The Magus (A Chronicle of Rebirth Book 1)

by J. M. Fletcher

  Her shoulders slumped downward as she would be helpless to Magus Ru’ark and his pet slave. “Then I will lose everything.”

  Malark smiled. “No, My Queen all is not lost. Perhaps my brother’s treachery can be his undoing. In your great palace, long ago, our people worked together in what you call the time before first kingdom.”

  She shook her head, interrupting him. “No one knows what the time before the first kingdom was or what happened. Its history has been lost to the ages, and besides how will this help remove your brother?”

  Malark maintained his patience. “Yes, My Queen I was getting to that, you must find the Senentia, and with them I would have a means of handling Ru’ark.”

  Her brows furrowed together. “The what?”

  Malark sighed in aggravation, but Celeste could not tell such by the smile he gave her. “They would be what you call manacles.” Unlike the petty Queen he was dealing with he knew what Danthamore was long ago. It was the seat of judgment for a Magus back in the times before the waste. The Senentia was one of the rare remnants remaining that would allow him or any Magus to cross the Waste without it attempting to kill the Alter Waraeu. Instead, it would suppress the Waraeu within him and allow him to pass as in the same manner as Dashiell. However, it was a far cry from their original purpose which was to render a magus inert and unable to use his abilities until a judgment was rendered by the Mages of Old.

  “You mean the ratty prison chains that are part of the wall in our throne room?” She waved her hand in her usual dismissive manner. “You can certainly have them. I’ve wanted to get rid of those ugly things for a while. How do I get them to you?”

  Malark nodded. “Tonight, send one of your most trusted men go to your square in the slave quarter with them when the moon is at its highest point in the night sky. My man will find him.”

  “I’ll see to it immediately then.” Celeste wanted Malark to get to Danthamore before Ru’ark and his pet returned which had the potential to go bad for her. “Is there anything else I should do before your arrival?”

  “Yes, make sure you lock up my brother’s dog in your dungeon in the most secure cell you have.” He was doubtful that any prison she had would hold his brother’s protector, yet it was worth it to try. “I would also advise removing the treasonous Captain you mentioned, Elian.”

  Celeste’s planning with Malark eased her earlier fears. “I appreciate your wise counsel. Myself, and the Kingdom of Danthamore, look forward to welcoming you soon to our City.”

  “The pleasure will be mine, farewell Good Queen.” Malark’s image faded from the mirror.

  Celeste smirked while walking back down the stairs and out of the Magus chamber climbing over the pieces of stone with Orson’s hand extended to help her out. Her hateful glare swept over to Adar “Arrest the Magus’s dog, and lock it up in a cage deep in the dungeon, low enough that he can enjoy the fresh sea air.”

  Orson motioned to the guards who grabbed Adar from all sides. “You heard the Queen put him down in one of the drowning cells.”

  Adar did not resist or fight the men and instead went peacefully with them. The guards were surprised and had expected more from the Magus’s man as they directed him away from the Queen and to the palace dungeons.

  Celeste waited until she was alone with Orson. “Orson, it’s time to clean out the rest of the trash, the young Captain of the Guards has worn out his welcome. Remove him from the city before ridding my palace from the rest of his loyal city rats.”

  “With pleasure, my Queen.” Orson intended to delight in each moment of throwing out Elian, he had been waiting for this day for a while.

  “You’ll find him at his home in the merchant district, which is henceforth the property of the crown,” Celeste already knew he would be with her lady in waiting. “Mary-Anne is not to be touched by your men- she is faithful to the crown and to me.”

  “It will be done as you command, my Queen,” Orson left with haste to carry out Celeste’s order taking a small band of the royal guards with him.

  Elian ran his hands through Mary-Anne’s light brown hair.

  “See, isn’t this better than my chamber in the Palace?” she lay beneath him smiling with her legs spread apart inviting him inside of her.

  “I’m well versed in this game, and the truth is, you would let me have you anywhere.” Had his next breath not been interrupted he would have driven himself deep inside of her. The loud crash from the outer room drew his immediate attention. He was wearing nothing but his tunic, when he jumped up off Mary-Anne. The chamber door flew open with the Queen’s royal guards pouring in led by Orson.

