Robin couldn’t stand the sight of Tara in pain, so he put his hand on the sting and said: “By Healus, let the pain be gone, let Tara’s wound be cured anon!”
To her great relief, Tara felt the pain fade, then disappear. She gave Robin a warm smile, which seemed to embarrass him.
Cal came back, muttering angrily.
“The little brat was careful to stay close to the thrones. She knows that if I get my hands on her—”
“Who in the world are you talking about?” asked Sparrow, baffled by Cal’s doings.
“Angelica! I’m sure she’s the one who planned this. That’s why she did her best not to be selected. She was holding something in her hand when she came into the hall. I didn’t pay any attention at the time, but I’ll bet it was a blowgun. Just wait until I catch her.”
In spite of her intense dislike of Angelica, Tara didn’t want Cal tackling a girl who was twice his size and a much better spellbinder. Somewhat reluctantly, she decided to calm things down.
“But you don’t have any proof, Cal. You can’t go around accusing people without proof.”
“You want proof?” he asked, glowering. “Wait here. I’ll give you proof!”
Ignoring her protests, he again disappeared into the crowd.
While Tara’s group was arguing, the two apprentices performing for the imperial couple were asked to create Portals, those magic passageways created by the dragons and later used by spellbinders to travel great distances. (For short trips, levitation, flying carpets, and “Transmitus” spells were perfectly adequate.)
The exercise was somewhat dangerous. A poorly mastered Portal could escape its creator’s control and send everybody somewhere else—to a place from which no traveler returns.
The hall was completely silent.
The two apprentices seemed to know what they were doing, and together they said: “By Transferus, Portal, open wide. Transfer me to the other side.”
Vague, luminous shapes shot from their fingertips and coalesced into two Portals opening in a yawning void.
Suddenly a scream in the crowd rang out, shattering the spellbinders’ intense concentration—and causing a catastrophe.
As with Tara, one of the apprentices lost his hold over his magic. The Portal he had just created escaped from his control and literally exploded, tripling in size in a second. The resulting shock wave very quickly became a swirling vortex. The Portal started spinning out of control, threatening to swallow the entire palace! Chandeliers, candles, spears, and chairs—anything that wasn’t nailed down— were already being sucked into the whirlpool. People ran around screaming and the guards dragged the empress and the emperor away to safety. Master Chem, Lady Auxia, and the other high wizards furiously chanted spells, but without effect. Long beams of destructive energy were now shooting from the Portal and sowing panic. A terrible wind arose, growing from a gale to a thundering tornado centered on the Portal.
Someone bumped into Tara. Then, before she realized it, the wind blasted her in front of the apprentice who was desperately trying to master his Portal. Suddenly she had a flash of inspiration: she knew what he had to do!
Struggling against the sucking force, she shouted to the boy: “Listen to me! You have to concentrate on the vortex! Try to miniaturize it, then close it. If you can master the vortex, you’ll regain control of the Portal. We can do it together!”
The boy was white as a sheet. Without looking at her, he obeyed. Together, they stretched their hands toward the expanding whirlwind and said: “By Miniaturus as quick as we think, may the vortex irreversibly shrink!”
Nothing happened.
Not only did nothing happen, but Tara sensed a kind of rejection, a negative power that opposed their efforts. And that power was coming from the thrones! One of the high wizards was trying to keep them from closing the Portal! Master Dragosh was firing lightning bolts into the whirlwind. Was he doing that to close it or to strengthen it?
To her horror, Tara saw a familiar suddenly sucked into the swirling void, to the anguished scream of its human companion. And like an evil entity, the Portal was coming closer in spite of all the wizards’ efforts.
Suddenly the boy next to her yelled as he began to slip, drawn into the whirlwind. Tara seized his arm, but the young apprentice flailed around so violently, he shook her off. She wasn’t able to grab him again and watched with mute horror as he was sucked into the vortex. The boy’s legs thrashed around for a moment, and then he was gone.
Tara herself was now just a few yards from the Portal and could feel its pull on her increasing. She lay flat on her stomach, desperately trying to hang onto something, but the blasted Omoisians covered everything with slippery marble, and she continued sliding.
