The Magelands Box Set

by Christopher Mitchell

  Killop laughed. ‘I’ll save that for when she’s a bit older. Look.’ He nodded up at an inscription on the ceiling. ‘One mile to go. We’re nearly there.’

  The tunnel widened, and along each side a line of workshops and stores had been dug out of the rock. Traffic increased, with wagons parked in deep alcoves, and shoppers milling around on foot. In the centre, the road carried on, leading to a huge arched gateway in the distance, through which Daphne could glimpse daylight shining.

  ‘I can’t wait to see the sun again,’ she said, ‘but first, I’d like to stop here for a bit. I want to see if I can get any presents for my family. Things they wouldn’t be able to get in the Holdings.’

  Killop grimaced. ‘Sure.’

  He manoeuvred the wagon into a space in a nearby alcove, and brought the gaien to a halt.

  ‘Tell you what,’ he said. ‘Take your time shopping, and I’ll get an ale in that tavern we passed, and see if there’s any news from the Plateau.’

  She raised an eyebrow.

  ‘I’ll take Karalyn,’ he said.

  ‘Into a tavern? No, I’ll take her.’

  He jumped off the wagon and tied the reins to a post.

  ‘Are you sure you’ll be all right?’ he said. ‘Your leg’s not fully healed.’

  ‘I’ll be fine,’ she said. ‘I’ll take my crutch.’

  Killop frowned. He held his hand out for her to step down.

  ‘I’ll come shopping with you,’ he said, ‘but I’ll need an ale by the end of it.’

  ‘All right,’ she said, as she took his hand and lowered herself to the ground. She reached up and took hold of the crutch lying by the driver’s bench, and placed it under her right arm. Killop lifted Karalyn off the wagon and put her down on the ground.

  ‘Up, up,’ she said, stamping her feet.

  He sighed and picked her up again.

  They paid the guard watching the alcove, and headed out to the busy shops and bars lining the main road near the end of the tunnel.

  ‘How many are we buying for?’ he asked as they walked.

  ‘Mother, Father,’ she began, ‘Ariel and her children, Teddy and Lydia. And Jonah.’

  ‘He’s your brother, aye?’

  She glanced at him.

  ‘You don’t talk about him much,’ he said. ‘You’ve spoken about your father, and Ariel, and your older brother Vince in the army, but you never mention Jonah, or your mother.’

  Daphne frowned. ‘I idolised Vince when I was growing up. Ariel and Jonah were just mean to me all the time, although I was probably a horrible brat to them as well. Maybe it was because Vince was the eldest, that he saw me as the baby of the family, and protected me from the other two. It took me until I was an adult before I got on with Ariel, but I’ve not seen Jonah since I left home. My memories of him are of a great big bully, who hated me from the moment I developed battle-vision, and he had to stop pushing me around.’

  They stopped at a jewellery shop, and Daphne gazed through the glass window at the gold and silver on display.

  ‘And your mother?’ Killop said.

  ‘I haven’t communicated with her in five years,’ she said, her eyes scanning the necklaces and earrings. ‘Most of this stuff’s too expensive. I left a fortune back in the wagons with the clan. If Bridget finds it, she’ll be able to live like a queen when they get to Domm. And we didn’t find much money in Douanna’s luggage.’

  ‘We have enough supplies, but,’ he said. ‘At least we won’t starve.’

  She nodded. ‘Still, I don’t want to turn up empty-handed.’

  Killop frowned. ‘But you’re fleeing a civil war. It’s not like you’re returning home from a trip.’

  Daphne pictured her mother, standing at the entrance to their estate house in Hold Fast, frowning at her. She shuddered.

  ‘I could always look through Douanna’s things,’ she said. ‘She had a box of jewellery, and a few dresses. There’s bound to be something in there I could give as a present, at least to the women in the family. That still leaves Father, Jonah, Teddy and baby Lydia.’

  Killop nodded, but she could sense his impatience.

  ‘You go and get that ale,’ she said.

  ‘No, it’s fine.’

  ‘Go. Really, I’ll be all right. Karalyn seems happy to stay close to me. I’ll only be half an hour, we’ll come and get you.’

  He leant down and kissed Karalyn. ‘See you soon, wee bear.’

  Daphne watched as he headed for the tavern.

