by M. S. Dobing
‘Why, you of course.’
If Seb had any liquid in his mouth, he would have spat it over the table. Were they serious? Cade was always serious so it was difficult to tell. Gough, for all intents, seemed totally sincere. Which made his idea even more ridiculous.
‘Me? I’m nothing. I have only been training for a couple of years.’
‘Yes, but in that time you have advanced considerably.’
‘So, I’m still weak compared to pretty much all the other magi out there. Why don’t you speak with them?’
‘I assume that was some kind of joke. Do you know what the Families would do if they found us?’
Seb didn’t answer. He knew what they would do. They all did. He sighed and sat back. ‘But what can I do, really?’
‘Work with us. We have resources. Ancient texts and guides that you could decipher. You would start a new Magistry here, amongst your own kind. You would learn first, and then guide them.’
‘And what’s in it for you?’ the question slipped out before he even thought of it. Cade glared. Gough didn’t react at all.
‘Good, a suspicious mind is a healthy mind.’ Gough leant forwards. ‘Would it surprise you to know Seb that I am not significant. I am not a great warrior, like Cade, or a mage, like you. I have some powers yes, but nothing of material compared to such powerhouses. What I am though, is a people person. I can sense the Aware, especially the newly aware. I can feel their pain, their suffering. Before I accepted my calling, I used to be a counsellor, specialising in what’s called abnormal psychology. In recent years I became aware of an increase in a certain type of hallucination that was scarily common in its attributes. People claiming to hear voices, to feel others’ emotions. At first these could be attributed to many other ailments, but I noticed that they were all common in many areas. Eventually it became clear that it wasn’t just that they that were different, I was different too. I could feel them. I could detect their pain. Over time, I realised I could reach out to them, too, and could soothe their pain.’
‘You mean you can help them? Those going mad with the Weave?’
Gough smiled. ‘Have you seen anyone who looks like they’re struggling here?’
Seb wrung his hands. ‘They said they couldn’t do anything to help.’
‘Who, the magi? Couldn’t, or wouldn’t?’
‘The end result is the same.’
‘Indeed it is.’
‘So what happened then? How did you end up here? This place didn’t spring up overnight.’
‘It most certainly didn’t. And it’s a strange story, even by our kind’s standards.’
‘Go on.’
‘A dream, Seb. I had a dream.’
Seb smiled. ‘I feel a speech coming on.’
‘You may jest; I would understand why.’ Gough leant closer, his eyes suddenly serious. ‘All I know is that one night, I had a dream, a vision. I didn’t see this place, not really, but I had a path. I just knew how to find it, I knew that, for a time, I could take my newly awoken here, until such time as we had to move on.’
‘And you found this? This chamber? With no training, no knowledge of the Weave. You just turned up here?’
‘Strange I know, but this is how it happened. And then others came. Shimmer, firstly,’ he nodded towards the door. He was drawn, like I was. But from a much greater distance.
‘It was only a shell then. Large, spacious. We saw how it could be harnessed to help those in need. My skills allowed me to empathise with them. I could feel their pain, and, for some reason, they responded to that. They calmed when they came here. I could reach out, with my mind, distance didn’t seem to matter. I could find them, and if their will was strong, they came here. We began to turn the tide of these infections. Before, people were scared. Terrified even. Now though, we can do something to help.’
‘So that’s it? You just help for the sake of it?’ Seb was aware of how insulting the question was, but he just couldn’t help it. No one did something for nothing. Not ever. Even the most altruistic motives had some personal gain somewhere.
If Gough was offended, he didn’t show it. He simply smiled that weary smile again as if he’d been asked this a thousand times.
‘It really is, Seb. I felt lost before, like I didn’t know what I was meant for. Did you ever feel that? When I became Aware myself it was like a light had been switched on. Then I met Shimmer, and then Cade, and others. A whole new world was opened up to me. A whole new set of worlds, if I’m to be exact. I felt for the first time like I belonged. You know what I mean?’
