The Rise of a Dark Mage

by D. L. Harrison

  She asked, “Are you alright?”

  I nodded, “I will be. I was worried about you, both of you, which is why I woke you up, sorry.”

  She waved that away and then blushed.

  “Can you see me too?”

  I nodded, “Yes. It’s a very nice pink nightgown.”

  She yelped and pulled the blanket up to her neck, it made me laugh for the first time in two days.

  We talked for a few minutes more before we ended the conversation, and I felt good enough to sleep, so I did…

  Marie saved me over the next few weeks. She was an anchor to the real world, and kept me informed on what was going on. I let her contact me, since I didn’t want to accidentally connect when Daniel was there. It was just better that way.

  They’d just reached the mountain pass between Sandoval and Mendell when I was sure the ritual was ready. It’d taken me a month, and was just short of a thousand glyphs. A lot of those were merely for power, no one mage could power a spell which affected the weather for an entire kingdom. It worked by basically activating it, and then that magic would summon more elemental power which would summon even more elemental power, and over again many times.

  The ritual wouldn’t affect the other kingdoms, it didn’t steal rain from them, it created it anew through water elementals. It was ready, and so was I. I knew what I had to do, where I belonged, whether they liked it or not.

  In my theory of what went wrong in Lethia, I supposed that no one could force the royal family to do anything, which allowed them to wallow in lies, grief, and rage. It allowed them to hide from the truth, which was they had to work with mages to flourish.

  But that wasn’t quite true, that no one could force them to see I mean. I could force them to see the truth, and although I couldn’t force them to accept the truth that they needed mages, I could do it anyway.

  I wouldn’t hide who I was any longer. I walked over to my pack, pulled off my dress, and reached inside and pulled out a black robe. I slipped it on. It felt… right.

  It was who I was, a dark mage. Not evil, but a master mage of all three magic disciplines, and one that could see all three gods had their place, for those that new the truth. The god of light, dark, and neutrality.

  I finally had a plan for my power, and it was time to make my mark on the world.

  Chapter 19

  I knew I needed to make a bit statement. Something to shake the beliefs that were hammered into not just the royal family, but the commoners as well. Something grand, and helpful, so that they’d be reminded every time they saw it what magic had done for them. I smiled, it wouldn’t be subtle, that was for sure.

  I engaged the enchanted ritual for travel and casted the last three glyphs manually, specified with intent where it should open up, how big, and for how long. A doorway sized portal appeared, and I stepped through before my few seconds were up. I was in the middle of the large square in Lethia’s capitol, and it was in the morning.

  The few people in the square screamed and ran, which was good, because I needed the room to work and they’d been in the way.

  I took out a small plate of metal that was enchanted and set it down on the ground. It had the automatic charging on it. I wasn’t about to give them more magic they could use without a mage, that would defeat my intentions here, but what I planned to build here would be protected from destruction.

  Not in a violent way, since I was in the middle of the city, just a few hundred yards from the castle’s portcullis and bridge, but it would protect it. First, it wouldn’t let anyone approach this spot with negative intentions, if someone were to wish to destroy what I was about to build, they would find themselves confused and wandering several blocks away. A little mind control magic. If that was defeated, it would raise an energy shield around the entire structure that I was about to build, using the four elementals in one spell.

  It could be defeated, but it would take many powerful mages working together, which didn’t exist in Lethia at the moment. The small metal plate also had a water elemental enchantment on it, but that one wasn’t for defense.

  I took a look around, no one was coming yet, so I brought up an earth glyph, and pictured what I wanted down to the smallest detail, and then casted it.

  The ground shook and a large structure of sanded gray stone rose out of the ground, which is what was below the surface here in Lethia. When it finished, I cast a transformation glyph which changed it to smooth white marble. I stood back and looked up at it. It was twenty feet high in the center, a marble plinth that rose into the sky. On top stood two ten foot statues of Silvia and the first queen named Maria, standing arm and arm.

  I had to admit it wasn’t at all subtle, but that was the point. It also wasn’t the whole structure. The piece was eighty feet wide and circular, and had two-foot marble walls on the outside of it. Atop the plinth before the statues started, were small indents, a long line cut into the stone. The water elemental enchantment on the plate activated, and water started to cascade down all four sides of the square plinth, like four little waterfalls.

  I stepped back and out of the pool before the fountain could fill up, the water elemental would constantly reuse the water when it was full, and create more when the level lowered. It would even take some away in the case of rainfall. It was kind of pretty. It would also keep the water clean and drinkable.

  Lastly, I casted an earth elemental, and then brought up an illusion glyph, and placed the illusion of the weather ritual I’d created around the outside of the circular wall of the fountain. It was just under a thousand glyphs long. I ordered the elemental to inscribe them into the marble. Even with this shortcut it would take me five or six hours to complete the enchantment.

  I wasn’t worried about people figuring the enchantment out, the glyphs were useless without knowing the language, unless I explained each one and its purpose, along with what intent should be used, my invented ritual was safe from abuse or theft, even out in the open like this.