  ‘Dada no like shopping,’ Karalyn said.

  ‘I don’t think there are any shops in Kellach Brigdomin, Kara-bear.’

  ‘Dada like ale.’

  She lit a cigarette. ‘Yes, but so does mama.’ She scanned the line of shops, pondering what to get her father. She saw a store selling ornately carved hip flasks. ‘Come on, Kara-bear. Let’s get granddad a present.’

  Forty minutes later, Daphne emerged from a shop on her crutch, a bag bulging with purchases slung over her shoulder. Karalyn walked by her side, clutching a wrapped box to her chest. The traffic on the road was busier, with Rahain, Holdings, and a few Kellach mixing in the cavern. Imperial soldiers stood around, looking bored or chatting to people in the street.

  A Rahain woman yelled to her right, and Daphne glanced over. It was a news-teller.

  ‘This way, Kara-bear,’ Daphne said, and led the girl over to where the Rahain woman was stepping up onto a crate. A small crowd was gathering as the woman began to speak.

  ‘Listen all, listen to the words I have to tell. Listen to my words.’

  She waited as the crowd grew a little larger. Daphne took Karalyn’s hand in the press of people.

  ‘Let it be told that this day, the seventh of the last third of winter, the blessed Emperor and saviour has proclaimed a universal day of celebration across the empire, to be held this New Year’s Day, to commemorate his glorious victory over the Sanang rebel hordes.’

  ‘This is old news,’ someone shouted. ‘You’ve been telling us this for days.’

  The woman frowned.

  ‘Shall I tell you of the destruction of the vile horde? Or the tale of the fall of the fire mage?’

  The crowd started to drift away.

  ‘We’ve heard all this shit before,’ someone else said as they wandered back into the busy street.

  ‘I’d quite like to hear it,’ Daphne said.

  The Rahain woman’s eyes lit up. She raised her hands.

  ‘At dawn that fateful day, the malevolent mage had sent her slavering hordes of bloodthirsty warriors to encircle the high walls of the fair capital. For hours, she bombarded the holy city, hurling fireballs onto the terrified citizens…’

  ‘Skip to the end,’ Daphne said. ‘What happened to the fire mage?’

  The woman frowned. ‘She fell.’

  Daphne sighed. ‘A little more detail. Please.’

  ‘After the Emperor-Saviour had ascended the walls,’ the woman went on, ‘he wrought blessed destruction upon the enemy ranks with fire and slaughter, and a whirlwind of power that left the invaders bereft of their heads…’

  ‘Wait,’ Daphne said. ‘Who was doing this, the Emperor?’

  ‘Indeed, young lady,’ the woman said, ‘the Emperor, who, after being bestowed every mage power by the holy Creator, turned his hand to the annihilation of the bestial Sanang. The fire mage was forced to stand and watch as her army was wiped from the face of the earth. Only then did the Emperor strike her down.’

  ‘She’s dead?’

  ‘The crows have picked her flesh.’

  Daphne glanced across the street to where the tavern was located. She squeezed Karalyn’s hand, and walked away from the news-teller without a word. She crossed the busy road, dodging the heavy wagons passing north towards the Plateau. She pulled on a thread of battle-vision, and her hearing picked up the sounds of a brawl.

  ‘Stay behind me, Kara-bear,’ she said as she approached the door to the tavern. She pushed it open and walked i
nside.

  Killop was facing a group of Kellach, brandishing a table leg in his right hand. The rest of the tavern had cleared a space around them amid toppled tables and broken glass.

  ‘That cow was no fucking goddess,’ shouted a tall Kellach woman. ‘She was a fucking traitor.’

  ‘Come here and say that,’ Killop cried. ‘And the same goes for the rest of you. I’ll end the next bastard that says a fucking word against Keira.’

  Daphne sized up the group facing Killop. Nine large Kellach.

  ‘She’s dead,’ shouted one of them. ‘Now, that’s the fucking truth.’

  Killop said nothing.

  ‘The Emperor killed her,’ yelled another.

  The rage in Killop’s eyes boiled over and he tensed, ready to spring.

  Daphne raced forward. As she pulled on her battle-vision, she felt a surge of raw emotions coming from Karalyn, directed at the Kellach facing Killop.

