by Andy Boot
Simeon quickly told the assembled academy what had happened to him since his incarceration, and some of the conclusions he had drawn. When he had finished, he could see from the expressions around him that some questions had been answered.
"Najwin is a fool, but at least he has reached that point where the ultimate choice between good and evil must be made," mused Avathon. "I have been unable to follow him for the last few days. Yet I sense that he has not joined the Gods. I suspect he knows that his only path to redemption lay with renunciation of that which tempted him. He has cut himself off from the path. It is to be regretted. Yet he has taught you well, and enabled you to rejoin us."
"I can forgive him much for this," Simeon affirmed. "He was not a bad man, just a stupid one. As was I. I have allowed myself to be a tool. That cannot happen again. I need your help to put this right."
"You will have all that we can offer, of course," exclaimed Avathon, a view endorsed by the murmured agreement of the assembled academy. "You have proved yourself a stronger man than those who make themselves your betters. But the strongest are those who know when they are in need of help, and are not afraid to ask for it."
Instinctively, Simeon reached out and grasped the wizard's arm. "You have no notion of how much I wanted to hear that," he smiled. "Now, before we go any further, you said that you knew that Ramus was alive..."
The wizard assented. "Everyone who practices magic leaves behind them a trail. I suppose the best way to describe it to you is that they leave a trail of disruption, of ripples, like that left by a pebble in a pool... no, better still, like the tracks of a large animal through a forest. It is possible to follow these, as I have with both Ramus and with Najwin."
"So you know where Ramus is, I mean exactly?"
"Oh certainly, dear boy. Give me a map and I could point him out to you."
"And yet no-one has approached you from the Ministry?"
Avathon shrugged. "Given what you, yourself, have told us, is that any surprise?"
"Perhaps not," Simeon said softly. "I was just hoping that I was wrong about our governing body."
"You may be, not everyone is aware of the possibilities of magic. Given the way we have been treated in the past few days, we have been understandably cautious of showing our hand."
"So, our order of the day is simple. Locate Ramus, then retrieve him. He is, I assume, in Varn?"
"With Vixel, I should imagine. I can follow him, but cannot communicate with him due to magical shielding. Only in an Institute, with a Mage, would there be that degree of strength. Vixel must have been near when the attack occurred, as the degree of magic used was incredibly strong, and he would have had to swamp Ramus' own defences before they could be brought into being."
Simeon had his own views on that matter, but allowed the wizard to continue.
"There is little we can do to aid you in a physical sense, I am afraid. We have no resources when it comes to weapons, and no physical transport. We can provide you with a holoship. It will be slow, but it will aid you in escaping detection by our forces as you leave Bethel, and also in escaping detection in Varn. Other than that, we can, though, track your progress and try to add a long-distance magical attack to your physical assault when the time comes. The problem is that we are far away, so our powers are reduced."
Simeon nodded slowly, but his thoughts were racing. The men of the academy were willing enough, but were on the wrong end of an uneven equation.
There was, however, one other he could draw on for help. If she would... certainly, it would even the matter up more than a little if she did.
He had considered it in the abstract, but now that he thought of actually approaching her, he felt a nervous flutter in his stomach.
"Gentlemen, I thank you for believing in me and for offering help. Right now, the greatest thing you can do is to keep me secured here until nightfall. I must rest and re-equip. Only in the dark can I get that which I need."
"A holoship could get you out of here right now," one of the adepts piped up.
Simeon allowed himself a grim smile. "True, my friend. But I can get myself a holoship and pilot who owe me and that would leave you more options for back-up. I just need to wait a short while longer. We've had to wait days as it is. A few more moments cannot hurt."
"Can you be sure of his co-operation?" The same adept urged.
"She was always singular," Simeon grinned, "but I think I can sway her. However, if I am to do so, then I must rest."
He allowed an adept to lead him to his chambers. Stripped only of the surveillance equipment, it still housed his blaster and charger. It would not be much, but it would be something. More than he had needed when escaping, for sure. His own battlesuits were still stored in the room. He would change after resting. If he was going into battle, then he would go as a true warrior of Bethel, no matter what the show trial had made him out to be.
And yet, as he laid his head down, his last waking thought was this: what in the name of the Gods was he going to say to Jenna when he saw her again?
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Year Zero - Period Three
It was a very different Belthan to which Simeon awoke after a few hours rest. The adepts and wizards had divided their time between the tasks they had embarked on when he arrived, those preparations they must make for long-distance charm casting when he reached Varn and keeping an eye on the state of the nation through the newscasts.
