Reign of Madness (Revised Edition) (37 page)

“Perhaps you could read,” Rezkin suggested as he held up
Tam’s book.

Shiela crossed her arms awkwardly as she held the parasol
and huffed. “I did not think to bring a book. What we need is some
entertainment,” she said as her eyes traveled up and down the warrior’s body.

Rezkin smiled cordially and said, “Perhaps you would grace
us with some, then.”

“
Me
? Just what do you expect me to do out
here
?
Maybe Frisha can do something. I saw a commoner juggling in the square once. Do
you juggle, Frisha?”

Frisha narrowed her eyes at her irritating cousin and
replied, “I am not a circus performer, Shiela. It’s not like
every
commoner goes around juggling!”

Shiela’s response died on her lips as both women’s attention
was drawn to the jumble of smooth stones that were now spinning in the air. Palis
and Brandt burst out laughing in a round of applause.

“Is this the juggling to which you were referring?” Rezkin
asked as he walked around the women. Six palm-sized rounded stones tumbled
through the air in a complicated, alternating pattern.

“Say, that’s impressive!” Tam exclaimed.

Tieran looked at Rezkin askance. “Why in the world would you
desire to learn such a thing?”

Rezkin frowned in contemplation as he continued lobbing the
stones in the air. “Well, this can help to hone one’s reflexes and train the
mind and hands to work together.”

“You did mention a propensity for picking up multiple
hobbies, but this is a bit extreme, Rezkin,” Malcius observed. “When do you
ever relax?”

Frisha and Tam both laughed. “Rezkin
never
sits
still,” the young woman exclaimed. “He always has to be doing something.”

“And it usually involves lots of hard work and sweat,” Tam
added.

“Not true,” Rezkin stated as he allowed the stones to fall
to the ground. “In fact, I intend to settle right over there against that rock
and read your book, Tam, while the lords make us lunch.”

“What?” Tieran and Malcius exclaimed at the same time.

“You expect
us
to make our meal?” the duke’s son
questioned with disbelief.

Rezkin grinned and said, “The cuts of meat are in the basket
over there.”

Brandt lifted the lid on the basket and said, “This meat is
raw! What do you expect us to do with raw meat?”

“I expect you to cook it, of course,” Rezkin replied.

“With
what
?” Malcius asked.

The young warrior shook his head in silent admonishment.
“Were you not saying you learned nothing at your
survival training
? It
was you who said that you could not survive in the wild. The very least you can
learn is to make a fire and cook some meat. You do not even have to hunt or
butcher it. The meat is already prepared.”

The anxious lords’ lack of confidence was clear as they
looked at each other in concern. The guards tried to keep the grins from their
gruff faces, but they nudged and muttered to each other just the same.

Malcius scratched his head and said, “Now, uh, what are we
supposed to do first? I guess we need some wood.”

“I think we need to dig a pit, right?” Brandt asked.

“It is all sand and rocks here. There is no brush to catch
fire. I do not think we need a pit,” Palis observed.

As the young lords argued and discussed what they thought
was necessary to build a fire and cook their meat, Rezkin settled on a blanket
beside a small boulder and opened the book Tam had loaned him. Frisha, Shiela,
and Reaylin all settled on the blanket, as well, and arrayed themselves about
the young warrior like a lovely harem.

“How, exactly, are we supposed to light the fire?” Tieran
called out as he tugged at his hair in frustration. “Where is that battle mage
when you need him?”

“Honestly, Tieran. Do you really need a
battle mage
to light your cook fire?” Rezkin asked.

“It is not like I walk around with a
firestick
,”
Tieran muttered.

“
You
are the mage,” Brandt scoffed. “Why do you not
just light it with your powers?”

Scowling, Tieran said, “I do not possess that kind of
talent
.
I cannot even create the tiniest spark. Otherwise, this task would have been
done already!”

“I guess we could try rubbing two sticks together,” Malcius
said facetiously.

The young warrior sighed dramatically and said, “You will
find flint and steel in the basket.” In the end, it was Waylen who showed the
superior lords how to light the fire. After a while, a deep chuckle sounded
from a few paces away.

“Now this is what I like to see,” the striker announced
shortly after arriving on the beach. “
Lord
Rezkin relaxing with a good
book while surrounded by beautiful women as the lesser lords labor to prepare
his meal.”