  “There’s the traitorous scum,” sneered Orson as two of his guards grabbed Elian.

  Mary-Anne jumped up from the bed, clutching at her clothes scattered on the floor.

  A few of the royal guards jeered and Orson held his hand up signaling them to stop. “Lady Mary-Anne serves her Majesty the Queen.”

  One of the royal guards pulled his cape off and wrapped it around Mary-Anne’s shoulders. “I’ll gather your dress Milady,”

  Mary-Anne grateful, accepted the cloak from the palace guard. Her eyes cut over to Elian while the guard helped her. “You stupid men are always so foolish and predictable.” She scooped up her clothes from the guard, and then narrowed her eyes at Elian holding out a knotted cord. “See this?” laughing, she waved it in his face. “You’re just another knot, like all the rest.”

  Orson interrupted her. “Lady Mary-Anne, our Queen is awaiting your report at the Palace.”

  Elain’s eyes shot downward. He had thought he had the upper hand with Mary-Anne and today he found out how mistaken he was. His eyes came back up as he watched her leave the room.

  “This house is the property of the crown, by order of the High Queen Celeste of Danthamore.” Orson laughed watching Elian thrust in anger against the two guards holding him.

  “When the Magus returns-” Elian stopped his threat where it was, Ru’ark was not here and neither was Adar.

  “When the Magus returns,” Orson repeated it to mock Elian. “The Magus will be dealt with, and his pet, will go to my men in the royal barracks as a well-deserved reward.” He gave a curt nod to the guards holding Elian “Throw him outside of the city gates!”

  “No!” Elian caught Orson’s eye before being dragged away. “The day will come that you will regret what you have done here today.” The royal guards dragged him by force from his room, yet he got close enough to grab his breeches from the back of the chair where they had been laid before the evening had turned sour. With no boots, he was pulled from the door of his home into the dark streets of Danthamore. His feet were not accustomed to the rough stones bas he was pushed forward. It wasn’t until he was out of the Noble quarter before he was able to get his breeches up around his waist. The cuts to the soles of his feet began when they shoved through the slave square which had not been swept for the day. The shards of broken pottery littered the area. Each step was more painful than the last. His feet were bleeding since he was forced to put his full weight on each foot or be struck to the kidney with a jab to keep going. When he finally reached the City’s massive gate, he was limping and it took everything he had to walk under his own power.

  “Halt,” ordered the city guard, he recognized Elian. “That’s the Captain of the City Watch you have there!”

  “You mean he was.” The royal guardsman on Elian’s left side snickered.

  The other palace guard with a cold stare shoved Elian forward. “Open the gate or you will be joining your Captain.”

  With an apologetic look to Elian, the City Guard did as he was bid to and stepped out of the way as the two royal guards dragged the Captain beneath the city’s gate.

  The palace guards with a rough push sent Elian staggering out on to the King’s road where he landed on his face, and left him to crawl away with his bloody feet.

  “It doesn’t matter what I say! You’re not listening to me so what good does it do t
o tell you anything?” Celeste screamed in Agnar’s face with her anger being fueled by her disgust as he sat at the small table in their private room abutting their royal apartments.

  “Damn your soul Celeste! You’ve probably damned everyone else’s with your stupidity!” Agnar slammed his fist down hard on the table which caused its legs to quiver with the force of the blow. “I pray you have a plan should the Magus, the demon we do know, shows back up here angry!”

  Celeste’s face contorted with disgust. “That’s just like you, always ready to roll over like a beat dog!”

  “But not a dead one,” sneered Agnar.

  “Malark will be here- and we’re going to get our Kingdom back and that’s because of me! She was only inches from Agnar’s face and yelling with such ferocity that flecks of spit were landing on him.

