The Shadowmage Trilogy (Twilight of Kerberos: The Shadowmage Books)

by Matthew Sprange

  If Adrianna was thinking the same thing, she showed no sign of it. Lucius had still not figured out whether she felt any shame for the terror she had brought to the city when their master, Forbeck, had been killed by the wizards of Vos, whether she had done her best to forget the incident, or whether she simply saw it as the natural path to her ascension to head of the guild of Shadowmages. He was not sure whether any of those options would make him feel comfortable in her presence.

  She was still dangerous, in command of a great deal of magical power, and Adrianna now held sway over every other Shadowmage in the city and, probably, beyond. That was enough to make anyone nervous.

  “We no longer have the forces of Vos here to pit you against,” she had said as they had walked through the streets of shattered buildings, burnt out wrecks that stood as testament to the power of a Shadowmage unleashed. The baron had started a new public works program to rebuild the areas of the city that Adrianna had destroyed, but human effort alone would not repair the damage for another year at least.

  “It would not be politic to set you against the Pontaine occupiers, not that I think they would put up much of a fight anyway. We have to create our own challenges for you, Lucius.”

  So, they had walked to the cliffs on the edge of the city, bedecked with lifts and cranes that worked to bring cargo from docked ships in the harbour to Turnitia above. Lucius’ training under Adrianna continued, as he had promised it would, but there were times he regretted it.

  Forbeck had been a demanding master, constantly pushing Lucius to explore the depths of his powers and also reflect upon the nature of the Shadowmage’s art. Adrianna was different – she was less interested in the whys and concentrated on honing Lucius’ mastery of magic into a finely tuned weapon. Whereas Forbeck’s lessons had been tough on both a mental and physical level, Adrianna’s were downright dangerous at times.

  Using shadow magic to cloak them from the casual gaze of the workers in the harbour and those labouring on the cranes, Adrianna had told Lucius to scale the cliffs, searching for cloth pennants she had placed earlier. At least, that was what she told him. Lucius could not help but suspect the pennants had been placed by another student in an earlier lesson.

  This was something that, with the right tools, he could have done without magical aid, but Adrianna soon demanded greater and greater speed from him. Clinging to a rocky outcropping with one hand, trying to ignore the hard surface of the harbour far below, Lucius stretched for a green pennant that lay snagged just below him. It was a tantalising few inches out of his reach.

  “Don’t strain your muscles,” Adrianna’s voice floated down to him. “I have few concerns for your physical shape. Use the magic, that is why we are here!”

  Not replying, Lucius took a short breath and summoned the forces of magic to himself, seeing them twist and turn in his mind’s eye. The cloth twitched as an air current tugged at it and then, with a quick ripping sound, it tore itself free from the rocks and leapt into his outstretched hand.

  Quickly tucking it into his belt, where it sat with three other pennants of various colours, Lucius smiled to himself, and then cast about looking for the next target. He saw it immediately, a blue flash of cloth just a few yards across from his current perch. Setting a foot down, he pushed hard, and felt himself buoyed up by a magical force that lifted him clear of the rock to float him across a deep gash that burrowed into the cliffs.

  “I told you, I wanted to see speed!” Adrianna said.

  Lucius started to draw more magical power within himself to give a boost to his progress but then sensed a build up of energies above him. With barely a second to spare, he refashioned his spell and as he floated to the blue pennant, he swiftly brought his hand above his head, as if to ward off a blow.

  The bolt of magical energy was invisible to the naked eye but Lucius could feel its presence, could sense the raw power Adrianna had focussed into it, and he felt it shatter against his hastily improvised shield. He landed back onto the rock, gripping the surface with both hands even as he summoned another current of magic to snatch at the blue pennant. When it floated in front of his face, he quickly snatched it out of the air and tucked it into his belt. Taking another breath, he wiped the sweat that had formed on his brow.

  “Better,” Adrianna said. “You improvised well enough and spared yourself a painful lesson.”

