Battle Mage Broken Empire (Tales of Alus Book 14)

by Donald Wigboldy

  Holdy questioned, "Do you mean about them talking about how they felt about the grand masters' decisions?"

  She nodded.

  "Master Lesolas said that he was planning a meeting with other teachers and maybe other likeminded wizards and warlocks about what they should do. He believes that Grand Master Echolus might be planning on trying to take control of the empire if the emperor's siblings are all gone as well. That might mean he would put us in battle against other contenders and their forces.

  "The master doesn't like our chances of survival, if Echolus continues as he has so far."

  Defrienne frowned and replied first, "I don't like that idea either. Without wizard hunters and soldiers to protect us, we wouldn't stand much of a chance against a real threat. Our numbers are few and most of us don't know how to use swords like Turless."

  "The warlock hunters won't likely follow him or help. Lord Devolus could make them turn against us and most would say that he has the strongest claim if only because of his magical power," Holdy agreed as he added another worry to such potential folly.

  The apprentices sat thinking in relative silence as they continued to eat.

  "Maybe we need to try and join the meeting?" Maya suggested after a time.

  Defrienne shook her head and complained, "Like they would want to listen to a bunch of apprentices' ideas. Besides what can they think to do? We are stuck here after all."

  "We could choose not to fight for him," Turless stated with a shrug.

  Maya looked worried and said quietly, "And what will he do to those who refuse to fight for him? The Grand Master is one of the most powerful warlocks in the empire."

  Thinking on the matter for a moment longer, Holdy said, "Maybe we can think of something to help? If we had an answer to their question, they might take us more seriously."

  The others looked at him like he was mumbling gibberish, but the youngest of their group didn't elaborate seeing that they didn't appear ready to push their luck with the teachers and whoever else they might find willing to discuss their future in Ensolus.

  Chapter 10- Working with Discretion

  Megan joined more than a dozen men and women in a modest sized room. It was one of the smaller classrooms meant for independent studies or for small classes at most. The advantage it had for the group brought together by Master Lesolas was that it was in a quieter part of the building away from the dining area and student residences.

  Holding Torva's hand worriedly, the wizard wondered if she should actually be here. Fordenna had joined them as well after the master had slipped them a note telling where to meet. It was given to her at the last second by proxies who likely had no idea what the messages they held even said.

  She was slightly surprised to see Torva's cousin, Yelon, had come with him as well. The hunter had little real pull in the wizard hunter corps, but she supposed that this wasn't a meeting of necessarily powerful wizards as much as ones that held concern with the direction of the school. With Echolus possibly choosing to go to war to become emperor, it concerned everyone regardless of their standing in the hierarchy.

  Another face she recognized was the warlock, Thielius. He didn't live in the school, though almost half of these men had long since graduated to the spires south of the emperor's fortress. Those wizards and warlocks who had earned enough wealth and standing often chose to leave the school's dorms for homes to call their own. The upper part of the spires often held the wealthiest of their kind.

  "I guess these are all that are coming this time," Master Lesolas said looking a little unhappy. Megan wondered how many more the master had tried to invite if this room was always his intended meeting place. Much more than they had and it would be too crowded even standing. "I guess that we should just begin.

  "As you know, we all to one degree or another feel that the grand master abused his power sending the students into danger at the head of our columns while he hid with the other grand masters in the school."

  Some nodded, though there were those who remained worried that this meeting was actually a trap. In a city like Ensolus, where power reigned, subterfuge was often a way to even the playing field for weaker wizards to defeat the more powerful.

  "We should consider a way to keep them safe," Thielius stated for the room.

  An older man, one of the librarians of the city library, Geerloc added, "If you intend to take the apprentices somewhere else to be safe, you will still need to have books for them to grow into full wizards. You can't hope a handful of wizards will remember every spell to teach them fully.

  "Keeping them safe would be easier if they were fully trained after all."

  "If the city becomes too dangerous to remain here," Master Lesolas questioned, "where would we go?"

  Thielius suggested, "Perhaps one of the outer forts would give us the distance we need."

  Torva shook his head and interrupted the other men saying, "The forts may be too close to the city. Even they could be drawn into a conflict if more than one contender begins to fight for the throne. Perhaps a place only reached by a portal or a very long ride might be better."

  The other men in the room looked at the wizard hunter questioningly. Master Lesolas noted him with his eyes and half stated, "You are a wizard hunter, Torva. As one of a few here that live and work outside of the school, perhaps you have a different viewpoint than the rest of us.

  "Where would a wizard hunter suggest we move the students to keep them safe?"

  Yelon surprised Maya by speaking up and suggesting, "The fortress that Garosh started is south of our enemy's wall. Maybe with him dead, it can be reclaimed and made into something that would work for us."

  Lesolas replied, "The emperor was able to find it, which means others might as well. It would also be in our enemy's territory making it that much more dangerous for us to try and use it."

  The master didn't seem to care that Yelon wasn't one that he had invited. This meeting was to try and come up with a plan of sorts, so even this unexpected source was as good as any to try.

