Mage Emergence

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Mage Emergence Page 25

by Christopher George


  The change in my thread was noticeable immediately. I was now using far less power than I had previously and it felt no more straining than the telekinesis threads I was using to keep myself mobile.

  The shock on Victor’s face was visible even through his shield. “Impressive.”

  I didn’t have to time to pat myself on the back as Victor launched a vicious series of attacks at me and I was forced to give more ground.

  The sound of the door to the medical wing opening was almost my downfall as Victor’s thread lanced through my shield and hit my right shoulder, burning off the sleeve from my jacket. I only just barely managed to avoid losing my arm. Pain burst through my arm as the thread passed close enough to the skin to burn. I used the pain and immediately went on the offensive, and was amazed as I began to force the old man into retreat. It wasn’t going to last, but it was gratifying to see that I was making some headway. In the face of my pain-filled fury, Victor was no match for this level of power and that could have been the end of it if I had maintained that level of attack. Unfortunately, I couldn’t.

  The noise that had distracted me was Randall emerging from the medical wing. He had been securely locked up. I could only assume that this had been the purpose of Victor’s earlier thread. Randall did appear to be under Victor’s control. This was confusing. I didn’t quite see how Randall was going to affect the outcome of this battle. Why go to the effort?

  That was a problem. Anything I didn’t understand could possibly kill me. I also realised that this might explain why I had been doing so well against Victor. He had been dividing his power between controlling Randall and fighting me.

  I immediately ceased my attack and backed off, which was lucky because a second Mana Nova thread lanced out and gouged a large hole in the concrete where I had been standing only seconds before. Had I continued my assault, it would have taken my head from my shoulders.

  What the hell? That Mana Nova thread came from Randall! Victor was using Mana through the undead vessel. How was that even possible? This changed things.

  There was no way I was going to be able to defend against two Mana Nova threads from two sources. I glanced to see the dead man and the master circle around, attempting to keep me between them.

  “And so it ends, Devon,” Victor intoned. “There is no escape.”

  I was forced to agree with him; with things the way they were, there was only one outcome to this scenario. However, when the situation is unfavourable – change the situation. I immediately went on the attack again, focusing everything I had on Victor. If I could keep Victor focused on defending himself when the killing stroke came from Randall, I would be ready for it. It was only a matter of timing, and I had survived a hundred battles in similar circumstances. I was ready.

  As I had predicted, the old man staggered backwards under the assault of my attack and Randall moved in for the kill. It must have looked like I was attempting to finish off Victor before Randall could kill me - that was exactly what I wanted my former master to think.

  I sensed Randall move into position and summon the Mana Nova thread that would end my life. It wasn’t of course Randall that was doing this, he was nothing more than a marionette to the puppet master that was Victor. It didn’t matter much as in the end the result would be the same. I waited until the very last moment before I let my body go slack and fall to the ground. I had timed it perfectly - the thread was only inches from my face and descending fast. If I cocked this up now it would be over. I immediately threw every ounce of strength that remained in my body into a seize thread in an attempt to wrest control of Randall away from Victor.

  It worked! With a quick blink I saw the change in Randall’s eyes. I immediately redirected Randall’s thread towards my former master. Had I been able to control the dead man’s face, I would have shouted with triumph as the thread struck through Victor’s shield and slashed a large gouge across his chest. On a normal human that would have been the end of the game, but on Victor it wasn’t a mortal wound.

  It must have hurt though, as Victor cried out in pain and staggered back and in seconds I was forced from Randall’s vision as the old man attempted regain control, but I wasn’t going to be so easily dominated. I fought back for control of Randall and the next stage of our fight began.

  “Impressive, Master Wills,” I heard Victor gasp as our minds contested for dominion over the dead man. A series of Mana nodes animated the wretch, which acted in the same fashion as the nervous system would in a human body. Randall staggered and jerked like someone having a seizure as the two of us vied for control. His limbs flailed as control was exerted and then thwarted. It was a strange sensation sharing someone else’s head with Victor - I could feel him in there.

  The pressure mounted as the old man increased the power of his attack. and for a second I was almost forcibly rejected from what remained of Randall’s mind. Somewhere deep inside of me I found a source of strength I didn’t even know I had. I fought back with everything I could muster. This was something I understood, this was something I could do. Both of us had expended so much of our strength in this contest that the outcome of the battle now relied upon it. Once rejected from Randall, it would take some time to bring our defences back to strength, during which time one could simply finish off the other.

  I railed against my former master with fury born of revenge, loss and pain. I was fighting to avenge the death of my sister, of my father, of most likely everyone who had ever known me. It was likely that everyone I had grown up with was dead, and it was this man’s fault. The rage rose within and made me strong. I turned that anger into power and I turned that power against Victor. It was hard to judge the scope of our battlefield within the dead man’s mind, but I could see Victor faltering. Being linked as we were I could see into his mind and I sensed the doubts and fear. Was this the time he would fail? He had been living in fear of this day for so very long. Everything he had ever done was to forestall this very event and it had all been for nought.

