The Three Swords (The Ways of Mages)

by Catherine Beery

  “Because there was no Silsharea to lead us. It had been understood that if another family took over the kingship, Sieth’s Heir would no longer have a right to the throne. If we had two royal lines, there would be a chance that infighting would occur. When the Sheyestivans returned, they would use that to their advantage. We could not risk that kind of divide within our ranks. We would lose for sure, then.” Illion explained.

  “Humans were terrified of us when the war was finished.” Lori added. “It was thought best that everyone believed that we were dead. Be safer for both Marlhema and us.” She smiled at Razyan. “Though that does not mean that we have been completely out of touch. We have an eye or two in the Council.”Razyan’s eyes widened before narrowing thoughtfully at Illion.

  “You mentioned the Enaza Terelle earlier, do you know what happened to it?” Razyan asked curiously. The dragons glanced at each other with knowing looks. Illionn then turned back to the wizard and simply nodded. Razyan’s eyes glittered with a scholar’s fascination.

  “I’m sorry, but what is that?” Jay Dee asked.

  “It is the Silver Star.” Razyan was quick to explain. “It was the sword of the Dragon Kings, long since lost. It was a magical sword. It is said to have been incredibly powerful, made so by its ability to absorb magic like several hundred extremely gifted magic users. But as I said, it was lost. Since the night the dragons disappeared, no wizard has been able to find it.” One could tell that Razyan had spent years trying.

  Milisda raised a smug eyebrow at him. “That, Wizard Razyan, would be because wizards don’t know how or where to look.”

  “It’s here.” Tsoya said. Milisda gave her a look. The Persharans glanced at each other. All three of them thinking along the same line; the Nirami’s Child had told them the full prophecy of the Jaitu Du Munde. It had mentioned three magical swords. Was the Silver Star one of these?

  Terana scratched behind Russy’s ears as she thought. The Sheyestivans were sounding worse and worse. Why did Arité insist that it wasn’t a bad thing that she had helped Kaishan? And how was Terana to supposed to help anyone? Let alone stop a war? And why did Arité keep showing her memories of Kaishan’s childhood. “What does she want?” Terana asked softly, which in the quiet meeting room, was kind of loud.

  “Who dear?” Lori asked.

  Terana glanced around and flushed slightly when she noticed everyone was looking quizzically at her. She looked back to Lori. “Arité.” She replied. The dragons looked among themselves. They had never heard the name before. Grim and Jay Dee glanced a Jewel. They had heard the name before.

  “How have you met Arité, Terana?” Jewel asked.

  “Dreams.” Terana answered, her hand seeking Russy’s fur again.

  “Who is this Arité?” Milisda asked concerned. How much of a threat was this unknown woman who met Milisda’s princess in dreams?

  “Relax, Milisda.” Jewel said noting the woman’s expression. Milisda glared at her, obviously the woman still didn’t trust her. Sighing Jewel turned her attention to the rest of the table. “Arité is not a threat. She is a dear friend of mine, my first here in Arathin. She is the last of the original Ara T’an and the Varserea Kings. You know, the kingdom from before the rise of the Nirami’s Grave.”

  Silence met that pronouncement.

  “Boy, Lanol would love to be here right now.” Razyan muttered sitting back in his chair. He met Jewel’s emerald gaze with his own green eyes. “How long ago was this?” he asked.

  “A little more than nineteen hundred years ago.” Seeing that the Marlhemans were surprised by this, .Jewel held up a hand to stall the questions that were about to swamp her, “I’ll give you a history lesson later. But first I want to know what my friend had been teaching you.” She asked Terana.

  Terana took a breath before saying. “She has been showing me memories in my dreams. All of them are focused around the life of one individual.”

  “Who?” Illion asked.

  “Kaishan Varcress.” The dragons, excluding Lori who just turned pale, cursed.

  Milisda turned angry eyes on Jewel. “I thought you said this friend of yours was trustworthy! How could she be if she is exposing our princess to the memories of that monster!”

  “Woah! Who is this ‘Kaishan?’” Thomas asked amazed at the venomous way in which the Marlheman dragons had reacted.

