by Jon Bender
Taking the power he now contained, he concentrated on a spot in the air only feet away. The magic flowed from his fingertips, building on itself, adding layer upon layer of power until a sphere of blue and grey formed. The mass spun and vibrated with energy. When the sphere reached its limit, it collapsed, ripping a tear in the boundary separating their world from the next plane. Bright white light spilled through, illuminating the dark forest around them. Beyond the ragged opening, he saw brighter shapes moving.
Holding his hand steady, he sent a flow of power through the portal and whispered. “Mother, father… come to me.”
The pull on his magic was almost instantaneous. From the distance, two forms appeared, small, glowing dots that grew steadily as they hurtled toward him, taking on the shapes of Zarick and Falicia Coldren, the parents Jaxom had never known.
“Hello, Jaxom. It’s so good to see you again,” his mother said, the light fading from her to reveal a middle-aged woman with long black hair and a warm smile. His father’s features also sharpened to show the older version of himself, his short hair grey at the temples.
“Yes,” his father said, looking around expectantly. “Have you found your sister?”
“We only just got Corin back. I leave tomorrow to search for her,” Jaxom said.
“I’m glad to hear he is safe. Forgive my haste. Time is hard to judge from this plane. It feels like years have passed since we last spoke,” Zarick said.
“I will find her as soon as I can, but I called you for another reason,” Jaxom said.
His mother’s smile faltered, her brow creasing in worry. “What’s wrong?”
“I have been feeling… strange…lately when I draw on my magic. I am losing myself, and I don’t know how to stop it,” he said.
“Strange in what way?” his father asked.
“Like I am losing a part of myself, and I like it. I want to create more power and to…,” Jaxom trailed off, unable to speak the words, to tell his parents that he wanted to kill and feed off the energy of death he created.
As he spoke, Falicia became more upset, moving closer to the barrier as though she would break through it if she could, embrace her son and protect him. Instead, she looked to his father with pleading eyes. Zarick seemed to avoid the gaze, instead looking steadily at Jaxom. “I’m so sorry, my son,” he said quietly.
“No!” Falicia yelled.
Zarrick looked at her, his sad eyes turning hard. “Falicia, those are almost exactly the words Sebin spoke before he took his own life.”
“What’s happening to me? Tell me! Who is Sebin?” Jaxom shouted, his fear growing. Zarick’s eyes drifted back to meet his. “Sebin was a friend of ours, a death mage who fought Or’Keer. During our struggle to contain his influence, Sebin was always the strongest of us. Over time, he slowly began to change. He began searching out anyone he thought a worshiper of Or’Keer. At first we all believed that he was doing it to stop Or’Keer, but before long, we saw the truth. He was feeding his hunger for power, and the dark god’s servants always appeared in plentiful numbers to attack him. In searching the memories of one he had killed, we discovered that their targeting Sebin was no accident. Or’Keer was sending them to him to die. When he fully understood what he was becoming, he killed himself to protect us.”
Jaxom’s mind reeled. He looked at Adriana. For the first time since he had known her, she looked afraid. “I don’t understand. Why would Or’Keer sacrifice his own people? If Sebin was such a threat, why not kill him outright?”
“Do you know how Or’Keer came to be?”
“We think he was born or created, as the other gods were.”
Zarick shook his head. “The gods are beings of pure energy from another plane, energy that developed consciousness. They discovered a way to enter our world when man was still young. Here, they found these strange creatures that had a spark of life or energy that grew in them from birth to death. Everything humans did or learned added to that energy until they died. Somehow, the gods learned that these frail, impermanent creatures would willingly give up some of their energy to them, feeding them through prayer.”
“What does that have to do with me?” Jaxom demanded.
“Or’Keer was once like you, like what we used to be—mortal,” Zarick said. He turned to Falicia, who was now sobbing, and wrapped his arms around her.
Everything snapped into place for Jaxom. That explained why the old gods knew nothing about Or’Keer. How could they? He was born in the mortal world and had somehow transformed into a more powerful being. How had he done it? “Or’Keer was a death mage?”
His mother looked up from his father’s chest, her eyes filled with tears. Even at such a moment of revelation, Jaxom could not help but wonder how she could do so when she no longer had a flesh and blood body. “Or’Keer was once like us, hundreds of years ago. He was one of the first death mages. He volunteered to be changed into a weapon to be used against the gods,” Falicia said.
Jaxom was stunned. It all made sense. Or’Keer desperately wanted death mages to serve him, so he could change them into what he was. With all his power, he still faced the same problem that had divided the gods originally. He was out-numbered and needed allies. The gods would eventually become jealous of Or’Keer’s followers. Even now, they were joining the human fight against him. The pact binding them to their plane was broken. How much longer would they allow him to usurp their power before meeting him in this world? He could not face them all alone.
“Is that what’s happening to me?” Jaxom asked quietly. “Will I become like Or’Keer?”
