The Sorcerer's Return (The Sorcerer's Path) (28 page)

“
Well, I’m glad we’re friends.” Andrill extended his hand. “I wish you luck in all your endeavors.”

Azerick shook the man’s hand. “I am glad we are friends as well.
There is a terrible storm coming, Andrill. Be prepared for it.”

“I have received some weather reports. We are ready to move when it blows in.”

Azerick’s troupe did not travel far beyond the outermost walls of Southport. The site Azerick chose for the gate was only a short distance beyond the Martial Academy’s parade ground. He cast several wards to prevent any magical or mundane spying before ordering the engineers to erect the stones. It took two hours of constant, minute adjustments before Raijaun declared them in alignment and several more hours for him to connect the strands of magic joining them.

Azerick stood back and studied his son’s work
from afar while the engineers and surveyors played dice or found other ways to pass the time. There were thousands of web-thin strands of arcane energy connecting the pair of gates, each one crucial to perfectly synch them together to warp time and space. Anything out of alignment could cause part of anyone using it to arrive at the far gate at a different time or location than the rest of them.

“It is as perfect as I can make it, Father,” Raijaun said through the speaking stone.

“I can detect no flaws. I have faith in you.”

Azerick fed power into the stones and brought them to life. Tiny arcs of stray energy sparkled along the pillars’ surface and the space between them. A shimmering veil appeared between the pillars and resolved into an image of a changed landscape. To the casual eye, it looked as though a slice of distant forest had been cut out and dropped in the clearing.

Azerick turned to his men. “Would you like to follow me home?”

“I think we’ll take the boat if it’s all the same to you.”

Azerick smiled, gave the men a wave, and stepped into the gate. The familiar feeling of disorientation washed over him as two hundred miles flew by in the blink of an eye. His demonic form minimized the discomfort, but it was going to cause mayhem on the cities’ population when they used the enormous gates he planned to construct.

He emerged from the gate in North Haven and stood before Raijaun, his son’s face etched with concern. “I would call that an unparalleled success.”

“What now, Father?”

“Now comes the hard part. We must take what we have learned, make it bigger with
an even greater distance between gates, and create instructions for a team of wizards to duplicate it. Neither of us has the time to devote to making these gates ourselves.”

“Do you think The Academy will listen to you this time?”

“They will soon have no choice.”

***

“Azerick, Zeb’s ship has returned!” Miranda exclaimed excitedly.

Azerick looked up from his desk and put down his quill. “Is Daebian with him?”

“Of course he is. They should almost be here by now.”

Azerick stood and allowed Miranda to pull him up the stairs and out of the tower. Zeb and Daebian were just
inside the gates and approaching the tower When Azerick and Miranda emerged. The instant Daebian appeared Miranda dropped Azerick’s hand, rushed forward, and wrapped her arms around her son.

“Are you all right? Don’t you ever run off like that again!”

“I’m fine, Mother. I got to go to Bakhtaran and we were attacked by pirates!”

“Pirates! You could have been killed!”

“I’m fine, Mother!” Daebian insisted again.

“Well, you’re home now. Come inside and get something to eat. You also need bath. You stink.”

“I’m a sailor! Sailors are supposed to stink.”

“
When you are not on a ship, you are the grandson of the Duchess and no longer allowed to stink.”

Miranda hustled Daebian toward the tower. Daebian smiled and gave Azerick a cheerful wave.

“Pirates?” Azerick asked as Zeb stepped next to him.

“We gotta talk.”

“All right. How did Daebian do on the ship?” Azerick asked as he led Zeb to his study.

“He’s a fine sailor. He’d have made your father proud. He worked hard and never once complained, even when my
swabby foreman set him on cleaning the bilge by himself.”

“That’s a crew task.”

“Aye, but I guess he had something to prove, or maybe the boy said something he didn’t care for. I don’t know. He got himself knifed in Southport for lifting a purse. Funny thing is I never took him for a thief, and I like to think I’m a pretty good judge of character.”

“You think Daebian may have set him up?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t even think about it until after the pirates attacked us.”

“Tell me about that. What happened?”

“We were about a day into Sumaran waters when two pirate ships ran us down. We were already outnumbered, but they had a wizard of some kind on board as well. If your son hadn’t come up with the idea to string nets and line above the bulwarks, they would ‘a swarmed over even faster. Even so, it wasn’t looking good for us I can tell you. I ordered your boy to lock himself in my cabin and stay there. He didn’t listen. He came out and stabbed a man.”

