Battle Mage: Forging New Steel (Tales of Alus Book 9)

by Donald Wigboldy

  This led Palose to frown in return and his mind went over those who might be responsible for such a deed. “How could they have learned such an elite technique?”

  Shrugging which caused the left shoulder strap to slip down her shoulder revealing more of her upper chest drawing the man’s eyes despite himself, Acheri responded with a slight smile on her lips, “It might be an advanced technique for someone who has learned portal magic in the way Ensolus teaches it, but it is also a crutch. If someone can’t hold the number of portals in their minds properly, a map would assist them in setting the spells to remember each gate.

  “Now turn that around to someone who knows your magic. Once they use the map to mark one of your gates; if they choose to expand their search on that map looking for more doorways, they can find any lodestone attuned to your magic with little effort. They can also use your gates if they have any talent for making portals.”

  The door behind him opened permitting a pair of orc guards before Kolban entered the room. He had no need for the masking black smoke when seeing Palose who had seen both his old withered body and the vessel which he had taken for his new. The teenage boy’s eyes looked at him with a tired smile showing his affection for the resurrection man. They had somehow formed a bond, which Kolban had never put into words, but Palose knew it was there.

  “Palose, what did you need?” His eyes looked past the mage to his brother and sister shaking his head slightly at the state of dress of the princess before returning his gaze to the mage.

  “I was telling Acheri that three of my gates have been closed in the past two days. New Harbor, Banosh and the Grimnal’s prison island have been removed.”

  Kolban sighed and shook his head. “It was inevitable that someone would discover more about the portal magic. Wizards have been trying to close the gates between dimensions since before my warlocks discovered this world.

  “Apparently, someone has finally figured it out.”

  His eyes looked away a moment as the boy’s hand settled under his chin while his other hand held his elbow against the side of his stomach in thought. “There have been rumors that the immortal wizard who helped seal me in Silver World has been seen throughout parts of Southwall. This sounds like something he might be able to do. He was always clever.”

  Acheri stepped around Palose and said, “We think that either the wizard traveling with the annoying mage, or the mage himself, could be involved. They knew that Palose was in two of the three places and might have traced his lodestones to the island.”

  Kolban moved towards the girl and took his finger to slide the strap back into place on her shoulder as if it was an afterthought. “That mage friend of yours continues to be a thorn in my side. I was hoping that we had heard the last of him. He hasn’t caused any trouble for us since Parik, as far as I’ve heard,” the emperor finished looking at Palose.

  The mage had never told Kolban or his siblings of his battle in New Harbor with Sebastian. He had stranded the mage and the blond haired wizard in Silver World. While he didn’t doubt that Sebastian might find a way to open a portal home again, Palose couldn’t believe that all this trouble could be from Sebastian.

  Thinking of the warlocks’ description of the mage who had killed the shrikes with a wind arrow, however, Palose wondered. “Are you sure that he hasn’t caused trouble? That fight with the fire urchins and shrikes sounds like something Sebastian might do.”

  Kolban breathed a big sigh and nodded, “Perhaps, but would he have the power to open a gate by himself?”

  It was Acheri who had a smile on her lips as she stated, “If he understood the magic, all he would need is a wizard or two to grant him their strength to make a portal. The mage doesn’t need the strength to do it himself.”

  Thinking of the girl stranded with Sebastian in Silver World, Palose wanted to grind his teeth in frustration. He might have left the very power needed to escape the void with the mage. Sebastian was certainly intuitive enough to figure out almost any magic, he merely needed the power to assist him.

  The thought made him think of the way his portals had disappeared. Palose needed to think of a way to throw Sebastian off his trail before he ruined everything.

  Chapter 29- The First Shots

  Sebastian sat at a large round table feeling like he was at a war council more than there for a discourse on the way to use what he had learned. King Alain sat in a regal upholstered chair and beside him sat one of his generals. To his right, the commander of Hala’s defense forces, Commander Quelan was a dark haired, hard faced man. Like General Idris; the commander had been called to listen to these matters since it was a matter of national security.

  The high wizards Neferen and Culmore had brought a pair of wizards wearing the blue of water and red of fire; while Raven Leros had Falconi Neven at his side. Only Gerid sitting next to the commander and Darius who stood with his hands touching the chair next to the battle mage were not part of Southwall. Sebastian supposed technically Gerid was father of the kings leading to Alain and could be considered family, but the other immortal stood alone.

  “Your majesty, lady and gentlemen,” Darius greeted with a nod and sweep of his eyes to them all. Soldiers lining the walls, upper level wizards and Falcondi Westlin remained in the room, but didn’t warrant a seat so the wizard ignored them in his look even as he stood behind his chair. “If you have not heard by now, we...” he gestured to Sebastian on his right, “have realized the portal magic of our enemy for the first time in nearly seven hundred years. With that conquest we have to decide just how it will be used.”

  The fire wizard looked at him in confusion and replied, “You are not from Southwall. How is it that you have a right to be involved with the determination of how this magic is used? I hear that the mage figured it out as well, so Southwall could use his findings and use them as we determine without you.”

