by R. K. Thorne
They were both silent for a moment. He patted her forearm reassuringly.
“Tharomar?”
“Yes?”
“You are… different.”
“I have heard that a few times.”
The mead was lulling her toward sleep.
“Tharomar?”
“Yes? I’m still here.” Her eyes were closed.
“Sleep beside me. It’s all right. No point in sleeping on the floor.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.” It was a small way to repay his kindness and make her stay less of an imposition on his life.
“Nothing untoward will come of it, I promise you.” She barely heard him nestle into the straw mattress beside her before she drifted off to sleep.
6
Gatherings
Aven’s balcony had been transformed. Additional benches and chairs dotted the garden, now filling with people. Torches had been hung in sconces he hadn’t realized were there, and three blazing braziers made some attempt to provide warmth and light. Aven still wore his heaviest cloak, though, and had exchanged his leather jerkin for a black gambeson.
Aven scanned those who had gathered. No one had turned down his invitation, unless he counted Beneral, who was not yet ready to reveal his magic so openly. Everyone else had come. How many people outside their group knew that this was happening? He hadn’t asked any of them to keep the event a secret, knowing that might have encouraged gossip. But he didn’t exactly want the whole kingdom to know, let alone Kavanar. There was probably little hope of preventing that, though.
“Thank you for coming, everyone.” He held out his hands wide as the group quieted. “I spoke with most of you personally. But in case you haven’t heard, I’ve been causing a bit of a ruckus.” A ripple of laughter flitted through the crowd. “We as a kingdom pride ourselves on our military strength. But we’ve let ourselves neglect one area: magic. We must be better trained and equipped to defend against whatever mage army Kavanar chooses to throw at us. And I’ve heard a few of you might be able to help with this problem.”
“Are we going to war?” someone asked.
“Possibly. It is as yet unclear.”
“What can we do to help?” said another.
“The king is considering exactly how he wants to handle this,” Aven said. “There are a lot of things we don’t know. The first step I’ve been tasked with is to free more mages, with help from Miara and Wunik. To aid that effort, we need air mages. For those prepared to defend Akaria from the mage troops Kavanar is building, we need to organize ourselves into units that can work with the rest of the army. We need to plan our defense strategies for each city and as units. We can’t wait until the lords are ready, because that might never happen. In particular, earth mages that we can train to defend Estun itself would be a good start.”
“There’s also simple training to defend yourselves,” Miara added. “How many of you have any instruction?” Wunik and his apprentices, as well as his mother, raised their hands. Most others did not. “Those of us with some magic lessons to draw on should begin teaching the others.”
Elise spoke up now. “Miara and I can work with creature mages. Wunik and Aven are air mages—you’ll want to start on star magic first?”
Aven nodded.
“I can show them some other stuff too,” Derk grumbled.
“Do we have any earth mages that are trained?” Elise asked, ignoring him.
Wunik shook his head. “I may be able to help with some basics, but generally no. I’ve found earth magic isn’t very fond of me.”
Miara swore under her breath. “Figures.”
“Well, we’ll just have to figure it out,” said Thel. “Maybe we can find a book to reference.”
“The riders we sent to check on the other elders should be back, or they will be by tomorrow. Elder Staven is an earth mage. If he’s all right, then we may have help. If not, well…” Elise trailed off.
“Also Jaena, the mage we already freed—she is an earth mage, assuming she can escape and make it to Anonil,” said Miara.
“You freed one already?” Teron asked, his eyes alight.
Aven nodded. “And we’ll be freeing another shortly.”
“I asked Jaena to wait until sundown tomorrow to flee,” said Miara. “That way several mages can flee at once and give us more of a chance to free a few before the Masters catch onto what we’re doing.”
“We are targeting warrior mages to gain information on what Kavanar plans to do,” Aven said. “Also sounds like we’ll need to look for earth mages in particular. Is there anything else we should be looking for?”
