Rargy Rockhopper

Preparing for The Battle of the Flood   Trini wet the cloth and dabbed the old man’s head again. His eyes cracked open long enough for an appreciative look before returning to their rest. His wiry eyebrows seemed to continue to stand at attention, making him never look fully unaware.     “I’m sorry I couldn’t keep your soup down, pumpkin,” he said with a little effort.   “Have some tea instead. It’ll settle your stomach.”   Rargy grimaced and struggled to sit up. After a long moment and having become sufficiently vertical, he brought his hands up to receive the drink.   “Let’s have it then, hedge witch. Will I need to hold my nose?”   “You like ginger.”   He sipped and smiled: “So I do.”   “It’s been some time, hasn’t it?” Trini asked.   “I suppose,” he said with some amusement, “when you live in a tower at the edge of the world, you don’t catch a whole lot of colds.”   He took another long sip and settled himself down, letting the cup rest next to him. Trini gently removed it from his hand and turned to find Mayor Rocca at the door. The wizard’s wife gave a little bow and excused herself: “I’m off to find a few more things that can help this old layabout. I know he’s needed, we all are, but try not to kill the poor fool. I’m rather fond of him.”   Rocca’s smile further widened. As she entered the room, she moved the chair from the bed to a slightly more respectful distance before sitting down.   “Madam Mayor,” Rargy said with a smile, but kept his eyes closed, “what can an old, sick magician do for you?”   She studied him a moment before responding: “Oh, just a few dozen fireballs, bolts of lightning, and other beams and bombs to explode an army of ogres. Maybe summon a few dragons. Ooh, how about turning them all into sheep so we won’t run out of food for our new guests from Shatter?”   “Is that it? And here I thought you’d want something difficult. Anything is better than magic tricks for the summer festival, I suppose.”   She laughed at this, but concern began creeping into her voice.   “I do enjoy those tricks. Do you suppose we will see them this year?”   He matched her tone: “You tell me.”   “We have a lot of people here now. The town is crowded. . . but no one here is a soldier, let alone a giant slayer.”   “Luther and Tom, Umin and the others seem capable. Are they back yet?”   “Not yet. I’ve sent a rider to find them, but the ogres are on the move.”   Rargy was quiet for a moment and then asked, “Gili’s with them?”   “She wouldn’t miss a discovery.”   Again there was a long pause before the wizard spoke up: “Work helps work. She will come back with something to help. It’s the shared work that really moves mountains. . . I have my spells, the arcane arts. Trini knows all about components, about nature, about food and people and politics. These are good pursuits, hers and mine. I’ll tell you this much though: it’s our shared work that matters more. The people who become our students. . . they aren’t looking for the formula to cast a spell. Maybe they think they are, but they’re not. They’re looking for how to live a life. For most students, how to live a life with magic in it, but ultimately how to live a life.”   As he said this, they both looked through the open door and into the hall where Trini was showing Uizor the bark she had found. They watched as she let him study each piece and helped him pronounce the unfamiliar words. “Bark. Medicine.”   Rocca rose from her chair, her head high in determination.   “Rest up, old friend. We have big days ahead of us.”