Loyalty and War

by Devon Vesper

  “We’ll do that later,” Valis promised. “Right now, let’s finish this fight.”

  Tavros’s laugh bolstered Valis’s heart. They could do this. He knew they could.

  Valis felt a shift in the air and tensed. Isophel was gathering magic for some kind of giant spell the likes of which Valis had never dreamed. He could see it forming in his mind. That much magic could devastate him. Could he even absorb that much magic at once?

  He braced for impact, widening his shield to the full width of the arena so her magic would disperse across it. It would, hopefully, absorb and filter the magic into his reserves gradually instead of exploding into him.

  It didn’t work out that way.

  The ball of pure, uncontrolled magic hit his shields, and Valis’s vision whited out. He fought to keep the stream to Tavros going. The only thing saving them was the permanence to Valis’s shield and the fact that he’d broken it off in case he was knocked unconscious.

  “Valis!”

  “I’m okay,” Valis croaked. “Keep fighting.”

  It took long, painful minutes for Valis to regain his sight. His entire body felt like he’d been struck by lightning. He felt burned, but his skin seemed whole. His mind slowly came back to him. His blurred vision slowly cleared.

  He couldn’t take another blast like that. If he did, he’d be a liability to Tavros.

  “I have an idea,” Valis whispered. His voice was so hoarse that he could barely even do that. “Keep them focused on you. And don’t freak out.”

  He gritted his teeth but nodded. “Got it.”

  Tavros’s trust humbled Valis. He would reward that trust by ending this soon.

  Using a trick he had used before in training, Valis drew on his black magic and made it invisible. He spread it across the arena floor in front of him, under the Grand Master Aesriphos’ boots. It shimmered to his own sight, letting him know it was in place, even though he could feel it.

  With a breath, he lifted it up violently. The women both let out shrieks of surprise as they hit the ceiling. Then Valis jerked them forward as that mist of black magic curled around their shields and tossed them to the left-hand arena wall. Then did it again, smacking them against the right. Another violent thrust, and they bounced off the ceiling again, landing hard on the floor.

  Then, with a thought, Valis disappeared. He formed another shield around just himself, keeping it invisible. But this time, he made himself invisible.

  The moment he winked out of sight, Tavros let out a startled cry. Valis placed a hand on his arm and squeezed, letting him know that he hadn’t gone anywhere. And then, he phased.

  He ended up behind Isophel and used a concussive blast to knock both women against their shield. He pummeled them so hard and fast with concussive blasts and mage bolts that they couldn’t tell where they were coming from and had no defense.

  Their shield shattered when he knocked Ephala unconscious with a concussive blast directly to her head. Isophel screeched and tried to find him, her fists swinging, knowing that he had to be there somewhere. But every time she got close, Valis would phase away, always behind her.

  He caught her in the back of the head with a concussive blast that sent her face-first into the back wall, and she crumpled to the floor in a bloody heap.

  When Tavros cast the stasis spell, Valis fell to his knees and drew the shields back into himself, reappearing to Tavros.

  “Valis?”

  “Exhausted.”

  “Me, too. Use your magic to do what you did before, love.” He came up behind him and squeezed Valis’s shoulders. “You did well. I never… I never thought I would see this… or be here. Valis… We bested the fucking Grand Master Aesriphos!”

  Valis lolled his head back and rested it against Tavros’s abdomen. “We did. Now, let’s get these ladies back to the temple.”

  Tavros constructed the magical litter and Valis carefully levitated the women onto it. Both dragged their feet as they headed through the halls and ascended the stairs, followed by several gawping Aesriphos who had happened by to stop and watch the battle. Brother Bachris was also there, and when they passed him, he was whiter than his uniform.

  “Boys…”

  “Not now, Brother,” Valis mumbled. “Too tired for that shit.”

  Once they made it to the temple, Valis lowered the litter and removed the stasis spell from both women, drawing the magic back into himself. He set about healing their wounds while he waited for them to wake on their own. Then sat back on his ass and closed his eyes.

  Tavros collapsed next to him. At the same time, they leaned against each other, holding each other up as the Aesriphos who had followed them laughed.

