Gemini Thunder Read Online Free Page B

The dear old soul died when I was twelve years old, and I had to leave. That’s when I took to travelling.’
    ‘Cirencester, eh? A Roman town. How many winters do you have?’
    ‘Sixteen now,’ came the clear reply. ‘I learned some Latin from some of the many Roman inscriptions carved in the stone around the town. It’s a beautiful language.’ He paused. ‘I’m always trying to learn new things.’
    ‘Scientia est potentia , knowledge is power, my young troubadour. Never stop learning.’
    ‘Twilight is an unusual name. Did you think of it yourself?’
    ‘No, it was given to me by a very persuasive old man,’ the spellbinder said with a chuckle. ‘Someone whose name you use in your spectaculum. ’
    ‘What, Merlin the Magician?’ The young man’s eyes opened wide in wonder. ‘He was a veneficus, the best in the whole world . . . Then you must be . . .’
    ‘Indeed so, only he was best known in these parts as the long magus,’ Twilight interrupted.
    The young man studied the young veneficus for a long moment.
    ‘So that’s why my animals don’t know you’re here. I heard that Merlin had passed on—you must be his replacement. You must be the new Wessex veneficus. You are a proper wizard!’
    Twilight nodded.
    ‘Imagine that,’ said the young man almost to himself. ‘I’ve had a visit from the Wessex veneficus himself.’ He shook his head in amazement before continuing. ‘To tell the truth, I’ve always fancied being called Desmond Kingdom Biwater. I made it up— took Desmond from a man called that in Salisbury, a big man and a blacksmith but a braggart and a bully. Tried to rob me having put a fresh shoe on Sir Valiant here. Didn’t realize the two bears were in the cart. He was rummaging around our few belongings when my back was turned when Combi bit him. Took four fingers off his right hand as clean as you like. Very powerful, the jaws of a fully grown bear. I wasn’t lying when I said Combi had removed a man’s four fingers, only about the date. It must have been at least a hundred days ago. You could hear his screams the other side of the valley. I don’t suppose he’s doing much blacksmithin’ now, eh?’
    ‘And how did you come by the bears?’
    ‘I joined a small travelling show. It was a bit bigger than mine here but not much. That’s where I learned magic tricks and how to entertain. I’ve always been able to play music on any instrument made. Two years I was there travelling all around. It was owned by a humpbacked Jute from Kent called Felix and his wife, Nelly, but they gradually fell to drinking the mead, and the animals began to suffer. He kept those two bears in heavy chains all the time and didn’t feed them. They got very thin and mangy and were close to dying of starvation. Then he started to beat me, and I decided it was time to go. So one dark night I left and took the bears and horse with me. Scoopy came later. Just turned up. I awoke one morning, and there he was perched on Sir Valiant’s head facing backwards. The silly old bird’s been there ever since, although I have managed to teach him to speak a few words.’
    ‘Well, Desmond Kingdom Biwater,’ declared Twilight solemnly, ‘you certainly have a way with animals.’
    ‘Thank you. Tomorrow I can be the King of the Avebury Rings in honour of this region.’ He waved his hands around to encompass the surrounding area. ‘This is a most magical and fascinating place, the like of which I have never come across before in all my travels around the West Country.’
    ‘Tomorrow, my friend, I will personally show you around the mighty stones of Avebury and tell you the story of each one of them, including the resting place of the mighty Merlin himself. As for magic, well, let’s just say that some people can produce a little more than an apple from a boy’s ear, eh?’
    The following day they met by the stone circle, and, leaving the small cart, Sir Valiant, and Lord Scroop under the watchful eye of the