“Who are you calling a lesser lord?” questioned a
disgruntled Tieran. “To which House
do
you belong, Rezkin?” he asked as
his frustration got the better of him. All activity stopped as the other
lordlings waited for an answer.

The young warrior calmly looked up from his book and stared
at Tieran as he arched a brow. “Your spit fell over.”

Tieran furrowed his brow in confusion, and then his eyes
widened. He looked down to see that the spit had indeed fallen over, and the
meat was half in the sand and half in the fire. “Oh, bloody Hells!” he shouted
as the other lordlings scrambled to repair the damage. Lunch was a bit gritty
and somehow both burnt and undercooked, but the lords felt a certain
satisfaction just the same. Rezkin had been right. It felt good to be able to
fend for oneself. They all agreed they had no desire to ever do it again.

The following morning, the entire traveling party met back
at the harbor. Upon arrival, they just happened to run into a certain widow who
was standing around the docks for no particular reason.

“Lord Rezkin, it is good to see you here,” Hilith exclaimed
as she rushed up to the young lord.

Rezkin smiled pleasantly and bowed in greeting. “Lady
Gadderand, the pleasure is mine.”

“Yes, well, that could be arranged,” the woman said with a
flutter of her lashes. She knew she hit her mark when the plain young woman at
the lord’s side gasped in indignation. “I was so hoping to discuss some trade
opportunities with you. Our mutual business partner, Lord Starling, mentioned
that you might be open to new business ventures.”

“You have business deals?” Frisha directed at Rezkin in
surprise.

Rezkin patted the dainty hand she rested on his forearm and
said, “I have recently expanded my dealings to include almost all of Ashai.
Lord Starling is one of my associates.”

“All of Ashai? I had no idea you were so successful,
Rezkin,” Tieran commented. “Perhaps we should discuss some business of our
own.”

Rezkin inclined his head and said, “Of course, Tieran. It
would be my pleasure. I must not be rude, though. Allow me to introduce Lady
Hilith Gadderand, widow of the late Lord Gadderand. Lady Gadderand, this is
Lord Tieran Nirius, Heir to Wellinven.” The young warrior’s eyes sparkled with
silent mirth as he watched Hilith’s reaction. He was certain that, having
wheedled her way into such a minor House as Gadderand, she had never
encountered anyone from one of the major Houses, much less a future Duke.

“It is an honor to meet you Lord Nirius. I had no idea you
traveled in such illustrious company, Lord Rezkin,” Hilith remarked.

Tieran eyed Rezkin sideways and muttered, “I was merely born
to privilege. Anyone should feel greater honor in Rezkin’s presence than my
own.”

He made the remark facetiously, but deep down he knew the
statement to be true. The incident on the beach the previous day had only
proven, once again, the superiority of Rezkin’s capabilities in pretty much all
things. Then, he learns that Rezkin had dealings all over Ashai. Rezkin had not
said the dealings were House business, either, which meant they were
his
,
personally. The duke’s son did not feel inclined to doubt the man. Every claim
Rezkin made he had been able to back up ten fold. Tieran could not imagine how
the younger man had accomplished so much in so few years. Because he was the
duke’s son and was in the line of ascension, Tieran had always been the leader
of his entourage. People looked up to him and respected him simply for being of
such high station. Now, after seeing a man even younger than he who was truly
deserving of respect, Tieran wondered how much of the respect he garnered was
genuine.

Everyone who heard the comment looked at Tieran
questioningly. He glanced around at wondering eyes and shrugged. “What? I speak
only truth.”

Hilith’s eyes bounced back and forth between the heir to
possibly the mightiest House in Ashai beneath the royal family and the unknown
entity that was Lord Rezkin. She suddenly felt completely ill prepared for her
task. The Raven had not mentioned that Lord Rezkin was of such high standing,
nor did he mention to which House the man belonged. It would be rude for her to
ask, and she did not want anyone else to know she was ignorant of a fact that
obviously should have been known by all of the gentry.

“Well, of course Lord Rezkin has my highest regard, and I
would be more than happy to show him how much so,” Hilith said with a
flirtations perusal, “in our business dealings, of course,” she finished before
anyone could accuse her of being inappropriate.

Rezkin put his arm around an angry Frisha and drew her to
his side. The young woman’s features softened with his blatant claim, and she
smiled at him fondly. “Perhaps, Lady Gadderand, we will have the opportunity to
discuss business in Skutton. You did say you were heading that way, yes?”

