“I was made a captain long before you were,” Shad explained with a shrug. “So you’re Captain Number Two—or C2, for short.”
Xiaolang rolled his eyes, either in a sign of exasperation, or to pray for patience, I wasn’t sure. “Shad, you have the most convoluted mind I’ve ever known.”
“Why, thank you, C2!”
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
“You want to try beating some sense into me?” Shad nearly sparkled at the notion.
“No!” Xiaolang growled in irritation.
Shad slumped, crestfallen. “I can’t pick a fight with anyone this morning. You’re all a bunch of old women.”
Xiaolang had no sympathy. “You’ll live, Shad.”
Grumbling, he slunk off away from the camp, picking up his sword as he went.
“He’s not good at waiting, is he?” Shield observed in amusement as he watched Shad stalk away.
“That’s only part of the problem,” Xiaolang muttered under his breath.
I waited for him to explain that cryptic comment, but he focused on putting his boots on, not saying another word on the subject.
Once Chatta got over her amusement, that mind of hers started to analyze the situation. “But how did she know how to switch forms like that?” I think the question was largely rhetorical, but she was still looking at me in confusion.
“That part didn’t make sense to me either,” I confessed. “Cora was telling me that it took practice switching forms. And she had to be shown how to do it.” Thank heavens the Remnant Mages had shown up, especially Hay-el D'Auch. Without her, Cora would have really struggled.
“Hmmm.” It wasn’t quite a sound of agreement, just one of deep contemplation. Then she straightened abruptly, snapping her fingers. “Storage.”
She’s lost me. “I’m sorry, what?”
“When the Watchmen Pools were actually in use, they were used as more than just magical watchtowers,” she explained rapidly. “They served as way stations for magicians, too, if needed. And things were stored there as well.”
My eyes went a bit wide as the full implications sank in. “So there could very possibly be magical artifacts in that building?”
“More than just that, but books, and parchments, and memory crystals, and weapons, and who knows what else!” she disagreed.
Xiaolang looked up from his boots, joining the conversation. “So you’re suggesting that this Life Mage could have self-taught herself using these books?”
“Assuming they’re there? Yes, it’s a definite possibility.”
“I think that’s exactly what happened,” I offered slowly, running last night’s events back through my mind. “It would explain the gaps in her knowledge. Not recognizing what Night was, for instance. Not knowing by looking at me what I am. My shield should have been a dead giveaway.”
Xiaolang looked pained. “So you’re telling me that we have fifteen half-trained, self-taught magicians up there who are feeling defensive? Lovely. Thanks so much for sharing.”
“It wouldn’t do any of us any good if we went in blind-folded to the possibilities,” Chatta pointed out with ruthless logic.
Our poor Captain pinched the bridge of his nose, groaning. “This just makes a difficult situation worse.”
Chatta gave him a sympathetic smile. “Sorry. Maybe we’re wrong.”
“No,” he sighed. “I’m not that lucky. Besides, that theory fits too neatly to not have some element of truth in it.”
I was afraid he was right. “So how are we going to approach this?”
“We’ll try being polite, first.”
Sometimes, polite doesn’t work.
Xiaolang thought it a bit much to bring all of us—it would send off the wrong signals. So he just took me and Shad with him. We got within two miles of the pool, and explosions came out of nowhere.
It was such a strange mix of attacks—bolts of fire, rocks zipping at dangerously high speeds, raw magic that could char bone. They were all lethal attacks, certainly, but not normal; none of the ordinary attack methods that a Wizard or Witch would use in battle. (And considering how many times I’ve sparred with Kartal and Chatta, I could recognize those spells instantly.)
We’d been forced to hastily retreat. Shad was all for pressing forward—he hadn’t had any difficulty evading the attacks—but Xiaolang held back. We didn’t want to hurt these people, our future allies. And it would take some serious damage at this point to get them to stop.
I shielded us as we went back to the camp, not quite trusting that we were out of their range yet.
