A Bitter Brew

by Greg Curtis

  Of course it was! Hendrick should have guessed. Everything for mother was about her never ending feud with the First Wife. He just kept forgetting that. Still, he wouldn't have thought they'd graduated to killing one another's children. That seemed particularly heartless even for them. But by the gods did he suddenly want to leave this city! To forget he had ever seen her again.

  “Now to the more pressing concerns. Why have your friends attacked the barrier? They started talking to us yesterday; now this happens?”

  “I don't know and they're hardly my friends. I don't know them. I was woken by the sound of cannon fire just like everyone else.”

  Of course the moment he said it he was immediately contradicted by the sound of yet another woman yelling up at him from the bottom of the stairs. His most persistent annoyance of late. What was wrong with his life? Did the gods hate him?!

  “Hendrick you sot! You treacherous bastard! Do you want to explain this?!”

  Hendrick groaned. It seemed it was his morning for unexpected and unwanted visitors.

  “It won't hurt you,” he yelled back. “As long as you come in peace.” Hendrick thought he'd better add the last before she got angry again. And then he remembered that he was sitting at the table with his mother – the fifth wife of the King.

  “Mother she's –.”

  “I am not hiding from this woman whoever she is! You should know better!” His mother sipped at her tea and waited until the dark-haired woman arrived in the doorway and immediately froze in shock. Then she turned to her and smiled politely.

  “And you would be, my dear?”

  “Marnie Holdwright.” The dark-haired woman answered her automatically, looking as though she had just been hit on the head once too often.

  “It's nice to meet you Miss Holdwright. I'm Lady Peri, fifth wife to King Oster, and you've already met my son I gather.”

  Hendrick almost felt sorry for the dark-haired woman. Almost. His mother knew the effect she was having on her and was using it shamelessly. But as the dark-haired woman – Marnie – had been no friend to him, he felt no need to help her.

  “Please take a seat and my son will get you a cup of tea and some breakfast if there's any left, and you can explain why your people have attacked the barrier. And just when we were starting to make progress.”

  Marnie did as she was asked, still looking somewhat shocked by what was happening, and Hendrick brought her some breakfast. He understood little more than she did but he knew one thing for certain – his mother was in charge. She was always in charge.

  “So you were lying.” Marnie rounded on Hendrick as he served her, some of her wits finally having returned to her. “Not just a muck-spout. A deceiver!”

  “I only lied about one thing. That my family were in the inner city. Oh – and that Old Peti was my uncle. The rest was either true or I simply didn't mention it because it would have created problems.” The sort of problems he was facing just then he thought. How was everything suddenly going so wrong?

  “Liar! Knave!”

  “How am I a knave? I said I came to find my family, and I did. I got them out too. Or I should have – save that they don't seem to want to leave.” He stared pointedly at his mother.

  “Hush now children!” Hendrick's mother raised her voice very slightly as Marnie opened her mouth to say something else, reminding them that she was in charge. “This is neither the time nor the place for foolish talk.”

  “Marnie you were about to tell me why your people have attacked the barrier. Because we had thought things were going well in our dealings.”

  Had she been about to tell her that? Hendrick thought not. His mother was simply twisting Marnie's arm with her words; making her tell her what she wanted to hear. She was good at that.

  “We didn't. We thought you had, save that we couldn't see any sign of cannon firing at it, and in any case we shouldn't have been able to hear it if they had been. Sound does not cross the barrier.”

  “Then the barrier is doing this by itself?” His mother asked the question as if it was simply an academic curiosity, before taking another sip of her tea.

  “As far as we know.” Marnie didn't sound particularly sure as she said it though. Then she turned suddenly to face Hendrick. “Unless it's some other afflicted doing this.”

  “It's not me.” Hendrick held up his hands in protest. “I've been here all the time. And besides, that's not a spell I have. I'm a summoner from the other worlds. Mithril magic. Barriers are force magic and that's Magnetite.” He showed her his markings. Pure sparkling light grey, not the heavy dull grey of Magnetite.

  “So, a mystery then. Tell me son, Father Daen said in his letters that you had a friend who was extremely wise. That he was answering some of the problems that the priests had set for you to work on as part of your lessons. Do you still have that friend?”

  “Yes.” Hendrick nodded, somewhat surprised that his mother knew of Val. But he had known that the priests were sending back reports to her on his progress and they had known of his friend. They hadn't been happy about him as he recalled. Having a sage at his beck and call was cheating as far as they were concerned. “He might be able to tell us something if he sees the barrier. But he is extremely ill-tempered at the moment.”

  “Then we should take him to see the barrier as soon as we have finished our breakfast.”

  “Or we could just leave the city,” he pointed out.