  A silence covered the room a moment before Torva considered his cousin's idea aloud. "The fortress was also closed by the emperor's men. Some of the hunters who went with talked about it enough to know that it is likely a tomb, but maybe hiding the students in Southwall isn't the worst idea."

  Many frowned at his opinion and Lesolas asked, "What do you mean?"

  "Southwall was the emperor's enemy. If we found a place like the fortress and created a second school, a sanctuary of sorts; perhaps one day we would need to broker peace with them, but it would likely be safer than remaining north of the wall."

  Megan added, "They might be more willing to spare us than we think, after all they spared many of the students when they could have killed us all in the battle. They didn't pursue the survivors to the school and many apprentices were humanely knocked out. Only those who gave them a reason likely died from wounds taken in a more severe fight."

  Her opinion of the battle made many of the others nod in realization. It had been something many had noticed and conversations at the dinner table recently had often covered that point as well as the battle.

  Lesolas sighed and asked, "Do we have anyone who can bring us there? The gate buildings and many of the wizards who could use portal magic were killed in the attack. They weren't spared as our apprentices were to the north."

  The room went silent.

  "I know the spell," Megannah replied and added, "but I don't know the location of the fortress or any other point that was used to go there. Wasn't it that resurrection man, Palose, who made a portal point south of the enemy's wall that let our forces nearly break it last fall? Where is he now? Has anyone seen him since the attack on the emperor?"

  Murmurings as they looked at each other in confusion ceased when Torva spoke up, "They say that he had become a necromancer. There was a sign that one of their kind fought for the emperor that day. Maybe he was killed when his skeleton puppets were destroyed? No one has seen him sin
ce as far as I know and there are hunters on the lookout for him even now."

  "The resurrection man isn't that important," Megan reminded them. "We only need one of the points he created south of the wall. Another possibility is flying over the wall, but that would be risky, I suppose. Southwall would likely spot one of our warlocks using the amulets which can transform a man into a shrike. That would leave them on guard."

  The room lapsed into silence as they all tried to think of a better way.

  "I know the portal point," a voice spoke seemingly coming from the wall closest to the door making several of those gathered there jump in surprise. Others readied magic to fight. If Echolus or one of the other grand masters had discovered their plot, they might all be killed or imprisoned for perceived treason, they all knew.

  Holdy released his spell of invisibility.

  "Who?" Lesolas voiced the question at the sight of the boy.

  "Holdy, what are you doing here?" Megan asked stepping towards the apprentice hoping to keep him safe. The boy was one of her students and as such also her responsibility, she felt.

  Looking a bit sheepish to admit his transgression, the boy replied, "I listened in on your conversation with the master earlier today with a spell that I learned from one of the books in the library. I read ahead all the time because my memory can record a page's every word once I have read it once.

  "The skill also transfers to other things, like being able to remember the feeling of an old portal point."

  Megan asked slowly, "So you are saying that you know of the fortress's gate or one of the others south of the wall?"

  Nodding, Holdy answered, "I was on duty one of the times that they opened the gate to the fortress... well to the point outside of it anyway. They say that it was sealed, but I think that I can reopen it if I simply let it open close to the old point."

  "You can do that, young man?" Master Lesolas questioned the apprentice with a raised eyebrow.

  Looking slightly uncertain, Holdy answered positively nonetheless, "I can. To send more than a few people through, I would need help; but I can find the point south of the wall."

  Torva looked at Master Lesolas and asked, "Who should go and should we plan on trying to use a compromised fortress or find something else instead?"

  The question made the room go silent in thought. Again it surprised Megan when Yelon spoke up, "If we had those shrike amulets or if someone knows a shape changing spell to fly like that, one or two people could check the fortress and be able to look for a better place. Maybe Torva and I, or his squad if he thinks they will help, could go through and protect one of the wizards. Once we are there, if it is safe, a wizard could use his or her magic to scout as I said."

  Master Lesolas looked hesitant to say, "I can get a few of the amulets, I think; but who would we send? It could be dangerous, since once someone uses a portal to the fortress they will be in enemy lands for as long as they remain."

  "I could bring my squad to the fortress..." Torva mused as he thought about the idea. Few others looked ready to volunteer.

  Lesolas worriedly asked, "Can you trust them? They won't go running to Echolus or Hunt Master Zarl potentially?"

  "I think that my men are loyal enough, but I can avoid that by simply telling them that we are on a mission for the wizard's school. They won't question the order."

  "I could come along too, cousin," Yelon added with a nod. "I have worked with you before, so no one should question that either. You won't be able to use those without magic if you plan to use the amulets."

  "We will need someone who can create a portal back to Ensolus once we are there," Torva added looking at Megannah hopefully.

  The idea of escaping with him was tempting, though it was hardly some kind of lovers' fling. There would be the other warlocks as well. Either way mattered little as she considered aloud, "I could go to cast the spell, but I can't very well just leave as a teacher. Surely Echolus and the other grand masters would wind up hearing if I missed my classes, even if Fordenna tried to cover for me."

