“No!” Mar Lon screamed. “No! No! No!”
Colbey left Sterrane’s tending to his companions, not daring to look away. Between his sword and the other Cardinal Wizards, the destiny of mankind and gods rested. Even the Béarnide’s injuries could not take precedence at the moment. Yet, though he deafened himself to Mar Lon’s self-degrading tirade, Arduwyn’s soft words came clearly to him. “He’s dead. Gods! Sterrane is dead.”
Mar Lon screamed with an anguish so basic that Secodon looked up from his sickbed and managed a feeble howl. The Renshai stood, all accounted for, hands pressed to the invisible wall, faces etched with horror. Colbey could not separate the dread wafting around him from his own. Without the king and his simple mercy, he could not help wondering if rescuing mankind held significance any longer. Stripped of balance, the positive changes would become unstable and lose all meaning. He jerked the staff from his belt.
At that instant, with the staff precariously balanced, Arduwyn stepped up from behind Colbey and snatched it from his hand. The whole had an unreal quality. Never had anyone taken anything Colbey did not want them to have, and he could not believe the events of the last few moments had made him so unwary. He watched in fascinated alarm as Arduwyn raised the staff.
“Here, may the gods damn you all! Nothing is worth this!” Arduwyn jabbed the staff toward Sterrane’s corpse and Mar Lon, hunched defensively before his charge. “Nothing.” His bold words degenerated into sobs, and tears leaked from his eyes in a steady stream.
“Wait.” Colbey had not yet played his last card. He contacted the staff *Can you stop him?*
*Not forcefully. I’ll do the best I can, but the Wizards may try magic against me. We can’t afford that. Hurry.*
The Cardinal Wizards said nothing, although a smile slipped onto Carcophan’s lips. Shadimar stood, impassive, his own staff sturdy as a tree trunk in his grip. Trilless stared at Arduwyn, tensely expectant.
“It’s a mistake.” Colbey remained in place, gaze locked on the Wizards, cued to any movement that might indicate preparation for a spell. He could hear the echoes of the staff’s appeals to Arduwyn, catching the gist of its need to remain in its champion’s hands without hearing its every word. He could also feel the rising of chaos in the form of gentle magic, a dying breath compared with the previous holocaust triggered by Carcophan, a tug and whisper to draw Arduwyn to Shadimar.
Concerned for the balance, Colbey addressed the Cardinal Wizards. “No more magic, please, or it’s over.” He could feel Carcophan and Trilless stirring in reluctant agreement and Shadimar’s irrational denial of what they all knew was truth. Even receiving only radiating emotions, Colbey recognized little of the Shadimar he had once known. The consciousness of the Eastern Wizard’s staff enfolded him, as swollen as a feasted tick. “I promise, I won’t interfere so long as you don’t use magic.” Colbey hated the need to cripple himself, but he saw no other way. The deepest portion of his mind, the part that ran on instinct and emotion, showed him reality from a different perspective. With Sterrane dead and the Renshai’s fate hanging in the balance, the exchange of hostages for staff seemed to lose its vast significance. Let them champion chaos and law.
*They’ll destroy me,* the staff reminded.
*Not once they realize what you are.*
Arduwyn shuffled a step toward the Wizards, jealously guarding the staff from Colbey, clearly watching for the slightest tensing that might indicate an attempt by the Renshai to reclaim his property.
Colbey remained in place, silent and true to his word. The cacophony of emotions bombarding him seemed suffocating. For the first time, he wasted energy holding some of these others’ thoughts at bay. Mar Lon’s grief and self-loathing all but upended reason.
*You leave me no choice.* The staff gave Colbey no more warning before opening itself to Arduwyn, revealing its inner core with a rawness that struck Colbey, an inadvertent spectator, as hard as a physical blow. Arduwyn reeled, a scream wrenched from his throat. Realization made him gasp, and the staff retreated. The whole had lasted less than an instant; yet, a moment later, Arduwyn returned the staff to Colbey’s hand without explanation.
“Liar!” Shadimar shouted. “You tricked him.” Even without the staff’s direct assistance, Colbey sensed the drawing of chaos for magics that, whatever else their purpose, would fling the world into an endless spiral of madness called the Ragnarok.
