Battle Mage Broken Empire (Tales of Alus Book 14)

by Donald Wigboldy

  "With the emperor dead and no strong leader in his place, I am afraid more of this will happen. If there isn't a new emperor soon, I have a feeling that it will continue to get worse."

  "This is why you wanted to talk to Uncle Poultus?"

  Nodding to his mother, the apprentice looked out at the market noting the humans milling around. Many looked towards him, while others couldn't help looking at the orcs in his traps.

  "If the creatures in his army aren't brought under someone's control, I have my fears that the entire city with explode with this kind of violence. There are others with the same fears among the wizards and wizard hunters; while some of our leaders are scheming to take control for their selves."

  "Well that would be good, right? We need a leader and maybe a great wizard can take the emperor's place. He was a powerful wizard, wasn't he?"

  It was strange to hear her ask that question. Anyone with magic could feel the power that the emperor would show from his spire at times. If he didn't spend much of his time restraining his magic, those with lesser strength would probably have been unable to sleep as they were assaulted by the radiance of his power. Those without magic in their systems were blind and blissfully ignorant, he thought.

  "It would be good if there's a strong, solid leader; but if more than one tries to become emperor there will be more fighting and it will get worse. That is just in Ensolus. I have no doubt that other cities will either break away or decide to try and come here to contend for becoming emperor.

  "Powerful men try to increase their power all the time. When the emperor was alive, no one dared risk going too far for fear that they might be snuffed out by him. Without a powerful emperor holding the empire together, it will become chaos."

  His mother looked worried by his words as well.

  "Let's go check on your uncle," she said grabbing for his hand.

  Megan walked into an audience chamber held by the grand masters. A message had arrived telling her to come for a meeting. As she waited, Fordenna and two other wizards arrived to wait as well.

  "What do you think this is about?" Megannah asked her friend quietly. She hoped not even the other two wizards had overhead her. There were a few wizard hunter guardsmen outside the room, but inside was surprisingly empty. Echolus and the other grand masters weren't emperors needing protection, she supposed, but standing in the room without knowing why made her consider her safety if not theirs.

  Fordenna just shook her head, but her eyes glanced towards the other women. Looking at them closer, Megan realized that the other wizards had nothing to do with Master Lesolas' plans of finding a sanctuary. At least, they hadn't been to the meeting that had sent Torva to Southwall in search of a safe home for apprentices that would be in danger if they remained here. That likely meant that she and Fordenna weren't here because they had been brought in for conspiracy at least.

  When the door on the far side of the room opened, Echolus and a pair of warlock assistants entered without a word. The elven master of magic looked at the four women starting with the other two as he walked in front of the four ending with Megan. Echolus looked at her face before his eyes dropped lower noticeably.

  "Wizard Megannah, I need you to stay. You other three may go. Thank you for your time."

  The other women looked confused by his dismissal without any explanation. Fordenna lingered looking at her teaching partner with a little worry.

  "Go, go," the silver haired elf added shooing the taller woman away when she took too long to leave.

  Left with the three warlocks, Megannah held her tongue as she waited. Again the grand master seemed to be sizing her up as his eyes wandered from head to foot.

  "You are an attractive woman, Wizard Megannah. I didn't want to insult the others, but they can't contend with your looks at least as an elf might judge a woman," Echolus said with a bemused smile.

  Wrinkling her brow in confusion, Megan asked, "Sir, why are you discussing my appearance? I am a wizard and teacher."

  "Does that make you any less of a woman?" he interrupted before chuckling.

  "Well, no, but I already have a partner..."

  "That isn't surprising; but if you think that I am commenting on your looks because I want you for myself, then let me clarify for you now. Though I can see your beauty and charms, I need you to use them for a particular mission."

  "A mission that requires... a pretty wizard?" she asked still confused.

  "A mission that requires a pretty woman, but I prefer to use a wizard that I can trust. I can trust you, can't I, Wizard Megannah?"

  If this was a test of her loyalty, it was an odd one; the girl thought to herself. "I serve through the school and you are the head of the school, so I in turn follow you, grand master. You can trust me."

  Though she said it with as much sincerity as she could, there was that kernel of worry that made her wonder if he could see through her. If Echolus wanted to lead people into war with the generals to become emperor, she didn't have any misgivings of his trying to become the leader of the empire. Getting her students all killed for it, or drawing her down that path, however, was something that she couldn't agree with. It was that part of her that would lead her to disobey and refuse to accept him if it came to that.

  Echolus paused looking at her eyes intently, but she must have passed the test as he finally said, "Good, then I have an unusual task to give to a wizard, but I need you for it even so."

  One of his assistants picked up a light blue bundle and offered it to Megannah. The grand master ordered, "I need you to try that on and unfortunately I need to decide if you can fit the part of a servant woman."

  "Pardon me?" she asked surprised once more.

