“She’s a healer,” I replied. “In my land that would be reason enough.”
He frowned. “I see. Even if she can no longer heal?”
I shrugged. “Maybe we can find a cure for that, if we work together. But even if we can’t, I’ve got plenty of room.”
“Very well. All in favor of passing stewardship of Elin to Adept Black for the duration of the emergency?”
The vote passed easily.
“What are you doing?” Avilla hissed in my ear when I sat down. “What if it’s catching?”
“Then I’ll put her in quarantine,” I whispered back. “Get a grip, Avilla. I can see the magic on her, remember?”
She flushed. “I’m sorry, Daniel. I just want us to finally be safe.”
I patted her hand and turned to Cerise, who seemed a bit concerned for Avilla but otherwise unperturbed. “Go help the poor girl get her things before the meeting ends, will you? I bet she won’t be able to get to her room once that vote is announced, and these people are perfectly capable of tossing her out with nothing but the clothes on her back.”
She flashed me an amused smile. “So we’re collecting stray kittens now? Sure boss, I’ll get her squared away.”
She slipped down to whisper in Elin’s ear as the discussion turned to what to tell the prince about the situation. Elin eyed me warily, but something Cerise said got her attention. She gave the dark-haired witch an incredulous look, and touched her tail. Cerise grinned, and whispered something else. Finally Elin nodded, and the pair quietly made their way out of the chamber.
The meeting dragged on interminably. But at least now the wizards were discussing relevant issues instead of paper-pushing, and I learned a good bit about their plans. Everyone was expecting a more determined assault to appear at some point, and making preparations accordingly. The war-wizards were setting up some sort of secret dragon slaying spell, and charging up heavy fire support spells to deal with giants and goblin hordes. A team of artificers were enchanting a squadron of heavy golems with some sort of fast movement spell so they could be used as a reaction force the next time the city wall was breached, and another group was reinforcing the city’s defensive enchantments.
Interestingly, they voted to assign command of that mobile golem squadron to Carl. Apparently it was a step up for him, because he grinned excitedly and his sister clapped him on the back. But then the subject turned to me.
There was a quick vote to confirm my status as an “Associate” of the Conclave, which I’d expected. Then Steelbinder brought up the fact that the speed of their enchantment work was primarily limited by the ability of their artisans to raise enough mana, and asked if I could help with that.
“Not yet,” I said reluctantly. “My mana tap technique is still experimental, and it relies on some very exotic magic. It would probably take months to teach someone else how to do it, and it’s the kind of thing where even a small mistake tends to be lethal. I’m working on turning it into an enchantment, so I can make items that act as a mana source. But I have a lot of work to do to reach that point, and a lot of other demands on my time.”
“How does it work?” A svelte brunette near the foot of the table asked.
“Don’t be rude, Tova,” the man next to her scoffed. “No one would be witless enough to just blurt out a secret like that.”
“Indeed,” Ward said dryly. “Unlimited mana could be the founding mystery of a mighty clan. But you intend to share the fruits of your research?”
I nodded. “Yes. To be honest, in different circumstances I’d be tempted to keep it a secret and go take over a kingdom or something. But with Ragnarok in progress we need to pull together if we’re going to have any chance of surviving. Obviously I’m going to set up my own people first, but I figure anything I can do to strengthen Kozalin’s defenses is to my benefit.”
“Mind you, it isn’t actually unlimited power. I’ve found that there’s still a limit to how long I can channel the power before the strain becomes too much, and even the best healing can only delay that point for so long. It’s very useful for powering large-scale magic, but you have to be careful not to overdo it.”
Normally I’d have been reluctant to share even that much information with a group as untrustworthy as the Conclave, but in this case I figured it would be wise to make sure my image didn’t get too overblown. If they decided I was too dangerous a competitor they’d take steps to deal with me, and I had no idea what sneaky assassination methods a group of wizards might have developed over the centuries. Better to maintain good relations for as long as possible, even if it did grate sometimes.