‘I did,’ Seb said, idly pushing his finger along the table. ‘Nowadays, not so much.’
‘Cade has told me of your experiences at the Magistry. None of that was your fault, you know.’
‘I know,’ he snapped. ‘Sorry. I know. I really do. For a while I didn’t think that. I kept replaying over and over in my mind the whole thing. Why didn’t I see that Caleb was possessed? How did none of us realise that the whole thing was a big setup from start to finish?’
‘Seb, I was taken in. By my own father and brother,’ Cade said.
‘I know, Cade. I know you must feel the same. But…I can’t explain it. It was me, the whole thing was me. I carried that thing in my head all that time, and everything we went through was just manipulation to get it out. At the right time.’
‘You could never have known.’
‘I know that now. And I accept it. It’s just made me…’
‘Cynical?’ Gough said.
‘That’s one word to describe it. I can think of a lot more.’
Gough laughed. ‘I can imagine. Well, here Seb you would be amongst friends. There is no deceit here. Just hope. I would very much like you to be part of that. And our future.’
‘What, even Shimmer out there?’ Seb nodded over his shoulder, the milky-eyed man still taking a prime place in recent memory.
‘Eventually. Shimmer, in many ways, is like you. He has experienced some great hardships in his life, but you will never meet a truer, more dedicated champion for what’s right.’
‘Where’s he from?’
‘No one knows. He’s many hundreds of years old. He is what’s known as a Border Guard. A faction dedicated to ensuring the shards are not crossed. They are powerful, very powerful. And very dangerous.’
‘But you said that people are arriving here all the time from the other shards?’
‘I did. He has turned against his kind. The Border Guards are not evil, by trade, but they are not good either. They simply hunt. If you’re in the Wildlands, and a Border Guard catches you…’
Gough let the question hang in the air, although the answer was obvious. Seb stretched and looked at his watch.
Shit.
‘I have to go. We were summoned, all of us. I have to go back.’
He stood up from the chair, making it rattle as it slid across the wooden floor. Gough and Cade rose with him.
‘Seb, you don’t have to go, we are safe here,’ Cade said.
‘No, I know. I just have to go. If I don’t get back, they’ll send people out to find me. It’s too dangerous.’
He was already at the open door that led back out into the compound. The two brothers glanced his way before focusing back on the trainees before them. Cade stepped up behind him.
‘Seb,’ he said, grabbing him by the arm. ‘You don’t have to go back. We know you’re not happy there. You can stay here with us. You can help, really help.’
Seb paused, his mind in turmoil. The offer was tempting, so very tempting. He wasn’t ready to train new magi, nowhere near. Gough knew that too, he must do. But something about the man appealed. Seb felt at ease, and he could’ve stayed for hours, letting all of the frustrations he’d been feeling over the past few months spill out. But every time he thought of it that guilt came back. He was a mage. A mage belongs with his Family. Their methods were perhaps on the extreme side, but they were training him, teaching him. Only with them could he really de
velop to his full potential.
Could Gough offer that?
‘I need to think, Cade,’ he said quietly. Sylph jogged into the courtyard. She waved, and Seb nodded back to her.
Cade read the expression on his face. The warrior sighed, almost deflated. He let go of Seb’s arm.
‘You have a home here, remember that.’
‘Thank you, I appreciate that.’
Seb was almost out of the door when Gough called out.
‘Keep your mind closed, Seb. Don’t let them in. Understand?’
He nodded, gave Cade a quick smile then jogged down the steps to his waiting escort.
***
Cade watched, Gough by his side as Seb was led out of the compound. He’d be blindfolded at the perimeter, and taken on a route that involved several backtracks along the way to ensure he couldn’t find his way back unaided.
Gough felt that would keep them safe, but Cade knew the magi and their powers. If they wanted to they could rip Seb’s mind and the memories with it. If they so much as suspected that he had information that would help they wouldn’t hesitate.
