by Tom Rogal
“Dyenarus of the School of Illusions. She proved her worth more times than I can count.”
Sydis began examining Neeza and the students as best as he could. He didn’t seem to be looking at anything in particular, which had him very curious. His vision once again focused on Neeza.
“You all have scars of some kind. And you are one short if I seem to recall your original count. What in the name of our merciful gods did you face there?”
So that was it. He was trying to see the condition they were in. He also wanted to know what happened. Could he tell him now? No, most of this trip would be something that would be written in his logs to be read when his soul returned to the life force. Not now or sooner.
Neeza simply answered, “Nothing we couldn’t handle. We did lose one, sadly. The farmer. His family is being notified as we speak and his name will be remembered at the next seasonal ceremony with honors. Come walk with me. You must share what I missed in my absence.”
Neeza and Sydis walked ahead while the rest followed behind. It was customary for the more powerful to walk in the front while the rest would not be far. He had been gone for nearly two weeks, so he expected something to have happened.
Sydis reported, “Our Kittara forces defeated a rebel group near the edge of the Rim, but we couldn’t destroy them as a pack of Midenbeasts attacked.”
The Rim was a made up circular line that marked the territories it was safe for mages to settle. The capital was the epicenter and the edge of the Rim was about 100 miles outward. Past the Rim one would run into the danger of meeting Midenbeast or worse. One would need a great guide and fighter to survive on those plains. It was quite sad. They owned so much land, but because of the wildlife, couldn’t settle on most of it.
Sydis continued, “The fall festival committee has been pestering me since you left about approving their plans. I wish you would meet them as quickly as possible so they can bother me no more. And your daughter was angry that you left on yet another adventure without telling her in person.”
That was normal. He felt sorry for Tasi. She must have given him hell. Well, that was something he would hopefully change soon.
Sydis concluded, “And I think that is about it.”
“What about the visit from the strange man?”
Sydis tried to silence the councilman, but it was too late. Neeza had heard it and was curious what that meant.
“What strange man?”
Sydis reluctantly explained, “Two nights ago, a man came to the front gates of our city, demanding he meet with you. We told him you were gone away on a mission, but he refused to leave. I would have had him executed for his actions had he not already surrendered his weapons to the gate guard before he even asked.”
Strange. What would a man want with him? It was rare to have human visitors, mainly because they knew how much mages hated them. Whoever this person was had to be very stupid, or perhaps he came from a land who was not familiar with their customs. Humans in Arten would have been smart enough to hire a mage driver to take them to the city gates.
Neeza asked, “What did he want?”
Sydis said, “Nothing but rubbish. Only thing I could make out was that he repeated a man’s name. Ulcinar it was I believe. The name most likely has no meaning to you.”
Neeza froze as he suddenly saw Orznaii’s face gleaming him in the eye saying that exact same name to him in the depths of Mount Hrithgorn. Could it possibly be the same person? Ulcinar was quite a unique name. It had to be. Coincidences were something he was beginning to believe in less and less.
“Where is he? In one of our guest houses or held under watch in our inns?”
“Neither,” answered Sydis. “I put him in the Casteel. I had no idea his intentions! At least there he wouldn’t escape.”
Neeza was disappointed and angry by what was done, shown by the redness of his face, “You placed an unarmed man who followed protocol for a peaceful entrance in prison? He doesn’t want to escape; he wants to talk to me! Hopefully after your actions, he still will. Take me to him immediately! I want to hear what he has to say. Have a couple guards stand watch outside in case I need them.”
The councilmen present nodded and began to lead him toward the Casteel. Sydis stepped back as there was nothing he could do to stop him. He knew their leader was making a huge mistake. The problems of Man were no problems for a Mage. Let them deal with their issues alone. They had a hard fought peace they were able to keep. The truce, as unstable as it was, held true all these years. Pray to their gods that this would not undo what years of hard work had loosely cemented.
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Haldirin waited outside the Casteel as Neeza had instructed him telepathically. He had just arrived from the Biverin Ranch where he got to meet the wife and child of the late-Biverin. He recalled him saying he had one daughter, but he failed to mention that his wife was still pregnant with their second . . . his unborn son. This made it even harder to report the already difficult news.
They took the news with sadness, almost as if they were expecting this when he said he was going. Yet, as Haldirin spoke of how he stood up to Ettui forces and was able to subdue the much stronger Garchai, his widow felt more honored, more at peace. They cried when he told him Biverin’s last words to them and the promise. She thanked him, and he made as much haste as he could to join Neeza.
From what the guard had told him, he had been in there for a couple hours talking to the prisoner. He couldn’t tell him more than that. He may be the right hand man for Neeza, but that gave him no authority in the Casteel. The famous prison had its own set of rules and its own hierarchy. The only position that had the same power outside the prison was Neeza’s.
After about another hour, Neeza finally emerged from the door. Instead of going straight to Haldirin, he went to the guard first.
“I want you to release the prisoner in cell 87H-5A immediately. Assure him safe passage to the borders cities into Arten.”
