Magic Below Paris Complete Series Boxed Set (Books 1 - 8): Trading Into Shadow, Trading Into Darkness, Trading Close to Light, Trading By Firelight, Trading by Shroomlight, plus 3 more

by C. M. Simpson

  Gustav sat bolt upright. “My what?”

  Your knowledge of fortifications, the mantid reiterated. There is much we do not know about that kind of warfare.

  “What about the kinds of warfare you do have knowledge of?” Gustav challenged.

  Tok’s eyestalks twitched in amusement. We will be able to take care of any matters related to that purpose.

  “There are other measures we can add,” the druid assured them. “Between us, we should be able to cover most contingencies.”

  Roeglin opened his mouth to ask what contingencies they wouldn’t be able to cover but was interrupted by the sudden clang of an alarm bell.

  Marsh was out of her seat and reaching for a clear blade as she ran for the gate. She was not alone. The guards were running that way, too, and the druids were already shepherding the civilians toward the Library.

  Some of the citizens cast fearful glances at the gray stone building, but the glances they cast toward the gates were just as afraid.

  Aisha looked left and right, taking in the fleeing adults. “What about Bear’s momma?” she demanded, and Roeglin looked down at her.

  “Bear’s momma has the safest cottage in all the world,” he told her, remembering how the wolves’ druid had taken over the assassin’s cottage just outside the township’s walls. “She has a pit with spikes in it!”

  “Oh, yeah.” Aisha grinned, and Roeglin took her by the hand and led her toward the gates. She’d be just as safe on the wall with him as she would be with Calantha, her mother. He caught sight of the woman as she hurried away with the druids.

  She raised her hand in a slight wave, and he was almost overwhelmed by her trust. It didn’t matter that she knew Aisha and Tamlin had faced worse dangers with him in the tunnels. They were still her children.

  And she is our momma, Aisha told him, but she knows we need to work, just like you.

  Oh, she did, did she? Roeglin didn’t know what to make of that. It made sense, but Aisha was six, and Tamlin just nearing eleven. For them to have steady jobs didn’t sit well with him.

  What else are they supposed to do? Everyone should work for the good of the nest. Our people begin those tasks as soon as they leave the larval stage.

  Roeglin didn’t know how to explain human ages to the mantid, and Tok didn’t press him.

  “What is it?” he demanded.

  “We’ve got a large group of people coming along the road.”

  “Raiders?”

  “They don’t look it, but I’m seeing a lot of armor, and they’re all mounted.”

  “Are there any wagons?”

  “There are mules.” The man handed him the spyglass.

  “I don’t see anything,” Roeglin said after a couple of minutes.

  The man took the glass and peered through it. “They’ve moved into the gully behind those two buildings,” he said, pointing at the remains of two tall buildings. “They’ll be in view in a couple of minutes.”

  “Marsh?” Roeglin’s voice was hoarse.

  “The shadows won’t show me,” she told him. “They’re too far away.”

  If they were in the gully, then the group was more than a cavern-width distant—much too far for her magic to reach.

  “Life forces?”

  Marsh shook her head. “Same problem.”

  He frowned at her, and she nudged him with her elbow. “Minds?”

  Aisha bounced beside him.

  “I can do it.”

  He was about to say he would do it when her eyes flared white. The grip on his hand tightened, and she let him see what she did. Even so, her shrill shout of joy came as a surprise, and she’d torn free of his grasp and stepped over the edge of the wall before he could stop her.

  “Master Ennermet!” she shrieked

  12

  An Unfortunate Greeting

  “Aisha!” Marsh lunged for her, but the child dropped over the edge...

  …and onto the stone she’d conjured from the side of the wall.

  “You’re fixing that!” Marsh called, but the child ignored her, pulling stone from the wall to form a set of stairs as fast as she took each new step.

  Marsh’s breath caught in her throat as the child descended at break-neck speed, and she didn’t call out again. The last thing she wanted to do was distract the girl at a crucial moment and see her plunge to the base of the wall as a result.

  She remembered to breathe again when the child reached the ground.