  She seemed oblivious to the fact that, had her bolt of energy actually struck him, Lucius would have been dislodged from the cliffs and would have likely fallen to his death without time to recover. He was becoming rapidly convinced that Adrianna now operated on a different level to everyone else, and that the life and death of others was of little moment to her. Even him, who had known her the longest. That, allied to her great mastery of the arts, was what made her so dangerous.

  They continued the lesson, with Lucius gradually making his way along the cliffs until his belt was stuffed full of the coloured pennants, all the while fending off the occasional attack from Adrianna. Each was intended to keep him on his toes or force him to use his magic in different ways, and each was potentially life-threatening.

  When he returned to the top of the cliffs, glad the lesson was over, he saw Adrianna nod once at him.

  “You are somewhat improving. I might even go as far to say you are approaching adequate.”

  Lucius hid a smile. From Adrianna, that was about as good a compliment as he could expect.

  “Tell me,” she continued. “What did you make of that... wizard in the baron’s keeping?”

  He frowned as he thought for a moment. “Tellmore? The baron seemed pleased to have gained his services. The mage seems quite accomplished.”

  The clicking of Adrianna’s tongue alerted Lucius that he had said the wrong thing.

  “Don’t you dare, Lucius, don’t you dare be impressed by that. The wizards of Pontaine, and those of Vos for that matter, build great monuments to themselves and their own ingenuity. You have heard of the Three Towers?”

  Lucius nodded. “I visited Andon once and saw them.”

  “The wizard guilds in Pontaine spend their time building themselves pretty palaces, while they hoodwink from the nobility ever greater amounts of silver and gold so they can continue to live a life of luxury. They don’t know proper magic, Lucius. Not like us. Not like the Shadowmages. Forbeck always suspected we were the first practitioners of magic, far back in history, and I have begun to learn that he was right.”

  Again, Lucius nodded, dutifully this time. He did not know where Adrianna was going with this but he wanted to avoid awakening her wrath.

  “This play-wizard of the baron,” she continued. “He may have some pretty titles awarded to him by fools who know no better. But I’ll tell you this, Lucius; he has none of the skills and knowledge I control, and none of the power you can summon in an instant.”

  Of the baron’s wizard’s lack of power and magical strength, Lucius was less than sure. He knew that no one got into such a trusted position with an up and coming Pontaine noble without having accomplished at least something. He certainly had no wish to test his own magical powers against the man, if that were what Adrianna was hinting at. Lucius suddenly became uneasy, as he always did when he thought Adrianna was demanding something of him but he did not know exactly what. However, Adrianna’s attention was no longer fixated on him, and he felt her grip of his arm weaken.

  She was staring up into the sky, her long dark hair tugged by the sea breeze as her face was elevated to the heavens. Lucius noted she was looking away from the huge blue sphere of Kerberos, its great mass half-hidden below the horizon on this day.

  “There is something coming, Lucius,” she said, but her voice sounded far away, as if she were talking to herself. “I have seen it. The skies are warning us, if we have the wit to see and hear.”

  Lucius joined her in looking upwards, but saw nothing but the blue sky.

  LUCIUS HAD NEVER entered Adrianna’s new home, though thieves had kept him abre
ast of her acquisition. Trading up from her more modest townhouse, Adrianna had used the resources of her guild to buy a sizeable mansion in the city’s most eastern, and richest, district, and now used it as the guildhouse of the Shadowmages.

  Lucius had not known what to expect when he walked into the mansion’s main hall, but what he saw caused all the feelings of dread at what she was becoming to flood back.

  The hall was sparsely decorated, with solid carved pillars rising up to support a balcony running either side of its length, and the black and white tiled marble floor shone as though it were new. On the plastered walls were hung an assortment of paintings, a mixture of landscapes and portraits, though none sparked his thief’s senses as to any great value.

  Others were present in the hall as they entered, and all bowed their heads as Adrianna left his side and marched, confidently, to the far end where a cluster of men and women awaited her. A little more than a dozen people were there, and Lucius knew he was looking upon the core of the Shadowmages’ guild for the first time. He recognised none of them, though a couple nodded a greeting to him.

