“By the gods,” said Jiku, staring down at his mug of hyper juice, which was steaming slightly. “I can't even begin to imagine everything you experienced back there. You witnessed the death of a goddess.”
Darek nodded. “Yes. And based on what those two katabans said, they had killed another goddess earlier.”
“Two goddesses dead in one day,” said Jiku. He shuddered. “If Uron is still out there, like you said, I have a feeling that that record might be broken again sometime soon.”
“I hope not,” said Darek. “I don't even want him to kill another southern god.”
“Speaking of the southern gods,” said Jiku, “what were you thinking, becoming a servant of the Ghostly God? The southern gods, in case you forgot all of your Deity 101 lessons, eat humans. What's to stop the Ghostly God from summoning you to wherever he lives and then having you for lunch?”
“I know,” said Darek. “It was a stupid decision for me to make, but I was desperate. I don't think there's any way out of the deal I made with him, so I'll have to live with the consequences of my decision.”
“Or die with the consequences of your decision,” said Jiku, shaking his head. “The Ghostly God doesn't sound like a very good master anyway, if he's the reason Uron managed to get a new body and the God-killer.”
“Not much I can do about it,” said Darek. “But you know, Aorja served the Ghostly God and she wasn't eaten.”
“Who's to say he wasn't planning to eat her at some point?” said Jiku. He sighed. “But I guess there's no getting out of that deal. When you choose to serve a god, you usually can't back out of whatever deal you made with them unless they choose to terminate it themselves.”
“Got that right,” said Darek. “And maybe I never will have to serve him. He hasn't summoned me to his island or contacted me yet.”
“He will,” said Jiku. “When, I don't know, but the gods don't hire servants only to ignore them. Once the Ghostly God has something he needs you to do, or maybe if he wants a light snack, he'll summon you without hesitation. Guaranteed.”
Darek groaned. “You're right. Anyway, what happened to those two katabans? The ones who brought the Magical Superior back to the Arcanium?”
Jiku blinked. “I didn't see them myself because by the time I got to the courtyard, they were gone. But I spoke to Junaz and he told me that they had left through that ethereal thing that katabans use to get around. He said he doesn't know where they went.”
Darek considered that. He had been hoping to thank Durima for getting the Magical Superior out of there, but if they were indeed missing, then it seemed unlikely he would see them again.
Then again, Durima and Gujak both served the Ghostly God, didn't they? Darek thought. Maybe I will serve alongside them someday and will be able to thank her then.
“What do you think is going to happen from now on?” said Jiku, breaking Darek out of his thoughts. “Now that this Uron fellow is around, do you think anything will ever be the same?”
Darek shook his head. “Of course not. I don't know where Uron is or what he's doing right now, but he was very serious about destroying Martir and everything in it. He'll lay low for a while, but now that he has the God-killer, I don't think he's going to just give up and go home.”
“He doesn't even have a home to go back to, if your story is true,” said Jiku with a snort. “But I worry for the gods. Normally, I wouldn't, but if Uron does indeed have a weapon like that, then the future of the gods—and Martir in general—isn't as certain as I'd like it to be.”
“On that, I agree,” said Darek. He yawned. “Jiku, I really need to go back to sleep. I can barely move as is. Maybe we can talk some more later.”
“All right,” said Jiku, nodding. He glanced at his hyper juice. “Need to refill my cup anyway, and then go and tell your mother you're okay. She was extremely worried about your absence last night.”
Darek smiled. “Tell her I'll be all right and I'll give her a hug next time I see her.”
Jiku chuckled, but didn't say anything else. He stood up and walked out of their room, closing the door gently behind him as he did so.
As Darek closed his eyes, trying to relax his mind and body enough to go back to sleep, he found that he couldn't. He kept thinking about Uron, who was still out there in the world somewhere, and the Ghostly God, who no doubt planned to give Darek a call to remind him about their deal later. He also thought about Durima, who he still wanted to thank for her help, and Aorja, who he found he missed, despite the fact that she tried to murder him.
Whatever the future holds from now on, it's outside of my control, Darek thought. Unfortunately.
With that, he forced himself not to think about any of it anymore. It was difficult, but he remembered what Noharf had taught him about emptying his mind before going to bed, and in just a few minutes, he had soundly returned to the world of dreams.
Continued in:
Mages of Martir Book 2: The Mage's Limits
A year after the disappearance of the dangerous god-killer called Uron, Darek Takren is torn between his desire to follow the teachings of his headmaster and his desire to achieve the limitless yet forbidden power he needs to help the gods protect the world.
To make matters worse, a powerful and charismatic mage claiming to be the son of a god has escaped from prison, seeking revenge for wrongs committed against him long ago. His targets: North Academy, the school that Darek calls home, and World's End, the island of the gods.
To save his home and his friends, Darek must infiltrate the deranged demigod's army of criminals and kill him before it is too late. Yet when this mage offers Darek the unlimited power he desires, killing the mage no longer seems quite as simple the task as it once appeared.
Go HERE to find links to buy The Mage's Limits from your favorite ebook retailer!
About the Author
Timothy L. Cerepaka writes fantasy and science-fiction stories as an indie author. He is the author of the Prince Malock World series of fantasy novels and the science-fantasy standalone The Last Legend: Glitch Apocalypse. He lives in Texas.
Find out more at his website.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my uncle, James Wilhite, for helping me get this manuscript into publishable shape. I'd also like to thank the rest of my family for supporting me while I wrote this novel. You guys rock.
The Mage's Grave: Mages of Martir Book #1 Page 27
