of those potions." Rick handed over Alexis, who was awake but not making a sound.
Rick turned to face the portal and said words Kate had never heard before. Suddenly, the portal's surface began to glow. Rick reached out his hand for her to take. She grasped it, and together, they stepped through the portal into a new world.
Kate saw a portal on the other side and a campsite with eight-foot-tall creatures. There were four of them, and they were horrible-looking. "They're ghastly," Kate whispered.
"They're Trolls, but I'm ready for them." Rick pulled a potion from his bandolier and threw it. It exploded in a giant fireball and damaged the Trolls, who were stunned at first. Maybe second, and charging them was their third action.
Rick took off another potion and threw it, causing another fireball to erupt, damaging them. All but one of them stopped charging them. Rick cast Burning Hands when it got too close to throw another fireball and dropped it.
"Well, that was easy enough," Rick remarked. Kate was still stunned by what she had just seen and had yet to move a muscle. "Are you still with me? Want to go back? Thinking you've made a mistake?"
"No… NO! No mistake, just taken by surprise, is all. Trolls are ugly," Kate told him as she snapped out of it. "Sorry, I'll do better next time."
"I know it's a lot to take in, but this is what I was running from. Though, there were more of them at the time. Let's see what they've got, shall we?" Rick moved out into an enormous room.
Kate knew by the ice hanging everywhere that it was cold out. Now that she thought about it, she could even see her breath. She looked down at Alexis who was all bundled up and awake but not crying. "You're such a good girl." Kate kissed her and stepped out into the room.
She watched as Rick searched the Trolls and the room.
"Well, it's not much. But I found four saddles, six bridles, twelve cow hides, seven goat hides, two bales of wool – the third severely soiled with troll dung, a lantern that burns purple and creates darkness to remove sunlight sensitivity, a wagon wheel, six drinking horns, a whip, three quivers of arrows, two cases of bolts, a 1 dagger, a pouch of illicit spice, three garlands of dried garlic, thirty-six deer antlers, a foot long crystal that glows green in the dark, twelve spears, two longswords, a war pick, a Dwarven axe, a maul with a snapped handle, three shields used to cover holes in the ceiling, four giant spider fangs, a pouch of three rubies (worth 15 gold pieces each) on a half-eaten belt, 45 gold pieces of assorted coins used in bone chimes to create a crude alarm system, and six boxes of spices – 20 gold pieces each."
Kate stared at him. "You found all that? What do we do with it all?"
"We keep the 1 dagger." Rick picked it up and put it in his belt. "We keep the three rubies, the 45 pieces of assorted gold coins, and the six boxes of spices. They're small and will fit inside my backpack. The rest of this stuff can stay here.
"Let's move out. We have several more rooms to go through before we're outside. Likely, there will be more Trolls. Are you up for it?" Rick asked her.
"I'm ready." She knew what to do now.
It was quite a big room, all coated in ice. Kate was very glad she had brought that winter coat. It was long and fluffy and purple, but it kept her warm.
They walked up a set of stairs, and while Kate saw an open way to the right, Rick went straight ahead. He paused at the entranceway, then went in and turned left. They could've immediately turned right, but Rick went straight.
She noticed the only light in the space was a glowing rock that Rick held up.
Then they came to a long set of stairs leading up, looking icy and slippery. Rick took them slowly, as did Kate. She took a quick peek at Alexis, who was awake but still quiet. Kate adjusted her hold on her and went up the stairs.
Rick paused momentarily at the top of the stairs, putting his glowing stone away. Kate could see the light ahead. Rick took a peek. "More Trolls, a dozen of them this time. I'm going to need your help. Get ready to throw potions." He took out a potion, and Kate did the same. She knew which one to throw and had four more like it on her bandolier.
He stepped out and threw his potion. Kate did the same right next to him and threw her potion. Both landed in different locations and erupted into a fireball. They had caught the Trolls off guard. They were hurt but still alive.
So Rick and Kate each took out another potion and threw it, erupting in another fireball. Now, where the fireballs overlapped one another, the combined fireballs killed those Trolls, but the others charged them.
Kate took out another potion and threw it. On the other hand, Rick cast a fireball. They were both equally effective, but since Rick cast his spell, he got it to erupt so that the fireballs overlapped her fireball, causing all but two of the Trolls to drop dead.
The last two had almost reached them when Rick cast Magic Missile, and out came five stars that struck both of them. One got three stars, while the other got two; both dropped to the ground.
