Forging Alliances: Wizards of White Haven

by Frances Howitt

  ‘Yes,’ Jim confirmed watching them sitting closely together staring into each other’s eyes. ‘My daughters, and they’re both gifted,’ Jim murmured with pride.

  ‘How do you know Holly’s yours?’ Daniel asked. The two little girls were too young to show much hint of their adult features but there were some facial similarities and both were blond, blue eyed and had magic.

  ‘It’s obvious to me. That had been the plan, was it not?’ Jim said, his gaze swinging to Drew who bit her lip. ‘That’s right little one, I’m your father,’ Jim added to Holly. ‘And Daisy is your sister.’

  ‘Are you angry with me, Jim?’ Drew asked quietly having come up the steps nervously. The lion filled her with awed trepidation. She tried to remember the quiet gentle man she’d known almost two years ago, but she wasn’t sure he was the same anymore. Her wolf might be latent but she recognised a dominant personality, and knew that trait hadn’t been so apparent in him back then. Was he just growing more self-assured as he matured, or was there more to it? The development of the lion led her to decide on the latter, and that was distinctly unnerving.

  ‘How could I be angry? You’ve brought this amazing little girl into the world.’ He brushed Holly’s face gently with his furred cheek aware his head was larger than her entire body.

  Holly giggled and reached out to grab fistfuls of mane. She used the long fluffy fur to slowly pull herself to her feet. The lion winced and everyone watching did so too as huge fangs, easily able to snap an arm off, were momentarily revealed. Having finally reached her feet, she let go and flicked her fingers negligently. Long strands of plucked mane floated from her hands.

  ‘Where are you going?’ Jim asked, watching the toddler clamber over his front leg and walk along his side, her hand keeping contact all the way. He sensed a thread of magic between the girls indicating a lively conversation was ongoing. Holly didn’t answer but walked all the way around him.

  ‘Daisy wants to know why you don’t have wings,’ Holly asked mentally, still not sure she could voice her thoughts clearly to this stranger and have him understand.

  ‘My animus form is a lion, like your uncle Daniel’s form is a wolf. We don’t have wings. Daisy’s mother sometimes has wings like Ailsa. Although she can also be a lion like me. She has the ability to choose,’ Jim told her mentally, so he could accompany the words with illustrative pictures, ensuring Holly understood.

  ‘Why can’t mother change form?’

  ‘Not everyone can. I’m sure your mother would love to be able to change form like Daniel, but she can’t. She cannot hear you when you speak like this either. I can teach you a better way, but you are old enough to actually talk to her out loud. It is far better and she can respond then.’

  ‘I must talk?’ Holly said slowly but out loud.

  ‘Yes. Everyone around you will be able to hear you and talk to you then. They will help you learn how to say your words. They aren’t going to expect you to speak every word perfectly straight away. Do you promise to try?’

  ‘It’s hard.’

  ‘I know, but I promise it’ll be worth it.’

  ‘Ok.’

  ‘Good girl.’ Jim stepped clear of the two children shimmered back to his human form and in the next instant his clothing flew about him. He was aware that whilst Daniel and Drew were here deep in the village, the wolves felt obliged to supervise them. They doubtless had more important things to be attending to; not that they’d mention it. He rose to his feet fully dressed and scooped up Holly, kissed her cheek, before handing her to her mother. He then picked up Daisy cradling her in his arms.

  ‘Shall we see where your sister is staying now Daisy?’ He went down the steps and glanced at Drew as she walked at his shoulder with Holly. It felt strange having her beside him in Amelie’s place. It made him uneasy as though he was being unfaithful. The notion was disconcerting; everyone now knew he’d slept with Drew and left her pregnant. These wolves, for whom family was paramount, would be judging him. But what could he do about it now? He wondered if Drew hoped she could convince him to replace Amelie in his bed now they shared a child. The idea left him cold. Once Amelie finished her lessons he would have to tell her about Drew’s presence and of course Holly. That was not a conversation he was looking forward to but he’d rather she heard it from him than anyone else.

