The Rogue Mage (The Age of Oracles Book 1)

by Ben Hale

  The remnants of tents lay scattered around dead campfires, the cloth torn apart, the posts broken. Streaks of black lined the canyon wall and carried the scent of charred stone, the legacy of mage fire, while the once smooth ground was shredded, the broken remains of golems littering the earth.

  There had been over a hundred in the bandit camp, all criminals that had escaped the noose in Griffin. They had preyed upon the weak and helpless, demonstrating with every murder their lack of valor. Still, they had been desperate people, ones that the Verinai had all but forced to a life of theft.

  Raiden’s jaw tightened as he saw the extent of the damage. Anyone left alive would have been carried away for a quick execution—and Red would have fought like a caged reaver. In the western channel of the canyon Raiden noticed a section of the walls scorched beyond recognition, but the damage appeared desperate, as if several mages had fought to quell a threat from within their ranks.

  “This is the work of the Verinai,” Raiden murmured.

  “Not just the Verinai,” Jester said.

  Raiden followed the assassin’s gaze to see a shard of a banner. The staff had broken and the cloth ripped, but the partial insignia of the Eldress Council was just visible. Raiden frowned and scanned the battlefield with new eyes.

  “The third trial,” he whispered. “They sent the Runeguard.” Fear filled his veins as he thought of Alydian. Had she been present? Had she survived?

  Jester looked surprised. “You think the acolytes did this? But why?”

  Raiden wiped the rain from his face and peered at a section of ground protruding upward. The stone resembled a broken stump of a tree, the surface curved upward as if it had once connected about neck height . . .

  “An entrapment spell,” he said. Then he spotted the others and his eyes widened. “A powerful one.”

  “No acolyte could have done this,” Jester said.

  Raiden examined the sheer number of stone traps. The entrapment charm was meant to rise from the ground and close upon an individual, sealing them into a finger of rock. Although the spell was the same, each mage tended to cast it with slight variations, a bump here, a crack there. Yet all of those in the canyon showed the same distinct curve. There was also a clear epicenter to the spell, with those closest to it tilted slightly away as the magic had spread outward. Apparently coming to the same conclusion, Jester grunted.

  “I doubt a master Verinai could have cast a spell of such magnitude,” he murmured.

  Raiden smiled. “What about an oracle?”

  The assassin threw him a sharp look. “The oracles do not engage in combat—a fact we should be grateful for.”

  “Alydian was training with the Runeguard,” Raiden admitted.

  Jester’s eyes widened. “Why?”

  “After we attacked her, she wanted to learn to protect herself,” he said.

  “Why not tell me this before?”

  Raiden shrugged, the motion causing rainwater to trickle down his shoulders. “I honestly didn’t think it mattered. The oracles train to use their magic in their second century, and Alydian didn’t want to wait.”

  “But the Runeguard?” Jester asked. “That’s not just using magic, that’s combat magic. They will turn her into a battlemage—an oracle battlemage.”

  Raiden’s smile widened. “An even more powerful ally.”

  “Is that what you want to call her?” Jester whispered, his lips twitching into a smile.

  “Don’t start that again,” Raiden replied. “We still don’t know if we can trust her.”

  “Are you mad?” Jester swept a hand at the bandit camp. “Her character is on display. The Verinai guards came to slaughter, and she chose to trap them all, a feat that would have killed a lesser mage.”

  “Agreed,” Raiden said, “But the question remains why? And what happened to Red? If she survived, the guards would have taken her back to Dawnskeep.”

  “Why?” Jester asked. “They are criminals of Griffin, and would have been taken to Herosian for execution.”

  “You know how she fights,” Raiden said. “And she would have undoubtedly used her anti-magic sword. Even if she managed to discard her mask, the Verinai would suspect her identity.”

  Jester was nodding. “We’ll know soon enough.”

  They rose and turned away from the canyon—but a sound brought them to a halt. For a long moment they listened to the patter of rain. Then Raiden heard it again.

  Voices.