  “Come back here!” she shouted, but Aisha ran away from the base of the wall as fast as her little legs could carry her.

  “Deeps dammit!” Tamlin swore, and Marsh glanced over in time to see him step onto the top of the wall and vanish.

  “Deeps be shagged and shaded!” Marsh cursed and chose a patch of sunlit ground in Aisha’s path. She stepped to the side but was still disoriented when she found herself on the ground amidst the ruins. The time it took for her mind to catch up with where her feet had taken her was all the time Aisha needed to bolt past her.

  “Hurry, Marsh! Master Ennermet is here!”

  The little girl’s joy was contagious, and Marsh couldn’t help smiling as she tried to catch her.

  “Aisha, stop!” Tamlin wasn’t as amused.

  Aisha ignored him, and Marsh ran after her. They reached the top of the rise at the same time Master Envermet did.

  Master Envermet’s mule was not amused. It gave a startled bray and reared onto its hind legs. Marsh skidded to a halt and called a protective dome over the child as the mule lashed out.

  “Aisha!” Tamlin raced past her and Marsh stuck her foot out, tripping him before he ended up under the mule’s feet.

  She threw a dome over them both and watched through the semi-translucent shield as Master Envermet got his mule back under control. As soon as it quieted, he dismounted and had the shadow guard step down. By the time everything had settled down, Roeglin, Gustav, and the Library’s guards had arrived.

  Marsh released the shield over her and Tamlin and helped the boy to his feet. When he was upright, again, she looked at the dome covering Aisha.

  “I suppose I should let her out,” she muttered, and Tamlin nodded.

  “She’ll be mad at you when she comes out,” he warned.

  “I’ll take care of that,” Master Envermet told them. “She needs to apologize to Henry.”

  “Henry?” Henri asked. “You have a mule called Henry?”

  Master Envermet smiled. “He came with that name, and I did not want to change it. Besides, what’s wrong with Henry?”

  The ex-caravan guard looked at him. “It’s my name.

  “See? It’s a perfectly good name,” Master Envermet replied.

  “It doesn’t belong on a mule,” Henri grumbled.

  The guards around him stifled smiles, and Master Envermet huffed a sigh. “Nevertheless, it is his name, and he gets to keep it.”

  Henri pressed his lips into a thin line but didn’t argue. When the shadow captain sounded that determined, the matter was closed.

  Master Envermet looked at Marsh again.

  “It is good to see you, Master Leclerc, and you, Apprentice Danet. I trust your studies are going well?”

  “They are,” Tamlin assured him, blushing pink at the recognition.

  “Good.” Master Envermet dipped his head in acknowledgment, then looked at Marsh and gestured at the dome over Aisha. “If you would.”

  Marsh sighed but dismissed the shield.

  Aisha stood up, dusting her knees as she did so. She glared at Marsh, then focused on the mule.

  “That was rude!” she scolded it, shaking her finger.

  The mule jerked his head up. He flicked his ears forward and then back, sidling to stand behind Master Envermet as he kept a wary eye on the child.

  “Hello, Apprentice,” Master Envermet said, interrupting her tirade. “Please stop scaring my mule.”

  “Master Ennermet!” Aisha shouted and leapt forward to wrap her arms around his legs.r />
  The mule snorted, pulling at the reins, and Master Envermet passed them to one of the mages who’d come to stand beside him. As soon as his hands were free, he stooped to lift Aisha from the ground and settled her on his hip.

  “Have you been behaving yourself?” he asked, stepping toward Roeglin.

  Marsh looked at Tamlin and rolled her eyes. The boy returned her expression, and they both fell in step beside the shadow captain.

  “Brigitte, Roeglin,” he said, greeting the others as he approached them. “I trust I haven’t come at a bad time?”

  “We were introducing the settlers to some new allies,” Roeglin explained. His eyes flared white, and Master Envermet froze.

  “Really? They’re our friends?”

  Marsh felt a frisson of alarm. The mantids’ settlement wasn’t far from the approach to the Library. She hoped Master Envermet hadn’t mistaken them for enemies and killed them.

