Devan Chronicles Series: Books 1-3

by Mark E. Cooper

  Carrying her treasure to one of the tables, Julia sat and began reading a book entitled: Centring: Groundwork for Apprentice Level Mages.

  The term centring was first used to describe the process whereby a mage made himself receptive to the magic in the year 158 After Founding...

  Already impatient, Julia skipped the chapter about the historical significance of founding the Black Isle. Chapter three seemed to be more serious so she began reading that.

  Centring is a state of mind achieved by turning all thought inward. That is to say, concentrating on an image to the exclusion of all else. There are three main schools of thought, and I shall briefly outline each separately...

  ... a fire and thrusting all external thought into the flames thereby consuming it as the best way. Others find imagining an empty room and concentrating until it appears real...

  My personal choice is to imagine a rose bud. When the rose is so real that I can touch it, I reach out and grasp the magic in its place.

  Julia scowled. That wasn’t magic! It was simply a form of meditation! She shoved the book away in disgust. Jill had taught her the Three D Method: Determination, Discipline, and Dynamics. State of mind played a huge role in winning competitions, and Jill knew that. That’s why she had insisted upon teaching Julia a few ‘tricks’ of the mind—ways to induce calmness and even sleep when she was too wired to sleep naturally.

  Meditation... Julia frowned. Did mages meditate to put themselves in the right state of mind? If they did, it would explain why the book insisted centring was necessary. Centring was another term that Jill used. She used it quite often during training, but not always. Julia remembered Jill using the term when she first began teaching her how to focus before an event.

  “Go down deep into yourself... way down to the very centre of your being. There is where you must live, Julia. At your centre, all things are possible...”

  Julia remembered all of Jill’s lessons, but those times sitting quietly with her coach were special. Jill had taught her how to channel her emotions into her work, and how not to let them interfere at a critical time. Using the image of a trophy, she had learned how to psyche herself to a point where the crowds watching her had retreated into insignificance. She remembered all of Jill’s lessons. Now they would be more important than ever. She pulled the book toward her. The next section was called Grounding.

  After centring is achieved, grounding is the next step along the path of power. Essentially, it is the return to the external world without losing the centre. This is easy to describe but hard to do. Once achieved the magic in your grasp may be turned to the purpose you have selected.

  Julia was puzzled. Where were the magic spells that magicians used? Obviously after centring she had to come back without losing the calm just gained. She did it all the time while competing. She always made her routine the whole of her world for the minutes it took to complete. The method was exhausting mentally, but it was worth it when the judges responded favourably.

  The next section in the book was an exercise for an apprentice to try. It was an attempt to light a candle with magic. Julia looked around but there weren’t any candles in the library. Fire hazard she supposed. She crossed the room and reached up to one of the wall lamps. She opened the little door in the side. There was a wick fitted into a reservoir of oil. Lifting the lamp off its bracket she brought it back to the table, and extinguished the flame.

  Julia made herself comfortable and concentrated on her familiar image of an Olympic gold medal. Instantly she fell into her private place where her fantasy of taking gold would come true. Never had it been so easy! The medal spun in her mind’s eye. It sparkled and glittered sending flashes of light deep into the innermost recesses of he mind. She marvelled at its beauty and yearned for it. She wanted it with all of her being. Julia reached out, and gasped as the power hammered down.

  Time stopped.

  Magic was like the sun, life itself roaring down onto and into her—thrusting its way into her very soul. She revelled in the warmth. It burned, but did no harm, it roared, but was utterly silent. She was complete, utterly content. No room for doubting, no room for failure, no room for... her.

  * * *

  Mathius jolted upright from his bed gasping in shock. He had been dreaming about a kitchen maid who had given him the eye the other day when suddenly the entire fortress felt as though it was falling on his head. He grasped his magic and was rocked back as the disturbance slammed through him. Someone was drawing deeply nearby—very deep. It felt as if a floodgate on a damn had been opened, and the magic was roaring through the gate—a gate that in the real world was a mage.

