by Blink, Bob
“Link!” Rigo commanded. He had seen enough. Perhaps they could stop it by continual pounding, but he suspected they would need something stronger. He reached out and linked to the minds of those around him, allowing him to control a level of Brightfire far stronger than anything any one of them could release.
The creature was picking up speed again, and releasing his own deadly beams. One struck the Bypass arch, which flared and quickly disappeared. Linked, no one was in a position to create a new one just now. Then Rigo triggered a release of energy that made the very air crackle. The beam was blindingly bright, and it rocked the creature when it struck. That much energy could have taken down hundreds of Hoplani, but the creature still stood. At least it had slowed somewhat. Rigo fired again, and then a third time. After the third strike the creature stopped and stumbled. Rigo sent another beam that way, and finally it stumbled forward as its front legs gave from beneath it. Having seen the creature recover before, Rigo sent another pair of intense beams into the downed creature, and watched as the body suddenly began to burn with an odd colored fire.
“Those are going to be a problem,” Burke said dryly as he watched the unusual flames.
Rigo and his small band returned to the Outpost where they spread the word about what had been learned. Dismay was voiced by many, and several raised the immediate question, Will the barrier stop them? Rigo didn’t know. Daim didn’t know either. Rigo could sense he was as shocked as anyone by the resistance to the Brightfire. They would need to monitor them and see what happened when they encountered the barrier and even more, make sure the tunnel, hopefully there was only the single one, was closed off.
Jeen had found four openings on the eastern side of the barrier. Rigo’s team had found the five branches to the tunnel, but without walking down each one they couldn’t be certain they were the same ones as Jeen had found and why the fifth one didn’t reach the surface, or at least hadn’t been found. Time and danger decided the matter. It was imperative that the tunnel be blocked. They could continue the search for other openings and completely separate tunnels later, but the one they knew about had to be shut down.
Rigo’s team returned to the tunnel, this time working their way back to the west from the first split they had found in the underground passageway. Until that point, there had been only the one tunnel. They were well to the east of the barrier, so if they could block the tunnel somewhere along here with no access to the surface, which Rigo estimated was a considerable distance above them, then the corridor would be closed. No spot was perfect, but eventually they found a place that would work. Rigo marked five locations with bracelets, then they returned to the surface.
Standing well back, Rigo and four of the most powerful among them pumped the magical energy as Daim had instructed into the ground, aiming at the locations of the five bracelets.
“That’s good,” Rigo said, as Daim explained to him how they had placed the energy under the Rift so long ago. He then detonated the stored energy, feeling the ground rumble below them. They would give it a couple of glass, then carefully go down and have a look. With luck, this way was now closed. Rigo had already decided that he would enlist Nycoh later to help him build an underground barrier under the main barrier as well. That would test their ability to build their own. Fortunately the tunnel passed close to one of the towers from which they would have to tap energy. That would be something he’d need to review before they proceeded. He didn’t know what they would do if it had been far away. Another thing to investigate for the future.
That night they slept a little more soundly having verified that no more Hoplani would be coming through the tunnel. Thus far no others had been discovered, but the search would continue.
Epilogue
It took months to hunt down the thousands of Hoplani that made it past the towers before the barrier was successfully activated or had come through the underground corridor. However, with the tunnel closed, and no more found thus far, and with the barrier preventing further Hoplani from approaching the eastern borders, the wizards were now free of the constant duty of blocking their progress. Teams could be sent out to systematically hunt down the herds. The Patrols were invaluable as well. Augmented by thousands of men who lacked the verbal spelling ability, they were able to keep watch and alert the wizard teams when needed to come and deal with herds as they were located.
On two occasions the larger beasts had been seen interacting with the barrier. In both cases they had attempted to breach it. Unlike their smaller brethren, the barrier didn’t immediately disable or kill the larger creatures. If they persisted, and that seemed to be the pattern, a violent display of energy was observed, and the creature was slowly consumed as it tried to push through. None had made it, although the field of the barrier had flickered, and there were fears it might shut down. No one knew what would happen if two or three of the beasts attempted to pass through at the same time. They would have to wait and watch. At the same time, Rigo knew they needed to study the vulnerability of the creatures before they became common along the barrier.
At this point, all of the wizards at the Outpost had been given access to the full knowledge of magic. Rigo had seen to it they were given some special training to make them more conscious of the power they wielded, but they had earned the right to the full range of magic skills. Many had spread across the three kingdoms, returning to the villages where they had been born, able to openly display their abilities and use them to aid the growth of their homeland.
