Chapter 18 Chapter 17 Mentor

"Change back," Danica begged, her voice tinged with despair, her hands trembling at her sides. Cadderly stared helplessly at his squirrel-like limbs, not knowing how to restore them. "I can't help it," he admitted, to Danica and himself at the same time.He watched her helplessly, his gray eyes wide with surprise and terror. "I have no idea." Danica moved toward him, or tried to, as the pain in her side made her jerk.She pressed the bleeding wound, her lower abdomen just above her hip, and fell to one knee on the ground. Recalcitrantly, Danica stood up again, putting a hand out in front of her, keeping her concerned lover from approaching.

"Your wound needs healing," Cadderly pleaded. "With your squirrel hands?" Danica's retort stung the young priest more than she had intended. "Return your hands and feet to human ones, Cadderly. I beg you." Cadderly stared sternly at his limbs for a long time, feeling that he had been tricked, that his god, or rather his magic, seemed to be leading him astray.Danica stood before him, needing him, and he, with his rodent limbs, couldn't do anything for her. The young priest searched his memory, turning rapidly the pages of the Book of Universal Harmony in his mind.He couldn't find any clue that it had anything to do with what he'd done, this startling, deadly transformation he'd somehow brought about in himself.

But while Cadderly found no immediate answer, he began to hear that distant song, one that was sweet and instructive.All the mysteries of being floated past him, waiting to be grasped and deciphered.The song evokes a name for the young priest, and that person may be able to help him understand it all. "Pertelope?" Cadderly asked blankly. Danica, still looking pained, stared at him. "Pertelope," he said again, more firmly.He turned his gaze to Danica, and his breath became short of breath. "she knows." "What does she know?" the young woman asked, grimacing with pain as she spoke each word.

"She just knows," was all Cadderly could answer, because, honestly, he wasn't sure what the headmistress could tell him.He only felt that the song did not deceive him, nor lead him astray. "I have to go find her." "She's in the library," Danica argued. "You'll have to spend three…" Cadderly held out a hand to stop her from speaking.He pushed the distractions around him out of his mind and focused on the song again, feeling it flow for miles, beckoning him to step in and follow it.Cadderly obeyed the melody, letting it lead.The whole world has become a dream, as surreal as it is unreal.He saw the gates of Caladon, and the road leading west to the Highlands.Mountain passes passed beneath his consciousness, and he saw the library approaching rapidly, then high walls studded with ivory, and he passed through them...to Pertelope's room.

Cadderly recognized the tapestry on the inner wall beside the bed, which he had stolen to Ivan so that it could be used as a replica of the dark elf's crossbow. "I've been waiting for you to come to me," he heard Pertelope say.The scene of the room changed, and the headmistress was sitting on the edge of her bed, wearing her usual long-sleeved, high-necked black robe.Her eyes widened as she surveyed the scene, and Cadderly realized that she could see him, and his rodent limbs, though his physical body remained in the distance. "Help me," he begged. Pertelope's reassuring smile enveloped him warmly.

"You found resemblance," the headmistress explained. "It's a powerful spell, and not without its dangers." Cadderly had no idea what Pertelope was talking about. similar?He had never heard the word used like this. "Songs will be sung to you," Pertelope said, "and usually you didn't ask them to." Cadderly's expression showed his surprise. "I knew it would be," Pertelope continued, "when I handed you the Book of Universal Harmony, I knew the songs would begin to sing in your heart, and I also knew that you would soon discover how Unravel the mystery hidden behind the notes."

"I didn't," Cadderly protested. "I mean, things happened all around me, and it happened to me!" He looked helplessly at his limbs, which half-transparently reproduced him. physical body, "but I didn't want them to happen, and I couldn't control them." "On the contrary," Pertelope replied, turning his attention away from his deformed limbs. "This book was bestowed by God Denir as a guide to magical power. You summon and guide that power. It comes because of your calling, and it will obey your will." Cadderly looked down at his deformed form helplessly and suspiciously.He knew that Pertelope understood his question, but he wondered if Danica, who was far away on the roof this way in Carraton, could understand as well.These squirrel-like limbs were a counter-evidence to the Matriarch's statement, because if Cadderly could really control magic as Pertelope claimed, why was Cadderly still half rodent?