  His fear had done far more damage than I ever could. He had all but defeated himself, and I revelled in it. I grinned as I forced Randall from the old man’s control and snapped the last threads of Victor’s hold over his victim. I heard Victor cry out as his consciousness was sent back into his body and I watched in triumph as his shield fell. I immediately jumped back into my own mind and launched a thread at my defenceless opponent. It sliced through his side, causing him to fall to his knees. Blood was pooling at Victor’s knees as he held his side, his other hand keeping him upright.

  The Mana pooled towards his damaged side; it had already healed the gash on his chest, but I doubted that Victor would remain conscious long enough to fend me off. If he passed out, it was over. With a flick of my wrist I sent a blast of power that shattered Randall into a million pieces. His body immediately exploded into ash and dust. He deserved his peace. He had finally achieved something that he and others like him would have yearned for. He had finally achieved revenge for his death and the death of countless others who had died in this facility.

  I drew myself in on Victor like an executioner coming to finish the job. He stared up at me with naked hatred in his eyes. The mask born of his iron will had been shattered and I could finally see the man behind it. I saw the fear and madness that lurked in the recesses of his mind. I had long sensed it was there, but to finally see it was a revelation. This was not some paragon of our art that could not be defeated; he was a mere flesh and blood man and he was at my mercy. He would find no mercy in me.

  “You have defeated me,” Victor croaked. “But you cannot kill me. I cannot be killed.”

  “Yes you can,” I replied grimly, “and I know how.”

  The old man gaped at me as I wrenched his head back and placed my hand on his forehead. His eyes went wild as I began the work. When I had used the same technique on Karl, I had tried to be careful and gentle. Now I was just a butcher, cold, efficient, quick and brutal, with no care for the damage being done to his mi
nd.

  I watched impassively as the power rose within him and I saw it fighting me still, even as I broke through his defences and isolated the threads responsible for his regeneration. He could not stop me now; he was too weak and it was too late for any kind of defence to ultimately succeed. I revelled as the healing of the wound at his side began to falter and then fail as the magic was drawn elsewhere. I watched the man’s eyes as he saw what I was doing, and I saw the moment of clarity when he finally understood the danger. He hadn’t realised that this was possible, he had truly thought himself immortal. Nothing is immortal – everything ends. Victor would learn that today. The fear that had plagued him all those years would finally be realised today. I would take that fear and use it against him, but with great fear comes great strength and Victor had been using that fear all his life to make him powerful. He wasn’t going to go easy into the great unknown, and with the rising force of a hurricane the old man rallied his defences and worked against me. With a flick of his wrist he sent out a thread, but I sneered at his foolishness. Randall was gone. The drone wouldn’t be able help him now. It was only a matter of time.

  But I was wrong to discount the thread - it hadn’t been to seek out Randall. There was one other in this facility who hated us both equally. One who had I had left in a state of torpor and who Victor had just awakened. I heard the bellow of rage and pain clearly and I knew immediately what had happened. Karl would find his way up here and he would attempt to strike both of us down. Victor might survive if I hadn’t completely nullified his sorcery by the time Karl arrived, but I wouldn’t be able to defend myself. Weak though Karl was, in sorcery it wouldn’t matter.

  This left me with a choice: could I finish off the old man before the Wight arrived, or I could draw back to defend myself? Victor had to die and I doubted I would get a better chance than now. He was defeated and lying almost defenceless beneath me. I just had to finish him off. Yes, there was only one option here, and though it might cost me my life, I would gladly pay that price to finish off my former master.

  I redoubled my efforts to break through the old man’s defences and if I had more time, I might have won, but I felt the sharp rise of the Mana within me screaming for defence, and I had no strength left to give. Everything I had was used to suppress Victor’s regeneration powers. With a snarl and a primal scream Karl threw himself at us. He hit me more solidly than Victor and the impact sent me onto my back.

  Karl’s eyes bored into me and I could see the depths of his madness. There was no humanity left within him. Karl had been right to seek death – there was no coming back from what he had endured. My last doubts about the ethical dilemma of ending his life faded as Karl gave another animal shriek. A second followed shortly afterwards as Karl finally got a clear view of Victor. At first I thought that it might shock him sufficiently to bring him back, but Karl charged at his former tormentor with Mana flaring along his fists. Victor pushed himself away, using his magic to put distance between us, sliding along the ground like a snake escaping its prey. Karl bellowed and pursued after his prey as I attempted to get to my feet. The Mana within me was unreliable and the braces around my legs were shaky. My muscles screamed in protest, but I wasn’t going to let this moment get away. I leapt into the air to pursue my quarry, but it was too late. I recognised the signs of a teleport spell emanating from Victor and had I been fresh I might have been able to do something about it. As it was, I was too weak and too slow.

  The disruption pulse hit the ground where Victor had been lying just seconds after he had vacated. He was gone. I could follow him, but I didn’t have the necessary strength to follow very far, and once I found him it would again be luck of the draw to see who came out triumphant. Besides, I now had more pressing problems.