  No one is this powerful!

  Mathius climbed out of bed and dressed quickly. If it was an enemy mage that he was sensing, Athione was finished. It couldn’t be what he feared. The sorcerers were in the pass. He had never been able to sense a mage at such a distance. He prayed he was wrong, but what else could it be? He slipped out of his room intent on tracking the source of the disturbance at least as far as the walls. He tried not to let his fear blind him, but it was hard. What could be done? Could anything face such a power?

  Mathius made his way to the west courtyard to find the duty mage. “Did you feel that disturbance, Hal?”

  “What was it? I can’t tell the direction. Can you? It has to be the enemy, but why now?”

  Haliden was a greater mage than Mathius—he wore the yellow robe of a Journeyman and was confident in his power, but Hal’s area was warding not sensing. Conversely, Mathius was the weakest of Lord Keverin’s mages and the best at the more subtle magic of sensing. No one knew why that should be so, least of all Mathius himself.

  “Hold on, I’ll try to track it,” Mathius said.

  Using the magic with a flick and a twist he had invented himself, Mathius wove his best sensing spell. With his eyes still closed in concentration, he felt the spell settle over him like a second skin. Without willing it he found himself turning in place toward the disturbance. He opened his eyes.

  To Mathius’s surprise he found himself looking back the way he came. “He’s in the library! He can’t be one of us Hal... you had better tell Renard. I’ll go and have a look.”

  Before Haliden could protest his idiocy, Mathius ran back inside the citadel toward the library. It would be an utter disaster if the enemy stole, or the God forbid, destroyed the books. The lord had spent a fortune collecting them. They cost enough to fund a small country, but they represented far more than mere gold. They were the future of Deva made manifest. Without hesitation Mathius stormed the doors as if assaulting an enemy keep. Once inside, he stepped sideways into the shadows. He kept a tight hold on his magic while he searched the hall for anything amiss. Everything seemed normal. Making a quick dash across the open space, he stopped next to the archway. Peeking around the corner, he saw someone sitting in the dark blazing with power. Only a mage would have seen it, but it made it no easier to look at. It reminded him strongly of Darius just before the end.

  Taking one last look around the library, Mathius decided the intruder was alone. He crept ever so carefully toward the man until he was close enough to touch.

  “Don’t try to use it,” Mathius hissed. He was drawing upon his magic so hard that it hurt. Even so, it wasn’t enough to counter this man. “Turn toward me slowly. If you try anything you are dead.”

  Mathius couldn’t believe he was bluffing someone so powerful. Where did he get the stones to say that? There was no response from the mage. Mathius licked his lips, and wiped his sweating palms on his robe. Slowly, carefully, he stepped around the man.

  “No...”

  Oh... NO!

  Mathius quickly used his magic to bespeak Haliden. *It’s lady Julia! She’s drawing, but she hasn’t grounded. She’s not even aware of me.*

  *Renard is on the way. Stay with her.*

  Julia was in terrible danger. She didn’t know anything about magic or its pitfalls and this was the result. She was trapped within
her centre. What had possessed her to use her magic without instruction? The others would be horrified when they learned. Mathius pulled up a chair and sat next to her. He couldn’t believe the power she had drawn all unknowing. She was unaware of him as he spun a quick spell to test her strength. His magic pushed against hers and was rebuffed strongly. He frowned and tried again with all his might. The response this time was overwhelming.

  Mathius gasped as his spell was shattered. She had forced him to let go of his magic! He blinked his watering eyes. Her magic was pulsing and flaring at odd intervals. A response to him? Maybe, but it was more likely Julia’s lack of knowledge and control. She was unable to control the flow, and there was nothing he could do to help. It would take a master mage to extricate her from this.

  With nothing else to be done but wait for Renard, Mathius turned his attention to the books that Julia had chosen to read. He pulled them toward him already recognising the open text.

