“That makes sense, and I certainly have no trouble eating or sleeping,” Kayla said.
“Yes, I’ve noticed, and it actually has me concerned. I realize it has to do with the fact that you are part evahn, but you metabolize your food very quickly, so to keep you energized, you truly need to be eating all the time, or you are going to run out of magic fast.”
“And what happens then?” she asked.
“Then you die,” the mage answered, throwing the rest of her stones all at once.
Kayla froze at her words. “Seriously? I’ll die if I run out of energy?”
Shiona nodded, brushed her hands off on her knees, and stood. “Yes. You will die. Always remember that food is your most important ally. Keep something with you at all times, and eat every spare moment you’ve got. I doubt you’ll ever have to worry about your weight, with that super metabolism the evahn all seem to have. Protein will give you more lasting energy. Nuts, jerky, eggs, and such. For a quick boost, grab something sweet, like fruit. The more natural it is, the better your body will be able to utilize the energy.”
Kayla dropped her rocks and stood when Shiona reached out to pull her up. “Always remember,” the woman repeated.
“I will,” Kayla answered, knowing that was something she would never forget. And really, she didn’t mind. It might be a little inconvenient, but she could do magic now, thanks to the flute. What a blessing that was.
Kayla pulled her socks and boots back on after drying her feet with a rag. T’Kato lay down on the moss and chewed something. Evidently she wasn’t the only one who needed to refuel.
Kayla wiped her brow. The room seemed to have suddenly grown warm. Was that another effect of using too much energy?
She was about to ask Shiona when the mage turned in apparent alarm and looked at the wall of Deirdre’s tears. Kayla followed her eye and was stunned to see that the wall glowed. The heat continued to increase, and Kayla felt like she was stuck in a metal bin on the hottest of summer days.
Shiona began to yell. “Come on! We’ve got to go now! Get up! Get up!” she screamed at T’Kato and Kayla.
Kayla’s heart stilled. Deirdre’s eyes were leaking magma. Lava flowed into the lake, the steam rising up and rolling toward them.
“Run!” Shiona screamed and raced for the other side of the cavern, where another portal stood shimmering in the distance. Kayla glanced over her shoulder. The steam came faster than they could run. They weren’t going to make it. She’d already lost Brant—she couldn’t lose anyone else. She didn’t even think of herself.
Kayla stopped and turned, the flute having made its way into her hands somehow as she ran. She raised the instrument to her lips and did as she had once before on the bottom of the sea—she pulled the power of cold and ice to her, but instead of creating a wall, like she had then, she blew the cold back toward the steam and the magma.
T’Kato tugged at her arm, but Kayla was like iron. She pulled every bit of cold to her that she could, and it was a lot. The stone, forever buried from the sunlight, held the chill she needed.
And suddenly Brant was there, blowing her cold wind faster than she could send it herself. His light spun around him, and then he gathered the frost up in his arms and herded it forward like a shepherd with his sheep. It was amazing to watch. He sent the icy breath out to collide with the lava, and with a hiss and crack, the two met. Kayla’s ears ached from the meeting as the lava turned instantly from melted, flowing rock into exploding stone. The pebbles from the blast reached the group and they covered their heads, though by the time the rubble arrived, it had lost its momentum.
Kayla stopped playing and turned to face Brant. “Thank you,” she said.
He grinned and bobbed his head toward her. “Just doing my job, love. Just doing my job.” And instantly he was gone. Kayla put the flute back in her bag and turned to the group.
T’Kato looked as if he didn’t know whether to be angry, terrified, or proud of her. Mistress Shiona looked astonished. She pursed her lips, like she was so prone to doing, and quirked her head at Kayla.
“Had it for a week, you say?”
Kayla nodded.
“Hmph,” the magi said. “You are one quick learner. Ezeker’s going to love you.” And with that, they continued on their way to the portal, no longer chased by lava, but feeling an urgency that hadn’t been there before.
An urgency that felt as if it came from the mountain.