  With one enemy escaped, Karl turned back to face me. The Wight raised his power in an attempt to throw himself at me. There was no technique to his attack. It was a simple primal burst of power. It was nothing that my shield couldn’t withstand, but that didn’t mean I was going to let him attack me. With a telekinetic swipe, I immobilised Karl until I could send him back to sleep while I contemplated my options. As much as I hated to admit it, I had missed my chance. I could only hope that I would get another. In the meantime I had more serious matters to concern myself with. I had a promise to fulfil. I used the Mana once again to send Karl into a state of torpor.

  It was lucky that Karl had never learned the necessary skills to raise a shield; that would have made my ability to render him unconscious much more difficult. I gently lifted him from the ground and brought him back to the examination room. This would be the last time I would do this. I laid him down on the gurney, which was now starting to look its age. Karl hadn’t exactly been careful when he had stormed from this room to hunt me down earlier.

  I was fatigued and close to complete mental exhaustion, but I wasn’t going to put this off anymore. I placed my palm on Karl’s forehead and began to work. It was strange that the threads responsible for Victor’s regeneration were so much easier to locate, though I suppose it had something to do with the spell Victor had had perfected. By comparison, Karl was a complete mess of tangled threads and charred Mana nodes. It took me a long time before I was able to locate the right series of threads.

  My work began slowly, one thread at a time. I had to be so very careful that I didn’t cause the thread to fizzle before the work was done, and yet I had a distinct time limit before the thread would reach the required Mana node and then renew itself. It took me three tries before I was successful. Nothing happened at first and the effects were so subtle, but I knew success when I saw it. I didn’t start to notice any physical changes until I had done about a dozen more. The pinkish hue of Karl’s skin began to turn a slightly whitish-grey colour and his breathing slowed from the steady rhythm into a haggard gasp. Still, I had to do more; wave after wave of threads needed to be converted, and I felt the steady rise of the headache that indicated overuse of Mana. I ignored it as I poured more power into the construct below me.

  I wished I could wake the man to say goodbye, but there was no point. If he was still in there he was buried under the massive psychosis that had caused him to revert to the primal state I had seen earlier. No, there was nothing to be gained from waking him. I quietly said my goodbyes and was greeted by silence.

  The blood in my veins pulsated throughout my body as I kept the pressure upon the delicate structure of Mana through the man’s body. Any failure on my part would result in a continuance of the previous state and healing would begin anew.

  I worked in silence as the Mana did its gruesome work. I took no pride in my work as the veins in the man’s body bulged into a dark brownish shape as the Mana passed across them. I watched as his skin shrivelled against his muscles and his muscles withered. It took a full ten minutes before he had reverted to the state he was in when I had first met him, and I was pretty sure that brain death had occurred long before he reached his previous undead state. With the Mana subverted and now feasting on his power rather than renewing, it was only a matter of time.

  I watched with a strange sense of regret and satisfaction as the body turned grey and dark and eventually faded away into ash as the Mana consumed him. Like Glave before him, nothing was left of the body but an outline of ash on the gurney surface.

  I had fulfilled my promise. Karl was gone.

  I turned my hands over to notice with distaste the purplish blotch of broken blood vessels in the veins on my wrist. I had overdone it. The last time I had overused, the veins in my wrist ruptured. I had burned myself out and temporarily lost my ability to draw Mana.

  It had taken everything I had to end the process within the Wight. True, I had already been tired and battle weary when I started, but the Wight wasn’t fighting me the way that Victor would. The battle would be a lot harder with Victor, and his body hadn’t undergone the same amount of trauma that Karl’s had. After everything was said and done, I didn’t know if I was powerful enough to ove
rpower Victor and then the regenerative process without help and therein lay the problem.

  * * * * * *

  I rested for three days in that hell hole before I was ready to move. It wasn’t exactly a restful sleep, but I knew Victor would be unlikely to return after his defeat. Now that Karl and Randall had gone, the loneliness of the place was starting to get to me. Not that they had ever been good company, but at least they were something. Now that I was on my own, it seemed that the ghosts of this facility had finally taken over and they were angry at my intrusion.

  I’d never believed in ghosts or an afterlife. Nothing in my studies had ever caused me to believe in such a thing. It was difficult to tell night from day here as the only light that ever reached this place was the light from the glow spell I routinely let off to provide illumination.

  On the third day of my stay I had had enough, it was time to go. The ghosts of this tomb deserved their privacy and I wouldn’t return. In fact, I would ensure no one did. I stood in the middle of the parade ground, not too from the blood stains Victor had left on its concrete surface, or from the pile of dust and bones that was all that remained of Randall, and I glanced around.

  This would be the last time I would see these grounds, which had been the closest thing I could have called home for the past six years. I wouldn’t miss it, but it was important I remember it for what it was. It was a dark place filled with the memories of people long past; I was nothing more than a passing footnote in the history of this facility, but I would be an important footnote because I would be the one who ended it. I could have simply barred up the gates to prevent access to the facility and hope that its remoteness would protect it, but I wasn’t going to take that chance.

 

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