  Curiosity drove Raiden back to the canyon and he peered at the battlefield. If a bandit had somehow survived, they might know more about Red’s fate. Or it could be a soldier, one wounded and accidentally left for dead. Shrouded in darkness and soaked in rain, he squinted into the dim canyon, searching for the source of the sound.

  A trio of figures appeared in the gloom, followed by a small collection of soldiers. The two in the lead picked their way through the uneven battlefield, their cowls thrown back to reveal their features. But the rain did not touch them. As if it feared to mar their flesh, the storm fall turned aside. Then Raiden recognized them.

  Elsin, guildmaster of the Verinai, strode beside Teriah, Second Sister on the Eldress Council. The two elves were accompanied by a giant of a man, likely a barbarian. The way he walked, the way he ignored the rain, as if he did not even feel it, set Raiden on edge. Then he noticed the trace of madness in the man’s eyes and realized what he was.

  A guardian.

  Raiden struggled to control his urge to flee. The opportunity to listen on the guildmaster herself was too great to pass up. Swallowing the knot of fear, he held himself in check, grateful he and Jester had spoken in undertones before. As he caught glimpses of other Verinai battlemages in the depths of the canyon, he craned his ears to listen . . .

  Chapter 32: Teriah’s Secret

  Guildmaster Elsin came to a halt where Alethean had stood, and placed her boots in the indentations left by the acolyte. She reached into the stone and felt its slumbering might. She tested the density of the stone and found it to be rigid. A scowl formed on her face as she relinquished her magic.

  “Could you match her spell?” Teriah asked.

  “Perhaps,” Elsin said, turning to the oracle. “But it would likely leave me unconscious as it did her.”

  “Then the rumors are true,” Teriah said. “And her power rivals your own.”

  Elsin bristled. “I doubt even you could have cast this.”

  “An oracle’s power will always be more than a Verinai’s,” Teriah said, her eyes on the ring of entrapment charms. “You would do well to remember that.”

  “And you would do well to remember that I have bested you.”

  Teriah did not argue and kept her attention on the ground. “I want to know who she is,” she said, her voice dangerously soft.

  “You’re asking me?” Elsin replied. “I told you, she was not trained by my guild.”

  “She was trained by someone,” Teriah said.

  “I have a dozen masters searching the records for her lineage,” Elsin said, and then sniffed. “But I would think you, with all your farsight, could have divined her identity by now.”

  Teriah’s lips curled upward, a decidedly unpleasant expression on the beautiful elf. “Need I remind you that my farsight has limits, limits that the Soldier has exploited quite well.”

  “Another thorn that threatens to pierce our plans,” Elsin said, sweeping a hand at the rainy battlefield. “How many more are there?”

  “Change has a way of creating adversaries,” Teriah said. “And I suspect more will appear before our plans come to fruition.”

  “We are weeks away from the Accord going into effect,” Elsin said, “and my forces are nearly in position to remove the kings. We cannot let Alethean prevent our Empire.”

  “Are you certain your Verinai forces can withstand any resistance from the populace?” Teriah asked.

  Elsin sneered. “The barren pose no threat to my guild. When the monarchs fall, the people will kneel.
But you still haven’t told me how you intend to eliminate your own threat. We cannot move until Oracle Elenyr—”

  “Leave her to me,” Teriah said, a smile playing on her features. “The poison is nearing its completion now. When she succumbs to it, there will be none left to stop us.”

  “Except Alethean,” Elsin said flatly. “If she sides against us, the people may follow her.”

  Teriah’s silence spoke volumes, and Elsin did not press the issue. They both recognized how dangerous a rogue Verinai could be—especially one as strong as Alethean. If she decided to turn on the Verinai, it would take a small army to kill her.

  Elsin looked back on her conversation with the Alethean. She’d been evasive but surprisingly composed. As guildmaster, Elsin was used to apprentice Verinai cowering before her. For a young Verinai to meet her gaze was disconcerting, which was why she had come personally to witness the spell Alethean had wrought.