  “Kaishan Varcress was, is, the Winged Dagger and the High Prince of Sheyestiva. He is the one who brought us to our knees.“ Illion explained.

  “What is a ‘Winged Dagger’? Kadrean asked.

  “The Winged Dagger, from what we had learned in the last days, is the greatest blade master in Sheyestiva. His duty is to serve as the Emperor’s General. It was he who plotted our ruin, as demanded by the Emperor- his father.” Terana shivered. She knew from the dreams that Kaishan was a dangerous man. He had been trained that way. He was also ruthless... I can tell you that that man has been puzzling over you ever since.” Arité had said. Knowing that such a man knew about her, wondered about her, and had tried to capture her at least once was terrifying.

  “That was five hundred years ago.” Jay Dee pointed out, drawing Terana back into the conversation.

  “Yes,” Jewel said, “but the spell did not kill the Sheyestivans. It only sent them home, freezing them in time until recently.” She looked at Terana. “Time restarted for them when Terana, here, was born.” Terana’s eyes widened. She hadn’t known that.

  “All the more reason to try to stop those dreams.” Milisda said. “They will be back and soon if they are not already.

  ***

  After the meeting Jewel, Thomas, and Jay Dee visited with Jingles and Willaim who were still on the ship. They gave the sailors a brief summary of the meeting. Thomas ended it with the question “This Kaishan, do you think he could be one of the Three?”

  “Why do you ask that?” Jay Dee asked tilting her head.

  Thomas leaned back against the rail. He took a moment to organize his thoughts. “I’m not sure. It is just that he is a sword master and Terana has been shown his childhood. Her name means, according to what I’ve been told, Starfire.” Thomas remembered the man who had killed the creatures on the shores of the Lake of Ghosts. “What is the possibility that the Nirami’s Child pointed us to meet with Terana because she would lead us to the Star’s Sword?”

  “I guess it may be possible.” Jewel said frowning in thought.

  “And if the dirty child was right, he will know who the Child of Light is.” Jingles added.

  “All we can do is wait and see.” Jewel said looking back toward the island. I just hope we can act when we need too.

  Chapter Seventeen–The Spatial/Temporal Device

  The City of Pershara- Pershara

  Bendon was once again so focused that he was practically obsessed. But Robert could understand why. He was also because he wanted to see his friend reunited with his wife. A wife that had been taken from him only a few weeks after they’d been married. It had been a cruel twist of fate, but at least they knew that she was alive. So once again, they were building a spatial/temporal device. Though this time, they were adding in safety measures. The major one being the sensitivity of the sword’s cradle. They made it less sensitive, requiring the operator to hold down a lever so they could move the sword. That way, they hoped, it would be harder for accidental trips through time and jostling of the mechanism that would affect where and when a traveler appeared. That was the hope, at least. If it actually worked was another matter entirely.

  Robert stepped back stroking the stubble on his chin. They were nearly done. Bendon’s eyes twinkled at him. He knew they were only a few more pieces away from being able to test it.“Almost there.”The wizard remarked.“Soon we will be able to go find Jewel.”

  Robert clapped him on the back.“Aye. And see what has become of Arathin.”Robert said.“I just have one question.”He said glancing at his friend sidelong.

  “Oh?”Bendon raised a bushy eyebrow at him.


  “Yeah, how are we going to get back? I understand that we can build another one of these.”Robert said gesturing at the device,“But it is designed to be run by my sword. The sword needs to stay on this end.”

  Bendon smiled and patted his red cloak that was draped over his shoulder…a cloak that hadn’t been there a second ago.“Don’t worry, my friend. We’ll have a way.”

  ***

  Pershara Palace- Pershara

  The dark sons heaved the crate into his secret office through the dark gateway. They set it down gingerly, wary of upsetting him. Salvo smiled as they turned to him and bowed.“Be gone.”He dismissed them as he took a step toward the crate. The dark sons didn’t need to be told twice. They vanished back through the gate. It closed with an inaudible pop.

