Death Mages Ascent: Revised Edition (Death Mage Series Book 1) (13 page)

              Finally finished, he examined his work. Adriana gazed at him with a look of pure wonder. She walked over to him and ran a hand over his chest.

              “There is only one more thing to do,” she said. Before he had a chance to ask what she meant, the huntress swung her mace at him with full force. The heavy weapon connected solidly with the side of his chest. With no time to react, Jaxom fell heavily to the ground. His side ached, and the strike had knocked the wind from his lungs, but his armor had shielded him from the worst of it.

              Adriana stood over him with a wicked smile, mace hanging at her side. “What the hell was that?” Jaxom yelled.

              “We had to see if it worked,” she said innocently, sliding her mace back into the loop on her belt.

              “We could have found another way to test that theory.” He paused and examined his armor. The spot where the mace landed had fractures spider-webbing out, but the bone armor was still intact.

              “You would never have had faith in its strength until you were hit while wearing it,” she explained. Jaxom couldn’t argue with the logic. Knowing what it felt like to be hit while wearing the bones did inspire him to trust it would hold against similar assaults.

              Jaxom spent the next hour removing the armor and then donning it again, delighted to discover that the cast became easier and faster with practice. When he was able to assemble the suit in less than a handful of seconds, he let the bones fall to the ground one final time. He offered a hand to Adriana, who had retaken her seat on the ground. Tomorrow, they would arrive in Ale’adar.

Chapter 17

              Their flight into the city was something the people would be talking about for years. Jaxom kept them high above the buildings, but the inhabitants spotted the durgen almost immediately. They scattered from the streets in a panic, retreating into the nearest buildings they could find. As they approached the palace, the Guard evidently became alarmed. They were forced to evade volleys of arrows flying at them from the palace walls before Jaxom managed to make himself seen. He yelled down to the startled men to hold their fire. The companions waited for the archers to lower their bows then descended cautiously into the stable yard.

              Adriana slid from the saddle to land gracefully on her feet with Jaxom only a step behind. They were greeted by twenty of the Guard, holding their swords ready. As the rest of their group dismounted, Cribble walked over to the group of nervous guardsmen.

              “Don’t you have eyes? Put those damn swords away,” he yelled.

              Still staring warily at the risen creatures, they did as they were told. Cribble walked forward to speak to them while Jaxom, seeing Da’san already gathering his things, approached the priest.

              “Leaving already?” Jaxom asked.

              “Yes, I have to tell my brothers of this Or’Keer. A new god who is not held by the pact is a threat to all the temples,” he replied.

              “I hope to see you again. I owe you my life several times over now,” Jaxom said, offering his hand to the young man.

              Taking his hand, the priest smiled. “To be honest, I had fun. Life in the temple can be quite…boring. I will be spending a lot time sharing the story with the others when I get back.”

              Releasing the other man’s hand, Jaxom turned back toward Adriana. She was gazing all around, taking in the palace and the swarms of people. He had forgotten this would be her first time in a city this large. Looking his way, she gave him a big smile before going back to the sights surrounding her. Jaxom spotted the young boy who had taken care of his risen horse. He waved, and the stable hand came trotting over.

              “Yes, Magus?” he asked, eyeing the durgen, suspiciously.

              Smiling, Jaxom pulled a silver from the purse and gave it to him. “Same as last time,” he said. The lad slipped the coin into a pocket and ran off to gather their mounts. Jaxom commanded the durgen to obey the boy’s instructions.

              “The king left six days ago. He commanded the Guard to stay behind to protect the city,” Cribble said, rejoining him.

              “Will you remain here with them?” Jaxom asked. He still didn’t like Cribble, but the man was good with a sword.

              “I have no choice. The sergeant is overwhelmed, and I will be needed here if the southerners attack the city. I can see to it that Jerup and Brenin go with you if you want,” he said.

              Jaxom looked over to where Jerup was also preparing to leave, no doubt headed home to see his family. Brenin had joined a small group of guards and was speaking to them in an animated fashion, most likely telling stories of their journey north. “Just Brenin, if he is willing,” Jaxom replied. Nodding, Cribble moved off to interrupt the archer’s story.    

Jaxom led Adriana into the palace and straight to the bathing rooms. They could not stay the night, but there was time for a bath. After an hour soaking in the warm water, Jaxom was dressed and waiting when Adriana emerged from the room she used. Her light brown hair was up in its usual ponytail, and she had dressed in more of the plain men’s clothing. Jaxom noted appreciatively that the pants hugged her hips in a very pleasing manner.

