The Ways of Mages: Starfire (7 page)

They were afraid of him. It made him smile. His council should be fearful around him. He was their master, after all. And only true respect came from fear.

The only two who showed no real worry were Maltacken and Savranious. Maltacke
n’
s shadowy mass shifted as he kept to his own thoughts. Savranious, The Master of Nightmare, had his gaze locked upon the table. His solid black eyes half veiled behind thick black lashes.

The last one to enter the Dark Chamber was the beautiful snake, Kaltana. Her lustrous black hair flowed in a raven waterfall down her back. Her feminine body clothed in watery blue drapes swayed with a serpen
t’
s grace. As soon as she entered the room, all the male Dark Kin could
n’
t help but notic
e…
only the Dark Lord and Savranious appeared to be spared the Soul Eate
r’
s spell.

Kaltana bowed deeply before her lord. She then glided to her seat and sat down. The Dark Lord leaned back in his chair and waited.

“
Is it done
?”
Maltacken finally spoke.

Kaltana grinned. She leaned toward the Master of Shadows, licking her lips
.“
Mmm, yessss
.”
her voice like a bedroom sigh. Her gaze slid back to him on his throne. She inclined her head in respect
.“
It isss done, my Dark Lord. Thomas GrimHolden iss dead, drowned in the Barrier Maelsstrom
.
”

“
You did
n’
t eat his soul
?”
Gul
a’
dar asked.

Kaltana slid him a contemptuous glance
.“
I had many soulss. Ssso many you would be jealous if I went into detail
.
”

“
Well done, Lady Soul Eater
.”
The Dark Lor
d’
s voice slithered from his cowl. Gul
a’
dar swallowed his reply to the seductively infuriating snake
.“
Now that the leading bastion of the infernal light is gone, we must take care of his troops
.
”

“
Why do
n’
t we just sswamp them with Dark Sons
?”
Kaltana asked.

The Dark Lord smiled, though his Kin could not see it
.“
Maltacken, Troukalck, Sal
i’
dar
,”
Each Dark Kin straightened when their lord called their name
.“
Send your Dark Sons to the camp of the rebels on the next dark moon. Maltacken, have your slave conjure the Fires of the Damned around the camp. She has till then to prepare
.
”

“
Yes, my lord
.”
Each of the three murmured.

As they were leaving, he continued
.“
And Maltacken, the only reason why your slave is
n’
t serving my whims at this moment is because the Lady Kaltana has taken care of Grim.  If your slave fails me again, she will find herself at my mercy
.”
Kaltana preened as Maltacken bowed again to the Dark Lord. 

The poisonous green light died. The blood-red runes glowed brightly before also going dark. The Dark Lord leaned back in his chair, a finger caressing the eye ridge of a long dead dragonet. In three day
s’
time, the armies of the light would be slaughtered.  And he would have a front row seat to witness their destruction. His smile turned into a full-fledged grin and he laughed.

The waning moon night trembled in uneasy fea
r
… 

***

Pershara- Palace, The City of Pershara

Altana studied her reflection in the mirror in the suite that belonged to her when she stayed at the palace. She rubbed her hands over her swelling stomach. The motion caused a grating pain from Maltacke
n’
s gift. The rose vine bracele
t’
s thorns were still buried in her flesh from when she had tried to remove the strange sword from her enem
y’
s device. The constant pain was doing something to her. Not exactly weakening, but certainly not making her stronger.

Whatever that sword was, it was powerful. Simply put, she wanted it. Such a sword in the hands of her enemies again made her edg
y…
which led to the incident in the entrance hall when she arrived. She would not be surprised if the servants were still cleaning the residue off the wall
s
…

Another thing that led to her edginess was her maste
r’
s new husk. Its growth, while a good thing, consumed her strength. She could
n’
t understand why most women in the world aspired to be mothers; the draining of energy, the morning sickness, the other maladies being with child brought. A baby was little more than a disease. A leech. 
After I carry this to term,
she thought,
I’
m never carrying a brat again.

The candles flickered and went out. Altana took a deep breath, her eyes closing half way. Her lover and father had come to her. She fell to the ground. His presence coiled about her in an embrace of painful pleasure.

BELOVED, his thunderous voice pierced her soul with its strength. I HAVE A TASK FOR YOU. YOU WILL ENJOY IT.

“
What is it, my lord? What can I do to further your glory
?”
She gasped.

IN THREE DAYS HENCE IS THE DARK MOON. BY THEN, YOU WILL HAVE PREPARED THE FIRES OF THE DAMNED. Altana gasped at this news. The Fires of the Damned was a powerful spell; one that required a lot of preparation. Coupled with the dark moon, the Fires would strengthen the Dark Sons and make it nearly impossible to kill them. It was rumored that only one of the Three Swords of Power could defeat the spell and the enhanced Dark Sons. And the Swords of Power had long ago been los
t…
PLACE THE FIRES AROUND THE REBL
E’
S CAMP. Maltacken continued.

