Chapter Seven - Wizard

After finding myself a snack and a comfortable spot on my bed, I settled down to the task of seeing what this wizard was all about. Clearing my mind of all outside thought processes, I melded my mind with Spot. He seemed to be in some kind of corridor and not very well lit. He passed a few doorways and walked up on what looked like a main hall. Spot peeked around the corner to see if the dogs were there and once he deemed it safe, he crossed the main hall and moved towards a fireplace on the right. He found a warm spot and sat down so he could show me everything in the room. There looked to be a long table in the center of the room and a raised platform with another table turned so that the two were like a disconnected T. Another fireplace identical to the one Spot was sitting at was directly across the room. Servants were bustling about bringing food and drink, as it was almost dinnertime.

The kitchen seemed to be off to the left and behind the raised table in a hidden hallway from where Spot was sitting. There was a crimson and gold tapestry separating the hall from the kitchen area. People were starting to come in for dinner and they were milling about chatting while taking their places at the lower table. The servants were starting to pick up their paces to make sure everyone had drinks and their first courses.

Suddenly off to the left a loud commotion could be heard and it was getting louder. Spot turned his head towards the noise and it was then that I got my first glimpse of this "wizard". First I saw a servant backing through the hallway where we had entered the room. He was cowering with his hands held up over his head with his back bent; cowering from blows coming from what looked like a whip.

"I am sorry, Master!" was all he could seem to get out. Next, an enormous man dressed gaudily in red, gold, and green robes entered the room beating the servant, striking him with the whip over and over again until the smaller man tripped backwards onto the floor.

"How dare you call me late for dinner!" he bellowed. I felt the hair on Spots back rising up and his ears flatten as the large man went to hit him again. I could feel Spots urge to attack the man and I shouted to him to stay put. This blow from the whip hit the servant square on the cheek and split his face open. He was now bleeding profusely and had passed out from the pain. Turning, the Wizard bellowed again for another servant to clean up the mess and take the man that was passed out back to the servants' quarters. Two men rushed in from the hall and picked up the man to take him from the room while a third rushed in and cleaned up the blood that had spilled to the floor.

It was then I noticed that the people in the room had totally ignored the ruckus, as if nothing had happened in there at all. They were still eating and talking to each other, as if this kind of commotion were commonplace, even expected. It was then that I decided that I would have no mercy on the upper class inhabitants of this castle. I would have to find a way to get the servants out, as they were innocents in the plans I was already scheming.

We watched as the Wizard moved up to the upper table and sat to the right of the king's chair. Red faced and out of breath from his exertion, he picked up a mug and drained it in one gulp. Then, he bellowed coarsely for more, enjoying the power that he held by his nearness to the King. I saw nothing special about this man; no indicators of magical ability; no mystical "aura"; nothing that indicated that he was anything more than a clever bully that had maneuvered his way into a position of reflected power. He looked just like a big bag of hot air that might burst if you poked him with something sharp.

"I could poke him for you Mistress! It would be a pleasure to take the wind out of that one. Yes it would!" With that, Spot held up a paw and extended his claws as he examined it and then washed it.

"Your chance will come my friend. Trust me on that! He will get his comeuppance... just a matter of time." I replied, seething. "Yes, he will get his. That is a promise." I thought.

After about 30 minutes or so the King made an appearance. He was a small man in comparison to the Wizard and had small beady eyes that made him look more dimwitted than evil. He took his chair and motioned for the servants to bring him drink and food. A short time later the main course was carried out on a huge tray by several men. It appeared to be a whole hog that had been roasted on a spit. They placed it on a side table and a cook went to carving it. The upper table was served first and then the lower.

While this was happening, a group of musicians started playing off in a corner and there were some women dancing in front of them. There was also a court jester who was running around the room juggling and pretending to trip, only to recover at the last minute without missing a beat. The room was now quite full and it was impossible to overhear individual conversations through the noise. The King and the Wizard were bent over talking quietly to each other and it was that conversation that I wanted to hear. I suggested that Spot move in closer and beg for food on his way as a cover.

"Of course, Mistress. That is what I do best!"

Getting up, he stretched and walked over to get under the lower table. He rubbed ankles and legs and meowed pitifully along the way. Hands would appear loaded with meat scraps, and, needless to say, Spot gorged himself. Finally reaching the upper table, he picked a spot between the King and Wizard and settled in to finish off a rather large piece of meat he had been given.

From this vantage point I could hear bits and pieces of what they were saying. It was mostly about how the war with the next kingdom was going and what the next plan of action was going to be. It was starting to get rather boring and a waste of time. My mind starting wandering and it was taking some effort to stay focused.

When the meal was done, the drinking began with earnest. It seemed there was a never-ending supply of wine. I was just getting ready to let Spot go on his way when I heard the King reply to something I had missed.

"That dragon has been a thorn in my side since I took over this kingdom. I want to know what you are going to do about it! None of my knights have ever come back from up there, but I will not stop until that thing is dead! Now, what do you have planned so I can move on to other things?"

I was no longer having trouble staying focused. After a long pause the Wizard finally replied.

"The first thing we will need to do is find you the best knight in the kingdom, since your last one never came back. I think a Tournament is in order. We shall spread the word into the neighboring kingdoms to bring in new blood. Once you have declared a winner, my Liege, I will give him this, send him up to the dragon's cave, and that problem will be ended."

Since Spot was sitting under the table, I could not see what he had shown the King. My curiosity was running wild, and I knew that I needed to see what that Wizard had, but just as I was going to get Spot to move I heard the King hastily reply "Put that thing away! Do you want to kill us all?!?"

With that he pushed out his chair and left the room. The Wizard just laughed an evil laugh and replied to his back "No, Nepharious, but you WILL have a dead dragon soon enough!" and then he laughed again.

With nothing more to be learned, I parted ways with Spot after instructing him to keep an eye on the Wizard for a while. He knew that I would see him later and he could tell me what happened then.

I spent the rest of the night pondering what the Wizard had shown the King and wondering why it had upset the King so much.

Chapter Eight - Bones