Wizard's Blood [Part One]

by Bob Blink

  Still muttering to himself, Jolan turned back to the scattered mess and began to pick up his recent purchases, several of which had come out of their wrapping and would now require cleaning.

  The first pulse-ball struck just behind Jolan when he bent to pick up the small box when it slipped from his arms for the second time. The heavy stone was no match for the power of the energy pulse and a large section of rock exploded out and away, leaving a big hole behind. The torn rock from the mangled wall peppered the area behind the wall with flying debits that ripped and tore into the vegetation, causing several small trees to be torn from the ground.

  Jolan slammed up his shields faster than he could ever remember doing before. Even so, he was barely fast enough. One after another four of the high energy blasts slammed into the shields he was doing his best to hold in place. When the fourth blast cleared away, his shield was brightly red, indicating it had barely been able to hold in the presence of the abuse. Jolan was fortunate there hadn’t been more of the pulses and that the first one had missed. Only the fact Ward had pushed him to practice his shields against pulse-balls had allowed him to survive.

  “Why would a wizard attack with pulse-balls?” Ward had asked him a couple of weeks ago.

  “Because he is stupid?” Jolan had answered only half jokingly. The pulse-balls seemed a foolish choice for an attack. For one thing, they were a directed weapon, and somewhat slow. They had to travel from the originating mage to the target, and had to be guided to boot. That allowed the person being attacked time for action, unlike something like the firewrap that appeared essentially instantly at the target. Besides, he had a low opinion of the pulse-balls because he had never been very strong with them.

  “Possibly. Or maybe because he is very smart?”

  Jolan looked at Ward and then shook his head to indicate he didn’t understand.

  ‘What if the attacking mage is very strong with pulse-balls? What if he suspects the victim has poor shields against pulse-balls, as is often the case for the very reasons you just pointed out. Most of us don’t hold them in very high regard. As such, we don’t think to defend against them. Why would anyone use a pulse-ball when there are other choices far more effective? We usually spend our time building up our shields against the more powerful spells.”

  “So he is attacking from a direction where he has a strength into someone else’s weakness.”

  Ward nodded. “That’s right. You need to build up your shields as well as possible against all possible options. No matter what you do, you’ll be stronger in some areas than others, but don’t ever let it get worse than it has to be.”

  It looked like even with the practice he’d dutifully put in he was on the ragged edge of disaster. He looked down the street where the blast had originated. Standing on the corner was the wizard who had attacked. He was looking directly at Jolan, and Jolan could sense the man knew exactly who Jolan was. Jolan was surprised to realize he knew the man as well. It was Kalnd, one of Cheurt’s key people. What was he doing here? The fact he recognized Jolan told him that his assumptions that Cheurt was unaware of his being on Gaea were false. The implications of that were frightening, but they could be considered later, he hoped.

  Quickly he launched his strongest attack spell, wondering how much static he was going to get from the College for using the power as a weapon assuming he survived this. The firewrap flared around the wizard at the end of the block, but the man’s shields seemed to be able to contain it. Jolan had no doubt the man was unaffected by his attempt when another series of pulse-balls started his way. He wanted to go for his staff, but it was out in the open and in the direction of the attacking wizard. Jolan had walked far enough away to have stepped beyond the sphere of influence of the staff, and would need to find a way to get closer before he could expect any assistance. For the moment his highest priority was to get out of the line of fire. Quickly he jumped through the hole that had been blasted in the wall only moments before. Ducking out of sight, he scurried along the length as fast as he could. The pulse-balls slammed one after another into the wall behind him, following the direction he was headed and turning the full length of wall into rubble.

  How the hell is he tracking me? Jolan thought. Of course. He can sense the power draw of the shield fields. He knows right where I am even if he can’t see me.

  The last of the recent barrage slammed into the wall just a foot behind him, sending lumps of wall in all directions, covering him with a spray of dust and pounding him with a couple of substantial sections of wall. Without the shields he would have a couple of broken legs right now.

  Taking a chance, Jolan dropped his shield and ducked into a hallway, turning abruptly and heading back the way he’d just come. If the other guessed his intention he might be able to hit Jolan before his shield could be restored. At least this way he couldn’t detect Jolan’s position by monitoring the power draw. Jolan checked and was happy to see the wizard’s shield indicated he hadn’t yet moved from his attacking position.

  As he hurried along, Jolan tried to assess his options. The wizard was out to kill him, so he needed to stop him or die. His firewrap hadn’t been enough. That did not bode well, as it was the most powerful spell he had. He was going to need to hope the man had a weakness to something else in his own shields. He could try his own pulse-balls, but since the wizard was attacking with them they were probably an area he was abnormally strong. It didn’t seem like a good choice. He could try the energy beam, but that was another directed weapon, and frankly he hadn’t been impressed with what he could do with them in practice. The chained lightning could be very strong if he had his staff, but without it he was pretty weak. The truth was, he didn’t have many fighting spells under his belt as yet.