Azerick nodded sympathetically. “I was near his apparent age when I first killed a man
, and Daebian’s mental maturity is even greater than his appearance. It is a hard thing to understand.”

“How did ya feel when you killed him?”

“It was after my mother had just been murdered. He grabbed me in an alley. I was scared, angry, and I did what I had to do. I did not regret it, but I wished I had not been in that alley.”

“Aye, that’s how a man should feel when he takes a life. It’s an unpleasant necessity on occasion, but you don’t take no joy in it. He smiled, Azerick.
A man shouldn’t have that look in his eyes unless he’s with a woman. He stuck the man in the gut and smiled as he watched the life go out in his eyes. Then he disappeared. He got onto the pirate ship and raised all kinds of havoc over there. I don’t know what he did or how he did it, but that captain called his crew back even though they had us done for.”

“What do you think happened?”

“I don’t know, but that captain raised sails and made for the horizon as if Sharellan herself was on his heels.”

“Daebian never said what happened?”

“He never said a word other than he killed the wizard and made the captain call back his men. He just went about his business with a smile like nothing ever happened. I don’t want to speak ill of your boy, but there is a something not right in him. There’s darkness in his heart, and I don’t see anything good coming from him. I won’t ever sail him on my ship again. I’ll retire first.”

Azerick sighed heavily and cla
pped Zeb on the shoulder. “If he ever sneaks into your ship again, put him off at the nearest port. He can find his way from there. I’m sorry about that, Zeb. I know there is something off with him, but I just don’t know what it is or what to do about it.”

“Well, he comes from good stock. Maybe he’ll straighten out when he’s older.”

They were kind words, but neither man really believed it. Daebian was an enigma and far from a passive one. Azerick was certain he had a large role to play in their destiny, but what part he could not begin to fathom.

CHAPTER
12

Weeks passed without any more trouble from Daebian. Apparently, his adventure on the high seas had cooled
whatever fire burned within him. Raijaun walked briskly from the small summoning room and went in search of his father. As usual, he found Azerick in his main laboratory pouring over the Codex Arcana. Azerick did not look up from his studies as his son entered.

“
Father, I discovered a weakening in the barrier.”

“I told you I did not want you to go there alone. Any mistake in making repairs could weaken it further. Besides, it is more important that you focus on your training for now.”

“I know, Father, but training is finished for the day and I thought to study the Scions and the barrier in more detail. The flaw is rather substantial and could soon become a breach.”

“I am aware of it. I found it several days ago,” Azerick replied nonchalantly.

Raijaun did not understand his father’s seemingly disinterested attitude. Weaknesses in the barrier were almost common now, but Azerick had always been quick to repair them, often asking Raijaun for his help in doing so.

“What are we going to do about it?”

“Nothing.”

“Father, I do not understand. The weakness is large
, and many of the Scions minions could get through; far more than in Bruneford’s Mill.”

“
I have warned against as much, yet people still fight me. People vital in our defense ignore my warnings and withhold their full support. If they continue to do so, we stand no chance at victory. Do you understand?”

“Where
will it open?” Raijaun asked quietly.

“Somewhere near The Academy grounds.”

“A lot of people will die. A lot of children.”

Azerick nodded. “This is true, but a lot more children will die if The Academy and the nobles continue to resist my efforts to prepare. They ignored what happened at Bruneford’s Mill because they are far from
that place and the people there have little voice in the heart of the kingdom. They ignored my warnings even when I showed them the face of our enemy. They refuse to acknowledge them as the threat they are due to their arrogance. Commoners will rally and take up arms if they perceive a threat, because they are accustomed to bearing the brunt of harm. The powerful and privileged feel secure in their strength and often ignore a threat until it draws the blood of their own. Do you now understand?”

“I do, Father, but I do not like it.”

Azerick finally looked up from his book and smiled at his son. “It pleases me to hear you say that. One of us must keep a warm heart, and I am afraid mine has frozen to the core.”

***

“It is time to exploit the weakening,”
Xar told his fellows.

“
I sense the false Guardian’s presence upon it. I find it suspect he did not repair it like so many others,”
Zyn said.