“Well, yes…”

“Excellent, then we shall meet again. For now, we must be
off. As you can see, our ship is boarding as we speak. I wish you a good
voyage, Lady Gadderand.” Once again, Hilith was left watching Lord Rezkin’s
retreating form, which was a fantastical form at that.

The party boarded the Luna Mara, and while everyone was
settling their belongings, Kai studied the Gadderand woman from the deck of the
ship. Something was off about that woman, and he thought his king must have
detected it as well, since he had shut her down so succinctly. The older man
wanted to laugh. Rezkin had been friendly, respectful, cordial and outright
dismissive. Women practically threw themselves at his feet, but the young man
remained completely unaffected, save for with Frisha. Had he been in the same
situation at Rezkin’s age, he did not believe he would have been capable of
such restraint.

The ship headed into the open waters of the Souelian Sea
between the mainland and the isles, and it had just as much up and down as it
did side to side. Reaylin immediately felt ill and was soon followed by
Malcius, Frisha, and Tam. Wesson used his powers to heat water for Rezkin to
brew a tea to settle their stomachs.

“Why did you brew it that way?” Wesson asked as he watched
Rezkin go through a serious of complicated motions.

Rezkin shrugged and said, “It makes the herbs more potent
and promotes faster effect.”

“You are correct. It would –
if
you were an
alchemist. It only works if you infuse the solution with adamantine power.
Adamantine power is the type of power wielded by healers, so named for its
brilliant luster under mage sight,” the mage explained.

 Rezkin shrugged and replied, “I know what adamantine
power is, and I do it this way because that is how I was taught. I did not
realize it was an alchemical technique.”

“Well, it is unnecessary since you do not have the
talent
,”
Wesson remarked.

“I will continue to do it this way because it is
irresponsible to lose knowledge just because it is not useful at this time,”
Rezkin stated. After further thought he said, “If I have been taught alchemical
methods in my healing techniques, then it could prove useful for Reaylin’s
training. I assume you are not versed in such techniques since you do not have
the affinity?”

Wesson shook his head and replied, “No, you are correct. I
have very little training in mage healing since I was unable to perform even
the simplest spells.” The young man sniffed and said, “A
talent
reader
told me that the thread of adamantine in my vimara is so thin it was barely
visible.”

“I am unfamiliar with
readers
. What exactly does a
talent
reader do?” Rezkin queried.

“A
talent
reader is someone who can not only sense
the talent in others but can actually
see
the individual strands of
power in a person’s vimara. Other mages, like myself, cannot sense the strength
of another mage’s power. We can only sense that it is present. A reader can see
the thickness of each strand in your vimara – the thicker the strand, the
more power – and can determine your ratio and overall strength,” Wesson
explained.

Rezkin shook his head and inquired, “If you were seen by a
talent
reader, why did you ever bother to attempt to become a life mage?”

The journeyman responded, “Oh, I have a decent amount of
amber power – enough to become a life mage. Amber power enables a mage to
commune and bond with animals and encourages growth and prosperity in plants.
The problem is that my amber power is overpowered by the nocent power…ah, the
destructive power. Nocent power has a tendency to interfere with the other
types, especially when the ratio is very high. My master took me to the reader
because he worried that my nocent power was unusually high, which it is.”

“What kind of power do readers use?” Rezkin inquired
curiously.

“Oh, it is not a type of power. In fact, it is an extremely
rare affinity. A mage must have a very specific ratio of powers in order to be
a reader. There are only three known readers in all of Ashai at the moment,”
the mage answered.

“So the ratios of powers are just as important as the amount
of each power?” Rezkin asked.

“Probably more so. Some ratios are relatively common and
some are extremely rare, like that of a reader. The Mage Council has defined
the ratios they believe to be ideal for each type of mage. For example, it
would not do for a life mage to have one hundred percent amber power. That is
not even possible, but if it were, it would not make the life mage more
powerful or effective. An ideal life mage ratio is forty-five percent amber,
twenty-five percent adamantine, ten percent aquian – the elemental power
of water, ten percent crystallis – the elemental power of earth, and ten
percent
other
.