  It took a few minutes, but after Valis rested a bit, he poured magic into them both, reducing their fatigue until Valis no longer felt like passing out. Then he stood and helped his husband up, hauling him to his feet with a grunt.

  “Boys…”

  “I really don’t want to hear it, Brother Bachris,” Valis said. He turned to face off against the man, who gave him a frosty stare. “I have earned the right to go after my father. And you will no longer stop me.”

  “Valis, you must see reason! Please!”

  Valis sighed. “I do see reason. I see every reason to rescue my father from sitting in his own filth. I see reason to rescue him from freezing and starvation and pain and fatigue. I see every reason to rescue him from impending death.” He glared at Brother Bachris. “Now, it’s time for you to see reason.”

  “See here, young man!” Brother Bachris rose to his full height and stormed toward him, his forefinger wagging like he was scolding an unruly child. “You—”

  “That is enough, Brother Bachris.” Valis whirled around toward the reliquary doors as Thyran threw them open. The reliquary guards stationed to either side barely caught them in time to keep their faces safe. “That is quite enough.”

  “Stay out of this, historian,” Brother Bachris hissed. “This does not concern you.”

  “On the contrary,” Thyran said in a calm, authoritative tone. “Anything and everything in this monastery is my concern.”

  “I fail to see how.”

  “You will hold your tongue, Brother.”

  Brother Bachris gasped as Kyris Yavih swept out of the reliquary behind Thyran. “Sovereign Priest!”

  “Thyran is my superior, Brother Bachris,” Kyris said. She gave him a chilly smile. “You will stand down.”

  “But—”

  Thyran folded his hands before him. “I am now, and have been since Sovras’s ascent, the August Patriarch of this monastery and our faith. Kyris and all Sovereign Priests before her have been tasked with keeping my secret, to keep me safe so that the monastery would never fall.”

  He waved a hand to Isophel and Ephala. “The only others who knew are my reliquary guards and the Grand Master Aesriphos. I am the reason we have reliquary guards.”

  Brother Bachris blinked at him stupidly for a moment. Then his face flushed with embarrassment. “I am… I am so very sorry, Aug—August Patriarch.”

  Thyran ignored him for the moment and focused on Valis. “As you have bested my Grand Masters, Valis and Tavros, that means you have taken their ranks. As such, they will stand in your place while you go on your mission.”

  Valis gasped. “Truly? Thyran… Thank you.”

  The August Patriarch gave him his usual grin, dropping the formality. “My boy, you have truly surpassed all my expectations.”

  “Why didn’t you tell Brother Bachris or even the Grand Master Aesriphos to allow the sanction when this began?” Tavros demanded. “You’ve made him suffer so—”

  Thyran lifted a hand and gave him a sheepish smile. “Because I had a vision.” He motioned to Isophel and Ephala. “This… needed to come to pass before Valis went on his mission, and if I had interfered in any way, it would not have. I am the one who told them to humor Brother Bachris’s demands to reject your mission request due to that vision. They were under my ord
ers.”

  He walked over, gripping Valis and Tavros’s shoulders, looking from one man to the other. “I truly am sorry for the heartache, sorrow and confusion. But, in some cases, I must let matters play out as they will so that the greater good can be accomplished. The fact that I can do this, that I can set my heart aside to listen to Sovras’s wishes through my visions, is precisely why Sovras made me his August Patriarch.” He frowned. “It is, indeed, not an easy position to bear. Especially when I care for someone so much and must watch them hurt to ensure the proper outcome comes to pass.”

  Valis stepped forward and hugged him. “It was worth it,” he whispered. “Now that I know… it was worth it.”

  Thyran squeezed him tight and patted the back of his head. “I hope so.”

  Isophel groaned from the floor and when Valis turned to look at her, he pulled away and went to her side to help her sit up. “How do you feel? I tried to heal all your injuries.”

  “Little rat bastard,” she grumbled. “Just bruised pride. I’ll get over it, you shit.”

  Chuckling, Valis took a moment to rouse Ephala and help her up as well.

  “So, you managed to beat us,” Ephala said. “Interesting.” She looked over at Isophel and grinned. “We finally get a vacation.”

