Sonea shook her head. “No.”
Indria sighed. “These things take time. How are the hospices?”
“Full of addicts in withdrawal. Some responding to Healing, some not. Thankfully, those magicians resistant to roet have automatically healed, so we only have to deal with the forty or so who can’t.”
They discussed the ongoing roet problem as they walked through the garden. Reaching the front of the University, they saw Osen, Balkan and Kallen standing beside a carriage, and another carriage waiting behind. Osen looked up, saw them and beckoned.
“There’s room for you in here Lady Indria,” Osen said. “The rest have gone ahead. We’ll take the other.”
As Indria climbed inside, Osen led the way to the second carriage. Once they were all inside and the carriage began moving, Sonea looked at Osen and raised her eyebrows. He met her gaze and shook his head.
“No, I don’t know exactly what this is about, but the King’s Adviser assured me there is no invasion and Lorkin is fine.”
Sonea smiled. They’re afraid I’ll go rushing back to Sachaka at the slightest sign of trouble. Still, it is good to know this isn’t anything to do with him.
“Have you read Dannyl’s research notes yet?” Kallen asked the Administrator.
“I’m halfway through.” Osen’s eyebrows rose. “They’re actually rather fascinating, especially the Duna’s stories. I’m looking forward to reading the whole book, once he finishes and prints it.”
“He’ll have to write a new chapter on the Sachakan Civil War and magical gemstones first,” Kallen said.
“And I have a feeling there’ll be another chapter to add after that,” Balkan added.
Osen’s eyes narrowed at the High Lord. “Are you still worried about minestrike and that contraption the king’s spy says they have in Igra?”
“The ballshooter.” Balkan nodded. “Dargin thinks it is what enabled the Igrese priests to conquer all their neighbouring lands.”
“More likely the Igrese magicians weren’t very powerful or skilled,” Osen replied. “I can’t see how a ball sent through a tube can threaten a magician, if he or she is shielding well enough.”
“I suspect it works much like Lilia’s innovative idea of stabbing with magic rather than using a knife when performing black magic. A focused force sent quickly enough will overcome all but the strongest shield.”
“The spy said there’s little chance an Igrese army would survive a desert crossing,” Kallen reminded him. “And we know they do not have black magic or gemstones.”
As Balkan shook his head, Osen turned to the window and rolled his eyes. “It’s not the Igrese I’m worried about,” Balkan said. “The minefire the Thief Cery used was unlike the usual—”
“We’ll have to leave that argument to another time,” Osen said, turning back from the window. “We’ve arrived.”
The carriage slowed to a stop, and the door opened. Osen gave a little sigh of relief as Balkan stepped out. He, Kallen and Sonea followed. They were in a small courtyard within the palace where magicians were taken when the king wanted to avoid the delay of formal greetings. The other carriage was pulling away and the occupants had already disappeared inside.
A palace attendant ushered them through a door and into a sumptuously decorated hall, then led them along a corridor to a dining room. Sonea had eaten here a few times before, along with other Higher Magicians, sometimes as a guest of the king, sometimes in order to meet important foreign visitors. Today the chairs were occupied only by the Higher Magicians and four of the king’s non-magician advisers. Rothen smiled and nodded as she saw him seated at the end of the table. As she, Osen, Balkan and Kallen took the four unoccupied chairs a man strode into the room and all rose to their feet.
“Your majesty,” Osen began.
The king waved a hand. “Sit. You have important decisions to make, and knowing how quickly magicians make decisions you’d best get started without delay.” Sonea suppressed a smile at his dry tone. He moved to the end of the table and planted his palms flat on the surface.
“Yesterday the new Sachakan Ambassador arrived. As you know, she is a black magician – or, as she calls it, a higher magician. As you also know, her not being a member of the Guild makes her a rogue magician. So her presence here means two of our most serious laws regarding magic are being broken right now.
“So, either I send her home or we change our laws.”
He paused to look around the table, meeting each magician’s gaze.
“I do not intend to send her home, so we had better change our laws. That is what you are here for. You’ve been arguing about this for months, and it is time you came to an agreement. Between yourselves and my advisers, before the end of the day, you will draft new laws that will allow foreign, non-Guild magicians to live and trade here legally and with effective, workable restrictions. Those restrictions must regulate both the use of black magic and the possession of magical gemstones. Your predecessors had good reason to fear black magic, but we need a better method of control than banning it.
“It has also been pointed out to me that gemstones put magic into the hands of non-magicians, and we don’t want them hearing about the Igrese and deciding to rid the Allied Lands of magicians. Though I think it is unlikely they’d succeed, I do not want to deal with a civil uprising. We must have some kind of regulation of gemstones, even if only to prevent the Thieves from getting hold of them. The rise of the Rogue Skellin should be a warning to you: we must keep magic out of the underworld.
