Chapter 21
Ikept my hops as silent as possible against the undergrowth as the faint murmur of a lone voice met my keen ears. The tracking magic Alden had given me flickered and winked out, indicating that I’d arrived at my destination. Stealthily I crept closer, stopping under a large, leafy fern to survey the camp. A simple shield charm ringed the clearing; with my increased awareness I could see the wavering edges where it grew weak thanks to the steady siphoning of magic. But regardless of its strength, it didn’t affect me since it was designed only to keep out magic wielders, and my powers were currently suppressed by the curse.
A young woman with dark hair pulled up in a loose knot sat on a rock, her brow furrowed as she concentrated on something shimmering in her palm. As I watched, the sparkles grew fainter and dissipated, causing the witch to emanate a sound of frustrated despair, her expression similar to the discouragement I’d witnessed from Alden increasingly of late.
Shaking out her hand, she took a deep breath and flattened her palm, conjuring another swirl of glittering light, but by the look on her face she was again displeased with the results. Impatiently she snapped her hand shut and stood, pacing restlessly.
I froze as her eyes passed over my hiding place before realizing she was unlikely to take note of me even if she saw me. Emboldened by the thought, I hopped out from my foliage shelter, keeping an eye on the witch as I surveyed her camp. As distracted as she seemed, I might be in greater danger of being stepped on than found out.
Several papers were scattered on the ground near the rock where she’d been seated. I glanced over them quickly; they were mostly notes of what the competitions had entailed so far and what little the witch had been able to learn about her competitors. She had also made a list of questions, wondering about the purpose of each competition and also about the loss of magic. At the very bottom of the page she’d scribbled the words, “Hiding something.”
I cocked my head, puzzling over the meaning, when a shadow fell across me. In my curiosity I’d forgotten to watch her, and she now stood over me, frowning down at me.
“Something’s strange about you, little frog,” she said, bending down and extending a hand towards me.
With a frantic ribbit, I dove for the treeline, taking longer hops than I’d known I was capable of. When I paused under a bush to catch my breath, I looked back to see her still in the clearing, peering in my direction. I hopped a little farther and then stopped, waiting. After a moment, the familiar golden light appeared next to me, hovering for an instant before moving off to my left towards yet another competitor’s camp.
This one had only the pretense of a shield, which would hardly more than warn the wizard of another encroaching. Clearly his magic was nearly depleted. I moved close to where the man lay on his bedroll, smudges of exhaustion under his eyes. His brow was furrowed in distress and he muttered to himself as he slept. Creeping even closer, I made out a few words: “…kind of spell, why would they use it?”
Again I turned back to the woods, both concerned and heartened by my discoveries. From what I could tell during my investigations, Alden still retained more magic than many of the others, confirmation of his impressive skillset. While I was relieved he hadn’t been targeted specifically, foreboding prickled my warty skin at the realization that whoever was responsible for this dark magic had enough power to cast it against so many talented mages at once.
Thinking of him reminded me of his fierce worry and reluctance when I’d departed for my investigations. He’d wanted to accompany me, but his presence would have defeated the purpose of going undercover, causing us to discover very little information with the other contestants’ likely reluctance to discuss something of such dire importance with a fellow competitor they had yet to bring into their confidence.
From what I’d pieced together from my eavesdropped conversations, everyone’s magic appeared to have been affected, all in various stages. But I uncovered little else…until I reached my last location.
A strong surge of magic made me pause, not just from its sheer presence but its familiarity. It took me a moment to recall where I’d experienced it—not just from the clearing where Alden’s powers had first been affected but my recognition of the caster. Curious, I inched my way along the undergrowth, slowing when I drew nearer to the murmur of voices.
“It appears the spell was a success. Before long, every competitor will lose their magic…if they haven’t already.”
That voice…heart pattering wildly, I hopped into a bush and peered stealthily through the leaves. My eyes bulged when I caught sight of who was speaking.
They stiffened, their searching power reaching towards my hiding place. “I sense magic nearby. Someone is here.” Their gaze locked to mine, their magic advanced enough to have easily detected my presence, even with my magic suppressed.
The air immediately shifted, tingling with magic. My senses immediately grew distorted—the voices became mumbled, and although I could still hear their murmurs the words themselves were indiscernible. My vision whirled, causing everything to grow foggy, twisting the details until they were impossible to decipher…particularly of the caster now standing over me.
The spell reached inside me, a tangible force that created chaos in my most recent memories. When the magic faded, the caster had vanished…along with every detailed recollection of the brief interaction. I scrambled through my thoughts for anything tangible I could cling to, but each time I thought I caught a glimpse, a piercing headache caused it to drift out of reach.
My memories had been altered by magic.