  Jim escorted them back to the cottage they’d been granted in near silence. He stayed on to observe both children, allowing them to continue interacting a while longer until Daisy next slept, although it wasn’t as restful for him with other adults present. With Holly shouting, in magical terms, it was little wonder Daisy had heard her. Until he managed to teach them to construct mental shields to limit accidental projection and sending out telepathic “noise” they would always be a distraction to the students. He just hoped having two telepathic infants on site meant they could entertain each other and might therefore limit their other outbursts. However, when Daisy eventually did fall asleep, she was overtired, continually prodded awake by Holly. Holly then started crying from lack of her new playmate, and he realised the link they were forging was not going to make caring for them easy. He wondered how people with twins coped when one child could so easily upset the other.

  ‘Holly, enough! Daisy is younger than you and needs her sleep,’ Jim told her firmly. ‘You will be able to talk to her again later.’

  ‘Now!’

  ‘No.’ He said firmly and reinforced his order mentally until she obeyed. He’d had to intervene by wrapping Daisy in a shield to ensure she couldn’t hear her sister or she wouldn’t have been able to get any sleep. He was going to have to do a certain amount of rationing of their contact until the novelty wore off. He glanced over to where Natalya sat on her veranda just up the lane, aware her baby would most certainly be gifted too. Once it was born it would add to the mix. Babies always took some adjusting to, but those with magic were easier in some respects and more difficult to handle in others. He would just have to figure it out as he went along like any other parent. He cuddled his beautiful little Daisy and then stroked Holly’s soft round cheek, knowing they were worth it. They represented continuity and the future. Both also filled his heart with love and pride.

  7. Half Circle

  Sir Cyril rode at the head of his small team of four. As he listened to their casual upbeat banter, he smiled, glad of the distraction it offered from the seriousness of what they were embarking on. He also enjoyed having company; well, to be more specific, of people who weren’t idiots. They’d been working together long enough to know each other quite well and to respect their differing talents. Each had their speciality and defined place in the team. Whilst their teasing and laughter was light-hearted, he knew they were alert to their surroundings and would focus to utter seriousness the moment they were threatened, or work was to be done. For the moment they were alone, which was relaxing but also worrying.

  The undulating wild landscape they traversed, as they left the mountains, was rocky and densely forested. It abounded with cliffs, rivers, impassable gorges and impenetrable thickets. Tamed farmland it was not and never could be. Striking across country was not an option. To make any progress at all, especially with horses, they had to keep to the single cleared road.

  The tangled, pressing trees might feel a little oppressive, because they restricted his view, but he could sense the area they were entering was vibrant and rich with wildlife. Birds chirped and the trees sighed in the breeze. It was a calming and welcoming place, especially after the harshness of the barren inhospitable mountain passes they’d just come through. It was a place of contrasts. Humans were not in charge here; nature was. Sometimes it was refreshing to be reminded of a person’s insignificance, that their woes were merely a wrinkle in the passage of time.

  When he’d first been appointed the wizard guild’s primary Enforcer, so many years ago, he’d often gone alone to investigate and sort out whatever issue had come to the guild’s attention. However, the very nature of his wo
rk, bringing the lawless or unscrupulous to justice, was dangerous. It was inevitable that such a role brought risks of personal retaliation. He had to remain vigilant at all times and set shields, even when he slept. It was exhausting to maintain but essential. Too many peacekeepers were found with a knife in their ribs as they slept.

  Unfortunately, he was too efficient. His fame spread when he brought some particularly high profile criminals to justice, and he lost the element of anonymity. Having strangers hail him by name and welcome him like a hero, when he walked into an Inn, rather ruined any chance he might have had to quietly scout the place for fugitives. His fame made his job difficult in some aspects but easier in others. His presence alone was deemed a deterrent.