The guard acknowledged and went inside. Neeza walked quickly past Haldirin, forcing him to run and catch up.
Haldirin asked, “Neeza! Neeza! What’s the matter?”
Neeza ordered, “Get the council assembled for an emergency meeting. And ask Mimerck if he’d be willing to stay in port. We might need him. Give him this manifest and have him try and load as much as possible. I will compensate him his costs.”
Neeza handed him a paper as Haldirin looked at it. There wasn’t much on the list. Food, knives, and survival supplies made up most of it. The one item he noticed was the request for a small boat. It was apparent that he didn’t want to be left without that option this time around. Mount Hrithgorn taught him the value of having a portable vessel at least.
“What’s the matter?”
Neeza replied, “Remember on the third day of our trip home I was mentioning that I thought Mount Hrithgorn was just a small piece of a much larger puzzle? I just may be correct. Please hurry.”
He certainly did. He called him, Mimerck, and even their Elf Eye to discuss how he believed something major would happen soon while the students slept. They had Dyenarus to thank for that as she reported everything she heard Orznaii say to the mysterious white-haired man. Haldirin admitted that there were many strange coincidences that happened at Hrithgorn, but he just couldn’t believe what Neeza was telling them on the boat. It just seemed too large and unrealistic.
Neeza quickly made for the palace as Haldirin stopped. Whatever it was that man had told him, the mage leader was very determined. So much for no more adventures. It had been a while since they had called one of these late meetings, but if Neeza felt it important enough to do it, then it must have been quite urgent. Haldirin rushed to inform all the members of the news.
It was nearing the long hours of the night. Haldirin had been sitting around the outside of the council chambers as were a couple couriers, named Calidis and Hortis. They were brothers and young, but it was all they had available at such late notice. They h
ad been in the council chamber lobby at least two hours, but that was probably inaccurate. It took him that long to locate Mimerck, who was nearly drunk when he found him. Yet, when he told him Neeza needed him, he quickly got ready, paid his tab, and headed toward his ship with the manifest Neeza made.
Haldirin first arrived to an unforgivable scene: the couriers asleep. He knew it was late, but they had to be sure they were awake when the meeting was adjourned. Even if they weren’t needed, they still had to be ready. Haldirin was tired and hungry as well. He had been running around all day. The only food he'd eaten was an orange and a wheat cake from Biverin’s family, which was quite delicious!
Time ticked away as the moon moved from the left side of the window to the center. Finally, after it seemed like they were never going to leave, the council began to exit the chamber. A couple filed out before Neeza emerged. Haldirin found him first and met him.
“What is going on?”
Neeza said, “Inform Mimerck to prepare his ship immediately. I and a group of the council will be leaving tonight.”
Tonight? He was thinking whatever it was wouldn’t go until morning. It must have been more dire than he even could have imagined.
Haldirin asked, “Where are you off to?”
“All I can say is that we are heading toward Dyyros.”
Dyyros? Of all the places, why there, the birthplace of Man? The last time Neeza was there he was trying to invade it, so the humans claimed. The only reason he wasn’t executed for the act was because he promised he would never step foot on those lands again unless invited. It was a long standing truce that he kept all these years. Did that man invite him over? Possibly, but it couldn’t have been sanctioned by the governing body of that continent. This was too hushed to be something official.
Haldirin said, “Very well. I will inform him to be prepared with haste. I shall get my supplies as well.”
“You will stay here.”
Haldirin looked at his boss shocked, “Like the hells I am! This business sounds like it might be very serious . . .
Neeza interrupted, “Which is why I need you to stay in Myyril. There are forces at work here which have me scared. I want you to try and keep things at home going. We should be back in about a week.”
Haldirin didn’t like it at all. Not one bit. Neeza had never refused his company on a mission before. What was so important that he was demanding him not to go? Whatever it was, he must have had his reasoning.
Haldirin, doing his duty, asked the next obvious question, “Should I inform Tasi to keep his watchful eye on Divi?”
Neeza paused and finally said, “No, wake her up and tell her to get dressed. She’s coming with me. For years you have been telling me I should spend more time with her. I know this trip won’t resolve the years of hardship I caused her, but at least I can get a start here and now.”
All of Haldirin’s concerns went to the wayside. At last, after all these years, he was going to spend time with his daughter with the intention of trying to bring them closer instead of drive them further apart. He was right that it was going to take more than just one trip to fix their relationship, but he knew his boss. When he wanted something, he would do whatever it took to complete it. Besides, with this newfound appreciation for her, he doubted he would take her on a mission that was going to be dangerous. Just because something was important didn’t mean it would be deadly.
Haldirin said, “I will do as you say. She will be there.”
Neeza replied, “Thank you. I will tell you what is going on when I get back, but we must make haste. If for some reason I don’t return, I want you and Frari to have a hold onto the stewardship for a couple months.”
Haldirin said, “Don’t talk like that! If you can survive Mount Hrithgorn, this should be easy.”