Fear slithered through my jumbled thoughts. Even as I recognized what had happened, this was an area I hadn’t yet studied, leaving me unprepared for how to respond. I tried to move so I could return to the security brought by Alden’s presence, but dizziness paralyzed my limbs.
It took several minutes before the spell’s effect on my addled senses lessened enough for me to return to camp. Though my mind cleared enough for me to navigate my way back, during the journey wisps of my faded recollection grew dimmer and more elusive.
I found Alden pacing with agitated movements. He’d become attuned to my hops enough to immediately notice my return. He spun around to face me, brow creased with worry.
“You were gone longer than you promised. I was afraid—” Upon noticing my dazed expression and jerky movements, he crouched beside me. “Are you alright, Mae?”
Words were difficult to manage, as if the spell scrambling my thoughts had created a temporary barrier against the communication spell that granted me speech. At my continued silence, he carefully picked me up and lifted me high enough to better examine me.
He sucked in a breath. “You’ve been spelled.”
I managed a weak nod. Concentration furrowed his brow as Alden felt the air around me, only pausing when he noticed the curiosity brimming my gaze that I couldn’t contain even when I was too weak to manage words.
“Magic often leaves traces. I’m hoping the spell was cast recently enough for me to be able to decipher the pattern to the spellwork in order to grant me some hint for who’s responsible.”
I expected such an analysis to take time—especially with his increasingly weakening magic—but he soon withdrew his own magic, his expression now hardened.
“Your memory has been tampered with.”
That explained the headache pounding my head so sharply it seemed to reverberate through my small body. “You’re an excellent Wizard to have been able to decipher the spell.” The slurred words were barely manageable.
He muttered a curse. “I knew I shouldn’t have sent you off on your own. Do you know who did this to you?”
I stretched my memory as far back as it would go. Though I’d been certain I’d seen the culprit before they cast their spell, no hints of their identity remained…save for one. “All I know is that I recognized them and was quite surprised by what I discovered.”
“A magical being whom you recognized…” He grew pensive. “That narrows it down, though unfortunately not as thoroughly as I would like. You’d recognize my sister Demetria, my friend Kai, the dark King Ciaran, and various other competitors that we came across when we went to meet with the judges.”
I searched my elusive memories of the moment just before the charm had been cast for any clue that would further narrow the field, but every other detail had been seized by the spell’s clutches.
At my helpless shrug he sighed. “Any of those suspects would be talented enough to not only detect your magic even while hidden beneath your cursed form, but possess the skillset to cast a memory alteration spell thorough enough to erase all evidence of whatever you discovered. When I find out who hurt you…” His hand not cradling me clenched into a fist.
“I’m certain that whoever spelled me is also involved in the dark force siphoning everyone’s magic.” I wasn’t sure whether it was instinct or suspicion based on the information I’d obtained, lingering remnants leftover from the knowledge stolen from me.
“Which only confirms that they’re a force to be reckoned with. Thank goodness you weren’t hurt any further. To protect you in the future, I refuse to allow you to investigate on your own again.”
I ached to protest, but I didn’t have the unrelenting pain robbed me of the necessary strength. I rested my webbed hand against my throbbing head with a groan that spurred Alden into action in creating a counterspell.
I managed a weak protest. “Your magic is in no state to waste your powers—”
“I’ll be fine,” he insisted. “Please allow me to do this for you.”
At my continued objection, whatever composure he’d managed to cling to by the thinnest thread snapped as the worry he’d shielded me from escaped.
“You fail to understand the extent of the danger brought by the spell—memory spells are some of the most hazardous; only the most advanced enchanters can effectively cast them without permanent damage. While there is an abundance of talent in this competition, I’m not confident in the skill of whomever cursed you…especially if they were trying to silence you. I will create an antidote, even if it requires me to expend every last drop of magic.”
His gaze was wild with worry, evidence of his sincerity. While I understood his warning, I failed to comprehend the feelings behind it. He set me gently on his pillow, where I tried to puzzle out his reasoning, studying each of his frantic motions as he went to work on a tonic, only to repeatedly come up blank.
Though his movements were practiced, they quickly became hindered; he winced and flexed his hand, evidence of the dark magic preying on his power from behind the scenes. Witnessing his pain was worse than my own.
“Why are you exerting so much effort for me? Shouldn’t you be concerning yourself with the next task?”
His only response was a searing glance that even without the words to explain seemed to encase my heart and set it pounding, each beat trying to impart an earnest message…if only I had the magic to interpret it.
Alden always worked thoroughly, but this time he exerted far more care, each action absent of his usual tutelage as he fixed his attention on his work so that nothing would distract him from creating the countercurse for tampered memories, a condition that would cause any mistake he made to be far more dire than with a normal spell.