  The nine men and women staggered, clasping their heads, then collapsed to the floor of the tavern. Someone screamed.

  Daphne stared at the bodies. ‘They’re only sleeping,’ she cried. ‘Look, their chests are moving. They’ll be fine.’

  She glanced at Killop, her eyes wide.

  He dropped the table leg.

  ‘Come on,’ she said. ‘Let’s go.’

  He turned and walked out of the tavern, and she followed him, leading Karalyn by the hand.

  Killop said nothing for the next few hours. They got back into their wagon, passed through the great gate, and emerged into the afternoon sunshine of the southern Plateau. They descended the ramp to the valley floor, and set off along the road to Rainsby.

  It was warmer, Daphne noticed. Even though it was still winter, the wind lacked the bite she had felt in Rahain. By the end of spring they should be arriving in the Holdings, and she wondered how Killop would cope on the Hold Fast estate in the middle of summer, when even her family felt the heat. She glanced at him. His hands were gripping the reins, and he had an unapproachable frown on his face.

  Daphne turned, and she caught sight of the white stallion, tethered to the left side of the wagon.

  She smiled. He would be a fine horse to bring home, one that wouldn’t look out of place next to her father’s thoroughbreds. Maybe she should take him for a ride. He could stretch his legs and run free for a while.

  ‘What can Karalyn eat?’ said the little girl sitting next to her.

  ‘We’ll have dinner when we stop,’ Daphne said. ‘You’ll have to wait till then, little bear.’

  ‘Wee bear,’ she scowled. ‘Dada, what can Karalyn eat?’

  Killop didn’t respond, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

  ‘We need to talk,’ said Daphne.

  He turned. ‘What?’

  ‘Killop,’ she said, ‘we need to talk.’

  He said nothing.

  ‘I’m sorry about Keira,’ she said. ‘I don’t know what she did, but whatever it was she was still your sister. I know how I’d feel if something happened to Ariel, and you and Keira were a lot closer.’

  She watched him fight back tears as he stared ahead.

  ‘Your twin,’ she said.

  ‘Enough,’ he said, his voice breaking. ‘I don’t want to talk about it right now. She was supposed to be the goddess that would save us all.’

  He began weeping. He clenched his eyes shut as tears rolled down his cheeks. Karalyn patted him on the arm.

  ‘There there, dada,’ she said.

  He smiled amid his tears, and put his arm around his daughter. He wiped his face with his hand.

  ‘It can’t be true,’ he said. ‘Kalayne was never wrong. Remember when I thought you were dead? That was a lie, this might be too. All we’ve heard is the propaganda of a news-teller and a few drunken Kellach.’

  ‘All the same,’ Daphne said, ‘I think you should prepare yourself for the worst.’

  He nodded. ‘I’m prepared, but I’m not giving up hope.’

  ‘I understand,’ she said. ‘Do you know how she ended up leading an army of Sanang?’

  ‘No, but it doesn’t surprise me. The way I heard it she was trying to bring down the Emperor.’

  ‘Yes, but she was too late, and now it seems that Guilliam has mage powers of his own. Apparently he wiped out the Sanang invasion force single-handed.’

  ‘Or it’s just more propaganda,’ he said. ‘Who knows the truth?’

  ‘If I had to guess I’d say Kalayne,’ Daphne said. ‘I wonder if he’s still in Plateau City. With his powers he probably has a fair idea of what’s going on.’

  Killop nodded down at their daughter.

  ‘She has the same powers,’ he said. ‘Sooner or later she’ll see the Creator’s thoughts again.’

  ‘I want to be there when she does.’

  ‘Me too.’

  Daphne glanced over at Killop. ‘If she really does have the same powers as Kalayne, then at some point she’s going to look into our eyes, and be able to see our futures, and catch glimpses of things that haven’t happened yet.’

  Killop frowned. ‘Maybe she can do it already. Maybe it seems normal to her, and she’s never thought it worth mentioning. Or maybe she doesn’t understand what she’s seeing.’

  Daphne blinked, and gazed down at Karalyn, who was sitting holding her toy wooden horse, making it gallop across her lap. Could it be true?

  ‘Kara-bear,’ she said.

  ‘Aye, mama?’ the little girl said, looking up.

  ‘Do you know what’s going to happen later?’

  ‘Dinner? Karalyn eat biscuits.’

