As the three standing behind his uncle started to look angry with him, Poultus turned to look at his allies in watching for danger to their people and said, "What he means is that he hasn't abandoned us or chosen just to save his family or those of his friends. The warlocks and wizards in their school didn't come here to check on our safety after the attack, my nephew did.
"He's still just an apprentice and a boy. You can't expect him to have all the answers, but he is right. If we are too afraid to walk away, then we deserve whatever we get. I don't like the idea of walking miles through the snow and cold either, but we don't have any wizards aside from these kids to make it any easier.
"If they finish this tunnel, we can escape if the orcs turn against us with the rest of the monsters. We can't fight them. It is either dealing with them somehow or trekking through the snow.
"You and the others have time to think about it, but if you plan to leave; get your supplies and things you wish to take together. Be ready to leave as soon as the tunnel is finished; or to try and sneak out the front if it isn't."
Holdy thought that his uncle said what he actually meant. He wasn't frustrated with them because they didn't seem overly thankful, but only that had seemed to come out of his mouth. Of course, that was why his uncle and mother were merchants. Poultus had great wealth compared to most even, and it came from his ability to reason with others to get the most out of them without drawing their hatred instead.
The other three seemed to take Poultus for his word and they spoke only a short time with him before retreating back down the tunnel.
Poultus looked beyond the boy a moment and asked again, "Do you think that you can finish in time for them?"
While the question was straightforward, there was more to it than there seemed, Holdy thought. "Master Lesolas almost has his sanctuary built. I can bring you and mother there, uncle; if you change your mind."
He had asked the wizards if his family could be among those chosen to bring to the new town. Poultus and his mother were good merchants. His mother sold and made clothing as well. She had supplies and the skill to help keep them all clothed for the future and could bring the other women and their families she worked with also. Renelley had already talked to those women and most were considering it. His mother would come and some of the supplies that they would need had already been procured by the wizards for their future.
Poultus had seemed to be considering either remaining in Ensolus or making the walk with the others. He had connections with some of the forts and could still access some of that wealth because of his business. While the offer of going to Sanctuary had been given, Holdy was pretty certain that his uncle would choose to stay with his people in their journey or remain behind for those too afraid to walk away.
"Just finish your tunnel, Holdy," the older man said gently. "You will likely save more than you realize with this task. Take your mother and her friends with you to this sanctuary that you wizards have made and we'll see what comes of the rest."
It felt like he was saying goodbye, the apprentice thought; but he nodded and led his friends back to the stone at the end of the tunnel. He worked harder than he had any other day, though Holdy had always done his best, he had believed. The tunnel needed to be finished soon, if everything the others had told him was leading to war within the city. The orcs, goblins, trolls and other creatures were already starting to push out of their end of the cave. Without the emperor's power to restrain them, Ensolus would soon be fighting for who would remain one way or another.
Megan held the mop and noted the calluses on her hands. Early on she had started to blister from all the work, but her friend in the healers had taken care of her skin each day and even given her a cream that was said to strengthen the skin. She had felt magic added to the cream and it had certainly kept her from the pain of those first days.
Torva had never said anything about it, but he had the strong hands of a swordsman and didn't seem to hate anything about her looks, even Megan had parts of her that she didn't like at all. He had called her perfect and the woman tried to let his beliefs be hers just to be satisfied.
Others found her beautiful as well, of course, but she had always thought it was because they couldn't see what her clothing covered for her. Torva had seen her and still said that he loved every inch of her, the woman reminded herself with a blush.
"Are you too warm?" Niadene asked noting the other maid turn a bit red as she stood still.
"Hmm? Oh, sorry, I was just thinking of something."
"Something or someone?" the other woman asked with a smile after realizing that Megan was actually blushing.
Covering her face with her hand in embarrassment, Megan lowered it again and confessed, "Just thinking of something that someone said about me; that is all."
"Oh, you can tell me," the blonde said as her green eyes lit up and she put her duster down to walk towards the other woman. "You sometimes start to talk about this mystery man you are love with, but then you stop before I can learn anything good. It's been almost a month and you haven't even told me your boyfriend's name." Niadene glanced towards the general's bedroom and blushed a little as well before adding, "I mean you know my secret, but you won't tell me a thing about him."
"That isn't completely true," Megan started slowly. The other woman looked at her with doubting eyes and a disapproving frown. "His name is Torva."
Niadene looked thoughtfully upwards and asked, "Is that an elven name? I am not familiar with any Torvas."
Nodding, the wizard answered, "Yes, he is what you would call a high elf, a true blood too."
"What does he look like? A high elf... is he tall?"
Raising her hand to about what it would take to rest her hand on the top of his head, Megan said, "About this tall. He's blond and let's it grow out from time to time, especially during the winter. It's never long enough for one of those tails like some men have though. He has green eyes and though he's nearly twice my age, he looks no older than me."
Megan nearly blushed again thinking that she was saying entirely too much.