  “This is the beginning of our reign coming to an end Celeste! And, it’s all being done by your hand not mine!” Agnar was about to continue when he heard a loud knock on the chamber door accompanied by Orson’s voice requesting an audience. “Well, Celeste, your pet is here, you’d better talk to him.” It was a well-deserved scathing barb meant to mock her. He left Celeste and flung the chamber door open. “Orson, the Queen will see you.” Orson’s mouth opened to speak, but Agnar’s back was already to him as he left to return to the King’s apartment.

  Celeste paced the floor angrily. “I take it the Magus’s mutt is caged and the rotting garbage of Danthamore has been taken outside of the city gates?”

  “Yes, your majesty.” Orson was beaming ear to ear with pride. “That lowly knave’s feet were bleeding, according to the guards who tossed him out hard enough to land him on his face.”

  Celeste chuckled. “Good,” hearing that cheered her spirits after her fight with Agnar. “We still have another matter to handle. The Magus Malark needs those ugly old prison manacles, the ones that are part of the wall in the throne room. He insisted that they be delivered tonight when the moon is at its highest point in the slave square. Some man of his will collect the nasty chains from you.” She crossed her arms. “I have the mason as we speak working to cut them off from above the throne.”

  “I’ll see to it your Grace.” Orson intended to bring it himself to ensure nothing went wrong given the gamble his Queen had made.

  “Thank you Orson, your loyalty means a great deal to me.” She gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

  “Always my Queen,” Orson bowed departing the chamber.

  It was late by the time the mason’s worker finished chiseling the manacles from the obsidian wall that held them above the throne of Danthamore and the Upper and Lower Kingdoms. Orson took the chiseled block of stone with the encased manacles and put them into a thick bag. His walk to the slave square was quiet and uninterrupted, at this hour the city’s streets were devoid of activity except for the occasional city guard making their rounds. His snow white cloak with the Royal coat of arms marked him from a distance as guard of the palace. He was confident none of the city’s guards would dare approach him after what he done with their Captain. The memory brought a smile to his face. He would have to find a replacement for Elian in quick order since they were rabble in need of a firm hand. The night air was warm against Orson’s face as his eyes darted upward to the moon at its highest point. At this late hour, the slave square was mostly devoid of people. Orson passed many of the empty stalls while awaiting this man of the other Magus to show himself. He passed the raised platform making up the slave block, and his eyes once again darted upward to the moon in the nighttime sky. He was wary of the other Magus, and prayed that his Queen was making the right decision with this new Magus calling itself Malark. He heard a sharp snap from one of the hanging cloths of a nearby empty stall which had been caught by an off gust of the wind. He did not think that either Magus could be trusted, but the present one had become beyond unbearable with his armored slave pet. In another round, he passed the empty block with the moon high above with still no sign of this other Magus’s man. Perhaps the man would not show and it was a possible ruse from the Magus Ru’ark. Sweat touched his forehead, his Queen had no choice but to stay her course. After passing the empty slave block another handful of times he was greeted by a voice from behind and a man appearing out of the darkness.

  “Do you have the Senentia?” It was more of a demand than question as he stood in equal height to Orson.

  Orson was caught off guard by the man who appeared out of the darkness. The armor the man was wearing was difficult for him to see. It was obvious that it allowed the man to move with an alarming silence. The gray tabard the stranger was wearing fell at the knee, and his gray cloak kept him far too concealed. “If you mean the manacles, then yes I do.”

  “I’ll take them,” Orson did not move to hand it to him.

  The man’s hand shot out at an unnatural speed. “Now,”

  Orson’s attempt at distracting this man to get a better view of him was in vain. However, when he handed it to him, he was startled by the stranger’s weaponry. “Who are you?” Blades of varying lengths adorned his waist. How this man got into Danthamore armed to the teeth past the city guards had to be figured out when he returned to the palace.

  “It is of no consequence and time is of the essence.” Taking the sack from Orson, it quickly disappeared beneath his cloak.

  “Please tell your Master my Queen needs him before his brother returns.” He felt uneasy letting the man walk away, but his Queen was right, they needed this other Magus to rid them of the current one.

  With a single nod to Orson, he faded into the shadows, preventing Orson from getting a good look at him.

