Magefall

by Stephen Aryan

  The heat from the fire dwindled and then faded. The screaming and sounds of battle had stopped. By the time Boros could breathe again she realised it was all over. Lying beside her on the ground were at least a dozen of her people. All of them were dead and she couldn’t see any wounds. But there were also a few faces she didn’t recognise which made her smile. They were bloody and gouged from steel, as they should be.

  “You think this is funny,” said a voice right before someone’s fist hammered into the side of her head and the world turned black.

  Wren stared down at the six dead people from her community and the bloody wounds they bore. Even Master Yettle had his limits and couldn’t raise people from the dead. Six lives for sixty. That was how many raiders they had now captured.

  The plan had been carefully put together and she’d been prepared for the need to adapt. It had all been going so well until Boros’s final attack, which wasn’t something she’d ever considered. For the raider to sacrifice one of her own people in such a merciless way was unimaginable. If not for the quick thinking of Leonie, who ordered everyone to drop the firewall, more lives would have been lost.

  Boros and the others were being chained together and loaded into wagons that had been converted into prison carts. Many people from the community wanted to kill Boros and the others, to bring about a final end, but Wren knew it wasn’t their place. Part of her wanted to do it as well to balance the scales. The urge quickly faded when she thought about the Red Tower and those who had died so that she and the others could escape. There had been enough killing.

  Wren also realised that if she and the others in the community were going to have a future in Shael they could not put themselves above the law. Their magic did not make them better than anyone else. The raiders would be taken to the capital city and judged for their crimes.

  “Are you ready?” asked Laila, once the prisoners were secure.

  “Not really. I’ve never met a Queen before,” said Wren. “But I’m looking forward to it.”

  CHAPTER 39

  Queen Morganse had just finished her evening meal when there was a knock at the door of her private dining room. She frowned and waited, expecting one of her Royal Guards to open it but nothing happened. There were two of them stationed at the end of the corridor and several more throughout the palace.

  “Come in,” she said.

  Ben, her main contact in the Silent Order, entered the room. As ever, he was dressed in plain grey and black clothing and his shoes made no sound as he crossed the tiled floor.

  “Majesty,” he said with a deep bow which showed her that his grey hair was starting to go thin on top. Time seemed to be catching up with them both. “Given my news I thought it best if no one saw me.”

  Morganse thought she knew all of the hidden passageways in and out of the palace but he continued to surprise her. The thought of being alone with him in the room, when no one knew he was even there, was more than a little unsettling. If he was so inclined he could kill her and slip away without anyone knowing he’d been there. Thankfully that didn’t seem to be her fate this evening.

  “Please sit,” she said, gesturing at the chair furthest away from her at the table. A little bit of prudence never hurt. “What’s happened?”

  Ben settled into his chair and rubbed his mouth as if trying to dislodge something sour. “It’s not good news. The head of the Mining Guild was found dead this morning.”

  Morganse had met with the man on a couple of occasions and thought him as dense as the iron his miners dug out of the ground. But to his people he was a fair and effective leader. He didn’t work for her but he was an important figure within the community. Yerskani steel might not be up to the standard of Seveldrom but it was an important commodity that was shipped around the world. “Was he murdered?”

  “That’s unclear at this time. However, I thought it prudent to investigate the man being considered to replace him. All of the miners seemed to be leaning towards one name in particular. Cal Hemsey. My people searched his home and found this.”

  Ben took something from his pocket and placed it on the table before sliding it towards her. Morganse caught the cloth pouch and tipped out its contents. A familiar and crudely made stone idol, of a benevolent mother holding a child, rolled onto the table. Akosh.

  For almost two weeks Morganse had been wrestling with her decision. She’d asked the Silent Order to keep an eye on some of the people named in the list that Tammy had acquired. Her own agents were following the other less senior figures and were sending her regular reports of their activity. So far none of them had done anything untoward and were going about their daily lives as normal. The only anomaly, and the one trait all of Akosh’s agents shared, was their ambition.

  Until now she had thought the list acquired by the Guardians included all of Akosh’s people in the city, but the death of the Mining Guild’s leader seemed to prove otherwise. It made her wonder how many other followers Akosh had seeded around the city in positions adjacent to those in power. How many more agents should she be monitoring?

  Ben’s normally grave expression seemed distracted. “Is there something else?” she asked.

  “I don’t believe in coincidences,” he said.

  “Neither do I.” Experience had taught her that even if she couldn’t see the person pulling the strings it didn’t mean they weren’t there.

  “This is the third death that struck me as unusual in two weeks. The first was an influential blacksmith and the second an important merchant. At first glance both deaths were not suspicious.”

  Morganse didn’t like the sound of where this was going. “And now?”

  “I made some thorough enquiries. It was difficult work,” he said, rubbing his hands together. Morganse noted the dried blood under his nails and the swelling around his knuckles. She liked details but on this occasion was happy not to know what methods he’d used. “The thief who robbed the smith was quite skilled. It wasn’t a random attack, although he didn’t know who paid him. A very rare poison was used on the merchant, but once again the apothecarist who supplied it didn’t have a name.”