"You haven't quite learned how to control it yet," the Mistress said to him, as if reading his mind, "but you're still a novice, untrained and powerful." "Power from Denir?" Cadderly asked. "Of course." Pertelope said calmly, as if Cade's words would not surprise her at all. "Why did Denier give me this power?" asked the young priest. "What have I done to deserve this gift?" Pertelope smiled at him. "You are his disciple." "I'm not!" Cadderly said, and a terrified look appeared on his face.Because he had just admitted it to the headmistress of his sect.

Again, Pertelope just smiled. "You are, Cadderly," she said. "You are a true disciple of our god, and of his brother god Oghma. Don't measure faithfulness to the faith in terms of ritual or fulfillment of duties." .Measured by your heart, morality and love. You are a scholar, and your inquisitive mind and heart all prove that you are a gifted scholar. This is the proof of your loyalty to Denir." "I'm not in Avery's opinion," argued Cadderly. "He's always threatening to excommunicate me for my misbehavior in those ceremonies you just said were unimportant!"

"He can't excommunicate you from any sect," Pertelope replied. "One cannot be 'excommunicated' from the gift of faith." "The gift of faith?" Cadderly replied. "If you must call it that, I'm afraid I never belonged to the sect at all. I have no gift." "It's ridiculous," replied Pertelope, "you are the most conformable person I have ever met to the creed of Denier. My dear young priest, this is what is called the gift of faith! Do you doubt the power you are beginning to show?" ?” "Not the powers themselves," Cadderly replied with his standard obstinacy, "but their source."