  “Really son?” She looked at him as if he'd just said something that made her pity him. “You said that the afflicted claim to have been brought here. We couldn't do that. So who did? And Marnie here says the barrier is making all these noises and lights by itself. It doesn't take a sage to know that the two things are likely connected. Or that it wasn't done for noble purposes. We need to investigate.”

  “Yes Mother.” Hendrick sighed as he realised his morning was about to become even more difficult than it already was. But he also knew that he had absolutely no say in the matter. He had never had any when it came to his mother. She had always ruled the home. Leaving there and growing up in Burbage, he had thought he had left that world behind. Sitting here now though he felt very much like a small boy all over again.

  Half an hour later they set off up the street for the gate and the barrier covering it, where Marnie said they would find most of her comrades. It was there after all that they had been exchanging words – or threats as they had become – with the people of the inner city.

  It was a much larger group than Hendrick had expected. His mother had forgotten to mention that she had not come alone. She'd brought her entire staff with her through the sewers, and most of them were loaded down with heavy packs. They'd apparently all been left waiting in the store while she'd eaten her breakfast and politely interrogated Marnie. Waited while she'd changed into something more appropriate for official meetings. And then waited again while he'd saddled the horse for her to ride. Ladies did not walk along dirty pot hole ridden streets. Not even when the journey was barely a few hundred yards. It was all about appearance as she had told him many times. She was the fifth wife of the King. People had to know that. Her servants certainly did.

  Meanwhile Hendrick had added to their numbers as well and four spectral panthers now prowled the street in front of them. They were fully under his control and would not attack anyone without his command, but the point was clear. They were not to be attacked. Certainly everyone who saw the cats was giving them a wide berth.

  Marnie was the only one of the group who walked alone. But she had her anger to keep her company. Mostly her anger with him. She restrained it, usually. But several times it had sprung loose and she'd called him a lying toad, a whoreson and worse. As they went down the street, every so often she would look across at him and give him a look of pure poison. He guessed they were not going to become friends. Not that it mattered given he was about to leave the city.

  Once they finally approached the gate Marnie brightened up considerably. Probably becau
se she could go to her comrades in arms and complain about what a horrible lying toad he was even as she made the introductions.

  Hendrick studied her friends. All of them were afflicted as he'd expected. He could see their markings clearly, mostly because they were dressed to show them. It wasn't only about identifying themselves to others as being afflicted he realised. It was about pride. These hundred or so afflicted had spent years – lifetimes in sooth – living in shame and fear, hiding their natures and sometimes their markings. Now suddenly they were the ones in charge. Their curse had become a badge of honour, and they wanted to wear it proudly. Especially when they were all together as one for perhaps the first time in their lives.

  His mother though, was still a force to be reckoned with, and as she dismounted and walked calmly toward them, she gave no sign that she felt uncomfortable or out of place. Instead she walked confidently as if she was the one in charge. As she always did. And as she almost always was.

  Those poor people, he thought. They had absolutely no idea of how she was going to bend and twist them around her littlest finger before making them jump to do her bidding!

  Hendrick let his mother do the introductions. She could handle such matters, and there looked to be no great rush to arms by anyone. Especially not after he had the spectral panthers settle down for a nap. People still stayed as far away from them as possible, but no one seemed to be looking to attack. For his part once the polite discussions had begun he wasn't really interested in what happened next. No doubt his mother would have her way.

  He was more curious about the barrier. He hadn't seen it this close up before and he found it fascinating. More than that though, it drew him toward it. That is, it called to the magic metal within him. And that he hadn't expected.

  Normally there was an attraction between magics of the same class. So spells and enchantments of the Infernium magic metal would draw those afflicted with Infernium magic. Spells and enchantments of Luminite would draw those to them afflicted with that magic metal. But he was afflicted with Mithril. The magic metal of exotic magic. The fact that he was drawn to the barrier meant that it too was of Mithril magic. It was exotic. Of dimension and other worlds. He hadn't guessed that.

  He had thought initially that it was simply a force magic enchantment. A spell contained by Magnetite. Earth and force magic went together after all. And if it hadn't been an enchantment of Magnetite his next guess would have been Radiant Quicksilver – the pure white magic metal that contained the magic of the weather and the air. The barrier could have been created of hardened air. But it was neither of those. This barrier was Mithril.

  It was also enormously powerful and on a scale he had never before experienced. Or even known was possible. This was not the magic of a mere afflicted. It was far too powerful for that.

  “Hendrick!”

  Hendrick turned as he heard his name called and was surprised to find his mother standing there beside him, almost looking concerned. But then he realised she'd called him several times and he simply hadn't noticed.

  “Sorry Mother. I was distracted.” But he wasn't so distracted that he didn't know what she wanted, or why others were standing with her, staring at him expectantly. Immediately summoned the visage of Val.

  There was a collective gasp the moment the visage of the other worldly sage's head appeared floating in the air before him. Then he watched as people took a quick step back. Some took two.

