Chapter 14: Day Seven - A Mage Unleashed, Our Stories Told, Curing a Mage Sickness

I woke early as Elizabeth slipped onto me whispering, “Michael?”

I put my arms around her and sighed as I felt her moving on me. I woke quickly and realized what was happening as she squeezed me. I closed my eyes and reached into her. The spell strand was almost completely loose! I centered myself trying to ignore what she was doing and reached out my hand to gently wake Sam.

Elizabeth’s eyes were closed in concentration as she laid her head on my chest and her breathing was coming faster. Sam woke sleepily and looked at me. As soon as she saw what Elizabeth was doing her eyes snapped open. I gestured to Sylvan and then the other side of the bed and made a pulling motion.

Sam looked at me for only a moment before nodding in understanding. She shook Sylvan gently but urgently. When his eyes snapped open I saw that he was wide awake. I formed a shield completely around myself and another around the spell strand that was loose inside Elizabeth.

I found that it was difficult keeping my concentration on the shield as I felt Sam waking the others in the bed and pulling them out. When I spent myself inside Elizabeth her eyes snapped open wide and she stared unseeing into my eyes before they rolled up. She started moaning and her body shuddered before she went totally limp.

I felt the strand squeeze tightly onto us as it started to emerge. It was totally different than the others. As it emerged it began to swell. I was afraid I would not be able to remove something this large as it suddenly struck at me. This was different, the end that was exposed was acting as if it were the head of the spell strand!

My shield held and when it turned and started to reenter Elizabeth I quickly threw a shield around her and all but the area where it had emerged. As she relaxed even more into a deeper sleep I gently rolled with her until she was on the bed. I started gently forcing the other end of the spell strand loose.

The only part of the strand left was where Elizabeth and I were joined. I knew that I could not move from her or it would be like I was ripping her insides out. By the time I had slowly worked the last bit of the strand loose it was over twelve feet long and striking at Sam, Cat, Beth or Sylvan. As it came completely loose I threw it as far as I could from the bed and rolled away from Elizabeth, “Cat, Sam? Get Elizabeth out of here!”

Sweeping up my sword from the bedside table I faced the spell strand as it roared and continued to grow. I could feel a thread of something going to it and reaching away and down through the stone. It seemed to be giving the spell strand energy and power. I realized the thread was coming from the grotto! I reached out and severed the thread, pulling its end to me. The strand roared again. It was over twenty feet long now and bigger around than a person.

Suddenly it struck at Cat and Sylvan standing in the doorway, they were protecting Sam and Elizabeth’s way out. I slammed my shield into it and moved to put myself between it and my loves. Fear was making me angry and I wrapped myself with the rage and pushed it into my shield. My master had always told me, (never let anger or passion rule you in a fight.)

I had never had a problem with that until now. Holding the anger away in my shields I felt a calm settle over me as I stepped forward and faced the spell strand. Sam pulled a white faced Elizabeth towards Cat and out of the room as I blocked another strike directed at them. I threw my rage at the strand and moved towards it.

It made a mock strike at me and I struck it with my shield. Without warning its tail came around in a strike like the head had been doing. I stepped aside and slicing down hard, I cut the tail end of the strand off and when I did it roared. As the end piece started fading the head whipped around and struck flat against the shield, knocking me back into the bed.

This time it stuck to the shield as if trying to worm its way through. Sylvan took several quick steps and struck, cutting deeply into the area that would be its neck. As it jerked back Cat was there and swung down finishing the cut. The end fell onto the floor as the body pulled back. I threw a shield around Cat as the body struck at her again knocking her back and into the wall.

I came off the bed, moving forward towards what was left of the strand. It was attracted to my movements and struck at me. By now the strand was only about twelve feet long. I side stepped and cut through the neck and then grabbed the body as it tried to pull back. It immediately brought its other end around to strike.

I swung back handed cutting that end off and then cut the end I was holding off. As the body of the strand hit the ground it coiled but only swayed back and forth emitting a keening sound. I moved into it and cut another section off. That seemed to do it as the pieces hit the ground they started fading.

I relaxed and looked at Cat, “are you ok?”