“Between two life mages with the same ratio, the one with
the
most
power, or thickest strands, will be more powerful and
effective. However, a very
powerful
mage with a less efficient ratio
could be less effective than a less powerful mage with an ideal ratio.”

“But, you cannot know your ratio unless you are seen by a
reader?” Rezkin asked.

“Yes,” Wesson agreed. “Mages usually find their affinities
by trial and error since readers are so rare. Those trained at the Mage Academy
are typically seen by a reader at least once before their graduation. Sometimes
the powers fluctuate or change over time, especially in young mages. Mages like
me, who apprenticed outside of the academy, do not always receive a reading.”

“And, is your ratio efficient?” the warrior asked.

“That is the thing with destructive magic,” Wesson said
spreading his hands. “The ratio does not matter – only the amount of
power – so long as you want to
destroy
. The ratio is only
important if you wish to perform other types of magic, since, as I said,
destructive magic interferes with the other types. That is why those who are
strong in destructive magic are always referred to as battle mages. It is all
we are good for,” the young man said dejectedly. “My overall power is unusually
strong. The
amount
of amber power I have is almost equal to any life
mage, but my adamantine is nearly nonexistent. I have a reasonable amount of
tropestrian – the elemental power of wind, as well as a small amount of
aquian and crystallis. Those are all of the
constructive
powers. If the
total
quantity
of my
constructive
power were all I had, I would
be on the lower side of average as a constructive mage.

“Those are all constructive powers, though. You are a
destructive mage,” Rezkin observed.

Wesson nodded and sighed heavily. “Yes. Those powers do me
very little good because they are overshadowed by my nocent power. Nocent
refers to destructive power as a whole, which also includes pyris – the
elemental power of fire. I have enough nocent power to make about two and a
half average nocent mages, and my ratio guarantees destructive affinity. I am
ninety percent nocent, about thirty percent of which is pyris.”

“So you are sixty percent general nocent, thirty percent
pyris, and ten percent constructive. Your total power is equal to about three
average mages?” Rezkin clarified.

“Yes, so you can see why I am so disappointed,” Wesson
replied.

The warrior shook his head in awe. “You should not be
disappointed at all. It sounds like you are one of the most powerful mages in
Ashai.”

The journeyman frowned and said, “Yes, but only if I want to
destroy
things. If my constructive power was not so
strong
, I
would not be able to perform any constructive magic at all with my ratio.”

“Destruction is not always a bad thing,” Rezkin asserted. “I
am certain you can find constructive uses for your destructive power. I have
already been impressed with the way you apply your power to the same effect for
which others would use constructive power – like the sound shield. Did
you design that yourself?”

“No, it is a common battle mage technique that aids in
stealth. I have yet to really develop anything new,” Wesson remarked.

“There are other uses for destruction, as well,” the warrior
stated. “What if a building collapses with people inside? You can break apart
the debris so that rescuers can get to the injured. You could clear landslides
or burn away fields infested with fungus or parasites. There are even uses in
healing. You can use your power to kill the invaders.”

“Kill the invaders?” the mage asked skeptically.

“Yes, one of my healing instructors explained that sickness
is caused when creatures too small to see invade the body and attack. You could
use your nocent power to destroy the invaders,” Rezkin explained.

“I…I never thought of that. I could use nocent power to heal
sickness. Interesting. Natural healers usually have a difficult time healing
illness not related to injury. They repair damage caused by the sickness and
encourage the body to fight the illness on its own but are dependent on mundane
or alchemical potions to kill the sickness. I may not need any potions. I will
have to think about that,” Wesson remarked.

The following day was accompanied by a moderate storm. The
rain fell heavily, and the wind blew strongly across the deck and through the
sails. The passengers were forced to stay indoors, and the stifling humidity
and heat only made them feel that much worse when the ship abruptly rose and
fell for hours upon hours. Rezkin’s supply of herbs could not hope to last the
entire length of the trip, and he hoped the storm would pass quickly so the sea
would calm.

Eventually, Rezkin approached Reaylin and Tieran who were
sitting only a few seats from each other in the mess looking miserable.
“Everyone is sick,” he said waving a hand around at the sad lot. The two
followed his hand as the warrior stated the obvious. “I am running low on
herbs. Pretty soon, they will be gone. Reaylin can use her talent to heal
everyone who is sick, and then I can save the herbal remedy for just her, since
she cannot heal herself,” he said looking pointedly at the young woman.