Metal Mage 12

by Eric Vall

  “Is he?” the earl gasped, and his moustache twitched with shock. “My Pindor? A Defender so soon?”

  I sighed. “Yeah, he’s still adjusting to the shock, I think.”

  The fact Pindor found time to make sure his uncle didn’t put on a huge show for us, but didn’t mention his promotion, wasn’t too surprising to me. Still, if he kept side stepping his rank like this, I’d probably have to shove him straight to the frontline just to get his ass in gear.

  Lord Allen was beside himself, though, as he immediately shook my hand again, and he kept shaking it while he thanked me about ten times for all I’d done for his nephew.

  “You don’t have to thank me,” I assured the man. “Pindor’s put in the effort and really outshined a lot of our other mages. He’s earned it. I have him leading part of our defenses back in Falmount as we speak, and he’s doing us proud up there.”

  “Leading?” the earl said as his eyes gleamed with pride. “What are his duties?”

  I was nearly as proud as him while I explained everything Pindor had been doing for us lately, and Lord Allen was dumbfounded to hear his nephew was battling chupacabras and every other creature the earl could imagine. When I told him about the fire titans, though, Lord Allen was speechless, and we spoke so long about the recent developments in the north that the sun had set by the time he shook his head and rifled his hair.

  “At least Temin’s dedicated to taking action,” Lord Allen muttered. “I was worried he wouldn’t have it in him, but if that’s the state of things, we’ll need the entire Order and anything else you can come up with to survive this.”

  “So far, I’d say the odds are in our favor,” I admitted. “I’ve been tracking the Master’s progress as much as I can, and I’m working on finding a means of dealing with this new element he’s using. The weaponry the Defenders have now is gonna turn the tables on the coordinated attacks he’s sending out, but I’m planning on building more of the metal machines I use in the north, too. All of this, plus our allies, means there’s a good chance the Master won’t know what hit him when we get our opening.”

  “Well, remember what I said when the time does come,” Lord Allen replied. “My men may not be mages, but they’ve got skill, strength, and resiliency. I can have every one of them sent out in an hour, and they’d be in Serin within the day.”

  “I’ll remember that,” I assured the earl as I heard my women’s voices drawing closer, and the man raised his bushy brows when he saw their silhouettes emerging from the shadows.

  “I assume this lot is here for you,” the earl muttered, and I grinned.

  “Yeah, I don’t think you’ve met my other women,” I replied as I held out my arm, and Deya nestled herself against my side while the other three gathered around us. “You know Miss Shoshanne and Defender Solana, Lord Allen. This is Deya Naera of House Quyn, and Princess Cayla Balmier of Cedis.”

  “Ahh yes, the whole group of beautiful ladies who saved our skins at Temin’s castle,” Lord Allen mused. “It’s an honor to formally meet you.”

  “The honor is ours,” Cayla assured him. “Your nephew has been a dear friend to all of us. We’ve grown quite fond of him.”

  The earl puffed out his chest a bit at the princess’ words. “Yes, Pindor’s my pride and joy. Did you know, he was recently made a Defender of the Order?”

  “Yes,” Deya giggled. “We are aware.”

  “Of course, you are,” Lord Allen chuckled with some chagrin, and he cleared his throat. “I suppose I’ll need to head in for supper if I want to do any proper bragging this evening. Would you care to join us? Nothing fancy of course, just wild boar and the usual trappings.”

  “You’re very kind, but we’ve already dined this evening,” Cayla told the earl. “On our next visit?”

  “I’ll hold you to it,” Lord Allen informed her, “only make sure you drag Pindor along, and if you can snag a nice girl for him, bring her this way, too.”

  “We’ll certainly do that,” the princess giggled, and she let the earl kiss her hand before he bid us all a good evening with a polite bow.

  Then Lord Allen whistled his way along the tracks and to the platform, and the first stable boy he passed was informed that his nephew was recently made a Defender of the Order.

  “I like him,” Shoshanne sighed.

