“I appreciate your help, but I wonder how it is that you had just the information I needed.”
“That’s my job, Agent. The first thing I researched upon arriving was how best to take down the academy. I concluded it wasn’t possible short of a full invasion. I wish you the best of luck.”
Yarik nodded his thanks. After listening to Iris he suspected they’d need all the luck they could get.
Conryu climbed the steps to the roof on his way to his first class with Dean Blane, Prime floating along beside him. He’d said he wanted to learn to fly, so she told him to meet her on the roof. Nerves warred with excitement as he climbed. After her Awakening, which had thankfully gone off without a hitch, Conryu dropped Anya off at her basic earth magic class. Before lunch he was supposed to bring her to the nurse’s office for another blood test, but between then and now he didn’t have to worry about her.
It wasn’t that Conryu didn’t like Anya or want to keep her safe; it was just that he saw no sign of danger. She’d been in the Alliance for five days now and no one had taken a shot at her. He hoped the Empire had given up and moved on to terrorizing other people. If they had given up, how long was he going to have to look after her? Maybe if nothing happened, they’d let him off the hook after midterms. Hopefully. It wasn’t like she could live with him for the rest of her life.
He shook his head and opened the roof access door. If you were going to learn to fly, this was a perfect day for it. The sun shone bright overhead; it was about seventy-five degrees, and the wind calm. Near the edge of the roof Dean Blane stood waiting, her pale-blue robe flapping in the breeze.
She beamed when Conryu shut the door behind him. “Excited? I know I am.”
“Yeah, nervous too. I’ve never done anything but universal and dark spells. Do you think I’ll have any trouble with wind magic?”
“I can’t imagine you would. The wind gem reacted to you, so technically you’re wind aligned as well. The only way to know for sure is to give it a shot.”
Conryu nodded and joined her at the edge of the roof. It looked a lot higher now that he was about to jump off.
“The spell is pretty simple. It translates to, ‘Father of winds, carry me into your domain. Air Rider.’ It sounds much different in the language of elemental air.” Dean Blane made a series of whistles and hisses. When she stopped, she was floating. “Nothing to it. Remember, like all magic, your will controls your reality. You need to concentrate to get the spirits to do what you want.”
Conryu nodded. The language of air was even more alien than the guttural sounds of Infernal. It reminded him a bit of a bird and a snake having a conversation. Conryu cleared his mind and focused. He pictured himself floating beside Dean Blane and copied the sounds she made earlier. Nothing happened.
“That was close,” she said. “But you mispronounced the last word. It’s ‘rider’ not ‘raider.’”
She corrected his pronunciation and Conryu took a breath. “Father of winds, carry me into your domain. Air Rider.”
Power gathered around him and he was up. Conryu spun in a circle then flipped upside down, his robe falling in his face. Dean Blane giggled.
“Focus, Master. Your mind is all over the place.”
Conryu scowled and righted himself. When he could see again, he found the roof thirty feet below him. His eyes bulged and he nearly lost it for a second time. He caught the stray thought before it could upend him again.
“You’re doing great.” Dean Blane flew in a little circle around him. “It usually takes weeks before a student gets off the ground. Want to try a few maneuvers?”
“Sure.”
She paused right in front of him. “Just copy me.”
Dean Blane glided left and Conryu mirrored her.
“No, Master, don’t think, ‘do what she does,’ think, ‘glide left.’ You need to be able to do this yourself when there’s no one to copy.”
Conryu shot Prime a look. “How do you fly? You can’t even use wind magic, can you?”
“No,” Prime said. “I use dark magic to negate the effects of gravity. It’s a demon thing, humans can’t do it.”
“Why not?” If he could fly with dark magic, it would be much easier than learning a whole other type of spell.
“Demons resonate with this reality differently than humans,” Dean Blane said. “They’re less bound by its rules.”
“Oh, bummer.”
