As they approached, they saw a stage had been set up, on which Prince Seux and Queen Ariana already sat on chairs that were much too large for them. On either side of those chairs were two chairs to the left and one to the right. These had been planned for Omar, Myles, and Sebastian. The chairs were all ornate and the same size. Drawing close to the stage, the crowd made way for the Magi.
Myles saw the quick take down of several Haspen that had been invisible and ready with blow darts. Darius spotted them, and Leon took them down. Leon was as brutal as a regular cat might be with its prey, but he controlled himself enough to hand them over to Darius and the others. No one other than Myles and Seux noticed what happened, but Seux looked serious. Bad memories, Myles thought.
As they walked through the crowd Myles thought of the coin the dragon had given him the night before. He’d had the blacksmith at the market forge a bracelet that the coin would snap in and out of, and the bracelet was now hidden by the sleeves of his long coat. The dragon had told him it would transport him to places he had been before. Right now he wondered if it would take him somewhere that he could see. So Myles took a pouch from his belt and then touched the coin while thinking of the stage. As he did this he threw the pouch to a seat on the stage where smoke and fire came out of the pouch, and suddenly Myles appeared there.
Queen Ariana was only surprised for a moment because she’d watched Myles with all his illusions back on the island. But the crowd gasped when they saw this, and Seux shot into flight right out of his chair. Their grand entrance had been successful.
Omar and Sebastian were at the stage by the time the crowd settled down, and Seux had returned to his seat. Omar stepped forward to speak to the crowd and said, “Do not fear, good people of Caelsis. My good friend here was just excited to show you one of the many abilities you can learn as a member of the Order of the Magi. I believe that Queen Ariana would like to introduce us to you. So we defer to her Royal Highness.” Then he reached out his arm and bowed in her direction to demonstrate their regard for her royal position.
Ariana showed her pleasure as she flew to the front of the stage. Her voice was surprisingly powerful and loud enough for everyone to hear, crystal-clear and beautiful in tone. “Thank you, Myles and Omar.” She drew herself up and began her speech. “I’m proud to announce to you that I’ve made a covenant with the Order of the Magi. They will now be citizens of Caelsis, and they stand with us as part of the guard and the army. I assure you that the Magi do not wield magic but have incredible secret abilities that will not be explained today. Let anyone who doubts my word confront the queen now.” She paused and waited, but there was only a long silence. “It’s good to see a crowd of people who have their wits about them.”
Laughter rippled through the crowd and a short burst of applause signaled their love for her. “As you can see,” she continued, “the Magi are going to add much to our great kingdom. But mostly they are going to be my army and royal guard from this day forward. As a token of my respect for them as well as for my own curiosity, I have joined the Magi as one of their own. Those who wish to join the Magi may come forth when we are finished and petition Seux. He will screen all those who come and will approve new members of the order.”
When the queen finished she turned to Omar. “And to the Magi, on behalf of all Caelsis, I would like to welcome you with a gift.” She turned and gestured to the spectacular tower that had captivated Omar and Myles earlier. “This building now belongs to the Magi.”
The crowd gasped in delight and began to cheer their approval. Their response was a clear demonstration that this was an important event for all of them. It solidified everyone’s acceptance of the order and established the Magi as celebrities in Caelsis.
Omar was astounded at the generosity. “Thank you, my queen.” Everyone applauded again and another cheer rose from the crowd.
Omar looked closely over at the tower and realized that the building had no entrance. Queen Ariana smiled and whispered to him, “I know what you’re thinking. Don’t worry. There’s a way in.”
Later on, after the celebration was over, Queen Ariana showed the Magi a large tunnel under the city that passed under and into the tower. ’Am Mayim could even enter from the river. As they made their way to the ground floor, they found that the tower was empty. Looking around they also realized that there were shafts that had been created leading all the way up the tower, but there were no stairs.
Omar stood under one shaft and gazed up with a calculating look on his face. The queen flew over to him and said, “I figured you could make something to pull people up the shafts if they couldn’t fly."
