To face a legend, there would be another with him, but Gerid had been beaten once. It was time for him to have a best of three, since the giant had helped defeat the Dark One in his old world. The immortal needed to win this one. There was no void to send him which could trap the monster and his people. Magic and swords would be his end, if they could help it. He would die this time. They needed him to die and their hopes rested on it.
The owl slipped away as the talk died down. He would find Ashleen and spend what time he could with her before the final battles began.
Chapter 31- Through the Gate
Palose exited the portal after using the ties to his combat unit. The magic used in his wraiths and the more basic soldiers would have been enough, but the dark mage could feel Oween and Nalack as well. Just like he could find Dorgred on the southern coast of Southwall, if he wished to find the man; Palose could also find any of those he had raised.
His magic was in them, and thanks to the link, their power was a part of him also. He had taken Wendle to his gate point furthest to the west. Sebastian had never found that one in Falcon's Keep. A set of stones with Wendle's magic had been sent near the end of winter as the dark mage realized that holding onto men with different purposes in their lives would eventually end up in having one side or the other hating each other.
The Kardorian, like Dorgred, had performed as he had been asked and it was best to let them go. Palose had gained what he needed as well. Atrouseon was dead and he was safe from that source of jealousy and paranoia. His tie to both wizards had elevated his strength and no distance from them would change that link. Somehow they remained tied in their magic no matter the barriers between them. Perhaps the magic inside the soil of Alus tied all magic users together? Only those that were tied through necromancy spells appeared capable of sharing it, but maybe someone like Sebastian would figure that out one day, Palose thought sarcastically of the man he considered a rival. It would wind up being the mizard, just to make him feel more inferior to that man. The world seemed to like doing that to him.
His ego was still hurting from the casual dismissal from Sebastian weeks ago. He had sensed the man's magic, but it had felt much stronger and yet out of balance at the same time. If he was lucky, whatever was wrong in the battle mage would kill him. It would save him the effort that was for sure.
"You look miserable," Oween's feminine voice said from his left. The woman had been the tie he had linked closest to with his portal. "Did something else happen to you?"
He had been to the front several times since the incident in Ensolus. 'Incident', that was too gentle a word for whatever Sebastian's foolhardy attack really was. It wasn't like the man to give himself away so blatantly. Some spies had been freed, he supposed, but could that have been his only intent? That portal wizard they had captured was gone also. His knowledge might have been easier to obtain than the spies who he found had been kept for up to two weeks without giving up any of their cell. More had been found, though no one believed that they had them all. Raising the alarm in the city too loudly would likely only incite a panic; so it had been passed through the military to keep an eye out for anyone suspicious, though that was nothing really new either.
Oween knew, at least to a point, about the run in with the mizard; but Palose hadn't told anyone just how one sided the encounter had been.
Looking towards the battlefield, the mage could hear the sounds of combat echoing from one side of the valley to the other. He used it as the pretense to avoid answering her question truthfully, saying, "The enemy has suddenly gotten a back bone and begun to put up a fight. That should bring a frown to anyone's face. We've even lost some ground along the front line in places."
"We haven't lost any ground here," the warlock stated and he noticed a slight smile on her lips. "Nalack and I do have a potential bright side to the renewed battles for you. You should come to the command tent, Palose."
Before he could decide whether to follow the girlish warlock, Nalack and his wraiths hurried to greet their leader.
Nalack asked Oween, "Did you tell him already?"
Palose held his tongue. Being free with the fact that he wasn't sure what the man was talking about would only give Oween a chance to weasel around what he knew or let the other warlock know of his ignorance. Palose didn't like looking stupid in front of others and continued to adopt his silence as he watched for signs from other people. It was his hope that he would appear wiser in front of the others as their leader.
Oween shook her head and replied, "No, I was just starting to take him to the tent in the hopes of cheering him up."
Her physical transformation wasn't the only thing that had happened to Oween thanks to his playing around with the resurrection spell's runes. Though he hadn't known her that well in life before making her a wraith temporarily, Oween had lapsed into a more youthful outlook on things. Her attempt to be intimate with him thanks to her new age and looks was only part of it.
At least, the warlock had found it easy to fit in with Sylvaine and the other young women in his house. She had even gone with her to Ensolus' library to do research and add to the apprentice's knowledge for the first time since she had died. No one had ever said anything there about either girl as far as he knew, but perhaps it was because Kolban seemed to not care about the small circle he had raised around him.
Nalack hadn't seemed to change at all. He was older and continued to act that way, though the man appeared ready to follow Palose as his leader as he had told him that he would before the change from wraith to resurrected.
Raising her hand to the men, Oween prevented them from telling him what she wanted him to see and even took his hand to draw him after her. The three men followed. He thought the wraiths were actually amused by the girl's behavior, but Nalack appeared to want to tell him whatever it was even so. The man managed to give in and held his tongue until they arrived in the tent.
Opening the flaps, cold air reacted with the warmer temperature of the southern island letting him know that the warlocks had used spells on the tent also.