“I also expect that these laws will go some way toward improving the behaviour of Guild magicians. It is clear from the corruption roet has revealed in the Guild’s ranks that some magicians aren’t immune to vice and profiting at the expense of others. It is time their excesses and activities were curtailed.”
The king straightened. “You have a lot to discuss, so I will leave you to it. Bring me a summary of your progress at midday.” He pausing for a last look around the table, then turned and strode out of the room.
All were quiet, listening to the king’s footsteps fading in the background, then Osen cleared his throat and looked at the advisers.
“If it is acceptable, I will lead the discussions.”
The advisers nodded. As Osen started to speak, Sonea felt an unexpected sadness. And so everything changes again. Just like after the Ichani Invasion, when we knew we had to accept black magic as our only form of defence, and restore the Guild by taking in lower-class novices. There were so many unforeseen consequences, like the Thieves battling each other and the city overtaking the slums. We can try to make laws that control the changes that magical gemstones and an alliance with Sachaka will bring, but they will have effects we don’t anticipate.
All they could do was try. And, for her part, attempt to ensure that when Lorkin returned to Kyralia, even if only to visit, he – and the family he might eventually have – would be safe and welcome.
Glossary
Animals
aga moths – pests that eat clothing
anyi – sea mammals with short spines
ceryni – small rodent
enka – horned domestic animal, bred for meat
eyoma – sea leeches
faren – general term for arachnids
gorin – large domestic animal used for food and to haul boats and wagons
harrel – small domestic animal bred for meat
inava – insect believed to bestow good luck
limek – wild predatory dog
mullook – wild nocturnal bird
quannea – rare shells
rassook – domestic bird used for meat and feathers
ravi – rodent, larger than ceryni
reber – domestic animal, bred for wool and meat
safly – woodland insect
sevli – poisonous lizard
squimp – squirrel-like creature that steals food
yeel – small domesticated breed of limek used for tracking<
br />
zill – small, intelligent mammal sometimes kept as a pet
Plants/Food
anivope vine – plant sensitive to mental projection
bellspice – spice grown in Sachaka
bol – (also means “river scum”) strong liquor made from tugors
brasi – green leafy vegetable with small buds
briskbark – bark with decongestant properties
cabbas – hollow, bell-shaped vegetable
chebol sauce – rich meat sauce made from bol
cone cakes – bite-sized cakes
creamflower – flower used as a soporific
crots – large, purple beans
curem – smooth, nutty spice
curren – coarse grain with robust flavour
dall – long fruit with tart orange, seedy flesh
dunda – root chewed as a stimulating drug
gan-gan – flowering bush from Lan
husroot – herb used for cleansing wounds
iker – stimulating drug, reputed to have aphrodisiac properties
jerras – long yellow beans
kreppa – foul-smelling medicinal herb
marin – red citrus fruit
monyo – bulb
myk – mind-affecting drug
nalar – pungent root
nemmin – sleep-inducing drug
nightwood – hardwood timber
pachi – crisp, sweet fruit
papea – pepper-like spice
piorres – small, bell-shaped fruit
raka/suka – stimulating drink made from roasted beans, originally from Sachaka
roet – plant from which a soporific drug and a perfume are derived
rot – slang term for the drug roet
shem – edible reed-like plant
sumi – bitter drink
sweetdrops – candies
telk – seed from which an oil is extracted
tenn – grain that can be cooked as is, broken into small pieces, or ground to make a flour
tiro – edible nuts
tugor – parsnip-like root
ukkas – carnivorous plants
vare – berries from which most wine is produced
whitewater – pure spirits made from tugors
yellowseed – crop grown in Sachaka
Clothing and Weaponry
incal – square symbol, not unlike a family shield, sewn onto sleeve or cuff
kebin – iron bar with hook for catching attacker’s knife, carried by guards
longcoat – ankle-length coat
quan – tiny disc-shaped beads made of shell
undershift – Kyralian women’s undergarment
Public Houses
bathhouse – establishment selling bathing facilities and other grooming services
bolhouse – establishment selling bol and short term accommodation
brewhouse – bol manufacturer
hole – building constructed from scavenged materials
stayhouse – rented building, a family to a room
Countries/Peoples in the Region
Duna – tribes who live in volcanic desert north of Sachaka
Elyne – neighbour to Kyralia and Sachaka and once ruled by Sachaka
Igra – country far to the north of the Allied Lands where magic is forbidden
Kyralia – neighbour to Elyne and Sachaka and once ruled by Sachaka
Lan – a mountainous land peopled by warrior tribes
Lonmar – a desert land home to the strict Mahga religion
Sachaka – home of the once great Sachakan Empire, where all but the most powerful are slaves
Vin – an island nation known for their seamanship
Titles/Positions