  “And the people set to replace them? I take it you visited their homes as well?”

  Ben reached into his pocket and placed two more identical idols on the table in front of him. Three murders in two weeks. Akosh was making a move on her city. Perhaps it was payback for the rededication of all her orphanages in Perizzi. Or perhaps that was merely a coincidence and her plan remained unchanged. Either way three murders in such a short space of time, in addition to the two previous ones Tammy had brought to her attention, indicated something was about to happen. If Morganse did nothing then the slow trickle effect of Akosh’s people spreading across the city would continue.

  Working alone they couldn’t inflict significant harm, but if Akosh sent an order to even half a dozen of her people they could prove disruptive. Trade was the lifeblood of the city and if it was interrupted the knock-on effects would be far-reaching.

  It was yet another problem she had to manage. This was in addition to the Regent and his continued demands that she ban all mages in Yerskania. The gall of the man was astonishing. Especially when everyone in the west knew about his amnesty for Zecorran mages. Her agents in the north also reported that his cadre was still small in number, and consisted of young people, which was both a blessing and a curse. While it meant they lacked significant training and experience it also suggested they were impressionable and naïve. Whatever else he was she knew Regent Choilan was a charismatic man who could be very persuasive. Either he or one of his three wives would find a way to bind the young mages to ensure their loyalty.

  For the time being they had shown no signs of moving beyond the capital city but it was only a matter of time. Once all of Zecorria was secure his gaze would inevitably turn outwards. Before that could happen he, too, would have to contend with the will of the people who still loathed anything to do with magic.

  In the meantime, s
he had to deal with the rogue mages who had fled south after the capture of their leader. Morganse still had no idea how that had happened or what to do with the few that Balfruss had already imprisoned. The idea of putting them on trial and then executing them for their crimes did not appeal. It would be right in the eyes of the law but she wasn’t in the habit of murdering misguided children.

  She also had yet to properly consider Tammy’s proposal to set up magical schools in the country. The looming magical threat in the north made her consider it again, but her people’s hatred of magic was still so raw she wondered at the wisdom of the idea. Yerskania would need some level of magical defence in the future, but the matter was not as pressing as Akosh and her agents. They could undermine everything she had worked so hard to build. Her life was dedicated to the safety of her people and she was not about to let a new cult destroy her legacy.

  “Majesty?” asked Ben, interrupting her reverie.

  “I was just considering my choices,” she admitted. They were few and none were particularly appealing, but a decision was needed. So be it. She would make it and face the consequences of her actions. “This cannot continue.”

  Tomorrow more people could turn up dead and quickly be replaced by those loyal to Akosh.

  “I agree, Majesty.”

  “The people you’re watching, have you investigated those around them?”

  “Yes, Majesty. We needed to know which were loyal and which are part of her network.”

  “How difficult would it be to find suitable replacements for all of those being watched on the list?” she asked.

  “It would be relatively simple,” said Ben. “There are several people vying for each role.”

  “That’s good.”

  “What are you asking me to do, your Majesty?”

  Morganse stared down at the idol and took a deep breath. When she felt calm she met Ben’s gaze. “Eliminate them. Tonight. And make sure people know the Silent Order was responsible for a few. I want to send a clear message.”

  She’d given him orders before to take out certain targets but her decision made him pause. This was not one or two people. All of them had the potential to be dangerous targets, but so far none of them had done anything untoward. When Tammy had given her the list she’d hesitated. When the Dockmaster and Minister of Trade had died she’d hesitated.

  She couldn’t wait around any more to see what they did. It was too late to save those who had already been killed, but if she did nothing others could soon die in suspicious circumstances. Then her regret and compassion would mean nothing to those who suffered. Decisive action was needed.

  “Are you certain?” asked Ben.

  “Kill them all,” said the Queen.

  CHAPTER 40

  Tianne stared around at her room trying to find anything that she would truly miss. Her pack, containing all of her belongings, sat on the bed. It had been a lot easier and faster to gather everything up than when she’d left the Red Tower. Then she’d agonised over every item of clothing. This time she was only taking what was truly hers and would leave the rest behind. The only concessions were a new pair of boots and some warmer clothing for the journey south. Her experiences on the road last time had taught her to be ready for anything.

  After shoving the bag under her bed she went for her last meal at the palace and then returned to her rooms to wait for midnight. When the building was silent and still she took a deep breath, wrapped her head and face in a long black scarf and retrieved her pack.

  The sensible part of her mind was telling her to leave immediately. To find the shortest route outside, use her magic to climb over a wall and disappear into the streets. From there she had enough money to buy a horse, although sadly not the one on which she’d arrived. As part of his pretence of caring about her the Regent had attempted to find it, but unfortunately had not been successful. Tianne doubted he’d actually tried. It was yet another lie intended to make him seem like a compassionate man.

  By bribing one of the stable boys she’d paid a different horse trader for a new mount, but had only given him half. The rest she would deliver in person tonight. If nothing else her recent experiences had made her a lot more cautious in all things.