While he showered, prepared his battlesuit and blaster, a succession of breathless young adepts filled in the details of the day for him. The crowds in the square, cheated of their heart's desire to see a traitor put to death and their nation state honour appeased, had resorted to the most basic form of protest imaginable. They had rioted, and for some time the warrior security forces had fought to contain them without striking out. With the eyes of Inan upon them, it would have been a disaster had the riot been suppressed with force. Minus a Mage, Bethel was already in a position of weakness - regardless of the way in which this could be flipped into a strength using the treaty alliances. A populace in turmoil would be a clear sign to potential enemies, asking for a resumption of hostilities and the breaking of that treaty.
The warrior security had trod the line with infinite care. There had been few casualties, and now the square had been cleared. Outside the walls of the Institute, an uneasy peace now settled over the capital.
But this had taken time, and had taken attention away from the seemingly impossible escape of the prisoner.
The staff and students of the academy may, to some extent, have shut themselves away from the world in order to pursue their studies, but they were not complete innocents. Their limited contact told them that it was only a matter of time before they would receive a visit from the military. There was no way that such an escape could have been effected without the use of magic. Who else could have helped Simeon but a member of the Institute? Particularly as they had been overlooked at the trial.
With this in mind, the staff and students knew that they had to shield Simeon until he departed, and then successfully cover his tracks. From the information they had shared between them, they had all assumed that Daliel would lead any investigation, as he had before, and would therefore lead any raid or interrogation party.
So it was essential to get Simeon moving as soon as was possible after he awoke refreshed. In the meantime it was essential that he rest. While adepts mounted guard, with low level magic to alert them to the presence of any warrior security, and at the same time to effect a delay that would not arouse suspicion, so the wizards prepared for his departure.
A plan was formed that was simple yet flexible. It needed to be, for it was not long before Daliel and a small troop of warriors came calling.
Simeon was still resting. Nothing short of an explosion beneath his bed could have stirred him. The problem was to hide him from prying warrior security eyes. The defences and early warning established by the adepts gave them time to prepare for the approa
ch of Daliel and his men. As he advanced through the gates, complaining of the thought forms that - seemingly accidentally - slowed his progress, he was greeted by a smiling Avathon.
"We are honoured to be granted a visit from our protector," he said, keeping all trace of irony from his voice as he watched Daliel survey the shattered grounds.
"Enough. You know why we are here," Daliel answered without ceremony.
Avathon was a picture of wide-eyed innocence. In truth, some of the adepts thought he was overplaying, but... "Why, to see how we are progressing in our repairs."
Daliel stared at the wizard. Was he really that stupid, or was he acting? He held Avathon's gaze for some time, but the wizard maintained his facade. Eventually, the security chief decided that the man was an unworldly idiot.
"The traitor Simeon 7 has escaped. We are looking for him."
"And you think he is here?"
"I think he might be," Daliel replied. The wide-eyed innocent act was being a little over-played now: if the wizard was that much of a fool, he should be flustered, worried. He was too calm.
Without further ceremony, Daliel directed his men into the castle. He would engage no more with the wizard.
Avathon allowed them to pass, although one gesture could have stayed them. There had been time enough.
The troop spread out and searched the castle. They were thorough, and would have brooked no interference from the adepts.
Daliel directed the operation and saved Simeon's chamber for himself. If the man would be anywhere, it would be resting up in here. He had his blaster at the ready, yet could not shake the feeling that his men had been allowed too free a hand.
He advanced slowly, scanning the rooms.
They were empty.
Calling his men together, he advanced on the wizard, who had remained outside the castle.
"It appears that you are safe, and the traitor is not here."
"That is a relief. Though, of course, he would have had to have entered without our knowledge."
There was a long silence, then: "I shall detail a cordon around the castle. Just to make sure."
Avathon met Daliel's eye. "That would give us some peace of mind."
The security chief left, a feeling of great irritation within him. He knew that the wizard was lying in some way, but could only hope to smoke him out with patience.
Avathon waited for the troop to exit the gates, then allowed himself a smile. Turning, he strode into the castle and called for the adepts.
"Where is he?"
With a pass of their hands, they revealed a sleeping Simeon, strung on skeins of energy that both kept him aloft, and also invisible. They had carried him between them for the duration of the search.
Avathon nodded to himself. "Put him back. We shall say nothing of this. He has enough to concern him when he awakes."
And so he slept on, unaware, while preparations for nightfall continued. When he awoke, Simeon was suited and armed, and the wizards outlined to him the extent of the charms they could use to assist him from such a range. As far as was possible, they agreed that Vixel would, in all likelihood, keep the Mage at the Varn Institute, and so it was decided that it was for this building that Simeon would head in the holoship.
It was dark. Outside the walls, peace now held an uneasy sway.
It was time.
"May the Gods go with you," Avathon said softly, clapping Simeon on the shoulder. "We shall do all that we can."
"Thank you - thank you all," Simeon replied, returning the gesture, then directing himself to the assembled wizards. "I don't have to stress the importance of this to Inan, but yet more important is that we do the right thing by Ramus-Bey. He needs us, and we must not fail him."