  He shot her a glance, and his lips curled in a brief smile. “No, but it was close. They watched us pass from the upper floors of the ruins to one side of the paths, but they weren’t hostile, so we left them alone.”

  He shifted his gaze to the woman leading her shadow guards, and his eyes took on a white sheen. Her skin flushed a darker shade, and she glanced nervously at the city gates.

  “Perhaps we should introduce our new friends before we enter the city,” Master Envermet suggested.

  “Very well,” Roeglin looked toward the fortress gates, and the mantids appeared shortly after.

  To Marsh’s surprise, they were accompanied by several townsfolk. Murmurs of unease rippled through the newly arrived caravan, but they stilled as Roeglin spoke.

  “The Library welcomes you. We also want you to meet our new allies, the mantids. Today we agreed to bind our settlements together and help each other survive in these lands. Together we welcome you.”

  The townsfolk clapped and cheered the new arrivals as Roeglin went to lead them into the fortress proper. They stopped a few steps later as Bristlebear’s pack appeared outside the druid’s cottage, the druid with them.

  Master Envermet raised his hand briefly to his forehead to acknowledge the wolf and then continued inside.

  “There was a human with Bristlebear,” he mentioned.

  “We found his druid and rescued her,” Marsh informed him. “They live in the assassin’s cottage. She’s happier out there.”

  “Did the raiders take her?”

  “Yes. Some time ago.”

  “And speaking of animals,” Master Envermet continued, “where are Mordan and the pup?”

  Marsh looked around. Dan?

  We are hunting, the kat informed her. You will need extra meat for the evening meal.

  I thought our stores were better stocked than that?

  Master Envermet has brought more mouths than were expected.

  I brought supplies, Master Envermet intervened, but no fresh meat. I am sorry.

  Your presence is welcome, the kat told him. I must go.

  Happy hunting, he wished her as Marsh felt her link go quiet.

  They entered the town, and Roeglin summoned the town leaders.

  “Alain, Evan, can you make sure they all have a place to stay?”

  Alain’s eyes grew round as he studied the new arrivals. Evan scowled. Neither of them argued, however, and the new arrivals were quickly integrated into the town’s infrastructure and celebrations.

  Tok was grateful for the increase in allies and surprised to find another mind mage among them.

  Perhaps you would like to take over the child’s training, he suggested, only to have Master Envermet rapidly shake his head.

  “I am ashamed to admit that she surpasses me in skills. I am grateful she has found a master with the knowledge to teach her.” He paused and gave the mantid a careful stare. “With Roeglin’s permission, I would like to ask you for training as well.”

  If Roeglin is happy to allow it, I will train you.

  “Only if you train me as well,” Roeglin declared. He turned to Master Envermet. “Speaking of which, why are you here, and who are these people with you? You look like you’ve brought your own private army. Did the Monastery send you to start another settlement?”

  Master Envermet shook his head. “Oh, no. It’s far graver than that. They were concerned for all those who might have magical talent on the surface, and, when I expressed a desire to return to you, the Shadow Master allowed it on one condition—that I established a magical training center of sorts.”

  His eyes flashed white, and another mage approached. As he got closer, Marsh noticed it was a druid. “This is Sabir,” Master Envermet said, by way of introduction. “Selima from Ariella’s Grotto sent him to work in conjunction with us to build a druidic arm to the college, and I have brought rock mages from near the Monastery as well.”

  “Did you have any idea of where you want to build it?” Roeglin asked.

  “Do you remember that building we camped at on the way here the first time?” Master Envermet countered. “You know, the one where the wolves found us the day you decided to save the mule?”

  Marsh remembered it but was surprised he did.

  Master Envermet looked confused. “Why wouldn’t I? It was where we saved your life, and it was one of the few ruins that was mostly intact where we needed it.”

  He looked at Sabir. “The rock mages and druids assure me they can ensure it will continue to stand for centuries to come. That, and it’s the only thing with enough structure remaining that’s both big enough and close enough to the Library.”