  There had also been several instances when strangers had actually sought him out, demanding a duel with him. The first time it happened he’d shaken his head in disbelief that a wizard would have the cheek to challenge him for no real reason. Were they doing so simply in the hope of gaining respect? Did they think they’d look good by perhaps being the one to finally best a famous warrior wizard? Needless to say, he sent each on their way with their tail between their legs.

  That constant needling, by inferior grade wizards, got very tiresome and frustrating. More seriously however, it had actually once come between him and his capture of a very dangerous felon. Having to deal with a righteous drunkard, who became aggressive when Cyril ignored him, had been the distraction his quarry used to escape. Charging the drunkard publicly, with obstruction of justice, might have helped cool down some others from challenging him, but it had allowed the murderer to strike again before he could be arrested. Seeing the idiot punished was certainly cold comfort to the victim’s family.

  It had been a lonely time and depressing, investigating the seedy depths of corruption and the depravities wizards could sink to. As the months turned into years, he’d have liked a partner to share the load and discuss his cases with. Unfortunately, as a warrior wizard, his ability was rare and difficult for a partner to keep up with. He was one of the elite and had always been set apart from the herd with the result that he’d always had to work alone. Besides, he justified to himself, dragging someone else through the mire was unfair and would only slow him down. Responsible for his safety alone, he could choose what risks he was prepared to take. He could also be flexible enough to change his plans on a whiff of a lead and move fast.

  With more publicity, his every move came under closer scrutiny until the guild finally stepped in. The usual raft of death threats he received constantly, that he’d taken in his stride for years, were now being intercepted on his behalf by the guild. They’d been appalled and worried on his behalf. Initially he’d been irritated by his guild’s insistence that he take “guards” with him on every job. As a warrior wizard he was far more capable of identifying and dealing with threats, as they arose, than a lesser wizard. But they insisted, so instead of letting the men remain simple and largely unnecessary guards, he’d trained them to aid him in other ways. Not everyone could take on or handle the different roles he had a need for, so he began the slow process of selecting a versatile team. He needed people who could go and scout a public place with the anonymity he’d lost, or be busy investigating records while he did something else, or a hundred other detective jobs.

  Since he couldn’t go undercover anymore and had successfully created a team to aid him, his guild altered the type of cases they asked him to investigate. With simple arrests being taken care of by others now, he and his team concentrated on handling more complex or high profile cases. To do so, it was essential he find capable people, with whom he could discuss each case and entrust them with confidential details. It had taken some negotiating, and trial and error to get the team he wanted, but to his mind it had been worth it.

  Some wizards demanded lengthy explanations before they would undertake a task, meaning he usually ended up doing it himself. Others could be finicky or awkward to travel with, lacking a team spirit or not enough sense of humour. Of course no one liked riding all day, soaked to the skin, or finding that the only Inn available was exceedingly basic, or had no hot water. But whining about it helped no-one. As wizards, they could overcome a number of these kinds of annoyances anyway. Yes it took strength, but a wizard could warm his bathwater to his preferred temperature, or shield himself from heavy rain or rid the bed of biting insects. So, he’d ousted those who didn’t mesh with the team, weren’t contributing or who were unreliable. He’d been rather appalled to discover just how many candidates he’d had to discard before he found a team that actually worked together and took orders.

  These four had accompanied him on many problem solving assignments now. Each wizard was trained in a variety of useful disciplines, but just as important, was their ability to handle themselves in hostile circumstances and keep their cool. He could sense their mix of anticipation and anxiety at what they might find in this investigation. This was unlikely to be restricted to one problem wizard or circumstance. They were far from any backup too. The eastern guild had been isolated and left to fend for itself for many years. Prince Casper’s warmongering had made travel dangerous and many wizards had additionally been kept busy defending many war-torn places and repairing important bits of infrastructure. It was also likely that the east had instigated their own set of procedures, particular to their region. Adherence to all of the guild’s general rules, in such circumstances, was liable to have lapsed. The main question was how bad was it? Had they diverged in any critical areas?