"It's God Denir." "You can insist," Cadderly replied, "and it's your freedom to believe." "When the time comes, you will believe it too. You are a Denierian priest, following a God who demands independence, exercises free will, and uses wisdom." Pertelope continued, as if reading out again Cadderly's thoughts.He couldn't help wondering if Pertelope himself had experienced such a situation many years ago. "You should indeed have doubts—about everything, even about the existence of God, or the purpose of existence itself." Pertelope continued, a distant and mysterious look in his hazel eyes. "If you just blindly follow one ritual after another, you're like the sheep and cattle in the fields around Caladon." "That's not what Denier wanted." Pertelope went on, looking calm and reassuring, looking directly at the terrified young priest. "He is the god of artists, poets, and open-minded men whose actions would otherwise be impractical to others. Questions, Cadderly, are more powerful than answers. It will Make people grow—grow toward God Denir.” Somewhere in Cadderly's mind, he was praying that what Pertelope said was the truth, that these apparently wise words were not some flimsy hope incarnate; just because he was so confused and Despair is born. "You are the chosen one," Pertelope continued, steering the conversation back in more specific directions. "You hear the song and, gradually, become more and more able to decipher its notes and become more aware of your place in this bewildering experience we call life." "I'm a magician." "No!" It was the first time in the whole conversation that the headmistress was angry, and Cadderly wisely didn't answer right away. "Your spellcasting ability definitely belongs to the priest," Pertelope insisted. "Are there any spells you have cast that are different from those you have seen other priests cast?" Cadderly tried to remember for a long time.Virtually every spell he ever cast was at least in some way equivalent to a cleric spell.Even today the analogy is similar to the shape-shifting abilities possessed by the priests of the forest - the druids.However, Cadderly knew that the powers he possessed were different from those. "I didn't pray the spells," he argued, "I didn't get out of bed in the morning thinking I should be able to create light today, or feel the need to turn my arms into squirrel claws." .And, I never prayed to Denier." "You read the book," Pertelope reasoned, dispelling Cadderly's growing momentum. "That's the prayer you do. As for choosing magics and memorizing their specific spells and intonations, you don't need to. You hear the song, Cadderly. You're one of the chosen ones, one of the very few." One. I've been guessing that for years, and I just learned a few weeks ago that you're going to take my place." "What are you talking about?" Cadderly asked, and Pertelope began to unbutton his robes as he spoke, increasing his panic.Cadderly gasped in surprise as the headmistress pulled off her robes, revealing her sexless upper torso beneath, covered in shark-like skin covered in sharp, pentagonal objects. "I grew up on the Sword Coast," said the headmistress a little tiredly, "near the sea. My father was a fisherman, and I would often go out with him tending the nets. You see, I like sharks. Like you love squirrels—especially Percival. I've come to appreciate these creatures, so often called evil, for their graceful movements and their perfection." "As I told you just now, similarity is a dangerous spell." Pertelope continued, letting out a small, sarcastic chuckle. "You see, I also became a victim of the Chaos Curse. Under its influence, I did not think about safety at all, and performed similar spells without reservation." Cadderly flinched, thinking of this beautiful woman who had been his best friend, and who had also been harmed by the curse he had brought into the library. But when Pertelope continued to speak, there was no trace of resentment or blame in his voice. "The shapeshifting I cast is permanent," she said, rubbing a hand along her arm, the tiny jagged teeth leaving several streaks of blood on her still human palm. "And it is very painful, because my whole body is half man, half fish. The air itself is bad for me, and so is the water in the ocean. There is no place for me in this world, my friend. I am dying. " "No!" "Yes," Pertelope replied easily, "I'm not young anymore, you know, and I've toiled long enough on this road we call life. The curse makes life worse than death, don't Doubt this, and I struggle to stay, just for what I will accomplish today. You, Cadderly, will be my successor." "I won't accept it." "You can't escape," the Matron replied. "Once it starts, the song will never stop. Never." The words sounded like a bang to Cadderly's ears, and he was suddenly terrified, not knowing what horrors he had unleashed from that dreadful book. "You'll learn the limits of your power," Pertelope went on, "and there are limits." She said, looking absently at the two deformed arms, making it clear. she means. "You are not invincible. You are not omnipotent. You are not a god." "I never said—" "Humility will be your protection." Pertelope interrupted him quickly and sharply, "Cadry, go test your strength, but with respect. They will wear you down, and every time you summon them They will take a small part of you when you do it. Exhaustion is your enemy, and know that while casting a spell, it is bound to tire the caster. However, also remember that if Denier chooses If he fucks you, he will also ask for something from you." Pertelope smiled warmly, showing her confidence that Cadderly was up to the challenge. There was no such smile on Cadderly's face. ※※※ "Where are you going in a hurry?" the ghost whispered to Porg Reese, and saw the young magician standing in the corridor on the second floor of "Dragon's Fig Leaf" with bags in his hands.The killer came out of Cadderly's room and motioned for Pogue to follow him to his room. "The City Watch has been called in here," the magician explained. "They will swarm this place." "And what will be found?" the ghost replied with a snicker, finding the remark ironic, since he had just placed Brennan's body in Cadderly's room. "Anyway, it won't be a clue about us." "I hit the green-bearded dwarf with lightning," Pogue admitted. "He didn't see you," retorted the ghost. "If he had, you would have died. He and his brothers are still alive and kicking downstairs with Fedega. If that stupid dwarf suspected that you were the one who cast the magic, he would have come back to find you , don’t wait until now.” Pogue relaxed a little. "Cadderly and Danica escaped?" The ghost shrugged, unable to answer the question.He could see little in the remnants left after the conflict broke out. "Perhaps, for now," he replied slowly, and then with all his confidence, "but the Mask of Night is now on the trail, and they'll be on the trail until Cadderly is dead." "Then I can go back to Trinity