  Jolan reached a point where he could go three different ways. He peeked down the street and saw the mage was standing where he’d expected, looking back where Jolan had been, obviously wondering where he’d gone. Dropping one’s shield in the middle of an attack wasn’t what one was expected to do. Quickly Jolan executed a pulling spell against the top of the tower three stories above where the mage was standing. The bell tower weighing several tons was pulled forward and started to fall. The wizard looked up as it descended toward him, but didn’t have time to move.

  Jolan didn’t think it would hurt the wizard, but it would serve as a distraction. He turned and ran, shield still down, along one of the hallways as soon as he had executed the spell. Behind him he could hear a series of the balls pounding the area he’d been standing moments before into dust. The hallway took him within ten feet of where his staff stood, rigidly adhering as directed to the spot he’d left it. Reaching it meant exposing himself, but there was no other option. Without the staff he was simply too weak. With it both his shield and his attack potential went up exponentially. Heart pounding, he prepared himself to move. He had to act before the other realized his intentions and started pounding the area blindly.

  With a sudden leap he jumped from his hiding place, stretching his arms in front of him as he traveled through the air. As he flew through the air toward the staff he brought his shield back on, and hoped he would be fast enough to grab the staff before the wizard’s pulse could reach him. It was a close thing. His hand closed about the staff as the first of the pulses rocked him, the already weakened shields straining. As the staff acknowledged his presence, the shields suddenly strengthened and the remaining balls of energy were pushed aside.

  Jolan landed on his stomach, protected by the shield and dragging the staff with him. As soon as he could he sat and spun around, still sitting on the ground and launched a firewrap against the mage who was moving his way and firing yet again another series of the energy balls. The man just didn’t stop. The firewrap flared up, increasing in brightness, becoming so intense it was hard to look at. The first indication Jolan had that it was working was a sudden collapse of the size of the spinning ball of energy fire. Then, almost abruptly, the fire winked out, and a pile of greasy a
sh was all that remained of the attacker. Hurrying to his feet, Jolan slipped into a dark corner and checked his shields for strength. He probed the surrounding area for signs of additional shields against the chance more of Cheurt’s team might be here. Seeing nothing, he looked regretfully at his purchases, still scattered around, and turned and fled back to the College. The clothes weren’t worth risking more of the wizards being close and attacking him in concert.

  How the hell did they find me? Jolan wondered as he hurried down the street. Then he had another thought. He wondered if they knew about Asari.

  Chapter 60

  “You’re sure it was Kalnd? You’re absolutely sure it was one of Cheurt’s team? You said you only had time for that one quick look.”

  “Absolutely. I’ve seen the little follower hundreds of times, or at least Cheurt has in the memories I have inside my head. He didn’t think much of him, but Kalnd had useful connections that Cheurt relied on.”

  They were gathered in Chancellor Vaen’s personal conference room. Jolan had returned immediately to the College and had gone to see his advisor Ward. Ward had taken him to Dibon, who had sent aides to the rest of the council and to Vaen. Within minutes they had all gathered together behind closed doors and had just finished walking through the events of the day.

  “You’re sure he recognized you?”

  Jolan nodded his head. “Positive. He looked right at me and I could tell he knew who I was and was determined to bring me down. He didn’t care how much of a disturbance he made doing it either.”

  “None of the others were there though?”

  “None that I saw. No one else was involved in the attack or I wouldn’t be here. It was close enough just against Kalnd. I checked for signs of shields afterwards and didn’t detect any. I can’t see how they could have been there and not taken action.”

  “I agree with Jolan that Kalnd must have been operating alone,” said Chancellor Vaen. She had been sitting back and listening up to now. “You realize how lucky you were? From what you’ve told us, Kalnd was a relative weakling in Cheurt’s group.”

  What I don’t understand is why he’d be alone, and why Cheurt would send him instead of someone he thought more of and who had greater ability,” said Lonid.

  “Maybe he didn’t realize that Jolan was now a mage with considerable ability, and luck.” Dibon added the last as an after thought.

  “Perhaps Cheurt sent his people to many places, all looking for Jolan and Kalnd was the unlucky one,” suggested Vulug.

  “That doesn’t seem likely,” said Lonid. “If he was sending people to scout various likely cities, Cobalo would be the most likely and he would have sent his best people here, not the worst. I don’t buy that.”

  “We’ve jumped beyond the question of how he even knows that Jolan is here,” injected Vaen. “You did say he was unaware of your arrival with him when he crossed through the Nexus and brought you here.”

  “I’m positive that at the time he was unaware of my arrival,” Jolan insisted. “Maybe somehow he remembered more of the passage later that gave him a clue. I can’t say because I have only the one experience, and mine was probably atypical. I certainly can’t remember any more than the nauseating nature of the trip. If he had known at the time, he would have certainly searched me out and killed me rather than simply leaving the area as he did.”

  “So it’s likely something later triggered his awareness. Do you have any ideas? It could make a significant difference in what he knows.”

  “He’s had time to return to Earth again. Perhaps he sought me out there and discovered me missing. That might have started him thinking along the lines I’d made the transfer.”