“Healers,” said Siliana. “Our numbers being much smaller, we’re unlikely to match their combat ability anytime soon, especially against mages with decades of practice. If we have our share of healers, that can only help.”
“Great, yes. Any other ideas?” asked Aven.
“Any mage slave who works directly with the Masters,” said Miara, “could have valuable information on what they’re planning, no matter what type of mage they are.”
Aven nodded. “We’ll be most constrained by who we can find. They have to be out at night and unguarded, which isn’t common. All right. Let’s break into groups. Air mages over here with me. Creature mages with Miara. Any earth mages?” A few hands raised. “Ah, well—Thel, you take them.”
“Me?” Ah, Thel. Someone should explain to him that younger brothers of crown princes were supposed to be always angling for the throne, not ducking the slightest attention or responsibility.
“Yes, you. Compare experiences and anything you’ve figured out so far. Or go hunting for reference material.” Thel should like any excuse to go back to a library, and indeed he raised an eyebrow, looking intrigued now.
“Once we are organized, Wunik or I should be able to help out,” Miara added in their direction. Thel nodded, a bit relieved, and the groups moved apart, finding new places to gather separately.
What would Dom be up to tonight? Aven had tried to look for him, but hadn’t found him in the few hours he’d had to search. If Dom was a mage, he might as well admit it and join the lot of them. If he wasn’t, that was going to definitely cause trouble. Aven needed to ask Miara if she had thought to check.
As if reading his thoughts, she stepped away from her group and approached.
“Are you going to look now?” For once, he could see the deep sorrow and concern in her eyes. She hid her worry well, didn’t she?
“Soon.” He nodded. He wanted to put an arm around her, to comfort her, but kept it clenched at his side.
“Will you look for them?”
“Of course,” he replied. “After your father and sister, we will look for another mage’s mother too. He’s not sure if she’s there, though.” Aven wasn’t at all optimistic about spotting Teron’s mother. Even if she was enslaved, she was unlikely to be outside. “Hey, you didn’t happen to notice if my other brother Dom had any mage abilities, did you? I haven’t been able to find him to approach him about it.”
“No, I didn’t think to check, but I will if I see him. Because Alikar might want him to be the heir then?”
“Yes, and because he might actually take him up on it, unlike Thel.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Do you and he not get along?”
“Oh, no. We get along as well as any brothers do. But he was always more amiable to the idea of leadership than Thel was. Oh, also—my father wants the demonstration to be in two days, in the morning. We should work out the details.”
“Yes. I talked to Wunik and company about it, and I think we have a good plan. Need to figure out where, though.”
“Great, we can work on it tomorrow. Anyway, we should probably get back to our groups.”
She gave him a smile and a crisp nod. They plodded solemnly back to their separate groups. He should have organized them differently. He wanted her by his side. But no. She and Wunik had the most to teach here. Putting them together made li
ttle sense, except to his heart.
Wunik had begun by taking stock of their group. Far more air mages sat in their circle than any other type—the two of them, Beneral’s apprentice, Derk. Five total, if they counted the absent Lord Beneral. Beneral was not yet comfortable revealing his status, but he hadn’t denied he would help eventually either. Unlike the completely novice earth mages, most of the air mages had either independent experimentation or actual instruction under their belts, or both. Hopefully they could use this to their advantage, somehow.
Drawing out the bowl and water, Wunik explained farsight again, and Aven tried to listen carefully, as he’d far from mastered it. He found himself at times studying the group instead, though. Teron sat as close as possible to the elder, as if he feared he’d lose the chance to listen with the next words that passed. Derk stared off into space, having clearly heard this explanation more than a few times before.
Really, this was a rare chance to survey his forces, so perhaps it was okay if he didn’t master farsight in this exact moment. He needed to understand what he had to work with. The Dark Master had what, five hundred mages? It could be more by the time Akaria actually faced them. Kavanar’s forces would be skilled and unwavering in their determination to complete their mission. At the same time, they were not truly willing. If Miara could find cracks in her compulsions, others likely could too.