“Obviously he wishes us to use it, but for what end?”
Arhal asked.

Kaz asked,
“Where does it lead?”

“I sense a powerful conglomeration at its exit point. I suspect it leads to either their precious Academy or Hall of
Inquisition. It is certainly in the kingdom the humans call Valeria.”

“Why leave
it to allow us to exploit it? What is his gain?”

“
Knowing the arrogance of humans, many resist him and he wishes to make a point or punish them. Their wizards in particular are far too confident in their power, and he wishes to create some much needed insecurity.”

“What should we do?”

“Oblige him of course.”

“You want to help the humans unite against us? I fail to see the logic in that,”
Doaz said.

“That is because you were never one for understanding the mentality of the humans. We want them to be at their absolute strongest when we crush them
. The few we allow to live will know their pathetic kind was at its strongest point in history. This will sap the will of our supplicants to ever attempt to overthrow us in the future for we will never allow them to attain any such strength again. It is not enough to defeat them; we must crush their spirit and any hope of ever resisting us again.”

“Wise as always. Let us then make the breach.”

The five Scions gathered around the crystal and placed their hands upon its smooth surface. The searing beam of light lanced out from the floating fortress and stabbed the barrier with its awesome intensity. The barrier warped and wavered for a mile in every direction until the incredible power of the Scions overcame its resolve to keep the horrible masses at bay.

Headmaster Florent sat bolt upright in her bed as
she sensed the destruction of several of The Academy wards. She barely got her robes wrapped around her when there came a furious knocking on her door. Maureen grabbed her staff, cast a series of protective wards upon her person, and opened the door from a distance with a simple spell.

A f
ellow mage burst into the room, blood evident on his robes. “Headmaster, creatures are breaching our wards and swarming the grounds!”

“Where?” the headmaster demanded.

“Everywhere! There are thousands of them!”

Fear warred with rage
knowing her school was under siege. Never in the history of man had The Academy been attacked, much less infiltrated and its populace threatened.

“Rouse the cadre, tell them to arm themselves as quickly as they can, and make for the nearest student dorms. We must protect the children.”

“Should they go to the artifact vault first, Headmaster?”

“There is no time. It takes three council members and the Vault Master to open it. They will have to go as they are and do their best. Once we gather the students together, perhaps then we can detach a group to the vault.”

The two wizards were running down the steps of the Headmaster’s tower when a hellish chorus of terrified cries resounded up the spiraling stone staircase. Maureen’s blood turned to ice at what those screams portended.

“Dear gods above, the novice quarters,” she whispered and broke into a sprint, heedless of moving so quickly down the treacherous stairs.

The Headmaster’s tower residence was the closest to the novice quarters with the exception of the Master of Novices. There was only a few hundred feet of hallways to traverse once she and the junior wizard reached the bottom floor. Just as they reached the ground level, explosions and the crackling of unleashed magic helped drown out the cries of the young children.

The pair sprinted around the corner and nearly ran into the rear ranks of ravagers as they piled through an adjoining hallway, bent on reaching the novice quarters
and the young mages inside. Wilfred, the young wizard, looked to the Headmaster for instruction, but Maureen was already channeling the Source. The Headmaster lowered the tip of her staff, using the power it contained to focus and amplify her magic, and unleashed a great ball of fire that nearly filled the hall from wall to wall. The fiery orb rolled away from her and quickly picked up speed, leaving the passageway filled with the ravagers’ blackened corpses. When the miniature sun nearly reached the entranceway of the novices’ quarters, it exploded back in the direction from which it came, catching any ravagers not killed in the initial attack as well as the new ones already filling the corridor in its fiery blast.

“Wilfred, shield us please,” Maureen said calmly as the wall of fire raced toward them both.

Wilfred was a young wizard with lackluster talent, but self-protective wards were minor magic for the most part, and even the least among them could affect a reasonable amount of protection. Wilfred hastily raised a ward just before Headmaster Florent’s fiery back blast washed over them.

“Keep these creatures from reaching us, Wilfred, so I may deal with them.”

Her devastating assault did not end the fight, but at least the ravagers were now more focused on her than trying to get at the children. Maureen sent more fire, lightning, and pure arcane power scything through the ranks of murderous creatures. Even her awesome magic was unable to destroy them faster than they piled into the hallway, completely heedless of the death around them. Several broke through Maureen’s assault and struck Wilfred’s ward, their blades casting blue sparks as they tried to stab through.