“
Oh yes, my lor
d”
Altana breathed. She could already imagine the savage, brutal ending of the rebels at the claws of the Dark Sons. Her dark lord left her gasping in pleasure on the floor. After the last of the pleasure faded from her system, she would have to start the tedious preparations for the spell he had commanded. Altana smiled. The servants she had sent ahead of her had still arrived late, even with her unexpected delay. She had been planning to take her time with them, but now she could have her fun and they would have a purpose...

             
“Music is said to entrance man. It can influence emotion. Perhaps control the mind. ”- excerpt from the incomplete writings of Brisbin.

Arathin- Qwincha, Marlhema

The storm Jewel had watched from afar came.  Its violence was a shock to many people. For the storm had come slowly. People who had left or hunkered down soon lost their fear when nothing happened. They went about their day blind to the monster about to pounce. The distant thunder became a roar. The waves went from placid ripples to enraged mountains that loomed above foolish man. Lightning ripped through the sky and flickered over the sea. Any ship that had been out had been sent crashing into the shore.

  In essence; it was the worst storm any remembered.

It hit the eastern shores of Marlhema with a violence the locals prayed never to see again. It was a miracle that Qwinch
a’
s harbor had survived. Other seaboard towns had not been so lucky. Jewel had seen where those towns had been, the debris washed miles in land or lost to sea...

Qwincha had been lucky. Even so, there was clean up to do, people to heal, and repairs to be made. Jewel and other tow
n’
s healers were walking up and down the shore in search of those poor souls who had been at the stor
m’
s merc
y…
or lack thereof.

Sam-the-Unwise scampered after Jewel as she went. The kitten reminded her of Rat and Mr. Underfoot playing in the tide pools back in Pershara. It was a bittersweet memory. As was everything, really, that reminded her of her previous life. They were like roses: beautiful yet painful. Those memories and her nightmares were all she had left of her birth land. Over the years, she had learned to love Arathin; its many peoples and the different manifestations of magic. Ari
té
had taught her many things over the years; shapeshifting being her favorite.

Jewel was pulled out of her thoughts by a certain furball batting at her heel. She glanced down at the fluffy white kitten. Sam-th
e–
Unwise mewed and bounded ahead. In the surf bobbed a strange raft consisting of a yardarm, a deckwall, and a barrel all lashed together. There were three people, two men and a woman with long black hair. Jewel knelt beside the man strapped to the barrel. He was a craggy, older fellow, reminded her of the old sea salts in town
.“
Breqwin
!”
She called a fellow healer. The traveling healing mage hurried up the shore. He knelt between the man on the yardarm and the dark haired woman

“
The
y’
re alive
.”
Breqwin or Birdsea, announced.

Jewel nodded in acknowledgement as she checked the old sea salt
.“
So is this one. Any injuries
?”
She asked as she cut loosed the man from the barrel.

“
Only a couple scratches here and there. They are very cold, which concerns me
.
”

“
Alright then, le
t’
s get them out of the water
.”
Jewel and Breqwin worked to drag the victims of the storm out of the surf line. The ever helpful, yet in the way, Sam-the-Unwise underfoot.

Due to an old agreement, Jewel left the minor wounds and check over to Breqwin. If he found anything serious, she would be there. The ever playful kitten crept toward the young man who had been on the yardarm.  Sam-the-Unwise had found a glittering toy that had yet to be taken away. Always one to enjoy the opportunities life offered, Sam lightly pawed the younger of the two men. Actually, the kitten was playing with the sailo
r’
s jingly earrings.  Jewel shooed the kit away. Sam gave her a disgruntled look before bounding away further up shore. Following him with her gaze, Jewel saw another figure.

“
You got these
?”
Jewel asked Breqwin.

“
Indeed, Chana
.”
He replied, using her Marlheman nickname. It did
n’
t bother her, after all, it meant Jewel.

Jewel raced after the fluffy white, mischievous kitten. The white fur ball was standing on the figure. The waves lapped at the form as if begging him to return to their embrace. Jewel knelt by the man and rolled him over, Sam-the-Unwise sprang onto her shoulder. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the ma
n’
s face.

She had not seen his face in well over a thousand years. Almost two thousand years, yet he looked just as she remembered
.“
Father
?”
She asked in a soft voice. 

The man stirred and opened his eyes. He blinked a few times staring at her
.“
Jewel? Is tha
t…
? You are older
.
”

Jewel smiled with tears in her eyes. Leave it to a man to say things so bluntly. She absently fingered her silver threaded copper hair
.“
Are you injured anywhere
?
”

Grim kept staring at her. She recognized the signs of fatigue due to long usage of magic. It was complicated by mundane physical exhaustion.  Invoking her power, Jewel ran her hand a few inches above his body. Like the others, he had a few scratches some of which looked to be older. They were not from the stor
m…
they resembled torture wounds.