  “Me, too,” I chuckled. “Sorry I’m not finished up here yet. We got to talking about everything that’s been going on, and I lost track of time. Did it go alright with the Defenders?”

  Aurora nodded. “Yes, they’re in good hands here, and it seems like Lord Allen’s knights have a decent system for efficiently covering all this land.”

  “Perfect. Dragir’s sent twenty crates of both the lightning and the fireball magazines, but there should be another thousand of the lightning magazines left for him to engrave.”

  “I hope he can get those to us by tomorrow,” Aurora said with a frown. “We left our last three posts with only the fireball runes since Burnish and the others can’t rely on the tracks as easily.”

  “It’ll only take ten crates to cover the last three posts, though,” I pointed out. “We can get Rajeen and Millia fully stocked even after we send those back along the tracks, and I’m sure Dragir will get the others to us by then.”

  “I hope so,” the half-elf yawned. “I don’t want to have to extend our trip an extra day. I miss our sex jungle.”

  “I miss our cages,” Cayla sighed.

  I shook my head. “How can you be homesick in a place like this? Didn’t you see these grounds?”

  “I love it here,” Shoshanne said. “It’s so open and well maintained. All that’s missing is a moat.”

  “Damn straight,” I agreed.

  “I’ll love it more in the morning,” Deya said with a sleepy pout. “Right now, I want to cuddle with Mason and sleep for a whole day.”

  “Go to bed,” I chuckled as I tucked a kiss in her pink hair. “I’ve still got this shipment to sort out, and then I’ve gotta touch base with Bagneera and the generals.”

  “Don’t take too long,” Shoshanne purred as she curled against my chest. “You need some decent rest as much as we do.”

  “Yes, and we’ll be sleeping naked,” Cayla informed me, and my women all came over to steal a few kisses.

  Then they sauntered up the tracks, but they knew I always watched them walk away, and each of them began peeling their clothes off and wiggling their asses just to tempt me to follow after them.

  “Seriously?” I groaned, and half of me wanted to leave everything for first thing in the morning instead.

  The women shamelessly kept it up while their giggles echoed along the darkened railway, and I was grateful I had my runes to heighten my vision, because they were all buck naked by the time they made it to our sleeping quarters. Luckily, the platform was deserted, so I was the only one who got to see Cayla slap each one of them on the ass to send them off to bed.

  Then I sighed as I turned back to my work, and the thought of cozying up to my women in our huge bed kicked my ass into gear.

  I read through Raynor’s telegram first thing, and there had been an attack in Falmount the night before, just as I’d suspected. No possessed mages had been sent there, though, and Dragir held up his end of the bargain and fought like hell for Falmount. We’d suffered only nineteen severe injuries, but no losses, and word arrived from Temin the next morning about two attacks in Cedis the same night. Other than that, Raynor was sure things were locked down in the north, and Barnik sent word to the mansion that he needed to speak with me as soon as possible.

  I nodded as I pocketed the letter, and I decided Serin would be my first stop once we got back to Falmount. With any luck, Barnik and Wyresus might finally have something for me where the Elven Scrolls were concerned, but for now, I was more than relieved to hear nothing had blown up in my absence.

  As long as Dragir shipped out the next batch of magazines tomorrow, we’d be set all the way up to Garioch, and everything
would be in line for us to make it home with Illaria fully armed for this war.

  So, I quickly sorted the crates and loaded up what we needed for tomorrow, and then I headed to see Bagneera at the other end of the train.

  The old Ignis Mage assured me she’d arrange to have the crates sent back down the tracks first thing in the morning, and once she reiterated that she wouldn’t delay this journey by even a minute no matter what my excuses were, I stopped by the generals’ sleeping quarters.

  Then I indulged in a couple pints of Rosh with Kurna while I relayed Raynor’s update, and I filled them all in on Lord Allen’s offer to send his troops north. Apparently, the knights of Rainard were well known throughout Illaria, and Urn seconded the earl’s opinion that they’d be more than helpful even without being mages.