  Salvo touched the crate with gentle finger tips. Murmuring a simple spell, the wood hissed into nothingness. Revealed to him was a strange device. The key part of which was a cradle that had a slot in it. From what Maltacken’s pet had said under extreme persuasion, was that a black sword with a bronze hilt had been seated in that slot. She had screamed that the rebels had used it, somehow, to escape her. It was how she had lost the Fulcrum and the wizard Zebendon. This was all, of course, just after she had lost Thomas GrimHolden. Salvo rolled his eyes at the worthlessness of some beings. Altana had had such promise too. The only good she served now was bearing the Child of Darkness into the world, well at least his husk.

  He could guess now exactly howthe Fulcrum had escaped Altana now that Savranious had finally revealed where she had vanished to. Salvo concluded that he would need to keep a better eye on the younger Dark Lord. The whelp had kept it secret that Jewel had been in Arathin for nearly two thousand years. At least he had had the sense to tell them immediately about the Child of Light…Thank the Darkness for small favors.

  The Proconsul lightly touched the cradle. His senses could taste two signatures. The base of the magical device was none other than an old enemy; Zebendon. The second was a trace of power far older.

  “Why hello.”He said softly. A tingle rippled over his fingers. Salvo sniffed them as if to breathe in the trace. He knew it and he smiled in such a way that would have sent mortals and Dark Kin running in fear.“Ah yess.”The rebels had used a Sword of Power to power the device. And, unless he was very much mistaken, it was the only Sword that would allow a Dark Lord like Maltacken to wield it: the Sword of Change also known as the Catalyst.

  He wondered if the rebels knew what they had left behind for Maltaken’s pet to find that day. Somehow they apparently had gotten it back, though. Salvo suspected that they had managed this feat for two reasons. The first was that Maltacken had felt its power on the dark moon night when it had cut through the Fires of the Damned. The second reason was that his spies in the Thief's Guild had reported that Bendon and another had locked themselves into a room. It was suspected that they were building something. Salvo glanced at the machine and wondered if there was another being created or something similar.

  Must know what they are up to. Must get that sword. Salvo thought turning from the device. There were things that he had to do, orders to give. He approached his desk and picked up a smoky quartz crystal orb. He placed it on a pedestal inscribed with a glyph painted with the blood of one of the flawless doves that he had killed to link the dark sons to three rings that belonged to a few of the leaders of the Thief's Guild. The orb would provide him with a way to contact his spies within the enemy’s camp. Placing his hand on the orb Salvo began to form the connection to his spies. His murmuring of the complex spell made the orb glow. The smoke within churned.

  “Master? You have instructions?”The spies asked in a monotone.

  “You are to gather more information on the activities of the Wizard Zebendon and his companion. Glance into the room they are working in if you can. In the meantime, you are to turn as many of the thieves to our cause as you can without drawing undue attention.” Salvo instructed. He then removed his hand severing the link. He then spoke another spell. It would connect him to Maltacken’s temple at Mortia. Maltacken had been told to inform them that the Proconsul would call them.

  “My lord Proconsul?”The high priest inquired, having felt the summons.

  “High Priest, it is time to send your troops to the capital.”

  “Consider it done.”The high priest said.

  “I do.”Salvo said as he cut the connection. He then donned his black cloak, pulling the hood over his head. The Dark Gate opened at his silent order. He was returning to the plane of the Dark Kin. Once there he summoned the soul eating serpent. He had plans for the thorn-in-his-side wizard Zebendon.

  Chapter Eighteen - The Winged Dagger

  999, After Fall (Persharan Calendar)

  Arathin- Kikel Varcressi, Sheyestiva

  Flat gray clouds obscured the sky and matched his mood. Kaishan glanced at the sky. Under his gaze the clouds seemed to grow darker and heavier. Rain. The sky would cry this day when he could not.

  He had known this day would come eight years ago; how could he not know? It had been the only course since Merrendi had agreed to train him. Merrendi had known.

  One of them would die this day.

  It was how titles of power were kept or taken in Sheyestiva. For eight years Kaishan had been trained. Now he would be tested. Either he would fail and die or succeed and become the Winged Dagger. There was only ever one.

  Something cold and predatory stirred within him. There will only be one outcome. That other nature informed him. He knew it spoke true as his eyes met those of his mentor.

