Message Bearer (The Auran Chronicles Book 1)

by Dobing, M. S.

The shadow nearest Clementine shifted, something flashed in the darkness. Clementine twitched, a puzzled look crossing his face. He arched his back, pivoting to one side. He reached one arm up and over, and Seb saw then the iron dagger embedded in his back, runes blazing as they fed on sheol blood. The monster spun and reached again, but the dagger was too low. He overbalanced, falling from the crate, landing with a thud onto the concrete floor. Seb rushed over as Sylph materialised from the shadows, a look of disgust on her face as she approached the daemon.

  Clementine twitched and shifted on the floor, the light was fading from his eyes. A pool of jet-black blood spread out from underneath him.

  ‘How long?’ Seb said.

  ‘The wound should be fatal, but he may linger for a few moments. I thought you might want the final blow...’

  ‘Thanks.’ Seb crouched, resting the tip of his staff against Clementine’s throat. Clementine started at the touch, and his black eyes found Seb’s, a spark of recognition coming back in that moment.

  ‘You’ve grown strong mageling,’ Clementine coughed drops of black blood onto his shirt. ‘Perhaps it’s not a foregone conclusion.’

  ‘Why did you do it? Why her?’

  Clementine blinked. His breaths became more drawn out, weaker with every gasp. ‘We are all pawns in the end, all playing our role in the game. My turn is over. Let’s see what you make of it.’

  A last breath escaped his chest. His sable eyes rolled up in his head. A rank smell rose from the corpse, causing Seb to step back with a hand clasped over his mouth. As they watched, Clementine’s pale skin seemed to thin, becoming like wet paper, collapsing in on him. His flesh bubbled, melting skin running off him like tiny rivers. Before long a skeleton remained, but even that crumbled into a mottle paste.

  ‘Nice,’ Sylph said.

  ‘Yeah, not the way I’d want to go.’

  An engine sound rumbled from outside and footsteps clattered on stone, heading towards the door. Sylph pivoted, shoulders sagging but weapons ready, always ready.

  ‘Whoa, it’s okay, I know who it is,’ Seb placed a gentle hand on Sylph’s wrist, slowly pushing the weapon down. It would be ridiculous to survive what they’d been through only to die by their own kind now.

  Cade ran into the warehouse followed by two of his brothers. They had weapons drawn, and Seb felt their tension rise at the sight of Sylph brandishing her twin blades. He stepped in front her, arms in the air.

  ‘It’s okay, she’s with me!’

  ‘Step away from her, Seb,’ Cade stood before him, the only one without a gun drawn. The two warriors fanned out, trying to gain a clear shot.

  ‘No! Put the guns away, she’s not a threat.’

  ‘Like hell she isn’t. You’ve not seen what she can do.’

  The warriors were parallel to them now. They had no intention of letting Sylph leave without a bullet in her head. Behind him, Sylph sagged further, her own energy reserves depleted.

  ‘Cade, I’m telling you this once, as a friend. Do not harm her. If it wasn’t for Sylph I wouldn’t be alive now. If it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t have the message.’

  Cade’s eyes grew. He dipped his head, mouth open, a question on his face.

  ‘Seriously,’ Seb said. ‘I have it. Now she comes with us, or I walk.’

  It took barely a second for Cade to make his decision. It wasn’t a surprise, Cade was a bright guy and he wouldn’t let his own emotions cloud the greater issues at hand. He shrugged and nodded to the warriors, who obeyed without question, pistols returning to holsters without a word being said.

  With the tension passed, Seb walked over to Cade. They clasped wrists, Seb suddenly overwhelmed with a vast sense of relief to meet an ally at last. Cade nodded outwards, to the two Audis parked outside, and they turned in that direction.

  As they walked, Seb took a look up and down his friend, noting the assorted cuts, scrapes and bruises that covered his body where his tunic had been torn or ripped.

  ‘What the hell happened to you?’

  Chapter 49

  The journey back passed by without incident. Sylph was asleep before the car had even left the harbour district, her head lolling and bumping into the window as Cade pushed the vehicle to its limits. Several times Seb caught his eyes in the rear view mirror. Questions lurked there, hovering between them, but they would have to wait until later. Something had happened at the Brotherhood, something bad, but Cade wasn’t about to open up about it in front of someone who he still regarded as an enemy.