  “That seems very unlikely,” objected Bloor. “He had no reason to suspect you had any ability with the power when he was there in the past. Without it, there is no way you would have the ability to use the Nexus. Even if you had ability with the power, where would you have learned the necessary spells. As far as we know, Cheurt is the only one in all of Gaea that has recovered that information.”

  “There must be something you’ve done here that caught his attention,” reasoned Demili. “Have you done anything that comes to mind?”

  “I’ve done a number of things, but none that I can see he could know about, or that could link the events to someone named Randy from Earth. A few people know of me, but not by that name, and a few know my story. It’s possible someone started telling tales and word somehow reached Cheurt and he made the connection. It seems pretty unlikely. Especially given the distances involved and the need to happen across the one or two people in all of Gaea I happened to have traveled with.”

  Another hour of trying various possibilities led nowhere. Cheurt knew or suspected he was here, but for now they had no idea how he had learned of Jolan’s presence.

  “I’ve been thinking,” said Quas, who as usual had far less to say than the others. “What if Cheurt only suspects Jolan is here, but doesn’t know where or what he is doing. He needs to find out, so he sends someone to investigate whatever rumor or event that triggered his suspicion. For some reason, he can’t send one of his best people, maybe they are already occupied elsewhere, so he sends Kalnd as the only available option. Kalnd gets lucky and stumbles upon Jolan. I can think of several ways Cheurt could have transferred a clear visual of him. Kalnd either decided independently to take action, or Cheurt told him to attack given the opportunity. The question I wonder about is whether Cheurt knows. If Kalnd were alone, then he would have had no way to send word back before Jolan killed him. Only later when Kalnd fails to return will Cheurt have reason to wonder, and then would Cheurt know exactly where Kalnd was? I suppose the stories will eventually get out, so he’ll know at some point where he died. If Kalnd sent word back, courier or some other means, then how long before Cheurt will learn of it, and how long before he can take action?”

  Having said more than Jolan had known the man to speak in all the times he’d seen him, Quas sat back and peered over his spectacles at the others, a questioning look on his face.

  Everyone was silent for a bit while they digested what Quas had said.

  “Food for thought,” said Vaen. “Obviously, we don’t have most of the answers we would like. We have to assume that others might be nearby and could take action, even though it seems unlikely to be true. That’s going to put some restrictions on you Jolan. Sooner or later, more of Cheurt’s team are going to arrive, maybe the wizard himself. We need to think about ways to prepare for that eventuality. It is probably months away. We have the distance to give us a bit of time. But a day of reckoning is clearly on the way. We also have to assume Cheurt knows that we know far more about his plans than he had suspected before. That means he will be making changes, maybe working to move up the timing so he can act before we can adapt to what Jolan has been telling us. That means we need to move faster as well. I want a review tomorrow on the telegraph and firearm progress. I think Jolan was wise to push those projects. They may just be a way to keep Cheurt off-guard.”

  “What about Jolan?” asked Lonid. “He should probably keep a low profile for a while. Unless we want to use him as bait.”

  Vaen flashed him an angry frown. “Jolan should stay in the Inner Court until we have considered this more. There is enough for him to do here, and we can’t risk him.”

  Jolan had expected as much. He realized with a sigh his hoped for date with Shyar was also forfeit, even if he hadn’t been told to stay out of the city. How could he in good conscience put her at risk when potential killers were watching for him? Cheurt’s team wouldn’t care about collateral damage, and if they discovered she was a mage, they’d be delighted to target her as well.

  “We need to alert the guard about hostile wizards potentially being in the city,” said Vulug. “I would also suggest we alert the military support mages as well. The guard might have need for their services if some form of attack is mounted.”

  This was the first time Jolan had heard that t
he mages here had any kind of military function. He wanted to ask a few questions, but thought it best he waited until a better time. He was also a bit surprised that no one had raised any issue about his use of force against the attacking wizard. There was something here he didn’t quite understand.

  “The King has already requested an explanation of the events in the city. I’ll be going to brief him after this meeting. I think I will take Jolan along.”

  “What about Asari?” Jolan asked. He waited and let them have their chance to question him, but he didn’t want this discussion to end until the matter had been discussed.

  “Your friend?” asked Dibon. “I thought he had left and you didn’t know where he went?”

  “That’s true,” admitted Jolan. “But it seems likely they know about Asari if they’ve been able to locate me. He could be at risk as well.”

  “He could be dead,” said Lonid bluntly.

  Jolan had had the same thought and then dismissed it angrily.

  “What are you thinking?” asked Vaen kindly.

  “I need to try and get word to him, or to people he might come in contact with so he can at least be aware of the potential danger.”

  “If you don’t know where he’s gone. . .”

  “I know three or four places that are most likely. Somehow I need to find a way to send word.”

  “You certainly can’t go yourself. That would be offering yourself up to them; perhaps your friend as well. It would be best for someone seemingly uninvolved. Give me a list of names and where they can be found and I’ll see that the very next courier is tasked with contacting them for you.”

  Jolan described the people and places he would contact in hopes of getting word to Asari.