  “What is it this time?! Haven't you finished bothering me for the moment?! I'm busy!” The sage immediately rounded on him.

  “My apologies Val. But it is important.”

  “It's always important – to you! Not to me!” The sage snorted at him, a sound that not only made people gasp again, but also made his massive nose stand upright exactly like a mammoth's when it trumpeted.

  “I'm sorry Val.” Hendrick didn't know what else to say.

  “You're always sorry!” The sage trumpeted again. “But you never do anything about it! Every time it's the same. I get whisked away without a seconds warning. Abandoning my work, my family, my research. And usually for some pointless question you want answered. It was amusing when you were a child. But not any more.”

  “Of course. And you're right. I'll try to do better in future.” Hendrick spluttered out another apology, wondering what all the others surrounding them must think. “But this is important. It's the barrier I told you about before,” he hurried on. “But it's not what I expected. It's Mithril magic, and it's far more powerful than anything I've ever experienced before. It's also started making noises like cannon firing and it flashes red.” Something he thought the sage should surely be able to hear for himself. “Can you give us any insight into what it is please?”

  The sage turned around, or at least his head floated around until he was staring directly at the barrier, and looked at the barrier as it flashed red and the cannons boomed. And then abruptly he turned back to him.

  “Barrier? You dolt! Have you forgotten everything I taught you?!”

  “Ahh … maybe not everything? I don't think.” Hendrick wondered what he was getting at. “You know what it is then?”

  “Of course I know what it is! Do you imagine I am as dim witted as you? And the first thing I know is that it's not a barrier at all.”

  “Then …?”

  “It's a dimensional manifold.” The sage announced it as if it should be obvious to everyone. But it wasn't, hence the blank stares all around.

  Hendrick knew the term from somewhere deep in his past. He remembered the sage mentioning it at some point. But it took him a few moments to place it.

  “It's a rift between worlds?”

  “Yes, and it's circular. Remember what that means?” The sage snorted at him again, perhaps a little more gently.

  “It's a portal wall?” Hendrick finally understood what the sage was saying. Until he looked at the barrier and the inner city bounded by it and considered what the sage was saying.

  “Balls! That's a portal?! It can't be! It's just too damned big!”

  “Yes. It is.” Val was calm but his tone was one of certainty. “And you need to run. Because that red flashing and the booms are the portal finally arriving in the world.”

  “But how? How can you know any of that?” one of the others asked.

  “That it's a portal? The shimmer in the air. The fact that neither sound or air cross it in either direction. And finally, that it's circular, forming a giant ring. All of that says it's a portal. If it was only a few feet across you'd immediately recognise it for one. It's only the size that deceives.”

  “As to why I say it's nearly arrived? Because of the sounds it's making. The flashes of light. Normally when you create a portal all of that would happen in the blink of an eye. You'd scarcely even notice anything more than a tiny flash of light and a pop. But because this portal’s so vast it has taken weeks to fully emerge. When you slow a sound down so much, it becomes deeper. The individual notes of the sound separate. And when you spread it over a wider area, it starts to echo. So a tiny instantaneous pop becomes a series of cannon blasts.”

  “The fact that the cannon blasts are becoming more frequent and the flashes of light faster indicates it's about to arrive. And when whatever it is that's coming through it arrives, you don't want to meet it. It's bound to be godlike in its power. Whatever and whoever is on the other side of the manifold, will find themselves instantly whisked away to whatever world it's coming from. They likely won't survive.”

  “Question answered?” He turned back to Hendrick.

  “Yes and thank you, Val. Question answered.” Hendrick let the magic go and Val disappeared from his sight. His question had indeed been answered. It was just that the answer was hard to accept. How could it be a portal?

  Then after staring at the barrier once more as he tried to make sense of what he'd been told, he started to worry. A portal the size of the inner city? Who or what would need a portal that large? The sage had suggested something
godlike. Could he be right? Certainly it would take someone with immensely powerful magic to create the portal on this scale. Did that mean that that person or thing coming through was huge? Could they be coming with a palace? An army? Maybe a small city?

  He turned to the others. “Val is right. We need to run. To evacuate the city and run.”

  “But –!” A tall man with the sparkling yellow markings of Luminite running up his right arm tried to protest.

  “Val is a sage.” Hendrick stopped him simply by raising his hand. He knew exactly what the man was going to say. It was exactly what he would have said if he hadn't had Mithril magic. And if he hadn't known and trusted Val for so long. “And the spell I used to summon him is otherworldly sagacity. He's a sage from another world. But the magic is the same as if it had been a spell of normal sagacity. Val can't lie or misdirect. He must answer the question if he can. And if he's uncertain he has to tell me so. He's not uncertain. And I've never known him to be wrong.”