by R. K. Thorne
And also the process that could make Kae a slave again.
He’d hidden his freedom so far. Turned out he knew all too well how to act exactly like a slave, and he hadn’t even caught a flicker of suspicion yet. He’d hoped to find this before the others and then… well, he wasn’t sure what he should do next. He was still shocked that he’d actually succeeded.
Now what?
He glanced at the other two mages. Thank the gods he had been the one to find it first. The others searched hopelessly. He couldn’t blame them. Idle conversation had revealed that his companions didn’t think they could find what the Dark Master wanted, doubted it even existed. And Kae knew that in spite of their looming deadline, neither of the others wanted to be known as having created a copy of the brand if they did find it. They were doomed either way.
Of course, Kae had more incentive than they to stumble on the information. He’d tried to act as they did—calm, studious, rather bleak—but he knew that his best chance to keep his freedom rested in being much more efficient than these two.
And it had actually worked.
All right. What to do next? First, he needed them to leave. He’d have to stay until they both retired. Then maybe he could set this book aflame or otherwise destroy it without any guards noticing. He glanced at the hearth to the left. Could it be as simple as that? Toss it in, and keep watch until it’d gone to ashes? It was at least a good starting option.
He flipped back dozens of pages to where the section on the brand started and pretended to study the knowledge. But as he read, he started to notice things that he couldn’t help but be intrigued by, and he found himself at times actually studying it.
The brand used the magic of the stars. Of course, of course, that must be why all study of stars had been forbidden, but it was still unexpected. Was that why those Akarians could only free people at night? It must be.
He glanced around at the other two. The older man had fallen asleep, and the other stared out the window. Gods, would they ever leave?
Kae skipped to the end, looking for any indications as to how to break the bond. What if he could do it too? What if he could free these two men, and then the three of them could set this whole damn library on fire? Kae wouldn’t mind going down with the building if it took the power away from these bastards and ended all this madness.
As he searched, the younger of the two men inadvertently woke the other as he rose and stretched. With a nod, the younger headed off to end the day with a meal. Kae hoped his remaining partner would take his lead and be gone soon. He wasn’t looking forward to faking another prayer in front of this man. But he would do it if he had to.
He reached the last crinkling page. No mention of how to break the spell after it had been in place. Damn. That seemed another matter altogether, maybe contained in another volume. But what he did find, to his surprise, was some speculation as to how the brand could be unmade, just as it had been made.
Huh. Could this information be useful? Was there some way that Kae could get his hands on the brand on the way out as he made his escape?
Why did they need another brand anyway? Sure, Daes had given them a reason, a new mage site and bringing mages from other lands, but it felt off. The effort rushed. It didn’t ring with the truth.
Could Jaena have stolen it? Those alarms had gone off the day that she had disappeared, the day after she’d been freed.
The day Kae had seen her in the smithy.
Which was the same place that they enslaved innocent mages.
It had to be true. Jaena must’ve stolen the brand. They needed a replacement, not a copy. They had been bringing in more and more mages, but they hadn’t been enslaving any of them. They were all actually shackled or in the dungeons, which worked poorly, especially for the creature mages, who seemed to be giving them trouble left and right. It seemed so obvious, how could he have missed it?
If the brand was gone, and this book was gone, then he and Jaena had the potential to stop the Masters forever. Kae himself could stop them from replacing the brand forever. Sure, mages would still need to be freed. But if they couldn’t make new slaves? What a victory that would be.
His other companion rose with a stretch. “Calling it a night, Kae,” he said. “See you on the morrow. Hopefully the Dark Master will see to ignore us once again, with our task unfinished.”
“Indeed. Have a restful evening.” Kae nodded and smiled, more out of relief that the man was finally leaving than anything else.
As soon as the door shut again, Kae dashed to the fireplace and tossed in the book.
The flames did not lick as quickly as he’d hoped. The leather binding apparently wasn’t the most flammable thing in the world. He watched as the dark black leather curled and started to smoke.
As he stared off into space, waiting, a new idea popped into his head. If Jaena did have the brand, did she need to know how to destroy it?
He could destroy the book. Or he could try to escape with the book and find Jaena and then truly end all this. One option was significantly harder and riskier than the other.
He didn’t care.
He sprinted to the fireplace and grabbed the book from the blaze, wincing as the flames nipped at his skin. He tossed the smoking book into the water pail that waited in case the fire got out of control.
“Damn the seven hells,” he swore, fishing the book out of the water as quickly as he could. He’d probably destroyed it with that alone. He tried to open an early page. Some water smeared the ink, and some was intact, but opening the pages was smearing it all the more. He snapped the steaming, smoky pile of rubble of a book shut. By the gods. Well, it had already been done, he couldn’t undo burning or submerging the book now. He’d just have to take his chances.