“Hold your magic.” Colbey thumped the base of the staff on the ground, keeping his left hand free for Harval. “Just hold it, and I’ll give you whatever you want.”
For an instant, Shadimar hesitated. Something monstrous and ugly rose inside him, a power so vast it threatened to overwhelm the universe. Trilless and Carcophan rallied to Shadimar’s defense, their fused being whittling the creature only slightly. The imminent sorcery disappeared, leaving the Wizards’ unanswered mental questions about it in its wake.
Shadimar managed to speak, his voice uncharacteristically shaky. “We want only one thing. Give me the Staff of Chaos.”
“I can’t give you that.”
A wave of frustrated rage slammed Colbey. Shadimar’s face reddened. “You just said you would.”
“I can’t give you that,” Colbey repeated, “because it’s already in your keeping. Shadimar, if it’s the Staff of Chaos you seek, look to your own hands.”
“I have only the Staff of Law.” Shadimar shook his staff, drilling its base into the dirt.
Colbey could feel the Cardinal Wizards’ consciousness braiding tighter, weaving a net against a force to which Shadimar had submitted willingly, holding it at bay until the Western Wizard could explain.
Colbey kept his gaze unwavering, dropping his protections against the external sorrow that hammered him. He dared not waste more physical energy holding others’ thoughts aside. His own emotions seemed ragged and insignificant, reined by clear and present danger. “Remember on the Meeting Isle when I gave you that staff? I told you I offered the one thing that could oppose me, the single object that could prevent my loosing chaos on the world.”
Shadimar interrupted, “The Staff of Law.” All color had drained from his face, and Colbey could read nothing from the Wizard who had once been his blood brother. Trilless’ and Carcophan’s presences burned so much brighter, as if Shadimar had become crushed by the force he championed and only a brittle skeleton of his former self remained.
“I gave you the Staff of Chaos,” Colbey corrected. “Even with the Staff of Law, you didn’t have the power to stop me. Giving chaos to you was the only way to keep me from freeing it.”
“You arrogant bastard!” Carcophan seemed impressed despite his horror.
Realization sparked through Shadimar, strongly enough that Colbey could now sense the Eastern Wizard’s presence through the others. Understanding came in a vast procession: explanations for spells far more massive than intended, the summoning of a kraell instead of a minor demon, the decision of chaos to attack Colbey instead of Shadimar, personality changes he had not noticed until Trilless and Carcophan helped to hold the bonded staff-force at bay. Chaos. Gods, chaos! I inflicted it on the world. His anger flared stronger, now directed inward.
Colbey felt the Staff of Chaos straining at its bonds, trying to force the Wizards to expend more magic to hold it, thereby strengthening its cause. Soon, whether through the use of too much magic, or the use of none at all, chaos would smash through the barriers and tumble man’s world into the Ragnarok. All other worlds would follow in a great chain reaction.
*I can help,* Colbey’s staff said.
Colbey needed to hear nothing more. Gently, he added his mind to the Wizards’ link, one of the Cardinal Four again. The power of the staves rushed free, contained only by the consciousness of their champions. Energy pumped through Colbey in a wash that seemed ceaseless. He let the staves clash inside him, locking his thoughts on self and morality, clinging to personal honor and beliefs that seemed puny in the shadow of pure law. The other Wizards seemed to wither,
swimmers lost in the vast ocean of power from both sides. The battle raged, chaos and law twining into a vast and violent blur, tendrils of raw, basic power cuffing Colbey’s mind at intervals. He clung to self, tearing Carcophan from the interlocking web, hurling him from their fused minds and the battle. The Southern Wizard could do nothing here but die.
Having freed Carcophan, Colbey turned his attention to Trilless. He had chosen evil first, since Trilless had a ready apprentice should he fail. The swirl of the combat around him made thought difficult, but the balance must always come first. Keeping to the edge of the battle, he discovered the champion of goodness, grabbed her, and shoved her mind from the contact. Only then, he tried to find order in the mass of motion around him.
Colbey found no evidence of Shadimar. He had discovered the Champions of Good and Evil driven to the periphery of the mind link, their cause unrelated to the frenzy of current battle. Apparently, Shadimar had become trapped in the center or battered to death beneath the onslaught.
