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The little gnome found himself palming the rune stone in his pocket. He grasped it, but was reluctant to even look at the thing. Its appearance would bring the sick feelings of failure and frustration. Its secrets were impenetrable to the gnome's acumen. But, something in him urged him forward again and again.
There was nothing left in his bag of tricks that would help the current situation. Tricks were just that. The circumstances called for something more. Something he couldn't provide.
Zalmo squeezed his eyes shut tight as his hand clenched the stone in turn. He hoped the thing would shatter and free him of its daunting presence.
Malphus's words echoed in his mind. Don't be doubting Mister Tannick so. You're the only mage I know still breathing.
It dawned on him that the dwarf hadn't spoken to compliment the gnome. They weren't even meant for simple encouragement. Malphus believed in him. He needed him. He relied upon him. The little gnome, Zalmo Tannick, had always been the ace up Malphus's sleeve.
He searched over his past thoughts as well. Slippery, elusive, violent, even chaotic...
The wind roared, and nearly knocked the gnome over. Zalmo fought to regain his train of thought, and when he did, it hit him. The wind. The magic withheld in the stone was air magic.
It was so obvious he couldn't believe he hadn't figured it out earlier. To unlock the relic's full power, Zalmo would have to embrace the notion. His mind would have to become as such. Unpredictable and free. This wasn't something he could simply observe and jot down. Not something to be experimented with through endless trial and error, no. This was real magic.
The white fiend laced below the surface at high speeds toward the ship. Its blue eyes filled with an ancient hatred as its fanged mouth opened.
The schooner pitched starboard side as the entire weight of the beast cracked the keel. The top of the mast splintered and groaned as it fell into the sea. The ship began to roll belly up.
Malphus yelled, "Hold fast!"
Baelerwyn leapt as his fingers found hold of one of the large ropes. Soon the entire deck would be underwater, along with its passengers.
Zalmo slung the stone from his pocket and caught it in the air by concentration alone. His palms held wide apart as the rune pulsed brighter than ever before. So bright that he could hear its beating hum over the surrounding pandemonium.
He closed his eyes as he began to roll over with the ship. Zalmo's feet were no longer on the deck. They hovered above it. The symbol shone in his mind while his ears kept track of its hum, his heart beat, and the faint calls of his companions.
His concentration began to divide between the air symbol and his surroundings. He focused. Symbol, wind, matter, emotion, they all tore from and converged into one another.
And then Zalmo's thoughts became one with the air. The gnome's lids opened to reveal all-white eyes.
Malphus and Baelerwyn fell freely down the deck towards the dark waters. The end of the planks at the edge of the starboard side snapped free of the screws holding them into the place.
The wood bent unnaturally to cup them. The entire deck righted itself as it rose from the ship. Wood beams, ropes, barrels, stone, and metal rushed upwards.
The materials pieced themselves into a chaotic sphere surrounding the three adventurers laying flat on a levitating deck.
The rune stone and the gnome floated in the center. The massive orb ascended higher and higher. Within seconds they had climbed almost a hundred feet from the broken remnants of the ship as it sank into the ocean.
The dwarf and the elf sat up to peer up through the rain at the gnome. "Seraph's grace, he did it." Malphus whispered.
Baelerwyn's face was alight with joy as he laughed and whooped.
A dark blotch in Zalmo's concentration began to grow. The Stalker rocketed from the sea towards the orb with a deafening roar.
The gnome fought to maintain concentration. The fiend bit down into the debris, coiling himself around and into it as he could. Its massive head whipped and tossed to break through the outer wall. It eyed the gnome. One snap of its jaws would be enough.
"Hey fishy!" Malphus yelled.
The sea dragon let out an explosive hiss as it faced the dwarf.
"Say hello to your dead ancestors for us." Topaz collided with stone, and a blinding flash left the monster screeching.
Baelerwyn leapt into the air as Malphus rushed in low. The hammer caught the flailing head under the jaw in a devastating uppercut.
The Feir'Dal shouted as his axe came down to bury itself into the scaly wincing brow.
The creature's head fell limp to the deck as the heavy body slid and dropped to the churning ocean below.
Saminel sat on the pier at sunrise. His knobby ankles kicked back and forth into view as his feet dangled above a floating cork. It was early, but he had been staring at the blue and yellow buoy for over an hour.
He sighed, "Aw c'mon." He gave the cane a little shake. The line settled, and tugged taught for a split second as the cork dipped and surfaced. The boy gasped, careful not to shout as he was prone to do. A bite!, he thought.
A few moments passed without a second tug. He screwed up his face; suspicious. He raised the cane so that the hook dangled before him. The bait was gone. He had been robbed. "Darn it!"
His attention was caught by something in the distance. He squinted as the dark shape rapidly grew in size. "Huh?" He gradually began to realize the magnitude of the thing headed straight for him.
His eyes widened. It was very big, and moving very, very fast.
The fishing cane clattered to the deck, and the boy turned to run. A large sphere of hovering ship parts crashed into the pier. The boy's bare feet thunked against the wood as the planks exploded in succession behind him. He could hear strange voices shouting out.
"Zalmo! Zalmo stop!"
Saminel realized he'd never make it across the pier in time, and jumped off the side.
Baelerwyn and Malphus's voices surged into Zalmo's concentration as his eyes reverted back to their normal state. The gnome gasped at the fast approaching fishing lodge dead ahead.
Zalmo awoke in Saminel's bed. He stirred as countless cuts and bruises rippled throughout his body.
"He lives." A familiar elf's voice said.
The gnome's eyes opened. Baelerwyn, Malphus, a bearded fisherman, and a sandy-haired boy stood staring back at him. The building was a mess, and one of the walls was completely missing. He tried to sit up, but the dwarf rested a palm on his chest. "Be still, little mage. You've earned it."
Zalmo realized there was sand in his mouth when he spoke, "Are we on Antonica? Did we make it to port?"
Baelerwyn chuckled.
Malphus looked at the gnome with pride as well as admiration. "Aye, Zalmo. We're free."
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