Ralphie the Magnificent [A Tale of Yesterville]

[Hippin_in_Hawaii 639]

Ralphie the Magnificent
By Hippin_In_Hawaii

Ralphie sighed and closed the cover of the mystic tome. He frowned at the row of wands laid out on the table. After over 60 years of effort, since his childhood when the Winds of Death had depopulated the world and awakened his own special powers, he still could not find a combination of wand, motion, and spell to produce a tangible result. It must be the lack of a phoenix feather. Ralphie knew himself to be a sorcerer, and he faithfully tried every summer, re-reading the tomes, practicing the motions and the incantations, and trying wand after wand. Even if he could get just the Lumos spell to work, that would be of immeasurable aid in fighting the spirits.

“Next year, Wizard Potter. Next year.” Ralphie turned and look at the shelves of his library. It was piled high and in disarray, as befitted a sorcerer, and contained the sum knowledge of magic as documented from Before. There were no books on that shelf Ralphie hadn’t read thrice over. They were written by the great historians like Rowling, Tolkien, Jordan, and Disney. And still, he could not duplicate the powers described in any of them. He sighed again.

Looking out the window, he saw the day was bright and clear. “Lynda!” he bellowed.

Lynda scuttled in from the next room. “Yes, sire?”

“Prepare Dumbledore and Gandalf. We’re going to the Library.”

Lynda didn’t waste time with a reply; she knew Ralphie expected instant and unconditional obedience from his apprentice.

Ralphie returned his gaze to the bookshelf. “So much knowledge, yet still I fail. Why?” He turned away, gathering some other books to return. Swadling them in their waterproof wrappings, he began packing them into sacks for Lynda to carry down to the mules.

Oldtown was a couple of hours away by foot. Ralphie went first, leading Dumbledore. Lynda followed, with Gandalf trailing behind. Both of the mules were carrying heavy packs. Gandalf bore the precious cargo of books that Ralphie was returning, while Dumbledore was laden with a range of foodstuffs and potions.

Ralphie let his mind wander as they walked. The sun was warm and the road was dusty. Ralphie idly speculated on whether he could finally get some form of weather control to work, but he knew that he lacked any of the ordained artifacts. He couldn’t even sense the currents that moved the clouds.

For most people, approaching Oldtown was a hazardous affair. The scavengers that lived there weren’t kindly disposed towards the folk from Yesterville. Ralphie was the exception; a sorcerer goes where he pleases. The Oldtowners were both scared by, and appreciative of, Ralphie. They knew the power he wielded and were anxious to stay on his good side. Although Ralphie always brought gifts for the people, and used his powers to ease the suffering of the sick and injured, there was no Oldtowner who didn’t fear what might happen should he be provoked.

“You! Stand your ground!” rang a harsh voice from a collapsing building as Ralphie’s short column entered the outskirts of Oldtown.

“Hai, an’ shut your mouth, Jarven! Don’t you know a sorcerer when you see one?” shouted Lynda, her thin voice quavering.

Ralphie made a subtle sign with his fingers so that Lynda could see his approval. Her ability to recognize auras was coming along nicely. Other than that tiny twitch, though, Ralphie did not acknowledge the shout in any way. He kept walking, and Lynda kept following.

“I said stand your ground!” came a second shout. The audible twang of a bowstring preceded the appearance of a fletched shaft in the dirt before Ralphie’s feet by a fraction of a second.

“Hai, Jarven, you’ve earned this!” screamed Lynda, her young vocal cords not carrying the menace she clearly hoped to impart. She raised her hand.

“Hold,” said Ralphie, stopping and turning to face Lynda. “Never in anger. Never in fear. Never in passion release what you cannot recall.”

Lynda’s lip trembled. “He threatened us, master.”

Ralphie shrugged. “He is no threat. What can he do? What harm will an arrow bring the likes of us?” Ralphie turned to face the building. “Jarven Holsten, come here.”

The man emerged from cover, bow drawn and aimed at Ralphie.

“Jarven, what is this? Why do you greet me so?”

“You refuse to heal me. Year after year, you force me to beg, and year after year, you leave me ill. Hai, an’ I’ve had enough of it. You’ll heal me, or I’ll take you with me into the next world.”