Omar nodded. “Yes, you were right. There is much that I can do with this place. Thank you for your generous gift.”
“Gifts from rulers do not come without their prices. I trust you know that.”
Omar bowed.
25
The Island of Thura
Kasey and Tyree had traveled all day, and it seemed like a good time to stop and rest for the night. As they’d walked along, Tyree had refused to tell her anything about what was going on back on Earth, except that there was war everywhere. Kasey felt that Tyree was otherwise easy for her to get along with, because he wasn’t stubborn like she was or like Myles. Ah Myles. She caught herself and went no further. She’d stopped herself regularly from thinking about him and how he might be. It just wasn’t wise right now.
They had traveled along the coast and now they’d come to a place where there was a lot of forest to the west of the shoreline. It seemed like a good place to rest so Kasey spread out sleeping gear while Tyree went to find some firewood. After assembling the campsite Kasey made herself comfortable on the sand and gazed up at the stars. That was, until she felt a familiar sting on her neck.
A poison dart. She looked up and saw a group of Haspen quickly approaching her. Kasey frantically went for her bags and found some moss from Musterion that she’d packed away. She applied the moss to where the dart had gone in, and it seemed to help, but she still felt weak. While she tried to get her bearings, the Haspen had snagged the sword and were beating a hasty retreat.
Kasey scrambled to get up. Tyree came out of the forest, swinging a large branch at the Haspen. Three of them were immediately crushed but five remained. The others dropped the sword and began blowing darts at Tyree. He dropped to the ground. Kasey pulled her gun and shot all five of them. One shot, one kill.
With the enemies neutralized she went to tend to Tyree and saw that both the Kuon had been hit by darts also.
When she reached Tyree, she heard him snoring deeply and breathed a sigh of relief that these were not poison darts this time.
The Kuon and Tyree would be fine. Kasey then prayed for the sight of the ’Am Mayim. Massive numbers of Haspen approached in the distance.
She grabbed the sword and strapped it to her back. Then she grabbed the two Kuon in one arm and Tyree in the other thinking, Thank the Master I still have Kalat strength, as fire sprung into the shape of wings from her back. She shot skyward just as the Haspen came upon her. Some climbed her leg and stabbed her with tiny daggers, but she shook them off as she gained altitude.
Kasey flew for a while until she thought she was far enough away to be well beyond the forest area. But she continued to follow the beach the entire time. She landed where she could see a vast plain to the east and felt it would be safe from hidden enemies. She set Tyree and the two Kuon down on the sand and breathed a sigh of relief. Her sleeping passengers had never stirred so she set up camp and waited.
For three days she waited as they slept. They must have been potent darts, she thought. Those Haspen seemed so determined to get this sword. They were more ferocious than she’d ever seen Haspen act. First an Aqua Drakoni and then these Haspen. What's next? I'm not sure I want to know. She weighed Tyree’s warning about the sword and how badly the Great Red Dragon wanted to get it from her. She would need to be constantly on guard.
~*~
Th
e plan was for Omar to stay in Caelsis and begin the recruiting process there. Omar, Myles, and Sebastian devised a new and larger strategy for how they would visit each kingdom of Soterion and introduce the Magi to that kingdom. They decided that Myles would be their main ambassador since he was the showman and the one with the con man’s charm. He’d first visit King Erestar Lurin and the Raphad since he and Erestar were such good friends now. Then he would go to Marasimlah, which was ruled by King Alagaar. After that he would go on to Suchikos, which was ruled by King Pacal Bahlum.
Sebastian was selected to go to the Emerald Forest ruled by the chiefs and the Elder whom Ariana had told them about on their first encounter. At some point, Omar would also make a visit to Loefel Meren, which was ruled by King Magus Meren and Queen Elizabeth Meren. Ischus would accompany him on that trip.
When it was time later to begin his solo ambassador’s journey, Myles decided he would not fly on his Kuon. The truth was he didn’t want to skip the scenery. Besides, with the coin he possessed that would take him to a place he had already been, the more of Soterion he laid his eyes on, the better. He was sure it would come in handy. His party of ambassadors included Peel-off, Darius, and Leon.