              “I have never enjoyed a bath like that before. The water stayed warm the entire time I was in. I did not want to get out,” she said.

              “Yes, it can be very relaxing after a long journey. I am sorry to tell you that we cannot stay longer. I would love to show you the rest of the city, but we have to leave shortly,” he said.

              The look of disappointment on her face was obvious. “I know. When we get back, I expect you to show me everything.”

              Jaxom looked forward to doing just that. Right now, Corin and Celia were fighting to protect Ale’adaria. They had no time to waste on tours of the city. “Once this is all over, I promise to show you the whole thing,” he said. Smiling, she nodded and followed him away from the bathing rooms.

Returning to the stables, they found Brenin looking washed and refreshed as well. The young guard was sitting on a barrel, inspecting arrows from the refilled quiver on his back, two more of the tubes resting near him. Never having developed a skill for archery himself, Jaxom assumed the young man was looking for flaws in the shafts. Jaxom found the boy who had taken the durgen carrying a bucket of water to the stables. He whistled to get his attention. “We will be needing our mounts,” Jaxom said, and the boy hurried off.

As they climbed onto the backs of the durgen, now situated with one saddle for a single rider, Cribble came strolling out into the stable yard still wearing the same clothes he had on when they arrived. “I had Jerup reassigned to my unit. He is a fine swordsman with his head on straight. We will try to find any of these followers of Or’Keer that Alimar spoke of, but I do not know how successful we will be,” he said.

“Keep your eyes open. This war is just an opening move. Or’Keer has a much larger endgame, and we still don’t know what it is. Any information you gather may mean the difference between winning and death,” Jaxom replied.

Cribble nodded. “I took the liberty of having your supplies replenished. You will be joining up with the king, and they should be well stocked, but you never know.” The captain looked decidedly uncomfortable for a moment then stuck his hand out to Jaxom. Trying to conceal his surprise, Jaxom took the man’s hand and shook it firmly. The Guard Captain finally met his eyes. “Good luck,” he said. With that, he let go and turned away, leaving Jaxom in shock. Processing the unexpected show of friendship, Jaxom climbed into his saddle. The six-legged creature beat its wings to gain height before heading south again with Brenin and Adriana following.

              The land they passed over was different from what they had seen on the return trip. The further south they flew, the fewer people they saw, the land’s inhabitants having fled from the approaching army. The trail they followed was easily discernable from above, appearing as a long scar overlapping the road itself.  The damage to the area, which was now dirt and mud, had not been intentional, but that many men, horses, and wagons left a mark wherever they went. Larger circular areas had also been turned up from where the army had camped for the night before moving on again. Jaxom and his two companions passed three of these areas before landing to set up camp themselves. Corin was making good time, moving as fast as possible to stop the invaders from pillaging any more of his kingdom. Jaxom estimated that they were covering close to twenty miles a day, which meant his friend was pushing the men hard.

              Landing at an abandoned farm, the three friends moved the durgen into the empty barn. The chance of a passerby catching sight of the risen was remote, but there was no need to take the risk. The house was a simple square structure made of wood with only one window per wall. Just outside the front door was a small well where the family who had lived here got all their fresh water. The inside of the house had been stripped bare. The previous owners likely took everything with them when they left. The common area of the house contained a small hearth and a table surrounded by five chairs. The cupboard had been left open displaying bare shelves, except for a set of wooden plates and bowls.

              Two adjoining rooms contained wooden frame beds with feather stuffed mattresses. Adriana moved into the room with the larger bed meant for two people, placing her saddle bags on the floor. She smiled at Jaxom with a gleam in her eye. Jaxom thought Brenin caught the look as well, and the younger man grinned as he moved his things into the other room. Jaxom placed his bags on the table, not wanting to give the young man the satisfaction of being right just yet, and went about starting a fire in the hearth. Striking flint to steel, Jaxom quickly got a fire going. Pouring water Brenin brought into a pot hanging above the flames, Jaxom added dried beef from his bag and vegetables from a small garden out near the barn.

While the stew was simmering, he discovered that one of his friends had taken the liberty of moving his bags into the room Adriana had claimed. Jaxom was not about to ask who had done it. 