‘Good luck,’ he whispered.
‘You think he is in danger?’ Gough said. Shimmer had joined them in the compound, and was now leaning against a post, watching the gate close behind Seb and Sylph.
‘He could be.’
‘You cannot make his choice for him. He must decide for himself.’
‘It is a risk though. If we lose him, then all is lost?’
‘Not lost, no. More difficult, yes. But I have faith. Do you?’
‘I’m a realist.’
Gough laughed and clapped Cade on the back. ‘And that’s why I’m glad we have you. You keep my feet on the ground.
Shimmer had waited for a break in conversation, He moved away from the post, standing on the ground before them.
‘I have received a report from the shards. Something troubling.’
‘What is it?’
‘The sheol, they are on the move.’
‘Explain. Why is that bad?’ Gough said, looking between the two men. ‘What is this?’
‘For years they have been scattered, more a nuisance than a threat. Something, or someone has called them. They have vanished from many of the places they used to be found.’
‘Do we know where they could be going?’ Gough said.
‘Unknown. My contact just made it out with their life. The last wagon hasn’t come through. They’re keeping low until it is safe to come back.’
Cade frowned. ‘Should we be worried?’
‘Unknown. It may just be a random migration. But if it isn’t and, they are uniting together,’ Shimmer flexed his neck muscles, ‘well, I haven’t seen such an occurrence since the One War.’
The men fell into silence as troubling thoughts settled upon them.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Sedaris watched from his podium as the Auditorium slowly filled with the archmagi and their escorts from all nine families.
Well, eight. One had officially declined the invitation. But that had come as no surprise.
Archmage Tarmyr knew what was coming.
It had been too easy really. The summons, laced with sufficient dread to compel the other Archmagi, had worked like a charm. Sedaris was respected amongst the Families. Not liked, but respected. They knew he wouldn’t call them for no good reason. Sedaris was powerful. If he feared something, then it was something they should all fear.
And so they had come.
Sedaris smiled. Of all the resistance that this realm could throw at him and his kind, pretty much all of them were now gathered here. There were others out there, some of ability, but they were scattered, ineffective. There were Aware being born every day, and it was they that he was concerned about. Not because he feared them.
It was because he needed them.
He cast his sense wide, seeking those who waited in the shadows. They came back at once. Ready to act.
He glanced down. On his podium lay the opposite ends of the dull grey steel thread that trailed off down the side of the stage, vanishing under the carpet where he’d instructed the maintenance team he’d possessed to put it. The men lay under his feet as he spoke, their bodies bloodied and broken beneath the floor tiles.
In his pocket he felt again the figurine he’d taken from the Manyway. The ornament was warm to the touch, a dark heat crawled up his arm.
Kranor was ready. Eager for blood.
The archmagi were all in place now, taking their anointed places at the round table. Stood behind them were their elites, rows of powerful magi, their auras glowing brightly.
Pouring into the rest of the hall came ranks of lesser magi, adepts mainly, some with their acolytes. Of course, not all the magi would be there. Each Family would have left a retinue back at their respective headquarters.
That was no surprise, and it didn’t concern him.
It would be easier to eradicate tens of magi than a few hundred, after all.
The doors were closing now, with First soldiers taking position against each of the exits. The general murmur of activity began to die down as all the magi took their seats. Sedaris closed his eyes and concentrated. Tarmyr came back straight away.
The Families are here, Sedaris pulsed.
Yes, we have seen. How long?
Not long. You will know when I have acted.
How?
When scores of mage voices scream in terror.
We will be ready.
Sedaris severed the link with the Ninth Archmage and looked up, his sincerest smile greeting his treasured guests.
It was time for the final pieces to come into play.
***
Domus loomed up ahead. A towering collection of buildings shrouded in cloud and rain. Seb pulled his coat tighter around him, more habit than for any practical reason, and stepped off the pavement.