Chapter Forty-Five
C’Tan awoke with a start, her dreams trailing off into unremembered nonsense. Only one thing remained, and that was an idea that should have come in her waking hours. It was a sign of how exhausted she truly was that she hadn’t thought to put it in place sooner.
She gently scrambled out from between Drake’s wings so as not to damage the fragile membranes, and glanced over at Kardon. He was asleep sitting up, leaning against his dragon which was barely tolerating his presence. It let as little of itself touch him as possible. C’Tan chuckled under her breath. It served the old man right. He had never treated the dragons with the respect they deserved.
Unable to use her scrying bowl here, C’Tan pulled out a small scriptstone from her pocket and a small pad of homemade paper. She had no ink, but she found a small stick and used her power to blacken its end and scratched a note to her servant, Dragon. The last she had heard, the teacher’s identity was still unknown and she needed to save at least one of her spies for future use. They were hard enough to find, let alone train, and Dragon was one of the best.
She laid the paper in the snow and set the scriptstone on it, then told it to send. In an instant, the words had spiraled into the stone and were sent to her hidden servant inside the school. She hoped Dragon had done as she asked and left the stone sitting on paper.
Within a few minutes, she received her answer to both questions. The teacher had received her message, and agreed immediately.
She was disappointed with Ian’s attempt in converting the girl. He had been too rough with her, and revealing himself as her kidnapper had only terrified her more. Converting her to their side was a useless idea. She hoped S’Kotos would accept the girl’s death if it came to it. Ember had become a threat to all of them, and if she were allowed to collect the keystones, C’Tan knew her own life would be over. That had to be prevented at all costs.
The scriptstone lit up once more and C’Tan read Dragon’s final note. “I am just outside of Javak. Shall I walk home, or have I done well enough to deserve a ride on one of your mighty dragons?” she read, the tone whimsical.
Oh, C’Tan liked that. She liked that idea very much. Grinning, she composed a return message. “A dragon will be sent. Await.” She then went to wake Kardon. She needed him to take her spy to safety. At least one of her converts must live though this adventure, and she was already tired of the old man. It was time for him to go home.
Grumbling, Kardon awoke and scrambled atop his dragon, then launched into the air. C’Tan felt better with each minute he was gone. She turned and watched Ezeker’s tower and the small village of Karsholm, and waited for the fireworks to begin.
Chapter Forty-Six
Ember glanced around the room where Ian had taken her. There was nothing but the rock, the stone water basin, walls, ceiling, and a red-hot floor. Ember still couldn’t move from whatever Ian had thrown in her face, and even if she had been able to move, there was nothing sharp enough to cut the ropes.
The wall across from her began to glow and give off tremendous heat. Ember felt as if she were going to be baked alive, but she didn’t regret her decision. She would serve Mahal, never his twin, S’Kotos, and she could never work for the woman who had killed her father, family or not. Ember closed her eyes and resigned herself to her fate when she felt a slight tug on her soul, almost like when she left her body. Hopeful, she tried to leave like she had in the past, but it didn’t work. She wasn’t sure if it was the freezing potion or her own issues, but she was stuck here.
Then the p
ull came again, stronger this time, as if someone was settling a hook into her soul, and then suddenly she was flying, yanked through the stone and rooms, and all sorts of things. Who would have ever thought she could travel through furniture and people— as if she were a ghost flying from one side of the school to another, and she had no idea who was on the other end. She didn’t know of anyone else who could walk through walls, and very few people knew she could do it, so who could be pulling her?
She got her answer very quickly when she landed on the library floor at Tyese’s feet. The girl looked at her red, sweating face and bound hands and feet with surprising calm, and said in tones much too old for her, “Well, you certainly got yourself into a mess, didn’t you?” She scribbled in her notebook again and the ropes turned to dust and drifted to the ground, but still Ember couldn’t move. She looked at the girl, pleading, hoping she could read her mind.