  A thought crossed her mind that made her scowl deepen. The girl was obviously talented in stone magic, but power usually focused onto an arc of the circle of magics. What if she had more magics than she claimed? But Elsin had examined her with her own sight, and seen the five magics she claimed to possess. Was she hiding more?

  “What if Elenyr discovers the poison?” she asked.

  “She is too weak, and it is too late,” Teriah said absently, her attention on the battlefield.

  “Are you certain Alydian will be more malleable than her mother?” Elsin pressed.

  Teriah laughed lightly. “The girl has been reclusive since the Soldier nearly killed her. She is timid and frightened, and will do as I say when her mother passes.”

  “If Alydian does not join us,” Elsin asked in a warning tone, “are you prepared to deal with her?”

  “To lose an oracle bloodline would be tragic,” Teriah said, passing a hand over her face as if in pain. “But we always knew that bringing peace to Lumineia would carry a heavy cost.”

  Elsin stepped to a shard of stone and picked it up, examining the smooth texture. If Elenyr had not been so resistant, the Mage Empire would have come to fruition decades ago. But the First Sister had proven to be adamant in her stance of neutrality, and ultimately Teriah had suggested she be eliminated.

  “Do you have plans to deal with other rogue Verinai?” Teriah asked.

  Elsin looked up in surprise. “My forces are all loyal to me.”

  “You have dissidents in your ranks,” Teriah said, her tone becoming one of prophecy, “And soon they will unite. There is a shadowmage that will turn against you.”

  “Toron.” She said the word like it was a curse.

  “You have imprisoned him,” Teriah admonished. “But his followers remain. I know what he once meant to you, but he’s too dangerous to leave alive.”

  She looked away, her thoughts turning to Toron. He’d once been the staunchest of allies, more even, but he’d forsaken all because he couldn’t see the greater purpose. Her lips tightened as doubt sparked in her heart. After what she’d done, had he betrayed her? Or had she betrayed him?

  “Who follows Toron?” she asked, fleeing from the thought.

  “I cannot say,” Teriah said. “The future is ever dependent on choice.”

  “A fact the Soldier has exploited,” Elsin said darkly. To her surprise the oracle smiled.

  “The Soldier’s time comes to an end,” she replied. “For we finally have one of his closest allies, the woman they call Red.”

  This was news to Elsin, and she turned to the oracle. “Tell me.”

  “She was captured in this very camp,” Teriah said, “and wielded an anti-magic blade.”

  “Weapons of such make are rare, but it does not guarantee she is his lieutenant,” Elsin said.

  “It does when her mask is also present.”

  Teriah turned away from Elsin and picked her way to a corner of the battlefield. Then she bent and caressed the muddy stone, and the rainwater curved into a swirl that washed the stone clean, digging into a crack in the rock. The water flowed out of view and reappeared a moment later, carrying a red mask.

  “How did you find it?” Elsin breathed, moving to her and accepting the mask.

  “You may see nine magics,” Teriah replied. “But I see them all.”

  Elsin wiped the water from the mask and examined it. Imbued with anti-magic, the red material was shaped like a skull, intended to intimidate as much as obscure.

  Elsin struggled to keep her excitement—and sudden irritation—in check. “You should have said this sooner.”

  “Why did you think I wished to come personally?” Teriah asked, and swept her hand at the rain pouring around her form. “A journey in this weather is not exactly pleasant, even if one manages to remain dry.”

  Elsin held the mask aloft. “The Soldier has been the bane of my guild for years and Red has killed many. But the Soldier is crafty, and will likely replace her.”

  “We can use Red to draw the Soldier out,” Teriah said. “I’ve sent her to Verisith where she will await her execution.”

  “You intend to use her as bait,” Elsin said, a smile on her face. “A clever plan.”

  “But not infallible,” Teriah said. “You will need to keep your Verinai ready to capture the Soldier.”

  “Mineva is well suited to the task,” Elsin said. “Her hatred for the Soldier has grown since King Talin’s death, where she let him slip through her fingers.”

  For a moment there was silence, and Elsin recognized it as the oracle examining the future. Then Teriah released a long breath.

