Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Beringer walked up to us and held out his hand. "I haven't properly introduced myself. My name is Alan Beringer."

"Tegan," Tegan replied as he shook his hand. "And this lovely creature beside me is Kate."

"A pleasure," I spoke up as I inclined my head.

He smiled and returned the gesture. "The pleasure is all mine, my dear."

"I'm Fidel," the young man chimed in as he offered his hand to Beringer. "I'm eager to see what you can do, sir."

Beringer accepted the hand and looked his opponent over. "As do I, young man. Pray tell, what is your talent?"

Fidel sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "After that dinner, I'm not so sure I should tell anyone."

"Then I shall tell you my secret first," Beringer suggested as he lifted his cane. "This is the focus of my power."

Fidel and I looked over the cane with a mix of confusion and curiosity, and the young man pointed at the rod. "The cane is magic and you use it?"

"Perhaps a demonstration would be in order," Beringer suggested with a twinkle in his eyes. "Showing off my skills is a little weakness of mine so I shall be glad to do so. However, we should do this outdoors."

Now my curiosity was really piqued and we three eagerly followed Beringer out through the back door and across the terrace to the sands. The gentleman stopped us a third of the way to the water's edge where he used his cane to mark a line in the sand. "Please refrain from stepping past there. Otherwise, I can't guarantee your safety."

We obeyed his instructions to the letter and he continued his lazy stroll toward the ocean. Beringer stopped just ten feet shy of the edge and spun on his heels to face us. His eyes twinkled as he raised his cane just a few inches off the ground and then tapped it back.

The earth shook as though a meteor had impacted it. I yelped and fell against Tegan as Fidel also nearly lost his footing. Tegan righted me as his eyes remained on Beringer. "Very impressive."

I looked at where Tegan's eyes lay and my mouth fell open. The sands beneath the end of the cane were crushed down into a bowl some two feet deep. Large cracks had shot out in all directions from the point of contact and the sand cascaded into into the fissures like white waterfalls refilling the holes in nature.

I looked up at Tegan. "Is he like Tyran and his earth magic?"

Tegan folded his arms over his chest and furrowed his brow as he studied both the man and the cane. "Not quite. If my guess is correct, this man is capable of cleaving the earth but not forming it into anything new."

"Quite right," Beringer called from his position.

Fidel lifted an eyebrow. "But a lot of people can do that kind of magic."

Beringer's smile widened. "But few can do that."

He lifted his cane and I prepared my feet for another rocking. That didn't come even as he tapped the ground again. Instead, a thin fissure shot out from beneath his cane and raced toward us. Instinct told me to throw myself out of its path and Fidel looked to do the same, but Tegan clapped a hand on both our shoulders, keeping us in place.

The crack reached our position but stopped immediately at the line. The sand fell into the hole and quickly filled it back in, leaving not a trace of the magic. The only trace was my loudly beating heart as Tegan released Fidel and me.

"Now that is impressive," Tegan complimented the man.

Beringer bowed his head. "Thank you, sir. I have made it my life's mission to learn to master my power."

I edged closer to the line in the sand and brushed the tip of one foot against the filled-in fissure. Nothing stirred. "What else can you do?"

Beringer chuckled and strolled back to us. "I will keep that as my little secret." He stopped in front of us and clasped the cane in both hands to lean forward on it. His attention fell on Fidel. "Now, young man, you know my secret. What of yours?"

Fidel sheepishly smiled at him. "I'm afraid mine isn't quite as grand as yours, but-" He lifted his chin and whistled. The sound echoed across the beach and seemed to echo for miles.

Nothing happened for a long time but then my ears were pricked by a noise. The others and I looked around for the source as it grew louder. Tegan nodded at the cliffs. "There."

Beringer and I followed his lead and turned to the stones. A strange shadow stretched up above the sloped top of the cliffs and arced into the air before flying toward us. The noise grew more intense and I realized the sound was of thousands of chirping birds.

The huge flock flew over our heads in a tight dark circle before Fidel whistled again. The creatures dispersed as quickly as they had congregated and the noise ceased. In a moment things were just as they were before.

Beringer clapped. "Bravo, young sir. I must admit I had no idea someone could control our feathered friends with such skill."

Fidel blushed and shook his head. "It isn't that rare, at least not where I come from."

"Not uncommon among those with the gift of magic," Tegan mused. "Families do tend to inherit the ability and multiply."

"Like Glistnia and the broom riders?" I guessed.

"What of that wondrous place?" Beringer spoke up as he looked between us with piqued interest. "Did I not hear some extraordinary tale of a dragon discovered in the mountain?"

"We visited there some time ago, but we did hear about that," Tegan lied as he cupped his chin in one hand and put on a pensive expression. "There was something about buried treasure, too."

"Buried treasure and a dragon?" Fidel wondered with a smile. "That sounds like something out of a fairy tale."

"I am sure the details have been embellished," Beringer mused as he half-turned back to the house and studied the staves posted around the beach. "I wonder if the tales of the tournament are equally embellished."

I lifted an eyebrow. "What tales?"

"That there are dangers to be had in the magics crafted by our host," Beringer told me as he leaned against his cane. "There are stories of participants forfeiting not only the games but their very lives in order to overcome the tasks."

I recalled the many doors with their various, and vague, depictions of past events. "Is the money really worth it?"

"Perhaps not, but the prestige one can garner from winning is worth even more, both for one's pride and monetarily," Beringer revealed as he cocked his head to one side and his face took on a faraway look. "I recall meeting a past winner of the tournament. He had won the contest some thirty years before and yet people still worshiped him as if he had achieved victory only the day before. A winner is immortal, at least for a time."

"And that time is now for us to try our hand at our crafts and impress our host," Fidel spoke up as he stretched tall and grinned. "I only hope my birds will answer the call better than your cane."

Beringer chuckled. "Time will certainly tell us, though-" He turned to Tegan and looked him over, "-I wonder if you might tell us something of the young lady with whom you were speaking the earlier. The lovely Miss Blost, I believe Lusio said."

Tegan smiled and shook his head. "I won't play favorites but she did give up a hint herself."

"The mention of a scent, I believe?" Beringer guessed.

Tegan nodded. "Just so. Her specialty is smells that do anything the imagination can conjure up, so try not to be in an airtight room with her."

Beringer smiled and bowed his head. "Thank you for the advice. If you will excuse me, I have had a long journey and am feeling a little fatigued." He slipped away and back to the house.

Fidel stretched his arms above his head. "I think I'll take his cue and go to bed myself. Will you two be staying out here very long?"

A chill breeze wafted over us and I wrapped my arms around myself. "I don't think so."

Tegan set a hand on my shoulder and smiled at our new acquaintance. "But not quite yet."

"Then I'll see you inside," Fidel replied before he left us alone.

Or so I thought.

I looked up quizzically at Tegan. "Why are we staying out here after the others are gone?"

His glowing eyes scanned the area and stopped at the dune closest to our position. "Because the others aren't gone. Not all of them."

"Admirable hearing," a voice spoke up and Morrigan stepped out from behind the pile of sand. She crossed her arms over her chest and lifted her chin slightly. "A pity you didn't take us up on our kind offer."