She stood away from the wall and nodded and I looked at Sylvan and he nodded. Suddenly I felt the thread pulling at me, “Damn. I forgot the energy thread!”

I turned and started running for the door. In the hall Sam yelled at me to find out where I was going but I only yelled back, “the grotto!”

It seemed that everyone had been awaked and as I made my way down the stairs people were starting to move around. On the bottom floor everyone was in the hall and I had to shout and shove people to get them out of the way. When I hit the grotto I saw groups of Mair and the women and little girls huddling in fright.

In the center of the grotto where Elizabeth had been held stood a glowing oval. As I approached it I felt the thread getting stronger and saw strands of something coming out of it. It looked like they were reaching for something or someone. I hit them with a shield and they quickly withdrew.

I was not sure what to do about this whatever it was. It was not something I could fight and as I stood there I felt Cat, Sam, Elizabeth and Sylvan arrive. Elizabeth stepped up beside me, “it is a Realm gate. How... ?”

I looked at her, “Realm gate? As in another world or reality?”

She nodded as she looked at the gate. I looked back at the gate and thought another world, maybe home? I was thinking about my house and my parents sitting in the dining area in the mornings as our day would begin. The gate turned white and then brightened. Suddenly it was clear and I was looking into the dining room of my home and there was my mom and dad.

They had a startled look and my dad was holding my mom as they stared at me. I could not help myself I held out my hand, “mom?”

I could see her staring at me and it looked like she was talking but I could not hear anything. I remembered three years ago when she had started volunteering at the hospital. She had needed to learn sign language and I had been her study partner. It had driven dad crazy when we signed back and forth in front of him.

I slapped my hands together in front of me like we used to do to draw attention to our hands. I started signing and talking as I saw her eyes widen and look to my hands, “mom? Can you see me?”

Suddenly she released my father to sign back, “Michael? Where are you? What is this?”

I laughed feeling tears sliding down my face, “this is a gate or doorway. I am not sure which. This is another world or maybe another reality.”

I could see my mother talking as I signed and knew she was telling my father what I was saying. When I finished she looked at my father and back to me, “come home!”

I felt everyone around me shift as I spoke out loud what she had said. I glanced down as Elizabeth put her hand on my arm, “Michael? I do not know if you would be able to go through. I do not know how it is anchored here or there.”

I felt the thread and suddenly knew that I was its anchor. Out of the corner of my eye I saw my mom slap her hands to get my attention, “Michael! Come home!”

I smiled, “I can not. I am the anchor for this gate.”

I heard Elizabeth gasp and continued, “my wife does not know if it would be possible.”

I saw mom freeze as she was talking to dad, “wife!”

Trust my mom to catch any slips. I laughed as I saw dad’s face, “yes. She is one of my wives.”

My father had an arrested look and my mother realized what she and I had just said, “one of your wives! Michael you come home right now!”

I smiled as I felt Cat shift closer to me, drawing mom’s attention, “mom I am home. I am not alone here. There are people here who depend on me and love me.”

I saw my dad say something to my mother that they were arguing over. Suddenly I felt the gate start trying to shift. I centered myself and reached out to grab more of what looked like threads in the ground that were coming loose. I felt the gate pulling on me even more and I starting straining to hold it.

My mother looked back at me signing, “can we come to you?”

I looked at Elizabeth and she looked into my eyes, “it will draw more energy from you. Do you think you can hold it?”

I looked at my parents, (I wanted them so bad) “I can only hold it a little more. You would have to come now.”

My mother looked at my father as I slowly sank to the ground trying to harden my chi around me. Suddenly I saw them take a step and disappear. I cried out but Elizabeth put her hand on my shoulder, “hold the gate!”

I held and held, feeling as if the gate were pulling my life force into it. I was so tired but continued to hold. I thought of the day before when I had gotten angry or just minutes ago in the bedroom. The memory sparked something inside me and I felt it growing and I was suddenly surrounded by a glowing sphere.

It was not as hard to hold the gate and suddenly my parents were stepping out. I sighed and severed all the threads to the gate and watched as it seemed to implode on itself. I slumped back onto my heels feeling drained as my mother rushed to me. When she reached me I opened my arms and suddenly everything that had happened to me came rushing back.