Aven watched each mage in turn as they settled into their groups. Nearly all looked nervous, tentative, unsure. Nothing like soldiers. Nothing like powerful mages. Nothing like something to be afraid of, and definitely not like people who were evil conspirators out to corrupt souls.
Many of them had never admitted they were mages publicly, let alone been in a room with so many mages at once. Perhaps they were simply nervous because this would be a great place for someone like Alikar to massacre everyone and end this before it started.
Which was why there were six guards at the door and surrounding hall.
Aven took a deep breath. They were untrained, naïve, green. But they had taken the first steps. It would come to them.
A huge part of getting a force to fight together was throwing them in the same room and lobbing some danger at them. They would figure it out, hopefully before too big a danger landed in their laps and exploded in their faces.
“I always found that earth mages had far better success with garden augmentation.” Elise tapped her chin thoughtfully. She and Siliana were deep into the details of magically aided cultivation. Aven’s mother clearly missed talking about magic. Too bad Miara hadn’t realized this sooner and found a way to make some use of it. But better late than never.
“Oh, well, yes. The soil is important, but so are the creatures in the soil,” said Siliana. “The tiny little creepy crawlers, the worms, even the bits of the dirt that are alive—you can encourage all that. And of course, discouraging the pests is a key concern.”
Miara found herself trying to tune them out. All the talk of gardening formed an ache in her chest that grew and grew. Her father would have had a lot to say in this conversation. A lot more than she did. All Miara had to offer would be tips on horse manure, and she didn’t feel like making that point at the moment. Being associated with excrement wasn’t quite the impression she was going for.
Her father would have laughed at that. He would have put her at ease with these two women. He deserved to be here. She clenched her fists, thinking of their locked doors and guards the night before. She hoped tonight that Jaena would have some information or that they found a way to get to her family.
And if they didn’t? Gods, let them not be paying for Miara’s freedom. Luha was young, vulnerable—Miara shoved the thoughts aside. No point in racking herself with worry over something if it hadn’t even happened. She was doing everything she could.
Irritable now, she was close to interrupting Elise and Siliana and directing them back to the fact that a war was looming, not a famine, when the door to the balcony opened. Aven’s brother Dom peered inside, then entered and shut the door. Miara stood and approached him.
He gave a chagrined smile at her approach. “Damn, it’s warmer out here than inside that damn cave with all these fires raging.”
“Can I help you?” Perhaps it was presumptuous to block him from entering a room in what was effectively his own home and she was only a guest. But after what Aven had said, she’d prefer to be sure he was an ally before she let him roam around. If he were a mage, it wouldn’t matter. If he weren’t… his reason for arriving could be darker.
“It seems there’s a party, and I’m not invited.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. Why was he really here? “I’m sure you could be invited, if you like.” Aven had indicated as much, but she let it remain ambiguous. Her words were friendly on the surface but had an edge to them.
“How exactly does one get an invitation?” Dom folded his arms across his chest. The coldness of his words made her wonder if he’d been chatting with Alikar when Aven had been looking for him.
“One only has to be a mage, or a friend of mages. Are you?”
Dom froze. Ah, he had actually not realized that was the point of this meeting. Interesting. He glanced around, eying who attended. “But Thel is here.” He seemed—jealous? How much rivalry did these brothers have? Was he the one always getting left out of things? Dom put up a gruff front, so it was easy to forget that he must be the youngest, the baby of the group.
“Yes, he is.”
Now it was his turn to narrow his eyes at her. “Are you… stopping me from entering?”
She smiled sweetly. “What, me? Could I actually keep you from entering?”
“As a matter of fact, you do look like you’d at least put up a good fight. I doubt I’d leave without bruises. Am I getting bruises today?”
“I have no idea what you could mean.”
