T0 BE VICTORIOUS
The Maestro Chronicles
Book Six
CONTENTS
Chapter One: Beneath The Mighty Hirus
Chapter Two: To Fight or Not To Fight
Chapter Three: Learning to Soar
Chapter Four: Warnings
Chapter Five: Fight to the Finish
Chapter Six: The Way Forward
Chapter Seven: Granting Requests
Chapter Eight: Chores, Chores, and more Chores
Chapter Nine: A View From Above
Chapter Ten: We Agree
Chapter Eleven: Making A Splash
Chapter Twelve: Not What He Wanted To Hear
Chapter Thirteen: The Other Side
Chapter Fourteen: A productive Afternoon
Chapter Fifteen: Or The Roof Could Fall In
Chapter Sixteen: Terroll’s Proposal
Chapter Seventeen: Successful Raids
Chapter Eighteen: Five Days Later
Chapter Nineteen: A Pivotal Decision
Chapter Twenty: A Change In Plan
Chapter Twenty-One: The Diversion
Chapter Twenty-Two: As The Wind Blows
Chapter Twenty-Three: An Opportunity Lost
Chapter Twenty-Four: A storm Unleashed
Chapter Twenty-Five: Fall
Chapter Twenty-Six: The Swirling Of Events
Chapter Twenty- Seven: Daniel vs Tarin Conn
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Peace At Last?
Chapter One: Beneath the Mighty Hirus
It was half a mark in time before dark when Sir Daniel Benhannon, Maestro of the Atlantan Guild, tilted the control stick of Manta One slightly to the right and the submerged vehicle swam under the camouflaged gate, out of the hidden canal, and into the swift-eastward current of the mighty Hirus River. He was rightly proud of the vessel he created, which resembled its name sake, except for being larger and having a contoured observation window where the mouth of the actual creature would be. A thrill washed through him at once again piloting the manta and seeing life below the waves. Any excuse would be enough to get him behind the controls, he would readily admit to anyone who asked. Even so, the current mission was truly important, and well worth the time being taken away from his regular duties.
He felt no guilt at the prospect of having fun while accomplishing the task; especially since the task might well contribute significantly to the war, a war not currently flowing in his favor. The flow needed to be changed, so no guilt tugged at his conscience but that did not mean he lacked concern or was not anxious for the lives of people who were currently fighting in battles, raids, and skirmishes across the continent of Atlantan. Lives seemed to be at stake no matter what decision he made or which chore he threw his effort into completing.
Being on the current mission did not take his mind off the fact that the northern kingdoms of Fon Kay, Demfilia, Pentrosa, Ecoppia, and Zune, were firmly allied with the Serpent Guild and warring against the southern kingdoms of Ducaun, Lobenia, Cenkataar, Aczencopa, and Taracopa. Battencay was lost, conquered by the combined legions of Fon Kay and Pentrosa. He still regretted not being able to stop that nation from falling into the sphere of the Serpents, but was not in a position at the time to do anything about it.
The island kingdom of Serinia had suffered no attacks on its homeland, so far, but its navy and most of the merchant ships were confined to their ports, lest they be sunk, a lesson they learned the hard way. Cenkataar, Aczencopa, and Serinia were allies of Aakadon, the ancient city of the Aakacarns, and therefore enemies of the Serpent Guild, but not allies of Daniel’s Atlantan Guild or the kingdoms of Ducaun, Lobenia, or Taracopa, which itself was in the middle of a civil war. What a mess!
Lobenia and Serinia were allies of a sort, but that relationship had not so far extended to actual military support, a situation Daniel knew full well and could do little about. Fence-sitters were what the Serinians were, supplying words of moral support while remaining cozy with the rulers of Aakadon, and doing virtually nothing else. He felt like slamming his fist in frustration, but that would only accomplish setting the manta off course. The Serpents and the northern alliance were united while the southern kingdoms were spilt between those who fought alongside the Atlantan Guild and those who fought alongside of Aakadon. Mounting separate defenses was not a winning approach.