  “Not quite yet,” Thyran mused. “You are acting Grand Master Aesriphos in Valis’s stead. You did promise him that if he bested you two, he would have his mission sanctioned and be afforded the men and women he needs to succeed.”

  Isophel grunted and stood, helping her lover up. “Yeah. I did say that, didn’t I? Well… vacation can wait, I suppose.” She looked at Valis and gave him a nod. “You did well, lad. Underhanded and dirty as fuck, but you did well.”

  “But—”

  Valis looked over at Brother Bachris and frowned when he saw tears in the priest’s eyes.

  “No…” He blinked the tears away as his chin shivered. “You can’t go,” he whispered. “No…”

  Thyran stepped over and rested his hand on Brother Bachris’s shoulder. “Have some faith in him. He is stronger than you know.”

  “I have never lost a child,” Brother Bachris said, sounding lost. “I don’t want to start now…”

  Valis scooped him up into a crushing hug. “You won’t lose me, Brother. I’ll be back. I promise.”

  “You’d better,” he said in a watery voice. “You’d damned well better.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  At dinner, Valis couldn’t get away from the surge of congratulations that poured in from seemingly everyone in the entire monastery. How his victory against the Grand Master Aesriphos had spread through the monastery so fast was beyond his imagination, but apparently it had. He groaned when another person left and tried to focus on his food. He was still recovering from that battle. His stomach definitely wasn’t happy about all the attention he was getting. It didn’t help that even his friends were in shock and could barely stop staring at him and Tavros.

  Tavros seemed to be taking it all in stride, or at least, he was better at hiding his discomfort. He ate quietly, accepting congratulations with grace, and patiently kept rubbing the back of Valis’s neck when his shoulders started climbing up toward his ears.

  “Love, you need to calm down.”

  Valis glanced over. “How are you so calm?”

  Tavros smiled and kissed his temple. “Because you need me to be.”

  And with that, Valis fell in love with his husband all over again. “Thank you.”

  “Always,” Tavros said. “Forever and always.”

  Not long after they began eating, Thyran sat down with them with his own tray and nudged Valis’s elbow. “We have a meeting after dinner. I wish you and Tavros to join me outside the city at the docks.” He glanced at the others who sat with them and smiled. “You all may come as well, but none of you may participate or interfere. The same goes for you, Tavros. This is for Valis only.”

  “He won’t get hurt?” Tavros asked.

  “You should know me better than that,” Thyran said. “I would never intentionally hurt him or you.”

  Tavros nodded. “Then I’ll be fine. But I will interfere if Valis gets hurt.”

  Thyran smirked and gave Tavros a respectful nod. “Very well. I will give you all an hour to let your food settle after dinner, then I will meet you at the docks. And be prepared. It may take a while.”

  “Yes, sir,” everyone said in unison.

  “I can go, too?” Aenali asked.

  Thyran turned a gentle smile on the little girl and nodded. “You may, but you must stay on your brother’s shoulders. That way you can both see what transpires, and also not get trampled. I won’t have you hurt if something goes wrong. Jedai can get you out of there faster than you can, yourself.”

  “Okay!”

  As they went back to eating, Zhasina tilted her head. “Do you have a date set?”

  Valis furrowed his brow. “We need to give the Aesriphos enough time to amass their own winter gear, pack, and say goodbye to their friends. Three or four days should be enough.”

  “I will send the order,” Thyran said. “Three days is enough. You will leave an hour after sunrise so you aren’t facing the worst of the morning’s chill.”

  “I’ll keep in contact through two-way scry if I can’t reach you telepathically.” Valis glanced over as he sipped his creamy spiced tea. He needed the calming effects today. “And if anything arises, we have four trained couriers with us.”

  “Good.” Thyran heaved a sigh and went back to eating, so Valis did, too. Then the August Patriarch turned again and rested a hand on Valis’s shoulder. “Do make sure you see Brother Bachris before you leave. He is… distraught.”

  Nodding, Valis swallowed what was in his mouth. “I’ll be making my rounds to say goodbye. I won’t leave him out. I know he was only doing it because he’s scared.”