I cried like a baby as she held me and I felt my father put his steady hand on my shoulder and squeeze. It was a few moments before I was able to bring myself back under control. As I slowly stood Cat reached out to steady me. I looked around, Sylvan was just behind us and there was a crowd at the entrance to the grotto.

My father cleared his throat, “Michael? Why are you naked?”

I looked down at myself and then at my wives. I looked back as my father’s face turned red, “it is a long story.”

I turned to Sylvan, “it is over. Go get dressed. Your rangers will have felt the magic. Somehow I think it will be another long day.”

I grinned at my mother, “not the way I wanted you to meet my loves but...”

I turned to each of the girls as I introduced them, “this is Cat and Sam and Elizabeth, my wives and my loves and so much more”

I took Cat’s hand as I felt Sam squeeze next to me with Elizabeth, “I know it is a shock and there is so much I have to explain.”

My mom smiled as she looked at them but looked back at me, “you are gone only months and already married?”

I laughed and gestured around us, “you have no idea how big my family is. Do you see all these women and girls? They and others like them are my adopted children. Almost all of them are descended from Elizabeth. But we will have time for that later. Right now I would like to get them and myself back into some clothes.”

My mother had never been bothered by seeing me naked and she laughed, “I do not know it reminds me of when you were young. I had a hard time making you understand that you had to keep your clothes on. For such a smart boy you were amazingly stubborn about that.”

I grinned and started walking towards the entrance where the crowd was. As we got closer the young Mair girl I remember from my meeting with the elves appeared and I heard, “is it over?”

I stopped, “yes the gate is closed.”

She looked at Elizabeth and her eyes opened wider, “you are free at last!”

Elizabeth knelt, “yes.”

The small Mair stepped forward reaching out to Elizabeth as if she did not believe and Elizabeth extended a finger. When they touched the Mair nodded, “you are free! I will tell the people.”

And as suddenly as she had come she was gone. I looked over to see my parents standing there with their mouths open. I smiled and waved my hand in front of their faces, “that was a Mair. Come on.”

I stopped by the crowd of women and children crowded together in fright, “it is gone, nothing to worry about. Tonight I would like to see some of you in the nursery one hour after my class. If I did not examine you yesterday I want you to come see me this morning. It will not hurt, I would just like to make sure each of you are healthy. Remember, come to the nursery tonight.”

I saw little Sam at the edge of the crowd. She was being held by a young woman along with another girl that looked just like her. I knelt down and wiggled my finger to her. Her mother tightened her grip for just a second in fright but released her. She came to me hesitantly, “yes master?”

I felt my parents stiffen, “Sam didn’t I tell you what my name was?”

She nodded shyly, “Michael.”

I smiled, “I want you to meet someone.”

I turned to my Sam, “Love?”

When she knelt next to me I turned back to the little girl, “Sam I would like you to meet one of my loves. This is Sam.”

Her eyes got a little bigger, “really? Just like me?”

Sam grinned at her, “another Sam? We will have to get together and find some trouble to get into.”

Little Sam looked at her doubtfully and Sam winked at her and she gigged, “did my daughters find you ok?”

She nodded and pointed to her sister who was trying to get away from her mother, “Amelia said they are not really your daughters.”

I grinned, “well not really but I adopted them so they are now.”

I pointed to Elizabeth, “they are my wife’s grandchildren though. And guess what?”

Sam looked at me, “what?”

I slowly and gently poked her in the chest, “so is your mother and so are you and your sister.”

Her eyes got big and she leaned forward and whispered, “what is a grandmother?”

I smiled, “when you have children your mother will be their grandmother. Would you like to meet her?”

I saw her curiosity but she whispered half in fear, “is she a mage?”

I nodded, “yes just like you. But she is helpless now because she forgot to put on clothes.”

Sam smothered a laugh and little Sam looked at her before giggling. I stood, pulling my Sam to her feet, “will you bring your mother and sister to the nursery tonight?”

Little Sam nodded as she turned and ran back to her mother. Sam hugged me, “plotting another conquest?”

