Blue Mage Equinox: Book 2 of Tournament of Mages

by Cleave Bourbon

  “I will make a glorious blue mage. I understand the elements!” She lurched toward him.

  “Defend yourself!” Glea told him as Helda attacked.

  Not sure what he should do, he reacted to Glea’s commands and chose the element he controlled with the greatest of ease. In an instant, he extracted every drop of precious water from Helda’s body. It flowed out of her mouth, nose, and every orifice to collect in a floating mass before him. The seeress’ mouth formed a silent scream as the fluid left her to dry out utterly. Helda shriveled and shrank back until a handful of dust floated to the floor.

  Horrified, Arran let the mass of water drop in a great splash. He stared into Glea’s terrified eyes. He realized the spectacle of Helda’s death appeared just as wicked as if he had burned the witch alive. “You told me to!”

  “I told you to defend yourself! I didn’t tell you to kill her.” She put her hand on his shoulder, “Quickly, flee to the mountains. Do it before your father regains consciousness and I will see he remains here in safety. If you wait, he will insist on going along with you into danger. For his sake, and your sake, go! Get control over this power of yours before it’s too late.”

  Arran nodded and kissed his father’s face, “What about Helda?”

  “It was self-defense. I will think of something when you are far away from here.” She went to her desk and found three gold coins, “Here, take this. Go to your house and get what food you can carry, clothes, a bedroll, and maybe a few odds and ends to cook with. Oh, and get a flint and steel for fire.” She smirked, “Or not. I forget you probably don’t need that.”

  Arran shook his head.

  “Right, well, get what you need and what you can easily carry and then sneak out of the citadel. I will meet you at the giant rock in a week. Do you know what rock I speak of, the one that stands alone?”

  “I do.”

  “All right, go now.” She escorted Arran out the door and he started to run.

  “Don’t run.” She said. “Walk as if nothing is the matter.”

  Arran nodded.

  It was with a heavy heart and a fair amount of shame that Arran escaped the citadel with his pack and provisions. As he climbed a hill leading further into the mountains, he turned and looked at the citadel one last time. He didn’t mean to kill the seeress. He wondered if his first reaction would always be to kill. Not knowing where to go, he wandered off up the mountain trail.

  Chapter 4 – The Meeting

  Teoni had been watching the citadel all morning but she had not spotted anyone who she thought may have been the blue mage. She finally took to the skies as a hawk so she could keep a sharper eye on the entire stronghold. About midafternoon, she spotted a man trying to hide and sneak his way out. He carried a pack and was trying very hard not to be seen as he left, traveling up one of the mountain trails. Teoni followed his movements. He had brown hair, was about the right age, but other than that, she would have to confront him as a human to find out more.

  She followed the boy as he continued up the mountain trail. It was close to the end of the day when he finally found a spot to set up camp. Teoni perched in a nearby tree, now in the guise of a simple sparrow. She watched as he made a place to sleep under a few cut tree branches, which he used to make a lean-to. After he had gathered some firewood and stacked them to make a fire pit, he took up his bow and headed off into the woods. Teoni followed.

  After watching Arran try and fail to obtain supper by hunting, she had the wicked idea of how to confront him. She flew down into the bushes where he couldn’t see her and reverted back to her normal form. She unfolded her pack and found her daggers. Once she had the pack re-secured, she leaped from the bushes and ran directly for Arran. At first, he didn’t see her, but he must have heard her coming because he began to nock an arrow before she reached him. He still had his back turned to her up until he had his bow ready and then he turned to confront the danger, pointing the arrow straight at her. Teoni ducked before he could make the shot and sliced his hand holding the bow with one of her daggers as she streaked past him. He immediately dropped the bow with a sharp yelp.

  Teoni circled back and stopped before she reached him assuming an attack stance with one dagger extending in front of her and the other above her head. Pointing at the young man. Arran carefully reached down and picked up his bow and the arrow he had dropped. She expected him to nock the arrow back in place but he didn’t. Instead, he sighed and held the bow and arrow down at his side.

  “I don’t know if you can understand me, or if you are from these mountains, but I suggest you go back the way you came. I am dangerous, much too dangerous for you to be around.”

  “Oh,” Teoni said. “Why is that?”

  “You do speak the language.”

  “Obviously! You seem clumsy and you can’t shoot. Why in the world would I worry about you being of any danger to me?”

  “I can shoot!”

