[The Elustria Chronicles: Magic Born 04.0] Magic Hunted

by Caethes Faron

  He wanted to give Meglana his magic if it meant saving me.

  He allowed it.

  That was the secret.

  “I’m ready. Don’t worry, Deacon, there’s no way for her to take the sorcerer’s magic in the cave. She won’t realize it until after she’s tried. Once she does, she’s going to be pissed. So while she’s making the attempt, we have to throw everything we have at her.”

  Alex took my hand. “Then let’s go.”

  Twenty-Nine

  Nerves swirled in my stomach as we made our way to the ice cave. I’d ported us a little ways away to avoid any traps Marguerite may have set. Once this was over, I’d be more than happy to never set foot on a snowy mountain again. Deacon and Alex walked slightly ahead of me in their animal forms. Seeing Alex’s dark velvety fur against the snow made me strike my last thought. I’d go with him anywhere, and I was pretty sure he’d want to watch more than one sunset and sunrise from a snowy peak.

  With a deep breath I suppressed my nerves. We had a solid plan. With Deacon and Alex by my side, I could do this. Nerves would only get in the way of the mission. When we came to the cliff face, nothing but ice greeted us. Marguerite had frozen over the entrance.

  Deacon shifted next to me. “There’s an enchantment on the ice. Beyond it I can smell Marguerite and Millhook. There’s a sorcerer with them.”

  “Do you have any idea what the enchantment does?”

  Deacon shook his head. “I can smell different types of magic, not tell you what they do.”

  It was obviously a trap, but the question was, how to proceed? If I explored the area with my magic, I may get an idea of what the enchantment did, but that also risked triggering it. Marguerite needed me alive. At this point, there was no benefit to killing me. That was crucial. In order for me to survive, I needed to make sure that I was worth more to her alive than dead.

  “What do you want to do?” Alex asked.

  “We only have one option. I have to get in there. Marguerite needs me alive. Whatever enchantment she’s put on this won’t kill me.”

  “Unless she expects that Deacon will insist on melting it. She knows Deacon is here with us, and he’s a formidable opponent. She might have enchanted it to kill him when he melts the ice.”

  That was a possibility, but not a likely one. “She won’t risk anything that will kill me, not until she has her answers. If I melted the ice instead or even helped, such an enchantment would mean killing her only option to get what she wants.”

  I extended my magic to the wall. Something about the enchantment struck me as familiar. I’d come across something like this before and recently. A smile crept across my face. Leo’s. “What we have here is an intention gateway.” There was something else, an additional component that had been missing from Leo’s gateway. It wouldn’t harm me, but there were definitely additional restrictions. “This is just a guess, but I think it’s designed to only let one person through. That person has to be me.”

  “No, you can’t go in there alone,” Alex said, placing his body between me and the wall.

  “I’m inclined to agree,” Deacon said. “The wiser course of action would be to get help.”

  “Help? From who? And how? If I don’t go through there, Marguerite is going to kill her hostages. We don’t have time to get help. Even if we did, I don’t think there’s anything anyone could do. This has been a long time coming. There’s no use delaying it any further.” I faced Alex head-on. “Step aside. The ice won’t be thick this time. I can melt it on my own.”

  “Are you sure?” Alex said.

  “Certain. This is my fight. It always has been. I can handle it.”

  “Once you go in, there’s nothing we can do. Neither Deacon nor I can create a portal back to Elustria. There won’t be any help coming.”

  “I know.” I could call Ess and ask if the Earth station was up and running yet. They might be able to send help. I could port to them and bring any agents willing to come back with me. But who could make a difference in this confrontation? Dismantling an intention gateway, especially one this complex, was a specialized skill set. It would take time, time that Marguerite would use to kill hostages. This was something I had to face alone. “If I’m not successful, you need to find someone to get you a portal to Elustria. You said you knew shifters who have a contact. Get to them. You have to let the Council know what happens here.”