Elizabeth squeezed into my side and whispered, “helpless am I?”

I laughed as I gestured to my parents, “no more stops. I had to stop, she did a favor for me.”

When we reached the crowd John was in the front along with quite a few Mages, “John, everything is under control now. You can send everyone back to bed.”

I looked at Nathen, “Nathen you are here an awful lot lately. Everything is over now and if you and these others do not mind I am going to take my wives back to our room and put some clothes on them before someone catches cold.”

As I broke through the crowd I found Artimas, Edward and Selina standing at the back with another woman. Elizabeth gasped and stumbled forward blindly into her arms crying almost uncontrollably. Selina wordlessly wrapped her light cloak around Elizabeth. I looked at Cat and Sam, “would you two mind taking my parents up to the room?”

Cat smiled and held her arm for my father, “father?”

My father looked at her quickly and I saw him blush as Sam reached out to take my mother’s hand, “mother?”

My mother looked at her for just a second and smiled softly, “lead on daughter.”

When they were gone I looked at Artimas, “you came back a little earlier then I expected.”

He grinned, “I broke the spell last night and we talked all night. When I felt the burst of magic I knew it was here from your unmistakable signature.”

I looked at him, “my signature?”

Edward grinned as he handed me his cloak, “It is unique and in this case very spectacular.”

I just looked at him wondering what he was talking about. Selina laughed, “Michael, the whole city lit up. The shock waves from the magic will probable travel a thousand leagues, drawing every mage that feels it.”

I looked at her, still not understanding as Elizabeth broke away from her mother and looked at me with a grin. “They are talking about your magic, love.”

I looked at her suspiciously, “What magic?”

Summer laughed, “Elizabeth he does not know.”

Elizabeth smiled as she came back into my arms, “you are a Mage love. Not like me but a Mage. A very, very powerful mage.”

I kissed her and the magic of our bond was there just as fresh as the first time. When I broke the kiss we both moaned. Summer laughed, “I see what Artimas meant when he said you had bonded. Come Elizabeth, you can molest him later.”

She laughed but I remembered how this morning started and pulled her back, “Elizabeth? Do you remember what happened this morning?”

She looked into my eyes frowning, “the thread?”

I shook my head, “before.”

She kept looking at me and shook her head. I sighed, “I need to examine you. Lets go to our room.”

I took her hand and looked at her family, “come on we can talk there.”

It was a long walk back to the room. I had to send people back to their beds and when I got further up it was my frightened daughters. When we came into the room Sam and Cat sat by the fireplace with my parents and Beth was by the bed unsure what to do. I gestured to the fire and stopped by Beth whispering, “Sweetie why are you standing over here by yourself?”

She stuttered, “I do not...”

I pulled her into a hug and then took her hand. I led her to the fireplace where everyone sat and told her to sit by Artimas, “mom, dad...”

Looking at Elizabeth’s mom, “mom? This is Beth, one of Elizabeth’s oldest daughters and my adopted daughter. She is very shy and still a little frightened from what happened to her.”

I looked at Elizabeth as she held her hand out to Beth, “not yet Elizabeth I need to examine you. Cat, Sam you too.”

They looked at each other and stood up. I walked them to the bed and had Sam hop onto the bed, “lay back Sam.”

She laid back as my father stood and crossed to us, “Michael? What is going on?”

I glanced at him as I reached into Sam, “it has to do with what was done to Elizabeth.”

I felt no spell strands inside Sam and bent to kiss her as my father frowned, “I do not understand.”

I helped Sam up and turned to Cat, “Elizabeth had somethings inside her that could have ... I guess you would say infect us.”

As Cat lay back without prompting Elizabeth whispered, “no.”

I glanced at her as I reached into Cat, “I do not really believe it but I want to check them and the babies.”

I saw my father start and Sam put her hand over her pelvis, “my baby?”

I smiled at her, “still growing nicely.”

Dad cleared her throat, “Michael? You said babies?”

I grinned at dad and bent to kiss Cat and helped her up. “You're fine and the babies are fine.”

I heard my mother from the fireplace, “Michael! You answer your father. What did you mean babies!”