  They turned back into the welcoming gates of Skelwith a little after sunrise. He wasn’t sure if it was a symptom of a general heightened use of the Weave or if his own powers had grown, but Seb could feel the place before they even sighted the mound of trees that hid the estate. The very forest seemed to crackle with potential energy, and the silent sentinels, warriors of stone, seemed to be the hub of that; magnets drawing his sense in with ease.

  The Magister and Cian were already stood outside as the cars drew to a halt outside. Don and another elite flanked them, their penetrating gaze spearing the car, Seb too tired to even attempt a shield.

  The car stopped and Cade leapt out. Seb pushed the door open as Sylph woke up with a start. He caught the brief moment of panic that flashed across her face and placed a hand on her arm. She tensed, but didn’t pull away.

  Progress.

  ‘It’s okay.’

  ‘Where are we?’

  ‘Skelwith. Home of the magi.’

  Sylph shook her head and vaulted from the car, straight into the line of sight of Cade’s warriors. Their weapons were drawn, sights aimed at Sylph.

  ‘You’re going nowhere, sister,’ Cade said, Sylph slumping in defeat.

  ‘It’s okay, don’t worry,’ Seb said over the car, ‘I vouched for you. You got me out of there. That will count for a lot.’

  ‘Seb, thank Danu!’

  The Magister glided over, her face a grim mask of concern. Cian followed, a slight limp to his gait. Red welts still covered his forearms where sheol claws had gotten too close.

  ‘Are you okay, boy? We thought we’d lost you!’

  ‘I am fine, Magister. Although I have some news to share.’ He glanced around before leaning closer. ‘About the message.’

  The Magister’s eyes widened. ‘It is unlocked?’

  ‘I believe so. I’m not sure. Something has changed. That much is certain.’

  ‘Then let us retire inside. There is much to discuss.’ She beckoned over Seb’s shoulder. ‘Cade, you too.’

  ‘Yes, Magister.’

  ‘She comes too.’ Seb stepped to one side, revealing Sylph behind. Cian’s eyes blazed.

  ‘What in the hells? She is imbued yet she reeks of the sheol!’ Cian stepped forwards, his fists scrunched into balls.

  ‘No! She’s with me. Without her I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have the message. We owe her!’

  The Magister raised a hand and Cian stopped in an instant, his eyes not once leaving Sylph, who to her credit hadn’t flinched an inch.

  ‘Stand down, Cian. The aura is interesting on this one. What is your name, child?’

  ‘Sylph.’

  ‘You are imbued.’ The Magister stated.

  ‘I am. Marek taught me.’

  ‘Marek? That man spits on our customs!’ Cian spat.

  Sylph pushed past Seb, jabbing a finger at Cian. ‘What? You’re disappointed that someone took a chance on me rather than left me to go mad on the streets?’

  ‘Enough! We have too much to discuss to waste time debating what has happened already. Very well, the girl can come. She might be able to add something of value.’

  Chapter 50

  The five of them convened in the Magister’s study for the next hour whilst stories were exchanged. Seb told them of his time in the custody of Marek and the sheol. He described as best he could what he saw – the Master. Marek. The horned daemon in human form. He told them of the attempt to open the phantom box in his mind, and of the
crack he saw that somehow they didn’t. They turned to Cade then, listening in horror to the sudden betrayal by Silas and Reuben. From what Cade had heard nearly half of the Brotherhood had been turned. Where they were now was unknown. Cade had mustered those forces he could at Skelwith.

  ‘Do you think they will attack here?’ Seb asked, breaking Cade’s tale.

  ‘Madness!’ Cian barked. ‘They would be torn to pieces by the sentinels. An army of sheol could not breach those defences.

  ‘You think they’re working together?’

  ‘They are working together.’ Cade said, his yellow eyes lost in the flames of the Magister’s hearth. ‘My father told me as much. He believes that the Brotherhood and the sheol are of the same blood.’