He sighed, seeming defeated. “Okay, fine. I’ll leave.” He turned to leave.
“Cuts and scratches are more likely.” She propped a hand on her hip. “But I never said you had to leave.”
Partially turned away, he eyed her over his shoulder. “Then what do I have to do?”
“Well, you have to be a mage. Are you?” Or a friend of mages, she had said. She’d conveniently forget that piece if he already had.
He cocked an eyebrow. “I don’t know. Can you tell me?”
“Of course.” She frowned. “But I’m sure your mother—”
“She didn’t want to tell us. And to tell you the truth, I didn’t want to know either. It’s not like it’s done Aven any good.”
“Well, I have it on good authority that you’re probably going to be formally asked if you’re a mage fairly soon, considering Thel is sitting over there.”
He clenched a fist, turning back to face her now. “Damn Alikar and his schemes.”
“And his bigotry. I wouldn’t blame you for not wanting to know.”
He grumbled. “Can I just go sit with Thel and be done with it?”
She grinned at him sweetly again. “No. That’s earth mages only.”
“Fine,” he growled. “Tell me then. But I’m not going to be happy about it.”
She shrugged. “You can just go back to your room. Isn’t there a dvora somewhere looking for a mate? Perhaps you could help with that.”
His chuckle finally broke his disgruntled exterior. “Indeed. Although I think Thel may already be… helping on that front.” He stopped and laughed again. “I can see why he likes you.”
“Who? Thel?”
He rolled his eyes. “Not too perceptive, though. Don’t be coy.”
Her eyes widened slightly. She hadn’t realized that Dom knew. How much of a secret could they keep if so many already knew or were figuring it out? Or maybe he didn’t, and he only suspected. She wouldn’t confirm or deny it.
“Just tell me if I’m a mage so I can go start hunting for a cave in the mountains to be exiled to when this all blows up in our faces. I want a real nice one, and I bette
r get a jump on it if all these bastards are gonna need one too.”
“Fine.” She reached out for the scent of magic underneath him. Life energy teased her senses, his heart beating, his blood alive as it raced through the veins, but she pushed past it toward the soul underneath.
The scent of fur swept through her mind—snowy wolf, wet bear, the clean scent of the wind beneath the hawk in flight. These scents were not still or softly vibrating like the earth, or twisting like the air, but rushing with the energy of life. The speed dizzied her, the power surging forward like a stampede off a cliff.
Yanking herself free before she tumbled over the edge, she staggered a step back in spite of herself. When had she closed her eyes? The draw of magic like her own could be more intoxicating than the others. His magic, like Aven’s, was rare—so wild, so strong. Had he found ways to work around the Stone too, but as a creature mage, not realizing that he was doing it? Did he heal faster? At the very least, his dogs probably listened to him better than they would most. Perhaps having a companion around helped him survive the constant mental weight of the Great Stone.
“What is it?” Dom said, a note of concern in his voice.
Miara stole a glance at Elise. Underestimating the queen’s power was easy under that elegant exterior. King Samul, too, must have wasted a great deal by not fostering his own abilities. How else could all three sons be mages, and all three with plenty of raw ability, even while taking root in the shadow of that damned Stone?
“Tell me,” Dom growled. “You know. Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“Sorry. You are indeed a mage. A creature mage, like your mother.” Dom looked down at the floor for a moment. She couldn’t read him. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. I—I’m good. Tell you the truth, I didn’t think there was much of a chance for me. Since my father isn’t a mage, what are the chances we could all be? I thought for sure we couldn’t be so lucky.”
“Lucky? You were just pointing out that it had done Aven no good.”
“I have no interest in warring with my brother.” He scowled at the thought. “I would have no problem being king, but I do have a problem with Aven not being king. He’s worked all his life for this. I can’t believe—it doesn’t matter. I also have absolutely no interest in being someone’s pawn, which is what I would likely be to men like Alikar.”