  He could almost sense the magical power crackling through the air in the hall, an endless range of possibilities opening up to anyone who could harness the collective energy and direct it to a common cause. Lucius watched as the group at the far end of the hall parted before Adrianna to reveal a gilded chair upon a short dais and observed as, with a flourish he had not expected to see from her, Adrianna sat down and levelled a careful gaze at her guild members.

  The moment was not lost on Lucius. Adrianna ruled her guild from a throne.

  That realisation made Lucius wish that he had spent more time with this guild in the past, and also that his own guild was in another city, far away from what could easily turn into utter madness.

  Raising her head slightly, Adrianna beckoned one Shadowmage forward, a young woman who was dressed in a gown of dark green silk that might have been more appropriate for one of the baron’s functions than any guild business. The woman bowed low as she stopped in front of Adrianna, and then went down on one knee.

  “My Lady, my petition is for the exclusive right to service a contract with Lord Gilles of Pontaine,” she said, the respect in her voice evident.

  “He is one of the baron’s men,” Adrianna said. “That contract is currently held by Torsten.”

  Another Shadowmage, a man this time of perhaps twice Lucius’ age, stepped forward and bowed. He was about to speak but Adrianna held up a hand, silencing him instantly.

  “Torsten has squandered the opportunities in working with Pontaine,” Adrianna declared. “We will find him work more suited to his abilities. The contract is yours, Miellee.”

  The young woman bowed her thanks and withdrew as another Shadowmage approached Adrianna.

  “My Lady, my petition is for access to the second rank laboratories...’

  As the Shadowmages approached Adrianna and had their requests granted or denied, Lucius watched carefully. He had no idea why Arianna had insisted he attend this, well, there was no other word for it, this court that she presided over, but he could see an obvious danger.

  The other Shadowmages were either fearful of her – who wouldn’t be? – or were willing to be led. It was true, the guild had gained new levels of power and even respectability since Adrianna had taken over its leadership, and they worked openly with the forces of Pontaine, something that could never have happened during the Vos occupation of the city. Business was clearly doing well.

  However, he could also see that Adrianna ruled her guild with an absolute iron hand, brooking no argument or dissent. There was no Shadowmage here who had anything like the power or will to oppose her and Lucius doubted whether the combined force of every Shadowmage here, himself included, would be able to do much more than slow Adrianna down if it came to battle. On the other hand, as frightening as she could sometimes be, he did think that Adrianna was holding her emotions in rigid check. Maybe, just maybe, this focus on growing and maintaining her guild was the distraction that Adrianna needed. God knew that his own thieves kept him busy enough most of the time.

  Adrianna now had access to more power than she had ever wielded in the past, and a number of sycophants who seemed willing to do whatever she asked without question. That rang alarm bells in Lucius’ head. He resolved to attend the Shadowmages’ guild more often, to keep an eye on his tutor if nothing else.

  AS THE LAST Shadowmage departed the hall, Adrianna bent her head and rubbed her eyes, trying to alleviate the growing headache she felt coming on. When she looked up, she saw one still remained, and was looking expectantly at her.

  “What is it, Torsten?” she asked in irritation. “Guild business is now over.”

  “Indeed, my Lady, and I beg your indulgence.”

  Sighing, Adrianna waved him forward.

  “Speak.”

  “It was good to see young Lucius today,” Torsten began. “What made him change his mind to join us?”

  “He came because I told him to, and I have no patience for small talk,” Adrianna snapped. “What is it you want? I told you, Miellee has the Gilles contract now.”

  Torsten held up a hand in defence. “Of course, my Lady, and I am sure your decision is final. But I have another matter to raise with you, one I believe should not be conducted openly.”

  She waved impatiently at him. “Well, out with it.”

  “I have heard the Preacher Divine is abroad. In the Anclas Territories.”

  Adrianna stared at him for a second. “Interesting. Vaguely.”