The law-force pulled enough concentration from its enemy to inform its champion. *Center and alive. Dead, he could no longer maintain contact with mind link. Chaos would become trapped in its staff once more.* It gave no more hint or direction, concentration returning to its opposite.
Though the staff had remained true to its word, resisting the urge to goad Colbey to action, the Renshai understood its desire. It wanted him to slay Shadimar, to commit chaos back into its container while law remained free to rule the worlds once more. The suggestion carried a desperation and a common sense that the Wizards had tried to convey from the start. The worlds had prospered under law’s rule. Chaos promised destruction. Only Colbey’s convulsive grip on self allowed him to keep perspective. And knowledge. With chaos also comes growth and inspiration.
Yet the means for balance now defied Colbey. The battle swirled and raged about him, smearing the boundaries between thought and emotion, external and internal. He clutched to his morality tighter, tapping both chaos and law for direction and wisdom. Balance. He dared not allow them to fight until one became the victor.
Law slammed Colbey’s mind with a message. *Damn it, I’m protecting you! Don’t open gaps for chaos. It’ll kill you.*
The words brought Colbey the final answers he sought. Obediently, he plugged the holes he had created to his innermost thoughts, trapping out law as well as chaos. The staves’ strategy seemed clear: kill its opposite’s champion and trap the other force back inside the staff-container, thereby opening the world to the winner’s influence alone. Most of the battle had become defensive, a swirling, formless fight geared to protect each force’s own champion from the enemy.
Colbey focused on his mind gift, seeking the seams where offensive intent met defensive, separating law from chaos by touch. He wove toward the middle, keeping self in the fortified portions of his cause, dodging chaos attacks with the same skill and agility he used against sword strokes. He would always face rather than hide from an enemy, but he discarded the swerve from Renshai honor inherent in using anything as a shield. His battles came before and after; this current war was not his.
As Colbey fought toward the center, law displayed its displeasure and concern with raw emotion. Colbey did not need the warning. His mind carved chaos from law without expending energy; the vastness of their power made them easy to read. The deeper Colbey penetrated, the thicker chaos became until he found himself avoiding constant attacks, battle joy rising even without the possibility of returning physical offensives. He sent a mental call ahead to Shadimar. *Brother, come to me.*
Shadimar gave no answer.
Again, Colbey mind-called, hoping he radiated sincerity and worry, still keeping inner calm. *Brother, come. Else one of us will die, and his force will stand unopposed.*
The return sounded like a dying whisper. *You’re no brother of mine.*
Colbey ignored the statement, sensing none of the hostility it implied. *Come. I can’t force them back into the staves alone.* Colbey guessed he would have to do so one power at a time, and he could not control the free force while he worked with the other. *Once they’re contained, we can think clearly. We’ll find a compromise. We’ll find a way to ask Odin himself, if we must.*
Insight sparked momentarily from Shadimar, too swift for Colbey to read in detail. He received only a glimpse of a possible means to contact Odin that bore some relationship to a pair of blue gems in other hands than Shadimar’s own. The Eastern Wizard remained silent a long time in contemplation.
The battle grew to whirlwind intensity. Colbey dodged, time making him breathless. Soon, he would have to retreat and rest or succumb to chaos.
At length, Shadimar spoke, *I’ll come to you. But only if you give me Harval.*
*My sword?* The idea of handing away a weapon struck something primal. *You know I can’t do that.*
*Harval is my creation.*
*And I wield it.*
*At my insistence. Give me Harval, or I will not come.*
Fatigue weighted Colbey’s limbs, alarming him. Once he finished with Shadimar, he had no way of knowing whether the battle would end or if the three Cardinal Wizards would continue to oppose him. Without Harval, he stood naked against Wizards and creatures of chaos. Yet without Shadimar’s assistance, either law or chaos would be utterly destroyed. One way or the other, the Ragnarok would follow. *Agreed, then. Come to me now.*
Shadimar’s form emerged from the gray swirl of combat, ringed by defensive chaos. His consciousness came first, questing blindly. His mind gift more directed, Colbey sent his thoughts to Shadimar as a guide, and a part of their fused minds linked into a single entity shielded from law and chaos alike. The contact allowed Shadimar to draw close enough to reach out a hand for the sword.