Puzzled, Tyese leaned over and sniffed at Ember’s shoulder, then sneezed and backed away quickly. “Who did this, Ember? That kind of magic is not allowed.”
Ember still couldn’t answer. Tyese scowled, then began to scribble furiously in her notebook, her hand practically flying across the page. Ember felt a strange sensation, as if moths were fluttering up her lungs and out her nose. She sneezed and coughed, and finally groaned as she turned over. The girl closed her book with a snap. “Who did this to you?”
“Ian,” Ember croaked. “Ian Covainis entered the school as a boy named Markis.”
Tyese turned white and sat down on the bench. “It was Ian who stormed our village and took my father. He’s here, you say?”
Ember nodded, grateful she could move.
Tyese’s jaw clenched and she stood as if she were going after the man on her own. Ember sat up weakly. “Tyese! Stop. You can’t pursue him alone. I’ll help you, if you’ll help me.”
Tyese stopped and turned, looking at Ember as if she were weighing it out. She was not like any other child Ember had known. She was more like a grown-up stuck in a kid’s body. After a moment, the redhead nodded, came back to Ember, and helped her to her feet. Ember was wobbly, but she could stand. Tyese steadied her, then reached into the pocket of her robe and handed Ember a book. “I found this for you. I don’t know if it will help, but it’s a journal belonging to the last white mage. Want me to put it in your bag?”
Ember had completely forgotten she had her satchel slung over her shoulders. She nodded. “Thank you, yes.” Ember waited until she was finished, then turned. “Tyese, you need to get out of here. The school is going to be full of lava, and soon. You need to get to safety. Where’s your home?” That’s when Ember remembered the girl was an orphan.
Tyese shook her head. “Home is too far away and I think I’m needed here. I’ll stick around.” When Ember started to object, the shy girl put her hand on Ember’s arm and said, “Don’t worry. I’ll be okay.”
For some reason, Ember believed her. She nodded, gave the girl a hug and said good-bye, then sent a hook to her mother and pulled herself outside of the school and to Paeder’s house. The sun was still just rising. Funny, it seemed like more time had gone by than that, but no, it was still sunrise, and Marda and Paeder were only now stirring. She landed in their bedroom, went to her mother’s side of the bed, and shook her awake.
Marda sat up with a start, almost repeating Ember’s collision with Lily the day before, but thankfully Ember moved out of the way quickly enough to avoid it. “What? What?” Marda demanded when she was awake enough to realize who was there.
Ember quickly outlined the problem and what she needed her mother to do in calling the council to meet, half in Javak, half at Ezeker’s, to fight the battle C’Tan was bringing to them. If they were going to save Karsholm and Javak, they needed magi there to fight the destructive power of the lava. Marda got out of bed quickly. “I’ll call the rest of the council. We have a way of doing that without my having to leave the village. You stay with me. I’m not letting you out of my sight again.”
Ember groaned inwardly. “Mum, I can’t stay here. Ezeker needs me back at the tower.” A brilliant flash of idea came to her. “Look,” she said, “Take half of the scriptstones the boys made for me. We can keep in touch that way, okay? It’s small enough that you can fit it in your robes or a pocket or a satchel. No problem. You can know where I am, I can keep you posted, and I can still do my duty to the mage academy.” Ember wanted to stress that last bit, as it wasn’t personal. Granted, she was old enough to be on her own, but more importantly, she had made a commitment and she needed to follow through on it, whether her mother liked it or not.
Marda stopped getting dressed and looked at her daughter, her eyes welling with tears, but Ember was surprised to discover they weren’t tears of fear or sadness. Marda put her hand on the side of Ember’s face and said, “I’m so proud of you. Despite my interference, you’ve grown up to be a much better woman than I could have ever imagined.” She took her daughter in her arms for a quick hug, then pulled away. “Now give me that scriptstone so I can stop worrying, and you be on your way. I’ll see you later, okay?”