  Centring... Ground Work for Apprentice Level Mages.

  Mathius remembered the book well. It was the first one about magic he ever read. It was a good choice for a starting point. It had certainly done the trick for Julia. How else had she found her centre so quickly?

  Julia was shaking. Her eyes were rolled up with just the white showing and there was sweat on her brow. She had centred and grasped her magic but had been unprepared for the enormity of its flow. Now she couldn’t let it go, nor could she ground herself and use it. It had been perhaps a half candlemark since Mathius first awoke. If Julia had begun her foolish experiment just then, she should be reeling with exhaustion by now. Mathius wasn’t strong enough to break her out of her centre so that she might rest, but perhaps he could bespeak her.

  Grasping his own magic, Mathius struggled to contact her through the turbulence surrounding her. *Think about the library.* He said struggling against the instability that threatened to throw him into the void. *Think about grounding yourself!*

  It was no good. All he could hear was the roar of her magic, as it raged within her. He was about to try again when Renard and Lord Keverin entered the library. He was profoundly relieved to see them both. He released his magic and rose to greet them. The Lord was wearing his shirt outside his trousers as if he’d thrown his clothes on in a hurry. Renard was puffing to keep up with Keverin’s long strides. Mathius surrendered his place to Renard, and watched his friend quickly assess Julia’s situation. Renard drew on his magic and sent a probe toward the entranced woman. Mathius grasped his magic and tried to see how Renard’s spell was constructed, but the fine filaments that made up its matrix were too complicated for him.

  Mathius waited. Renard was taking a long time with his spell, and it became obvious why as Mathius watched. Renard’s spell was being rebuffed. Every time the spell tried to touch it was diverted away. He hadn’t known that was possible.

  What else don’t I know?

  Renard frowned in consternation. “My lord, she is too powerful for me. She is a wizard or perhaps... perhaps even higher!” He said blinking in surprise at his own words. “I cannot break her out of it.”

  “Have you any suggestions?” Keverin said with a worried frown.

  “I have tried what I know to do my lord.”

  Mathius bit his lip. “I don’t like this, my lord, but I think a big enough distraction at the same time as Renard tries his spell might work.”

  “We’ll try it,” Keverin said snatching at any chance.

  Renard nodded to the lord before repeating his earlier spell. Keverin hesitated briefly, but then he slapped Julia gently on the left cheek. Renard shook his head. Keverin grimaced in distaste and slapped her harder. Another head-shake and another harder slap, then again, and again, and again, and again...

  Mathius wished he hadn’t spoken as the slaps continued and became harder. Suddenly the glow around Julia faltered and Renard gasped as contact was achieved. Renard’s glow increased in direct opposition to Julia’s until both suddenly winked out.

  Julia slumped over the table gasping and panting for breath.

  Renard swayed in his chair as if drunk. “By the God...” he gasped and giggled.

  The giggle was most un-Renard like.

  “Are you all right?”

  “Never...” Renard gasped. “Never have I experienced the magic so intensely. I swear that I felt her power through our connection. It was as if all the joy in the world had been distilled into that one moment.”

  “Your strength increased when you made contact. I think she was feeding you from her link,” Mathius said.

  “That is not possible... I mean, it never used to be possible—I don’t think it was,” Renard said in wonder.

  Mathius grimaced. That was exactly the problem. No one knew what was possible and what wasn’t anymore. Even a master mage like Renard didn’t know. How was he ever going to gain rank when there was no one to teach him?

  Julia mumbled something. “—light it?”

  Mathius shook his head. “You do have the gift Julia. I told you that before. You didn’t light the lamp, but you do have it.”

  Julia nodded weakly and fell asleep where she sat. Keverin looked at her in consternation, but then he shrugged and hoisted her into his arms. He strode out of the library with Julia cradled asleep in his arms like a child.

  Mathius watched his lord leave and then helped his drunk and grinning companion to his bed.

  What a night.

