Cards Reshuffled

Being powerless and being hurt is terrible, one of the worst things there is. But being powerless and seeing your friend hurt can be even worse, particularly if you know that they are hurting because of you.

Excerpt from ‘Ruminations Of A Master Bard’

It was extremely strange, seeing Irenicus in clear sunlight for the first time. In Zaerini’s mind her tormentor had been associated with the gloomy dungeon, and that had helped make him less ‘real’. She could almost pretend that he was part of a nightmare. No longer though. He was there, right in front of her, solid and in full color. And a strange sight he was indeed.

Irenicus had a fairly heavily muscled body, much more so than would be expected from the mage she knew him to be. This was made all the more obvious from the outfit he was wearing, a strange collection of gilded leather straps crossing his torso, and very tight trousers. He…looks like he’s just come from a party. A very strange party. The thought crossed her mind with lightning speed, and then was gone again, lost as she lost herself in staring at her enemy’s face.

No, not his face actually. His mask. It was very lifelike, and it moved almost like a real face, its expressions shifting magically. But it was still a mask, and as he turned his head she could spot that the skin at the back of his head looked….odd. Faded. Wrinkled. And now that she’d seen that, she could see similar spots here and there on his body as well. His eyes weren’t faded though. Those terrible, icy cold blue eyes. They held her transfixed, like a rabbit before a snake. She felt completely unable to move, as if her blood had turned to ice, even though the eyes weren’t looking directly at her right now.

Irenicus was standing in a heap of rubble, stones and mortar. It looked like part of a large building had collapsed, and he was partially covered with stone dust. He was surrounded by strangers. More of those men in dark clothes, warily circling the wizard, short swords and crossbows at the ready.

“You dare to attack me here?” Irenicus said, his voice heavy with cold contempt. “Do you even know whom you face?” Rini could see the magical energies gathering around him, swirling like gathering storm clouds, like a giant vortex. And he was standing there calmly in the eye of the storm. Not merely unconcerned with its destructive power, no. He was harnessing it, wielding it with ease against his foe. I…I have never seen a thing like that. How can I stand against him? How can anybody stand against him?

She was trembling, her teeth tightly clenched to keep them from chattering. We must run! Run, far from here, before he notices…

Irenicus was still preoccupied with his attackers it seemed. The strange men fought him grimly, but their efforts were similar to a kitten trying to kill a tiger. The mage’s voice chanted, chanted words of magic, calm and precise, and destruction ruled. One man screamed as his skin hardened, turning to stone, turning him into a lifelike statue, still screaming in a silent voice. Three more were struck by an enormous fireball, leaving them burnt husks on the ground. Yet another was simply rent asunder, his body dissipating into nothing, not even a speck of dust remaining. Runrunrunrun…

But it was too late. As she stood there, frozen with fear, her friends had made their way out of the hole in the ground that led into the dungeon. In the meantime, Irenicus finished with the last of his foes, and he turned towards them. His blue eyes held no hatred, no pleasure, not even triumph. Simply the calm knowledge that everything was exactly as he wanted it to be. “So, godchild, you have escaped,” he said. “You are even more resourceful than I had thought.” The composed and beautifully modulated voice was like daggers inside Zaerini’s mind, bringing back a confused mass of painful memories. She hadn’t heard it since he’d last…since he’d last… NO! Don’t think about it! Mustn’t think about it! I must do something, fight him, say something, anything. But she couldn’t.

Instead it was Imoen, Imoen of the normally sunny heart and cheerful smiles, who turned on Irenicus, her face twisted with pain and fear. And rage as well, dark and unfamiliar. “You’re not gonna torture us any longer!” She almost screamed out the words.

Irenicus didn’t laugh, but if she could have seen his face beneath the mask Rini didn’t doubt that he would have been sneering. “Silly girl, you just don’t understand what I’m doing, do you? No, how could you. Such comprehension would be far beyond you still. But you will learn.”

Jaheira was edging towards Irenicus, holding her quarterstaff tightly, and beneath her dirty and tangled hair her eyes were radiating hate at the mage. But Imoen spoke again, pride still present in her voice, despite her fear. “I don’t care what you’re doing! You hurt us, and you’re gonna let us go!”