When he finished the potion, he helped me take a cautious sip. The potion had a grainy, earthy taste similar to the teas I brewed for Corbin. Alden kept his gaze riveted to mine to obsessively monitor the potion’s effects. Unlike the sensation I’d experienced when the memory spell had been cast upon me, this time I felt nothing…as if the potion contained no magic at all.
“Is it helping?” I shook my head and he frowned at the vial. “This should be a spell to protect against tampered memory. What could have gone wrong?” He experimentally swirling its contents before testing its consistency by rubbing a few droplets between his fingers.
The spellbook chose this moment to wander over, already open to the pages containing the answer to Alden’s question. He paled and seized the book to bring it closer, his eyes frantic as he skimmed the page with several rereads.
“Apparently this particular spell doesn’t work on those under a transformation curse. The memory spell reacts differently to someone who’s already cursed, twisting it, and so the counterspell must also be adjusted.”
Which meant he’d just wasted his powers on a potion that we couldn’t use. “I didn’t realize—”
“The fault is mine, I should have known better; I do know better. It’s one of the foundations of magical theory that potions must be adjusted according to the one drinking them. I was so anxious I didn’t think—”
With a rigid shake of his head he stood to make another. I emanated a croak in protest. “No Alden, with your magic…you can’t—”
“I’m going to help you.” His fierce look forbade any further argument.
Several still burned my tongue as he procured the ingredients to start again, weariness making each movement slower. Each hint of the force at work against his powers only increased the anxiety pressing against my chest. Surely a common apprentice who’d brought my condition on myself wasn’t worth such effort.
While he worked, I struggled to uncover the layers suppressing my memories in hopes of discovering something I might have missed. Though my attacker’s motive had been swallowed by their curse, I could surmise that it’d been cast because I’d discovered something important, knowledge that had been lost with everything else.
Digging deeper, I was able to glimpse several bits of information that hadn’t been tampered with by magic…whether because they’d been missed by the caster or these clues hadn’t been condemning enough for them to seize, I wasn’t certain.
I waited until the new potion was bubbling in the cauldron so I wouldn’t interrupt Alden with my findings. “From what I’ve been able to gather, it appears that everyone’s magic is being affected, not just yours.”
I knew I’d overheard more conversation than a single line, one I was sure had not only enlightened me of the details behind the force siphoning everyone’s magic but also the motive. Unfortunately everything I’d discovered had been lost, save for an intense urgency to confide in Alden…before I’d been robbed of the opportunity. Whatever had been taken only confirmed I’d discovered something important.
Alden grew pensive. “Other competitors being affected confirms this isn’t a single incident…with the exception being the one who cursed you. If we only we had a way of measuring everyone’s magic level to see whose remains stable, we might be able to find the culprit responsible…but such a task is too impossible given my limited powers.”
Discouragement settled over him. He pinched the bridge of his nose with a weary expression, as if warding off a headache.
“I spent the time you were investigating researching on my own. Though each siphoning spell possesses different requirements for casting, all are considered highly advanced so that whoever cast it would have very little need of the extra magic they would steal from others. In addition, each variation has varying degrees of effect, ranging from temporary loss of power…to permanent.”
“Permanent?” My stomach lurched. “Any indication of which spell is being used?”
He offered a helpless shrug. “None that I can find. Whoever cast it concealed their magic well enough that I can’t read its patterns when I study the bottled sample I took, leaving me not only without any clue as to the culprit responsible, but the form of this particular spell.”
Which meant that rather than my investigations yielding any useful discovery, all my efforts had rendered was costing Alden some of his precious magical reserves; if he exerted too much, would he lose his power forever?
On that subject, I felt there was something of great importance I needed to share about Alden’s magical level compared to the other competitors, but the specifics had disappeared, and I wasn’t able to conjure any additional insights about the sinister force for the remainder of our discussion.
When the potion was ready, Alden shuffled nervously towards me. My stomach became a flutter of nerves as I anticipated what was about to happen.
“Did you brew a potion that could be used for a frog…or one for a human?” If the blush staining his cheeks was any indication, I already knew the answer.
“A human, which requires us to transform you back.”
Which meant…heat engulfed my body and I instinctively hopped out of reach when he reached for me.
He frowned. “Why are you hopping away?”
“Because you’re about to kiss me!”
The crimson swarming his cheeks deepened. “You didn’t seem embarrassed to break the spell in such a manner when we spoke of it earlier.”
It was one thing to discuss something in theory, and quite another to be moments away from feeling his lips against my skin, an experience I wasn’t certain I could survive in my current fluster lingering from the curse.
“It’s true I did agree to it, but…”
Yet I had no argument forthcoming for why I’d suddenly changed my mind, leaving me no defense when he plucked me from the air mid-hop, enveloping me in the feel of his fingers wrapped securely around my body. I squeezed my eyes shut as my body went rigid with tension and anticipation, awaiting the kiss…only for nothing to happen. After a long pause I peeked my eyes open a sliver.