“Phew, that was fun!” Shad was nearly bouncing as he walked, eyes sparkling. “Can I do that again tomorrow?”
“No,” Xiaolang ordered in amusement. “You’re likely to get carried away.”
“But I haven’t been up against a challenge like that for nearly two hundred years! I wouldn’t hurt anybody. Please?”
“No.”
“Kill joy.”
“But I’ll have you and Aletha try to sneak in tonight.”
Shad’s face was nearly split by a demented grin. “All right! Now we’re talking.”
“Just those two?” I objected. There were, after all, forty-one people up there.
“If it comes to a matter of sheer numbers, then we’ve already lost,” Xiaolang answered patiently. “And these two are my experts at being sneaky.”
“I like sneaky,” Shad supported this with a fervent nod. “Sneaky is fun.”
He was getting waaaay too into this. “At least take a mirror with you?” I requested wearily. “If you get into trouble, I’ll come get you.”
“Now that’s insulting! Who says I’ll get caught?”
I side-stepped that one. I wasn’t touching it with a ten foot pole. “At least take it? You never know what can go wrong.”
Xiaolang took the matter out of his hands. “You’re taking one, Shad.”
“And remember not to get caught near the pool,” I added, suddenly remembering that there was a shield under that pool. “I can’t break through the seal without some serious consequences.”
Shad didn’t look as daunted by this warning as he should have been. “What kind of consequences?”
“The building collapsing on top of your head, for instance.”
“Ahhh. That wouldn’t feel too good.”
“It would ruin your whole day,” I agreed dryly.
“Garth, do me a favor? Don’t rescue me.”
I snorted. He was going to eat those words later.
~*~
No matter how powerful a pool might be, it still had limits. If you were hiding in a city, for instance, the magician using the pool would be hard pressed to pick one person out of a crowd. Same idea applies to forests, and twisty mountain passes. Permanent pools are built to oversee a wide range of land all at once, which is very handy—but it’s hard to focus on smaller details. Only a truly gifted Wizard or Witch can coax a close-up view from a pool, which is what made Don’s work so impressive back in Coven Ordan.
The problem was we weren't sure just how good the magicians up there were when it came to using that pool. How much of us could they really see, or were we little better than small figurines for them?
Chatta, Xiaolang and I gathered well away from the fire that night, giving Aletha and Shad some last minute tips before they went skulking.
“If their pool is truly on the default setting like we think it is then they won’t be able to see you,” Chatta assured them for the second time. “All they’ll see is pitch blackness, except for our campfire. You shouldn’t have any trouble.”
“Go slow,” Xiaolang cautioned. “They might have some automatic defenses in place that we don’t know about. After all, they’ve been here for a while—there’s no telling what they’ve done.”
“Yes, Da,” Shad replied sweetly.
“Oh, get out of here,” Xiaolang shot in exasperation. “And don’t get caught!”
With a casual salute, the pair
slunk off into the darkness. There was only a sliver of moonlight to see by, which hopefully would help them.
I wish there was some way for us to know if something went wrong, though. Shad had the mirror broach to communicate with—altered for his use—but I knew good and well that he wouldn’t use it unless he felt there wasn’t another choice.
With nothing else to do, we went back to the fire. The wind had a definite nip to it, which didn’t surprise me, as we were quickly heading for winter. Fall was nearly over now. Hayate was huddling under his charmed blanket, and the look he gave Xiaolang was downright pitiful. “Cold,” he mourned.
“I know, we all are,” Xiaolang sighed. “Garth, how cold does it get in Chahir?”
“Pretty cold,” I admitted. “Especially up here, since we’re so far to the north. I’ve heard that it gets cold enough up here to freeze a man’s hand to wood.”
Hazard especially was giving me an appalled look. He hated the cold almost as much as Hayate. “That’s ridiculous! What do people do up here during the winter?”
“Stay inside,” I answered dryly.