  Thyran relaxed and nodded. “Then let us finish our meals and rest before we head out. It may be a long night.”

  Two hours later, Valis stood on the docks with his friends. He glanced up at the sky, watching the stars as he waited for Thyran to show. He pulled his cloak tighter about him. The evening brought with it a deep chill that threatened to settle into Valis’s bones.

  “Ah, you are here,” Thyran said from behind them. Valis turned, and Thyran smiled at him. “Let us head across the lake. Everyone else is waiting.”

  As a unit, they all filed onto the ferry and set off for the shore. “What’s going on?” Valis asked.

  “You need to be as ready as possible for the coming months,” Thyran said cryptically. “I am going to ensure you are.”

  That did and did not instill confidence, but Valis settled and tried to enjoy the ride across the lake.

  When they made it to the other side, everyone followed Thyran past the Kalutakeni camp, through the dense weeping whiptails, and out into a giant patch of grass that held what seemed like every priest and Aesriphos in the monastery, including faces of people Valis had never met. Tall torches lit the area, stuck into the ground at even intervals, making it almost seem festive.

  “Head to the center,” Thyran said. “Everyone else, stay back.”

  Hundreds of people stood in the giant circle, spaced so that they all had a direct line of sight to the very center with some sitting, others kneeling, some in chairs while others stood. At the back, yet more stood on risers to see above those in front. It was all so grand that Valis’s breath caught in his throat and he gripped Tavros’s hand tight.

  “Tavros may come with you,” Thyran said gently. “He just cannot participate.”

  “Understood,” Tavros said, his voice subdued.

  Now that they were out here, Valis had an idea of what Thyran meant to do. Every person present was a magic user, and Thyran was going to have him absorb their magical attacks to further expand his already obscenely large magic pool.

  Thyran gave him a quirked smile over his shoulder with a small nod. “Exactly.”

&
nbsp; Thyran guided Valis into the center of the circle, and Valis blushed as he was met with Kyris Yavih, the Sovereign Priest of Phaerith, as well as Brother Bachris, his wife, Sister Qisryn, and many others. His Sovereign Priest cupped his cheek and murmured just for him, “I am so proud of you, Grand Master. You have exceeded my expectations.”

  His blush deepened, but Valis managed to swallow down his embarrassment and murmur back, “Thank you. I’ve been trying hard.”

  “It shows. You have been a great wonder for us all.”

  Valis nodded. “Thank you.”

  She patted his cheek and stepped away to take her place within the circle and Thyran rested a hand on the back of Valis’s neck, breaking his thoughts on their conversation, and lifted his voice above the din, “Your attention, please.” When the crowd quieted, he let go of Valis’s neck and stepped away into the sea of people facing Valis. “I have called you all here for a very important purpose. We are about to embark on a task that has never been attempted before, let alone accomplished.”

  Murmurs arose, but Thyran held up a hand. “When I give the word, every mage is to attack Valis with the full strength of your magic. Do you understand?”

  “What?” someone shrieked. “You can’t be serious, Thyran! That will kill the boy!”

  Thyran grinned. “I highly doubt that.”

  Kyris stepped away from her place and lifted her voice, “As Thyran wills it, so it is ordered. On Thyran’s mark.”

  “Erect your shield, Valis,” Thyran said. “And trust in yourself.”

  Thyran smiled and said into his mind, You can do this. Absorb until I call off the attack. By draining all of them at once, you won’t drain them until they are all useless, but you will become exponentially more powerful, and I have foreseen you will need such power. Do you understand?

  Yes, sir.

  “On my mark.”

  Valis erected his shield with a thought, strengthening it with all that he had, setting it to have permanence and to siphon all attacks into his reserves before breaking it off from his direct will.

  “Attack!”

  Nothing could have prepared Valis for this attack. The sheer power behind it nearly sent him to the floor. It took him several heart-stopping moments to get his head right and get back on his feet with the help of Tavros. But once that drain began, it was like nothing Valis had ever felt, not even when he drained the Grand Master Aesriphos. Not even when he drained the entire army of Qos adherents who had escaped the prison.