His blue eyes pierced Sebastian’s dodging of the exact reason for asking for help within Windmeer. “So you have at least one wizard in mind apparently. Is it a healer or have you enough friends to draw from other guilds as well.”
“Perhaps you could spare Wizard Deyla and her apprentice Yara? I know them from last season’s battles. I would have to see which wizards have remained in Windmeer to know who else I might be able to call on here, but I don’t want to remove anyone that you can’t spare either.” He looked at the leaders of the battle mages and added, “I will probably need a couple falcons to train with as well, if I can’t find much help from the wizards’ guilds.”
Returning his eyes quickly to Jeriah to avoid being disrespectful to the high wizard, he awaited a reply.
The white wizard took a single breath and stated, “I don’t know if we can spare both Deyla and her apprentice. I also would want at least one chaperone to go with a woman, not that I truly fear any indiscretion, Falcon Trillon, but sending a young woman off alone on such a long trip would require proper companionship to ensure her safety none the less. We do protect our own.”
“Of course, sir, that is why I had mentioned both women, but, of course, I defer to your wisdom,” Sebastian replied humbly as he hoped to keep favor with the high wizard. Having such a man as an ally would do a lot for anyone’s career, and though Sebastian wasn’t the most ambitious toward such ends, if it meant getting to take people he wanted along then so be it.
A smile crept onto the high wizard’s lips, even if it failed to soften his eyes, “Well, you certainly seem to have learned some manners at least. I will have words with the healers and see what can be worked out. If you have need of others, wizards Torin and Delfar can probably help find candidates that can be spared to train you.”
Glancing to the ravens, High Wizard Jeriah nodded to the men and stated, “That is pretty much all that we can teach you with just words. If the falcon wishes to spar our way, he can come to the training fields and see how a wizard fights. Otherwise, I think we have said all that we can, gentlemen.”
The mages all thanked the wizards for coming and watched as the robed men left the room.
Liom said quietly, “I think that is about the best we can hope for out of them.” His eyes held on Sebastian and the young man thought that he saw perhaps a look of pride in the elder man’s face. “This is about as close as we get to full access to the wizards’ guilds. When Jeriah said that you can talk to his wizards that was a rarely opened door for us to be sure. I am actually surprised that he would go so far.”
“He is curious,” Stallis confirmed. “Sebastian has made enough of a name for himself and taking this chance to compete against wizards on their home ground proves that he is serious. Jeriah doesn’t know if you’re really competition yet though. If you choose to take them up on sparring in the training areas, you’ll truly be tested, Sebastian. They will want to expose you as a fraud if at all possible.”
The young man in question sighed and nodded affirmation. A sign of good faith on one hand, but if he failed here the mages might never get a chance again.
Chapter 17- The Wizard’s Duel
Explosions and thunder rocked the large courtyard on the north side of Windmeer’s castle. The Winter’s Edge tournament was on the minds of more than just the ravens and Sebastian. Every major keep and castle, whether it anchored a great city or a small village, was looking for at least one wizard to represent them in the competition. The prestige of the winning wizard would also fall upon the castle they stood for, which would be announced both at the tournament and after to all the towns and cities of Southwall.
The battle mage watched as several wizards wearing various colors fought one another or waited to challenge a winner. This was still training for most since, unlike Sebastian who was the only falcon representing his entire corps, there would be more than one wizard who would go to Hala from Windmeer and that had yet to be decided. It was a good learning process for the battle mage as well.
He had been given the privilege to watch the wizards during this training to give him an idea of what he would be facing at Winter’s Edge. Still recovering from his wounds, at least from the energy he had lost from them if not much from the wounds individually, Sebastian could use the excuse to remain an observer at least for a time. It was the tactic that the ravens had recommended, since they were all pretty certain that, if he fought any wizard on their terms without having any idea what he was facing, the mage would lose.
Water sprayed in a mist that nearly crystallized in the cold air by the time it made it through the courtyard to him. A wizard dressed in medium blue had drawn what looked like some monster created from a pool of water kept thawed by other wizards to give him a chance against his opponent dressed in the brown robes of the earth wizards. The monster had crossed roughly forty feet to try and crush a human size stone statue only to be stopped by a hastily raised stone wall.
Both wizards continued to chant as they went from spell to counter spell without a break that Sebastian could see, but certainly felt as their magic seemed to ebb and flow in the duel. A swirl of dust rose into the air dissipating the remains of the water creature in its wake. The earth wizard didn’t settle for just one spell as he added a quick gesture that sent three spikes of stone flying through the air like lances towards his opponent’s statue.
The statues served as stand ins for the wizards themselves so that the practices would require less supervision by the healers of Windmeer. Accidents could still happen, but using the statues as the targets instead of live wizards as the Hala tournament would meant that they didn’t need to set up a group of wizards for the express purpose of saving people from harm. It was Windmeer’s way of saving man power while giving the full experience of a wizard’s duel.
