Meet Me at the Wishing Well

Legarde dismounts, and rides up to what was once the cities entrance, which is now only two crumbling columns. The name has worn away and the wild bush creeks in to take over the path. He had hoped to get here before night fall and now he hoped she would be patient.

He walked to the well in the centre of the city. “Water is life” the well still read. He looked down and knew it was true. There were many lives at the bottom of that well. He sighed and called for her, a wish to the well for her to listen. He didn’t actually need to call, as he stood at the well she was appearing beside him.

“Guardian Miranda” He bowed to her hoping respect would buy him mercy.

“Another Mage! And you! You would betray me now!” In a moment she had his head in her grasp and slammed it into the cold stones of the well.

“Guardian Miranda, Mercy!”

“You will find your mercy at the bottom of the well with the others!” She had his body perched over the side. She tears his leather armor from his chest and with it the bandages he so carefully wrapped to dress the large claw gash across his chest.

“I am not fighting, Miranda. I only need your artifact! You know who I am, why would I come to kill one of my own?”

“Lies! In fact I will leave you here, great mage, in-front of my well, so that anyone else who ventures here will see you and know their fate before I come to deal it.”

She swipes him re-opening the wound he had painfully stitched himself, and with her power amplifies the poison already coursing through his veins. He screams in pain.

“Miranda undo this. Talk with me and undo this. I am weak enough and I won’t fight back.”

She lets him slump to the ground of the well. Looks down on him as she disappears of the blackness of the night.

“Miranda! You would really leave me here to die!”

Throughout the night he beckoned for her. She was his favourite and if he had to die he didn’t mind if it was by her hand. But not as angry as she was and not without explanation.

“All I want to do is reason!”

“Are you that far gone? Will you not listen?”

“What have the other guardians said? Can we not be saved from this evil?”

“Is all hope really lost that you would kill your greatest mage! Miranda!”

“Forgive them they don’t know what they do! I will fix it!”

“Miranda! …” His pleas seem to fall on deaf ears. Miranda did not respond once and the sun was now rising and he was drifting from consciousness.

He felt hands on him and when he opened his eyes they hurt. He kept them open for this vision of an angel before him. Disappointed that she would cause him so much pain when she touched him. He growled and tried to move his hands to his chest.

“The Guardian blessed you! You are awake.”

“Leave me!” He grimaced in pain as she wiped the stink smelly cream into his chest. He had little energy to do anything else.

“Drink this.” He resisted. “Help me move you to that building over there out of the sun and sheltered. You need stitches and if I do it here they will open again when I try to drag you. I have a fire going to keep you warm and food.”

“Stop this. No one helps.” He helped her drag him to the building. This is all I will let you do to me no more. You need to go!”

“I can try to treat your wounds the best I can but you will need a healer or herbalist from the city.”

“I don’t need you to treat me. I will heal on my own. You need to leave before the sun goes down and the Guardian comes back.” He had to warn her before he lost consciousness again. Who knows when he would wake up again and to find this kind woman dead beside him would be maddening.

“Guardian Miranda, will save you from the creatures.”

“Tonight she will take you to them. Hear me woman!”

His vision was clearing and he began to see her face. In fright he pulled her closer almost causing her to fall on him. He held her steady still close to him examining her features and she tried desperately to avoid  his chest which she had so carefully applied her cream and avoiding hurting him with the needle she was going to use to stitch his chest.

“What is your name?” He prayed she did not know the answer.

“It’s Sacha. Be careful you brut. You almost made me stitch your arm to your face! Who are you Mage?” Her expression softened knowing how much pain he must be in. “Tell me what happened? What kind of Shit Mage loses a fight? Then cries in his sleep for Guardian Miranda to save him? Huh?” She tried to lighten the seriousness. Al least he smiled but it was troubled.”

“Shit Mage? I am a Shit mage for losing a fight with the Guardian Miranda.”

“Why the hell would you fight a Guardian!”

“Would you believe I was trying to save her? My name is Legarde.”

“You are the Mage that came to me the other night” She touched her hand gently to his face. Then to her heart as she remembered the kiss.

“Guardians don’t need saving. They are guardians.”

“I appreciate your kindness everyone pays but no one ever helps. You have been kind to me and I shouted at you and I am sorry.” He didn’t add that and everyone fears him or hates him and wouldn’t lift a finger to help him.

“I didn’t hurt the guardian. I only needed to reason with her to get her artifact, to rebuild her city.  She is too angry to hear me. Mages have tried to kill her recently and I know of one. She dealt with me quickly and without mercy. I fear if she finds you here with me she will hurt you too. Please leave me here.”

She ignores him and continues to bandage his wounds.

“Did she do this?”

“No she only took great advantage of it. I was poisoned from a prior contract a rabid bear. Easy enough but I suppose I got cocky. I lost my footing slid and he got a good swipe at me. The guardian opened the wound up more and amplified the poison. She denied me her artifact without even entertaining my plans. She called me a Liar and was about to drag me to the bottom of the well with the rest of my Mage betrayers. Instead she decided to make me an example displaying my dead body across the well. You found me there still begging for her to listen to me.”

“I can get through to her.” Sacha said.

“You will do no such thing! You will get my horse and the bag I left by him. He is west of here by the clearing. Ride to the nearest village sell the things in the bag and set up a good life for us.  I will find you again when this contract is over.”

“You are a bad Liar. I found you. You will die before you find me again”

She gets up and leaves the building.

Good she finally listened to me. At least you will be safe my gem.