Ralphie looked deep inside Jarven. He could see the tumors around the man’s stomach, and see the slightly wrong cast of the surrounding flesh. The tumors were bad this time; there was no doubt that Jarven was in agony. Ralphie sighed.

“Climb up on Gandalf, Jarven. Let us carry you to the Library, where you know we are bound. There, let me look at you, and do what I can.”

“You’ll help me now, or by the Winds of Death, I’ll shoot you where you stand.”

“Shoot, then, Jarven, and be done with it.” Ralphie slowed his heart and constricted his veins, wanting to minimize blood loss if Jarven made good on his threat.

Jarven aimed, dramatically pulled the bowstring even farther back, then slowly lowered the bow. His shoulders slumped, and sobs escaped him. “It hurts so bad, sire. It hurts so bad.”

Ralphie took Jarven’s shoulders and steered him to Gandalf’s side. “Ride with us, Jarven. I’ll do what I can.”

The Oldtowners gathered respectfully in the courtyard outside the Library. Ralphie nodded to them as he approached. It was a well-practiced ritual, familiar to both sides. Lynda worked on unpacking the supplies, leaving the residents to pull down the bundles of books for the Librarian.

Ralphie pushed the heavy Library doors open and walked inside.

“Hai, Sorcerer! Sure now, an’ it’s been a long time.”

“Samual, my old friend. It has been long. Too long, perhaps. Jarven is doing poorly.”

The Librarian nodded, walking up and clasping Ralphie’s hand warmly. “Yes, he’s in a bad way.”

“You know you can bring him to me in the castle anytime.”

“And you know, my friend, that many will not leave Oldtown. They believe the stories. They do not wish to court death.”

Ralphie nodded. “There is truth in ancient tales.”

“Did the books I selected last time please you?”

“As always, old friend! Knowledge is a joy, even if one does not find the answers one seeks.”

“And what will you seek next?”

Ralphie sighed. “Books on the body. Books by the doctors of old. Books on this thing called cancer. Books for young physicians’ apprentices.”

The Librarian frowned. “You remember what happened the last time you essayed this path.”

“Only too well. I still have nightmares.” This was no exaggeration. Ralphie’s early attempts to cure cancer had proven disastrous, and inflicted horrific deaths on his patients. Their screams still kept him up at nights, all these many decades later.

“As you wish. I will provide.”

Ralphie clasped the Librarian’s hand again, then turned and left the Library. Outside, the Oldtowners had formed a line, and a rather lengthy one. Ralphie sighed again. He had been away too long. He strode forward and took a seat that had been provided, waving the first in line forward. “What ails thee?”

“My foot, my lord,” replied the woman, limping up. “I dropped some firewood on it in the spring, and it’s nae been whole since.”

Ralphie looked at the foot, and could clearly see several small breaks that had begun healing improperly. “Lynda, cheese and milk.” He looked at the woman. “You will feel an intense heat for a time, as if you were standing in scalding water. This will be normal. I could block the pain, but if I do, your foot and leg will be numb until I return. For as long as the burning lasts, eat as much milk and cheese as you can stomach. It will be several days. Do you understand?”

“I do, my lord.”

“And you wish me to proceed?”

“Please.”

Ralphie took the foot in his hands. Looking at the poorly-healing injuries, he applied pressure to break them free and realign the small bones properly. The woman gasped but did not cry out. Ralphie then opened his perception to the woman’s body, seeking her own healing system. The glow was there, but hard to see.

“The rest of you, lay hands on me.”

The Oldtowners surged forward, placing their hands wherever they could reach. Every person’s touch strengthened the magic, and Ralphie could see the woman’s healing potential clearly. Silently, with intense concentration, he willed her body to repair the broken bones. Even as he watched, the areas around the fractures began to glow a healing green. Good. He scanned the rest of her body, looking for other things in need of healing, but finding nothing. Again, good.

Ralphie relaxed, letting the magic fade. “I’m done. Stay off that foot as much as you can. Here, take a seat by me. You can help with the rest.”

