by Blink, Bob
Rigo and Lorl walked a bit ahead of Ash’urn. Lorl was curious if Rigo knew why the Queen had summoned all of them to a meeting. The purpose hadn’t been specified. Both were wondering if this was a precursor to the escape that Mitty had warned them the Queen might be planning. Even Ash’urn had raised the possibility when they were getting ready to leave for the castle. As such, they were more alert than usual, although this didn’t look to be the best place for such an attempt in Rigo’s estimation. The area was open and flat, and in full view of the Guild. Additional guardsmen and Casters were close at hand. There was little they could do to help other than physically distract the guards or the two Casters if the attempt were made. As usual, six of the burly guardsmen followed spread in a half circle behind them. Casters Kimm and Juli had the duty today, and they followed close beside the three outsiders.
The first indication that it was happening was the slight grunt of one of the guardsmen and the sound of a dropped blade clanging against one of the random rocks scattered in the grassy hillside. Rigo and Lorl turned at the same time, noting that Kimm already had powered her staff, the crystal at the top starting to glow as she turned. Caster Juli was marginally slower, but she too was turning toward the sound. At first the scene that greeted him made no sense. Two of the guards who had been off to the left side were down, obviously the result of the efforts of two figures coming toward the group from that direction. This was it, he realized. Queen Rosul was making the promised move to free them.
Even as the thought passed through his mind, he realized there was something oddly familiar about the two figures. He was slow to make the connection because it would be impossible for them to be here, and because he was primed to expect action by the Queen’s forces. Rigo realized that matters were about to erupt as he heard Kimm mutter the beginning of her activation phrase. Her staff was glowing brighter than Rigo had ever seen it. She was cut off in her attempt to call upon her magic partway through the attempt, as her voice choked off into a gurgle when a pair of throwing knives struck home. One of the knives was buried deep in the side of her throat and the other in the solar plexus, just below her ribs. With a puzzled look upon her face, she dropped her staff and crumpled to the ground dead.
Caster Juli was aware of the loss of her companion, and attempted to hurry her own attack. She almost succeeded, but just as she completed the phrase and her magic flared, a sharp and impossibly strong blade cut through her staff, and then through her body. The blast of magic peaked and was released, blasting off to the side in a bright beam rather than at the attacking figure. It exploded into the ground some distance away, throwing dirt and rocks into the air. As she died she couldn’t help thinking that no blade could cut through one of the staffs. It had been imbued with magic to prevent that very thing. She had no way of knowing about Kellmore steel enhanced with a special form of magic.
The knives brought it home to Rigo. Only one person he knew could throw a knife with such precision. Now he could see that the two colorfully dressed figures were none other than Daria and Kaler. How in Risos name had they gotten here? Out of the corner of his eye he could see more figures approaching, stepping out of thin air rather than running from the Guild. Most of the figures he didn’t recognize, but Jeen was unmistakable. Her long black hair was braided and hung down the center of her back as she preferred it when going into combat. Surprisingly, she carried a staff that looked much like his own had before it failed. Only her clothes were odd, a poor attempt at mimicking the local colors. Ash’urn let out a whoop of glee. He had made the connection as well, and Lorl grinned.
The remaining four guardsmen reacted as trained and moved quickly toward the two figures who had already killed two of their number in addition to the Casters. They never had a chance. There were only four of them, and almost before they could get their blades into action it was over. One stumbled from the blade that appeared in his throat, accurately striking just above his leather armor. Two more fell to Kaler’s quick strokes, and the last swung at the small figure with a pair of short blades, only to find she wasn’t there when his blades passed through the space she’d previously occupied. By the time he figured out where she’d gone, one of the blades was already deep inside him, and he dropped his sword and died before he struck the ground.
Coming up from behind Daria and Kaler, Jeen spoke quickly to Shara as she slipped the awkward viewing artifact that had helped them get here so quickly into the special carrying pack on her back. “I want you to relate this to Daim. It should come from someone other than me. He expressed concern that Daria and Kaler would be overmatched without magic and shouldn’t come along. Two wizards and six guardsmen down in seconds and we didn’t even release a spell.”
Rigo and Kaler had already embraced, and Ash’urn was hugging Daria.
“How did you manage it?” Rigo asked. He couldn’t believe this was happening.
“Time to explain later,” Jeen said and as she stepped close to Rigo, her face split in a broad grin. “Risos, but I’m glad you are alright.”
The two long time friends exchanged a quick hug, then Jeen stepped back and with hardly a thought, sheared the bands that had held Rigo from his magic for so long. The same was being done by Shara for Ash’urn, and a moment later Diny removed Lorl’s bands. Rigo savored the return of his magic for a moment, then Jeen tossed him the staff she was carrying. He caught it in surprise, and realized what he held.
“Where did you get another staff?” he asked. “Is that how you were able to come here?”
Jeen nodded. “Daim made it,” she said with a smile.
“Daim?” Rigo asked, now suddenly confused. “How could Daim . ?”
“Later,” Jeen said. “We need to get out of here.” She could already see someone coming from the direction of the building behind them.
Rigo made as if to hand the staff back, but Jeen shook her head. “That’s for you.”