Headmaster Florent adjusted her attacks to deal with those who got close before they could break through Wilfred’s ward. The two wizards continued to fight their way to the novices’ quarters under the constant harrying of ravagers. Another heavy knot of
hellish creatures threw themselves into Maureen’s cleansing mage fire, some striking against the invisible shield. A smaller, blue-skinned creature pressed through the ranks of ravagers, but the Headmaster dismissed it as a lesser threat and chose to deal with the bigger, stronger ravagers first.

It was a fatal mistake. The bone blade gripped in the creature’s hand cut through Wilfred’s ward as if it were tissue paper. It leapt onto his chest and sank its
knife into the young man’s neck several times before Maureen could even register the breach. She conjured a sphere of force around herself before exploding it outward, flinging back the host of attackers.

Whatever ability the blue-skinned creature had to destroy wards
, it did nothing to protect it from her mage fire. She incinerated it before it could regain its feet and turn that blackened bone knife on her. Still the ravagers poured into the hall, and Maureen realized she was not going to be able to kill them all before they overwhelmed her. The senior archmage pointed her staff at the ceiling of the hallway leading outside and brought down the entire length of stone overhead, effectively sealing the passage.

She had no time to waste. It would likely not take long for the creatures to find another way through
, and the sounds of resistance emanating from the novice quarters had ceased moments ago. Maureen ran down the passageway, destroying the few remaining ravagers with her magic. She burst into the first dorm room and nearly collapsed. The chamber housing a dozen children was a charnel house, its walls awash in blood.

Maureen could not afford to allow grief to weigh her down as more screams reached her ears, crying out for help from the rooms farthest down the hall. There would be time for mourning later, if they survived. She did not pause to look into the dorms as she ran past them. They were as silent as a midnight graveyard
, and the cries of the living called out louder than the silent pleadings of the ghosts.

The Headmaster found a knot of ravagers trying to claw and cut their way through a thick mass of sticky, web-like strands crisscrossing the far length of the hallway. The magically slicked floor made it even more difficult for the monsters to breach the webs and reach the rooms where terrified
survivors huddled together for support.

Maureen used her magic to take control of the novices’ spell, turning the webs into a living thing that reached out and wrapped around the ravagers. The creatures writhed like insects caught in a spider’s trap until the Headmaster transmuted the strands into razor-sharp glass. With the clenching of her shaking fist, the glass contracted and cut the ravagers into pieces. She did not see or hear any more of the bestial men and dispelled the minor defensive magics. She found several of the doorways leading into the dorm rooms barricaded with what was probably every piece of furniture in the rooms. Not a sound emanated from behind the barriers.

“Children?” Maureen called out.

“Headmaster Florent?” a young voice answered.

Tears of joy sprang to her eyes at hearing the voices of her students as they began whispering excitedly to each other. “Yes, children. Help me tear down these barriers. We must be away from here and find the others.”

The sound of shifting furniture broke the quiet of the death-shrouded hall. It took several minutes to move the barricades and for the first few young mages to step warily into the hall. The oldest were the first to peek around the doorway before daring to step fully out of their rooms, but the younger quickly followed as the older passed back the all clear. 

“I am so proud of all of you!” Headmaster Florent gushed as she hugged several of her students. “Come, let us find the others.”

“Are they all gone, Headmaster?” one young girl asked.

Maureen felt a slight tremble in the stone beneath her feet and could hear the faint sounds of battle echoing from somewhere within The Academy. “No, I am afraid they are not. We must find the others and fight together. I want you all to stay very close to me. Those of you who can, focus on slowing the creatures. Defensive magic only unless there is no other choice.”

Maureen did a quick headcount and tallied seventy-three novices. Seventy-three out of a roster of two-hundred forty-seven. Had she not had the lives of those seventy-three counting on her, she might
well have crumpled onto the floor and wept until the ravagers found their way back and tore her to pieces.

She paused only briefly to call into the devastated rooms she
had passed over to reach the survivors. Her heart leapt when a voice called out from beneath a bed or from inside an overturned wardrobe. One young girl stepped out of the corner of her room, breaking the perfect illusion she had cast to hide. Thirteen more novices clung to their headmaster as they left the dead behind but not forgotten.