  I ended up hanging around for a third pint, too, but I shot down Kurna’s offer of a fourth on account of the naked ladies I couldn’t wait to get back to. So, I had a decently Roshy buzz as I left the generals’ car and headed down the darkened tracks, and the grounds of Lord Allen’s estate were empty as crickets sang in the fields. In the distance, I could hear the earl’s supper still taking place in the main house, but it sounded like most of my Defenders had hit the sack already, and only quiet conversations drifted from a few train cars now.

  Most of the night sounds were drowned out by the rumble of the Asris River as it tore through the canal, and the soothing evening breeze sifted through my hair while I moseyed my way to my sleeping quarters. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt so calm, and even though part of this was the Rosh, it was mostly the relief that everything was lining up perfectly on my first mission in the name of the Order.

  Minimal attacks had occurred, our troops were locked and loaded, and the job even came with peaceful nights like this with my lovers by my side.

  Everything about Rainard only added to my current bliss, and as I looked up at the star-studded sky, I thought of the sweet look on Deya’s face when she said she wanted all our babies to grow up in a place like this. The notion brought a hazy smile to my face, and soon, I was imagining all the luxuries I’d build for our family.

  My women would probably want everything wrapped in silk from now on, but I could work with that. A flower-covered pergola with silk billowing down on three sides felt appropriate anyway, and they could lounge on silk pillows and bask in the dappled sunlight to their hearts content. My women would end up giggling and teasing each other all afternoon like the angels they were, and I’d be right there with them getting absolutely no honest work done.

  I was just rounding out their bellies in my mind to complete the picture when I heard a few rocks skittering on the other side of the train, and my fantasy vanished as I slowed my pace.

  Then I came to a stop and listened more carefully, and I was almost sure I heard something distinct under the roar of the rushing river.

  It sounded like a heartbeat, but before I could summon my powers to locate where it was coming from, a sword shot out from between the train cars to my right, and my breath hitched.

  Chapter 17

  My hip throbbed with pain as I cursed and stumbled back, and blood seeped down my leg where the blade impaled me below my gun belt. I had my pistol in hand before the bastard who got me dove from the shadows, and he went for my other leg as I staggered aside and took aim.

  Then my attacker froze, and when I saw how keen his eyes were beneath his shaggy hair and thick hood, I furrowed my brow.

  “Wait, you’re not possessed,” I realized. “You’re just trying to kill me.”

  The man snorted. “You really want those to be your last words?”

  I cocked a brow.

  I could have been nestled between four naked women by now, and gods knew I had enough on my plate without having to deal with random assholes trying to knock me off. Here I was, though, and as I considered the man’s rugged build, all black attire, and four-foot blade, it was clear that arrow and dagger had been directed solely at me, and this was my assassin.

  Which I could actually work with.

  I didn’t recognize him, so he must have been hired by someone, and even though he was more robust than me, he wasn’t armored. Apparently, he had no idea I could kill him seven different ways with a wave of my hand, either.

  Or, I could just pull the trigger, but that would be counterproductive.

  I’d much rather let him give it his best shot, because whether or not I decided to kill him in the end, all I really needed was to find out who hired him. Luckily, I had all night and a decent enough buzz to find the challenge more than intriguing.

  “Hold on,” I muttered, and I holstered my pistol. Then I unsheathed my sword and nodded. “Okay. Try to kill me.”

  The assassin shifted his weight, and I could see his confused expression beneath the shadows of his hood.

  “Come on,” I urged. “You’ve got a job to do, so get on with it. I’ll stick with the sword, too.”

  The cloaked man lunged at once.

  Then I countered his blows as we sparred between the tracks and the platform, and even though he was as skilled as Haragh with a blade, I knew I could hold my own against that and more. So, I studied his movements as I matched his abilities for now, but I didn’t have enough room to work with here if I wanted to wear him out.

  So, I kept him moving as much as possible as we neared another gap between the train cars, and as soon as I had a chance, I leapt over the hitch.

