The Fractured Mountain

Hol would hate it if his mother was right. She always said wizard magic was dangerous and he would be better off pursuing another path. But he is the first fortunetelling wizard in over 800 years, most well-known for his fortunetelling though ridiculed by many (mostly the other wizards) for his consideration of the elements, and he revels in his wizardry. Never in all his years as a wizard has Hol failed to get a being-wizard, denizen, creature, or element-to speak with him or with his tunic. So, when he answers a call to prevent a fractious mountain from splitting itself in two and the mountain won't speak to him and refuses to tell him why, Hol is flummoxed. Neither sweet talking nor conciliatory magic work. Not even the neighborly wichtlein-a mountain expert-knows what to do. As the mountain fractures, starting earthquakes and avalanches that threaten them all, Hol's tunic offers an unwelcome solution: bind the mountain with or without its permission. Out of options and out of time, with the enraged mountain imperiling the entire region, Hol must choose whether to use the domineering wizardry magic his mother despises and he's been warned away from his entire life or let the mountain destroy all within its reach.