No wonder we are losing!
It actually took conscious effort for him to take his mind off of the larger war and concentrate on his current mission and surroundings. Knowing his wife was heavily involved with the fighting, a fact he would change if he could, did not make his current mission easier. The war did not stop or even take a pause just because he added another chore on his to-do list.
As his eyes took in the view and he maneuvered the craft forward, the wristband, connected by a durable string-like fiber to the console, was drawing a small amount of life-force energy from him. Fortunately, the drain was so small and far below his rate of replenishing that it was virtually no cost at all, yet he was well aware that circumstances could change, and the requirement on him could increase substantially, particularly from the red gemstone.
Each tiny amulet contained a specific Symphonic spell. The ruby provided the shield on the outer skin of the craft, the blue sapphire contained the spell, Freshen Air, so everyone could keep breathing clean recycled air, and the turquoise had locked within it the spell he titled, Osprey Vision. The Symphonic was currently scanning lines of sight around the manta ray and that spell instantly projected the images on the walls, floor, and ceiling of the crew compartment, giving the appearance of windows from the inside while anyone looking from the outside would only see the black rubbery-like skin on top or the white of the bottom.
The spell-formed windows gave a panoramic view of the surroundings; guppies swimming to the left and right of the giant creature, from their point of view, which they had enough survival sense to avoid running in to, as did trout, catfish, turtles, frogs, otters, and many other aquatic species of varying sizes and shapes darting above and below the vehicle. It was a beautiful sight to behold and Daniel never grew tired of seeing it.
He could observe the bottom of the river through the floor or as far up into the currently bird-filled summer sky as an osprey could, although the view above was skewed a little bit by the rippling water, and partially blocked by numerous water fowl paddling on the surface and mainly the bottom of a large east-bound riverboat. He could not see the sails of the vessel from his current vantage point but knew they would be full of wind, guessing by the speed at which the surface craft moved ahead without the use of oars.
“You have this actual observation window, why did you stick these huge spell-formed windows all over the place?” Tim Dukane asked, from the seat to the left. His dark brown eyes were opened as wide as they could go and glancing about as quickly as a swarm of gnats over a fallen tray of fruit pies.
The actual window, below the spell-projected one, reflected Daniel’s clean-shaven face and eyes so dark the irises could hardly be distinguished from the pupils. His neatly trimmed dark hair and golden circlet were nearly invisible beneath the hood of his cloak. He swept his free hand back without displacing the communication array, containing ten gems, five topaz and five sapphires. Wearing the hood up had been blocking his peripheral vision.
It was Tim’s first time on a manta. Normally an Aakacarn, Melody Wielder, would occupy that seat but an exception had been made for him. If they ran into trouble, which was highly likely, Daniel fully intended to direct one of the other three passengers, they being Aakacarn Accomplisheds and therefore masters of their life-force potentials,
to come forward, and take control of the two crescendos in front of Tim. Those were class one, level four, energy amplifiers and each could add seven bolts of potential to any spell focused through them, forty-nine times the power of a One-bolt Accomplished.
Daniel was well aware of the fact that his childhood friend did not possess ever-replenishing-and-increasing life-force energy, but had a finite amount like the vast majority of the population, and that using those crescendos would be deadly for him. About one in fifty births resulted in a person who had extra life-force energy and Tim was not one of those, unlike Daniel who had more potential at his command than all but one Accomplished in the world. His thoughts rarely drifted far from the Dark Maestro, a dangerous adversary who possessed a here-to-for unheard of thirty lightning bolts of potential.
Daniel worried even though three days earlier it seemed as if that enemy had died in a prolonged attempt to be free of the shield placed on his potential. The Da Capo tied to the life-force of the ancient Accomplished ceased to be, which ended the spell, but battles continued to rage across the continent, and in the seas and oceans. Daniel had barely slept since the incident, due to the frequent attacks occurring day and night.
Surely so many raids would not be happening if the Maestro had died, at least not to such an extent.
