"Boy," someone whispered. "Get up boy." His voice was low and gruff, like stone ground down until smooth. "Boy." He said louder this time and with urgency."
My eyes flickered open a moment, but not long enough for me to make out his features. Then there was a clap as a small hand hit my cheek. Immediately my eyes shot open, my hands went to my sore tingly cheek.
"Mornin' lad. I reckon ya been lookin' fer me."
A man with hardened features stood proudly before me, posing like some important figure despite being clothed in worn rags.
His face was hidden behind a hood which concealed his features completely. Only hints of his beard—curly and burnt orange—remained visible under his chin.
He stood a bit above eye level, wearing loose fitting brown clothes—or at least they seemed brown, he was covered in so much dirt that it was difficult to say. His stout legs were covered with bronze plates that extended to fully cover his small boots. He wore gloves, and around his wrists he wore strips of bristly fur; I could tell, just by looking, that the fur was close in texture to metal spikes.
He posed with one hand on a large forging hammer with a handle almost as long as he was tall. Its end was planted firmly in the ground, though he pulled it free with a mighty tug.
"Now that yer awake, we 'ave some things to discuss," he said.
"Zidg?" I asked, wondering where he'd come from.
"Aye, laddie. Did ya think I was the tooth fairy?" He asked with a laugh from the belly. "I might've knocked one or two of 'em loose, but I don't 'ave any wings; an' don't think yer gettin' a single coin from my purse."
"No… I just wasn't expecting—"
"C'mon lad. Get off yer arse an' wake the dragon."
I realized only then that I was still sitting against Lumia.
Zidg continued, "I would do it, but…" he pointed his hammer toward her snout. "I avoid things with large teeth."
I stood up. Questions whirled around wildly in my head, each one important and all ready to burst out of me at once. I held back, overcoming the struggle to swallow my curiosity.
The dwarf grunted, turned, and walked down the hill toward a beast twice his size. It looked kind of like a warthog, except that it had claws instead of hooves, a long furry tail, and it was covered in blue scales. Climbing on his back, he shouted, "C'mon boy, hurry up!"
Lumia stirred awake as I stepped away from her, her voice following after me like a whisper on the wind. "Silv."
I looked back but didn't speak. Instead I motioned for her to follow me and pointed toward Zidg. He was already riding off on his…actually I wasn't sure what it was called.
Despite being twice as large as Zidg, the creature had short legs and most of its size was in its girth. It moved slowly, perhaps slower than the dwarf.
Again, I went to follow but Lumia stepped in front of me. "Did you forget, those lands are cursed?" she asked.
I hadn't forgotten about the cursed lands, I simply wasn't thinking about it. I was more focused on Zidg and sorting through the things I wanted to ask him. Once Lumia mentioned it though, I remembered the danger.
For miles it would mostly just be a twisted landscape. Maybe some dreadlings or other cursed beasts, but nothing to powerful. Eventually though, we'd reach Zeledoana. I'd hate to think what horrors we could find there.
If I'd been alone, I probably would have gone on without thinking too deeply about it. Thankfully, Lumia stopped me.
Zidg must've noticed we weren't following because he stopped his mount and shouted, "What's goin' on there, lad? Selvarians don't like most visitors; 'less yer lookin' fer a fight, we need to move."
"I'd rather not enter cursed lands."
Zidg seemed surprised. Hoping down from his mount, he stomped back up the hill and stood inquisitively before me. "Ya were lookin' fer me, weren't ya?"
I nodded. "But how did you know that? And why does it feel like you've been waiting for me?"
"I 'ave laddie, an' ya took yer sweet damn time too. I was beginning to think ya weren't comin'," Zidg grumbled as he leaned against his hammer.
"I only learned of your existence yesterday how could—"
"Nevermind that lad. Ya gonna come with me or not?"
I looked at Lumia unsure what I should do. There was uncertainty in her eyes as well, but she nodded and transformed, putting her hand in mine.
Zidg jumped at the sight, nearly falling with his hammer. Reaching out swiftly, I caught his hand. Zidg nearly pulled me down with him, but he steadied himself and avoided a tumble down the hill
In the process, his hood fell, revealing a small head covered in curly orange tangles of hair. There was only a tiny amount of brown skin visible just around his eyes. Expanding to the size of golf balls, his eyes hungrily drank in Lumia's visage.
"She's a beaut, ma boy. A real beaut."
Lumia growled as she stepped toward him. "She has a name…" kneeling down to be on his level, she grabbed his chin and lifted his face so that they made eye contact. "…and you may be short, but you can look up."
"Sorry," he said, "been a long while since I saw…uhm…" he swallowed rather than finish his sentence. A wise choice, I thought.
"Her name is Lumia," I said, "and we'll go with you for now, but first I need to know if you can remove the curse of forbidden magic?"
Zidg burst into a fit of laughter. When he calmed down, he said, "Not sure what fool put that idea in yer 'ead. Grievezon 'imself couldn't do that."
That wasn't the answer I was hoping for. If Zidg couldn't remove the curse, then finding him was pointless. Eventually the urge would come back and I'd have to isolate myself, die, or risk killing someone.
I felt like I was sinking into the ground. It was as if a portal to an empty void opened beneath me and was slowly sucking me inside.
Lumia placed her hand supportively on my back.
Zidg lightly punched my thigh. "It's alright laddie, I can't remove the curse, but I can make ya something that'll help."
I nodded. Anything would be better than dying alone.
***
Zidg led us deep within the cursed lands. We'd been walking an hour in silence, and with each step I grew more and more unsettled. I'd have grabbed Lumia and turned back, but something was off about her.
Once we entered the corrupted lands, her demeanor changed—like she'd become a different person. She walked further from me and her emotions disappeared, almost like our bond didn't exist.
