Enchanter Uvlius of the Astral Plane

Chapter 3 - The Snail, the Snake & the Swamp Witch

It had been many nights since Uvlius left the Moon Temple. He wasn’t sure where he was anymore. The journey blurred as soon as he reached the Brambles, where a group of wanderers and merchants had joined him.

He recalled one night when an argument broke out about which route to take: the shortcut through Frog Master Marsh or the longer detour through the Ashfields.

Shaman Alizam of the Riviera argued passionately against the marsh. “Our wagon won’t survive the mud! You want the mecha-pony to drown?”

Aleister of the Steppe rolled his eyes, waving a dismissive hand. “A real wizard always risks it, for the magic biscuit!”

Uvlius turned to the third wizard, a quiet figure who seemed to have materialized out of nowhere: Ghost Eater Kobold of the Technochrome. He barely spoke, his distant gaze offering no clues as to where his thoughts lay. When all three turned to Uvlius, waiting for him to decide, he panicked. Their stares felt like daggers, pinning him in place.

As he inhaled to choose the Marsh, hoping to move faster toward the Thorns, the Kobold broke his silence. “We take the Ashfields,” he said, his voice steady and deliberate. The group followed his lead.

The Ashfields proved uneventful, with travelers telling tales of caravans getting stuck in Frog Master Marsh. Even so, Uvlius felt a pang of guilt. He had almost let them down.

Eventually, the others parted ways, leaving Uvlius alone. The gallop of the mecha-pony faded into the distance, and the towering Thorn welcomed him with shadows.

The farther he ventured into the forest, the darker it became. It reminded him of the Rune Festival, the night his mother died. Yet here, the darkness felt calm. It was cold and peculiar, but something about it soothed him.

Until the song began.

It started as a faint, sweet melody. Uvlius followed the sound, curious and drawn in. The tune grew louder, wrapping around him like a spell. Sweetness turned sour. The harmony unraveled into chaos, a cacophony that filled his head until he clawed at his ears.

The world spun. His knees buckled.

Then silence.

When he looked down, he saw a small green snake, its fangs buried in his ankle.

The world went black.

When Uvlius awoke, he was tied to a chair. His limbs ached. Nearby, a strange green witch moved about the room, muttering to herself as she tinkered with vials and flipped through ancient books. “Am I dead?” he asked weakly.

The witch turned, her lips curling into a smirk.

“Dead? Don’t insult Medea like that,” she snapped. At the sound of her name, the same green snake that had bitten him slithered up her arm, coiling around her shoulders.

This must be a real familiar, Uvlius thought. He had never seen one before, not in his village, not even at the Moon Temple.

The witch approached, holding two vials in her hands.

“My name is Proserpine, Alchemist of the Wood,” she said. “You’ve trespassed into my domain, and now you must stand trial. Before you lie two vials. One leads to death, the other to rebirth. Choose wisely.”

Uvlius stared at the vials. Shame welled up inside him. This was what his great quest had led to? Tied to a chair, forced to choose between death or something unknown?

He laughed bitterly, tears threatening to spill.

“Rebirth?” he scoffed. “What’s the point? Another life, still magicless? Another life in the dirt? Another life being looked down on by everyone?”

His voice cracked.

“Another life of buying my mo, ” He stopped, choking on the memory.

“Just give me death,” he said firmly, raising his head to meet her gaze with the ghosts of flames still in his eyes.

Proserpine tilted her head, intrigued. She turned to Medea, the snake, as if sharing a silent thought. Then, after a moment, they both nodded.|

“You are a fool,” Proserpine said softly, her tone strangely warm.

She walked to her desk and picked up an empty snail shell. Medea bit into the shell, dripping venom into its hollow interior. Proserpine poured the contents of both vials into the shell, swirling the mixture.

“You have five seconds to drink this before it destabilizes and blows us both up,” she warned, her voice sharp.

She wasn’t kidding. After two seconds, Proserpine’s eyes widened.

Uvlius hesitated another second, then snatched the snail shell. One second left.

He gulped it down as if he had been parched after years of wandering the desert.

Pain surged through him like fire. Uvlius screamed, his body convulsing as colors and shapes blurred together. His bindings melted away as he writhed on the floor, his cries echoing in the tiny room.

“Go to the Astral, boy,” Proserpine whispered, her voice distant now. “Be a fool no more.” As Uvlius’ vision faded, he saw her sinking into a chair, muttering to Medea.

“Thank the stars,” she said. “I didn’t think he’d drink it. Let’s hope you’re right about him.” Uvlius hurtled through a tunnel of light, colors exploding around him. At the end of the tunnel, there was nothing. Only darkness.

“That’s it,” he thought. “She gave me what I wanted. I’m dead.”

As if reacting to his voice, a faint white glow slowly crept toward him.

Uvlius stood still, closed his eyes. He felt at peace, yet somehow more alive.

“Um, excuse me? You’re not dead, you’re in the Astral Planes,” a small, quirky voice proclaimed. Uvlius opened his eyes.

The white glow was now at his feet, coming from a glowing snail. Through this brief moment, Uvlius immediately understood the connection between Proserpine and Medea.

“I SAID YOU’RE NOT DEAD, YOU’RE IN, ” boomed the snail.

“Yes, in the Astral Planes, I heard you,” snapped Uvlius impatiently. “What is this place?”

The snail scurried a little closer. “That’s a pretty loaded question. One you’re not ready to understand, but you will. I’ve seen your journey, and I’m meant to guide you now,” the snail said confidently. “Guide me? To where?”

“Well, back here in fact, but not right now. We have much to do, Uvlius. Much to see, much to learn…” “We must find your Rune… we must find your Magic.”

Uvlius’ eyes widened in disbelief. He had a billion questions, but as he opened his mouth to let them all escape, he was interrupted.

“I’m Musin, by the way, your fancy new familiar!” said the snail.

“But you’re a snail? How will you help me?” Uvlius blurted out.

“I’ll have you know that I’m an Astral Snail, quite rare, in fact!” responded Musin, valiantly protecting his honor.

The snail’s glow began to burn brighter and brighter.

“Let’s get back to the Thorns now. Your body, as it is, cannot withstand the Astral Planes for long. Plus, I hear the Thorns are nice this time of year,” said Musin.

The white light now burned so brightly that it whited out the entire plane, revealing… nothing.

In an instant, Uvlius was back in the room with Proserpine, now with a little snail on his shoulder. This snail was bigger than average, and though his glow was faint, it still remained.

Musin blinked over to Medea in a flash. This took Uvlius aback. A teleporting snail?! It seemed Musin and Medea were catching up but not letting their thoughts be known to Uvlius or Proserpine.

“Well, you’re all done here, Uvlius! Congrats, you passed my trial,” exclaimed Proserpine.

“And before you thank me, just know it was all Medea’s idea. It was hard to turn you down after she told me your story,” she said, hiding her own ghosts behind her eyes.

“What do I do now?” asked Uvlius.

“I don’t know, but you can’t stay here. I have more experiments to run, and from what I understand, you have a very long journey ahead of you,” Proserpine responded.

Musin blinked instantly back onto Uvlius’ shoulder.

“Let’s go!” Musin said excitedly.

“To where?” asked Uvlius.

“I dunno, what’s close?” said the glowing snail.

“We’ve always enjoyed the Fey in the north. Nice place,” said Proserpine as Medea crawled across her wavering fingers.

“It’s settled then. To the Fey!” exclaimed Musin.

So off they went, Uvlius and Musin, his new Astral Snail Familiar.

Entered by: 0xe1E6…0d02