I looked at my mother and then at Elizabeth as I helped her onto the bed, “I am curious, did your hearing get better after you had children or is it just that you hear them better?”

Elizabeth, Cat and Sam laughed and Elizabeth held her hand up to my lips, “that is a mother’s secret.”

My father was half smiling and half frowning, “Michael you have not answered the question.”

I held my hand up in a wait gesture as I reached into Elizabeth moving slowly through her body. When I finished I looked at her before looking at my father, “dad? Could you give us a minute alone?”

He saw how serious I was and nodded, stepping back. I pulled Cat and Sam close as we bent over Elizabeth, “Elizabeth? The strands are gone.”

She continued to look at me and I took a breath, “this morning before the spell strand, do you remember anything at all?”

I felt Sam squeeze my hand as Elizabeth frowned, “I remember waking up when you pushed me.”

I sighed, “Elizabeth you climbed onto me and made love to me.”

Her eyes widened, “I made...”

I nodded, “you seemed to be enjoying it.”

I teased, before sobering, “I am sorry. I was having trouble concentrating on the shields I had put up. My body reacted to our love making and I spent myself inside you.”

Elizabeth kept looking at me, “I made love to you?”

Sam kissed her tummy through the open cloak, “Love it was beautiful. You were alive.”

She smiled and then frowned, “what do you mean sorry?”

I looked her in the eyes, “the spell strand held us both. I spent myself in you.”

She kept looking at me and then her eyes widened, “No! I am pregnant again?”

I nodded, “I do not understand how it happened that fast and I do not know how the egg could be this far along but it looks like several days.”

She frowned and looked from Cat to Sam who were looking stunned. She looked back at me, “could it be from Antizel?”

I shook my head, “no. I have examined you several times and you were not pregnant. These are mine.”

I took a breath, “you have to choose whether you want them.”

She looked into my eyes. “Choose whether I want them?”

I sighed and looked down, “Elizabeth I told you ... I promised you, you did not have to have my children.”

She continued to look at me and then reached out to lift my face to meet her eyes, “You could get rid of them? What do you want?”

I bent further and kissed her lightly, “I will be honest. Thinking of all three of you pregnant, makes me happy but you have been through so much that it is something I will not ask of you. I do not really like the idea of taking the life of an unborn. Especially my own child but if I have to I will.”

Elizabeth shuddered and whispered, “Pregnant again. I do not know if I can do it.”

Sam whispered, “If I could I would have them for you.”

I saw Cat nod in agreement but it felt like something had slapped me. I looked at Sam, “Sam, do you really mean that?”

Elizabeth looked at me sharply as Sam looked back at me, “yes. She is my love too.”

I looked into Elizabeth’s eyes, “I do not have the equipment here but on my world it was possible to remove the embryo from one woman and implant it in another.”

Her eyes widen and she looked at a startled Sam. I thought deeply about what Elizabeth and her mother had said about me being a Mage. I looked at Sam, “would you if I could?”

Sam looked at me and then Cat, “Cat?”

Cat smiled at her, “I already have three or I would do it myself.”

Sam nodded and got a look I called her naughty look, “how many more children are you going to give me love.”

I laughed, “two.”

Before I could kiss her Elizabeth was pulling her into a kiss, “you will have my children for me?”

Sam smiled and softly caressed her, “I let Michael give me a child. Why should I not let you give me yours as well? You are my love too.”

I heard my father behind us as he cleared his throat. I looked back and held my hand up for him to wait. I looked at Elizabeth, “Elizabeth? What do you want me to do?”

She smiled softly, “can you do it without hurting your children in either of us?”

I thought about it and nodded, “I think so.”

She nodded and looked at Sam, “Sam would you hold me while he does it?”

Sam smiled and climbed slowly on top of her before looking at me, “do it Michael.”

She embraced Elizabeth and kissed her passionately. I thought of the last moments at the gate and the glowing sphere sprang up around us as I felt inside two of the women I loved. I could see my children growing in both, separated by only inches. I thought of the procedure I remembered and held the two growing eggs in Elizabeth.