Two men and a woman lay stiff and still on a canvas drop cloth. They were dead, but were in good condition from the looks of them. Even minor damage could be repaired from the resurrection spell and as long as the brain and spine were intact they could become wraiths.
"A fight happened and these three were among those caught in an air spell that killed dozens," Oween stated still looking happy with herself for showing the dark mage their find. "Tongold and Balish got them out for us before they could even be trampled. We thought that maybe you could use them. I knew Piera pretty well. I helped teach her some of her magic for a time."
She spoke of the young looking female. Palose thought her small and young enough to be a novice in age, but her pointed ears indicated that she was at least part elven. Her race was hard to read for their ages and the smaller of the two dead men had similar ears. Oween pointed to the man in turn saying, "Halarn was her cousin. He's twice her age and was always protective of the girl. Her family never wanted her to join the warlocks, but Halarn always managed to be near her side. That was for the worst here."
"What kind of air spell kills so cleanly?" Palose asked examining the three closer. They looked like they were sleeping though all three were paler than would look healthy.
"Poison gas," Nalack stated grimly.
The answer made the dark mage look at the warlock curiously. "Poison gas, I didn't think that Southwall wizards used spells like that. It is war, but I haven't heard of someone using that kind of magic recently."
Oween sighed and revealed, "It wasn't the enemy. One of the wizard hunter warlocks decided to stop an onrushing wave of soldiers. They had pushed our forces back, but the idiot didn't take the wind into account."
"His spell had no guidance," Nalack confirmed, "and it turned back from the hill into our people. It did stop the enemy from advancing, but only because they stood uphill watching our people die."
The man's voi
ce was certainly bitter, though Palose wondered if it was because of their losses or the incompetent use of the spell.
Continuing on, the older warlock added, "Mardred would be a good addition as either a wraith or resurrected. He was well known for his combat magic. You might even be impressed by his skills with weapons."
Three more warlocks that he could add to his circle or keep around for their magic as wraiths, Palose would start them like the other two and see what they were like. Adding warlocks that wouldn't be grateful or willing additions weren't worth wasting his time. A wraith could work just as well as bringing them back to life and he could control them as much as he needed to do.
"Keep them ready for me," the dark mage stated as he stood from the three dead in his command tent. "I didn't come here for this and have to find Prince Lanquer," he said using the boy's title.
Kolban hadn't made him use their titles, especially since he wasn't required to with the emperor. Lanquer was an inferior model besides and originally just destined to be a bodyguard for Kolban, but he had saved his brother's life gaining his respect. That had led to new positions of leadership in the army. Now his brother needed him to return home. Why, the mage wasn't sure, but he had a feeling that Narissa's readings were behind it for some reason.
Exiting the tent, Nalack reset his cooling spell. As long as the flaps remained down, the magic would keep the bodies refrigerated. Oween joined him and said, "Last I saw, his command was on the other side of that hill. The enemy gave it a push there too, but I don't think that they got anywhere with the prince there to stop them."
She actually sounded impressed. Lanquer knew magic, but wasn't adept at it like his sister and brother. For some reason, the power inside of him wasn't as easy for him to use. It was why Palose had been asked to train him as a battle mage. Using the quick spells, the prince had found more potential as a bodyguard than when he was trying to cast magic like the emperor.
"Keep an eye on the platoon," he said to the warlocks before adding, "Balish, Tongold, follow me."
Oween and Nalack looked surprised, but the warlock did need to remain near his spell to keep the bodies from ripening. The girl with the strawberry blonde hair looked ready to pout for a moment before turning to check on the less formed souls guarding the base of the hill.
Leading the two wraiths, Palose received the attention he wanted by bringing them with him. Their glowing red eyes sent lesser men scurrying out of his way. His wraiths had gained a reputation on the field as had his lesser soldiers. Few used necromancy to the degree the dark mage did; so the frightening abilities of troops that could no longer be killed, but had to be hacked apart to be destroyed, stood out that much more.
Passing over the hill to the south, the mage stopped for a moment to observe the devastation that had occurred. The enemy had attacked and pushed their forces to the base of the hill where bodies were now stacked up like cords of wood. Magic could be felt in their bones radiating so strongly anyone with any magical sense could feel it. This was where the poison gas had pooled killing the emperor's own troops. He wondered what had happened to the fool who had cast the spell after the debacle.
Nearing the next major camp, Lanquer's exceptional aura became quite noticeable and Palose wondered if the boy was doing it intentionally. He had been taught to restrain his aura, but the prince didn't seem to care. Knowing that his power was only equaled by a few men from the wizard hunters, lords that led the army; Lanquer might have been baiting Southwall's wizards to come and test him.
Guards stood in front of the large tent. It was much larger than his and Palose knew that it even had gold plated shafts holding up the high grade fabric inside. The interior was furnished as well as the other generals of the army, maybe better; but it was also something that other men found to dislike about the boy. He was a prince, but no one knew how he had come to be. Both he and Acheri had suddenly appeared and were proclaimed the emperor's siblings.