Loud crashes of the three spikes striking a wall of thick ice to save the statue warned observers to be wary. Shrapnel of ice and stone scattered with some spraying towards Sebastian. He called up his mage shield with a single word and it formed in front of his outstretched hand. Roughly ten foot square, the shield served to protect him and a few others standing nearby. It winked back out of sight without any trace as the mage folded his arms and continued to watch the nearest duel.
A small blizzard of ice and snow countered the dust storm snuffing it out as the wizard in blue pushed back at the man in brown. Stone walls stood against deadly hail and daggers of ice raining down from the magic driven blizzard. Sebastian felt a rumble in the earth as the wizard caused the ground to ripple forward in a direct line towards the statue of his opponent ignoring the ice.
Sebastian had to respect both wizards for their skill. Despite having to conjure and chant, the two wizards were keeping up a quick flow of spells. They were almost as fast as the battle mage spells that required a single word and thought to implement. Despite that, the mage noted how quickly the two were tiring from the constant use of their combat magic. Sweat beaded on their foreheads and faces reddened as they exerted themselves looking for the opening that would strike their opponent’s statue a strong blow that would end the match.
He began to wonder how many matches were simply won by endurance rather than an actual spell.
His attention wandered to a similar duel just beyond the nearer one that was beginning to wind down if he was any judge. A young woman with curly, auburn hair wearing fire red robes was pitching fireballs and creating waves of flame to try and stop an older man dressed in the green of a nature wizard. It was a match that drew his eye, because it would seem to favor the fire mage despite her physical size. Petite though she was, the girl had the advantage of fire against nature. One thought of wood as being a main component of their magic, but nature consisted of all things found at hand in truth.
Earthen walls had been erected during the battle to protect the more mature wizard’s statue. The man seemed to be playing defensive letting the girl simply burn herself out trying to break down his walls, but Sebastian noted that he
continued to chant and gesture. This was not someone just waiting, but in fact he was preparing his own attack.
“Fight back, Herraln!” the girl in red chided her opponent in annoyance between spells. “If you don’t come up with something better than just moving some dirt in my way, I’ll just have to destroy those walls and take this match from you now.”
Gestures expanded as the fire mage finished with both hands pushing the air towards the walls she sought to destroy. There was no sign of fire from this spell, but Sebastian could feel the movement in the air before two walls exploded from the center. In the cloud of dust created from the explosion, the man called Herraln smiled and knelt down to place his palm against the earth releasing his spell.
Movement around the girl’s statue announced end game before anyone knew it. A large group of vines erupted from the ground lifting the stone target up even as the vines wrapped themselves around the statue. In a matter of seconds, the plants crushed the stone to powder. “Is that better, Serrena?” the man questioned with an arrogant laugh for the girl. He had proven his magic the stronger of the two this round despite the girl having destroyed his first earthen barrier. A second still stood between Serrena and his statue, while hers was gone.
Stamping her foot like a little girl getting ready to throw a tantrum, Serrena turned on her heels to exit the battle circle.
Returning his attention to the nearer competitors, he had been correct about stamina being a factor. The earth wizard looked physically stronger to begin the match and, if that were the way magic were measured, one would have bet the man would outlast the leaner, though slightly younger looking water mage. Both looked drained, but it was the man in the brown robe that sank to his knees drained of magic to the point of noticeably turning pale.
A spear of ice drove through the stone statue toppling it over in a pile of loose stone to further make the point of who had won the match. The water mage, however, looked unable to accept a challenge as his legs shook as he tried to step out of the battle circle. His smile said that he was champion, but the rest of his face said that his win had cost him.
“Sebastian Trillon,” his name held accusation from a familiar voice behind him. Turning the falcon looked on the silver haired mentor of Yara; Wizard Deyla’s green eyes looked at him with annoyance as she explained, “Why am I being asked if I think my apprentice can be raised so that she can go off on some trip to Hala as your healer? You’ve let yourself be talked into this Winter’s Edge nonsense, haven’t you?”
Giving a smile to the woman dressed all in yellow except for her brown boots, her silver hair wasn’t the dull grey of old age, but laced with the warm strands of blond as well. She was older than Sebastian, but still less than thirty years old. While her age was only slightly higher than his, her annoyed look held almost a decade of being a full wizard behind it. “Hello, Deyla,” he greeted his friend. “I guess High Wizard Jeriah was true to his word that he wanted to help after all, though to be honest I was more pushed into this than merely persuaded.”
She shook her head at him and her words told him that she thought him an idiot as much her look. “Are you looking to be slaughtered? I know that you’re gifted with being able to figure out a lot of diverse magic, but these duels take a lot out of a wizard.” Deyla gestured to the two closer men being helped to benches to be fed and given water or even stronger beverages to get their energy back.
Nodding agreement, Sebastian replied, “True, at least some of these battles will take more magic than I think I possess, which leads back to why you are here. I need to see what tactics I can use to even out a wizard’s duel to meet what I can do. That’s why the ravens asked High Wizard Jeriah’s advice, I guess.”
