The Autumn Mage

Chapter Sixteen

     A campfire crackled nearby. Aki forced his eyes open and saw nothing. After a small bout of panic he realized that there simply was no moon in the sky, and that clouds were blocking out the stars. He sighed heavily.

     "Aki," an unfamiliar voice called out. It was distant and ethereal and he thought he may have imagined it. "Aki," it called again, stronger. He turned his head and saw a shadowy figure, its face hidden inside a black hood. He could sense his power, something familiar nagging him in the back of his mind. "Aki, get up." The figure walked closer and Aki's hair stood on edge. He could not seem to move his body. He shut his eyes tightly wishing him away. He opened them again and saw Minda kneeling down next to him.

     "Oh thank Gia you are awake. I was beginning to worry."

     "When's the next full moon?" he asked, groaning as he sat up. He felt sluggish and his body ached. He held his stomach feeling like he had eaten something rotten.

     "Two weeks from now," she responded quietly.

     "Great. I have fourteen days to live and the nearest town is two days away. Let's get moving." He managed two steps and then wobbled to his knees.

      "I know time is a factor, but you must rest tonight. The toxin is too strong." As soon as the sun rose they left for Swamp's End, a town that stayed busy enough to keep the small amount of locals from leaving. It was an easy walk down a major road but Aki wanted to be sick the entire trip there. The sun seemed brighter than usual and every step felt heavier than the last. The aches in his body were stronger and occasionally his extremities would tingle and lose feeling. They arrived at the inn by the end of the second day. Minda had supper in the small dining area, but Aki went straight for bed.

     "What an interesting turn of events, wouldn't you say?" The voice was strange but he felt as if he had known it before. He waited for the room to come into focus and discovered that it was a different bedroom than the one he was sleeping in and the time was closer to dusk. A window was open and tattered sun bleached curtains were flailing in the warm breeze. The wind softly howled and flecks of sand were blowing into the old room. The room was large enough to house a desk, a bare mattress, and a bookshelf with a single lonely worn book. All three pieces of furniture had become dry rotted and covered in sand and dust. Aki walked over to the window slowly and saw the orange glow of the setting sun behind a row of brown mountains. "I guess you could say that Elf really got under your skin!"

     Aki turned to face the hysterically laughing pale young man just a few years his senior. He was sickly thin and wore a tight fitting black army coat buttoned across his stomach. The sleeves had been torn off revealing a thin long white shirt underneath, the right arm of the shirt stretched and hanging off his wrist. His tight pants were black with thin white pinstripes that covered the top of his black steel toed boots. His greasy black hair was combed to the side with the rest drooping over his ear. His yellow eyes were large like his crooked chuckling smile and he stood with a slight hunch. His nose was a little too long, giving his smile a more sinister look.

     "Who are you?"

     "Is that really the question you want answered right now?"

     "Okay, well, where am I?" The man laughed again.

     "Close your eyes and I will show you." Aki hesitantly complied. When he opened them again he was in a dark room with tall curved walls.

     "Where did you go?" Aki demanded.

     "Up here!" the man's voice bellowed from above. Aki looked up and shrunk back at the giant face smiling down at him.

     "What the Hel is going on?"