Jeen was established as the Royal Wizard of Branid. She was very close to Lady Mos’pera, the current Queen, and had her family at her side. Kaler and Daria had taken their share of the wealth Rigo had recovered from Daim’s hideaway, and were building a large facility outside of Pagner in Kellmore open to Wanderers and the many wayward children they encountered in their travels. Rigo visited them when possible, but it felt far too seldom. His own trip back to his old village of Daro had been less rewarding. In the time he’d been gone his adoptive father had passed. He had been the primary reason for Rigo’s return. The murder Rigo had been accused of had been solved. It had been the victim’s brother, not a real surprise. Rigo didn’t explain who or what he was, and his former brothers were not very eager to see him, so he’d left. He didn’t know yet if he would return. There seemed to be little point.
Of all his close friends, he saw Ash’urn most frequently. The scholar was building a course to train all wizards who were interested in the old languages. It was essential they study the texts in the Outpost’s library. One day, he hoped to have them all translated, but who knew how long that would take. Rigo knew there was more than magic waiting there. Technology had been much more advanced in Daim’s time. They would be able to rapidly advance the development of useful ideas once that storehouse was tapped.
Rigo paused in his reminiscing. There was still so much to do. They needed to build a new Citadel. The Elders would find satisfaction being in charge of that and all new wizards who were found. The work of the Wanderers was starting to pay off, and the ranks were growing nicely. Each new wizard needed to go through a more formal training much as they had done in Daim’s time. Too much power was in the hands of the gifted, and they needed to recognize their responsibilities. Rigo still worried about some of the early group, despite the special course he had run them through. In addition, all existing wizards needed to develop their skills and expand their understanding. They had come to their abilities too quickly. The towers stood, but other than Rigo and Nycoh, no one had a clue how they worked or how to build new ones if required. That must change. They needed to make an even stronger version.
The force of wizards needed to be grown for other reasons. Systematically, they searched for the Razmot, the flowers behind so much suffering. When found, they were eradicated with magical fire. Constant monitoring of the barrier was necessary. The towers had stood unpowered for so long, no one was sure how sound they were. The three kingdoms were temporarily at peace, but that co
uld easily change. Having three distinct rulers with different goals was something Daim hadn’t had to contend with. They could enforce the peace, but it would be easier with more of them.
Then there was a need to prepare – for what? Rigo wished he knew. Daim had left a couple of unsettling thoughts before he faded away in the weeks following their victory in the tunnels. The loss of the second voice in the back of his mind was felt more keenly than Rigo would have expected. Daim had become less distinct for some time, but then had dropped away completely very suddenly. The large beasts in the Ruins had never been seen in Daim’s time. Were they a mutation, or had they always existed? Were they something that resulted from the Rift? And how did they stop them. It had taken six wizards and repeated bursts of Brightfire to bring down just one. That wasn’t acceptable. Lots of questions, but no answers at the moment.
Rigo and a team had gone back to the Ruins in an attempt to locate another and test it against other forms of magic, but the strange beasts had completely disappeared. None could be found, although wandering herds of Hoplani were still present. Rigo suspected they had returned underground, where finding them would be difficult and extremely hazardous.
Finally, there was the matter of the crystals. The connection between the Hoplani, the crystals, and the Rift were still unknown. The brief study of the tunnel suggested it had been formed when the Rift was present, the openings to the surface appearing many years later and the ground had collapsed in places. Could the crystals somehow bring back the Rift? Another unknown. Rigo was painfully aware they were far less prepared than the wizards in Daim’s time for something like that. There was no immediate threat, yet …
He and Burke were making plans that would take them deep into the Ruins. That’s where the answers had to be. He could only hope they would be able to find them. Not for the first time he wished that Daim hadn’t faded away. He had the memories, but not the man’s insight.
Rigo suddenly realized it was getting dark. He had a date with Inge, and she didn’t appreciate his being late, exalted wizard or not. The search for answers would have to wait a little longer. For the moment, at least, matters were under control.
The End
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Bill Maggiora took the unchallenged lead as prime reviewer and critic for Ancient Magic. Reading installments of a couple dozen pages at a time, he was quick with input and suggestions for storyline as well as character development. Doug Burr and Connie Goshgarian, reviewers of my other books, once again provided much needed detailed review of the draft for both storyline and flubs.
The meticulous check of my grammar and spelling errors, which have proven time and time again to be invisible to the author, were provided by the above individuals in addition to Jean Wilson, Evelina Blink, and reader turned reviewer, Dianna Hunter.
While not every error was caught, given how many I manage to create, the six people noted above deserve a great deal of credit for making this a far better manuscript. My sincere thanks go to each of them.
Dedication
This book is for my wife, Evelina Blink. As requested, no firearms whatsoever.
Other books by the Author:
Timelines
The Second Compound
Wizard’s Blood [Part One]
Wizard’s Blood [Part Two]
Reversal
Split Creek
EndRun
Corrector
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locals, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright 2013 by Robert Blink
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.
Proof Release: July 2013
First Edition Release: August 2013