  The other woman wasn't great at masking her feelings and looked unhappy with trying to keep track of fifteen apprentices by herself. They were all old enough not to be treated as children, but they were learning new magic which could be dangerous enough even with both of them in the room to watch for a potential disaster.

  "I should go," Holdy stated making the eyes in the room turn to the apprentice again. He shrugged and added, "It wouldn't seem so odd for an apprentice to go with a squad of warlocks as a training mission. Mistress Megannah could always cover for me by saying that they wished to test if I was wizard hunter material. Even if I am one of the younger students, we have lost several hunters and wizards in general of late so pushing my training up wouldn't be that unusual now."

  A silence settled over the room as his elders considered the idea. Lesolas finally nodded. "Since the boy says he can get you to the fortress gate point, then he can get you back. You might not be able to take all of your men with you anyway. A smaller group or just a pair of you might be required. If the boy can figure out how to use the amulet's spell properly, then it is probably best that you take him along.

  "No one would worry over an apprentice as he said, especially if you return each day before curfew."

  There were frowns for the last words reminding them of the grand masters' new curfew. All the apprentices were to be in the school for a head count before dinner time. There were no evening study sessions in the library any longer.

  Most could see that it was Grand Master Echolus' way of keeping track of those in his power.

  Torva ignored the others' contempt for the new curfew and said, "If I need to stay overnight, I can always send Holdy back. He could even study during the day while I look for a place to settle, if the fortress doesn't work out. There are several potential problems with it, so we might need to look elsewhere before we can decide on a sanctuary in Southwall."

  With that decided, the group dispersed. Some returned to the dining hall, others to their rooms or studies; while Megan and Torva pulled Holdy after them. Yelon tagged along at a bit of a distance pretending that he wasn't listening to their quick conversation.

  "We will leave tomorrow after breakfast at the second bell," Torva stated after trying to decide how to proceed. They needed to act quickly before any other constraints were applied by Echolus and his men. Captain Rorsted and Hunt Master Zarl might be possible problems as well, but Torva thought that he could get around the men. Zarl was only acting leader for those remaining in the city after all. Lord Devolus and his brother, Liev, were considered the true leaders of the wizard hunters with only the emperor having been above them.

  With the emperor gone, many expected Lord Devolus to return and contest for the throne if the princess and her lesser brother couldn't be found. Even if they were, many would side with the lords after their centuries of service at the side of the emperor. Lord Devolus was widely respected by warlocks and generals alike.

  Holdy asked out of curiosity, "You don't want to leave sooner?"

  "If we act too out of character, people will begin to talk. I eat at the second bell with most of my squad every day. I'll conscript Silas and Effelo then. We'll want back up if Southwall is watching the old gate point still."

  "If it was destroyed, why would they need to watch it?" Megan asked frowning slightly in confusion at his worry.

  Shrugging, Torva voiced his opinion, "Even if I felt certain that the point was destroyed or trapped, I might leave a few men behind to make sure that I wasn't being too overconfident. With magic, you can never really be too sure after all."

  Unable to argue with his thinking, they continued walking towards the dining hall. Torva added loud enough for Yelon to hear easily, "You'll come with us Yelon, unless you think that they will question it."

  "Most of my squad was killed at the ambush. I can get away by saying that you need me for a time. Neither Zarl nor Rorsted have had the chance to begin resetting our rema
ining squad members as of yet. I can get them to assign me to you I am sure."

  With everything settled, Holdy parted from them before the hall and went to his small room shared with Turless. He didn't tell of his new mission, but the two talked for a little while before putting out the light to sleep.

  Yelon disappeared as well while Torva and Megan found a table to sit beside in the corner. Before long, Fordenna joined them talking quietly about both the new plans as well as what the two women needed to do in the morning for their class. Holdy would need to be excused in a way that the rest of the class wouldn't get too excited about. Every time a student found attention that took them from a class, it seemed that the other students would talk. They needed to do what they could to avoid such talk to keep certain ears from hearing and relaying the information to the grand masters.

  When enough was said and a decision was made, the three broke up to go to their rooms. Torva joined Megan as usual. He didn't need to return to his room to pack. Likely the first day wouldn't involve as much travel as it would be used to discover what had become of Garosh's fortress and the small army the traitor had brought with him there.

  Megan turned back to kiss Torva passionately as soon as the door closed.

  "Now what was that for, though I am not saying that I mind?" the man asked chuckling as her hands settled behind his neck and her forearms rested on his shoulders. She settled back onto the floor after being on her tiptoes to reach his lips. Even then, Torva had to nod his head to let her catch his lips as the shorter woman tipped hers back to align their mouths.

  "Depending on what happens tomorrow, I may not see you as regularly; so I wanted to give you a little more affection before I might need to give you up for a time," the pretty girl said smiling at him.

  "Holdy will likely bring me be back here by dinner each night, but you might be right. If you sleep in again, we might not get as much time. I'll have to go to my room early tomorrow to make sure that I am ready."