Zarick released his mother to face him fully, squaring his broad shoulders as if forced to perform a duty he wanted no part of. “Before you were born, we found a book in an ancient tomb where it was hidden after the gods were banished to their own plane. The book was written by a storm mage at the end of his life who had survived the mage wars. It described how after the gods were gone, many death mages ruled over common men as kings and queens. But it was not only this grab for power that disturbed the other schools. Some of those death mages continued to grow in magical strength, eventually surpassing even the strength of mages before the pact. The other schools became afraid of us and began hunting us down. The war raged for years until all that was left of our school was one city, far in the north. The other schools set a siege to starve them out. The death mages sent all of their people out in surrender before erecting an impenetrable wall of magic around the city. That magic sustained itself throughout the mage’s life and presumably after his death.”
Jaxom called that city home now. The city, Terika, he had helped to resurrect. That was why Or’Keer had sent Alimar there. The dark god wanted to gain Alimar’s loyalty while at the same time trying to change him. “Or’Keer survived this genocide, and his power continued to grow. That still doesn’t explain how he became a god who can create mages of his own.”
“He has created new mages? Are you sure?” Zarick said, his eyes widening. His father’s body had gone rigid, and even his mother’s tears had disappeared, her eyes widening in fear.
“One, at least. His name is Tandis. I faced him and barely escaped with my life,” Jaxom said.
His father stared blank faced for many minutes before speaking again. “At some point, men began to worship Or’Keer. Like the old gods, he absorbed this power and began converting others to worship him. Your mother and I were living in peace when he came for us. We and a few others, including our friend Sebin, began searching out ways to stop him. That search led us to the book.”
“Why is it happening to me? And how do I stop it? When I let the magic in, I can feel myself losing control.”
“We don’t know why it happens to some but not others. We only know that when it does, you either become like Or’Keer, or you die.” His mother’s voice shook, her eyes filling again with tears. “When you use your magic to take life, the power from those deaths fuels even stronger magic.”
“Sebin must be there w
ith you. He may know something that can help Jaxom,” Adriana pleaded. Looking over to her, Jaxom saw dread covering her face like mask.
His mother wiped her eyes and gripped his father’s hand tightly. “Sebin is not here. We have long searched for him but never found him,” she said.
The choices were worse than just dying. If Sebin was not there, whatever changed him had might have destroyed his essence completely. Numb, Jaxom fell to his knees and looked up to Adriana. Tears streamed down her face. All their hopes for the future had just been stripped away. She put her arm across his shoulders.
He felt a hand on his head and looked to see his father reaching through the portal to touch him. Already, the hand and arm were turning black. Still, he left it there a minute longer before withdrawing. “I wish I had the answer, Jaxom,” he whispered.
Jaxom nodded, not knowing what to say. His father’s face was solemn, but Jaxom could see the pain hidden behind the façade. His mother showed no emotion at all anymore, staring into nothing. When she finally looked down on him, her eyes were no longer filled with sadness. They now held resolve.
“No,” she said, stepping away from Zarick and straightening, balling her delicate hands into tight fists. “I am not giving up. We may have failed Sebin, but we did not have then what we do now.”
Zarick looked at his wife, confused. “What is that?”
“We are here amongst countless others—kings and queens, scholars, mages. We will search the entirety of this plane for the answer before we accept that our son is lost to us,” She said. All traces of sorrow had vanished from her slight frame, which now glowed softly with a golden light of determination.
Zarick smiled with pride and love. “You are right.” He turned to Jaxom. “There is still hope.”
“Jaxom, find your sister. We will search for the answer to this curse as you search for her,” his mother said.
“You must try to refrain from using your magic,” Zarick added. “Sebin told us the more he cast, the more he killed, and the harder it became to resist.”
Jaxom slumped. He knew they were right, but how long could he hold on? “I will open the portal again when I find her,” he said. Adriana squeezed his shoulder.
“We love you,” his mother said, her voice trembling. His father gave one final nod before they turned and drifted away, their forms shrinking until he could no longer see them.
Jaxom and Adriana stared at the portal silently for a while before he began pulling power into his body. He would not allow fear to weaken his resolve. As the energy of death flowed through him, he felt the desire to draw even more grow stronger. He crushed the feeling into nothing, using his will and anger to shatter the craving. For the first time in months, Jaxom felt in control of his power. But he could still feel its whisper, like an itch at the back of his mind.
Concentrating, he wrapped his magic around the edges of the portal and began forcing it closed. The jagged edges knit together until only a seam of light remained, and then even the light was gone. Adriana smiled, attempting to show him that she was not afraid. He returned the same smile and pulled her tightly against his chest. Her head rested on his shoulder. He drew strength from the feeling of her, the smell of her hair mixed with the fresh night air.
“They will find a way. I am sure of it,” he whispered.
“I know,” she said into his shirt. Unable to hide the doubt in her voice any more than he had.
Leaning back, he kissed her gently on the forehead before breaking the embrace. “We should get back. Someone may decide we have been gone too long and come looking for us.”
She nodded and took his hand as they headed for the camp. “I want something from you before we leave,” she said, as they neared the shallow stream.
“Anything,” he said, absently.
“I want to get married. Tomorrow. I know we talked about waiting until the war is over, but I want to do it now,” she said.