  “Don’t talk like that. You can do this. You’ve trained for this. You’re one of the best. Act like it.”

  Alex’s support meant everything. He always preached caution, always tried to protect me, but now, when it really mattered and I was determined to face this, he stepped up and told me what I needed to hear. More than that, he believed it.

  “Let me melt the ice. You need to save your magic.” Deacon stepped forward, and I nodded for him to proceed. Alex shifted at the same time Deacon did, ready to heal me should something unexpected happen.

  The heat from Deacon’s breath forced me backward. As the ice melted, I repeated over and over to myself that I was worth more to her alive than dead. My best bet was to go in pretending to cooperate. Without Deacon and Alex, I’d have to improvise. There was no point in trying to come up with a plan now. Everything would depend on Marguerite’s actions and the condition of her prisoners. The best thing I could do was go in with an open mind and absorb as much information as possible. Once I took it all in, I could make a rational decision as to how to proceed. I needed to keep my mind in the moment, not thinking ahead to the future and not ruminating over the past.

  The heat from Deacon’s breath retreated as he finished, leaving me even colder than before. Marguerite smiled at me from the back of the cavern. My gaze sought Nicole and Millhook. They stood to my right, bound to a stalagmite along with Nicole’s mother and little brother. A shield surrounded them keeping me from hearing their screams. I found myself strangely grateful for the shield. I really didn’t need their voices distracting me. Plus, given the lack of coats, I assumed it was heated inside.

  At the opposite end of the cave, closer to Marguerite to my left, a sorcerer floated in the air. It didn’t appear that he was hurt. If anything, he looked pissed. Good. There may come a moment when I would need him to save himself. I took another quick scan of the cavern and couldn’t see anything else of note. Marguerite stood between the pillar and the sorcerer, waiting for me to enter.

  I took a deep breath and stepped inside, ready to face this battle alone.

  Thirty

  Once inside the intention gateway, a thud sounded behind me. Alex had, predictably, tried to follow. I trusted that I’d been correct and that the gateway hadn’t harmed him. He and Deacon roared behind me, attempting to intimidate Marguerite. If Alex had been hurt, there would’ve been a yelp or scream. I wouldn’t give Marguerite the satisfaction of seeing me look behind myself. It would betray fear and uncertainty. I had neither, or at least wouldn’t let them affect me. This was between us, and she needed to know that I was up to the task.

  “I see you brought the furry brigade,” Marguerite said. “Think they can protect you? All you have to do is give me the secret, and you’ll be fine.”

  “I couldn’t keep them away. They jumped at the possibility of ending you.”

  “Must be very disappointing for them to be locked out.”

  “For them, yes. For me, not so much. I wanted to come here and face you, Aunt Marguerite.”

  “So you’ve decided to give me the secret?”

  The sorcerer’s eyes blazed with fury. The next moment was crucial. If I refused her, we would immediately shift to battle. I didn’t know if I could defeat her one-on-one. Even if I could, it was likely there’d be some casualties. But if I gave up the secret, I’d be giving her the last piece of the puzzle. If things didn’t go my way, she’d have that knowledge forever. As soon as I gave it to her, she’d try it on her captive. It wouldn’t work. As the memory had shown me, a mage couldn’t force the kind of consent needed for the
spell to work.

  “I’ll tell you, as long as you hold up your end of the bargain.”

  “Stop stalling. You already have my vow.”

  Without a better option, I relented. “Fine. The secret is this: the sorcerer has to want to give you his magic.”

  Confusion crossed Marguerite’s face and then understanding. “The potion. That’s what it’s for.”

  I didn’t want to say anything in case lying to her would void the vow. So I let her interpret my silence as affirmation.

  “I didn’t anticipate needing more of it. By now, the little bit I had will have faded from getting the sorcerer here.” Marguerite reached out her hand toward me. “Hand yours over.”

  “What?” Why would she assume I had any?

  “I know you made it. It appears we use the same dealer.”