The high wizards intensified their efforts and the hole suddenly stabilized and even began to shrink, but too slowly, much too slowly. Tara was about to be sucked in as well.
Suddenly something grabbed her feet, stopping her slide. But when Tara turned around to look, she almost fainted. Holding her ankles was a gigantic Beast, a terrifying combination of a lion, a bear, and a bull.
Tara was about to kick free when the beast yelled: “Stop! It’s me, Sparrow!”
Tara thought she was losing her mind.
“Sparrow?”
“For heaven sakes, concentrate on closing that infernal Portal. You almost had it!”
Held tight by Sparrow, Tara gritted her teeth and focused all her power on the yawning void. Slowly, she forced it to yield. The thunder gradually died away and the Portal disappeared.
Cal and Robin rushed over to Tara and Sparrow, followed by Master Chem. Tara groaned when she stood up. Sparrow had been so afraid of losing her, she’d practically crushed her ankles.
Tara turned to her friend, who looked like the classic fairy-tale Beast: ten feet tall, covered with thick fur, and armed with claws and fangs as long as knives. (Note to self: never, ever annoy Sparrow again, thought Tara.)
“What the heck happened?” Tara asked, as she massaged her legs. “How did you turn into that big hairy thing with teeth?”
“I don’t know,” moaned Sparrow, whose spellbinder’s robe was desperately stretching to accommodate her new bulk. “I didn’t know what to do to help you, then all of a sudden something happened. I started to get bigger and stronger—strong enough to break through the edge of the whirlwind. I saw you sliding, I grabbed you, and that was it.”
Poor Sparrow seemed totally freaked out by what had happened to her. Even Sheeba, her fur standing on end, was sniffing at her distrustfully.
A sudden blare of trumpets made everyone jump. All the courtiers bowed at once, and the Travia wizards and apprentices watched as the empress and the emperor returned to their thrones.
Though apparently impassive, the empress was pale with rage. She had wanted to join in the battle, but her guards had dragged her to shelter without asking her opinion. She had decided that the captain of her guards was due for a very long rest—maybe spreading pegasus manure on a rose garden somewhere.
“Tara’tylanhnem Duncan, I want to thank you for what you did,” she declared. “It wasn’t very smart, but it was very brave. The wizards would have quickly mastered the danger, and if my guards hadn’t decided to move me to safety”—she cast an icy glance at the captain, who turned pale—“I could have helped them close the Portal. They must have forgotten that I am not only the empress, but also the Imperial Spellbinder.”
Tara frowned. That title sounded familiar. Where could she have heard it before?
“You saved many lives and prevented great damage to our palace,” she continued. “I therefore wish to reward you. I will grant whatever you ask of me.”
Tara bowed.
“I’m deeply honored by the favor, Your Imperial Majesty, but I’m unable to choose right now. My mind’s still exhausted from the struggle against the Portal and I’m not thinking clearly. Can I give you my choice some other time?”
“Ah, a favor,” said Emperor Sandor, who’d been list
ening closely.
“That’s a good idea. So our Empire now owes you a favor.”
Put in that curious way, the phrase sounded vaguely menacing.
“Well, a small favor,” said Tara, who didn’t want to create a diplomatic incident.
“No, no!” the empress protested, waving Sandor off. “I have spoken. I will grant whatever you desire. But to set a limit on this imperial favor, let us say that it will be valid until you come of age”— the woman wasn’t a politician for nothing; an adult’s desires are very different from those of an adolescent—“and it must concern only you. It is not transferable. Does that suit you?”
Feeling a little lost, Tara knew she had to give some sort of answer. And from the look on Master Chem’s face, she had just been granted something very precious.
“That suits me perfectly, Your Majestic Imperialness. I thank you on my behalf and on behalf of Lancovit.”
“Very well. Now, will someone kindly inform the unfortunate parents of the boy who was killed by his own Portal? As a sign of mourning we will not hold an audience this afternoon. But before retiring, we have another question for you, Tara’tylanhnem. It’s about the Beast standing next to you. Is that another familiar?”