Walled City." Pogue replied hopefully. "If you go now, it will only raise suspicions," replied the ghost, "and if Cadderly manages to escape from our assassins, he will probably come back here. This is still the best location, only For those who have the courage to play this game to the end." Those last words sounded clearly like a threat. "Go and assist those city guards in their investigation," the ghost continued, a mocking smile slipping across his face.He was an artist, he reminded himself, and had begun to weave a new web of intrigue. "Tell them you have some knowledge of magic, and you think someone in the upstairs hallway has shot magic lightning. The dwarves will verify that what you say is true, so you can make a good impression." Pogue looked at the killer suspiciously, especially as he remembered that Zirkan Rufo was still walking around with information against him. "What's wrong?" the ghost asked, noticing his growing concern. "Rufo." The ghost chuckled evilly. "No matter what clues he reveals, he will involve himself. Moreover, according to your description, he is too cowardly to dare to do so." "Indeed," Pogue admitted, "but I'm still not sure we did the right thing in staying in this inn. We seemed to have underestimated Cadderly and his companions." "Perhaps," the ghost agreed reluctantly, "but don't complicate matters by overestimating the priest just yet. For all we know, Cadderly may have died in an alley somewhere." Pogue hesitated, then nodded. "Go now," the ghost instructed, "go back to your room, or assist with the investigation, but don't tell Rufo anything. Better leave that cowardly priest alone, tormented by guilt and fear." Pogue nodded again, and left. As soon as he was gone, the confidence that the ghost displayed disappeared instantly.This mission in Karaton had too many side effects, and it was not a clean killing operation at all.Even with Cadderly dead, the casualties were too high, more than half of the Mask of the Night killers involved in this mission were killed. The ghost really isn't sure if it's good or bad for him or Pogue to stay in the Dragon's Fig Leaf, but the consequences of trying to slip away with the city guard and two rough dwarves probing around It made him even more suspicious.He moved to the door and opened it a crack, curious to see what might be going on outside. He checked carefully to see if Rufo was around, thinking that if the treacherous priest did anything dangerous, he might have to kill him. No, the action is full of side effects, but aren't they part of the fun?This is a new challenge for the artist, a complex landscape that requires special handling on a canvas that is being painted. The ghost smiled evilly, taking comfort in the thought that he was not in any real danger—for he had a weapon, and Vander was on the outskirts of the city, where his body stood helplessly waiting to be possessed. ※※※ When Cadderly returned to his own body on the roof next to the Dragon's Fig Leaf, he was relieved to find Danica still standing conscious.The young woman's face is still contorted in pain.A crossbow and arrow protruded from the right side of her body, hanging from the skin and the coat above it, surrounded by a circle of crimson blood stains that gradually spread. Cadderly did not run towards her at once.He closed his eyes, forcing the song back into his mind.The notes drifted by, until Cadderly remembered that particular passage, a page in the book, the part he had heard when he had transformed himself into a squirrel on the balcony. Danica was whispering to him, more concerned for his safety than her own.With some effort, Cadderly muffled her words, concentrating on the spell.A silent prayer fell out of his mouth, and when he finally opened his eyes, Danica was trying to smile, and his hands and feet were back to normal. "You have the answer," the young woman said. "And many more questions," Cadderly replied.He unclasped the frisbee from his fingers, put it away, and came to his beloved. "You were talking," Danica said, "but not to me. It sounded like one side of the conversation, and the other side—" "It's Pertelope," Cadderly explained. "I, or at least my consciousness, returned to the library." He barely noticed Danica glaring at him, more concerned about her badly wounded body. side. This time, when he recalled the song, it sounded more distant, and it took more effort to approach it.Pertelope's warnings of exhaustion flooded his mind, but he pushed aside his growing fear; getting Danica back together was far more important. Cadderly focused not only on the wound the crossbow had inflicted, but also on the crossbow itself; thoughts of destruction and healing were present in his mind at the same time.The spell was spat out through his clenched teeth. Danica groaned, then flinched.Black smoke billowed from her wound.Soon, a small black cloud enveloped her side. Cadderly decided that the crossbow was his enemy, as well as Danica's.His poor, dear Danica. When the smoke cleared, the crossbow and the wound disappeared. Danica straightened, then shrugged, not knowing how to thank Cadderly for what she had done. "Are you hurt?" she asked with concern. Cadderly shook his head, and took her arm. "We have to get out of here," he said, sounding distracted, as if he was talking more to himself than to Danica. "We must find a hidden place, sit down together, and try to find the way to go from the twists and turns of fate in front of us." He tilted his head to one side, and noticed that the alley near "Dragon's Fig Leaf" gradually and especially the clattering of the hoofs of the many horses approaching from all directions. "The City Watch is here," Danica replied. "They'll need information." Cadderly continued to pull her forward. "We've got nowhere to go," Danica argued as they approached the back of the building, and many soldiers came into view along the market square. Cadderly wasn't listening at all.His eyes closed again, deep in a spell, in a song. Danica's eyes widened again as she felt disembodied.But Cadderly was still able to hold her arm tightly, and let the two of them fly away from the roof together on the current of the wind. ※※※ A moment later, Porg Reese slipped out of the Dragon's Fig Leaf and sprinted past the dwarves and the bereaved innkeeper in the hall.After much consideration, the terrified young magician decided that the ghost's self-righteous assumption was not worth the risk of his life, and that leaving the inn after the tragedy would not be seen as a It's a suspicious move. As he passed the front door of the inn, now a large hole, the city guard simply asked him not to leave the city. Pogue nodded, then pointed to an inn a few houses uphill on Lakeview Street.Although the magician had no intention of staying here long at all, he would still book a room in the inn, and only stay in Carradon until he had worked out the spell that would allow him to leave the place quickly and without hindrance.