Smiling at the thought her description had brought to mind, Niadene replied, "He sounds handsome and your smile tells me he is. I do like a handsome elf."
The comment made Niadene blush nearly crimson as she realized that Megan knew of her affection for Amelyer. Clarifying, the maid added, "Amelyer might be only half elf, but maybe that is why we relate to each other so well. Still he looks like most of those high elves, but maybe a little more muscular; which I also don't mind," she finished with a grin.
"Anyway," Niadene continued, "what does he do?"
Wondering if she should just admit that Torva was a wizard hunter, since it didn't matter as long as Niadene didn't suspect that he was also a wizard; her thoughts were interrupted by noise from the front door. As the two women turned, it opened and a dark haired woman entered. Her dress was better than most of those in the city, but didn't appear quite as richly tailored as a lord's lady.
"Heline!" Niadene cried out hurrying towards the woman with elven looks, the high elven kind, Megan thought; though the woman was only slightly taller than Niadene. Hugging the taller woman, Heline looked a little uncomfortable with the warm gesture. Her eyes looked over at Megan a bit coldly and the wizard felt her skin chill. "You are finally back. I mean, Megan is a wonderful girl, but I missed you!"
"I am sure," the dark haired woman said still remaining contained in her emotions. "Is Amelyer here?"
Niadene nodded and gestured towards the bedroom door which was closed. "He's in his study."
Heline walked towards the door watching Megan with her eyes and a slight frown until she passed the new maid. Wondering why the woman seemed angry with her, Megan hoped that nothing told the elf that she was a wizard. She felt no aura of magic and didn't expect to from a woman serving as a maid; though judging by her clothing, Megan wondered why she was anyone's maid. Heline carried herself more like a noble woman than a servant, but this was the
woman she had replaced to be near Amelyer.
"Don't let her scare you," Niadene whispered as the maid moved to her side. "She used to look at me like that too, but then again she hates rivals."
"I guess that she had a right to hate you then," Megan retorted quietly making Niadene giggle.
Restricting the sound with her hand a moment, Niadene released her lips again and nodded, "Well, that came later. Amelyer isn't a man whose appetite will be satisfied with just one woman. Well, maybe it is more that she has always been a little cold and restrained.
"Though I have caught her with him when her guard is down... among other things... and there is definitely passion in her heart for the general."
Megan looked at the bedroom door and wondered if that meant her time as the general's maid was finally over. She would gladly return to being a wizard. With her time freed up from pretending to be a maid, the wizard could go to Sanctuary with her class to help finish as much of the future school as she could before the trouble they all expected began in earnest.
At the moment, she wished that Niadene wasn't there so she could cast a spell to listen in on the conversation going on in the other room. Megan didn't know how they had managed to pull Heline away from the general for so long. An illness in the family could be anything and she doubted that the woman would leave the general unless there had been real danger.
Now she seemed to be back and angry, so what was Heline telling him now, Megan wondered?
Chapter 25- A Change of Plan
Niadene looked uncertain of what to do or where she should be. After nearly a month without Heline around, the maid had taken on the same level of closeness to the general as the elven woman, Megan guessed. Heline might look barely different in age from the young, human woman, but she had about four decades on the younger girl and had known the general much longer as well.
While Niadene appeared to wonder if she was about to be replaced by her predecessor, Megan wondered if she was about to be pushed out also. For the second woman, returning to her life as a wizard was a preference. Echolus could hardly have her remain watching Amelyer if the job she had taken was no longer necessary. Surely the general wouldn't value her as he had the other two women, whom he had known much longer and had deeper relationships with than what she had with the man.
Doing their best to ignore the fact that the general was isolated with Heline in his bedroom, the two maids went back to the work they had been doing before the interruption. Niadene did her best to appear like her mind was on her work, but Megan caught the woman glancing to the closed door several times before it suddenly opened spilling Amelyer and Heline into the outer room.
"I can't leave right now," the general said over his shoulder. He looked like he was trying to run away from the woman though Amelyer stopped only a few feet into the outer room.
Frowning at his back and pursuing the general, Megan thought she looked more like a wife chasing her husband than a general's servant woman. "This city isn't safe for you, Amelyer. Go to Aetelier. You could be a king among the elves. Most of the lords would support you without any need to be convinced. Lead your army into the city and those who might balk at making you their leader will follow you for sure."
"If it takes an army to convince them..." he began.
"You know that isn't what I meant," the dark haired elf countered quickly. "The emperor is dead and Ensolus is going to be too difficult to take for someone like you."
"Someone like me?" Amelyer's face darkened as anger bubbled near the surface.
"Ensolus might have been ruled by elves and humans, but the monsters outnumber us here. They will follow Corven certainly if he wishes. The warlocks and hunters refuse to join with you leaving only the wizards from the elven forts willing to help you, but they are too few compared to the school.
"There are just too many set against you here, when Corven's army would already be enough to weaken your forces. Whether you win a battle or not, you will lose this war if you aren't careful. Be wise and start sending your army away slowly. Leave with me for Atelier. Have your officers cover for you and sneak away from here.