“Hai, an’ it burns,” she laughed. “Truth teller, that’s what you are!”

Ralphie worked his way through the line, one ailment at a time. Breaks and strains were the most common complaints; it was rare that an illness manifested. And so it progressed. The Oldtowners would lay hands on Ralphie, adding their magic strength to his. Ralphie would wield the power, influencing bodies to heal themselves in accelerated fashion. Lynda would produce whatever the Sorcerer demanded from Dumbledore’s packs.

So it continued, until all were done except for one. Jarven stood there before the sorcerer, hunched over in pain. Ralphie took a deep breath, gathering his will. “Lay hands on me,” he commanded. The crowd complied.

Jarven’s tumors were an easy fix. Ralphie could mark them, instruct Jarven’s own healing abilities what to do, make sure Jarven ate plenty of leafy green vegetables, and the smallest tumors would be gone in mere days. The largest would take about two weeks.

But the tumors kept returning. Ralphie could see the cause, see the tissue in Jarven’s abdomen that wasn’t quite the right color. He knew that doctors of old had called this cancer, but he didn’t know how to combat it. His understanding of the malady, and of the subtle touches needed to fight it, were inadequate. And he knew the consequences of getting an attempted cure wrong. The body could attack itself, literally heal itself to death. It was the stuff of nightmares.

Ralphie relaxed and opened his mouth to speak.

“Spinach and kale again?” asked Jarven.

Ralphie closed his mouth and nodded. “For at least two weeks after the pain subsides. As much as you can stomach.”

Jarven nodded. “Thank you, sire. See you again next time.” He turned to go.

“Wait,” said Ralphie. “Jarven, I’ve asked the Librarian for all the books on cancer, and on medical training. I will research this thing again. I will try to find a way to help you.”

Jarven’s eyes glistened with tears. He ran to Ralphie, gave the sorcerer a hug (much to the chagrin of Lynda and the delight of the crowd), then turned and shuffled away. The rest of the crowd made gestures of obeisance and also wandered away.

“Lynda, go help Samual bring the books out here and load Dumbledore. We’ll leave as soon as you’re done.”

The sun was setting as Ralphie and Lynda returned to the road. They had accepted the gift of a meal with Samual before leaving, and Ralphie had enjoyed catching up with his childhood friend. Now, as they plodded through the deepening gloom, Ralphie’s thoughts turned to his promise. Rabbits. He was going to have to ask Nathan to breed a surplus of rabbits. The thought of how most of them would die was unpleasant, but Jarven’s need was great.

But these dark thoughts were no fit companion for a traveler on a dark night. He took a deep breath and began singing one of the time-honored ballads of greater magic. “Salagadoola mechicka boola bibbidi-bobbidi-boo…”
 

Mahalo (thank you) for reading; I hope you enjoyed! This story is part of a series. Information on the series, and links to the other stories, can be found here.

[Flexoo 6,980]

Approved.

 

No edits.

 

What an interesting characters you added here. I also like the mixture of magic and something that very closely resembles the modern medicine. Superbly written. A pleasure to read as always. I wonder how will this continue. We'll be waiting  ^_^

[Pythor 1,354]

B) Good to see this out finally 

[Best_of_thunder_2015 1,354]

Damn,

 

I didn't expect Hippin_in_hawaii would become a helper.

 

Congrats man.

[Hippin_in_Hawaii 639]

Damn,

 

I didn't expect Hippin_in_hawaii would become a helper.

 

Congrats man.

To the best of my knowledge, I'm not!

[Best_of_thunder_2015 1,354]

To the best of my knowledge, I'm not!

I clearly see you've got Forum newspaper Moderators and its not even a candidate.

[Hippin_in_Hawaii 639]

I clearly see you've got Forum newspaper Moderators and its not even a candidate.

Yep! I'm a Reporter. The hat comes with that job. I'm not a Helper, though.

[Person_Random 4,991]

Yep! I'm a Reporter. The hat comes with that job. I'm not a Helper, though.

Hat?  I would say helmet!  Anyways, I loved the story.  One minor thing is your dialogue could still be more descriptive.  (This is what I say when there are many characters in a story)  Sponsored by the YWA.