“What kind of price are you going to demand?” Steelbinder asked. “If you can perfect the process I expect we’ll want several ritual chambers enchanted, and I’m sure many of our members would be interested in a personal implement if the price isn’t too dear.”
“Hell, I’d trade my granddaughter for tool like that,” one of the older wizards commented.
“I’d trade both my daughters,” Tova agreed fervently. “A stable power supply would be a godsend for my work.”
I shook my head. “Intriguing as that sounds, my needs lie more in the areas of money and supplies. But I’ll have to finish my research before I can set a firm price. I don’t want to negotiate on the assumption that it will be a quick enchantment and then discover I’ll need weeks to make each implement. All I can say at this point is that while I do intend to profit from my discovery I don’t plan to make my prices too exorbitant.”
“I see. Well, I suppose we’ll have to table the issue until then,” Steelbinder said. “I trust you’ll limit access to the Conclave and your own people?”
“Of course,” I agreed. I wasn’t about to let something that dangerous get out into general circulation. I was nervous enough about letting the Conclave’s upper ranks have it, considering that they might decide to use it against me someday.
The discussion turned to other things after that. Some of the wizards wanted to enlist the Griffon Knights in a scheme to rescue various relatives and associates who were currently stranded in other towns. Another group wanted to start sending summoned demons and elementals to attack monster bands that were spotted in the vicinity. One wizard floated the idea of starting an operation to collect refugees for use as sacrifices in various empowerment and demon binding rituals. I was a bit relieved that no one else seemed to think that was a good idea, although I noticed that most of the objections were on practical grounds rather than moral ones.
Finally the endless meeting dragged to a close. There was another little bit of ceremony where the shadow adjourned the meeting and everyone stood while the High Adepts left the chamber. About half the wizards filed out after them, while the rest stood around chatting with each other. I looked around for Cerise, wondering why she wasn’t back yet, and Gronir and Daria came over to rejoin us.
Carl buttonholed me just as I spotted her slipping back into the room.
“Daniel! Good to see you again. Congratulations on surviving your adventure.”
“You didn’t actually say what happened to the sea serpent,” Mara added with a frown. “Did you kill him?”
“I’m not sure. It was one of those fights where everything goes to hell right from the start. I ended up trapped in his mouth at the bottom of the river, with him grinding my wards down. So I set off the most powerful explosive effect I could muster inside his mouth.”
She winced. “Is that what happened to your arm?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it blew my wards down and damn near killed me. I woke up floating on the surface a few minutes later, and my men tell me they saw him swimming off badly hurt. I suppose it will come down to how well sea serpents regenerate, but considering how tough he was I’m not making any assumptions. I’m planning to come up with a good weapon for killing giant monsters before he comes back for another try.”
She shook her head. “You’ve beaten him once, and everyone knows wizards learn from their fights. He won�
�t be back for another ass kicking. I’m impressed, though. I didn’t realize you were that powerful.”
“Our master is quite a wizard,” Avilla commented proudly. “Now that he’s back you should come visit us again.”
Mara turned to her, and her eyes immediately dropped to Avilla’s rather amazing bust line before struggling their way back up to her face. Avilla noticed, and developed a smug little smile.
“Avilla? Uh, yeah. Well, if Elin’s going to be staying with you I’ll definitely be around. What do you really want with her, anyway?” She asked me suspiciously.
“I’d like to know that as well,” A soft voice said from behind me.
I turned to find that Cerise and Elin had made their way over. Elin had a threadbare blanket under one arm, but otherwise neither of them was carrying anything.
“We already stashed her things in the transport,” Cerise said in answer to my frown. “The guards wouldn’t let us back in the chamber until the meeting was over, so I figured we should go ahead and take care of that. Can you believe I actually had to pay some clerk to give us a trunk to pack her stuff?”