I thought of them going into Sam as if through an invisible syringe going from Elizabeth’s womb into Sam’s. I settled them against the walls of her womb and thought of the way they should be connected. I sighed as I withdrew and let my magic go. I looked at Cat and bent to kiss Sam’s neck, whispering, “it is done.”

They broke the kiss and looked at me and I realized everyone was around us. I laughed, “I am sorry. We were resolving a problem with our children.”

Summer stepped closer as Sam slowly moved off Elizabeth only to be stopped by me, “take it easy for awhile my love and rest.”

Summer reached out to touch her daughter, “Elizabeth?”

I sighed, “in order to remove the last spell strand in her she had to be connected to someone physically. I could not concentrate on my body and keep the shield up around us at the same time.”

Elizabeth blushed, “he means he got me pregnant.”

Summer looked at me sharply, “again?”

And then what I had said about resolving a problem with our children came back to her, “what did you just do?”

I looked at her calmly, “Elizabeth gave her babies to Sam.”

Everyone looked at Sam snuggled against Elizabeth as Elizabeth held her protectively. She looked at her mother, “my bond sister will have my children with her own.”

I heard my mother whisper something to my father and turned to them, “you know it is strange. I can hear what people whisper to each other across the room but when you whisper to each other I can never hear what you are saying.”

My mother smiled at me, “that is because subconsciously you know you are not meant to hear what we are saying.”

I frowned at them and gestured back to the fire, “if you would all return to the fire?”

As they moved back I kissed Cat, “go sit with them.”

I looked at Elizabeth, “you will start your bleeding within a few days. Lets get you up and you can go sit with your mother.”

I could see she wanted to and that she did not want to leave Sam. I smiled, “I will bring Sam to sit with you.”

Elizabeth slid out of bed and hesitated, she dropped the cloak on the bed to be replaced by her robe. I pulled Sam closer to the edge and bent to kiss her and whisper, “how does it feel to know that we both have gotten you pregnant?”

Sam laughed and hugged me. While she was still hugging me I lifted her. I carried her to Elizabeth and as she sat I slowly knelt putting her down between Elizabeth and her father. I moved and sat between my parents. I took a breath and as silence descended I began, “where should I start?”

My mom grinned, “you start at the beginning...”

My father laughed, “and continue to the end.”

I smiled, “if it were only that easy. Okay, the beginning starts with Elizabeth about five hundred years ago. She settled here and began to study a new type of magic for her.”

I looked at my parents, “you do realize that it is real here?”

When they nodded I went on, “there was a necromancer named Antizel. Elizabeth had made many enemies while she fought against the drow.”

I saw Sylvan walk in and freeze and I waved for him to join us. I looked at my parents, “drow are elves that have broken with their cousins because they believe elves should rule everyone.”

Sylvan sat beside Cat and held his hand out to her. I looked at him, “did you speak to your people so they would know we were not being attacked?”

He nodded, “they were just inside your boundaries waiting for our cousins.”

I nodded back and looked at my parents, “in case you were wondering Sylvan is an elf. Where was I? Oh yes the drow. I believe they may have helped Antizel in what he did. That was to kidnap Elizabeth. He bound her with spells that not only held her but changed her DNA and the way her body works.”

I looked at Elizabeth’s parents and brother, “DNA is our building blocks. It is the blueprints of our bodies. Elizabeth was raped repeatedly, she was only allowed to be conscious at these times and when she went into labor. This went on every ten or fifteen years almost the whole time. Eventually she had a set of twins. One was named Lisa and the other Jen.”

I saw Artimas start and I smiled, “yes it was our Jen and she is a healer. Her sister showed a skill towards magic and Antizel saw it. When they were old enough, about fifteen he separated them and raped Jen and she became pregnant. At about her seventh month he put her back with her sister. I do not know if he left Lisa alone during that time.

I took a breath, “I do know that shortly after they were reunited he returned with a drow. He was the Ardan, the leader of the drow. Antizel gave Lisa to him to be raped. When he tried Jen attacked him, taking one of his knives and stabbing him. The last Jen saw of her sister was when the drow was being taken out. He told her he was taking her sister with him and that he would rape her until he tired of her and then he would kill her.”