  ‘And you, young Sylph. What can you add to this sorry story?’

  Sylph told her own story. Stilted at first, clearly not comfortable talking so freely in front of those she’d been conditioned to view as enemies for all her imbued life. She skipped over the early years. Whatever she thought of him now, Marek had saved her from a life destined to end in tragedy. Those were happier times, and it pained her to think of them now, knowing what Marek had done.

  Instead she focussed on recent months. Of Marek’s growing obsession with the sheol and his hunt for the elusive message. He’d never told Sylph what it contained, but she knew all his plans hinged upon it.

  ‘So Sarah was working under Marek?’ Seb said. Certain pieces of the puzzle were coming together now in his mind.

  Sylph nodded. ‘She was taken in months ago. Marek explained she was like me – lost, but with potential. She was much more advanced than I was. She was a mage, of sorts. Marek liked her, I could tell. She challenged him in many ways and was not intimidated by him. I think that’s why he liked her. He gave her a mission of utmost importance. I didn’t know what it was, just that it involved going somewhere far away to retrieve something of great importance.

  ‘I never saw her after that, until she was in the morgue. All I know was that she betrayed Marek and he was beyond livid.’

  ‘So the information she took, that she passed to Seb here, was what Marek was after?’ Cade said.

  ‘I don’t know. She seemed to think so. Maybe she found something else and decided that the Magistry needed to know about it. Regardless, she betrayed Marek. She betrayed all of us.’

  The Magister ignored the final statement. Now wasn’t the time to go over the rights and wrongs of this conflict. She abruptly stood up and fixed them all with a steely stare.

  ‘I think we have discussed this enough. It is clear to me that whatever we possess is something that Marek is very keen on possessing. It was what Sarah died for, and it is surely tied to the betrayal by the Brotherhood.’

  ‘Not all the Brotherhood, Magister,’ Cade said.

  ‘Of course. Forgive me. My point is that we have what they want. We are safe here, for now, but we cannot delay. With the lock removed, we must extract the message, and uncover the source of what drives Marek so.’

  ‘What of the other Families? Surely they should be consulted?’

  ‘Yes, yes. I will commune with them tonight. After we have extracted the message. Let us move to the Great Hall. There we will pool our power and rid this poor boy of his curse.’

  They all rose at once and made towards the door. Seb lingered, and Cian turned back.

  ‘What is it, Boy?’

  ‘Caleb?’

  The Battlemaster’s gaze softened. He waited for the rest to leave before speaking.

  ‘He lives, but he is not well. His wounds heal, but his soul does not. Something was taken from him that day.’

  ‘Can I see him?’ Seb said. He sniffed and blinked the sudden tears away.

  ‘Of course. See him now, there will be an hour or so before the Magister is ready.’

  Chapter 51

  ‘Caleb?’ Seb took a tentative step into the Drain. The room was in near darkness, the only light source being a solitary candle that had burned almost to extinction on the oak table, casting an amber glow over one corner of the room.

  ‘So, you made it back then?’

  Seb started. On instinct he shot a sense towards the shadows where the voice had originated from.

  ‘Caleb?’

  Caleb shuffled into the light. Seb suppressed a grimace.

  The wounds had healed, but the scars ran deeper. Caleb walked with a pronounced limp, clutching for dear life on a staff that had been reinforced with steel strips. His face was ashen, almost translucent, and the flesh hung loosely from his face. His eyes, once so bright and full of life, were now tiny pinpricks sunk into a hollowed face. Caleb staggered to his favoured chair, wincing as he lowered himself into its depths. Seb swallowed something hot in his throat.

  ‘That’s better,’ Caleb said. ‘Bring me something hot, will you, boy?’

  As if on instinct, Seb shook his gaze away and poured a fresh coffee from the still-hot kettle. After all that had happened, the moment felt natural, almost welcome. For a moment they were back one year, just the two of them. That hotness filled his throat again as he handed the cup to Caleb, who took it in both hands, inhaling the aroma with a satisfied groan.

  ‘You going to tell me what happened?’ Caleb said after a few minutes of comfortable silence had passed.

  ‘They haven’t told you?’