  ‘I have been watching you hunt for the past hour. You shot at two rabbits and a squirrel and you are more in danger of starving to death than they ever were of being supper.”

  “You’ve been spying on me?”

  “And you might be deaf.”

  “Look, you really don’t want to anger me. There is more to me than you’ve been able to assess by spying on me for a few hours.”

  “Oh yeah, prove it to me.” She lowered her daggers. “Look over there, to your left, there is a hare waiting to be supper.”

  “All right.’ Arran placed the butt of the arrow on the bowstring and aimed. He loosed the arrow and it sailed through the air missing the hare by at least a foot.

  Teoni burst out in laughter, “That’s pathetic!”

  Frustrated, Arran spontaneously held up his right arm and a burst of lightning went straight up in the air. At the same time, a burst of lightning came down on the fleeing hare. It convulsed in a fit of electric shock and then fell over smoking. Immediately sensing he had made a mistake he glanced at Teoni with wide eyes.

  She tried her best to seemed shocked and surprised. His use of lightning cemented the fact that he was the blue mage. She smiled wickedly, “Bonus! You managed to kill it and cook it all at once!” She couldn’t resist.

  Arran’s shock turned into a friendly smile of relief, “You’re not frightened of me?”

  “A little.” She said, “But I am more hungry than frightened. If you don’t mind me joining you that is?”

  “I would relish the company.” He said. “My name is Arran.” He held out his hand for a handshake.

  “I am called Teoni.” She gingerly touched his hand as if it were about to shock her and then she shook it.

  “Don’t worry. It only works when I command it to.”

  Teoni smiled mischievously and Arran smiled back at her, no doubt he was thinking her smile was friendly. He had no idea that she was smiling because she was proud of herself for assessing Arran’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as his natural ability, and she confirmed he was who she thought he was too. She was on her way into infiltrating her greatest foe’s trust.

  Arran retrieved the rabbit, “If we can find another couple of hares I can make a stew. I have carrots, onions, and potatoes I brought from my village.”

  “And I have some spices in my pack,” Teoni told him. “If you will let me borrow your bow, maybe we can get one without the electrocution.”

  Arran handed over his bow.

  After another hour of hunting and another hour of preparations, they had rabbit stew cooking over a roaring fire. While the food was cooking, Teoni took the opportunity to approach Arran about Danton, the king’s son, and his imminent attack on the citadel.

  “Arran, I think I came across some information yesterday that may interest you. I didn’t think much of it until I saw what you can do with the lightning.”

  “What is it?” He said, stirring the stew with a long wooden spoon.

  “It’s no secret that the Tournament of Mages is coming up in a few years. I assume
by what I saw today that you are the blue mage, am I right?”

  “That’s what they keep telling me.”

  “There was a man in the woods named Danton with ten or so soldiers talking about attacking the citadel and killing the blue mage so that he could assume being the blue mage. I think he might have been the prince. His father, King Thaegar, must want his line to continue.”

  “Mmm, that’s good,” Arran said after he tasted the stew.

  “Are you hearing me? someone is about to attack the citadel and they want to kill you!”

  “So what,” Arran said. “That citadel is full of witches. Soldiers won’t have a chance.”

  “That’s just it, Arran. He carries some sort of scepter that negates magic. They will be helpless.”

  Arran scratched his head, “It’s a long story but I can’t go back to the citadel right now. Do you know when this attack was supposed to take place?”

  “I do. They said in a day or so and it’s been a day.”

  “You seem to know a lot about this Danton fellow’s plans.”

  “I’m good at hiding and spying. You never heads or saw me, did you.”

  “Do you remember where they were and what route they might take. I think the best thing for me to do is confront them before they get to the citadel if I can.”

  “You? You’re going to go up against eleven soldiers alone?”

  “What choice do I have? You have seen what I can do. You don’t know me very well, but suffice it to say I am very good at permanent solutions.”

  “I will go with you.”

  “No offense, but what can you do?”

  Teoni wanted to tell him she was the green mage and two mages could even the playing field quite nicely, but being that they were supposed to be enemies, she decided it might not be a very good idea. “I’m handy with a bow and with my daggers. We may be able to trick them into thinking there are more of us hiding the woods or something.”

  “I appreciate it, but I think I should do this alone. I don’t want to get anyone else hurt that I don’t have to. If I am to beat eleven soldiers, you might get caught up in what I have to do to defeat them and I can’t take hurting another innocent person.”