They spent the next hour going through basic movements until Conryu had mastered moving up and down and side to side. He couldn’t stop grinning as they looped around the roof. It almost felt like a dance.
“You’re a natural,” Dean Blane said. “Are you getting tired yet?”
“No, this spell doesn’t draw much power from me.”
She smiled and shook her head. “Want to try something a little faster?”
His grin broadened. If there was one thing Conryu loved, it was going fast. “Hell, yeah. What did you have in mind?”
“A race across the lake. Just give it all you’ve got.”
“Cool. Will you be able to keep up okay, Prime?”
“Don’t worry, Master, I’ll be pulled along by our link. Have no fear of us being separated.”
Conryu turned to Dean Blane. “On three?”
She grinned back at him like a little girl about to get into mischief. “One.”
“Two,” he said.
“Three!”
She darted ahead, blasting across the water a few feet above the surface. Conryu took off after her. All his will focused on powering forward.
Halfway across he was only a body length behind her.
Faster!
A quarter length between them now.
Faster!!
He shot past her and a loud boom followed. The trees on the far side grew really big really fast. He pulled up as hard as he could, but still crashed through the small branches at the top.
Conryu slowed and stopped far above the forest. He gasped for air like he’d run a hundred-yard dash. What a rush! That made his bike seem like riding a turtle.
Dean Blane flew up beside him, her hair plastered to her face. “That was impressive. I didn’t think you’d pass me on your first try. I didn’t think you’d break the sound barrier either. Be careful not to go that fast near the school, you’ll shatter our windows.”
“Did I really break the sound barrier?”
She nodded. “You couldn’t see it, but you had a huge tornado pushing you forward. Now that I’ve seen you, I’d say your power level in wind is about fifteen thousand.”
Nine thousand less than his dark magic level. He hadn’t thought the drop off would be that much. “Is that good?”
“Are you kidding? It’s over twice my strength and I’m the most powerful wind wizard in the Alliance. If you wanted to I bet you could conjure an F5 tornado. We’re not going to try that today.”
“Yeah, better save that for next week. Oh, shit! Prime, what time is it?”
“Almost eleven, Master.”
“Damn it! I’m going to be late meeting Anya.”
Conryu finished his lunch, dropped Anya off at History of Magic, and turned toward Mrs. Umbra’s office. She hadn’t said what they were going to work on this year. In truth, there wasn’t much about dark magic Prime couldn’t teach him. Not that he didn’t think Mrs. Umbra had a lot to offer, it just struck him that of all the elements, dark offered him the easiest path forward.
The scholomantic flew a little behind him, his nervousness coming through their link. No matter how many times Conryu tried to reassure Prime that the Head of Dark Magic wasn’t so bad, he refused to believe it. Who would have imagined a scaredy-cat demon?
It didn’t take long to make the walk to the administrative area. The secretaries had seen enough of him by this point that they hardly even blinked as he walked past. Mrs. Umbra’s office wasn’t that far from Dean Blane’s.
Conryu rapped on her door and a muffled voice said, “Come in.”
He pushed through and found Mrs. Umbra standing in front of her desk, arms crossed, her frown making her many wrinkles look even deeper. What could she be upset about? It was still the first day of class for goodness’ sake.
“Let me see it.”
He blinked. “Excuse me?”
“The Reaper’s Mark. Show it to me.”
Conryu rolled up his sleeve and held out his marked arm. She stalked over, grabbed his wrist, and made a pass over the scythe.
Mrs. Umbra jerked her hand back and shook it. “It’s a powerful connection. There’s no way you’ll be able to remove the mark by compelling the Reaper, even with the Death Stick. What were you thinking?”
He pushed his sleeve back down. “Reaper’s Cloak was the only spell that would allow me to close the portals and save the city. How was I supposed to know the cloak’s owner would show up and pretend to slice my arm off? I’m not thrilled with the situation, but I can’t see anything I might have done differently besides letting Sentinel City get torn apart by shadow beasts.”