He didn’t have time to hesitate. He spotted a scarf and cloak the younger air mage had forgotten on the bench nearby. He grabbed it and wrapped the book in the scarf, then tucked it into his jerkin. Then he pulled on the cloak. He would need to run soon, before the guards wanted to shut the library and go home. But he had a few moments to prepare. He searched around the table for anything that could help him. A bone folder, a small knife for fixing and adjusting the bookbindings, charcoal. Hmm.
Suddenly the peal of the prayer bells, high and musical, broke out across the growing night. The prayer was beginning.
By Nefrana. This was his chance. All would be knelt in prayer, and the mages of the guard towers would be compelled to submit to the goddess, rather than resist him.
Kae crept on tiptoe to the door of the library, waiting as the prayers progressed just a little further into meditation. And… yes, peeking around the corner revealed the guards were not looking at the door.
Hoping the smell of smoke that remained did not reach them, Kae slipped out into the hallway and the darkness on the other side. If the gods were with him, the evening’s prayers might give him what he needed to slip by.
And if they weren’t, he’d just have to fight.
Jaena, I hope you’re out there, he thought. Have I got something to show you.
“Everybody out of the tower!”
“Down, down, down.”
“To the cellar.”
Jaena squinted up at the oncoming boulder, then looked around frantically. Someone—something—there had to be something they could do to stop it. The cocky blond mage passed in front of her on his way toward the stairs.
She grabbed his arm. “No. You’re an air mage, right?”
He squinted at her for a moment, then nodded briskly.
“They’re pushing the catapults with magic. Two can play at that game. Come help me.”
His eyes narrowed further as he thought it through, then nodded. He followed her out onto the ramparts.
“Hey, now. You’re not going anywhere without me.” Tharomar charged after them, and she smothered a smile, hiding it with a turn of her head. She and the air mage would be busy with magic, too busy to notice any oncoming projectiles. Someone needed t
o stand watch over them. And she really had no intention of losing him again, especially not after last night.
“Wait—” Aven jogged up behind them. “What are you doing?”
“Get on down there,” she said. “Figure out what to do next. I think I know a way we can fight them off.”
“She’s got a mind to give them a taste of their own medicine, I think,” Derk chimed in.
“I’ll help—”
“No. We need you alive and well to free the rest of them.” Jaena held up a flat hand, stopping him.
Aven hesitated.
“And also to lead this country against them, I might add,” Lord Dyon said, jogging back to them. Had he overheard the conversation? “My lord, come.”
Lord Beneral trotted up behind him. “You all need to get down from here. We’re rolling out our siege, but it will take time. It’s far from reaching them. Our riders will reach them first. The catapults are still several miles away.”
“No. We have a plan.” Jaena started backing away, wondering if they’d actually try to stop her. “Aven—go with them. Tell us how to join you down there. If it’s not working, we’ll follow.”
“Fine. Take this.” Beneral handed them a spyglass and gave them a few quick directions.
The three of them trotted along the ramparts and back up the stairs of the next tower. Where had the first few projectiles landed? Could they see the catapults at all from this distance?
She squinted, then took up the spyglass for a good look. “Let’s try to fling it back at them. Ready?”
A massive boulder flew through the air. They readied themselves, and she caught its essence, trying to lighten the load as Derk sent a great gust of air behind the catapult. The stone flew, crossing the great distance. It cratered a few hundred yards short but continued to roll. Jaena winced as it leveled part of a farm. At least it was after harvest time.
She tried to shove it along, but she could not quite reach it. The roll slowed, and then slowed some more, and then stopped. It came to rest just short of the catapults without doing any damage.
“Oh, that’s just great.” Derk swore.
“We meant to use their weapon against them, and instead we politely returned their ammunition. Damn it,” said Jaena.
“It was only your first shot.” Ro put his hand on her shoulder. “Try again. They have the help of the catapults, and you don’t.”
Even now she could see them reloading the same boulder.
Derk grumbled as he seemed to ready himself for the next volley. “It’s not fair. We’re much better for getting it that far.”
Should she give up their plan? They could try to meet up with Beneral’s catapults, but they were sorely far behind them now. Much damage to the city would happen in that time. Should they just keep trying? She and Derk hadn’t been that far off. The next time, they might get it. Or they might tire further and not make it even as far as the first.
“I have another idea. Can you make a wall of air?”
“Not one solid enough to stop a boulder like that.”
“What if I smash it into tiny pebbles first? Can you keep the debris from hitting us? Otherwise I think the roofs should be able to handle it much better than a boulder that size.”
He pursed his lips. “That I can work with. I’d rather clobber them with their own boulder, but let’s try it.”
They’d decided in barely enough time. The whistle of the next projectile already approached.
She would have to be very precise. Too late and the effort would be for nothing. Too early, and she might miss the boulder and waste her energy.
She leaned back against Ro. His arms circled around her body as she closed her eyes, her mind reaching out to find the rock in the sky.
An arrow thunked into Samul’s back. Miara wished it had come as a surprise, but the only surprising thing was the timing. She and the king had made it perhaps a half mile from where she’d trapped the mages in her vines, and clearly at least one of them had gotten free. She’d had no idea how much time her vines would bring them, but delaying them indefinitely would have been nice.