I expected to discover his lips inches away…but he maintained a suitable distance, eying my rigid posture with a frown. “Why haven’t you kissed me?” I asked.
“I could never force a kiss upon a maiden if the thought of kissing me is so disagreeable to you.”
It wasn’t, and that was the crux of the problem. “I suppose we’re left with no choice if we want to break the spell.” Who would have imagined my first kisses would have been as a frog, but all that mattered was that they were with the man I cared for, no matter the logistical reasons for it.
With a wavering breath he lifted me and pressed his lips to the top of my head with aching gentleness. As before, magic swelled over me to tingle my limbs as it transformed me back into my true form before Alden could set me down; the force of my sudden human weight sent us both tumbling to the ground with me landing on top of him.
Our breaths caught simultaneously, but rather than begin the work of untangling our bodies, we remained frozen, staring at one another.
Alden’s face was inches away, a proximity entirely different than before now that we were both human. I hungrily took in every detail of his handsome features and he seemed just as mesmerized by mine. He stared into my eyes a beautiful moment before he hypnotically burrowed his fingers through my fluffy hair with an expression as fascinated as when studying his favorite subject.
I was about to act on the ridiculous impulse to caress his cheek or even burrow my fingers in his own hair…but in an instant the spell eclipsing us shattered. With a gasp we both sat up and I scrambled away, desperate to put some distance between us.
“Thank you for breaking the spell,” I managed breathlessly. “That was…a lovely kiss.”
His cheeks pinked and his gaze flickered down to my lips with a glimmer of longing…before he hastily looked away with an awkward clearing of his throat.
“Indeed.” His voice had become airy, but the strange emotion cleared as determination straightened his shoulders. “You need to take the potion to combat the effects of the curse.”
He handed me the vial and I obediently took a sip. Unlike before, I immediately felt the potion begin to work. It was an unusual sensation, as gradual as the transition from night into day, but it didn’t dispel the befuddlement making a chaos of my memories, nor restore what had been taken…though at least my headache went from a sharp pain to a dull throb and I felt less dizzy and more like myself, albeit weary.
Alden helped me ease down onto my bedroll. “Rest up.” When I made to protest, he rested a gentle finger against my lips, silencing my words. “It’s your turn to be tended to.”
It was a surreal experience to be the one nursed rather than embodying my usual the role of caregiver, but I allowed myself to become enfolded in Alden’s care. I could only hope I made Corbin feel as cherished as Alden currently made me feel.
He hesitated a moment before taking my hand, as I did with my brother whenever I sat by his beside. My heart sped up, making it impossible to relax…but the last thing I wanted was for him to pull away. He remained by my side as he murmured additional spells that helped soothe the lingering effects of my tampered memory until no other symptoms remained but the unsettling emptiness left by the stolen memories.
We settled into companionable silence. After a long moment, he offered me a timid smile and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “I’m relieved the spell worked. I much prefer you as a human. Please don’t change back into a frog.”
“But I want to help—”
“Turning you back into a human requires a lot of magic. If I eventually run out, I fear…your condition would be permanent. Should that happen…I would miss you. Please promise me, Mae.”
He looked so earnest that as much as I yearned to help him, I understood the wisdom of his suggestion. “Very well, I promise.”
His shoulders slumped in relief. “Now that you’ve had a chance to rest, how are you feeling?”
“Much better…except for my memory.”
“Unfortunately there is no cure for the memories that have been taken unless they’re restored by the caster themselves.” Anxiety suddenly twisted his expression. “I’ve been wondering…do you still possess all your memories with me?” He awaited my answer with bated breath.
I recalled each and every recollection together that had become precious ornaments adorning the shelves of my memory. “As far as I know they’re all still intact.”
He released a whooshing breath of relief and stroked the back of my hand for a few moments before a smile twitched his lips.
“I wouldn’t want you wondering why you ever agreed to apprentice to me,” he said with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. “It would be a shame if you forgot your immense awe and fascination with my powers when we first met that drew you irresistibly to me.”
I scoffed in response but felt my cheeks warm, because as loathe as I was to admit it, I did find myself irresistibly drawn to him now…though it had little to do with his powers.
Alden slowly withdrew his fingers from mine as dusk fell and he rose to tend to the fire before laying out his duplicate bedroll, drawing it the slightest bit closer than it had been the previous night. He settled into it and turned towards me, propping his chin on his hand. He took a breath as if to speak…but after a moment of silence slowly let it out and simply smiled at me.
“Good night, Mae.”
Unconsciously, his hand stretched a few inches towards me before settling back onto the bedroll, causing my heart to flutter in hope that the memories we’d forged together were as precious to him as they were to me.