They started by crossing the eastern bridge that led from Caelsis City to dry land on the eastern side of the delta. Myles had looked at a map of Soterion and decided they would go through the Eastern Wood of Caelsis. This led along a path that would bring them to a main road and would take them to Lake Delphia. He’d been told that in Lake Delphia he’d be able to get the Ferryman to take them to the island where the Raphad lived.
They traveled along, chatting about the wonders of Caelsis, until they approached the Eastern Wood. Myles, Leon, and Peel-off rode atop Ganan and Darius rode Zoob, his own Kuon. Myles saw wild gryphon, unicorns, trolls, goblins, sprites, and all manner of fantastic and wonderful creatures. Each member had a favorite creature that they studied while they rode through the woods.
As they exited the forest, humanoid dragon creatures that didn't look friendly surrounded them. At least a hundred of them tightened the circle around them. More beast-like dragon creatures accompanied them. Some flew, others breathed fire, and others were almost as tall as a Raphad.
The dragon creatures didn’t move but waited, as if to allow the Magi to make the first move. Myles remembered that in his bag he had two sun grenades, an M-16, one invisibility device, and a radio for communicating with Omar. He slung the M-16 strap around his neck and grabbed the two sun grenades.
“Darius, I want you to draw some of them away. Go straight into the midst of their ranks, then abruptly turn and draw them east. Keep going until you get to the Island of Thura where the Raphad dwell. I imagine you will only draw about ten of them away, but that will help. Whatever you do, don’t engage them in battle. I know that you’re weak in battle when you’re out of the water. Lead them to the Raphad, who will be happy to slaughter them for you.
"Peel-off and Leon, I want you two to take Ganan. You must move swiftly.” He handed them the sun grenades. “Take out as many of the Drakoni as possible. These grenades will destroy everything within a twenty-foot radius. Be sure to drop them where there’s a large cluster of Drakoni, and then close your eyes and don’t look, or it’ll blind you.”
Leon demanded, “What about you? Do you plan to fight alone from the ground?”
“I have a few cards up my sleeve. Don’t worry about me.” He wrapped a blindfold around his eyes to protect himself from being blinded by the sun grenades. He knew he could still do battle in darkness. He’d taken one last look at the Drakoni troop so he knew what the layout was like.
“On my word,” he shouted, “go!” But instead of fighting, Myles grabbed the coin and disappeared, reappearing behind the Drakoni. Catching them by surprise, he sprayed M- 16 bullets. He listened closely as he fired and heard some fall, but he heard others shift and turn towards him. It was time to move again.
Meanwhile, Peel-off and Leon took to the sky on Ganan. Several flying Drakoni followed. Ganan shot his poisonous feathers as he maneuvered around them. The Drakoni started dropping on all sides.
Darius took off running, drawing the attention of a large group of them. The plan worked better than Myles thought.
After the Drakoni had turned toward Myles, he touched the coin as before and reappeared behind them again. He let the M-16 spray in their direction one more time, hearing many more fall. Then he touched the coin and teleported into the midst of them as some were looking in one direction and others were turned in the other direction. None were turned toward the middle, though, and again they were caught by surprise. Myles turned in a complete circle, spraying bullets and listening as he heard the bullets hit the scaled creatures. Then he teleported back to the beginning of the Eastern Wood where they’d first encountered the Drakoni. He took off his blindfold and looked up to the sky, where he saw two separate bursts of sunlight come from the east. Knowing they were all looking up and probably falling dead, he teleported back into the middle of them.
He quickly scanned the area and determined that there were twenty-three ground enemies left and two still in the air. But in the midst of those on the ground stood a Drakoni holding a green flame in its hand and chanting.
“I’ll solve that,” said Myles with a smile. He lifted the M-16 and let loose but he missed every shot. He finally emptied the gun. Peel-off and Leon returned with Ganan, and the Drakoni came running with their weapons drawn. The one Drakoni who held the green flame and chanted suddenly let loose the flame and a fireball hit Myles, but it didn’t burn him. What’s this about? I can’t move!