“Yes, and I thank you for that,” Elin said. “But I don’t want any misunderstandings, sir. I’m not going to be able to heal your arm.”
“What, this thing? Don’t worry about it. I’ll have it fixed up in a few days, I just need to find enough time to work on it.”
“You’re a healer?” She asked sharply.
I nodded. “Yeah. I’m actually hoping that if we put our heads together we can find a way to fix this problem of yours, and then I won’t get stuck being the only effective healer in the city. I have too many other jobs to be able to take on that one too.”
She looked down. “I thank you for your kindness, sir. I’m ashamed to admit that the nature of this curse eludes my understanding. But what if I can’t be cured?”
“Then at least you’ll have a warm room and good food, in a safe place where no one is going to give you a hard time just because you aren’t human,” I said gently.
“Well, aren’t you a smooth talker,” Mara commented. “You’d better take good care of her, then. She’s my friend, and I’m not someone you want to piss off.”
“Duly noted. Well, congratulations on your new appointment, Carl.”
“Oh, you heard that? Quite a step up for me,” he said proudly.
“If you weren’t such a wimp you wouldn’t need golems,” Mara scoffed.
“Hey now, not all of us can conjure living flame, sis,” Carl protested. “You got the good part of the family magic. I’ve got to make the best I can of what I’ve got.”
“Yeah, like I’m so lucky,” Mara said, suddenly bitter, and punched him in the shoulder. “Whatever. Take care of yourself, Elin. Let me know if I need to come over and kick someone’s ass for you.”
She stalked off, and the rest of us exchanged awkward looks.
“Sorry about that,” Carl said awkwardly. “It’s the fire nature. When she’s happy she’s a joy to be around, but when something strikes her wrong, well…”
“She’s a total bitch?” Cerise finished.
“Sometimes,” Carl admitted.
“That’s alright,” Avilla said. “Everyone has it rough right now, so we won’t hold it too much against her.”
“Thank you,” Carl replied. “Well, I suppose I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah, we should get going,” I agreed.
As soon as he was out of earshot Avilla slipped her arm around Cerise’s waist with a smile. “Did you notice the gaze trap worked? You’re right, kitten. She’s interested, she’s just in denial.”
“Mmm,” Cerise purred. “Want to arrange some special therapy for that anger problem of hers? I bet we could get her in a better mood.”
“Do I want to know what you two are talking about?” I asked.
“Just testing the waters,” Avilla explained. “I have some techniques that only work if you’re basically willing. Like this.”
She smiled at me, and good god her breasts were amazing. I stood there staring at them for a moment, stunned. Then I shook myself, and found that I could meet her eyes again.
She giggled. “See? It’s harmless. If I were going to use real seduction magic I wouldn’t have brought it up in front of her friend.
“Don’t hold back on my account,” Elin commented. “Mara and I aren’t really that close. I’ve only known her for a couple of weeks, and it’s actually a bit tiresome the way she’s tried to appoint herself my defender. It’s not as if she can solve any of my problems, so what’s the point?”
“Ah, so you don’t care if we try to seduce her?” Cerise asked.
Her gaze fell to the floor. “It’s not my place to comment on such things.”
“Just don’t get carried away, Cerise,” I told her. “If you need magic to convince her you’ve probably gone too far.”
The conversation died as we made our way towards the gates, and the temperature dropped sharply. The meeting room had been heated, but apparently the hallways weren’t. Elin draped her blanket over herself as we approached the entrance hall, apparently intending to use it as a coat.
I frowned. “Cerise, is the transport still parked over on the other side of the plaza?”
“That’s as close as the guards will let us take it,” she replied.
“Figures. Hold up a sec, Elin. Let me put a warmth spell around you.”
She stopped, and studied the floor. “I’ll be alright, sir.”
I shook my head. “You’re already pushing yourself trying to fight off this curse. The last thing you need is to get sick on top of that. Unless you’ve got some other kind of weather protection you were going to use?”