‘Just be cool, okay?’ he said to Sylph.
‘Me? Just relax. I’m not the one who’s been chewing all their nails for the past hour.’
‘Yeah well, I’ve got a lot on my mind, haven’t I?’
‘Don’t I know it? Just chill out. We’re late, nothing else.’
The two guards at the main gates jumped to attention as they emerged into view. One of the guards stepped forwards, the other starting talking into the radio hidden in his sleeve.
‘Seb Wilkinson? Sylph?’ the guard said, holding out a warning hand.
‘That’s us,’ he replied. ‘Is there a problem?’ Seb’s stomach was in knots. Had someone spotted them and reported back? The guards’ auras were alert, but not alarmed. He skimmed the approaching guard’s mind but got nothing back aside from a vague sense of excitement.
‘People have been looking for you. We thought you were lost.’
‘Sylph helped me out.’
‘Lucky you.’
‘Are we late, can we come in?’
‘It’s started, but you’d better show your faces. Everyone else is here.’
Seb stopped at that. ‘Everyone?’
‘Yeah, so get yourselves moving.’
The guard nodded to another out of sight. The gate unlocked and started to open. They were walking inside when Seb paused, an itching on his sense making him turn.
‘What is it?’ Sylph said.
They were almost out of sight, parked on a section of abandoned estate a few hundred yards away.
Vans. Black vans. Five of them. All parked in a row.
‘Over there.’ He pointed.
‘Those vans?’
‘Yeah.’ He cast his sense out, but as far as he could tell the vans were empty.
But something didn’t feel right.
‘It’s a building site, Seb. There’s always contractors parked there.’
The gate was closing on them now, the vans slowly vanishing from sight. Eventually the barrier sealed completely, and the First soldiers resumed their positions.
‘Sure, you’re probably right,’ he said.<
br />
***
Alexei smirked as the gate closed, the First mage’s sense vanishing with it. He lowered his shield. At once the barrier obscuring the five score of Ninth Special Forces dropped. Alexei turned to the squad commander.
‘That was the last. All the First magi are now accounted for.’
The squad commander nodded an affirmative. ‘How long?’
Alexei looked back towards the compound. ‘Soon, very soon.’
***
The unease hadn’t left Seb as they’d crossed the compound towards the massive dome that was the Auditorium. A handful of guards still protected the inner grounds but most had been called inside to protect whatever guests Sedaris had summoned.
A side door opened as they approached and Anna stepped out.
‘Seb! Where the hell have you been?’
‘Sorry, I got into a bit of trouble.’
‘I heard about Grim,’ she said, her expression flat.
‘He burned out.’
‘So I heard.’
An awkward silence descended. Seb thought then of mentioning the vans outside but Anna cut him off.
‘We can talk later. We have to go. The Archmage has already started.’
‘But about Grim,’ Seb said.
‘Not now, Seb!’
‘It’s important!’
Anna whirled on him. One hand shot out before he could respond, and the next he knew he was hoisted off his feet, pressing against the wall. Anna’s nostrils flared and her eyes were wild.
‘Important? One of my coterie lies dead, Seb! Two magi of the same Family attacking each other? In full view of the Unaware? What the hell happened? What the hell were you two playing at?’
‘Anna, something’s wrong. Something was affecting Grim. Affecting me. There was this rage, I felt it. He did. We just wanted to kill each other.’
Anna seemed to notice her arm then, the tendons standing out like iron cords. Her hand shot back and she clutched it to her chest.
‘Forgive me, I shouldn’t have done that.’
‘I know,’ he said. ‘I think it’s me,’ he continued, voicing a thought that came to him that moment. ‘At least, partly to do with me. I’ve been feeling this ever since I got here. It’s just built up and up. Grim -’ He shook his head, memories of the car park battle coming to mind. ‘He just turned. I don’t know what happened.’ He looked down. ‘I just don’t.’