Ganan swooped down and grabbed Myles with his mouth, throwing his limp body over his back. Peel-off looked down at the remaining Drakoni and shouted, “We did well but things are out of control now. I know a violent turn over when I see one, and we will not win this fight. Let’s leave this place.” Then Peel-off looked at Ganan and yelled, “Go!” The Kuon took flight immediately while Peel-off and Leon concentrated on keeping Myles from falling off.
The two flying Drakoni followed, but Ganan took them down swiftly with his poisoned quills. They quickly reached a high altitude and went east toward Lake Delphia. Fortunately, once they were out of sight of the Drakoni horde, Myles regained his ability to move.
As they flew along Leon looked at Myles. “What you just did…you know, the teleportation. That was no illusion. You had no time to prep the area. It was real?”
Myles lifted his finger to his mouth and said, “Shhhh.” Leon didn’t ask any more questions. When they believed they were safely away from the Drakoni, they descended. After Ganan landed, they continued on foot toward the island of Thura where the Raphad base would be.
Approaching the shore where they could cross over to the island, they saw Darius coming toward them. He got off his Kuon and ran to them. “I’m so sorry it took me so long, but the Raphad army is close behind me.”
“How did you get to them so fast?” Myles asked.
“They’d heard that the Drakoni were wandering the area and were already on their way toward us. They’ll escort us the rest of the way back to Thura.”
In less than a minute after Darius found them, the army of Raphad arrived like an earthquake. The captain stepped forward and asked, “Did you escape the Drakoni? Is everyone all right?”
Myles nodded and reported, “Yes, we are all here and without wounds. We killed all but about twenty-five of them. However, there’s a sorcerer in their midst who exerted unusual power, so be careful with him. We merely used our Magi abilities to escape the final few, and they were no match for us.”
Not wanting to remain in a dangerous zone, the Raphad captain suggested they leave and go to their base on the Island of Thura. So they continued on, escorted by part of the Raphad group that had met them. The other part of the group went after the remaining Drakoni. Myles almost felt sorry for the Drakoni when he watched the large, towering group of Raphad march off.
They reache
d Lake Delphia quickly and a mysterious Ferryman took them across to the island. Erestar met them at the lighthouse where the ferryman docked his boat and welcomed them. “Greetings,” he boomed. “Please, come dine with me so that I might learn what transpired today. It seems that the Drakoni are on the move.”
Myles nodded. “I believe you could say that." The Magi followed Erestar up a large hill and he took them around to the back side of it. They came to a camp with many tents, and Erestar led them down a path to a row of tents on either side. Raphad children darted in and out of several tents. Myles watched them and wondered if this was the entire population of their race. I guess they make up in size what they lack in numbers.
At the end of the row was one large tent with a campfire and a long table to the side of it where a feast had been prepared. The table was a little large for a human and small for a Raphad, but Erestar and several other Raphad sat on the ground and folded their legs. “I hope that this table isn’t too large for you,” he said. “It was all we had.”
Myles smiled. “No, it’s not a problem. This will do fine.” Peel-off and Leon jumped up onto the table, and Darius sat down with Myles.
As they settled down, Erestar gave Myles a serious look. “I wish to make a formal request to join the Magi. Not many Raphad would do such a thing, but I believe it’s wise for me. There’s also the daughter of the former King of Drakonge, and she wishes to join the Magi too.”
Myles nodded. “Of course. We’d be honored to include you.”
With business settled, the Magi had dinner with the Raphad and the night was filled with laughter and kind words. The next morning Myles wrote a letter to Roca letting her know that Erestar and anyone accompanying him would be joining the Magi and to welcome them with honor. Myles gave the letter to Erestar to carry with him. He said his goodbyes and left with Darius, Peel-off, and Leon. They took the ferry back to the mainland, and the Ferryman let them off at the northernmost part of Lake Delphia. From there they rode the Kuon north toward Marasimlah.
Bridgeworlds: Rise of the Magi Page 26