Underdog Mage Chronicles_The Captive_Book Two

by R. D. Bernstein

  Suddenly, a guard wearing obsidian armor approached. Behind him was a plain clothed Drakaran woman and a mystic.

  “You have one minute to feed who you wish and then you must move on,” the guard stated. “I’d throw the food in if I were you. Wouldn’t get too close to the bars.” He walked off and left the woman and mystic there.

  The woman began to hand out apples while the mystic stared at Lance. Sick of feeling like an animal kept in a zoo, Lance said, “Yes, I am a human!”

  The mystic took a step closer. “I am just here to observe.” The voice sounded so familiar. “I once had a trainer named Master Sellius who taught me to open my eyes and ears to learn.”

  Lance drew the connection immediately. He was smart enough to know not to shout it out, but he couldn’t understand how she was here on this world, in this dungeon. There were so many things he wanted to tell her and so many questions to ask, but the woman Drakaran said, “Come. There are many more cells ans little time.”

  “Is there anything else you need?” Charlotte quickly asked Lance.

  “Some metal flakes would be helpful,” he replied.

  Charlotte nodded as the woman ushered her to continue on.

  Lance pressed against the bars and listened to his friend walk away. Before long the guard returned and told the visitors to leave.

  Lance stood there long after they departed.

  “What’s the matter?” One of his cell mates asked. “First time seeing a Drakaran woman?” He chuckled.

  Lance stared off into the darkness wondering if he would ever see his friend again.

  Chapter 5

  Back in Delvin, Master Sellius was sitting in the cafeteria, sharing a meal with his fellow black robes, when a yellow robe suddenly burst into the room.

  Master Sellius stood up. “Quincy? How did you get back? Are you okay?”

  Master Sellius motioned and several people went to help the one who looked like Quincy over to a seat.

  “I don’t remember how I got back,” Quincy said. “But there is something urgent I must speak to you and King Triton about.”

  “Of course!” Master Sellius said. “Master Porthos, come with us. I will want your counsel.”

  The two Masters and Quincy made their way to the throne room. After their arrival was announced to the king and a short wait, they were allowed to enter.

  King Triton sat upon his throne and welcomed them with a nod.

  “My guards tell me you have returned from the Drakaran world,” King Triton said. “I am sure you have quite the story and can offer us some good insight about our enemy.”

  “I’m afraid there isn’t much time, my king,”

  Quincy replied. “I know exactly where they are going to summon the portal to being over their troops. If we can attack them as they step out, we stand a chance! But we have to hurry!”

  “Hold on,” King Triton demanded. “My army just got back from taking a castle from the clutches of the last remnants of the Dark Ones led by Greyson and now I have to send them out again?”

  “Yes!” Quincy exclaimed. “And they may not be enough. I would call on all your allies to march with us there immediately. This is our one chance!”

  King Triton looked concerned. “Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Leave us so I may speak to the Masters.”

  Quincy nodded and departed.

  “Well?” King Triton asked once the throne room doors were shut. “What do you make of all this?”

  Master Sellius sighed. “I do not doubt Quincy thinks this is the right move, but I believe he did not come back on his own.”

  “What do you mean?” King Triton asked.

  “This all feels too planned,” Master Sellius replied. “Remember, your majesty, we fell for a similar ruse with Greyson and the Dark Ones. I think they have purposely sent Quincy back knowing he will warn us and give us false information. Most likely they are planning to attack from somewhere else.”

  “But what if he is right?” Master Porthos asked. “Then we will miss out on an opportunity. They are too powerful to fight in large numbers. You and I have seen first-hand.”

  “A fair point from both of you,” King Triton said. “This choice worries me a great deal.”

  “As it should,” Master Sellius agreed. “We cannot afford to make the wrong choice.”

  “Wait,” Porthos said. “I think we can use this to our advantage. Last time we sent the majority of our army. This time, let’s only send some, strengthened by some of our allies. If they are coming through the portal then we will still have enough men to take them as they come out, while not giving up our defense. I do recommend telling Quincy we are sending most of the army in case they are using him to spy somehow.”

  “”I think this is sound judgement,” Master Sellius agreed.

  King Triton nodded. “Send word to our allies and slip the information to Quincy. We will not be caught with our pants down this time.”

  * * *

  Lance looked up from the white sands of the Drakaran arena. The rows of seats looked completely full. In the middle section stood a wall of obsidian guards blocking off a section of seats for Commander Voltross and the council. The council all wore red clothes with golden capes about their shoulders and back. They stood out like a sore thumb compared to the usual dark attire and armor of the rest of the Drakaran.

  Lance had not slept much last night despite Arthos’ warning to get rest. Seeing Charlotte gave him hope and brought with it a whole new set of worries. He looked along the ground but did not see any pieces of metal this time. He would have to work with only the iron in his blood.

  The ground suddenly trembled as men hoisted on the chains to lift the portcullis at the far wall. It lifted slowly and loudly. As it creaked up, Lance saw a creature emerge from within the darkness. The first thing Lance saw was a head of an alien-like monster with long horns and a wide maw. Next came folded wings that unfurled and flapped excitedly for battle. Lastly came the body of a lion.