Eyes widening slightly, Deyla revealed why as she said, “Stop throwing his name around like he’s just another wizard, Sebastian.” Other eyes were starting to stare and Sebastian realized that using a high wizard’s name among his people was nearly like calling on a god’s name over and over again. While he certainly wasn’t a god, the man was one of the elite and a battle mage could not just off handedly spout his name apparently. “Maybe we should talk about this where we might have a little more privacy.”
Noting the other people nearest them, Sebastian nodded and allowed the much smaller woman to lead him away from the duels’ field.
The two found a small grove of trees circling a frozen pond with a pair of benches set on either side. During the warmer times of year, the area doubled as a park, but the winter weather had reduced the trees to dark branches topped with snow and ice.
“So do you think that the two of you can help me or can you at least promote Yara to a full wizard so maybe she can?” Sebastian asked the question almost immediately though he held back from pushing his friend as hard as he might a stranger.
Her face told it all, even though Deyla tried to think of what to say with her words. “I’m not sure, Sebastian. It does seem that the high wizard is on your side at least in so far as giving you a chance to fail anyway. Despite his words, the leaders of the healing faction here at Windmeer seem to have other plans. I doubt that they will let me join you with or without Yara.”
That was not the answer the mage was hoping for, but he was not deterred. “I can have the ravens talk to Master Jeriah again. He could certainly push them to let you go.”
Shaking her head, Deyla replied sadly, “We’re too short staffed here right now. After last summer in particular, wizards with healing abilities have become every keep’s priority, since we are rarer than say a fire wizard. You know how rare the healing talent is within the mages for yourself.”
Countering her with a nod, Sebastian turned the conversation towards his second choice, “Then can you push for Yara to be raised. I’ll need at least one healer while I train. There will be more than just me needing attention once I begin training, since I am hoping to pick up a few training partners as well. Just looking at what goes on here, I can see having a healer nearby will be necessary and I can’t heal myself.”
With a drawn out sigh, Deyla finally shrugged stating, “I can try to push for Yara’s promotion. She is talented enough and though she has more to learn, that can be said for any wizard. If the high wizard will push for it as well, then Yara will have to go to White Hall for her testing.”
“It would be on the way to Hala anyway, so she can travel with us. Apparently, I am still supposed to accompany the ambassador at least that far, though the ravens have implied that I should take some time to go home and see my family while I am there also. She could just join as part of the caravan and take any letters she will need to the leaders at White Hall then.”
“I suppose that will have to do,” the woman said giving in to the tenacious battle mage. “So you plan to collect a few wizards to train with as well? How will that work? You certainly can’t just pick up any wizard and expect them to follow a battle mage. No offense intended, but we both know that is how they will look at it.”
He nodded, “I have a few ideas on that actually. There may be a few I can ask to help here, though I may have to try picking up a few apprentices at White Hall if things don’t work out.”
“An apprentice might be willing to join, but you will need permission from their masters also,” Deyla replied still unsure of his suggestions.
With a shrug, Sebastian turned to look in the direction of the training fields where the noise of battle could be heard once more. “Do you really think that it is so crazy for a battle mage to have a chance against a wizard in a duel?”
The change of topic caught the woman off guard, but she collected her thoughts and replied with a sigh, “I know that you were able to beat Magnus in a fighting circle, but these duels are set up with wizard magic in mind. They have the advantage both in the power of their magic and the set up of the field. There will undoubtedly be different fields set up at Winter’s Edge, since they seem to want to raise the duels to a spectator sport and will want variety to entertain the masses. Plus each wi
zard’s magic will require different materials to use their talents properly.
“If you truly wish me to give you my opinion though, I would have to say that it is unlikely you will be able to get through even one duel with a full wizard.”
His eyes had not returned to the woman from the far off dueling fields though he could not see the actual battles from the grove. The mage nodded, less to confirm her answer than to acknowledge her opinion. Sebastian knew that Deyla was enough of a friend to wish him well, but she truly believed that he would fail. “Maybe I need to get my hands a little dirty before we give up entirely.”
Following the mage back to the small crowds surrounding the dueling fields, Sebastian moved to greet one of the wizards in charge of the area. Despite the fields not truly being part of the wizards’ domain, the need for some organization had prompted the guilds to form a committee to collect the data and form their own version of a try out tournament. They were determined to send a group of wizards with the talent to win and were very serious about the selection process. This was still preliminary training for the full trials, however, so things were still a little lax in respect to wizards showing up to train since things were worked around their winter schedules.
“Mage?” the wizard wore the black and silver clothing of the diplomat guild, which was a name that hardly told of the true magic used by these wizards. Their spells preyed on the mind more often than physically attacked an opponent, but the ability to enhance their appearance and influence people with their words meant they were excellent in the field of diplomacy as well. Such a man being in charge of the training fields was also more likely due to the fact that few of his guild would wish to fight on the field. Much of their magic was banned from such competitions since it was so hard to combat as well.
“Yes, would there be any wizards willing to train with me on the field today?”
Battle Mage: Winter's Edge Page 22