Now came the tricky part. You see, Trolls could regenerate damage caused by something other than fire. Meaning these two would eventually recover. But Rick was ready for them. He poured oil on them, lit them, and they began burning.
Kate watched those two burn until the smell hit her. Revolted by the stench of burning Troll, she turned away and covered Alexis so she didn't have to smell them.
"Let's see what this group has, shall we?" Rick started searching.
This room was about half the size of the previous room. It had two long tables, with 12 chairs. There was also lots of ice hanging from the ceiling.
"I've got two doses of an herb, 17 gold, 17 silver, and 68 copper pieces. I've also got a set of five crossbow bolts, which detect magic, a magical cape, and four gallons of an unknown kind of ale. We'll keep it all since the herbs don't take much space. Everything but the ale; it can stay," Rick told her.
"That was quick. You've had practice at this," Kate remarked.
"Just a little." Rick used two fingers to show just a little bit, and then it got somewhat larger, causing Kate to burst out laughing.
"I suppose we'll find more Trolls?" she asked him.
"No doubt. Speaking of which, I need to refill my bandolier." He opened a bag, took out more potions, and put them into his bandolier. He handed Kate a few to fill her bandolier as well.
"So that's what you've been brewing all this time." Kate was catching on.
"Pretty much," Rick said. "I brewed a few other things as well."
Kate saw two openings. One was to the right, and the other was on the far side of the room. However, Rick went right, so she followed him. She looked at Alexis, who was asleep. "You're being such a good girl." Kate uncovered her just enough to kiss her.
Kate saw another set of icy stairs going up. She followed Rick up the stairs slowly because of the ice.
Once at the top, Kate saw an opening to the right and more stairs going up to the left. Rick headed for the stairs, and so did she. He put his glowing rock away at the top of the stairs, and Kate could see a light ahead.
She stood next to the wall but not too close. It was cold, and while it was warmer up here, it was still cold. She watched Rick take a peek. "More Trolls, only four of them this time." He took out a potion, getting Kate to follow his lead.
Rick moved out and threw his potion; Kate followed and threw hers. They both erupted into a fireball, catching the Trolls off guard. They were ready for an attack, but not from this direction.
This room was smaller, meaning the Trolls were closer this time, but they caught them by surprise, giving them another chance to throw another potion. It erupted into a fireball. The overlapping fireballs killed all but one of them, though that one didn't look good.
This last Troll forced Rick into hand-to-hand combat with it. He swung his staff and hit it, but it didn't fall. The Troll struck back by taking two swipes at him, one of which hit him, causing Rick to scream in pain.
Hearing that, Kate took out her dagger and lunged at the Troll, shoving it deep into its side. She killed it. It fell to the ground or floor. It was hard to tell, thanks to all the ice.
"Rick!" Kate turned her attention to him, but he waved her off, poured oil over the body, and set it on fire. Then he moved to the other opening and looked up. He didn't see anything, so he took a moment to look at his wound.
Kate helped him, inhaling sharply when she saw it. It was savage-looking. "Where's the medical kit."
"No medical kit."
"WHAT! You need medical help." She was so afraid for him. Instead, she watched as Rick took out a wand, touched his wound, and said a word. He did it again, and Kate looked at his wound closely. She ran her fingers over his fully recovered wound. His skin was smooth and showed no signs of ever being damaged.
Kate was amazed at what she saw. "How?"
"Wand of Cure Light Wounds. We don't use anything medical here; we use magic." Rick closed his ripped clothing over his wound area and was ready.
"That's incredible. Magic can do that?" Kate knew about magic but didn't realize it was capable of anything like that.
"Yep. There's just one more room to go, and then we're outside. There will be someone guarding the entrance, but they won't be expecting us," Rick said.
He didn't have to use his glowing rock this time since they could see sunshine leaking in.
They went up the stairs slowly, trying to be ready for anything. "You didn't search them," Kate whispered to him.
Rick ignored her and continued up the stairs. When he reached the top, he saw a small room with one Ogre guarding the entrance. The Ogre was looking out, not down the stairs.
He cast a lightning bolt, hit the Ogre, and killed him outright, clearing the way. He gave the guard a quick search and found five gold, seven silver, and 22 copper pieces, along with one gem worth 40 gold pieces.
Rick stepped outside and breathed in fresh air. Kate followed him and saw they were on the side of a mountain with lots of trees. She didn't know what kind they were, but they looked familiar. She was ready to see a completely alien landscape, but instead, she saw what looked like home.