  “You have completed the training of a Winged Dagger, Kaishan Varcress. Are in fact one despite the lack of title.”At this Veirsha Merrendi’s eyes flashed.“There can only be one.”Merrendi’s voice developed a dangerous edge that turned into a growl.“Do you dare challenge me?”

  Kaishan’s eyes flashed at the challenge. Riled, the Coldness took over and turned Kaishan’s eyes to ice. Gone was any friendship or respect. There was only the calculating of death.“Do you challenge my right?”Kaishan’s tone was not the tone of a fourteen year old. It was older, more than dangerous. The sky grew darker as Kaishan spoke.“I am owed blood.”He declared in a voice that seemed to quiet the rising wind. The ritual words of the Blood Fight rolled off his tongue like well-practiced lines.“Viersha Merrendi, I challenge thee. The Winged Dagger is mine.”The ghostly door out of this situation was whipped from all memory. There was no going back now. No chance of ever going back. Kaishan’s and Merrendi’s fates were sealed.

  In the greatest display of pathetic fallacy, the skies opened, lightning flashed, and thunder shook the ground. The two, challenged and challenger, came together in a flurry of steel and skill. The Coldness was thrilled with this challenge. He will die. It whispered.There is no other way. He will fight well, but I hunger. This prey’s blood is owed me! There is no other option. He will die!It sang. Rain and blood trickled to the ground. Time was measured in the sticky wetness. Obsidian swords sang the song of death. Hungrily they tasted rich blood. It was a dance, a beautifully dangerous dance…

  Tiring of its game, the Coldness snapped its blade through its opponents’wrist, sending blade and what remained attached flying. On landing steel and flesh separated. Pain turned to anger in Viersha’s eyes. The black veins thickened to obscure most of the blue of his eyes. Quickly he used telekinesis to pull the severed edges of his wrist together in a temporary patch. His skin paled at the pain, but that was the only acknowledgement he gave it. He pulled a long wavy edged dagger from its sheath across his chest. Dirt and small stones flew into the air in a vengeful tornado. The Coldness smiled. It tangled its own power into Veirsha’s weave. The stones flying for the Coldness in smooth flight jerked about. They circled around it and raced back to Viersha. Merrendi forced the stones to veer down into the soft earth.

  The Coldness cut its ties to the stones and they buried themselves deep. Viersha’s telekinesis sent a billowing cloud of dirt into th
e air about Kaishan. He then vanished so he was behind his former student. A grin spread over Kaishan’s face. In a blink he was also gone. Several of him appeared. Lightning flashed ruthlessly across the sky. Viersha sent illusions of himself about as well, using shadows to veil a few of them. Others and himself he left visible.

  The earth shuddered as the buried stones were hurled into the air again. They clashed against each other, shattering. Frowning, Viersha eyed them. His illusions did also. What was Kaishan doing? The stone shards flew through the air in a fan like pattern. Like a scythe they slashed through the illusions. He teleported behind the shards. A shout leapt from his throat as something grasped his severed limb. Kaishan stood behind him, grinding grit into the wound. Merrendi flipped his blade for a backward thrust.

  Pain seared through his other wrist at the bite of Kaishan’s sword. The illusions of Kaishan laughed maliciously. Viersha kicked with his legs to break bone. Kaishan sprang away. His rock shards came sailing back. Aiming with malicious glee for Viersha’s wounds. Viersha sought to stave off the rocks, but something kept him from tying them to his will. Suddenly the will behind the rocks switched its hold to him, tying his telecy into knots. The stones connected.

  Viersha dropped to the ground, the pain was so intense, he was sure twice as much as it should have been. It felt as if he was being skinned. He tried to untangle his telecy but that only caused a stabbing pain in his head.

  Viersha’s eyes, pale with pain and knowledge, met his former student’s eyes. They were a blue so dark they were almost black. Night, he could sense the strength of power behind that gaze…He inclined his head, his eyes lowering in submission. They rose again to Kaishan’s gaze. They were eloquent My life was forfeit eight years ago. My life is yours. Take it, I beg, cleanly. The Coldness would have killed Merrendi bit by bit, but now that he had submitted to his fate, the Coldness gave him his last request.