  Caleb sat the cup down and leaned back in his chair. He looked at Seb again, a new expression on his face as if he were seeing him afresh. His eyes twinkled, something of the old Caleb there again.

  ‘Perhaps they have, perhaps they haven’t,’ he said. ‘I just want to hear it from you.’

  Seb smiled. ‘You’ll need something stronger than that.’

  ***

  ‘And you have it? You have the message?’ Caleb had listened, entranced, for the best part of an hour. He’d interjected at various places, drawing further details where Seb had glossed over, making him paint a more detailed picture than he otherwise would’ve done.

  ‘Yup, well, at least I think I do.’

  ‘Have you read it?’

  ‘No. I can see the crack, I know I could try and open it, but as to what comes out, it’s not for me to answer that.’

  Caleb nodded, his mind elsewhere. ‘Of course, you’re right. It should fall on the magi to decide what to do.’

  ‘What do I do then?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘You’re a magi, aren’t you? Or did that knock on the head do more damage than I thought?’

  Caleb laughed, the noise echoing around the chamber. ‘Of course, sorry. I guess I considered myself taking an early retirement. You know, on medical grounds.’

  Seb smiled. ‘Sure, I’ll have to check my contract to see what the Ts and Cs are concerning that.’

  Caleb nodded sagely. A moment later they both burst out into laughter, tears rolling down their faces.

  ‘It’s good to see you, kid,’ Caleb said at last, wiping tears from his face.

  ‘You too, old man,’ he replied, meaning every word. He put his drink by his bed and lit the candle on the cabinet next to his pillow. The Magister had hinted that he should return to them as soon as possible, but fatigue was clawing at him. He settled into his bed, drawing the blanket high over his head.

  For the first time in what felt like weeks, Seb sank into a sleep free from danger.

  He never heard Caleb leave.

  Chapter 52

  It looked like every member of the household had gathered in the main hall. The Magister sat on her throne, Cian by her side. Ranks of elites and adepts stood shoulder to shoulder leading away from the throne for the full length of the room. Where they came from Seb had no idea. None of them were familiar, save for Don. All wore the loose-fitting grey tunics of the Magistry. All stared forwards, eyes focussed on something far away. Nearest the door stood the other six acolytes. Familiar by face, but still strangers to him even after all these months. Only young Harry, his silent admirer from the gardens, acknowledged him
with a furtive glance. All of them gathered here, under the instruction of the Magister.

  All for him.

  He’d considered not coming up at all. They’d done the decent thing and left him alone for a few hours, but the Magister’s summoning in the form of an uninvited visit from two elites told him that their patience was wearing thin.

  So up he came. No doubt as soon as he’d read the contents of the message then he’d be cast out. Purpose served. It didn’t bother him anymore. He wanted out now as much as they did.

  A low murmur had died as he entered the hall, the heavy door clunking shut behind him. No eyes had turned in his direction, although a collective sense from the gathering had nearly knocked him back a step. He raised his shield to subtly deflect the prying minds.

  It was the Magister that broke the silence.

  ‘Seb, so good of you to turn up.’

  ‘I’m not sure I had much of a choice.’

  Cian glowered. The Magister merely sighed.

  ‘You are tired, I imagine, and have been through a lot. I will allow you this transgression,’ the Magister said. Her eyes suddenly levelled on him and he felt his shield evaporate in an instant. The Magister didn’t push any further, but he felt the power there, brushing hid own.

  The Magister beckoned him forward. He obeyed, head down as he trudged down the narrow path that led between the rows of magi. He glanced up as he moved, noting with some dismay at Caleb’s absence. I thought I’d have at least one friend here, old man, he thought.

  He stopped and bowed his head before the Magister.

  ‘Relax, Seb,’ she said, an unfamiliar gentleness to her voice.

  He dared a look up, every sinew in his being screaming to do the opposite.

  ‘Are you afraid?’

  ‘Yes. No. Should I be?’

  The Magister smiled. ‘You are right to be wary, but have no fear. All you have is information, hidden inside your mind. Now the door is open, you simple need to push it, and I will read what you see.’

  Seb nodded. What could go wrong?