  “Your decision to appoint her is a sound one, but carries an unclear future.”

  “She is my guild’s second,” Elsin said, her tone confident. “She will deal with him.”

  Teriah nodded in agreement. “Once the Soldier is dead, his rebellion will crumble. But before his end there is a final task he must complete.”

  Elsin noticed the flicker of uncertainty in the woman’s voice and met her gaze. “What aren’t you telling me?”

  “An oracle—”

  “Don’t feed me that,” Elsin snapped. “The moment we wrote the Accord we were joined in treason. No more secrets, or the Mage Empire will be vulnerable from its inception.”

  Teriah regarded her for several moments, anger simmering in her eyes. Then abruptly it dissipated and the oracle relented.

  “Six months ago our victory was certain,” she said. “And nearly every choice led to our empire.”

  “And then?” Elsin prompted.

  “Then it all went dark,” the oracle admitted, her expression tightening with confusion. “I have never seen a future so clouded.”

  “Then find the choice that will define our victory,” Elsin said.

  “I could spend a century in meditation and still not find the right choice,” she replied. “What you ask cannot be given.”

  Elsin looked away, her lips tightening. Teriah had been certain of their victory from the beginning, but now she lacked faith in their future triumph. Elsin was loath to admit it, but she’d come to rely on Teriah’s farsight.

  She jerked her head, reminding herself that their plan was sound. Alethean may be an enigma and the Soldier was still free, but they were two against the guild of Verinai, a force of mages unmatched across the globe. And with Teriah at their side, they were unstoppable.

  “It matters not,” Elsin said. “With the king of men dead, we just need the elven queen and the dwarven king to sign.”

  “And the other guilds? And nobles?”

  “All but the mage guilds have agreed to the terms of the Accord,” Elsin said. “But then, we didn’t give them much choice. When the Verinai act, the age of kings will come to an end, and the era of magic will have its dawn.”

  The conversation shifted to the day of upheaval, when the Verinai would destroy the monarchies, but Elsin’s thoughts remained on Teriah’s admission. It was the first time that Elsin could recall the woman expressing any doubt, and it shook Elsin more than sh
e cared to admit.

  Elsin recalled the moment they had met, when Teriah had known so much about the Verinai’s plans. At first Teriah had admonished her for such ambition, but then one day the oracle had admitted her own plans, and the Accord had been born. It had been nearly a hundred years since Teriah had agreed to support the Mage Empire, and everything that had followed had been based on that moment.

  Elsin looked up at the dark sky. Visible between the great canopies, black clouds poured upon her, the drops veering away from her face to impact the ground nearby. She smiled, realizing how long it had been since she’d felt a storm.

  As she lowered her gaze a small protrusion on the edge of the cliff caught her eye. In the gloom it was hardly visible, but the round shape was sufficient to give her pause. Then she recognized it as a head—two of them. She kept her voice casual as she stepped close to Teriah and lowered her voice.

  “It appears we have guests,” she murmured.

  Teriah did not look to where she pointed. Instead she smiled. “I know.”

  Elsin raised an eyebrow, a spark of irritation seeping into her voice. “Have I mentioned I do not care for your secrets?”

  “My apologies,” Teriah said. “But in this case, telling you would have alerted them, and I really would like to speak to him.”

  “You know who they are?” Elsin asked.

  “Only by reputation,” Teriah said. “But then, so you do.”

  “I don’t understand,” Elsin said. “I assumed it was merely bandits that escaped the battle. Who are they?”

  Teriah smiled and placed her palms together, gathering magic into her hand. Then she spun and pointed her fingers upward—and the rain parted. Like curtains being swept aside, the deluge swung open, allowing light to fall upon the two figures on the edge of the cliff.

  “Hello, Soldier,” Teriah called. “It was good of you to come.”

  Chapter 33: Tidal

  Raiden and Jester bolted into the trees. As they left the canyon behind he heard Elsin’s voice. Although muffled by the storm and forest, the words were clearly audible.