  This enchantment, the weather ritual, would require a mage to activate it, every single time. No recharge for that one, which was my whole point. The people would know that the crown and mages had worked together in the past, and they would see a mage use this enchantment every ten years. Or… they would have drought and famine, and heavy taxes.

  I knew it was high handed, but it would work to maybe make people think, instead of just act.

  I turned at the clomping boots on the stones behind me, and saw several knights running toward the spectacle I’d created with grim faces and their swords out, that is, until they got about a hundred feet away. They stopped, looked confused, and walked off haphazardly.

  I giggled.

  The dispel magic enchanted on their swords was no match for my protective enchantment.

  Of course, I wasn’t done yet. I looked down at the low wall and frowned, that was going to be an awkward angle. I released the earth elemental and summoned an air elemental in the form of a soft floaty cushion of air, and took a seat. Much better. I got started enchanting the ritual, one glyph at a time as the floaty cushion moved along the wall very slowly…

  After the first hour the guards stopped trying to attack me, or arrest me, or stop me, whatever they had planned. I worked in relative peace for another hour when the unexpected happened. Children. Of course the protective enchantment wouldn’t stop people without bad intent.

  “What are you doing?”

  I looked over, and there were a few children staring at me.

  “Enchanting this fountain,” I said softly.

  There was a pause, “Can we play in it?”

  I snorted in amusement, “Sure, just don’t splash me.”

  I managed to block out the happy screams and splashes of kids, and then a short time later, the scared screams of parents for their children to get away from the evil mage. I was about half done when the soldiers tried to take me out with arrows from outside the enchanted field that would turn violent intentions away, but th
e protective magic of the fountain shielded me. I’d taken into account projectile weapons. Even a siege engine couldn’t destroy this fountain.

  I was shielded as well, but was quite safe while near the fountain anyway. Anyone would be.

  I was almost done in mid-afternoon, when I heard a throat clear behind me.

  “Who are you, and what are you doing?” Asked a gruff old voice I was familiar with.

  I turned around, and lowered the black hood of my robes.

  “Hi Michael. How are things?”

  Michael spluttered, “Cassandra?”

  “In the flesh. Let me get these last two.”

  I turned away and took care of the last two glyphs, which completed the enchantment.

  Then I activated it.

  The aura of power was insane, it built up in a crescendo of elemental magic. For a minute I thought I’d done something wrong, and was about to blow up the city of Lethia, but the magic exploded outward into the sky, and deep into the ground. Storm clouds formed. Now that I thought about it, they were the first storm clouds I’d seen since arriving in Lethia months ago.

  He asked nervously, “What was that?”

  I smiled, “I fixed the weather.”

  He shook his head, obviously he had a lot of questions.

  “Where is Daniel and Marie?”

  I sighed, “I had to leave them after I told them I was a mage in Sandoval. Daniel was rather upset. They started crossing through the pass this morning, they may even be inside Mendell by now.”

  He waved at the monstrosity of a fountain, “What’s all this?”

  I replied with feeling, “A reminder of the past, a clean water fountain for the city to use on a daily basis, and an enchantment to prevent drought and famine. One that needs a mage to work it.”

  He asked a little doubtfully, “Why did you do this?”

  I couldn’t blame him for doubting, it might be a season before the rains actually benefited anyone. Lethia would still need that food that was coming.

  I grinned a little evilly, I couldn’t help it, “To soften the blow of course.”

  He frowned suspiciously, “What blow?”

  I laughed, “When I tell the queen I’m her new court mage… whether she likes it or not. Let’s face it, the kingdom is a mess. You need a real court mage, one that can ignore the tantrum of the royal family, but at the same time not take over the kingdom or start some reign of terror. I’ve elected myself to the position.”

  He shook his head and looked rather uncomfortable, and I had the strange feeling that he agreed with my assessment of things.

  “I like you Cassandra, but you know I can’t let you do that. I have all the knights and half the army on the other side of that bridge. Even you can’t stop that many.”

  Actually, I probably could, as long as I kept my distance from those swords, which would be rather easy if I took the shape of a hawk, and flew over their heads. Of course, even that wasn’t necessary.

  I activated the portal enchantment, and opened a portal to the mage library. I’d been there that one time in person when the mage apprentice checked my backpack.

  “I like you too Michael. Are you coming? Also, you should know, I have access to those enchantments, and can turn them off if I wish. That isn’t a threat, exactly, just telling you how unimpressed I am with the idea of your men stopping me.”

  He didn’t follow as I stepped through, and then I went in search of the mages here. They weren’t hard to find, neither of them hid their mage aura like I did. It was better that way, I found people usually underestimated my magic. I was attractive, a woman, and just eighteen. Way too young for the power I held, or at least that’s usually the assumption.

  I had no illusions I could force them to accept and welcome me. But I didn’t care. The kingdom needed a strong mage, and that’s what I was. They’d have to accept it eventually, even if grudgingly.

  I tracked down Vernon and his apprentice Darrell in their rooms. I knocked and informed them to meet me in the library. They were so beat down they didn’t even question the order. So far I hadn’t run into any guards, I was fairly sure they were stationed outside the doors that lead to the mage corridor and suites.

