
by an enchanted war-club.
I glanced back and forth between my two compan-ions. How they had changed in our two weeks of
travel-ing together! When first they met, I was afraid each would tear the other limb from limb. Hendrek
had gained his cursed warclub through demons, and thus had no great love of the species. And Snarks, in
his de-sire to tell all the truth all the time, seemed to take par-ticular delight in informing the very large
warrior as to the efficiency of certain diet and exercise programs. But Snarks had been indispensable in
his knowledge of de-monic strategy during our recent skirmishes with the Netherhells, and Hendrek was
no less useful with his flashing warclub, Headbasher. The two, at last, realized that they needed each
other. Now, while they were still not the best of friends, they did manage to speak occa-sionally, and I
no longer feared the imminent murder of one at the hands of the other.
There was a loud harummph from the path before us.
“If you wish to continue your private discussion,” the wizard remarked, “the least you might do is march
at the same time. We have much ground to cover before this half-light fails us.” Ebenezum glowered with
an in-tensity only possible for a great mage cut off from his art.
I realized then that my master was feeling the ardours of our journey as much as the rest of us. There
was ex-haustion in his voice, and creases about his beard that I hadn’t seen before. My master, the
wizard Ebenezum, seemed to handle the march, and the occasional battle that came with it, with such
aplomb that I sometimes forgot that he, too, could grow weary. He was unable to approach us any
closer, for, if the wizard should close upon Snarks without the demon’s protective hood, or if the mage
should be in the vicinity of Headbasher when the club was drawn from its sack, the great Ebenezum
would be totally lost to a sneezing attack. As I thought about it, I realized it could do him no good to be
further cut off from conversation with his fellows due to the severity of his malady. I told him of our
concerns.
“Indeed.” The wizard stroked his beard thought-fully. “ ‘Tis but one way to see if the Brownie is playing
us true or false. We must make our own magic to con-tact the young witch!”
Magic! Alas, at that point in my young career, I knew far too little about it. During the time of my early
ap-prenticeship, back in the Western Woods, Ebenezum had been too busy to instruct me in much more
than sweeping and bucket carrying. Then, with the arrival of his malady, and our subsequent discovery of
the fiend-ish plots of the Netherhells, things became far more hectic. Well, we needed new magic, and
Ebenezum sug-gested we try some. I listened attentively. I may have been ignorant of spells, but surely
my eagerness wouldmore than make up for any knowledge I lacked.
“Indeed,” Ebenezum remarked, noting my extreme attention with a single, raised eyebrow. “I suggest a
communication spell. Very effective and very simple. Wuntvor should be able to master it in no time.”
Holding his nose delicately, the wizard pulled me aside.
“Wuntvor.” My master spoke softly, but with great feeling. “I believe we have come to a turning point in
our journeys. Once we left Heemat’s behind, we left civilization as well. We will not see another town
before the edge of the Inland Sea.” He paused a moment to stroke his long white mustache. “I sense
some dissent between our companions. Both have proved their worth on this journey, as I am sure they
will continue to do. But both will be of much more worth if we give them leadership. And magic is what
makes us leaders. As we’ve seen, I can still manage a spell or two under duress, but it takes far too
much out of me. And we need more than that. Simple spells, everyday things to keep our spirits up. This,
Wunt, is where you can be invaluable.”