“
Mortia
.”
She whispered.  Grim stiffened
.“
Be at peace, you are safe
.”
She said in a soothing tone
.“I’
m going to take care of you
.”
She promised. 

“
Another one
?”
Breqwin asked coming up behind Jewel.

“
Yes, help me move the four of them to my cabin. I
t’
s nearby
.
”

***

Pershara- Near the City of Pershara

Duncan stood in the field, his eyes narrowed at the city in the distance. For the past several days people had been trickling out of the city; most of them bringing only what they could carry. They had had enough. They knew a battle was coming. They also knew their king would sacrifice them. So they left for the east

But there were still thousands of people within the city. And as far as Duncan knew they were still starving. Over the past few days, Duncan and a few others had tried to contact the Thieve
s’
Guild.  Charity was nowhere to be found. None of the other contacts that Tommy had given them could be found. And last eve before Duncan decided to go through the door Shade had shown Trevor and he out of the cit
y
…

Duncan clenched his fist. The crunch of paper drew his eye. They had been unable to contact the Thieve
s’
Guild, but the Guild had ways of communicating with them. Before Duncan had left for the wall, he had found a note on his campaign desk. All his other papers had been put on the chair so he would notice the note. In a sharp, yet flowing script were written these words:

We of the Guild would appreciate it if you left our doors alone. We worked really hard to make them secret and defensible so the city would not be put at risk while we ran our business. If there are any developments that concern you, rest assured, you will be informed.

                                                                                                 
R.S

The presence and content of the note concerned Duncan. First, how had it arrived in his tent in the short space of time he went to get something? Did the thieves have an agent in the army? It would
n’
t surprise him. It was a large army; too many faces to keep track of. And there would be no way to know. After all, he and Perela had not known that Tommy T. was the king of thieves and they had traveled with him for some time. Though they did know he was a thief, but then, he had
n’
t been that shy about it.

An agent would also explain how the Guild knew of their plans. The only problem was that only the leaders had been in the discussion. Could one of them really be working with the thieves?

Duncan became aware of someone approaching. He turned to see General Stanton
.“
I see I am not the only one to look upon the city while I think
.”
Reed observed.

Duncan grimaced
.“
I hate not doing anything
.
”

Reed snorted softly as he joined Duncan
.“
I remember, not so long ago, I stood about here and wondered why I had
n’
t done something years ago. Why I refused to see what was right in front of me when a good friend came and aske
d‘
what could you have done that you are not doing now
?’
Sound familiar
?
”

Duncan sighed, giving his friend a wry glance
.“
I know. I know too that we ca
n’
t just stay here waiting for the Guild that may very well be using us. I think we either need to move or finalize plans for getting into the palace
.
”

“
I agree
.”
Reed replied
.“
I also do not like sitting here. The more time that goes by, the more opportunity we give the enemy to prepare for us
.”
The Reed saw the restless expression leave the knigh
t’
s face. In its place burned a mischievous light
.“
Uh oh. What are you scheming
?”
he asked warily.

Duncan answered him calmly
.“
Why do
n’
t we make it difficult for our enemy to prepare
?
”

“
What do you mean
?
”

“
We know the Kin
g’
s Guard are within the palace. They are men who need sleep and good food. Since we do
n’
t know the food situation, perhaps we can do something about their rest
.
”

“
You mean make enough noise to keep them up
?
”

Duncan grinned
.“
Your men know which palace wall the garrison is near. Some of our men and maybe people in the city could make a lovely racket
.
”

Reed nodded
.“
Let us see what the others think
.
”

Cotey Mariner, the Grinlean ambassador to the rebel Persharan army, listened to the leaders talk about this latest idea. Weaken ones enemy by denying them a comfortable rest. It reminded him of a recent development from the science division at the royal university. It was actually an accident but might be what the rebels needed.

“
Why do
n’
t we make them not just restless, but make them ill too
?”
He suggested
.“
It is hard to fight when one feels too ill to do anything. It is also nearly impossible to sleep when one is uncomfortable
.
”

“
What are you suggesting? Stanton asked.

“
We discovered that sound has many properties. One was discovered by accident, but it is known as infrasound.  It is low enough that humans cannot hear it, but that does not mean they are unaffected. It can cause headaches and sever feelings of nausea. If we can focus the sound on the wall the garrison is near that may achieve the results you are after without endangering your men
.
”

“
How could we produce this infrasound
?”
Perela asked.

“
I know such things are rare, but do you have an electrical generator anywhere
?”
Cotey asked. The leaders glanced at each other side long. Eventually they all shook their heads
.“
Ah, no matter. I can send a bird to have one sent as well as an appropriately tuned acoustic transmitter. Once it arrives we can set it up in a building opposite and have it run
.
”

“
What will happen if they decided to leave the garrison
?”
Reed asked.

“
The effects will magically dissipate
.”
Cotey replied.

“
So, they could just move elsewhere. The palace is huge, there should be plenty of room for them somewhere
.
”