"You shall not, I know this," Avathon said.
Simeon smiled. "I hope I can live up to your expectations. But what shall you do when the military return?"
"Evade the issue. What else? You will not be here, and there is no sign of your having passed through. As long as we present a facade of complete ignorance, then all will be well."
Simeon laughed. "It will be appropriate," he chuckled, thinking of the man he had once called friend, and whose convoluted plans now tangled him in knots.
Without further delay, Simeon left, taking care and good wishes from those gathered in the hall of the Institute. As he walked out of the door, he made the passes taught him by Najwin, and before their eyes faded from view.
He did not look back.
Now that the streets were clear he was able to make swift progress. In virtually no time, he had made the distance between the Institute and the embassy of Kyas.
Like all the new embassy buildings that had been established in every nation state capital, this was still undergoing construction in parts. Because of this, security from the Kyan military was not, perhaps, as strong as it may otherwise have been. It had crossed Simeon's mind that there may be extra guards awaiting his arrival, if Ensign Jenna Eslo had been truthful with her superiors about her past.
Ah, who was he kidding? She had acted up to this point as though she had never met him. Why should that change, now?
The embassy building was a new construction that had been built around the shell of a much older stone castle. Like many embassies around the planet - and indeed, those others contained within this capital - this was no accident. To use a building made during wartime, and then to rebuild around that, and to make it better, was an obviously symbolic act, and something that was intended to ritualise the meaning of the peace.
In practical terms, it was a crock. Admittedly, it gave the crafts and guildsmen who worked on them a fixed term of employment. However, it made work and living conditions difficult for embassy staff. Unfinished sections could not easily be secured, heating and lighting circuits were prone to malfunction; water supplies could suddenly cease while essential works were carried out.
Added to this, the location of the embassies did not help. All were gathered within a few streets of each other, in the hearts of the capitals. Again, this togetherness had been partly symbolic. But for those who worked in the buildings, it meant that they were close to people to whom they were still adjusting to as allies not enemies.
This was of some considerable help to Simeon. It meant that he had to cross only a few streets and squares. It meant that he was able to gain access to the embassy building with ease, as security measures were stretched, leaving gaping holes through which he could have walked even if visible to the naked eye. It meant that he was able to wander the corridors of the embassy with impunity, in search of Jenna.
Of course, it didn't tell him where she was. So while he was able to save time in reaching the embassy, once inside he felt that the time saved was trickling through his fingers.
Ensign Jenna Eslo had not had a good day. Admittedly, there were those who had it far worse, but that was the problem. One of those in line for a really bad day was someone she had spent no little time trying to forget. She'd been doing quite well, too, and then he'd got himself mixed up in a treasonous plot, and now had somehow escaped death by devious means.
There was a part of her that had never wanted to forget him. And yet, the manner in which she had become involved with him could spell nothing but trouble for her if it ever emerged. If she had continued the relationship, then there would have been no way that she could have kept it quiet. Furthermore, there was the question of commitment. There were things that he had said to her, things that she was not sure she could reciprocate. Not because of her feelings for him, but because of things within her that she had not wanted to examine too closely. So she had decided to treat the end of hostilities as a chance for her to make a clean break with both Simeon and her past. From now on she would concentrate on her career, and bury the other stuff... the things that she did not want to have to face.
Her posting to Belthan had not been the greatest of starts. Any other nation state would have been preferable. Having said that, the chances of Simeon being post
ed to the capital - even staying in the military after cessation of hostilities - was remote.
Up until the trial, she had no notion that he was within walking distance of where she now lived and worked. Then the taking of the Mage had occurred, and it was not enough that the whole of the planet was now on a war footing; Jenna now had to contend with the knowledge that the man who had turned her personal world upside down was responsible for turning the rest of the world likewise.
How could she forget the cretin when he was on the teli-mage broadcasts all the time? It was no wonder she couldn't sleep. She'd tried, but each time the blissful oblivion had crept up on her, some memory had intruded and jolted her violently awake.
So now she stood at the window, looking out on the courtyard of the castle keep. The old stone walls were still visible, though in places new walkways were encased in glass, giving access to new levels.
She had the strangest feeling, shivering slightly even though it was a mild night. Below her, a routine guard patrol swapped banter as the two men crossed on their circuit. She recognised one of them as the warrior who was always staring at her, and had invited her to join him on his evening off. She had declined. Another warrior was the last thing she needed. Why didn't diplomatic attachés ask her to go out with them?
She could feel something supranormal in the air. The only people in the embassy with those kinds of skills would be other Ensigns, like herself. Yet neither of the other two were in the building. One was on leave, the other had an engagement in the city. Besides which, she knew how their magic felt. This was something else entirely.