He hoped that would be the case. That was why he was leaving. The sooner they did, the better . . . and the easier it would be to move around. He might not be able to say that in a week if what the man said was true. If everything went to plan, they would be off the continent with plenty of time to spare. But time was of the essence.
Neeza just replied, “I hope you are right.”
He began to walk out as Haldirin followed. Calidis watched as the councilmen were all leaving the hallway. His brother had already begun to follow them out as none of them were asking for any messages to be sent. Sure, it happened, but it was quite rare. Who would be up at this hour to receive them anyway? He supposed it was safe for him to do the same as his brother.
“Calidis! I have a message for you to deliver!”
He turned around to see Sydis standing there holding a large envelope. Just his luck! Of all the people who would have a letter tonight, it would be Sydis. He really didn’t like him because he seemed to elevate himself above everyone else. He was certainly powerful enough to have that right, but Neeza rarely ever did that, and he was even stronger than Sydis.
Calidis met the second-most powerful mage in Myyril as he handed him a plain white envelope.
“Be sure this gets sent out immediately. It is of the upmost importance that this gets to its destination before we arrive. If I find out it wasn’t, I will be most displeased on my return.”
Sydis began to walk out after the courier acknowledged he understood. One thing he knew about him was that he was serious with his threats. That was something he didn’t want to worry about. He started lightly jogging toward the Emergency Delivery Center, or EDC, located on the lower levels of the council building.
As he did, curiosity got the best of him and he looked at the front of the envelope. Most of the words were written in invisible ink so that only the EDC master would know where it was going. As he did, a reddish rune appeared on it. That was normal for something important. What wasn’t normal was that it appeared he had begun to write the destination before the initial rune spell was cast, as a result he was able to read one word on it: Dyyros.
His mind began to race as he walked. What could be on Dyyros that was so important? Sydis did this in such haste that he probably didn’t even realize the mistake. He did know that they had a couple of contacts there that despite the truce, they were able to blend in to the human population. It had been years since an envelope was sent to them, and it was normally the green rune, which allowed the address to be seen. The red one was supposed to hide everything. Was this to one of them?
There would be time to ponder it later. If they were leaving immediately, then time would be short for him to get to the EDC and deliver it. His jog became a full out run as he quickly maneuvered through the empty hallway to make up time.
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At the boat, most of the mage council was there, with only a couple excused because of age or of ailments not allowing them to make the trip. The night was still young, being as this was the longest night of the year. The ship was nearly ready to go when Mimerck walked up to Neeza.
“Well, ship’s as ready as ever. I put the rowboat in it as requested, so it might be a little tighter than it was going to Hrithgorn. And that elvish stuff is still there, so if I go at full throttle, we should be able to make it there in four hours. Five or six is more realistic. Point being, we should still arrive while its night there. Pirate attacks won’t be a concern. We should be able to outrun all the ships we might come across.”
Neeza said, “Good. We’ll have to slow down once we grow near Dyyros. You probably know that they tend to not like our kind, so secrecy will be of the upmost importance. Where did you say we would port?”
Mimerck said, “Porsita. It is the last free port on the western sea of Dyyros. Tartus would have been better, but too many people and too much paperwork. We’d never be able to sneak in. Furthermore, it’s under Ulcinar’s control. I’ve been to Porsita before. You’ll get there safely.”
Porsita. He had been there a couple times. That was the exact same port he entered on during the assault over 300 years ago. Thankfully human lifespans are much shorter than a ma
ge’s. No one there is apt to remember the incident.
Mimerck asked, “You really think this is wise? I know I shouldn’t doubt you, but it is part of my nature.”
Neeza explained, “If I didn’t think it was important to do this, I wouldn’t be risking my life to do it.”
The mage captain heard that before. That is precisely what he told the students back on the way to Mount Hrithgorn. He seemed less worried now. He wasn’t carrying just students. He was carrying some of the most important and seasoned mages of Myyril on this trip. If they ran into any opposition, he was certain they would be able to handle it much better. Still, he did miss those wily kids.
Sydis finally made an appearance from the boat as he bowed to both Mimerck and Neeza, “We are ready to go as soon as you are. The ship is ready.”
Neeza replied, “Excellent. Once my daughter arrives, then we will leave.”
He truly hoped that Haldirin was having success in getting her. He had a feeling she wasn’t going to be happy being woken in the middle of the night for something that he couldn’t explain to her quite yet. He would make it up to her. This was only the beginning for them in their new life together.
No sooner then he thought, it he saw Divi storming ahead of Haldirin, carrying nothing but a small satchel and her staff. She was wearing a half robe for the hood because the night was quite cold. Otherwise she wore her rebellious wears. Just seeing her bare uncovered legs made Neeza shiver and he was dressed for the occasion. If not for the staff, he would have had trouble knowing she was a mage at all. She definitely never dressed the part.
Mimerck greeted, “Ah, so you must be the Honorable Divi! Welcome to my . . .”
She walked past the captain not even lifting her head and intentionally bumping into her father. All three watched as she instantly went on the deck of the boat and sat at the edge, watching the sea.
Mimerck commented, “She’s quite the fireball isn’t she?”