  “Shut up, Julian,” High Wizard Neferen commanded with little heat to the man. The fire wizard was already graying as well and near the age of the high wizards. Julian was also the guild leader for the fire wizards of Southwall in Hala and a man of power as well. “High Wizard Darius has been sharing the knowledge with us and has also been seeding the northern cities and key points along the wall with gates. Yes, the mage apparently has deciphered the magic as well, but you will listen to Lord Darius as if he was one of the king’s uncles.”

  Alain looked at the high wizard in slight surprise and stated, “Hopefully, you will give him more respect than my uncles, but I understand your sentiment.

  “Darius has been called here for more than one reason. First, of course, is that the high wizard has shared the magic with us and been working to establish the network. Second, he has ties as close to Southwall’s birth as the Grimnal in his way. Third, he is an immortal, so that alone should make him someone to listen to today. Now if there is no one else with objections, let’s listen to what the high wizard has to say.”

  “Thank you, your majesty and High Wizard Neferen as well. As I was saying, we both learned the spells in our own way and Sebastian has discovered some things unique to him. My contribution might be more in that I have figured out how to set new gateways and have had a few months to send riders out to seed the cities and wall.

  “My order, the wizards of Eirdhen, once sought to close any break in the walls between worlds. We feared that without monitoring these cracks, an intentional break might happen or there might even be a catastrophic break down between worlds. What that would do to Alus, no one knows.

  “I have had almost seven centuries to monitor these gates and have seen the use increase since the emperor’s people invaded our world two centuries ago creating the Cataclysm.”

  The single female at the table was the water wizard in blue. His words made her ask, “Was the Cataclysm actually part of the break down you all feared?”

  Shaking his head, Darius answered, “No that was a result of magic set in motion by the emperor for both revenge and a distraction as he i
nvaded the north.”

  “He continues to use distractions to undermine our world,” King Alain stated the conclusion most had come to with the wizard’s words.

  Darius nodded. “Falcon Sebastian... or are you changing his designation to owl now?” The man shook his head and pushed on, “Anyway, he has discovered a variation in the magic that I had yet to research. He can use maps to find portals created by magic that he is familiar with.”

  The wizard gestured to Sebastian who pulled the map out and unfolded it before placing the waxed paper on the table.

  “The blue marks are for the new gates that I have been building. Red are for this man you all call the Betrayer.”

  A short murmur between colleagues happened as those surrounding the table noticed the number of red marks on the map.

  General Idris stated, “The Betrayer has gates in nearly every major city to the south.”

  Darius nodded and pointed to the three black marks adding, “Sebastian closed these to the Betrayer already, but before he does more we thought that we had better examine whether he should continue.”

  Many frowned, but it was the fire wizard Julian who asked, “Why would we wish him to stop closing the portals of the Betrayer?”

  Sebastian spoke up for himself speaking aloud his worries, “I know Palose’s magic from the charged lodestones I found in several places on my return home with the Grimnal. When I returned to the three markers you see in the south, I pushed my magic into the stones to drive out any presence of Palose. Using the map, I can travel to these stones; but I left them where he first seeded the cities.

  “Each one is in an out of the way spot to avoid notice by the locals. What I fear is that Palose might use his magic similarly to track his way back to the stones I change. If I move them to a castle or some place under guard, we can prevent a spy from using the gates against us.”

  Darius added, “The problem is that there is unrest in the cities to the south. Do you believe that we can trust the wizards and nobles not to turn the magic against Hala? King Alain’s safety could be compromised if we train other wizards in cities that might use the portals against you in the future.”

  Many eyes moved to the king and Alain didn’t look easy with the unasked question. If Southwall turned to war with itself because the south no longer wished to fund the war to the north or chose another reason to secede from King Alain’s rule, teaching potential threats the magic would lead to certain destruction.

  The king let the silence stretch out until he decided, “You say that we can guard the portals you are setting and should anyway. We will decide a safe place to set your gates in each city and set round the clock guards from now on.

  “These portals are a double edged sword not to be taken lightly. We will use them to speed help along the wall, to move troops during the winter and any number of uses which will make Southwall stronger; but I will not compromise on our security.

  “You talk of our lords and wizards turning against us; but you understate the potential of these gates being used against us by the emperor as well.”

  King Alain looked to the immortal and asked, “Do you believe such precautions will alleviate the risk?”

  Darius nodded and asked a follow up question, “Do we send Sebastian to turn the Betrayer’s other gates against him?”

  Nodding to the wizard and Sebastian, King Alain said, “You can do this?”

  Sebastian nodded. “The work is already done by Palose placing these stones. I merely need to follow the path and change them to my own.”

  “Good, once you have set these gates, I will work to have them moved to secure places in each city to be guarded as we will do here. I have to trust that the nobles and wizards I have leading my cities will follow me; but we will have our guards on the gates of the north just in case.”

  The water wizard raised her hand as if she were an apprentice still in school. Receiving a nod from the king, the woman looked at Darius and Sebastian beside him and said, “I am Wizard Reyna and have been placed as a teacher of the portal magic. While I understand the magic the high wizard has passed along to us, the mage has not explained the magic he has used.”