For a moment she looked exhausted, but the moment passed quickly. Mrs. Umbra retreated around her desk and nodded toward the guest chairs. Conryu sat and waited while she rubbed her eyes. He hated causing her stress, but then there was nothing he could do about what had happened.
At last she looked up. “I assume you have no idea what getting marked by the Reaper means.”
“I figured it worked the same way as my other brands, not that he seemed to need a power boost. My big hope is that a connection to the Reaper will keep the other demons a safe distance away.” Probably best not to mention his potential company of ninjas.
She barked a laugh. “Hardly. There’s a class of magic within the dark element that is directly associated with death. Reaper’s Cloak, Reaper’s Gale, Dread Scythe, and a number of others. For someone with a mark like yours, all those spells will have a greater effect than ordinary. Given your base power, you must be even more careful when casting them.”
“Reaper’s Cloak seemed strictly defensive.”
“For anyone else it would be, but with your connection you can wield a portion of Death’s power directly while wearing it. You must have seen the souls of others when you used the spell.”
He’d never forget those flickering ghost flames and the cold voice telling him how simple it would be to snuff them out. “I didn’t realize the spell allowed that. I figured he was trying to tempt me into doing something I shouldn’t.”
“That’s part of it as well. Since I heard what happened, I’ve spoken with some of my contacts in Hell. No one has any idea what the Reaper has planned for you. I find that most alarming.”
“You and me both. So what are we going to do?”
“I don’t know that there’s anything we can do. The Reaper is the most powerful demon in existence. That said, there’s one thing you can’t forget. For all his power, the Reaper can’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do. As long as you can resist the temptation to use his power, you’re safe from him. Or as safe as anyone is from Death.”
General Ivan studied the rapidly rising fortress and smiled. The outer wall enclosed ninety percent of the perimeter, and most of the first floor of the main building had been built. In another two, maybe three days, they’d have an unassailable foothold in the enemy’s territory. The czar would be very pleased and the best part was the vampires were helpless to do anything about it thanks to Nosorova’s ward.
He had to admit he’d held doubts about her ability to keep the undead out, but she’d proven him wrong. And thank goodness for that. If the monsters had somehow broken through… Ivan shuddered. Best not to think about that.
The crew only had another hour or so of daylight to work. Despite the lights from the ship, it was safer for everyone if they stopped at night. The construction needed to be done right. He had no desire to risk his life in a shoddily built fort.
Far above him the white-robed form of the witch floated. She’d been up there since right after breakfast and she didn’t land for lunch. Whatever the woman was working on must have been important. Ivan hated to admit ignorance about anything, but when it came to magic, he didn’t have a clue.
As the sun sank behind the mountains, Nosorova finally landed. She wobbled a bit when her feet touched the ground, the first sign of weakness he’d seen from her. Nice to know that despite her powers she was still human.
“Is all well?” Ivan asked.
She nodded. “The wards are as powerful as I can make them. All I need is to tie them to the fortress and they’ll be complete.”
Nosorova strode past him toward the partially complete building and Ivan followed, curious to see what she’d do next.
The interior of the fort didn’t even have dividing walls yet, but she made straight for the center of the building. On the plans there was a pillar in the main gathering area that served no structural purpose. That must be what she wanted.
Sure enough, Nosorova paused in front of a smooth stone cylinder and placed her hands on it. Energy flowed and crackled up its length. Lines like lightning streamed in and struck the pillar. One of them passed through Ivan, but he felt nothing.
He couldn’t stop staring as more and more strands came flying in. Nosorova wove them together and through the pillar. After he knew not how long, the magic vanished and she slumped in obvious exhaustion.
“It’s done. The wards are now permanent and linked to this structure.”
“What does that mean for us?” Ivan asked.
“It means that as long as the keystone remains unharmed the wards will continue to function. I need to return to the Empire. So much distance between me and the czar has left me weak.”