  The easy pace he set might appear unhurried but he knew, from long experience gathered on numerous campaigns, what pace horses could maintain all day without foundering. Automatically he scanned ahead both visually and using his senses. Trees hemmed them in on either side of the road, and only opened up where rocky bluffs interrupted the growth. The area teemed with life, large and small and that had the unfortunate effect of bombarding his senses with too many signatures to begin to identify them all. Gaining a pounding headache for his trouble, he reduced his life sign senses to a sliver of input. Any number of hazards, from dangerous large animals to bandits, might therefore lurk undetected in ambush. In this environment, his team’s lesser sensitivity actually worked better, since they didn’t even hear the background noise that was swamping him. Who really needed to sense the termite nest’s heaving numbers rushing about serving their queen, or each butterfly flitting through the trees in search of nectar?

  This road was the only sign of man they’d seen in the hours since they’d crossed the border. Sir Cyril’s personal eagle standard had granted them passage through the border checkpoint, but they’d known they were being closely watched for a while afterwards. Feeling eyes on the back of their necks, while they slogged up through the steep and winding pass, had been unnerving. Once over the summit, the feeling of eyes vanished. They’d descended, to the Edmoston foothills, in a more relaxed fashion. However, after the bustling overcrowded city on the other side, this emptiness seemed surreal. It was also strange to now be unobserved, so close to a military border. Where were the troops protecting this crossing? This was the main route east; surely there was some type of robust defence? Prince Casper was only a few miles away with thousands of troops at his disposal. Or weren’t they as alone as they thought they were? His men remained alert and became just as unsettled at the seeming lack of defences as he was.

  Cyril idly mused that it was probably a good twenty years since he’d last been to the east. Back then, the eastern counties had been a minor and unimportant fringe sector, whose only real value was in their willingness to trade with everyone and keep the trading routes open from the south eastern ports. Those routes traversed the mountains here, supplying exotic produce to the midlands of Rosh and Rossad. Lacking precious metals, gemstones or forging ores, the east had always been relatively poor, underdeveloped and sparsely populated. Its people tended to be agricultural; farmers, hunters and traders rather than academics or highly skilled craftsmen. Gene
rally, it was regarded as a sector to simply pass through on the way to more populous, interesting and wealthy areas.

  The eastern lords, under Queen Bernadette’s rule, had built their towns on the proceeds of trade. Their people were used to negotiation rather than force. It was not a sector rich with anything worth fighting over and the Queen had been caught ill prepared, not believing the rumours she might actually be attacked. The peaceful lords, ruling two of her border counties on the other side of the mountains, had never been able to afford large standing armies and had never seen the need. They had been quickly overrun by Prince Casper’s seasoned forces. Queen Bernadette had thus lost two counties, before she’d been able to rally the forces she did have to call on, namely the resident wizards. The natural barrier of the mountains augmented by her wizards’ magical defences, had been effective in halting Casper’s advance. He’d been stopped before he could cross the mountains and reach Edmoston. That robust defence had coincided with Casper being gravely injured. Now healed, Casper could well be formulating new plans.

  The current truce was fragile. It was precariously balanced on the integrity and strength of will of the eastern wizards, to maintain their defence of the border. Cyril mused on the meeting he’d attended, which Casper had insinuated himself into. Without a doubt, Casper had been looking for evidence of chinks in the east’s armour. With the guild’s eastern leadership currently in disarray, he’d found it and the sharks would be circling imminently. He would have to act quickly to shore up any military defences that had weakened and dissuade Casper from considering Edmoston vulnerable and ripe for attack.

  Lord Aubrey’s county of Edmoston was now on the new border. Aubrey, in contrast to his trader neighbours, had been a warrior in his youth and understood defence. He would be a tougher opponent, yet as an eastern lord his lands would not support the cost of large numbers of troops indefinitely either. Thus it was, that although wizards were meant to be outside of a lord’s authority, answering only to their own guild, they had little alternative but to answer the call to arms. An invasion of their homeland could not be ignored and such outrages, as occurred in war, would likely affect them just as much as their non-magical neighbours.