“What are you going to use?”
“I don’t need it, and frankly I’m tired of lugging it around.”
Rigo glanced at the staff, then realizing what he needed to do, he linked it to him. Now, like the older staff, he could call it to him anytime he wished.
Jeen was about to make the Bypass that would get them out of here, when she realized that Kirl was waving from a short distance away. A figure lay on the ground next to him. As a group they hurried over toward him. Daria was the last to arrive at the prone figure. She had been recovering her knives.
“It looks like he got blasted by the bolt released when Kaler chopped up the female wizard,” Kirl said. On the ground lay the barely breathing figure of a young boy.
“It’s Fen,” Rigo said, recognizing the burned figure on the ground.”
“You know him?” Daria asked.
“He was the first person we encountered when we arrived here in Sedfair. That was a long way from here. I’d heard he was coming to Nals to study magic, but what is he doing here?”
“He turned us in,” Lorl said. “Forget about him, and let’s go while we can.” He could see the approaching figures coming from the direction of the Guild. There were at least twenty guardsmen, and a couple of figures with staffs.
“Can you help him?” Rigo asked Jeen. He knew his own powers weren’t up to healing anyone this badly hurt. “He doesn’t deserve to be caught up in this. He didn’t do anything wrong.”
Jeen chanced a glance over her shoulder. “There’s no time to do anything here. Kirl, bring him along.” Then she stood and quickly made a Bypass. The glowing arch looked very good to Rigo as it opened on the grass in front of them.
“Go,” Jeen commanded. Kirl went first carrying the inert form of Fen, with Kaler and Daria immediately behind him pulling Rigo with them. Ash’urn stooped momentarily and picked up two heavy packs that the boy had been carrying, and then stepped through with Shara grinning beside him. Burke and Tara released a series of bright red fireballs toward the advancing guardsmen, causing them to slow and seek cover. Half dro
pped to the ground hoping the balls would pass overhead. They did, but only because the intent had been to slow them down, not kill them.
Tara started toward the undamaged staff the dead female wizard had dropped when Daria’s knives had killed her, then realized how close the enemy was already. The fallen staff was only a dozen paces away, but a dozen paces toward the advancing enemy. She decided it probably wasn’t important, and changed her mind and turned away. Had she known how important it was to become later that they acquire one of the Specialists staffs, she would have taken the chance to reach it. Instead she hurried to catch up with the others. Then the last of the Three Kingdom’s wizards that had come to Sedfair stepped into the Bypass, which immediately closed behind them.
Jeen had instinctively taken them back to the small oasis where they had made the jump into Nals. This was out into the Ruins and hadn’t been visited by anyone, so was probably safe enough for the moment. She could deal with the wounded boy, and then perhaps they could drop him somewhere that Rigo knew of away from those who would be seeking them before returning home.
Rigo was looking around. “I don’t recognize this place,” he said.
“It’s one of the places we found that you hadn’t visited,” Burke explained, smiling and embracing Rigo. “I’m sorry I didn’t come with you initially. I should have been there for you.”
Rigo shook his head. “You did the right thing. You had obligations, but I’m damned glad to see you now, believe me.”
“How is he?” Shara asked, kneeling next to Jeen who was examining the boy.
“Bad,” Jeen said. “Very bad.”
Together they probed the damage done by the blast that had struck near the boy. Had it hit him directly, they wouldn’t be here. He would have been burned beyond recognition. Fortunately both Jeen and Shara were skilled with healing, and after several long and worrisome minutes, they gained the upper hand. Carefully they healed the remaining damage, wiped away all signs of the blast burns, and then pulled their magic back. They could see he was breathing softly, and after a moment he opened his eyes. At first he was confused, and then awareness returned and he looked quickly around him. He said something, but Jeen had no idea what. She tried to calm him, but of course, he couldn’t understand her either.
“You were struck by the blast from one of the Casters,” Rigo said, coming up from behind them. “Jeen was able to heal the damage.”
Fen turned quickly in his direction. “It’s true what they say about your healing?” Fen asked. “There were stories, but it was hard to be certain what was true.” Fen looked around as he spoke, noticing the group of people who were watching him carefully. “These are your friends?” he asked.
Rigo nodded. “Now it’s time to get you somewhere so you can get home.”
“Where are we?” Fen asked, seeing the desert sands in the background. Having lived on the border to the Wastelands all his life, he had a good idea.
“We are several days into the Wastelands,” Rigo replied, using the local term.
“You made a Doorway to get here?” Fen asked.
“Of course. That’s the only way we could have moved so quickly.”
“Did you mask it?” Fen asked.
“Mask it?” Rigo asked. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Did you hide the end point? If not, they will be able to track you. They will be here soon.”
Rigo had Fen explain in more detail, then he stood and walked over to Jeen. He explained what he’d just learned from Fen.
“You seem pretty comfortable with the language,” she noted.
“Another story for later. But if what Fen tells me is true, they might be able to follow us where we go. I think their ability to travel the Ruins is very limited, but I’m not absolutely certain they will be unable to overcome the Ruins, and I wouldn’t like to lead them back to the Three Kingdoms.”
“Is there anything we can do?” she asked.