"Now what?" Kate asked him.
"We walk." Rick took one step but didn't get any farther when Alexis started crying. "Change of plans." Rick took out a potion and threw it at the mountain wall, creating a doorway. "Go inside. The doorway will vanish once I go through. No one will even know we're here."
Kate stepped through with a crying Alexis and stopped dead in her tracks. She didn't know what to expect, but it was nothing like this.
Rick followed her and moved past her into one of the rooms. "Coming?" That got her to move, but she moved slowly with her mouth hanging open.
You conjure up an extradimensional dwelling that has a single entrance on the plane from which the spell was cast. The entry point looks like a faint shimmering in the air that is four feet wide and eight feet high. Only those you designate may enter the mansion, and the portal is shut and made invisible behind you when you enter. You may open it again from your own side at will. Once observers have passed beyond the entrance, they are in a magnificent foyer with numerous chambers beyond. The atmosphere is clean, fresh, and warm.
You can create any floor plan you desire to the limit of the spell's effect. The place is furnished and contains sufficient food-stuffs to serve a nine-course banquet to a dozen people per caster level. A staff of near-transparent servants (as many as two per caster level), liveried and obedient, wait upon all who enter. The servants function as unseen servant spells except that they are visible and can go anywhere in the mansion.
Since the place can be entered only through its special portal, outside conditions do not affect the mansion, nor do conditions inside it pass to the plane beyond.
"Like it?" Rick grinned wide since he knew she wasn't expecting all this. "Up the stairs are bedrooms and bathrooms. That's the foyer; the living room is over here. The dining room is over there with lots of food. The back area is a pool."
"There's a pool!?" Kate was surprised to say the least. "How… How? What is that?" she asked him, seeing something that was there and yet wasn't truly there. It looked like a ghost.
"That's an Unseen Servant. It'll clean your clothes for you, even repair them, and get you food. It's an obedient servant."
Rick removed his backpack and handed it and his coat to one of the unseen servants. "Give me Alexis." Rick took the baby from her and moved to the dining room, where all the food was. Kate wandered around, looking everywhere with her mouth ajar.
He unwrapped Alexis and handed her coat to an unseen servant. Now, he had a crying baby on his hands. Rick checked her diaper and saw it was wet. So he put her on the table, took it off her, and opened his backpack. Lastly, he got his baby supplies out and changed her diaper, but she continued to cry.
So he got out a bottle with pre-made formula, opened an MRE, and used the heating packet to warm it up. Next time, he would add a kitchen to the floor plan. Once it was warm, he fed Alexis, who quieted almost instantly.
Kate had her backpack and coat off and joined Rick in the dining room. "Wow, I don't believe this place. It's amazing. And this food looks good enough to eat."
"Eat, it's all good here. You're completely safe. We can stay here for 28 hours. Then the spell dies, and we get ejected if we're still here. Eat and drink, Kate. There's enough food for 168 people. It's a full, nine-course meal."
"A hundred and sixty-eight people!?" Kate saw loads of food, and there was so much to choose from.
Rick burped Alexis and took her upstairs to a room specially designed for her. He put her to bed and then came downstairs to join Kate and eat.
He grinned at her while he ate, getting Kate to smile back at him. "So, is this normal here?"
"Fighting Trolls? No, that was a place that was unique to be in. I remember there being more Trolls the first time. They killed my friends and had me on the run. I was out of spells that could damage them when I came across the room with the portal.
"I got it open, went through, and you know the rest. Well, most of it. I could tell stories about adapting to living in a strange new world. With no money, no ID, no future," Rick told her.
"Yet you did, and you found a job writing." Kate was amazed by what he did.
"I got lucky. I always had an imagination, and I put it to use. It took me a long time to find a publisher willing to take a risk on me. In the meantime, I met Alexis' mother, got her pregnant, and well, you know the rest," Rick said.
"I don't think I could have done it should our roles be reversed. Finding myself in this world all alone, I mean. I don't know what I would have done," Kate told him.
"I'm glad you changed your mind. I love you, Kate."
"I didn't know what I'd lost until I lost it, getting me to admit that I loved you. I couldn't believe that you called. I'm so lucky that you left me that credit card. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here," Kate admitted.
"I couldn't use it where I was going. It was free money for you. I wouldn't be there to pay the bill, and they stood no chance of finding me." Rick shrugged. "So I gave it to you."