In Daniel’s opinion, it was way too early to rejoice over the demise of Tarin Conn, as some of those few who knew of the incident were doing. Daniel had to order them to say nothing of what they believed, until the death could be verified. He dispatched a pair of feathered and furred scouts to check out Mount Filia, even though he knew agents from the Department of Internal Security and Information Gathering would be doing the same thing. Seeing and hearing what was happening on the mountain; talk of the demise of the Dark Maestro from members of the Serpent Guild or possibly seeing the ancient Accomplished, especially on a matter of such importance, appealed to Daniel in a way listening to someone recite the facts could not.
The worrisome prospect of Tarin Conn’s continued existence was not the product of an overly active or pessimistic imagination, as some folks suggested. Daniel knew from experience that a spell-caster could expend all of his life-force energy and survive, with the help of a at least one truly devoted Accomplished, as did some who knew the fact too and yet wanted to believe the Dark Maestro had died, died in the supposed deathtrap in which Daniel had ensnared him. Since Daniel had been the first to undergo the loss and restoration, he knew it was possible for his counterpart to be the second. Time would reveal the fate of his enemy. One thing was for sure, if the ancient Accomplished still lived, it would take a while for him to recuperate.
Daniel had enough immediate concerns to keep in mind and so decided not to dwell overlong on a matter that might or might not be. The truth was being sought after; he had an entire guild full of dedicated people to help him with those worries, and so brought his mind back to the matter at hand.
Tim’s blue helmet barely contained the brown wavy hair hanging down to his collar, which was not an unusual look for him. His clean-shaven face was as pale as Daniel’s own, like most Ducaunans and particularly those born and raised in the mountains. His light blue wool coat had seagulls on the cuffs and three golden anchors on each of the shoulder stripes. He and his wife Gina, also a childhood friend, were Admirals in the small but growing Atlantan Guild Navy. Twenty was a young age to be given such responsibilities, yet Daniel equaled both of them in years and had even more duties on his shoulders.
They, like him, were capable of doing their chores. He knew them well and had complete confidence in the couple. She was commanding Benhannon Wager-class patrol boats, protecting the coast from enemy ships on the inland Taltin Sea while Daniel took her husband on a voyage, along with Simon, Sero, and Carlos, to test the capabilities of the manta ray vehicle and expand them.
Daniel glanced at his friend, at the compass in the console which read, “EAST,” and then focused on the single gold grip that covered a bonded pair of obsidian crescendos. He had made some small changes to the grip since the first voyage and imagined he would be making more changes to the vessel after the current test run. The improvements were then to be added to the remaining two hundred forty-nine mantas and to any future vessels using Manta One as the template.
He eyed the emerald which contained the spell, Jet of Air, completing the Crescendo/Amulet-Propulsion-Unit, placed on top of the grip where the operator’s thumb could rest while his hand grasped and manipulated the bonded batons. A topaz Crescendo-Powered-Amulet on the side of the grip contained the spell, Continuity, and controlled the fibrous tissues within the manta’s skin that flexed the wide fins and steered the vessel while the crescendo attached to the emerald extended down under the deck, back where the jet of air would be focused beneath the tail to push the craft forward. Currently, he was swimming the manta onward without touching the emerald, a skill anyone wishing to pilot a ray needed to acquire.
The technical aspects of his creation flashed through his mind but were not part of the question so Daniel decided only to respond to what was asked. Being a man of few words did not mean he was a man of few thoughts. “I added the spell-formed windows so the pilot and crew can see in all directions, even when there is no light.”
His beloved wife Sherree had pointed out the need to see more than what the observation window could show and also to see in the dark, which inspired him to compose the spell. Thoughts of his First Lady, her long yellow-gold hair and emerald green eyes, and the child growing in her womb, always warmed his heart and brought a smile to his face. The reaction produced a correspondingly broader smile from his friend, even though that friend did not know the source of the sudden display of happiness. The emotion did not last long due to the current danger she was in, but it had brightened the moment.