"You can build your forces and unite the elven lords behind you. Call on the human lords that you can trust. They won't want an orc for emperor anyway, so they will be easily gained. Once you have them all behind you, you will have the power to take the other cities and finally take Ensolus as well.
"You can be the emperor, but only if you build your forces away from here."
Amelyer's face lightened and his eyes looked lost as he said, "I can't abandon my men."
"You won't be abandoning them. Corven is afraid of you, but is too powerful to confront without destroying both of your chances. Send your men outside the city one group at a time until the ones you choose to remain to cover your disappearance can slip away as well."
"Sneaking away like a coward, it won't help unite the other lords under me. They won't want a weakling."
Sighing in exasperation, Heline gave her final plea, "You won't be a coward. You will be choosing your capitol. Ensolus is a dark cave that isn't meant for elves. Leave the monsters to their holes and flush them out once you have strengthened under the sun, Amelyer.
"It is time to leave this place of darkness and rejoin the light."
Though he was the soldier and she a maid, Amelyer looked like he had been defeated as his shoulders slumped in submission.
"And how do I slip away without Corven and the others knowing?"
"A portal wizard would be the best way," Megan found herself saying and realized that she hadn't been part of the conversation. Their eyes moved to the unexpected speaker and she quickly wished that she had held her tongue.
Amelyer's eyes narrowed and he asked, "I don't have any portal wizards among my men and to ask the warlocks for help would defeat the idea of hiding my leaving. What do you even know of portal wizards anyway?"
Worried that the general might have seen through her, Megan shrugged and replied, "There are portal wizards that you might ask directly. Maybe there are even wizards in the school who would prefer a chance to leave the city as well. Not everyone agrees with Grand Master Echolus' choice to stand by while the two of you look to fight for the city, or so I would imagine."
It was a weak excuse, she thought, and Amelyer didn't seem to fall for her words; but it was Heline, who asked, "Who is this woman anyway? Why is she speaking?"
"This is Megan. She has been filling in for you while you were away," Niadene answered appearing to want to be involved in the conversation now that it had opened up to include Megan as well.
The taller, dark haired, elven woman strode closer to the wizard examining her and stated with a slight frown, "She is pretty. This is the kind of woman who would be used to distract you, general, while those who wish to take what you have move in the shadows to strike."
"She was just a temporary replacement brought in by Greta. Megan has done good work, but she has never been a distraction," Amelyer stated sounding like he was bored by the accusation. "The girl does her work and that is all."
The general turned at the last and his eyes seemed to try to bore through her as the man added, "She does sound surprisingly knowledgeable about portal magic, however. Do you have some connection to the wizards' school by chance?"
A dangerous question, Megan thought of an answer that might work out for both of them. "I know of a boy who went to the school recently. He is young and returns to the human quarter on occasion to visit his mother. If my memory serves, I think he said something about being able to use that kind of magic."
This made the others look at her with renewed interest.
Amelyer asked, "He can use portal magic? Can you find out... discretely, if this boy actually has the ability to cast the spell, let alone would do so without speaking to everyone once I am gone? After all, if I decide that Aetelier is indeed the best choice for now, letting Corven and the warlocks who lead the school know of it would likely get a lot of my men killed.
I won't have that.
"I'd rather die fighting that orc than leave my men to surrender to his mercies," the general finished looking fiercely protective. His eyes told her that if she betrayed him, Amelyer would make sure she paid by being added to the death toll.
Trying to look uncertain, Megan pretended to think about it before saying with a nod, "I can try asking... discretely, of course. If I were to ask him as if for myself, perhaps I can find out without the boy having a clue that I ask for you instead."
Heline looked at the general appearing skeptical, but Amelyer said, "How soon can you find out?"
Crossing her left arm across her stomach, her right elbow rested on it as her closed hand cupped her chin in apparent thought. "I am not sure. I could see if his mother could get a message to him. Then it would just be a matter of time for the response and to find out when he might be able to meet with you, general. His mother is a merchant, so if I went to the market during her normal time no one would suspect that I am there for any reason other than to look at a dress or something else she might be selling there."
The other two women remained silent as the general considered her proposal. Heline looked ready to argue against it, but there was something in her eyes that seemed at war with Megan's plan being a solid answer to their needs.
Amelyer finally decided as he spoke his decision towards the wizard, "Would it work best for you to leave during your normal work time?"
"Going later might still work, but the sooner I go the sooner everything can be communicated to her son. We would get an answer faster that way as well."
"Then go, you are finished for the day. It isn't like there is that much to clean up here anyway. Heline and Niadene can always do your work if they deem necessary."
The two maids didn't seem fond of having her work thrust on them so easily, but Megan ignored them as she answered, "If anyone asks along the way, I can always say that I am not feeling well. If you don't need me for anything else, I can work on getting an answer for you, general."
Battle Mage Broken Empire Page 33