  "Just go change behind the screen please," he waved her towards a trifold screen. It was something that Megan had only partly noticed, since it didn't really belong in a room where a meeting would take place. Though the wizard had never used nor seen one before, such screens were often used by women to change when they had servants around. Not everyone needed the same level of privacy in their lives. Megan didn't need one since she had a small room. If she wasn't comfortable undressing in front of Torva, their relationship would have had other problems so it wasn't necessary for her that way either.

  Megan took the bundle and shook it out to find a simple looking dress. Though she had rarely been in the emperor's castle, the few times she had there had been servant women wearing similar garments. Slightly uncomfortable with the situation, at least the wizard wasn't a woman with body issues. It would be awkward to have to strip in front of the leader of her order to say the least, however.

  Her wizard dress was longer and warmer looking, she thought immediately, but Megan slipped free of her clothing and replaced it with the simple servant's dress. Once she slipped it on, the girl noticed that it wasn't quite what she had believed. Made of gray and blue panels, the center of the dress was a gray stripe reaching from top to bottom while a medium blue hemmed it in from either side. The sleeves only reached down to the middle of her upper arm, which wasn't enough in winter. Gooseflesh had risen just by removing her dress and the lack of sleeves wasn't getting rid of them. They were blue like the side panels and each had a button to make the sleeves tighten around each appendage.

  The top of the dress was lower cut than she was used to and dipped down to reveal the upper curves of her cleavage a bit provocatively, Megan thought looking down with a frown. Its hem was little better touching her knees. The skirt wasn't loose or wide either, while her waist was tight fitting. She could breath easily enough, but there wasn't a lot of extra room for meals the wizard thought with a frown.

  There were women that she had seen while dancing with Torva for his mission that dressed almost the same. Such a dress was meant to draw attention. If this was a servant's dress, Megan worried what kind of service it was meant to provide.

  "Aren't you ready yet?" Echolus questioned making the young woman take a deep breath before she stepped from behind the screen. />
  He looked down seeing her brown boots that reached halfway up her calves and frowned. "Falaeren, where are those slippers that they wear? She can't go in those boots. No servant girl in the spire wears those."

  A pair of blue shoes was handed over to the wizard, who needed to sit as she realized that Echolus wouldn't let her go without seeing the whole costume. Crossing her legs to be as ladylike as she could, Megan removed a boot and placed the slipper in turn before switching legs. The skirt slipped further up her legs than the wizard approved of and she frowned as the second slipper was placed.

  Standing once more, she watched Echolus as he turned his head to look down the dress towards her bare legs. "Is the dress short enough?" he mused.

  Eyes narrowing in annoyance, Megan asked, "What kind of servant am I supposed to pretend to be? I am not some harlot that will let you sell my body to someone... grand master." She added the last barely keeping the scorn from her voice.

  A smile remained on the man's face. He was only slightly taller than Megannah and slim like his kind of elf often was. Megan was a quarter elf as well. Neither was from the branch of elves that were often called high elves, since they were taller with longer lines. Both kinds of elves had a similar affinity for magic so only their general height and build truly separated the two from each other aside from ancestral lines.

  "If your ears had more of a point, I might almost believe you were a full elf," he commented. "Though I am not sending you into some brothel, many of the female servants in the spire wear such uniforms. The men they serve want to entertain their eyes. I suppose some do more than that for entertainment, but you should be safe where I am sending you."

  "And where is that?"

  "General Amelyer and General Corven have taken residence in the emperor's spire. While this has been a long term arrangement, the fact that the two men have essentially split the fortress in two makes for some interesting disputes between the two factions.

  "From the information I have been given, Corven isn't so easily distracted by women, but Amelyer, on the other hand, appears to have many beautiful servant girls keeping his rooms. One of those will be unable to do her work for a time. You will replace her and do what you can to watch the general. Learn if he's moving against his rivals. Any weaknesses you can find, aside from his love of women, would be helpful as well."

  Megan thought the idea of spying on the generals was interesting, but not because of the task. A question escaped her lips and made her worry as soon as it was said. "Why do you need such information? Do you plan to try and become emperor yourself?"

  To her surprise, the grand master chuckled. It was hard to remember that the elf was two hundred years old. Other than his silver hair, which would seem to be attributed to age, Echolus looked no older than she. At only twenty-five, Megan would have been considered a child by elven standards, though her body was fully grown and womanly. Her curves were fuller than many elven women, but she wasn't sure if the grand master would consider that a good thing anyway.

  "Someone needs to keep an eye on them, doesn't he? If either of the two generals was willing to become the guardian of the empire, while his opposite was willing to back him, Ensolus might become safe and strong. Unfortunately, neither man appears willing to back down and champion the other.

  "There have already been some altercations from what I have heard. If their fighting spills out from the spire, the entire city might explode into chaos. The emperor's corpse has barely cooled and no good replacement has stepped forward to unite the city. I merely wish to make sure that a weak leader doesn't try to become emperor in his place."

  "The emperor was a powerful wizard," Megan stated. "Why aren't you trying to become the next one, if there is no other respectable leader?"