Administrator – magician who sees to the running of the Guild
Ashaki – Sachakan landowner
Black Magician – one of two magicians allowed to know black magic
Directors – magicians in charge of managing novices within and outside of the University
Heads of Disciplines – in charge of magicians of the three disciplines of Healing, Warrior and Alchemy
Heads of Studies – in charge of teaching the three disciplines of Healing, Warrior and Alchemy
High Lord – the official leader of the Magicians’ Guild of Kyralia
Ichani – Sachakan free man or woman who has been declared outcast
King’s Advisors – magicians who advise, Heal and protect the Kyralian king
Lord/Lady – any magician of the Magician’s Guild without a greater title
Master – free Sachakan
Other Terms
the approach – main corridor to the Master’s Room in Sachakan houses
blood gem – artificial gemstone that allows maker to hear the thoughts of wearer
earthblood – term the Duna tribes use for lava
lowie – slang term used in the Guild for novices from middle-and lower-class origins
Master’s Room – main room in Sachakan houses for greeting guests
obin – separate house joined to the main house of a Naguh Valley house
snootie – slang term used in the Guild for novices and magicians from the Houses
slavehouse – part of Sachakan homes where the slaves live and work
slavespot – sexually transmitted disease
storestone – gemstone that can store magic
The Slig – a hidden people who live in the passages underneath Imardin
vyer – stringed instrument from Elyne
Lord Dannyl’s Guide to Slum Slang
blood money – payment for assassination
boot – refuse/refusal (don’t boot us)
capper – man who frequents brothels
clicked – occurred
client – person who has an obligation or agreement with a Thief
counter – whore
done – murdered
dull – persuade to keep silent
dunghead – fool
dwells – term used to describe slum dwellers
eye – keep watch
fired – angry (got fired about it)
fish – propose/ask/look for (also someone fleeing the Guard)
gauntlet – guard who is bribeable or in the control of a Thief
goldmine – man who prefers boys
good go – a reasonable try
got – caught
grandmother – pimp
gutter – dealer in stolen goods
hai – a call for attention or expression of surprise or inquiry
heavies – important people
kin – a Thief’s closest and most trusted
knife – assassin/hired killer
messenger – thug who delivers or carries out a threat
mind – hide (minds his business/I’ll mind that for you)
mug – mouth (as in vessel for bol)
out for – looking for
pick – recognise/understand
punt – smuggler
right-sided – trustworthy/heart in the right place
rope – freedom
rub – trouble (got into some rub over it)
shine – attraction (got a shine for him)
show – introduce
space – allowances/permission
squimp – someone who double-crosses the Thieves
style – manner of performing business
tag – recognise (also means a spy, usually undercover)
thief – leader of a criminal group
watcher – posted to observe something or someone
wild – difficult
visitor – burglar
Acknowledgements
Writing this sequel trilogy has been hard work of the most enjoyable kind. Which is why I appreciate the work done by everyone behind the scenes, and the support of all the wonderful booksellers and readers who embrace my books when they finally launch into the world.
Thanks go to Anne Clarke and
the Orbit team; my agent, Fran and her wonderful assistant, Liz; the feedback readers Paul, Donna and Nicole. You all had a part in making this book as good as it could be.
A special extra thanks to Fran for coordinating the organisation of my big European tour, along with Rose at Orbit and Berit at Verlagsgruppe Random House; to all the staff at the stores that hosted readings and/or signings – I wish there was room to list you all; my wonderful Polish publishers, Galeria Książki, who treated me like royalty during two fabulous days in Warsaw; the marvelous Imaginales Festival in France; and the amazing team brought together for the German author nights by Verlagsgruppe Random House.
And most of all, to my readers: a special extra thanks to everyone who came to see me on my European tour, or at a signing elsewhere in the world. It is always a fabulous treat to meet you. And to all readers: I hope you enjoyed revisiting the world of the Black Magician trilogy as much as I did, and will join me on the next adventure of the imagination.
About the Author
Trudi Canavan published her first story in 1999 and it received an Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Short Story. Her debut series, the Black Magician trilogy, made her an international success, and all three volumes of the Age of the Five trilogy were Sunday Times bestsellers. Trudi Canavan lives with her partner in Melbourne, Australia, and spends her time knitting, painting and writing bestselling fantasy novels. For more information about Trudi and her writing go to www.trudicanavan.com
Find out more about Trudi Canavan and other Orbit authors by registering for the free monthly newslettter at www.orbit-books.net
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