Halfway Bitten by Terry Maggert

Author:Terry Maggert [Maggert, Terry]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy, Paranormal & Urban
Amazon: B019YZ9TJ4
Published: 2016-02-08T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Two: Tag—You’re Dead

Wulfric was good as his word. He sat quietly on a rough wooden chair that had been in my cellar long enough that it was brittle with age; it creaked ominously as he lowered himself into it with a suspicious glare. Gus awarded Wulfric a piercing gaze as part of his duties as my familiar, then began to lick one paw casually.

My cellar is rather dark, but in a friendly way. There are ancient hemlock shelves where generations of people have stored pickles, and jam, and anything else the well-tilled backyard garden might yield. The floor is field slate with a center area of hard-packed dirt, and the walls climb upward in uneven stacks of stone with resolute bands of mortar between. The beams are dark with age, hand hewn, and solid looking. A long bench served as my mixing station; above it huddled jars of plants, with labels written in my own small script. I looked at the array approvingly, placed the fresh switches on the table, and began to focus my mind for the task at hand.

To his credit, Wulfric may have been a statue. I spared him no glances as I felt my power begin to grow. Each charm on my wrist began to assume that liquid tingle that can only come from a clear mind and busy hands. I’d need a brazier, a small ring of stones, and cotton cloth in which to place a small amount of aromatic lavender. I began to explain myself to Wulfric so that he would understand what was happening. My mental state was so relaxed, I didn’t fear speaking aloud. I could feel the magic blooming within me, and I knew this spell would be powerful.

“I’m creating what amounts to a waking dream,” I began, as I crushed the lavender and wrapped it in the soft cloth. “I can reach across the veil, but the beings I’m going to mark are neither here nor there. They are between places, and for that I need things that are dead. And alive.”

I put each stone in a careful ring around the rough stone brazier. Here, I let my intent overwhelm the natural tendency of disorder. With the power humming in my heart, each rock was placed just so by the strength of my will. In moments, I had a circle of such perfection that I doubted an engineer could do better. My lips curled in pleasure. The simplest things are often hardest, but the circle lay waiting for me as I lowered the brazier into the true center. There was a dull flash as the circle accepted my addition, then the circle closed with a low hum. The air began to charge with the scents of an oncoming storm, and I sat down in a pose of complete relaxation, ready to assume command of the power around me.

“The living will of these trees will form a purpose. That purpose, with the lavender, will seek and pierce the veil between worlds.

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