“This part of Chahir is infamous for its ice storms,” Eagle added. He looked slightly troubled, as if he were just now remembering this information. “They can blow in within hours, and the ice lasts for days at a time.”
I nodded confirmation. “I had an aunt that lived up here with her husband. After about ten years, she got sick of it and dragged her family back south, where it was warmer.”
Xiaolang hummed thoughtfully. “What are the possibilities that people would try to leave Chahir in the dead of winter?”
I hesitated, thinking that question over. When I answered, I was confident in my opinion. “Slim to none, weighing more to the none side. It becomes far too dangerous to travel in winter. It’s like a death sentence to travel more than a mile or so outside of the home. Even the garrisoned troops don’t move. If anyone’s abilities did wake up during winter, they wouldn’t dare try to escape before spring.”
“Death sentence, eh? Even for us?”
“Especially for us.” My voice was grim.
“Because we don’t have guaranteed shelter,” Chatta murmured in understanding.
“Or a guaranteed food supply,” Shield grumbled.
Xiaolang’s eyes narrowed in contemplation. “I see. How long do you think it will be before winter really sets in?”
“Another month, at most.” Ruefully, I added, “I wish we had this conversation three days ago, before we met up with the Gardener. He would have known the exact answer to that question.”
Even though Xiaolang couldn’t possibly see it, his head turned in the direction of the pool. “Then this could very well be the last group that we rescue for the year. We don’t dare move around during winter.”
“No,” I agreed.
“That might be a good thing,” Xiaolang reflected.
“Why, because we’re all a little haggard and threadbare?” Shield held up a sock and stuck a finger through the hole in the toe.
“Partly.” Xiaolang grinned at him. “And we’re all tired. This is very nerve-wracking work. Tired men make mistakes. We all need a little rest and relaxation.”
From the east, there was a sudden explosion of magic and light. I jerked up to my feet automatically, scanning the area. “Rats. I think they were just discovered.”
“I can’t see,” Chatta complained under her breath. “They’re too far out.”
“How far?” Xiaolang demanded, coming to stand at my side.
“About two miles…” I answered slowly. “In fact, pretty close to where we were caught yesterday.”
He groaned. “That answers that question—they have permanent armaments in place.”
Another explosion of light flashed brilliantly on the horizon, this one further in. I swore under my breath. “Chatta, did you see that?”
“Yes, and I recognize the spell,” she replied grimly. “And there’s no way that spell can be altered for some sort of defense. A person has to cast that one.”
“Long distance?” Xiaolang guessed.
“Oh yes.” Her mouth quirked in one corner in a humorless smile. “This also answers another of our questions. They can use that pool.”
I realized what she meant, and felt like banging my head against something hard in sheer frustration. “Of course.”
Xiaolang looked at us, slightly puzzled.
“They have to do something to the pool to influence the image to lighten,” Chatta explained in a morose tone. “That takes a bit of practice, to see at night. They’re better at manipulation than we gave them credit for.”
“Half-trained magicians,” Xiaolang grumbled under his breath. “Guardians deliver us.”
Shad and Aletha came running up a few minutes later, both a little breathless and something the worse for wear. Shad had a scratch on one thigh, and Aletha looked like she had been scorched by an open flame—nothing serious, but I think if she hadn’t reacted quickly enough, it could very well have been serious.
“Sorry, C2, but mission failed.” Shad probably meant to sound contrite, but was too high on adrenaline to be convincing. “But man, was that fun!”
“Speak for yourself.” Aletha was definitely put out with the evening. “Those idiots scorched my hair. Just look at this!” She waved the tip of her braid in the air—and I saw what she meant. At least an inch or so was melted.
“I’ll fix it,” Chatta soothed. “Just come over here, where there’s enough light for me to see by.”
The girls went over to the fire, talking with animated gestures as they went.
Xiaolang looked like he was ready to join me with the head bashing. “So did we learn anything tonight, or was it a complete waste of time and effort?”