True to his word, Colbey removed the weapon from his sheath and handed it, hilt first, to Shadimar. Though he showed no outward signs, he despised the need that made him sacrifice his weapon, even to its creator. His concern about Shadimar’s intentions with that weapon sent his right hand creeping toward his opposite hilt. It might not cut the Cardinal Wizards, but it could still hinder them.
Shadimar accepted the hilt.
Colbey tensed for a rush of attack that never came. The emotions wafting from the Wizard mixed confusion, self-loathing, and strength of purpose. Shadimar back-stepped to the limits of their protecting bond. He created a slit in their joint defense, drawing a wisp of chaos to him. The sword floated in front of Shadimar, and he finally met Colbey’s fierce blue gaze. Without a wielder, Harval plunged toward Shadimar, effortlessly finding a track between his ribs.
Caught off-guard by the suicide, Colbey sprang for the hilt too late. His hand grasped the familiar pommel, and he fought the magics that drove the point toward Shadimar’s heart. As the Eastern Wizard’s strength failed, Colbey managed to tear the steel free, but the damage had already been done.
Shadimar sank to the ground, blood trickling from chest and lips. *It was the only way,* he said, then death stole all movement.
A wolf howl cut above the trailing silence, a deep-throated song that seemed to define agony.
Then, as suddenly as it had arisen, the storm of powers disappeared. Colbey found himself surrounded by the familiar, eternal hugeness of law alone. *We won!* it told him, sharing all the joy of the ages.
Tears sprang to Colbey’s eyes, and the innocence of his sorrow rebuffed law’s pleasure. Though exhausted from his need to evade chaos’ attacks, he did not let his defenses down for an instant. *You promised never to force yourself on me.*
Surprised tainted law throughout. *You still don’t see the need to destroy chaos? Your friend . . . your brother killed himself for me.*
From habit, Colbey cleaned and sheathed the sword. He knelt at Shadimar’s side, clasping a clammy hand in sympathy. He saw no reason to defend his loyalty to balance once more. He gathered no words to explain how Shadimar’s dedication to his cause, in ignorance, had driven him crazy; or that Colbey giving himself to law would
only bring about the same results. He managed to speak, though his words seemed to have nothing to do with the matter at hand. *He wasn’t my brother. Now go back to the staff.*
Law made an echoing sound of strangled rage. *But we won.*
*You won. The rest of us lost. Go back to your staff.*
*But . . .*
Colbey threw law’s words back at it. *I’m the Wizard, you’re the tool.*
Reluctantly, law retreated, and Colbey finally escaped from the mind link he had had no hand in creating. Clouds obscured the sky, though no rain fell. The Renshai tribe remained in place, apparently still trapped by their barrier. Secodon sat near the edge of the woods, his muzzle pointing skyward. Another howl traced a mournful path through the cosmos, stirring deep knowledge. Regardless of the magics of the Cardinal Wizards or the interference of gods, it had become too late to stop the Ragnarok anymore. The Wolf Age, Colbey knew, had begun with the song of a Cardinal Wizard’s pet.
Trilless and Carcophan stood over Shadimar and Colbey, their uncertainty tangible. Each held a round blue sapphire, Trilless rolling hers from hand to hand and Carcophan’s crammed into a muscled fist. Dh’arlo’mé remained aloof and behind the others, his hands clenched and long fingers balanced. The Staff of Chaos lay near Shadimar’s hand. Though still and masterless, it seemed alive, a dull wooden sheath hiding a force that could cut souls like paper. Its call pulsed through air that had become stifling with humidity, the staff’s promise of knowledge and power drawing those few who could wield it like a siren’s song. Colbey placed a hand on his hilt in warning. Any Cardinal Wizard who reached for chaos would face Harval.
Colbey’s companions surrounded Sterrane’s body, the archers crying uncontrollably, the bard pacing and muttering, and Khitajrah trying to soothe Arduwyn and Sylva. The Freya/aristiri spiraled down from the sky to land on a branch overlooking the clearing.
Child of Thunder (Renshai Trilogy) Page 62