"Well, I really used it," Kate told him. "I went out and bought all kinds of things. I probably don't need all of it, but I'm putting my new boots and coat to good use."
"I forgot to warn you about the cold. Speaking of which." Rick took his shirt off and handed it to an unseen servant to have it repaired.
"I do love you," Kate told him as she kissed him and was kissed in return.
"Don't worry; there shouldn't be any more Trolls. That doesn't mean there aren't other dangers, but I believe we can handle them.
"What we need to do now is decide if we want to head for Silverymoon or Waterdeep, both safe cities. Waterdeep is the largest city in Faerûn. It has a population of one million or more. Silverymoon is closer, I think. Silverymoon is smaller but prettier, perhaps. It has an invisible bridge over a river," Rick said.
"An invisible bridge. Why? That's insane!" Kate exclaimed.
"But unique," Rick told her.
"Prettier, you say? It sounds nice, but Waterdeep is larger, and I like larger lots. I don't know, you decide." Kate bit her lip. "Can we afford to live in either place?"
"Silverymoon might be cheaper, while Waterdeep can have a cheap place to live, but in a less desirable location," Rick told her.
"It sounds like Silverymoon is the better location. Will it be hard to get there?" Kate asked him.
Rick thought about it before he answered her. "There won't be any roads between us and there. It'll all be overland travel. There will be perhaps three small cities along the way with a long patch of open ground. We'll have to avoid the Evermoors, but yes, it is possible."
"Why? What's in the Evermoors?" she wondered.
"Comprised of hills and troughs, partially filled with chilly bogs and rolling landscapes, it's filled with Trolls and other creatures."
Kate shuddered. "Yes, please. I want to avoid the Evermoors. I've had my fill of Trolls."
"I know one thing – you gained a few levels after that. Surviving Combat is an
excellent way to gain levels. I've probably even gained a level," Rick said.
Kate stopped eating. "REALLY! Do you think so? I wonder how many levels?" She was excited about that.
"We'll know in the morning, Kate. Are you ready for bed? Or do you want to go swimming?"
"I'll go swimming in the morning. Right now, I want you to make love to me." Kate wanted to know that she truly was loved. She had risked her life and changed it for the foreseeable future.
Rick and Kate went upstairs and made love to each other. They slept for six hours, then woke to Alexis crying. So, after a diaper change and feeding, Kate went swimming. She didn't have a suit. It hadn't occurred to her to pack one. But she didn't have a problem going skinny dipping.
Rick joined her with a naked Alexis, who took to swimming like she was a fish.
After the swim, they worked on what level Kate was now. Was she third or maybe fourth level? No, she was sixth level.
"SIXTH LEVEL! I can do third-level spells?" Kate was amazed.
Rick nodded. "You can cast six zero-level spells, six first-level spells, six second-level spells, and four third-level spells. Now you can only know seven zero-level spells, four first-level spells, two second-level spells, and one third-level spell."
"Just one third-level spell?" Kate questioned him.
"The price you pay for being a Sorceress, Kate. But on the other hand, you can cast that one third-level spell four times."
"That's something, I guess," she admitted. "I'm going to need a list of second and third-level spells. Can you do that out here?"
"Of course. I have to memorize spells from my traveling spell book. I'll give it to you to study whatever spells you want." Rick kissed her, got up from the pool, and went to his backpack, where he retrieved his book and handed it to her. He took Alexis and got back in the pool.
So, right there, naked next to a pool, Kate studied and chose her spells. She chose Mending and Massage as her two zero-level spells, Ray of Enfeeblement for her first-level spell, Web and Mirror Image for her second-level spells, and Invisibility Sphere, which made everyone within ten feet invisible for her third-level spell. It was a tough decision. There were a lot of good spells at the third level, but she was happy with her choice. Now, she needed to practice casting them to prove she could do it.
They ate breakfast, then changed Alexis' diaper and fed her. "These are cloth diapers," Kate mentioned, not understanding.
"Yes. This way, I can save the wet diapers, have them washed, and reuse them," Rick explained. "It seemed like a wise choice. I still lose diapers when she has a bowel movement, but I can wash the wet ones."
"That's pretty smart." And Kate kissed him.
Twenty-four hours later, after changing Alexis' diaper and feeding her, then eating themselves, they left the comfort of their home and began walking. They were traveling using Rick's memory of how to reach Silverymoon.