  I cursed that damn elf. I should have destroyed the potion. Using it to manipulate someone would only make me like my mother. Still, it had seemed wise to keep it just in case. At this point, fighting her over it wouldn’t be prudent. I didn’t have any advantage to leverage. Even with the potion, I knew she’d be unsuccessful just as Meglana had been unsuccessful with my father.

  “Give it to me, or your friends die. There’s no way for me to know if you’re telling me the truth until I try it.”

  I handed over my vial of the potion.

  “Now, what’s the spell?”

  I told her the exact words to use in Cadaran. She had all the pieces now. It would only be a matter of time until she realized it wouldn’t work. When she did, she’d get violent. I ran through her vow in my mind, looking for loopholes. She had said she’d release my friends once I showed her how to take a sorcerer’s magic. I’d been an idiot to agree. So far, I hadn’t shown her anything. Telling her might not suffice. Even if it did, there was nothing stopping her from releasing my friends and then killing them.

  I wished I could ask someone for advice, but I was all alone. At least as a CCS agent, I’d have an analyst and a handler to help. What was I talking about? I was still a CCS agent. Thaddeus had practically said as much. He had trusted me, had encouraged me to follow my gut and rely on my instincts. If Thaddeus put that kind of faith in me, then I was as much a CCS agent as anyone else. Like Alex had said, I just needed to act like it.

  As I assessed my situation and surroundings, it became increasingly clear that I did need backup. Millhook could create a portal to take us back to the Citadel. I didn’t need to defeat Marguerite on my own; I just needed to get her someplace where I’d have support. Taking her into the Citadel proper would endanger civilians, but right now, virtually all CCS agents were back at base. Even if they had moved from the Greenhouse, there’d still be some agents there. If Millhook created a portal to the Greenhouse and I forced Marguerite through it, I had to trust that there’d be enough support there for us to capture or kill her.

  All I had to do was communicate this plan to Millhook somehow. I made eye contact with him and steadfastly avoided looking at the others. I didn’t need to see Danny’s scared face. Millhook gestured toward his hand, and with horror that I wished was more surprising, I realized he’d been cursed. He couldn’t make a portal.

  The weight of defeat crushed me. I didn’t have any other ideas. It wouldn’t be long now until Marguerite realized the spell wasn’t working. When that happened, it would be over. There wasn’t time to come up with a new plan. When Marguerite figured out that she couldn’t forcibly steal a sorcerer’s magic, she’d start killing my friends.

  And then what? Marguerite wouldn’t give up. This prize was too grand. She would do exactly what my mother had done. She’d find other ways to convince a sorcerer to relinquish power. The fact that it was a long game wouldn’t deter her, but it would anger her enough to kill us.

  My father had given up his magic for me, and it wasn’t that difficult to realize that someone like Marguerite could manufacture more situations to get what she wanted. All it would take was kidnapping a sorcerer’s child or loved one and convincing him that the only way to save their life was to give up his magic. She could even enter into a vow stating as much. What sorcerer wouldn’t do that? What person wouldn’t give up everything if it meant saving the person they loved?

  I knew the sacrifices I was willing to make for the people I loved. The force of that emotion, the strength of my conviction in what I would do for them, stunned me. My father had made that sacrifice for me. Meglana had to steal his magic and power, but I didn’t have to. It ran freely through my veins. I was my father’s daughter. The strength of his love, his sacrifice, and his magic bolstered me.

  If sorcerers could make portals, that meant I could too. Everything I had tried so far, I’d done. Portals should be no different. They were only different because my mind said they were. They seemed more difficult, but that was my human way of thinking. I had the magic to do this. All I needed was Millhook’s medallion that would allow us entry into the walls of the Citadel.

  Marguerite was still focused on the sorcerer, trying to draw his magic out of his body. I made eye contact with Millhook and mimed what I needed. He seemed to understand, and gestured to his pocket. The shield surrounding him and the other hostages blocked sound but allowed objects to pass through freely. Keeping one eye on Marguerite to make sure she didn’t see me, I levitated the medallion from Millhook’s pocket. When my hand closed around it, Marguerite released a frustrated scream.