  “He has the Illkey Prophecies in hand,” Torsten said with a slight smile.

  “Really?” Adrianna said, her eyes narrowing. “The full translation, or just excerpts?”

  “Regretfully, I have not been able to discover that. My information comes from the daughter of Lord Gilles.”

  “Okay, we’ll... review the Gilles contract – at a later date.” She thought for a moment. “What do you know of the Illkey Prophecies?”

  Torsten shrugged. “Not as much as I might like, my Lady. I know they were supposedly created when man began his rise to power, just before the fall of the Old Races. They are alleged to contain fascinating detail on the magics of the elves and dwarfs, and were supposedly lost when the peninsula suffered some great calamity.”

  “Oh, there’s more,” Adrianna said, a smile beginning to creep across her face, her eyes glinting darkly. “There is much that was hidden about those prophecies.”

  Looking expectantly at her, Torsten waited for Adrianna to speak further, but she held her silence for some minutes as thoughts tumbled through her mind. When she finally spoke, it was with a tightly reined passion.

  “I believe I know exactly what the Preacher Divine is looking for in the Anclas Territories. We’ll allow him some small success in finding what he searches for, permitting him to do the hard work. Then we’ll strike, taking it from him. What is uncovered from the hands of the Old Races, puts us in position to challenge anyone on the peninsula – any circle of Vos wizards, even the Three Towers themselves.” Adrianna glanced at the Shadowmage before adding, almost as an afterthought, “And you, loyal Torsten, you will have your share of the new power too.”

  Torsten abased himself on the floor in front of Adrianna.

  “My Lady...”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  HIS SCARLET CLOAK fanning out behind him, Tellmore quickened his pace through the corridors of the Citadel’s keep, ignoring the curious looks of the few servants and guards that still prowled at this late hour. He kept one arm clasped to his chest, holding his hastily scribbled notes protectively close.

  Turning left, he raced up a flight of spiral stairs, coming to an abrupt halt as he ran headlong into an armoured soldier. The soldier briefly smiled an apology, but Tellmore pushed him to one side without a second glance, squeezing himself past the man’s bulk in the tight confines of the staircase.

  Emerging into another corridor, Tellmore sighed with
the exertion as he saw his destination ahead: a closed door with another guardsman standing stiffly outside with a short spear in hand.

  The guardsman nodded a greeting and then glanced meaningfully at the door. Tellmore cursed under his breath and then waved his understanding. Drawing up to the door, he rapped hard on its oak surface. For several long seconds, there was no response from within.

  “I gave orders not to be disturbed...” The baron’s voice floated through the closed door, a hint of exasperation evident. Tellmore knew why.

  “My Lord Baron, it’s me. You’ll want to hear this.”

  Tellmore could have sworn he heard a growl from within, quickly followed by sounds of movement. After waiting patiently for a few minutes, exchanging a knowing look with the guardsman, Tellmore was rewarded by the sound of the door’s heavy lock turning. The door swung open, and a young woman dressed in thin pale blue silks stepped out, smiling shyly as she trotted down the corridor, back to her own quarters.

  “Lady Roussin,” Tellmore acknowledged, trying hard to avert his eyes from her obvious nakedness beneath her painfully thin clothing.

  “Tellmore, you killer of joy,” the baron’s voice came from within. “Get in here and explain yourself.”

  Slipping inside, Tellmore saw the baron in his night robes, lighting a lantern and carrying it from his bed chamber to the smaller room he used for private meals. He indicated Tellmore should follow him with a jerk of his head.

  Within, a square darkwood table with two matching chairs took up much of the available space, but the baron had managed to squeeze a small buffet along one wall and from this he grabbed a plate of bread and fruit. He gestured to the food, but Tellmore shook his head.

  “Please, sit,” the baron said, taking a place himself. “And tell me what is so important it could not wait until morning.”

  “Oh, I think you will want to hear this right now, my Lord Baron,” Tellmore said, seating himself and spreading his papers as best he could across the small table.