Samual by Greg Curtis Read Free Book Online Page B

the same magical coin. After all, they had to draw their fire from somewhere.
     
    In time Sam knew he had drawn enough fire to handle anything that came. He had enough fire magic to level a mountain. If what he held within him couldn't destroy them, then nothing could. It was time to start focussing it.
     
    Draw, shape and release. Those were the three steps in using any elemental magic, and he had practised them all until he had fallen asleep on his feet on too many nights. This was no different except for its impossible scale. Now that the drawing was done it was time to shape it. To make it into the weapon he needed.
     
    First he began by preparing his weapons to serve as spell founts. These would be able to store and release the magic in controlled bursts. Normally for a wizard, the shaping was held within the wizard himself, but as Sam also had a good grounding in Earth magic as well, he'd discovered over the years that he could impart small amounts of the magic into solid objects and use them to shape and hold it. It was what the common folk and hedge wizards called enchantment.
     
    Few other wizards were also enchanters, something for which he could be grateful since for a wizard at war, enchantment was one of the most useful weapons he could use. With enough time he could enchant a legion of weapons and traps; enough to devastate an army before he even had to ready his own defences.
     
    Enchantment was some of the most delicate and complicated wizardry he had ever studied, and yet he'd found over the years as he'd practised it, that it wasn't difficult for him. A sign perhaps of his increasing control of the magic. But never before had he tried imparting such huge amounts of magic into any weapon.
     
    First he imbued his favourite greatsword with the fire scythe enchantment and enough power to slice through a mountain. He gave it all that the sword could take without exploding, which was a lot. The sword was well made and had not a single imperfection along its gleaming length. It had to be to handle the power he was channelling into it. Despite his concerns the sword held the power perfectly, and he re-sheathed the blade with extreme care. With so much magic within it, even a small dent from a fall could result in the weapon exploding.
     
    Next came the battle-axe. He gave it the thunder fire storm enchantment. The axe itself was almost too large to use as a weapon even for him, its double-sided head weighing twice as much as even a greatsword. But that same mass made it perfect for holding a tremendous amount of fire magic, while its shape added focus to the enchantment. And this particular sorcery was his preferred magical attack as much for the spectacular fire storm it created as for its effectiveness.
     
    Both of those were enchantments he had practised and cast many times before, and other than the unusual amount of power he was instilling in them, he knew the weapons could handle the magic. The bulk of the magic though could not be released into a weapon or other inanimate object. Instead it had to be shaped and released. Only a wizard could hold and use such power. As a spell caster he had to hold it, shape it and release it into himself. And this time it would not just be a few small fireballs that he held. This time he would hold on to an inferno.
     
    With some trepidation Sam focussed the rest of the fire magic into his hands. Holding it apart in two equal and opposite measures he knew that the world around him would be safe – until they touched. Then, when the time came and provided he was strong enough and brave enough – and maybe desperate enough – he would release the fire ring conjuration. It was something he'd never tried before. It wasn't just the power that was dangerous about the spell, but the release of that particular shape directly from his own flesh. The spell was one of the most dangerous possible for a wizard, and with the power he was holding anything could happen. But if it