The Wizard Takes Charge

"Are you? Well in that case I think that my apprentice has some explaining to do. You'd better make this good, Jolyon."

So, nervously and haltingly, Jolyon explained what had happened, with some assistance from the others. When he had finished, the wizard said: "My apprentice has overreached himself. He knows that he is not supposed to perform advanced spells except under my supervision. He should have asked you to wait until I returned. The chance of a successful outcome had I not come baxk when I did would have been very small."

He turned back to Jolyon. "Hand over those silver pieces."

"I was going to give them to you anyway, Master," Jolyon lied, as he took the coins from his pocket.

The wizard examined them as he replied to his apprentice. "Were you? We shall speak about this more later, Jolyon. That does seem a reasonable amount to have charged, however. I see that these are Allarian coins, so whoever they belonged to is probably from that country. Now please hand me that spellbook."

He turned back to the others. "What my apprentice told you about the dog's enchantment being a risk to a successful outcome was quite correct. However with me performing the spell to restore your memories, that risk will be much reduced, to say ten per cent. Ideally I would undo the transformation spell on the dog first, but doing that would be long and difficult, and anyway you can't afford it. Are you willing for me to go ahead with the 'cure amnesia' spell on those terms?"

"Why don't you send the dog into the back room, perform the spell on the other three of us, then call the dog back and perform it on him separately?" the witch suggested. "That way the risk will only apply to him. I should have thought of that before."

"Casting this spell will be very draining, so I would only be prepared to do it twice if you could afford to pay me twice, which you evidently can't. Does that satisfy you?"

The four agreed that it did. Even if some of them had reservations, they knew that they weren't in a strong bargaining position. So the wizard began the spell.

1. It worked correctly.
2. It worked on some but not on others.
3. Absolutely nothing happened.
4. The spell went badly wrong.
5. The wizard tricked then and cast a spell of slavery on them instead,
6. Again there was an interruption.

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