“Oh, they can definitely see us,” Shad assured him. “At first it was just the ground fortifications. Those are even more challenging than going against a Wizard or a Witch—the spells just came up out of the ground. You either dodged ‘em or you were toast. But after Gorgeous and I got past those, they started flinging spells at us from the roof. And then we ran into the second line of defense. We couldn’t watch both ground and air at the same time, so we decided to retreat.”
“We barely made it back out alive,” Aletha grumbled.
“Second line of defense, eh?” Xiaolang rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “That speaks of military expertise. Actually, the whole set up reminds me of military experience.”
“They could have someone with a soldier's background up there,” I pointed out. “We have no idea what these people used to do before they moved.”
Xiaolang didn’t seem to appreciate this thought. “I hate planning with little information.” With a sigh, he turned back toward us. “All right, let’s get some sleep. And I expect someone to think of something brilliant by tomorrow morning. Otherwise, we’re doing this the hard way.”
Chapter Twenty-One: The Hard Way
I was shaken awake the next morning by an urgent hand. "Garth? Garth! Wake up."
Shad sounded worried, which didn't say good things to my still half-asleep mind. Shad was never really worried about anything. By the time that Shad grew concerned about something, everyone else was running for cover. My eyes snapped open and I sat up abruptly, looking around me in growing panic. We weren't under sudden attack were we?
No…the camp was still this morning, most people still sleeping. The sole exceptions were Shad and Xiaolang, who were both kneeling next to my bedroll. "What?" My mouth felt like it was made of glue and wool, making it difficult to speak.
Xiaolang’s words were so quick that it took a second for half of them to sink in. "Shad thought of something. Before, we thought that the Star Order was finding magical people through the pools, but that isn't always the case—it can't be. Three of the pools are abandoned. So if the Star Order isn't finding people by the pools in those Provinces, then how are they finding them?"
I stared at him, brain so fuzzy that only half of tha
t question made any sense. Taut seconds ticked by while I tried to think logically, but the only thing my brain could come up with was, "Tea. I need hot tea."
Shad rolled his eyes. "Why is it that both of our magical experts are impossible to wake up in the morning?"
I groaned, covering my eyes with one hand. "Why can't you come up with the complicated questions after I've had breakfast?"
Xiaolang chuckled slightly at our banter, but being the nice man he was, got up and fetched me a cup of hot tea.
It was comfortably hot, not scalding, so I chugged it down. “Now, say that one more time. Slowly.”
Shad started speaking, giving me the gist of the problem again. While the heat spread through me, waking me up a little, I tried to think their question through. We'd assumed that the pools must be how the Star Order was tracking down all of the magicians in Chahir. And that was true, to a point—but in Coven Ordan, Don had pointed out three pools that were abandoned. Obviously, in those Provinces, the Star Order had to use some other method than the pools to detect magicians. The triangle was one way, of course, but you had to be practically on top of a person before that would register anything.
"I'm not an authority on how Star Order magic works," I said slowly, thinking out loud. "No one is, outside of that Order. They keep their magic a closely guarded secret. But they could have their own version of scrying pools, or something that works along the same lines. In fact, for them to be effective, they'd have to have something along those principles."
"So it wouldn't be farfetched to assume that they could see what we're doing here?"
I stared at Shad, horror blossoming like poison in my chest. "Great good magic," I rasped, "they could very well do just that. Worse, they probably are. With all of the magic that's been thrown around the past three days, we might as well have set off fireworks to announce what we are doing."
Xiaolang raised his fingertips to rub at both temples. "I was afraid that would be the answer. Trevesa. All right, we're going to need to make some rapid decisions here. How big of a force will they send to deal with us?"
"The Star Order really isn't that big." I was thinking rapidly, pulling together everything I had learned about them and the little I knew from Jaunten knowledge. "They depend on the government to support them. They're not going to have a lot of people to draw from. Still, I would expect about twenty or so from the Star Order and about a hundred garrison troops."
Magus (Advent Mage Cycle) Page 33