“Where are you hit?” she shouted over the wind. Lukor sensed her urgency and picked up his pace further into an all-out sprint.
The king didn’t respond immediately, and she feared the worst. She could heal him if he was injured, but if they’d hit him in the neck or the heart—
“Should probably have tried to bring that breast plate with us, I guess,” he grunted.
She swore, but at least he was still alive and joking. “I’m sorry my fins failed you, my king. I shall strive to do better next time.”
“See that you do.” Bleak laughter followed.
She needed to do something to stop them—something more. Vines weren’t enough. She couldn’t just heal him over and over again. If he passed out from blood loss or the healing or the pain of the arrows, she wasn’t sure she could keep him in the saddle. She swept the grassy fields around them—squirrel, rabbit, chipmunk, sparrow. Gods, nothing that could help them unless she wanted to swarm them with small, adorable mammals. She heard the shriek of the falcon in the distance but couldn’t feel him anywhere. Perhaps he was too high up?
The city was closer now, though.
“Should Aven be here by now?” she shouted.
“Yes.”
Could she reach him? Find him amid the many denizens of the city? If she swept her mind far in that direction, she might just barely be able to reach. She’d be taken away from the battle mentally… but then she could call for help.
But many people lived in the White City, which did indeed live up to its reputation as a shining beauty on the horizon. Could she really find Aven amid the mess of a city?
Another arrow collided with Samul’s thigh, and he gave a muffled groan. At least there were no vital organs in the thigh. Except the arteries. And well, at least they hadn’t hit Lukor, which could take them all down in one fell swoop.
Hmm. What if those mages figured that out?
Hold on, Lukor. This is going to feel… weird.
She recklessly went with the idea as it came into her mind. Lukor sensed the urgency, the danger, and braced himself. On his flanks and shoulders, she grew a strange armor, like a turtle’s shell, then poured calm and trust back into him. It will protect you from them. He didn’t much like that, but he didn’t like getting shot either.
She swept her mind out forward, searching for any large predators. Or Aven.
The city was on fire with life, people teeming here and there. Panicked. They were panicking. Why were they panicking?
Inadvertently she brushed minds, seeing glimpses of sound and light. A boulder had hit the city. A large tower crumbling. Important people had been inside. Bad, that was bad. Fear quaked, whipping anxiety into panic.
Important people? The Assembly meeting. Had the Masters attacked it?
She could see the tower, but she groped further. People had fled down into root cellars and catacombs, wine cellars and sewers. They were in the ground, waiting to see if the buildings collapsed above them. Even having only seen the White City for a moment or two, she hated the thought of it coming to this. How were the Masters doing this? She hadn’t seen any troops.
Could that have somehow been where the arrows had come from?
Thunk. A groan.
No time to think. Only time to search, maybe heal just a little.
Dozens of people flew past her, and then—
One underground area vibrated with magic. The other mages—Wunik, Siliana, Derk—they would be with Aven. That area could be them.
She narrowed in on it and—yes! His familiar smoke-sulfur twinge caught her senses, pulling her toward him.
Aven!
Gods, Miara, you—
I have your father. We’re on horseback en route to the city, but we’re under attack. We need help.
My father! Where are you? Troops are headed toward the catapults, can you see them?
No.
You must be farther east then.
We had to go off the road to evade the mages pursuing us. I’m stable for the moment. But your father is badly hit. I can heal him, but he might fall off the horse from the pain, or—
I’m coming.
No–
But he was gone; she had lost him again in the crowd of the city.
She reeled her mind back into her body. “I found Aven. He’s going to send help.”
“As long as he’s not fool enough to come himself,” Samul grumbled.
She winced.
“He’s coming, isn’t he.”
“Yes.”
“Well, let’s just hope he doesn’t come alone.”
“Beneral—I need a horse. Now. Miara just contacted me. She’s found my father.”
The lord dropped the map he was holding to the table. “What?”
“Horse. Now. Asten, come with me. Get your bow. And one for me. Ben—two horses. Where’s Thel?”
“He was on the other side of the tower with Alikar and Niat. They had to take a different way down.”
“But where is he now?”
“He hasn’t reached the bottom yet. We don’t know.”
Damn—was Thel missing? If he’d last been with Alikar, that would be a bad thing. “Find him,” Aven ordered. “Send some men to look for him.”
“Yes, sire.”
Asten returned at a jog. “Where to?”
“Up these stairs,” Beneral said quickly. “We’ve gotten two horses off a carriage. They’re nervous, but it’ll have to do.”
“Oh, wonderful, no saddles.” Aven took the stairs two at a time.
“Shouldn’t be a long ride.” Asten mounted up. “Let’s go.”
Aven urged the horse toward the east gate, only a few blocks away. Beneral hastily ordered several men to mount up and follow them. That was probably wise. Asten brought her mount even with his as they neared the gate and drew her bow.