The Spell of Binding (Part One) by Glen Johnson

long, and he needed his magic for what he was about to accomplish.
    Simeon stared unblinking out the window to the expanse of barre n wasteland that disappeared in to the distance. There was n o greenery –no trees or bush es, not even dry scrub, nothing, it was completely desolate. All that could be seen was a collection of marauding demons.
    The magi didn’t really know where the city was located in the o ld w orld, before Armageddon. The world had completely changed , there had been polar-shift and titanic volcanic eruptions mixed with tectonic movement, all caused by the vast power released by the nuclear weapons of science. All these combined completely rearranged the continents. But the section the city rested on was believed to be the cradle of civilization, around the area of Iraq and Syria, possibly Egypt or Saudi Arabia.
    They believed the city was positioned over the very first point recognized on the Power Grid by the ancient mystics: Babel in Babylon. It was hard to tell because oceans had changed, continents had realigned and rivers diverted. Also there has been thousands of years of erosion and more shifting. All they kne w was it was hot during the day and freezing at night , with l ittle water and even less shade. But this compared to everywhere else was paradise. Towards the northern hemisphere there were vast continent covering glaciers. The world was still trying to recover from what man had unleashed upon it thousands of years ago.
    Simeon turned hi s attention back out the window to the demons prancing about below. There was always some out there, ranting and raving, screaming abuse and vengeance , while t hrowing stones or hurling magic. Nothing penetrated the barrier, it was simpl y mind games, reminding a ll inside that they were there.
    H ide all you like but we will always be waiting .
    Decades ago sections of the barrier would be lowered and fireballs, lightning bolts and other magical weapons would be hurled at the beasts. But they were soon replaced by other creatures, the screaming would continue. Killing them accomplished nothing, except wasting energy, weapons and magic. Now they simply ignored them, or rather tried as best they could. Most of the rooms in the Nimrod Tower that overlooked the Main Gate were empty; people didn’t want to be able to hear the constant agitation from the creatures o utside.
    It showed the population was declining, because they could so easily vacate large sections of the city. The birth rate of the humans had been dropping steadily for twenty years; it was now down to thirty percent. Whereas the dwarfs and el ve s had almost doubled in that time. Evolution, it seems, didn’t favor mankind. Once they ruled, overpopulat ing and totally consum ing every inch of th e world and its resources . Now they were simply a minority. The demons were the new world virus.
    From his window Simeon watched the collection of demons tossing stones and screaming guttural taunts. The only time the demons outside were confronted was when a traveling caravan rolled towards the city, or a group wanted to leave. Then the Order of Sanctum would pour forth and battle the creatures while the caravan entered, or the group leaving was far enough away not to draw attention or be worth chasing.
    The Order of Sanctum was the Brotherhood of the Mag i’s army. Those that didn’t have the gift to hear the Voice were trained in other occults – witchcraft mainly. The spells didn’t emanate from their bodies, like the sorcerers, but from potions and artifacts that had magical runes engraved upon them. No one remembered where the name originated, or even what it signified. They knew it was an ancient language called Latin, and it meant, ‘Holy of Holies,’ but why the guards were first appointed the name was a mystery.
    Simeon watched as a group of twenty or so lumbe ring vehicles, pulled by camels, trundled towards the city. Forty or so men encircled the caravan, weapons glinting in the cruel