Pools of Darkness - James M Brown [81]
"Who has invaded my tower?" A voice boomed into the dark room, startling Evaine.
"Interesting," the voice continued in a different tone. "I've never seen a detection spell of this type. What's this? A little soul has entered my domain. So pure, so filled with the light of goodness. Bah! Talk to me, little thing. Latenat!"
Evaine was shocked. No one had ever sensed her presence before while she was under this spell. Mustering her confidence, she posed a vital question. "How did this pool of darkness come to be in this tower?"
"Oh, you shouldn't play with such pools," the grating voice boomed. "They are bad things-evil things, my little one. Come, come to me in my chambers above the pool. We can talk about many things-yourself, pools, spells, power. Power-there is something I like to talk about. Would you like to become all-powerful? I can make that happen. Latenat!" Despite the overly sweet, condescending tone, Evaine knew that the speaker was a creature of blackest evil.
She concentrated on sensing where the presence was, but the horrid darkness around her forced her to draw back into the light of her own spell.
"Little light thing, I am so sorry. My darkness bothers you. Let me move back my protections and we can talk. I have nothing to hide but so much to offer you, cute little soul. Latenat!"
Instantly, the darkness was pushed back. Evaine was suddenly aware of the entirety of the red tower. The energy of the pool of darkness was overwhelming. Then, she was struck by a surge of life energy-Phlan. The city lay beneath the tower in an impossibly huge magical cavern.
Evaine was stunned. The implications were phenomenal. The powers necessary for such a feat-placing an entire city in a cavern-were beyond those of any mortal mage.
The sorceress struggled to maintain her mental energy. The surges from Phlan's souls and the evil pool were almost overpowering. And there was still that voice-someone or something able to discern her movements. Such detection had never been possible.
"Look at you. Darting here and there all over my tower, but never coming close to me. I am trying to be a pleasant host, but you are not being very nice. Why don't you stop squirming around and come to me? Latenat!"
A tentacle of inky blackness writhed from the top of the tower into the chamber, reaching for Evaine's essence.
The sorceress leaped away with all her power. She didn't know what the tentacle would do, but she wasn't going to find out. Evaine refocused her mind, concentrated on her tower, and willed the spell to be ended. In a heartbeat, she was back within her body and her magical protections. Panting and sweating, she waved a hand to cancel the spells around her. She beckoned Gamaliel. He brought her the water she mentally requested.
Wind and rain pummeled the broken tower. The protections around her spellcasting chamber had prevented water from getting in, but the rest of the tower was a wet mess.
Andoralson had left the spellcasting chamber earlier, and now the two druids stood outside, near the battered front door. Both gestured simultaneously into the sky. Not a drop of rain touched their cloaks.
"What are they doing out there?" Evaine gasped. She struggled to fight exhaustion.
Ren shouted over the noise of the storm. "When you started your spell, Talenthia noticed a swirl of dark thunderclouds forming above our heads. Only moments ago, huge bolts of lightning started blasting down on the tower. Is your spell connected to what's happening out there?"
"Anything's possible with the strange weather we've had lately. My spell could have drawn the storm like a beacon. But if that was true, the effect should have stopped when I canceled my spell."
Boom!
Lighting struck and was deflected. Against Gamaliel's urgings, Evaine dragged herself outside with the others to see what was happening.
"Nice little storm we have here. I-" Talenthia's words were lost in the thunder.
Boom!
Talenthia gestured quickly, and the lightning strike was forced aside into the meadow near the tower. In the