  Lance wondered if the creatures in the arena were born naturally or created by some type of dark Drakaran magic. Either way, it mattered little now. With only the iron in his blood to work with, Lance had to end the battle fast or he would tire quickly.

  The beast snapped his jaws open and closed, green bile dripping from its mouth and hissing as it landed on the white sand.

  “Well… crap,” Lance muttered.

  * * *

  Charlotte watched from the stadium with the rest of the Drakaran. She couldn’t bear to watch her friend be killed right in front of her without doing anything. The little bit of magic she could offer would be minimal and draw attention to her disguise. She had to get Lance metal small enough to digest, and fast.

  It was easy enough to slink away while the crowd watched the spectacle before them. She ran down the arena steps and onto the street. There was nobody in sight around the arena due to everyone being inside.

  Charlotte ran over to a house and peered inside the window. There didn’t seem to be anyone home and on a weapon rack on the wall was what looked like a silver sword. She glanced around one more time to make sure no one was around and she smashed the window with magic from her own body. She crawled through and ran over to the sword, hefting it up and laying it down on a table. It was surprisingly heavy.

  Charlotte thought for a moment and then summoned a chisel and hammer. She worked tirelessly on the silver sword, eventually able to chip away several small chunks. She was acutely aware that every second counted, but the pieces needed to be much smaller. She continue to chip away and grind them until they were an adequate size.

  Exhausted from using up her iron inside her blood and banging on the hammer, she found a small box with a lid and placed the silver inside, closing the lid and climbing back out the window.

  She ran like her life depended on it, barely able to breath, yet forcing her legs to move despite their protest.

  “You! Stop right there!” A deep voice called behind her.<
br />
  Charlotte turned around to see a guard in full armor chasing after her. In her condition, there was no way she could outrun him.

  Instead, she used even more of her strength to throw a chain at the guard’s legs, a trick she picked up from Lance.

  She was thankful that it hit its intended target and wrapped tightly about the Drakaran’s legs. He fell to the ground with a shout and attempted to untie the spiked chain now coiled tightly about his legs.

  With barely any energy left, Charlotte stumbled forward on her last reserves. She had to get Lance help.

  * * *

  Lance rolled again, this time narrowly dodging the swipe from the beast’s claws. Its other hand came toward him and he raised an energy shield at the last second. It was strong enough to block the blow, but only just so. The energy shield shattered upon impact and sent Lance flying backward to land close to the far wall. He felt light headed from lack of iron in his blood and he had done nothing but defend and survive up to this point. The beast, whatever it was, was still at full health.

  The crowd grew louder each time the beast missed. They wanted blood. Lance realized the Drakaran people were barbaric in this respect.

  The beast reared up and blew a jet of flame. Lance put up another wall. This one held long enough to withstand the brunt of the heat, the flames moving around the shield and Lance’s body, licking at his sides with an intense heat he had never felt before. The flames finally died and he let the shield down to conserve his energy.

  The beast stalked forward, its claws raking long grooves into the sand. It let out a howl of anger at having to work harder than it anticipated for such a small foe.

  Lance backed away until his back was pressed against the wall. Through the gaps in the wall he could make out the red eyes of Drakaran spectators eagerly watching him about to die. He didn’t want it to end like this, not on some alien planet against a beast he never saw before.

  “Take it!” A voice yelled to him. Lance glanced down to see a small box land next to him in the sand. He didn’t have time to see who threw it. He grabbed the box and opened it as the beast began to charge.

  Inside he found tiny pieces of what looked like silver. He grabbed several pieces and swallowed them fast. The familiar sensation flooded through his veins and invigorated his body. He stood up and held his hand out at the charging beast. It stopped dead in its tracks and reared up as a giant vine erupted from the arena sand and wrapped around its neck. The beast thrashed about, its wings beating furiously to get the vine off of its neck.

  Lance concentrated and the thick vines constricted further. The beast’s screams were cut off as it choked.

  Suddenly it belched a burst of flame and the vines withered and recoiled, allowing the beast to press forward. Lance’s eyes widened in surprise and disbelief as claws came slamming down toward him. At the last second he held his hand out and his body was covered in an energy shield.

  Again and again the giant monster thrashed and slammed its entire body against the shield and still it held. Lance felt his power draining. Every hit from the beast was like a house falling on top of the shield. So much strength in one creature was unnatural. This entire planet seemed unnatural.

  Lance timed it so that the next swing by the creature came just as Lance lowered the shield. The swiping motion threw the beast off balance and it spiraled and fell to the ground.

  Lance wanted to capitalize while the beast lay on its side in a vulnerable position. He summoned as much of his remaining energy as he could and threw several sharpened spears through the air, impaling the beast in several spots of his underbelly.

  It let out a howl and scrambled to its feet, the spears snapping in half as they bent along the ground. With the spear heads still sticking out of it, the monster amazingly staggered forward toward Lance. He jumped to the side, but was caught by its wing that knocked him through the air and landed against the wall. Dazed and winded, Lance raised his head and looked out through a crack in the wall to see Charlotte standing there with a worried expression on her face, the veil once concealing her identity down.

