The fall of skullkeep, p.31
The Fall of Skullkeep, page 31
A startled gasp led to everyone starting to kneel, but Bellos waved that way. “Peace. Remain standing, please. I am not the only person here who’s far too old to kneel.”
More than one person fought to hold back a grin at that comment.
Bellos turned to Gavin as the Archmagister arrived at the group. He regarded Gavin in silence for several heartbeats, finally saying, “You have done well. I don’t think I could be more proud of your achievements or your conduct. You pulled the Kingdom of Tel back from the precipice on which it teetered, and in many ways, you have restored the honor of the Society of the Arcane. Are you certain you wish to proceed?”
“Oh, yes. My tenure as the Archmagister is over. I’d like to get back to being just Gavin again.”
Bellos’s expression seemed tinged with sorrow for just a moment. “My dear friend, I’m afraid you’ll never be ‘just Gavin’ ever again, but I understand what you mean. Very well. I hereby acknowledge and grant your resignation from the office of Archmagister of Tel. Know that you have earned this many times over in my eyes, and those who come after you will have quite the legacy to carry on.” Bellos lifted his hand and placed it on Gavin’s shoulder. “I thank thee for thy service.”
A flare of gold light filled the area, and when it faded, Gavin no longer wore a gold robe. His robe was now black as night… but… the runes that ringed the cuffs of the robe’s sleeves and proclaimed him to be Magus within the Society of the Arcane glowed gold. Just like those of Marcus before him.
Before anyone could truly react, Bellos pivoted to regard Lillian. “Lillian Mivar, Kirloth recommended you succeed him as Archmagister of Tel and did so with the highest praise. I find his evaluation warranted, and I hereby offer you the lifetime appointment. What say you?”
Bellos’s offer surprised no one.
Lillian took a breath and released it slowly in a quiet sigh as she looked at the floor. After a heartbeat or two, she lifted her head to meet Bellos’s eyes. “I accept.”
CHAPTER 35
Gavin stood on the shore of the Inner Sea. A breeze carried the salty sea air to him, ruffling his black robe as he gazed across the rolling waves. It was a cool, sunny afternoon, and Gavin thought he could pick up the faintest echo of hammers striking metal. The Foundry was not more than three hundred yards over his left shoulder.
His new status as ‘just Gavin’ was not even a week old, but it was still a great relief. He felt like Bellos took a vast weight off his shoulders when the God of Magic granted his request to step down. Had Marcus felt the same when he stepped down? There was no way to know now, he supposed.
As far as he could tell, he stood within feet of where Kiri washed ashore all those years ago. No sign or trace remained of the driftwood that carried a soaked and half-drowned princess to this shore, but he didn’t really expect that, either. He’d never tell Kiri he was here, but at the same time, he needed to see it for himself.
He became aware of a presence to his right, and he turned to see an old man with wildly unkempt snow-white hair and a bushy beard that was long, long past any hope of control. He wore a gray robe that was tattered along its hem and carried a gnarled balsa-wood staff, planting its base in the sand and leaning against it as he regarded Gavin.
“You’ve come a long way from that alley where we met, lad, and it’s been quite the adventure.”
Gavin chuckled despite himself. “Yes… I’d say it has. At least, now, it’s over for the most part.”
“Over?” Astonishment and disbelief warred for dominance across the old man’s demeanor. “Lad, it’s never over. You’ve just earned yourself a brief respite. A chance to lean back and rest on your laurels for a time.”
Gavin regarded his conversation partner in bemused silence for several heartbeats. “Yeah… I suppose I should’ve seen that coming. I don’t suppose you’d offer any hints for what’s around the corner?”
The old man outright laughed at that. “You should know better than that, but you’ve done well enough so far that I have faith you’ll carry on in kind.”
“Well, then… I have another question.”
The old man shrugged. “Ask. I’ll answer if I can.”
“How did Kiri and I end up on Earth? Based on everything I’ve been able to discern, I’m pretty sure the Necromancer invoked a disintegration effect on me during our conversation in Tel Mivar.”
The jovial old grandfather vanished in the blink of an eye. “I put far too much work into you to allow a sack of canine chew toys to ruin it. I changed that disintegration effect into a transdimensional teleport and shunted it down the link to the Refugee World that Nesta forged during the Godswar.” Now, the incorrigible rapscallion returned. “And I figured I might as well unblock your memories at the same time. It seems to have worked out rather well overall.”
Once again, Gavin chuckled despite himself. “I’d say so, yes.”
“Any other questions? My time here is drawing short.”
Gavin lifted the forearm that bore the Void-scar. At the moment, it was barely larger than three pieces of thread. “This hasn’t bothered me nearly as much since my sojourn to Earth as it did prior to that. I hardly ever notice it now.”
“I didn’t hear a question in there, lad.” A mischievous grin curled the old man’s lips… at least as much as Gavin could tell through the bushy, unkempt beard and mustache. “The energy or power that is elemental magic—what makes a wizard a wizard—is anathema to Lornithar’s void blades. That magic was very weak here before you went to Earth, because the link Nesta forged had been slowly siphoning it off to Earth over these last six thousand years. When you forged a link back by creating that first transdimensional gateway, you created a mechanism through which it could equalize between this dimension and Earth’s.”
The old man turned and looked over his shoulder as if he heard something before he turned back to Gavin. “Well, lad… that’s all the time I have for now. Enjoy this respite while you can. I’ll do my best to see you get your just due, but despite what Ovir and his clergy and all those who came before them insist, I am not a god. I’m just… a caretaker.”