It bothered many who had served Kolban for decades.
He held up a letter marked with the emperor's seal and said, "If Lanquer is in there, I have a message from the emperor for him."
The two closest men looked a bit surprised, but the dark mage had been in the company of the prince off and on in the field so he was well known to them. Letting the dark mage enter, Palose called to the men gathered around his target and said, "Lanquer, Kolban sent me to give you this."
He knew the contents of the letter. Kolban had told him and given him instructions on the actions that Lanquer might choose. If he followed the letter, the prince was supposed to join the dark mage and return home immediately. If he didn't, Palose was supposed to make him return anyway.
Looking at the power radiating from the young prince as he opened the letter, the dark mage wasn't sure that he truly could make Lanquer do as the letter said, if he didn't want to go. He had taught the boy almost everything he knew for fighting, but their strength in magic was quite different.
After reading the note, the prince asked, "Do you know why he is summoning me, Palose?"
"I can only guess," he admitted. "Ever since that seer arrived, he has been acting oddly for him."
Frowning, Lanquer stated, "I haven't really seen her yet. When I returned home last time, he hid her from me; or at least it seemed that way.
"All I really know is that she is very pretty. Has my brother let his heart, or whatever part is at fault, choose her to follow instead of his own path?"
"I don't think it is like that," Palose said with a shrug. "He had some questions awhile back and I think that she answered them. I just don't know if her answers are a bad influence on him."
Remembering the lieutenants in the tent, Lanquer sent them outside while he spoke with Palose alone.
"Aside from this note, do you know anything about why he would send for me now? The enemy has been trying to push us back with new reinforcements for days now and in some places they have succeeded. I have heard talk that mar'goyn'lya and more flyers have appeared in the field."
Palose had heard that as well, though he had been in Ensolus part of the time. Kolban had been giving him more orders to follow, some of which made little sense, but were intended for the future in case certain things happened. With a seer in the mix, the dark mage wondered what unsettling things the two had seen to make someone as powerful as the emperor in his virtually unbreakable city so nervous.
Perhaps it was the intrusions from Sebastian. He had withheld the news from Kolban that the mage had infiltrated through his home gate, but had also tried to search for the man often. The latest capture of the wizard using a gate that he had discovered shortly after Sebastian had made it had spurred him to warn them finally. Leaving the emperor's knowledge a few months behind would be on him.
"If he is sending for you, I am sure that it is important. Maybe he is just rattled by the recent invasion of his dungeons?" Palose suggested and had a feeling that it was part of it based off his recent instructions.
"My brother doesn't get rattled," the prince stated with a frown, "but you are right. He always has a reason for doing things, even making my sister and me."
"If you are ready to go, I can make the gate for you," the mage replied sensing the conversation nearing its end. He also had other things to do including making a new set of wraiths apparently. With two of his wizards in Southwall and two more here fighting Kolban's war, his home felt both empty and vulnerable. The three girls were the only ones left to watch over it now.
"Give me a few minutes to pass along orders to my men," Lanquer said moving past Palose to call his lieutenants back again.
It would only take a few minutes for the prince to ready his troops before his departure and then the two men were gone from Litsarin once more.
Sebastian had returned from his last trip to Ensolus before they would attempt the attack. For many, it was what they called the final attack; but should they fail the mage had no doubt that they would try again. Even if they succeeded in destroying
the emperor, the empire wasn't just one city or man. They knew of at least five more fortress cities governing other territory throughout the Dragon's Spine Mountains all the way to the western front near the Aderan River. The river was the edge of territory still held onto by Kardor where their war had continued as skirmishes for most of the last two hundred years.
It made the remaining empire about as large as Southwall without even including most of Litsarin being under their command. That was too much land and people to believe that someone wouldn't try to take over his rule; but without the Dark One Southwall and its allies would have a better chance of driving them back and defeating them all one day.
"There you are," a familiar voice called out drawing the mage's attention.
Sebastian looked at a tall blonde haired wizard dressed in red gear. "Hello, Magnus," he replied unsure of where this greeting might take him.
The fire wizard was followed by both wizards and mages including a falconi in her black uniform. Most were well known to him as he had joined with the dragon mages to fight several times already in the conflict over Litsarin. Ten new flyers had been added to their number since the start of their use, but that number would grow slowly as they found more people capable of both the magic and flying. Flight wasn't something everyone could handle. The fear of falling from a great height was often too great to overcome.
"Don't sound so happy to see me, Bas, especially since we're leaving a perfectly good battlefield to enter the dragon's mouth," Magnus said with a shake of his head and a smirk. With their history, and rivalry in the fire wizard's mind, Sebastian always found meetings with the fire wizard a bit worrisome to say the least. Still their relationship was less antagonistic than it had been as students at White Hall.
Battle Mage Visions (A Tale of Alus Book 12) Page 45