Tim nodded and then shook his head while looking at the viewer on the console in front of him, as if the answer was satisfactory, and yet spawned another thought. “This oval adjusts to wherever I will it. I can see in any direction and focus incredibly far. Why add this to all the other views I have to choose from when all I need to do is turn my head and look around?” He raised his arm, apparently to show the band on his wrist connected by a fiber to the viewer, as if to say, “Why bother with this?” He did not vocalize the question, but the gesture implied it.
The practical mountaineer side of him demanded an answer, which was understandable given both of their upbringings. Daniel might have wondered the same thing back when he was nineteen, and before his talent became abundantly clear and then became impossible to hide, although he did try. Somethings cannot remain hidden, like the casting of his first spell. Odd, that time was not so long ago and yet seemed far in the past.
He remembered oft times playing the guitarn while Tim kept the beat on a pair of drums latched together and covered with buckskins. So much had happened since those simpler days, for both of them, and Daniel knew neither of them would go back to the style of life they had.
“I made one for each of the five positions on this vessel so all of us can focus the sight in any direction, close up or far away, and independently of one another. In the swinging table attached to each of the other chairs, the viewers are used for observational purposes but yours and the one in the rear are also used for targeting spells through the crescendos. This,” Daniel explained while pointing to the eye-shaped viewer in the console in front of him, “is for convenience.” He glanced at the viewer which was currently focused to the rear.
What is behind me does matter.
Being in a state of war made being vigilant a necessity. The thought was never far from the forefront of his mind and kept him alert. An attack could come at any moment, from any angle, and require a quick response. The feeling was similar to when he used to hunt on Mount Tannakonna and knew hungry predators were stalking him. Those mountaineer instincts were currently serving him well.
The clearing of a throat interrupted the thought; the sound came from the
center chair behind him. “I was hoping to observe what happens when you focus your seven lightning bolts of potential into the CAPU in the rear of this vessel,” soft-spoken Chief Aid Simon Trenca, the sandy-haired One-Bolt Accomplished, stated. It was not necessary to look back to know there would be a hint of a smile on his face, as if he knew the statement would be taken more as a provocation than a legitimate clarification of the mission.
Like Daniel and the other two Accomplisheds, he wore topaz blue silks; pants, shirt, and hooded cloak with silver trim. His’ had one golden lightning bolt on the hood while Daniel’s had seven with the center one being the largest.
Simon’s complexion was that of peaches blended in cream and he was thin but in excellent health. Beneath his hood was a communication array in the form of a headband containing twenty-three tiny gems facing inward. The device kept him in contact with his twelve aids, his Maestro, the First Accomplished, the First Lady, and the Conductors of the eight departments of the Atlantan Guild. Gems from Daniel, Sherree, and Leah had been added recently to the array, although Simon was in their presence enough that mind to mind communications were rarely necessary.
His energy seemed to have no bounds and often drove him to find ways of being helpful. He also seemed to be eager to get on with the series of maneuvers to be tried on the current voyage, so Daniel was not surprised that the Battencayan-born Accomplished would be the first to prod his Maestro into getting on with the task. They were of the same age and met during Daniel’s brief stay in Aakadon. Similar reminders were given in the past even though the man knew full well that the leader of his guild possessed total recall, as did many members of the Atlantan Guild who either used the memory spell Daniel composed or had it cast upon them.
Daniel’s instrument of choice was the six-stringed guitarn and he figured that might be why most of the Melodies he composed were soon enhanced with a six note harmony, transforming them into Symphonics, which were richer and therefore capable of producing a greater impact than a single line Melody. His exposure to scores of other instruments during his time in Aakadon increased his ability to add even more notes in harmony to his musical compositions. He would have explained the fact to Tim if the Chief Aid had not interrupted. The young Admiral knew some of it and might have been interested in the rest, then again maybe not, since he was gazing at the gators lying on the bottom of the river as they came slowly into and out of view. The huge reptiles were apparently more fascinating than spell science. The answer received had clearly been satisfactory, so Daniel saw no reason to explain more than what was asked.
To Be Victorious: The Maestro Chronicles Book 6 Page 1