Again the cold voice spoke, ignoring Minsc who was drawing his sword with Boo squeaking angrily from somewhere inside his armor. “I won’t let you leave. Not when I’m so close to unlocking your power.”

And Imoen screamed, and once again balls of red energy flew from her fingers, striking Irenicus square in the chest. “No! I have it already, you did it already, and I don’t want it! Take it away! Take it! TAKE IT!”

Kitten, you have to move now! Softpaws’ voice was frantic, and the cat was scratching her leg with sharp claws to stir her from her paralysis. He’ll kill her!

Immy! I have to help her…I have to! Finally, the bard was able to move, but it felt as if she was trying to walk in quicksand, sinking ever deeper, even as she watched Irenicus raise his hands to begin another spell.

But Irenicus paused, the magic hovering at his fingertips even as silvery shimmering portals formed in the air, and about a dozen new wizards stepped out of them, all of them dressed in identical gray robes with deep cowls that hid their faces from sight.

“This is an unsanctioned use of magical energy!” one of the strange wizards sternly said. “All involved will be held. This disturbance is over.”

Finally, there was a flash of brief emotion from Irenicus, a mild surge of annoyance from behind the mask. “Must I be interrupted at every turn? Enough of this!”

Again, the storm of magic rose and thundered around the masked mage, death flying from his hands with every uttered syllable. Gray-clad wizards fought and died, and more teleported in to take their places, and to be slain in turn.

“We must get out of here!” Jaheira shouted. “Now, while we have the chance!” Clearly, she had thought the better of engaging Irenicus directly after seeing one more demonstration of his power. Minsc was looking with confusion at the raging battle, wanting to charge into the middle of it, but Irenicus was moving swiftly, mirror images floating around him, and the ranger was uncertain where to turn. Imoen showed no such restraint however. She was hissing curses like a woman possessed, some of which Rini recognized, some that she had never even heard her friend use before. Some didn’t even seem to be in Common.

Clutching at her friend’s arm, the bard tried to pull Imoen aside, but the thief got her other arm lose, and once again bolts of energy surged from her palm towards Irenicus, bouncing harmlessly off a suddenly erected magical shield. How does she do that?

More of the cowled ones were appearing, portals were everywhere. Despite all the corpses on the ground, there seemed to be more than there had been to begin with. Irenicus noticed this as well, and he made a brief and annoyed gesture with one hand. “Enough. I haven’t the time for this.”

One of the wizards spoke, his voice trembling. “You will c-cease your spellcasting and come with us!”

Once again there was that invisible sneer. “Your pathetic magics are useless. Let this end.”

The gray-clad wizard was stubborn however. “Even if we fall, our numbers are many! You will be overwhelmed.”

For a few seconds Irenicus considered this, and when he spoke again he once again sounded preternaturally calm and unruffled. “You bore me, mageling.” He shrugged. “You may take me in, but you will take the girl as well.”

Imoen startled, realizing that the eyes of the cowled wizards were suddenly turned towards her. “What…me? But…no! No! I’ve done nothing wrong! I was only…Rini, tell them!”

“Leave her alone!” the half-elf snarled, still holding Imoen tightly. “You’re not taking her anywhere, she hasn’t done anything.”

The spell was cast so quickly that she barely had the time to hear the first syllables being uttered. A flash of light leapt from the hands of one of the strange wizards, and she was struck, thrown helpless to the ground. Unable to move, staring with wide and unmoving eyes at the sky, she was still able to hear everything that was going on. “She has been involved in illegal use of magic,” said one of the wizards, his voice dry and void of compassion. “She will come with us.”

And then Imoen’s scream, heart-rending in its utter desperation. “I’m not going with him! I’m not! Help me! Please…help me! Please! Rini! RINI!”

Her best friend was screaming for her, calling out for her help, and she couldn’t go to her, couldn’t even offer as much as a single word of comfort. It’s happening again…they’re taking her, because of me, hurting her, because of me. All my fault. All my fault…just like Gorion…

As she lay there, her golden eyes still firmly fixed on the bright blue sky above, she could hear Imoen’s cries dwindle away into nothing, and there was one single thought as the tears started streaming down her cheeks.

Oh Immy…forgive me.