Ivan made a dismissive gesture. They were safe from the vampires and that was all that mattered.
Nosorova chanted and vanished in a gust of wind, leaving him alone in the chamber. Good riddance to the witch. With her gone he wouldn’t need to share his success. Oh, he’d praise her hard work, the czar would appreciate that, but he’d be sure to emphasize his leadership in guiding the affair. He smiled and walked back into the yard.
The sun had almost set. Time to head up to the watchtower so he could see the monsters flail against his impenetrable defenses.
As if summoned by his thought, a group of six vampires appeared out of the near-perpetual fog. They dragged their claws across the invisible barrier, drawing golden sparks, but seeming to do no harm. The monsters snarled and bared their fangs, like the stupid animals they were.
It struck him as unfair that the others couldn’t watch the show. He whistled and waved to draw the soldiers’ attention. “Come take a look!”
One of the men got the bright idea to drive a scissor lift beside the wall. They piled onto the platform and raised it up so they could see over the top. They were soon all laughing and jeering at the vampires who glared back with glowing red eyes.
Ivan couldn’t help watching with a bright smile. This was exactly what the men needed, to see the enemy wasn’t invincible. It would give them confidence in the coming battles.
A few minutes later everyone had gathered on whatever piece of equipment they could find. A couple even brought rifles and took a few pot shots at the assembled vampires. Ivan should have warned them not to waste their ammo, but they had plenty and it was a bit of harmless fun. His men had been working hard, they deserved to blow off a little steam.
In the absolute darkness of his portable sleep chamber, Talon felt the witch’s powerful presence vanish. Minutes remained before the setting sun freed him from his daily rest. With her gone he had no hesitation about dealing with Roman’s lackeys.
The wards she created were powerful enough to keep even him out, but he had a simple way around that. She constructed them specifically to stop his kind, but a normal, living human could enter and leave at will. He had many loyal humans living in his lands and none of them had any desire for Roman to take over their country. The moment he recognized how the pr
otections worked, Talon had summoned one of his most talented servants.
The sun sank below the horizon, taking with it the paralysis that held him. Transforming into black mist, he exited his sleep chamber. He’d taken up position a quarter mile from Constanta on a little-used side road. Outside his limousine a single man took a knee as he re-formed. A lean, fit human of thirty years, Xavier Lancer was Talon’s finest agent and perfect for completing the task at hand.
“Command me, my lord,” Xavier said, head bowed.
“You’ve seen the affront polluting our lands?”
“Yes, Lord Talon. I observed the fort for several hours this afternoon. The soldiers are overconfident and keep a poor guard. Their numbers are all that give me pause.”
“You need not fight them, Xavier, simply open the path for us.” Talon reached into the folds of his jacket and emerged with a shiny black sphere the size of a large marble. “Take this and shatter it against the ward focus.”
“How will I know it, my lord?”
“Do you recall when I sent you to spy on that cult that set up shop in the ruins of Prague?”
Xavier nodded.
“I will meld minds with you again so I can see what you see. I’ll know the focus when I see it and I’ll point it out to you.”
“Understood.” Xavier took the sphere and slipped it into his pocket. “Shall I go now?”
“Not just yet. The others will put on a show for the foolish Imperials. Get closer, but wait until I give you the signal to begin your infiltration.”
Talon reached out and placed a hand on either side of Xavier’s head. Immortal crimson eyes locked with ice-blue human ones. It took only moments to link their minds. All of Xavier’s knowledge and secrets were his to explore, every sense his to use. Out of respect for his loyal servant, Talon didn’t probe too deep.
Talon blinked and returned his focus to his own body. “It’s done. Go now and wait for my command.”
Xavier vanished into the fog as silent as a vampire. It wouldn’t take the agile human long to get in position. Talon shifted his focus to the others. He’d brought half a dozen of his most skilled warriors on this mission.
Wrath of the Dragon Czar Page 6