When Jaxom deemed the stew finished, the three of them sat down at the table to enjoy the meal served in the wooden bowls from the cabinet. Savoring her first spoonful, Adriana gave Jaxom a look of approval. “So you can cook. My cooking is the stuff of legends in Chams’dell,” she said.

“Oh? You’re that good?” Brenin asked.

“I said it was the stuff of legends. We have a festival of sorts in the spring when everyone in Chams’dell gathers to dance, drink, and eat. One year, I decided I would bring my mother’s lamb roast to the celebration. The following day, a council member spoke to my father, asking him if we could perhaps find some other way of contributing the following year,” she said, laughing.

Brenin and Jaxom joined, and the conversation drifted to more stories about their funny failures. As they finished the meal, Jaxom noticed the sun was close to setting. Returning to the barn, he commanded the risen out into the fading light, ordering them to keep close to the house. With their protection for the night in place, he returned to the comfort of the small home. Brenin had already retreated to his room and closed the door behind him. Adriana was washing the small wooden bowls and placing them back in the cabinet. The family who lived here would most likely return after the war was over, and it would be impolite to leave their home a mess.

Replacing the last bowl, Adriana turned to regard him with an expression he recognized as a mixture of seriousness and desire. Walking over to him, she took his hand and led him into the room, closing the door behind them. Taking the lead she, pinned him to the door, placing her lips against his and kissing him slowly and deeply. Her hands roamed over his chest before pulling his shirt over his head. He undid the buckle at her waist, and the belt and her heavy mace dropped loudly to the floor. His sword followed quickly. Taking control, Jaxom pulled her shirt off, pushing her back and down onto the feather mattress. Moving on top of her, he felt the warmth of her skin against his, their mouths meeting again and again, each kiss relaying their desire for each other. She pulled him tighter against her body. Jaxom gripped her hair in his fingers, moving his lips to her neck. As they continued to caress each other, Jaxom felt more than just the physical yearning for her. He wanted more than just this night.

He lay there afterward, enjoying the feeling of her head resting on his arm. Her slow, even breathing told him that she had already fallen asleep. Jaxom could sense the durgen circling tirelessly around the house. He reached out to one, seeing the night through its eyes. The moonlight cast a soft glow onto the land around the house, and a cool breeze passed over the risen’s fur. A strange scent caught the animal’s attention, and it moved out to investigate the smell. Failing to find the creature that had left the scent behind, the durgen returned to its patrol. Turning back to the house, it was suddenly struck from behind. Whipping around, it saw a curved blade protruding from its rear flank, but it could not see its attacker. Judging where the arm holding the blade should be, the risen lunged forward, sinking teeth into flesh. The attacker pulled back, trying to free himself, but the durgen refused to let go. Jerking its head back and forth, it ripped away flesh. Spreading its great, black wings, the risen moved to drag the invisible enemy into the air when another sword cut into one of the feathered appendages, severing it completely. Giving another hard jerk, the risen tore the arm from the shade, spraying blood into the air. Rearing on its back two legs, four sets of claws lashed out in a raking motion, shredding the chest and stomach of the second attacker. A dozen others appeared out of the darkness, hacking and slashing at the risen’s flesh.

Jaxom jerked from the bed, throwing his clothes on quickly. Adriana awoke; looking confused, but also started donning her clothes.

“The shades have found us. There are too many for us handle. Wake Brenin. We have to leave now,” Jaxom said to her. Without a word, she finished dressing and belted on her mace before heading to get the archer. Jaxom reached out to the other two durgen, stopping them from their charge toward the shades and commanding them to instead meet him at the front door of the small house. Brenin and Adriana were already in the main room, gathering up their gear.

The young man’s face was grave. He had been at the palace during the last attack. Finishing his preparations, he grabbed his bow from the table and waited. Throwing his bags over his shoulder, Jaxom moved out the door to the two remaining durgen. Tying the saddle bags to the risen, he climbed up before offering Adriana a hand to join him. A curved sword slashed between them, forcing her back as she drew the mace to defend herself. Stopping the second strike, she swung her mace but failed to connect. An arrow sped past her and embedded itself in the darkness, the feathers and shaft hanging momentarily in the air before falling to the ground. The second risen durgen had another shade on the ground and was tearing into his chest. The attacker had attempted to decapitate it, only to lose a blade in the creature’s thick neck. Brenin was releasing arrow after arrow, blindly, into the surround area but only striking a few shades.