Feeling awkward in her huge carcass, Sparrow was shifting nervously from foot to foot, which looked pretty funny.
“I think I can answer your question, my dear,” said the emperor. “If I’m not mistaken, this is the result of the curse on Tarien the Beast, who was once king of Lancovit.”
Sparrow bowed her big, hairy head and stared anxiously at her enormous claws.
“I guess that’s right,” she said nervously. “I’m one of his descendents.”
“Ah, I thought your name sounded familiar!” exulted the emperor. “Does our imperial court therefore have the honor of receiving Royal Princess Gloria of Lancovit, known as Sparrow?”
As her astonished friends looked on, Sparrow bowed her head further, and big tears ran down her furry cheeks.
“Yes,” she murmured.
“This is an unexpected pleasure,” Sandor said, purring like a large, vaguely malevolent cat. “The Lancovit ambassador should have alerted us to your presence in our modest palace. We would have welcomed you with the ceremony due your rank.”
“Stop tormenting that child!” Master Chem suddenly shouted, causing a scandalized murmur among the courtiers. “Her parents asked her not to reveal her title. Besides, she isn’t a hereditary princess, but a member of a collateral branch, so there’s no reason to make a fuss. And now I must ask you to excuse us, but the morning’s events have been extremely upsetting and I must look after my apprentices. We extend our condolences to the unfortunate parents of the dead boy. We will convene a High Council in extraordinary session as quickly as possible. We thank you again for your great kindness, but I think we will return to Lancovit right away.”
The emperor glared at him but said nothing.
The high wizard had none too subtly reminded the emperor that because of his position on the High Council, Chem wasn’t answerable to him. And that if the princess wanted to remain incognito, that was her business, not his.
Led by Master Chem and Lady Auxia, the apprentices headed for the Portals Hall, whispering excitedly.
Suddenly Cal noticed a slumped figure in a corner of the hall, sobbing bitterly.
“Master Chem!” he exclaimed.
“What is it now?” snapped the wizard irritably.
“Er, I’m not sure,” said Cal hesitantly, “but I think Angelica has a problem.”
Rolling his eyes, Chem told Lady Auxia to go on ahead without him. Followed by Tara, Sparrow, Cal, Robin, and Carole, he went back into the Throne Room, walked over to Angelica, and pulled her to her feet.
The tall girl’s eyes were red with weeping, and she seemed dazed.
“Kimi, Kimi, where are you?” she babbled.
The wizard frowned. “Is it your familiar?” he asked, not unkindly. “Are you looking for your familiar?”
Angelica’s eyes seemed to have trouble focusing on his face.
“Yes, it’s Kimi. Where is she? She’s not in contact with my mind anymore.”
The wizard looked grave. “I think I saw a familiar being swallowed by the Portal. I’m terribly sorry, dear, but I’m afraid your Kimi was sucked into the whirlwind. Come along, we’ll take you to your room.”
Suddenly Angelica saw Cal, who was looking at her sympathetically. With a roar, she ran over and started pummeling him.
“He’s the one!” she said, hitting him with all her might. “It’s his fault! I’m going to kill you!”
Cal was too surprised to avoid Angelica’s punches, but Sparrow reacted instantly. She grabbed Angelica with a paw and lifted her three feet in the air where she struggled, unable to get free.
Clearly fed up with all the agitation, Master Chem yelled, “What is going on here? Why in Demiderus’ name did you attack Caliban?”
“It was him!” yelled Angelica. “He was trying to look under my robe. He frightened me and that’s why I screamed. That broke the two boys’ concentration, the Portal exploded, and Kimi . . . ” She burst into sobs again.
They all looked at Cal, who had turned the color of a ripe tomato.
“That wasn’t what happened at all!” he stammered. “I wasn’t looking under Angelica’s robe! I was just trying to prove that she was the one who sent the blood fly to bite Tara, so she would lose her focus and cause a catastrophe.”
“A blood fly?” asked the wizard, who was now completely at sea. “What in the world are you talking about?”