  The rocky hill on the other side of the tracks dropped at a steep incline toward the canal, and with a few outcroppings of boulders piled ten feet high, I knew it wouldn’t be long before the cloaked man was worn out.

  I just had to work every angle I could.

  I left wide openings while the man came after me with all he had, and I let him go out of his way thinking he had a kill shot. Within ten minutes of this, the assassin was breathing hard while he refused to let up, and I figured it was a good time to get to the point.

  “While I’ve got you here,” I led as I dodged another jab. “You mind telling me who hired you?”

  The man’s blade came within an inch of my thigh, but he didn’t respond.

  “You’re gonna kill me anyways,” I grunted. “Why not tell me?”

  “Won’t matter to a dead man,” the cloaked man growled, and he drove his blade at my sword arm.

  I flipped around and nearly caught him in the neck, though, and I made sure to miss as he failed to block me.

  “How much are they paying you?” I asked. “Must be a lot of you’re willing to come up against me.”

  The assassin snorted through a few more swipes. “You’re a cocky bastard, you know that?”

  “Occasionally,” I allowed, “but there’s actually a difference between being cocky and being better than your opponent.”

  That did it.

  The assassin lunged at me as he swung his sword with more intensity, and we pounded our way down the steep incline while I let him throw me off a few times so he wouldn’t ease up too soon.

  Twice he sent me rolling down the hill and nearly got me before I righted myself, and I was finally breaking a sweat as we neared the thirty-foot drop to the river below.

  “If you tell me who hired you,” I grunted as I dodged a swipe at my head, “I could probably pay you more. What’d they give you? A hundred gold?”

  The cloaked man knocked my sword from my hand, but I summoned it back and sliced him across the shin for good measure.

  “Two hundred?” I guessed.

  “Try eight,” the assassin growled, and he drove himself forward to lock me against an outcropping of boulders.

  “Shit,” I chuckled as I faked him out and got behind him. “I could pay you twice that.”

  The assassin bared his teeth as he tore his hood back, and I kept my sword at the ready while he circled me.

  “What do you say? Sixteen hundred gold for the name, and I’ll let you live.”

  “Think I’m for hire to just
anyone?” the cloaked man challenged in a gravelly voice, and he spat at my boots. “I wouldn’t out someone to a halfling fucker like you for anything.”

  “Not for anything?” I clarified as his words struck a nerve. “I doubt that. How about your own life?”

  Then I went at him like I was up against Big Guy instead of a mortal, and now that I wasn’t holding back, the man stumbled as I came after him with one unrelenting blow after another. I let my rune feed into my veins as the sound of our clashing blades rang out above the roaring of the river, and my vision tunneled when I caught a glimpse of fear in the man’s eyes.

  He did an admirable job of holding me off, but I still sliced him twice across each thigh, once on his free arm, and another time across his ribs before the man cried out and lost his footing.

  Then I delivered a last unforgiving slice across his ribs, and as he crashed to one knee, I finally let up and took a step back.

  Blood dripped from my blade as the man braced himself on the jagged rocks, and while he panted and strained to stand up again, I wiped the sweat from my face.

  “Still sure about that name?” I checked.

  The cloaked man locked eyes with me as he straightened up, and I could see his resolve waver for the briefest moment. Then he eyed my sword as he steadied his stance once more, and his lips twitched into a sneer.

  That one glimpse of fear was all I needed to know I could break him, though.

  So, I nodded. “If you insist.”

  The two of us charged at the same time, and I couldn’t help grinning as I found myself locked in a genuine duel with an impressive opponent for once. I had to keep reminding myself to ease back now and then, though, and I kept him on the fence as I let him get a couple jabs in before I’d drive him back again.

  Rocks slid under our boots while we fought along the steep incline like this for several minutes, but then I ducked his blade and forced him into the shadows of the trees beside us. The man barely held his own while we tripped through the undergrowth, but when he faked me out, he managed to splice the wrist of my sword arm open.