Faster than a finger-snap, the old man vanished as if he was never there. There wasn’t even a divot in the sand from the tip of his staff.
Jennifer stood just a few feet from the portal connecting her grandparents’ home to her father’s estate in Mivar Province. An entire world that would accept her for who and what she was lay through the portal behind her.
In many ways, it wasn’t all that different from Earth, especially the section she called home. But that wasn’t to say differences didn’t exist. The technology gap was huge for her, but she still couldn’t believe how different—how much cleaner—the air smelled in Drakmoor… even downwind from a collection of stables. Everything seemed so pure there, so natural and unmodified.
But for all her adventures and explorations, she never stopped thinking of Earth—and her grandparents’ place in particular—as home.
She still wasn’t sure what the future held for her, but she knew—beyond any doubt now—that her future was on Earth. Oh, sure… she’d visit Drakmoor from time to time, especially since her dad was there. But it wasn’t home. She didn’t see how it could ever be home, either.
Her sojourn to the other world had settled her mind, though. She now felt like she truly belonged on Earth, no matter what niche she carved for herself. And she had another friend to carve it with her.
She glanced to her right and saw Kellea staring up at the sky… which kind of surprised her. The sky wasn’t that different here, was it?
She looked up and immediately realized what held her friend’s attention. A plane crossed overhead, far above. She smiled.
“Yeah… this world will take a bit of acclimation, but I have it on good authority that we have better shoes.”
Gavin leaned against the door frame to his wife’s office and smiled as he watched her work. He had no idea at all what information the sheets of parchment she held contained, but he enjoyed the moment that let him appreciate her unawares and all by himself. Not for the first time, he wondered what he did to deserve having such a person in his life, and he made a silent promise to himself that he would never take her or their time together for granted.
Kiri turned to claim another piece of parchment from a stack on the corner of her desk, and seeing Gavin, she smiled. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Who knows?”
Gavin crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her when Kiri stood to meet him. He gave her a long, deep kiss that she returned in kind, and when they finally broke it, he leaned close and whispered, “I love you,” in her ear.
He saw only love for him in her eyes when he righted himself from the lean, and she replied, “I love you, too, Gavin.”
She took the opportunity of his silent regard to pull him over to the loveseat against a nearby wall and led him to sit with her. “So, tell me how you’ve spent your day so far. You were already gone when I woke.”
“Oh… nothing really significant. I did a little sightseeing and ended up chatting with Valthon for a little bit.”
Kiri’s eyes shot wide. “Ended up chatting… how is chatting with Valthon ‘nothing really significant?”
“Well, it’s certainly not like it was my first time. He was the old guy who woke me up in the alley not too long before we met.”
“Well… what did he have to say?”
Gavin shrugged. “Not much. He explained how we ended up on Earth instead of becoming a pile of powder when the Necromancer tried to disintegrate me, and he explained why the void-scar hasn’t been bothering me like it used to.”
“Oh, is that all?” Kiri tried to affect an air of nonchalance… but didn’t quite manage it. “And just what does have in store for you next?”
“Didn’t say. Honestly, he probably didn’t want to spoil the surprise.”
Kiri gave him an appraising expression, as if she was trying to determine whether he was trying to feed her a line. In the end, her demeanor softened. “Well, if he doesn’t have anything immediate for you, what are your ideas for what’s next?”
Gavin allowed himself a sly grin as he pulled her onto his lap. “Well… you know… your dad did mention something about grandchildren the other day.”
WHAT’S NEXT?
This concludes the Histories of Drakmoor, but Gavin and his friends will return.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There’s an old saying: it takes a village to raise a child. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it certainly seems true where publishing a story is concerned. You would not be reading this were it not for contributions from several people.
Did you like the cover? The background image was created by Jakub Skop (https://www.behance.net/JakubSkop).
I want to thank T. F. Poist and David Emenheiser for their time and expertise in making this novel the best it could possibly be.
I’m sure there are many who will see this next paragraph and think, “Goodness, he’s acknowledging his parents and grandparents again?” My greatest regret is that I cannot hand my grandfather, Bob Miller, a paperback copy of my novels. So, yes… the Acknowledgements page of every story I publish will have the paragraph that follows. Consider yourselves forewarned.
Without my grandparents, Bob & Janice Miller, I honestly don’t know where I’d be today; my grandfather taught me to read and love reading, and my grandmother taught me to develop and exercise my imagination. This story (not to mention my life in general) certainly would not have happened without my parents, Vernon & Judy Kerns.
THE WORLDS OF ROBERT M. KERNS
For a complete and accurate listing of all publications, both currently available and forthcoming, please visit Knightsfall Press.
Knightsfall Press - Books
https://knightsfall.press/books
SO… WHO’S THE AUTHOR?
Robert M. Kerns (or Rob if you ever meet him in person) is a geek, and he claims that label proudly. Most of his geekiness revolves around Information Technology (IT), having over fifteen years in the industry; within IT, he especially prefers Servers and Networks, and he often makes the claim that his residence has a better data infrastructure than some businesses.
Beyond IT, Rob enjoys Science Fiction and Fantasy of (almost) all stripes. He is a voracious reader, with his favorite books too numerous to list.
Rob has been writing for over 20 years, published his first novel in 2018, and has no plans to stop any time soon.
Connect with Rob at robertmkerns.com.
Robert M. Kerns, The Fall of Skullkeep