  Regardless, I hit them with a hidden magic and truth spell glyphs as they followed me down the corridor and into the pathetic and burned out library. The spells latched on without their knowledge.

  When the door shut, Vernon asked, “What are you doing in those black robes Cassandra?”

  I smiled, but didn’t answer his question.

  “Why are you here, and why do you allow them to treat you the way they do?”

  Vernon and Darrell answered in stereo, “They have our families.”

  They both looked at each other alarmed that they’d answered my question.

  “Would you both leave Lethia if you could take them with you?”

  They both answered yes.

  Vernon added, “But it’s not possible, they’re in mage cuffs in the dungeon. They’d be killed if we ran. We hate it here, and we hardly know any spells at all,” he waved disgustedly at the empty book shelves.

  I shook my head, and felt a little sick to my stomach. Lethia seemed more and more like Zual every day. I considered the idea of making them apprentices, but I wouldn’t be able to trust them. They’d leave or perhaps even attack the royal family if they got the chance, once I freed their families I mean. I couldn’t even blame them, the royal family probably deserved it.

  Ironically, that meant I needed to protect the abusers from the abused in this case, while at the same time trying to knock some sense into their thoughtless and cruel worldview when it came to mages. It was hard to believe the royal family was so reasonable and caring about other things.

  “Gather what you want from your rooms,” I ordered, “I’ll lead you down to the cells, and you’ll go straight to Sandoval from there. Go to the court mage Niall there. He can probably set you up with a master, and honest work where you’ll be respected. All I ask for my help is for you to forbear vengeance.”

  Darrell scowled, “And if we refuse?”

  I tilted my head and brought up the bitch look from my past, “Then you won’t be collecting your families first. Will you agree?”

  They both said yes, apparently they wanted to escape more than they wanted vengeance. There was no possibility of duplicity, not with a truth spell involved.

  I asked, “Are there a lot of mages in the dungeons?”

  Darrell answered, “A few families, like I said, mages are kept cuffed to suppress their magic, and are kept alive to serve as replacements.”

  I sighed, “Go pack,” and I cancelled the truth spell.

  The trick to magic suppression cuffs, or even the enchanted swords, is they needed to be more powerful than the mage to be killed or subdued. In Darrell’s and Vernon’s cases, that wasn’t an issue. For me, I had more than enough power to deal with the enchantments of weaker mages. I hadn’t even needed to summon a demon yet, and truthfully doubted I ever would again.

  The royal family’s decisions over the last century and a half have made them ripe for a powerful mage to rule. Good thing for them I don’t want to rule, I just want a powerful position, and to make a mark on history.

  I also wanted to enjoy life, hopefully not everyone would hate me. I kind of counted on Marie still being my friend when she got back, which would most likely be another two or three months. They had five weeks of just travel left, plus whatever amount of time they stayed at the capitol in Mendell. Though, I was committed either way. I would eventually need an apprentice as well, which would be a tall order. Who but me would ever want the job?

  The mages came back, Darrell asked, “Are you sure you can do this?”

  I nodded, “Follow me.”

  I opened up a portal just outside the corridor to the dungeon and they followed me through, I hoped that would cut down on incidents. It was the closest I could get, I’d never actually been down there before. I brough
t my new shortcut glyph to mind, where I’d combined three spells.

  The specific spell glyphs were disarm, trip, and stick. More of a practical joke really, but it would get the guards off their feet, and stuck on the ground. They also wouldn’t have their weapons to swing at us as we walked over them. It would last a few hours unless I set them free.

  There were four guards at the end of the hall, they stood before the stairs down to the dungeon. I launched four of the shortcut glyphs at once, and the men cried out as they fell, and then they screamed when they discovered they couldn’t move off of the ground. Their hands, arms, and torsos stuck where they landed.

  Huh, I’d overlooked the outcry part.

  I nailed the corridor with a silence glyph, and then the door they guarded with an unlock glyph, and we carefully stepped over the fallen soldiers and down the stairs.

  I was somewhat relieved to find their dungeon was nothing like the dank, smelly, and dark dungeons in a Zual keep. They were well lit, clean, and smelled just like the upper floors of the palace. Still, that didn’t make me happy about the family hostage thing.

  There were six more guards here, I nailed them with the same glyphs, three at a time. I could have done five and one, but it was faster and easier to split them evenly.

  Vernon swallowed, “Where did you learn those spells?”

  I lied, “A better library than yours.”

  Besides it being against the gods’ will to share that information, I didn’t think he’d have believed the truth anyway.

  I sensed the mages up ahead, through another door. Another unlock glyph, and we were inside the large room that was their home. There were several small bunk beds, as well as sanitary facilities. There wasn’t much else, just piles of old clothes, drinking water, and even a little food. There wasn’t even a window in here.

  They all wore cuffs, but they weren’t chained together, they were just locked on like bracelets. It would allow them to feed themselves. There were fifteen altogether. Ranging in ages from a few young children to the old and infirm.