  Darius nodded. “All in good time, Wizard Reyna; Sebastian has only just returned from a mission among the nomads and dealt his first blow to the Betrayer in taking three of his gates. He will take the time to meet with you and, once you are an expert, you will be able to teach other wizards how to use another variation of portal magic.”

  Glad to hear Darius passing on the teaching duties from the mage to the wizard as soon as he could teach the woman how to use the map magic, Sebastian thought that his friend was looking out for him in this.

  King Alain looked to Darius and asked, “Was there something more?”

  The wizard looked to the falcon, who looked uncomfortable at the shift of attention. Taking a breath, Sebastian said, “While on my travels, I was given runes as a gift from shamans of Gerid’s people. I do not know everything about them or how to develop new types that I have not seen; but I know how to copy and pass them on to others. My hope is to work with other wizards, probably healers, to teach them how to give them to our soldiers.”

  Again the table began to question what they had heard, but it was the general who questioned, “What will these runes do for our soldiers? Many of the men and women serving look on magic with distrust.”

  Sebastian nodded and said, “The soldiers sent with me to the nomad tribes can give you the details of how well they work. They all have them and used them on the mission fighting the emperor’s new monsters.”

  The story of new monsters had apparently not filtered to everyone; but the other news made the general turn to his aide, a colonel by his uniform, and ordered him to look into the matter.

  Understanding a soldier’s reticence to allow a mage or wizard to place unknown magic on them, the mage added, “The soldiers who have seen wizards and mages fighting know that magic can save lives. These runes will give our people an edge that they don’t have now.”

  “I will get the reports from the lieutenant and his squad,” the general stated without committing.

  King Alain stood at that and questioned the high wizard with a look receiving a shake of the head. “General Idris, do that. If the falcon has discovered a way to keep our soldiers safe or at least give them a better chance to survive the enemy’s monsters and soldiers, then let him help you. Meanwhile, I leave turning these magic gates to our advantage to High Wizard Darius and Sebastian.”

  With the king’s leaving, the men and woman at the table stood and vented their questions before the chamber began to clear.

  The mage was at the center of many of their questions and answered what he could under the barrage. Still, Sebastian felt like there was progress. Raven Leros and the falcondi acted as a buffer and both Neven and Westlin were able to answer some of the questions relating to the runes.

  When Wizard Reyna pulled him aside to ask more about the portal magic that only he knew, Sebastian was forced to set a meeting with the woman. He had a feeling when he met her in the wizards’ guild quarters, she wouldn’t be alone.

  “Well, that was a lively session,” Gerid stated looking amused. “I must admit that I am remembering why I don’t miss being a king. There is entirely too much work and stress leading this diverse amount of people.”

  Darius stood beside Sebastian and the three were left to speak alone. The mage found it odd that he had become so familiar with the legends whose stories he had been raised to know. The immortal king of kings and the immortal high wizard of Eirdhen were nearly gods in the minds of those who had heard the stories; but there he was a young man of twenty standing with them as friends.

  The wizard chuckled at the thought and replied, “I have had enough to worry about as wizard. If they came to me to ask me to become a king, I think that I will heed your words and turn the position down then.”

  Laughing at the smaller man, the giant shook his head, “I put t
hem off for fifty years, until the line in Staron died off. There would have been a civil war, so I was placed there and had more children to eventually pass it off to a few hundred years later. Well, I gave it to a great great grandson anyway.”

  Sebastian heard these men hundreds of years old and said, “I can’t even imagine having hundreds of years to decide to quit being something like a king.”

  Both men shrugged. Gerid replied for both, “When I was young, I couldn’t imagine it either. Then when I outlived one generation after another, something changed. I didn’t mind leading a kingdom for awhile. It gave me something to put my mind to and was a good distraction. A thousand years passed and I had to keep trying to evolve within them or I would probably have gone insane.”

  “You wouldn’t have been the only one,” Darius said looking troubled for a moment as if there was a story behind the remark.

  Gerid gestured the smaller men towards the door and said, “Well, I don’t wish to detain you both. Apparently you have a lot of magic portals to make.”

  Groaning at the thought, Sebastian nodded and moved to plot out his travels.

  Palose stood in the portal chamber listening to the noise of an army gathering inside.

  Acheri moved beside him. The girl was dressed conservatively and most would assume that she was simply some lady or warlock as she worked to suppress her power. Allowing little more than the strength of a mage to show, Acheri was like many warlocks in Ensolus hiding their true power to avoid the jealousy of others.

  The emperor’s warlocks were different from Southwall where a wizard’s power helped to set a hierarchy within the guilds. In Ensolus, deception was more important than showing off one’s power. If an enemy underestimated you, the surprise could take that enemy by surprise turning a challenge to your favor or keep the enemy from attacking for fear of the truth.

  “Are you ready to lead an invasion?” the girl cooed in his ear as she stood on tiptoe. Her fingers touched his shoulder lightly to let him know she was there without settling any weight on him.