Ember dug half of the stone from her satchel and handed it to her mother, gave her another hug, then sent out the hook of magic to Ezeker’s tower and returned to his dining room. Several of the council members had already arrived, along with many of the students. The room seemed to be stuffed to the top with more coming every moment. It was a wonder Ember hadn’t hit one of them landing in the room.
DeMunth spotted her and waved, then came through the crowd to stand at her side. Ezeker was still talking to Lily, who seemed much more at ease now that the truth was out. She seemed to be the kind of girl Ember could really like, proving her first impression of the girl correct.
Everyone was winding things up, getting ready to send the kids away and abandon the tower and school, when a tremendous blast shook the tower to its foundation. Several people screamed, children and adults alike, then everything went silent as they all waited. Ember had no idea how the tower still stood with that kind of pressure pounding against it.
Whatever it was slammed into the tower again, several stones coming loose and showering down on the crowd. Ezeker took control at that point, yelling over the noise, “Everybody out! The fight is on. You know what to do!”
And then the doorway was flooded with people racing out as fast as they could, several groups heading off toward the mountains, and others, mostly the elders and council members, heading toward Karsholm. Ember, Lily, and DeMunth were some of the last to leave, and when they stepped out the door, they stopped in surprise and terror.
The lava flow had started.
Ember looked farther down the road. Rahdnee and Brendae stood on the hillside directing the magma into two streams—one up the hill toward Ezeker’s tower, and another fountaining out toward the village of Karsholm.
Ember’s home.
At first she wanted to race to the farm and warn Paeder, but then she realized her mother had probably already done that. He would take care of the animals, including her precious horses, Brownie and Diamond Girl.
The more immediate problem was much closer, for it wasn’t C’Tan’s people who had started the attack on Ezeker’s tower.
The shadow weavers were back, and en masse. Uncle Shad had already turned wolf and several of the weavers littered the ground around him.
DeMunth’s Armor of Light had come on in blazing force the instant he had spotted them, his brilliant new shield gleaming on his arm. His other had become the sword that seemed to grow from his fist. His left hand held a hooked knife beneath the shield.
To her left, Lily had taken on her own kind of armor. It wasn’t made of light, but appeared to be made of ice. Her weapons were long knives, barbed and hooked, but transparent. The three charged forward as one, directly into the midst of the shadow weavers. Ember stood stock-still in fear. They didn’t know what she knew about these weavers. Weapons and armor wouldn’t last long against them—they ate magic like
candy.
Sure enough, Lily’s knife shattered into a cloud of ice-crystal dust, but instantly she had another weapon, a flaming sword she swung at the shadow weavers when she could see them. Within moments, the flame had gone out and the dull metal crumbled like charcoal. How could they fight a war when the enemy kept eating their weapons and only gained in strength?
Ember had no idea. She watched as her friends battled for her in a losing war.
Chapter Forty-Seven
After a series of several portals, Kayla found herself in a building rather than a cave. The floor tiles were smooth and even, probably marble, though after so many hops through the portals, Kayla was too exhausted and dizzy to care. The sound of rushing water pounded at her ears, and with the dizziness, she thought it was just her head making the sound until the others focused in on the waterfall that fell from high above into a pool nearby.
In that moment, her head cleared, and excitement fluttered to life in her chest like a butterfly taking flight from a sunflower. “Are we in Javak?” she asked, turning to Shiona.
The tall mage nodded without looking at her. “Yes. We should be at the mage academy shortly. We are nearly there.”
Kayla could hardly believe how far they had traveled. These portals were amazing—it was a shame more people couldn’t use them.
“Come on,” Shiona said, leading them out of the building and across a wooden bridge that floated directly on the water. The group walked through a field toward a small city that was nearly deserted, then past some stone buildings and toward the mountains on the other side. They followed what looked like a goat trail up to the side of the mountain, then Shiona touched one of the knobby protuberances with her hand and a hole grew slowly in the side of the mountain, gravel and dirt falling as it opened like a yawning mouth. When it was barely big enough for them to step through, they all entered and continued their trek into the mountain.
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