  Ignoring the sensible part of herself, Tianne followed her instincts. They were telling her to do something else. It was the part of herself that she wanted to ignore but it guided her feet down into the earth again. This time she had no need to argue or threaten any of the guards. Most of them were asleep at this hour and those who weren’t she rendered unconscious from a distance with her magic. They never saw her face and would be unable to tell anyone which of the cadre had done it. For once not being the only mage in the city had its advantages.

  This time when Tianne entered Garvey’s cell block she was prepared for the stench. Even so the smell was so overpowering it still made her eyes water. The sputtering torch at the end of the cell block provided only meagre light, keeping the worst horrors in the shadows. A low hum filled several of the other cells as moving blankets of flies feasted on the rotting flesh of their dead occupants. She moved down to the last cell on the end and was grateful he remained wreathed in shadows. Only his feet were visible and she didn’t summon a mage light to reveal more.

  Garvey’s breathing seemed incredibly loud in the dense silence this deep underground. Tianne’s breath frosted on the air and she wondered how long he would make himself endure such horrors.

  “Back again so soon,” he whispered.

  “I’m leaving. I came to say …” Tianne trailed off, not really sure why she’d come. Her instincts had told her she needed to see him one last time. To say something, but now she was here the words wouldn’t come.

  “Say what?”

  “What did you mean the last time I was here?” It wasn’t what she’d wanted to ask him, but it had been on her mind. “You said something had been revealed to you.”

  The echo of her words faded and the cloying silence returned. At first she thought that he wouldn’t respond, but then he shuffled closer, the chains clinking with every move. Tianne braced herself for the grisly sight of his ruined face. Thankfully he’d wrapped a piece of cloth around his head, covering his eyes.

  “Do you know how many Sorcerers there are in the world?” he asked. Tianne shook her head then realised he couldn’t see her. “Four,” he said, before she could respond. “And you met three of them at the Red Tower. Sorcerers are regarded as the most experienced and the learned mages in the world.” Garvey’s mocking laughter surprised her as it was so loud and bitter, echoing over and over again off the walls. It felt very out of place in this miserable hole deep underground.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I can see so much now,” he said, smiling ruefully at his choice of words. “As a Sorcerer I thought I understood the Source on a deeper level. In my arrogance I believed I knew the full potential of magic. I was so wrong.”

  “Is that why you’re still here?” she said, gesturing at the filth around them.

  “It’s so quiet and there are no distractions. The peace has allowed me to clear my mind. Here I can focus on what is being revealed. Up there it’s teeming with people. I can feel them all,” he said, glancing at the ceiling. “Hundreds and thousands of them, scrabbling around in the city. They’re like ants crawling across my skin. Don’t you feel them?”

  “I don’t feel anything. We’re too deep underground.”

  “Embrace the Source,” he said, standing up and moving towards the bars of his cell. The chain on his ankle stopped him short and he glanced at it with irritation. Tianne felt a brief rush of power and then he simply touched the chain with two fingers. The metal chain dissolved and struck the floor as a liquid, splashing her on the face. Tianne wiped it away in disgust but then realised it had been transformed into water. That was impossible. In all the time she’d been a student at the Red Tower she’d never read or heard of such a Talent. Changing one thing into another was a fanciful myth that
the ignorant used when talking about magic, like lead into gold.

  “What do I do?” she asked.

  “Open yourself to the Source,” said Garvey, who was now standing at the bars of his cell. “Let it flow through you. Let it fill every corner of your body and mind.”

  Tianne focused and reached out towards the tide that always waited on the edge of her perception. Drawing power into her body from the Source was still a feeling that she couldn’t put into words. Her senses became more acute, the shadows peeled back and the stench in the cells became even stronger, filling her nose with its putrid filth. Now she could hear the steady drip of water, see the pale green moss growing in the corner of Garvey’s cell and the rodent-chewed corpse in the next cell. But all of it was insignificant compared to the warmth inside. It made her feel stronger, more confident, and with it she believed anything was possible.

  “Reach out with your mind,” said Garvey, his voice hypnotic in the gloom. “Let it drift up through the stone and beyond. Far above the city there’s a hawk wheeling in slow circles. A murder of crows is watching, nervous about their chicks. Can you see them?”

  Tianne tried to follow his instructions but all she could feel was the dense, immovable weight of all the stone above their heads. The earth around it was damp from a downpour and she sensed tiny specks of life as insects crawled and burrowed. Without channelling any power it felt as if she was trying to stretch a piece of string beyond its limit.

  “I can’t reach beyond the earth.”

  “Ah,” said Garvey, but she didn’t think he was speaking to her any more. His face was tilted towards the ceiling but she had the impression his mind was far away. A frown creased his forehead and Tianne felt a peculiar wave of nausea pass through her which made her stagger.

  “What was that?”

  “There’s something here, in Herakion. A person. A being of immense power. It’s old. So old and monstrous.” Garvey gripped the bars of his cell with both hands and would have fallen as something invisible seemed to wrench him sideways. His knees buckled but he recovered and held himself upright. Garvey’s smile was a mix of surprise and wonder. “I think it’s aware of me. I can feel it searching.”