  Thirty-One

  I tucked the medallion safely in my pocket before Marguerite could see it. If only I’d had enough time to try making a portal. Instead, I’d have to improvise a little bit more.

  “You lying little pidge. It doesn’t work. The spell is incomplete.” The rage in Marguerite’s voice urged me to prepare for a fight.

  “Don’t go blaming the spell because you can’t make it work.” I needed to get her to try again. Antagonizing her probably wasn’t the best idea. “Try it again. It didn’t work the first time Meglana tried it either.” Another truth. Maybe it would be enough to buy me some time. My entire plan hinged on making a portal, and I couldn’t do that in the middle of a fight.

  “This has gone on long enough.” Marguerite shot black magical daggers from her hands aimed at the group of hostages. The movement of her hands gave me just enough warning to intercept the daggers and throw them back at her.

  The surge of magic that ran through me as I countered Marguerite’s spell lit the two wands I carried. This was the perfect situation for me to try triple wielding. I drew both wands, and with one I altered the shield surrounding Millhook and the others so it would protect them from harm. With the second wand I cast the same shield around the sorcerer. Using the talisman, I cast a shield around myself. Rationally, Marguerite had to know she couldn’t kill me and get what she wanted, but I didn’t trust her to behave rationally.

  The shield around me in place, I conjured a cyclone with the intent of disorienting Marguerite and smashing her into the wall with enough force to knock her out. Before I could get the cyclone fully formed, the wand in my right hand flew away. The one in my left followed. In all my training, I had never spent much time worrying about or learning how to counter being disarmed. My talisman’s nifty built-in security system had always insured I’d never need to worry about disarmament. Distracted, I lost the concentration needed to bring the cyclone to full power. Marguerite swept it away and blasted me backward with a burst of energy. My back and head banged against the wall, and I fell to the ground. Pain ripped through my skull and the world spun.

  “You really think you’re good enough to triple-wield? I give you credit for the effort, but having another’s wand does not make it yours.”

  “Then why do you think taking a sorcerer’s magic will make it yours?” It was the only response I could muster as I struggled to my feet.

  “I’m better than you at this. I can bend magic to my will. The only reason you’re still alive is because of the magic your mother stole and put in that talisman. Wit
hout it, you’d be a weak little human no one cared about.”

  “And instead I’m a pidge with everything you’ve ever wanted.” I was beyond allowing her words to hurt me. Every instinct in my body said to lash out with my magic, but she had the upper hand with the wands, and any move I made would be foolish. There were too many other lives in the cave that I had to consider.

  Marguerite eyed my talisman. Behind her gaze the cogs of her mind turned. When she hit upon the solution, her eyes widened. She’d made the connection between the amber stone and the pillar. It was the only way to get the last clue for herself. A magical force tugged at my neck and the talisman shot an electric bolt at Marguerite, knocking her backward.

  “Give me that talisman,” Marguerite snarled.

  “It can’t be removed from around my neck.” That wasn’t technically true. One person had successfully removed it, but he’d had to knock me out first. I’d gotten my revenge on that assassin shortly thereafter.

  “Then I’ll figure out how to take it off your corpse. I’m sure if I severed your head it would slide off.”

  This had gone from bad to worse quicker than I’d anticipated. With me dead, there’d be no one left to protect Nicole and her family. “I’ll give it to you. Just let me take it off.”

  My hands searched for the clasp on the chain. With a rising sense of panic I realized it wasn’t there. Just as when I’d tried to remove it for Casper, I couldn’t. The talisman had always protected me. When I discovered the truth, I assumed it had something to do with the magic inside it being my father’s. With a touch of sentiment, I believed it was my father protecting me all this time. Refusing to come off right now wasn’t protecting me.