“Show him, Tara,” said Cal.
Tara lifted her hair away from her neck to show the bite mark, which was gradually fading but still visible. “When I conjured the fireball and it expanded, you all thought I was doing it on purpose, but in fact I almost killed Gallant and burned the palace down. A blood fly bit me right in the middle of my demonstration. Luckily I was able to keep control of my magic. Cal figured that Angelica had planned the whole thing and wanted to prove it.”
“Search her!” said Cal, pointing at Angelica. “When I was trying to search her pockets—and not look under her robe—I felt something pointed.”
Angelica thrashed around like a lunatic, yelling that no one would search her. But while the wizard hesitated, Sparrow held her firmly and looked through her pockets. With a claw, she pulled out a small glass cage with a girl’s sock inside.
A heavy silence fell over the group. Even those who were inclined to defend Angelica, like Carole, were now looking at her with dismay.
“I’ll be darned!” exclaimed Tara. “That’s the sock I couldn’t find!”
“And this is an insect cage,” said the wizard calmly. “Can you explain it, Miss Brandaud?”
“It was for my flying lizard Kimi!” she shouted. “I fed her bugs. This doesn’t prove anything. It’s just nonsense!”
Suddenly Sparrow had a flash of understanding.
“That’s it” she exclaimed. “It was her lizard! She must have sealed up a couple of blood flies with Tara’s sock and ordered Kimi to release them during the demonstration. The flies would know Tara’s smell and would make a beeline for her and sting her. Kimi was probably still flying, looking for a second chance since the first sting hadn’t broken Tara’s concentration. She was in the air and not able to grab onto anything, so that’s why she got sucked into the vortex.”
Sparrow turned her muzzle to Angelica, who had gone completely white.
“You killed your own familiar!” she said accusingly. “You and your scheming are responsible not only for the death of the apprentice spellbinder, but also for Kimi’s death.”
For a moment, Tara thought Angelica would deny everything. But the loss of her familiar and the terrible guilt she must have been feeling overwhelmed her, and she started crying again.
The old wizard had turned the color of marble, white and green. He could instantly foresee all the political complications th
e incident was going to create.
“Let’s go,” he growled. “We have to talk about this, but not here. You’re all going back to Lancovit. Pack your bags and transfer immediately to Travia. I’ll stay here to take care of any problems.”
Deeply shocked by what had happened, the six apprentices did as they were told. They didn’t notice a shadow camouflaged in one of the hanging tapestries. Shedding its colors, it took the shape of a small, slim man in black who thoughtfully watched them leave. If they had known the Omois secret services better, they would have realized that he belonged to them—and would have been extremely concerned.
Omois High Wizard Lady Auxia was waiting for them. She was first surprised, then alarmed when she saw Master Chem’s grim face and the way the apprentices were clustered around Angelica, who looked ill.
“What happened?” she exclaimed. “We were waiting for you! Was there another problem?”
The old wizard forced a smile but it must not have been very convincing because Lady Auxia looked even more worried.
“No, nothing at all,” he assured her. “Just a little matter we had to settle. My guest and our apprentices have been deeply shocked by this regrettable incident. My fellow wizards and I think that it would be a good idea for us to return to Travia, so—”
“Ah, but that’s not possible!” interrupted a panicky Lady Auxia. “I just got a call from our security chief. An investigation into the circumstances of the accident has been opened. The head of the guards told us that they found a blood fly in the palace. It’s now being studied to see if it’s carrying any viruses or toxins intended to assassinate our sovereigns.” Tara unconsciously touched her neck and felt a bit nauseous. “This is all extremely awkward. The head of security insisted that we seal all the Portals. No one is being allowed to leave Omois for the time being.”
Shoot, thought Tara, the darned secret services were too fast!
“The Omois secret services’ paranoia is none of our affair,” said the wizard threateningly. “Am I to understand that they intend to hold members of the Lancovit High Council against their will?”
“But none of this involves you!” said Lady Auxia, wringing her hands. “You were due to stay with us a few more days anyway, so what does it matter?”
Tara Duncan and the Spellbinders Page 22