  Echolus looked a bit surprised and Megan felt the same way even though the words had come from her mouth. "There is still the possibility that the princess will return or Lord Devolus. Both are more powerful than I individually. If no one can take proper control, maybe I will have to step in at some point. For now I will do my best to keep track of men like General Amelyer using people like you," he finished giving her that smile again. It held confidence and perhaps arrogance, the girl thought.

  "Now let's see how this looks on you," the grand master stated and twirled his finger in such a way to make the woman echo the gesture with her body. It wasn't magic just simple communication. Megan thought maybe it was the truest of moments between them, but said nothing as she steeled herself for a new, less noble career she feared.

  Chapter 17- Ways to Serve

  "Tell me this is finally it," Yelon demanded hopefully as he sat down on a large stone after sweeping the snow aside. A yawn followed as the wizard hunter stretched his arms over his head creating a satisfying set of cracks along his upper spine.

  Torva glanced at his cousin before returning his eyes to the valley sprawling out before them. It was located deeper in the mountain range than most people would likely easily find, the man thought. There were mountains around the valley, which meant plenty of stone. Trees of northern oak and maple covered much of the area, but magic could clear the land for farming if they wanted.

  He still had no idea how many would come. Master Lesolas and the others had come up with the idea of a sanctuary, but in no way was it completely thought out. A small group of wizards leading out as many apprentices as they could? The idea was half finished at best.

  Looking to the east, a pass rose from the valley only about a hundred feet to begin winding through the mountains. Beyond what his eyes could see, the feeling of that strange magic was much closer than he perhaps liked but the mountains would make it unlikely that anyone checking that would come this way. On the other hand, should they choose to stay here, one day Torva knew that the wizards would have to make contact with the rest of Southwall and likely beg for their mercy.

  Such a thought made him frown.

  Yelon was behind him and missed the look until Torva brought his eyes back to the valley. It was a hidden treasure, the hunter thought.

  "We could keep searching these mountains, but I doubt we could ever find anything better," he concluded.

  A sigh came from his cousin. "About time," he added loud enough to be heard easily though not so loud as to be completely rude about voicing his opinion. If it had been up to Yelon, any one of five other spots would have made his approval; but that was only because the other man had been tired of flying since the very first day.

  "Master Lesolas and the others will need to approve, but I can see this spot being good enough to support a town and several farms. The trees could last for a long time if our wizards work to repopulate what is used up in the settlement."

  A pause as Yelon looked at his leader a moment in consideration created his question, "Just how many people do you think are coming here?"

  "If the city starts to fight within the cave, there will be a need to evacuate hundreds, if not thousands of people. Wizards can help save all of them possibly, if they wish to anyway."

  His cousin looked skeptical and continued his questioning, "And who decides which people come? Who would you want to bring here? Do we bring elves, humans, orcs? Armored viles and goblins could work the stone almost as well as our warlocks and wizards, but would you want to bring them to something you want to call a sanctuary?"

  "That isn't my worry."

  "Why isn't it?" Yelon replied sounding surprised. "We might be the search party, but aren't we all risking our lives to do this? Do we all serve Master Lesolas when this is finished or is someone else going to be in charge?

  "You could be as much a leader as that old wizard can and maybe be better."

  Torva stared at the other man a moment before asking, "Why would I want to lead the sanctuary? If it is a wizard's sanctuary, then why shouldn't he be in charge?"

  Shrugging, Yelon didn't seem convinced and he countered, "If a town of people is brought here, Lesolas will forget about them. He's a master wizard and only concer
ned with the apprentices to continue the legacy of magic. You've been thinking about farms, wood, and other types of problems that would need a full settlement. A wizard like him wouldn't have thought all of that through.

  "When you bring him to the different spots that might have worked for him to choose, you're going to have to explain why they aren't right and this is."

  Torva didn't want to argue and hated to admit that Yelon likely had a point. Old men living with their magic books could be focused on just the page. Lesolas and the other wizards were thinking of getting the apprentices to safety, but they never considered who else would need to come along.

  They couldn't believe that they could bring enough stores to live here indefinitely. Trade could be impossible for a long time, so that would only leave becoming thieves or becoming self sufficient. The former would bring attention to them that would make Southwall more antagonistic towards the refugees. Becoming self sufficient would require bringing people with various skills along with the wizards.

  Lesolas and his other wizards were all intelligent obviously, but being book smart didn't mean that they had the wisdom to think all of the other stuff through to make it work.

  Pulling out the call stone, Torva said, "Well, I think that we can stop searching anyway."

  The rest would have to be worked out before plans were finalized, but a perfect spot had been found. He would still show the rebellious wizards and warlocks the other sites, if they wanted; but for him this was it. Now he just needed to convince them that there was a need for more than just wizards in the sanctuary.

  "Has that happened before?" Holdy asked Renelley as his mother pulled the cord which stretched to the doorway dozens of feet away. A large home, a mansion compared to most living in the human quarter in truth, sat well back from the outer fence and gate. Her uncle was likely the richest human in the ghetto and owned several other buildings besides his home. How he had managed to make so much money had never been explained to the young apprentice, but he had heard of an import/export business. Who he traded with was another question that Holdy might have if he felt the need to pry.