  “Do we know how far away it is from the mantids?” Marsh asked.

  Roeglin frowned and looked at Master Envermet. He shook his head.

  “Why do you ask?”

  “It would be nice to be able to connect the training center to the Library and the mantids’ nest when we connect the nest to the Library, is all,” she told them.

  Both men looked at Tok, and the mantid inclined its head. I would like that very much.

  Talks went on long into the night, while the townsfolk got to know the new arrivals as well as their new allies. Aisha fell asleep against Master Envermet’s shins and Tamlin dozed in a corner, refusing to leave her.

  “Have you met the trader yet?” Master Envermet asked, catching sight of a young woman deep in earnest conversation with Alain and Eric.

  “No,” Roeglin answered. “What does she trade in?”

  “She’s looking to establish some kind of stud for horses, mules, and donkeys,” Envermet revealed. “I wasn’t going to bring her, but I thought it would be nice to have a second avenue of supply.”

  Roeglin frowned. “I’d prefer it if the horse and donkey breeding was split, but it depends on how much stock she has.”

  Master Envermet shook his head. “She doesn’t have enough stock for that, but we can ask her to build it into her program for later on.”

  “We’ll do that. I don’t want another monopoly.”

  Master Envermet nodded, studying Roeglin’s face as though he were seeing it for the first time. Marsh wondered what he saw but he didn’t enlighten her, even if his eyes momentarily slid toward her.

  “Either way, she’ll be looking for shelter for the winter.”

  Roeglin glanced back at Alain and Evan. They’d retired to a table against the wall, taking the woman with them. Now the three of them were engaged in an animated conversation. Roeglin chuckled.

  “I trust them to negotiate a fair deal with her. A hard deal, sure,” he added, watching the conversation, “but a fair one.”

  A pathway is possible. Tok’s voice interrupted their observation. But we have a request.

  They all glanced at the mantid leader. He’d been moving through the crowd and getting to know the people who were to be his people’s friends. It hadn’t stopped him from overhearing Marsh’s earlier suggestion.

  “A request?” Roeglin asked.

  Master Envermet looked wary. “What sort of request?�
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  We would like our most powerful mages to join your teachers, the Mantid told him. Observation suggests that even your strongest mind mages are not equipped to teach the child what she needs to know…or you, he added, one eye focusing on Roeglin and Master Envermet as the other scanned the room behind him.

  “We would be honored,” Master Envermet replied, and Roeglin nodded in agreement.

  “Honored,” he added.

  Then we will begin construction in the morning. I have spoken to your chief of druids, and he will organize a roster of people to help us.

  “Your people are welcome to stay,” Roeglin told him. “The Devastation is not a safe place at night.”

  It is safe enough for us, the mantid informed him. He turned to go and then paused. There is one more favor we would ask.

  One of his eyestalks swiveled so he could focus on Marsh. The other remained on Roeglin and Master Envermet.

  If you will allow it, I would like to station guardians in the town to protect Marsh. The attacks on her mind are becoming more persistent, and the buildings interfere with our ability to sense them coming.

  Marsh opened her mouth to protest, but Roeglin raised a hand to silence her.

  “How many?” he asked, and weariness curled along the edge of his voice.

  Six, Tok told him. They will work as a triad, with one on guard at all times and one sleeping.

  “All times?” Marsh croaked. “I thought you only needed to guard my sleep?”

  In the past, attacks have occurred on a waking mind, Tok explained.

  “Have they occurred on mine?” Marsh wanted to know.

  Not as yet, although we are not sure you would be aware of one if it did. That is why we wish to be nearby.

  “Why now and not earlier?” Roeglin voiced the question just as it came to Marsh’s mind.

  The presence is stronger. The attacks are growing stronger, as well.

  They were? That came as a surprise to Marsh.

  “But I’ve been sleeping better since I came back,” she protested.

  That is because we have been shielding you. Trust me, the attacks are growing worse.

  “They are?” Roeglin asked. He looked horrified. “I am grateful for your protection, Tok, but I am sorry I have made it necessary.