To make matters worse, there were sets of dark eyes watching us from every direction. Cursed beasts crouched beside the path, lounged on any horizontal surface—be it an old stone house or blackened tree branch—some even peaked out from the many crevices that marred the land like stab wounds.
There were dreadlings, craven claws, vultisal fury wings, and even a nightmare—and that was just the ones I could see.
Everything I'd read said these creatures were all vicious and cruel, quick to attack anything in sight, even other cursed beats; however that wasn't the case here. Not one of them snarled, snapped, or bit. They were all existing in peace and it didn't seem as if this was a new or temporary phenomenon since none of them was injured.
Still, it was disturbing.
"Ya got questions lad. No need to hold 'em, we still got a ways to go so may as well start askin'" Zidg finally broke the silence.
I still didn't know where to begin. Should I ask about my curse, the calmed beasts, or maybe I should just start with the artifact from the church. Perhaps a better starting point than any of those would be to ask about Zidg.
Instead I asked, "Who is Grievezon?"
The question brought a smile across his face. His cheeks bulged slightly as he chuckled under his breath. "You'd know 'im better as the dark one." Then he sighed. "He was the first forbidden mage, but he overcame the curse."
"The black dragon? The one defeated by saint Mirin?"
Zidg stopped walking and turned toward me, a look of incredulity on his face. "Is that what they taught you laddie?" He shook his head. "Elves…vain to a fault and blind to the truth. Yer saint didn't slay the dragon, she saved him."
"What?" I nearly shouted.
"Mirin went with eleven others to put an end to Grievezon, but she betrayed them. In the end, Mirin used her power to ensure the beast would eventually be reborn."
I didn't believe him. Even the dragons credited Mirin with slaying the great calamity, and if what Zidgsaid was true then surely the other saints would've spoken out against Mirin.
Zidg looked over his shoulder at me as if waiting for another question.
I changed the topic. "So, how do I control the curse?"
"Yet true to yer race lad. Ya might not like it, but truth is what it is."
"Right…so about the curse. You said it can be controlled."
"Aye. It's simple really. Ya keep using the spell what started it."
"And if I don't do that?"
Zidg pointed at a group of dreadlings resting near the path. "Ya turn into that."
My eyes popped. That meant they were humans and elves at some point. Then again, the name cursed beasts wasn't far off from cursed mage—it made sense, kind of. Regardless, it frightened me deeply.
"There has to be another way," I pressed. My voice trembled with anxiety despite my efforts to suppress it. "I was told that you make strange artifacts—you said you could make something to help me."
With a sigh, Zidg removed a small pouch from his belt and tossed it onto the ground. Inside lay several glowing stones. As I watched, he picked one and placed it in his palm. With a wave of his hand, he summoned forth flames. The fire engulfed the rock until it exploded and vanished, leaving behind nothing more than ash.
Zidg closed his hand around the pile and held it for a moment. When he opened his fist, the ashes fell away revealing a tiny ring. Its design was intricate and highly detailed, twisted lines intermingled with circles formed together in perfect symmetry around the band.
This was no ordinary item. I knew immediately it was magical and probably very valuable too. I reached towards it, but Zidg snatched it away.
"Nothin' comes free lad. An' this ain't a miracle either. It'll buy you time, but ya 'ave to use that magic eventually."
Pulling back my hand, I asked tentatively, "what will it cost me?"
"First I 'ave a few questions. 'ave ya met a man named Liriel?"
I winced at the name, stepping away from the dwarf and reaching for Lumia.
"Relax lad, it's just a question. Yer response is enough an answer fer me."
I didn't relax. His casual mention of the name cursed mages called my uncle destroyed what little trust we had between us. If Lumia hadn't been resisting, I'd have run away with her immediately.
"The dragon's under a spell lad. I'll release it once ye tell me what I want to know."
Frustrated I bit my tongue. I should've known better than to trust someone who worked with cursed mages and wasn't afraid of the corrupted lands.
"What do you want?" I growled, making no effort to hide my anger.
"Who sent ya to find me lad? I suspect it was that witch Amara."
I nodded.
"An' she'll have sent ya with something to return no doubt. 'and it over lad."
I summoned the ruined relic from storage and tossed it on the ground.
The dwarf looked at it, but didn't pick it up. Looking back at me he frowned. "Then she damned 'im to the worst fate…"
"What are you talking about?" I asked, feeling confused and manipulated. "She said she didn't know what it was. She wanted me to find out."
"Tell her, it's exactly as she thought. She best send the poor sod on to the cradle 'afore he destroys her city." Zidg's expression grew heavy as he continued speaking. "Now on to the matter of payment. I need three white scales from Illudrasille, and don't think ya can fool me with fakes."
"How in the hell am I supposed to get that?"
"I don't know or care. Bring 'em to me an' I'll give ya the ring. Don't an I'd say ye 'ave a week or two at best if ya don't use that spell."
He turned to go on without answering further questions. I stepped after him, but as he sat on a stump next to a fire—both seemingly materialized out of the air—I found myself standing at the border of Selvaris near the three broken towers.
Lumia was next to me with tears streaming down her face. She looked helpless into the distance with grave fear in her eyes.
Behind us, frightening noises erupted from the cursed lands. Several beasts took notice of us and clambered towards us like the murderous creatures I knew they were.
I summoned a wall of fire, separating Lumia and I from the beasts, as I urged Lumia forward. Whatever she'd experienced during our time with Zidg, seemed to still have a hold on her. She stumbled forward, but she couldn't pull herself together enough to form words, let alone run.
My flame wall wouldn't hold the creatures back for long…
"Lumia!" I called. "We have to move; it isn't safe here."