“Fen says they can only follow a Bypass for a short time, then the trace disappears. We can use that. He also says, if a pair of Bypass are created at the same place, the second one will usually conceal the first.”
“What do you have in mind?” Jeen said.
Rigo explained.
“Sounds like a reasonable plan. Let’s get this boy home, and then see if it will work.”
But Fen had other ideas. “I want to go with you,” he said firmly when they told him they were taking him back to Sedfair. Rigo thought it would be safe enough to drop him in Slipi, and then flee.
“Why would you want to do that?” Rigo asked.
“I want to learn your magic. The Saltique is going to change back to a policy where only women can be taught. I will have no chance to learn if I stay here. Please, let me come with you.”
“What about your family?”
Fen looked confused. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “Maybe I can come home later. Maybe I can help you. I know a lot even if I haven’t been trained.”
Ash’urn had been listening. “He has already alerted us to something we didn’t know, and he has these books I’ve taken a quick look at. Perhaps he has knowledge that might unlock this magic for us and ultimately find something that will solve our problem with the Hoplani. Let him come. We can bring him back later. It will save time now as well if we don’t need to make a detour into Sedfair with him.”
Rigo looked at Fen, but all he could see was determination. He explained quickly to Jeen, including Ash’urn’s assessment of what Fen offered.
“Bring him,” she decided. “We must go. If he is correct, they could arrive at any time.”
The others had been standing guard while Rigo, Jeen and Ash’urn talked. This was not a good place to defend, and they were anxious to go as well. Rigo opened a Bypass to Oasis Six, and they all quickly moved on.
Rigo could see that Jeen was right. The Guild had been here since he’d last visited. The many footprints hadn’t been present when his smaller team had spent time here before. That meant that they’d used Orna’s memories to come at least this far. He wished he knew how much they had been able to extract before his friend had died from their probing.
“What about his claims they can track the Bypass?” Jeen asked Rigo.
“I’ve never heard about that. It never came up. I wish I knew more. Their leader, the one named Carif, said the Ruins blocked them, but was that because they didn’t extract the memories of the more distant oases, or was it a matter of their not having the capability of the staff, which allowed the jumps over certain regions? From everything I’ve learned, I believe they are limited by the latter. The simple truth is, I don’t know what we can believe. There could be many reasons they could be lying.”
“If they have the ability to move through the Ruins but don’t know the way, we could be leading them home,” Jeen said. This wasn’t something they had planned on.
“We should try and lead them astray just in case,” Rigo suggested.
“We split here,” Jeen said after a moment’s thought. “One group will head back to the Outpost and explain what has happened. I think it might be prudent to make an intermediary stop in the Ruins midway between Oasis Three and Oasis Four. If they can follow, but lack the ability to operate in the blocked portions of the Ruins, they will end up trapped and unable to continue. A fitting end for them! The other team will jump immediately afterwards from the same spot toward one of the nearby oases in this cluster. There are several that offer protection for an engagement if they really can follow. We can find out soon enough if they can do so. Hopefully that will also provide a means to mask our jump home, which will also include a stop in a blocked region, and should eliminate any who are following.”
Rigo pointed toward Burke and Lorl as he started to choose his team.
“Rigo, you’re going to the Outpost,” Jeen commanded firmly.
“I will go later. I’m the strongest here, and we might need the power I can command.”
“You have more know
ledge of this place than anyone else. We have seen you in the monitor. You have interacted and seen more than either Ash’urn or Lorl of the people in Sedfair. I have also observed how well you speak the language. Your knowledge is important to the Three Kingdoms and cannot be risked. You will go immediately toward home. I am, after all, in charge this time.”
“Ash’urn can go,” Rigo objected. “He speaks the language almost as well. He can carry what we have learned back.”
“Ash’urn goes to the Outpost along with you. Daria and Kaler will also go with you just in case there are problems. This next encounter will be one where magic will prevail. You will also take the boy. There is no time to argue. Now go!”
Rigo was not comfortable with this, but he couldn’t deny the wisdom of her words. Sedfair might become an enemy, and what he’d learned could make a difference. He glanced at Burke, who was nodding his agreement. Finally he nodded reluctantly. “Okay,” he said.
Rigo opened a Bypass that would take them to a spot he recalled outside Oasis Three. From there they could go to the oasis and then home. He pointed to Fen, who stood and walked over beside him. Daria and Kaler walked toward the Bypass as well. “Let’s go, Lorl,” Rigo said.
“Not me,” Lorl said. “I never learned the language, and there’s nothing I know that you don’t. Now it’s my turn for a little payback. I’m going with Jeen and the others.”
Rigo looked at Jeen. He hated letting her go into battle without him, but she was strong, in certain ways stronger than himself. Briefly the old group had been together, and he felt they should be facing this enemy as a team as they had in the past. Leaving Lorl would give her more forces and increase her chances of walking away unharmed. “Okay,” he said softly.
As Rigo walked toward the Bypass, Jeen looked at Shara. “Go with them,” she said.
Shara started to object.
“You came for Ash’urn,” Jeen said. “Stay with him. I’d feel better if two wizards are present all the way back to the Outpost.