  “I love you,” Charlotte said to him.

  Chapter 6

  Mallagan waited while General Crowl cleared a path through the underbrush. The more they walked, the thicker the plants became.

  “Are you sure it is this way?” Crowl asked.

  “I was inside of his head,” she responded in annoyance. “His memories are my memories. Yes, this is the way. We’re almost there. Quit your whining. At least you have a healthy body.”

  General Crowl slashed and hacked a path for them further into the forest. Tiny animals scurried out of their way, while larger ones watched with curious eyes from a distance. The forest was teeming with flora and fauna.

  “When we get the crystals, how long will you need to open the portal?” Crowl asked.

  “Once we get to the location outside Delvin, I will need three straight days,” Mallagan replied. “During that time I will be in a trance and vulnerable. Your job is to make sure no one disturbs me.”

  “Not one person will come close to you,” he stated. “That much I can promise. We worked too hard for this to go wrong now.”

  “That is what I like to hear,” Mallagan added. “We play our cards right and both of us will reap the rewards from the council.”

  General Crowl nodded and continued to hack through the underbrush.

  Less than an hour later they came to a tree trunk with a large hole in its base. Giant, multi-colored mushrooms flanked the tree.

  “Through there,” Mallagan said.

  After crawling through, they both splashed down into a foot of slushy water. Picking themselves up, they looked around at the walls practically glowing with embedded crystals.

  “Start digging them out,” Mallagan ordered. The glow from the crystals illuminated her eyes and accented her excitement. “This is the beginning of the end for humanity.”

  * * *

  Charlotte’s words were all the strength Lance needed to reach deeper within himself and draw on a power hidden within him. This reserve well of power lay so far within the recesses of his mind that Lance didn’t know it even existed, brought forth now by his instinct to survive combined with Charlotte’s confession of her love for him.

  Lance glowed bright, his entire body engulfed in a blue light. He practically shook as his body floated into the air. The monster stopped and watched in confusion as the light grew brighter until Lance was like a sun, the spectators shielding their eyes from the intensity and brightness of the light.

  He held out his hand and a jet of fire erupted, lancing itself through the air from his hand and straight into the beast’s face. It was so concentrated with heat and energy that the monster’s skin melted off, its flesh torn back, all wiped away in an instant to reveal nothing but bone.

  It toppled silently to the arena ground.

  Lance turned toward the spectators and began to shoot fire into the stands. Some were hit and they died on impact. Others fled.

  The screams of the dying and fearful rose into the air. Lance continued his onslaught. He would not be a captive any longer. He would not bow to the Drakaran will. He would not fight for their entertainment.

  Wood splintered and melted. The arena shook as hundreds turned to flee.

  Commander Voltross attempted to maintain order but there were too many untrained civilians. Instead, he pointed and directed his guards to come after Lance.

  The obsidian-armored guards and several mystics ran toward Lance.

  “Lance, look out!” Charlotte yelled in warning from behind the wall. Her voice came as a distant whisper, barely audible above the cry of his victims. Lance wanted to kill every last one of the Drakaran. He wanted them to pay for everything he put him and his friends through.

  Blinded by his rage and pain, the mystics were able to knock Lance backward and restrain him, pinning his legs and arms to his sides. It was too late to fight back. His hidden powers were no use
when so many strong mystics pressed against him.

  Held against the wall with sheer force of will, Lance tried to squirm and even managed to raise his arm slightly only to have it pinned again.

  Drakaran ran to put out fires around the arena as Commander Voltross approached, flanked by two mystics.

  He wore an angry expression on his face as he neared, his red eyes narrowing.

  “You have crossed a line, human,” Commander Voltross announced. “One of the council was wounded in your little surprise display today. There will be consequences for your actions. You follow the rules of the arena. All fighting stays within the arena. If you are lucky and skilled enough to make it fifty rounds, you earn your freedom as is our tradition. Do you understand?”

  Lance growled in defiance. The sudden realization that he was no longer just an ordinary mage dawned on him. He was something more than that, an innate ability to draw on untapped areas of his mind unparalleled to any of the mages he knew back in Delvin.

  “You will all burn in a fiery hell!” Lance yelled.

  “Perhaps one day,” Commander Voltross answered smoothly. But for today, you are our captive. An arena slave. Nothing more.” He turned to the mystics at his side. “Take him back to the cells. From now on he is to be guarded by at least two mystics at all times.”

  Commander Voltross turned to scan the arena seats and assess the damage. “Someone start to clean this mess up! This is going to take days to fix! I have to deal with the council.” He sighed. They would not be pleased.

  * * *

  Once the intense power drained from him, Lance felt weak and wobbly. He no longer shared a cell with other arena fighters. Instead, he had his own cell with reinforced bars and two stern-looking mystics watching him through the narrow gap in the bars.

  Lance was still unsure about exactly what he had done. He knew he had reached places in his mind he never knew existed, a wealth of power he was only able to tap into under extreme duress. It was an area of the mind none of the Masters back home had trained him on or even expressed an awareness about. Lance wondered if he could ever tap into it again. He was too exhausted to attempt anything now, but the thought that he had stumbled upon something great crossed his mind.