  Daphne laughed. ‘Yes, you can have a biscuit later, when we stop.’

  She caught Killop’s eye, and he shrugged.

  Daphne looked back at her daughter, an idea forming in her mind.

  ‘Count to twenty,’ she said to Killop, ‘then distract her. Make her look at you.’

  She drew on her inner-vision, and entered Karalyn’s mind, but kept herself hidden, so that the girl was unaware she was there. Daphne looked out of her daughter’s eyes as they danced over the horse on her knees.

  Killop coughed. ‘Wee bear.’

  Karalyn looked up into her father’s brown eyes, and Daphne pushed her power out from the girl and into his mind. She felt dizzy, and focussed her strength as she felt her daughter’s power fill Killop’s head. She gazed out through Killop’s eyes.

  What she beheld was not the wagon rolling down the road towards Rainsby, but instead she was looking out upon an endless plain of long grass, with no hills or mountains in sight. The sun was shining overhead in a cloudless blue sky. In the distance a large estate house was burning. Smoke was tumbling up in thick waves, and the high flames were visible from where Killop was standing. Next to him was a man, dressed in black. He turned his face.

  Daphne snapped back to her own mind, and fell to her knees by the driver’s bench. She held onto her stomach, and vomited over the side of the wagon. She felt the gaien judder to a halt as Killop pulled on the reins. He put his arm round her shoulder.

  ‘Are you all right?’ he said. ‘What happened?’

  She wiped her mouth and groaned. Killop helped her sit and reached for a skin of water.

  She gulped down a mouthful.

  ‘I tried something,’ she said. ‘Killop, she can do it. She can see the future. I saw a glimpse of yours.’

  He frowned. ‘Do I want to know?’

  ‘You were in the Holdings,’ she said, staring north into the horizon. ‘I just watched my home burn.’

  ‘Hold Fast?’

  She nodded.

  The afternoon was fading into evening, and the wind grew colder.

  ‘One more thing,’ she said, turning to him. ‘Someone else was there with you.’

  ‘Who?’

  ‘Kylon.’

  Killop snapped the reins, and the gaien began lumbering down the road towards Rainsby. The sky beyond the river to their left was streaked with red, as the sun set behind the snow-tipped m
ountains in the distance.

  Sacrifice

  BOOK FOUR

  Dramatis Personae

  Holdings

  Daphne HoldFast, Vision Mage

  Karalyn Holdfast, Daphne's daughter

  Godfrey Holder Fast, Daphne's father

  Lady Rosalind Holdfast, Daphne's mother

  Jonah Holdfast, Daphne's brother

  Celine Holdfast, Daphne's sister-in-law

  Ariel Holdwick, Daphne's sister

  Faden Holdwick, Ariel's husband

  Teddy Holdwick, Ariel's son

  Lydia Holdwick, Ariel's daughter

  Emperor Guilliam, Holder of the World

  Mirren Blackhold, Queen of the Realm

  Prior, Imperial Chamberlain

  Arnault, Lord Vicar to the Prophet

  Yosin, Deacon and leader of the One True Path

  Chane Hold Clement, former advisor to Agang

  Weir, former cavalry trooper

  Flora Hold Cane, friend of the Fire Mage

  Ghorley, Governor of Rahain

  Sanang

  Agang Garo, ex-King of Sanang

  Echtang Gabo, Agang's nephew

  Hodang Tipoe, Agang's Chief Minister

  Rahain

  Laodoc, ex-Chancellor of Rahain

  Baoryn, Renegade

  Kellach Brigdomin

  Keira ae Caela, Mage of Pyre

  Killop ae Kellan, ex-Chief of the Severed Clan

  Kylon, Fugitive

  Conal, Freed slave

  Kallie, Returning refugee

  Kelpie ae Kylanna, Former leader of Kell

  Kendrie, Former warrior

  Bay, Keira-fan

  Bridget, Chief of the Severed Clan

  Bedig, Bridget’s Boyfriend

  Bonnie, Hunter

  Brodie, Head Brewer, Severed Clan

  Brynt, Severed Clan leader

  Lola, Hunter

  Draewyn, Severed Clan leader

  Dyam, Severed Clan leader

  Dean, Young Fire Mage

  Dora, Keira-fan