  His hand rested on the hilt of his blade while he watched the Outlander disappear into the shadow of a nearby empty stall. He gave a quick, silent prayer to the God of All, that this would work to Celeste’s benefit.

  The impression from the dome Ru’ark had weaved around them was slight as the ground remained untouched at their feet the rest of the ground was littered with rubble and crushed plant life.

  Nelina’s brows creased as the low ringing sound filling her ears began to fade away while her lungs drew in the hot sticky humid air from the swamp jungle. After squinting a few times she determined numerous buildings were swallowed by heavy overgrown vegetation which to her appeared as a blanket of vines. She wondered what gross snakes and other crawling things were under it. The Morning Light streamed past the jagged fragments of the arches of the portal which had once been the sister to the one they had used in Kiffet. “When we left it was night, how is it morning here, I thought it was mere minutes, but it’s obvious it wasn’t.”

  Ru’ark’s eyes darted between the vegetation covered buildings which made up what was left of once the open square around the portal, assessing it for the slightest danger. “Time can be odd to say the least it was caused by the weaving.” When he had assessed that their surroundings were safe his immediate attention went back to her to be sure she suffered no ill-effects. “Are you alright?” His hands cupped her face, and then ran them over her shoulders.

  “I am,” she frowned. “These things we’ve been using in our journey have some defects I see?”

  “In a way,” His eyes swept across her a final time to be sure that she was not hurt. “The portals were created with the power of both the Waraeu working together. Activating it with only a single part of that power will send it surging back into the Magus, killing them where they stood.” He spoke with a measure of pride regarding what he had achieved. “What I did was intensify its failure by forcing it to feed back into itself instead of letting it come back at me. When others before me had tried a similar feat they attempted to control the power as compared to what I did.” His hand brushed away some of the straggling hair from her face. “What we did was similar to riding a wave of the ocean to the shore, we rode the surge of the portals destruction, rather than wrestle the bull we rode it. It’s what I did to come to these lands and it has worked again.”

  Nelina too
k another deep breath, the swampy air held strange sounds with unknown birds giving their calls to have them returned in multitudes as their chorus is joined by the other larger stranger animals announcing themselves. The fragile buildings did not appear damaged by their sudden arrival. The vegetative growth was so overgrown that one could not see the building underneath it. She sighed dreading the experience ahead.

  Ru’ark’s arm slipped around her with a quick squeeze. “We should get going as to not waste the day’s light we have a great deal of ground to cover, it could take a day, perhaps two, for us to reach our destination.”

  “A day, perhaps two, you’re serious?” she could not hide her shock. “It’s going to take us that long?” She had not thought it would take days to reach this place.

  Reaching down Ru’ark picked up the sack that Rueben had prepared for them with Nelina’s sword silver handle jutting from its top. “Indeed, this city in its glory would have held over twelve times the population of Danthamore.” Handing Nelina her sword, Ru’ark held open the bag allowing her to remove her armor, which left the sack almost empty with the exception of a few provisions remaining at its bottom. “It’s going to be treacherous to say the least as we go through the area.”

  “Well, I’m glad I have my armor and sword for it.” Setting her armor and sword down on a piece of rubble next to her, her fingers loosened the laces from her bodice.

  Without Nelina needing to ask, Ru’ark helped her slip out of her dress and get into her armor.

  It didn’t take long for her to change, with Ru’ark helping her and she was grateful since she did not have Claire’s help.

  After Ru’ark buckled the last remaining strap for her, she scooped up the sack and stuffed her dress where her armor had been. She fastened her sword to her hip and handed the bag to him.

  “I think I’m ready.”

  The bag with a quick motion disappeared into the folds of his blue robe, and his fierce blue eyes held their gaze on Nelina. “Remember to be cautious Sweetling, I can’t foresee what lies ahead and I doubt the Nivecus have left their previous home unguarded.” He already disliked the oppressive feel of the place, the Waraeu within him were reacting trying to warn him of the unseen dangers. The whole of the ancient city had a feel of wanting to expel him from the place.