“We may not get a chance later,” he said, speaking what she would not. Jaxom looked at her, doing his best to display confidence. “Fine, but when we get back, we are going to have a real one with food, music, and dancing.”
“Deal,” she said. Her brow furrowed. “Celia is going to be very upset with us.”
Jaxom laughed, and it felt good. “You’re right. Send a message saying we couldn’t wait any longer. She will understand. And tell her she can plan the full ceremony when we get back. That should placate her.”
Adriana sighed. “That wedding will last two days.”
“A small price to pay to avoid her wrath,” Jaxom said.
“Fine,” she said grimly.
Jaxom laughed harder and put his arm around her shoulder as they walked through the night.
The next morning when Jaxom and Adriana asked Corin to marry them, his brother was stunned. He nodded skeptically at Jaxom’s explanation that they were tired of waiting and wanted to make it official. The ceremony was brief. Half the men packed up the camp around them while the other half stood as witnesses. Darian griped that they could not properly celebrate Jaxom’s final days as a bachelor, but he congratulated them with real warmth. In front of Corin, they vowed to spend the rest of their lives together, to watch over one another, and to always place the needs of the other before their own. After Corin declared them joined as one, Jaxom slipped the ring over her finger and gave her a long, deep kiss. The men cheered and took turns recognizing Adriana as Lady Baldrin by formally bowing. She was now the lady of Terika, in title as well as in spirit. Even Cribble bowed, if only slightly. When it was over, Corin hugged her and welcomed her to the family. Then he shook Jaxom’s hand, whispering that Jaxom had better keep her happy.
Shana remained a good distance away during the ceremony. She looked uncomfortable to be witnessing a moment of joy amongst a group to which she did not belong. Even with his attention on Adriana, Jaxom had not missed the furtive looks of longing she directed at Corin when she thought no one was watching. Whatever had transpired between the two, she had real feelings for his brother.
Four durgen had lost their riders during the fights with Or’Keer’s transformed priests and Corin’s rescue. The fifth had to be taken from a rider who would travel double until they met up with Celia and the army. Laiden had been so excited about leaving on a mission to find another death mage that he was already sitting in the saddle and fidgeting with the reins. His other arm wrapped in bandages and bound to his chest. Jaxom was tying down his blanket roll to the durgen’s saddle when Darian looked over from his own packing. “You’re a fool. You know that?”
Jaxom laughed. “I often am, but why this time?”
Darian grunted and turned back to his saddlebag. “The whole point of getting married is that you get to spend a ten-day alone with the woman. You’re going to spend that time in the open with three other men.”
“I’ll be sure to let Danika know how you feel on the subject. She should understand what she’s getting into,” Jaxom said.
“At this rate, you’ll get me killed long before that comes up,” Darian retorted.
“You’re both fools,” Brenin said, walking up leading his durgen. Like Adriana, he had changed the tan leather armor of a rider to simple clothes, but he still wore his usual boyish smile. Tied to his saddle was the bow he was so skilled with. At his hip hung a soldier’s sword. “Why get married at all and be bound to one woman for the rest of your life? So many adore my company, how can I deprive them of my attention?”
“You confuse adoration with disgust,” Adriana said, coming up behind the Guard Captain. Her flanged mace swung heavily at her side.
“My Lady, I didn’t know you were there,” Brenin sputtered. Jaxom and Darian laughed at his surprised look, which reminded Jaxom of a startled deer.
Adriana held up a hand up to the blushing young man. “We are friends, even if you do think you are the gods’ gift to women. Please continue to call me by my name.”
Brenin regained his composure and smiled, bowing low. �
��Of course, Adriana.”
Adriana raised an eyebrow and turned to Jaxom. “Are we ready, husband?”
It was the fourth time she had called him that this morning. If Jaxom did not know her better, he would swear she was ready to giggle every time. He looked to Darian who nodded and climbed up into the saddle. “I guess we are,” Jaxom said.
Climbing into their own saddles, the five friends lifted away from the camp headed east. He hoped to find his sister Vaniece quickly, and bring together the family he had lost and the one he had built. Besides defeating Or’Keer and keeping those he loved safe, it was the one thing he wanted most.
Chapter 12
Vaniece sat atop her horse next to Prince Sagrad in the heat of the noon sun, the two surrounded by Desert Walkers. The invading Rilnormans had finally decided to turn and make a stand. Just as Sargrad had promised, the morning after repelling the breach, the army of Kilreth had charged out of the walled city to face them, forcing the invaders to retreat. Sagrad had not been happy with the victory. His opponent was weakened but not defeated, and he wanted to press the advantage. A constant supply of water wagons traveled between the city and the advancing army as they pushed the Rilnormans back. The enemy was forced to send patrols ahead, seeking out sparse sources of the life-sustaining liquid. Sagrad was sure they would surrender soon. But day after day, they moved north, further stretching the distance the wagons needed to travel. The enemy only fought when they had no other choice, never fully committing until now. They had chosen the flat grasslands just beyond the barren terrain on which Kilreth was built. Sagrad guessed the rivers in the north must be flowing again with spring melt from the mountains. He believed the enemy would only risk a full battle with a large supply of water, especially since they were now outnumbered.