She shook her head. “No, sir. I just… I’m not used to… thank you, sir.”
I frowned. Why was she suddenly so flustered? She’d been collected enough a minute ago. Well, I’d figure that out later. The longer we stayed here, the colder it was going to get outside.
It only took a moment to set up a warmth aura, since the spell only needed to last a few minutes. Then we made our way out the Citadel’s postern gate and into the plaza. A light snow was falling, and the wind was like ice on my exposed face. Avilla pulled her voluminous cloak about herself, her face almost invisible deep under the hood. Even Cerise shivered, and rubbed her arms.
“Okay, maybe I’ll wear a cloak or something next time. This is a little much even for me,” she admitted.
“Aww, is my kitten cold? Come in here, love,” Avilla told her.
I chuckled. “That’s why your cloak is so big, isn’t it? You wanted to have room for two.”
“Pure coincidence,” she said innocently. “Oh, cold! Freya’s tits, Cerise, you’re like ice! Snuggle up and let’s get you warm.”
The two girls trooped merrily off across the snow together. I smiled, and started after them with Elin. The wolfen brought up the rear, peering into the gloom around us as if we might actually encounter trouble here in the middle of the city. Well, it was probably just as well that they were taking guard duty seriously.
The former healer’s movements were slow and uncertain, as if she was having trouble controlling her limbs. But I didn’t want to embarrass her any more than I already had, so I let her hobble across the plaza at her own pace. When we came to the transport I opened the door for her, and motioned her inside. Then I activated the little light spell I’d put on the front of the vehicle for this trip, casting a dim yellow glow across the snow.
“Take it slow and careful,” I advised the driver. “We’re not in a rush, and I don’t want us running over a refugee or accidentally going off the side of the pier in the dark. If it turns out that isn’t enough light to find our way let me know, and I’ll make it brighter.”
“No problem, milord,” he replied. “I think this will do fine.”
The main compartment of the transport was lit only by a couple of candles, but it was warm and cozy compared to the arctic conditions outside. Ceri
se and Avilla bundled themselves up in a corner, and Daria happily took a seat in Gronir’s lap. Elin looked around uncertainly, and settled herself in the middle of the floor.
I sat down next to her, and studied the magic around her for a few minutes. As I’d thought, those silvery marks on her skin were intensely magical. But I didn’t see anything that looked like a contagious curse. More like the residue on a dead demon, really. Lots of raw energy, but most of it was tied into a thoroughly broken spell network. What remained was a handful of protective enchantments, and some kind of complicated touch-based destructive effect. Or maybe digestive, that part wasn’t entirely clear.
“What exactly happened to you?” I asked.
She plucked nervously at a stray thread in her glove.
“I was healing the survivors of a party that was sent through the Dark Portal to scout out what’s happening in Tartarus. But the portal got activated again somehow while I was working, and this… thing… came through. It was just a big mass of silvery liquid, but it moved like a living thing. It fought by forming pseudopods, pointed ones to stab with and sharp ones that could cut flesh. It killed three of the guards, and my water couldn’t hurt it.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You tried to fight something like that?”
She ducked her head. “I… it was going for my patients, sir. I thought I could at least block it long enough for the war wizards to do something. But it was so dense, my water wall might as well have been air. Then Adept Tasgall blew it up.”
She shuddered, and shrank in on herself. “That turned out to be… not the best plan. Sir. The liquid went everywhere, with enough force to tear through flesh. We’ve since learned that it’s a terrible poison, as well. I think… everyone else says this is absurd, but I think it might have been a golem, made of enchanted mercury. Everyone else who was in that room died in a matter of hours, and I’ve only held on this long by focusing all of my healing on myself. But the wounds keep eating into me, and… and no matter what I do, I can’t seem to push it back.”
“Sounds nasty,” I said. “Let me have a look.”
Black Coven (Daniel Black Book 2) Page 14