  * * *

  6 ~ When the Towers Fall

  Julia concentrated and lit the lamp with her magic before entering the dusty hall for her meeting with Master-crafter Deneen. Mathius had not been pleased when she told him she couldn’t come to practise this morning. He wanted her to work on using her fire, but she was tired of repeating the same spells over and over. He wouldn’t let her try warding even though Renard desperately needed the help. The poor man was fit to drop. The constant attacks were tiring all the mages faster than predicted and Renard was pushing himself too hard.

  I can make more than fire—I know I can!

  Although two weeks wasn’t a long time, Julia was worried about Jill and her training. When she returned she needed to be in top condition. Jessica had suggested asking Keverin for somewhere to train, but Keverin didn’t like her. Julia had begged her friend to intercede for her, and Jessica had come through in spades. The old banquet hall was perfect for her needs. The floor was made of wood and covered in dust except where her dress brushed it clean to reveal a smooth and polished surface. It would make a perfect gym. Her friend’s intervention had netted her Master-crafter Deneen’s services as well. The old boy was a wonder. He boasted that he could make anything she could think up and so it had proven. When she described the spring board it had delighted him. It was something different, something he had never heard of before or envisaged. When it worked like her old one, Julia had been delighted too. The balance beam wasn’t such a big hit with Deneen. He had an apprentice do it while he worked on the vaulting horse. The beam was done now, finished in saddle leather and although a proper beam was covered in suede, Julia was more than satisfied with the amount of grip the leather provided. It was the bars that were giving Deneen trouble. His first design hadn’t been strong enough. With no steel guide wires available the entire thing had shifted around something awful. The next design had been too strong with no flexibility in the bars themselves. Using them like that would have ruined her. Hopefully Deneen would show her the improved design today.

  The hall was dark when she entered. She held up her lamp and found the hall deserted. The beginnings of the vaulting horse stood to one side with the beam pushed out of the way for now. Julia knew that Deneen must still be at his breakfast because his tools were nowhere to be seen. He and his apprentice were very protective of their tools. They always packed them up and took them away with them at night. Julia crossed the dusty floor to the half disassembled asymmetric bars. She grabbed the upright and shook it roughly. It barely moved. The ropes with their odd looking
tensioning device seemed to work. Deneen had sworn they would, but twisting ropes to provide tension instead of using wire had seemed iffy at best to her. Chalk another one up to Deneen’s experience.

  The darkened hall was making her a little uncomfortable even with the lamp illuminating a circle around her. There was no need to wait for Deneen in the dark she decided. Above her head there were two large chandeliers hanging from chains. They were even bigger than those in the great hall and would take a gang of men to lower for lighting. Julia glanced at the closed door and then back. No one would know, she thought guiltily. She grasped her magic and lit the candles with a flick of the fingers that Mathius said was unnecessary but she always felt better doing.

  The candles lit with a blast of heat and light.

  Julia shielded her eyes and blinked away the after-image of thousands of candles bursting into life. She had used too much magic again. The crystals beneath the chandeliers were winking and sparkling with every flicker of the candle flames. She opened the door in her lamp and snuffed the flame. Putting it down next to the bars she wandered over to the table that Deneen used for his drawings. He wouldn’t mind if she looked at his designs without him.

  BOOOM!

  The noise was the loudest thing ever heard in Athione. People were startled awake throughout the citadel. Those already awake jumped and spilled their drinks. They gaped at their companions over the breakfast tables as they tried to stop plates and bowls falling from their places. Julia lost her footing and sprawled upon the floor as the fortress jumped and shook around her. There were screams and crashing sounds from outside. Dust was pattering down around her, and she could hear thuds and groans as things fell somewhere. The entire fortress was groaning as if in pain. Julia watched the ceiling warily and hoped it was going to stay put. The chandeliers were swinging on their chains but they didn’t appear in danger of falling. She scrambled to her feet and ran outside without thinking.