  “Another innocent person?”

  Arran bowed his head, “I told you when I met you. I am dangerous and dangerous to be around. You can stay off in the distance if you want but I can’t allow you to come in close.”

  “If you do this, I will be nearby with a bow. Far enough away to not been seen or in danger, but close enough to take out a soldier or two if needed.”

  Arran nodded, “As long as you stay at a safe distance.” He began to ladle the stew into tin plates. “Eat up and then get some sleep. We will leave before sunrise and hope we are not too late to stop them.”

  “I guarantee we’re not too late yet.”

  “What did you say? I didn’t catch that?”

  “I said I bet we’re not too late.” She lied.

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Chapter 5 – Raging Storm

  Arran followed Teoni through the woods south of the village and citadel until they reached a camp nestled among some of the more dense trees. From the looks of the place, it appeared that the men were recovering from illness. They were in various stages of undress. Some still had strips of wet cloth draped over their foreheads. There were buckets nearby each of the men still lying down.

  “What do you think happened here?” Arran asked Teoni while they were still hidden from the camp.

  “Looks to me like they were ill. It’s a good thing for us if they were.”

  Arran scanned the men, “Which one is this Danton you spoke of earlier?”

  Teoni surveyed the camp for a moment, “There, he is the sandy-blond haired man near the largest tent.”

  “This man wants to end me and become the blue mage?”

  “Yes, that is his entire purpose.” She paused, “What you aren’t thinking of letting him are you?”

  “It would solve the problem of the citadel.”

  “I hope you are joking!”

  Arran smiled and stepped out of their hiding place and strolled up to the sandy-blond haired leader, who was seated near the fire in front of his tent, “I hear you are looking for me.”

  The man looked up at Arran, “That depends on who you are.”

  “I think you have a pretty good idea.” He sat his pack on the ground. “I am unarmed.”

  “I don’t think that’s entirely true if you are the one I seek.” The man said. “You are very much armed.”

  “There’s no need for you to continue on to the citadel. There is no point of it now that I am here before you.”

  “You seem unconcerned for your safety.”

  Arran stared at the commander. For a moment he considered letting him take his prize and become the blue mage, but when he looked at Teoni, he realized he couldn’t let the man take him without a fight. “Should I be?”

  The commander smiled, “If you are who you say you are then you shouldn’t be concerned, for the fortress at least, but you should be concerned for yourself.”

  The ten men were now surrounding their master and they all drew their swords in succession regardless of being out of armor and in some cases still ill.

  “I don’t wish to hurt anyone,” Arran said. “If I am the one you seek, you know I can’t be taken so easily with steel.”

  “Oh, it that so?” he reached into his pocket and produced a small metal box. “That’s why I brought this.”

  Arran took a step back, “What is it?”

  “Something to even the playing field a bit. My father gave it to me. He understands your power better than anyone still alive, and certainly, he understands it better than you.”

  “Wait, I thought you had a scepter.”

  Danton hesitated, “Someone has been spying on us, men.” He opened the box and took out an amulet with the image of the sun emblazoned on it and with a yellow gem at its center. “This is the star amulet, a very rare artifact from the days of the tournament when such objects were allowed in combat. Most of these have been destroyed but this one was forged by one of the early green mages to work exclusively on blue mages. My father had thirty men searching for it for seventy-five years before he found it in a temple in the southern kingdoms. He had to trade handsomely for it.”

  “What does it do?” Teoni asked with a little too much excitement in her voice Arran thought.

  He put it around his neck, “The wearer of the amulet can negate almost everything the blue mage can do with the elements.”

  “Almost?” Arran asked.

  “I will admit, just like any other thing in this world, it isn’t perfect. It does have one major flaw, that much I will give you, but I will never tell you what that flaw is, or course.”

  “May I touch it?” Teoni asked.

  Danton smirked, “I am inclined to say no, but since there is nothing you can do to it. he held it out toward her. “I will hold on the chain if you don’t mind. You won’t be yanking it off.”

  Teoni nodded and reached out and felt of the sun and the jewel at its center. She pulled her hand back. “It’s so beautiful.”

  “Aye, it is.” Danton agreed. He stood up, “All you men back off. I don’t want any of you accidentally killing Arran in my stead.” The men all backed up but kept their swords drawn.

  “Earth,” Teoni said as she passed Arran. He realized she was using the moment that the men were detracted to whisper to him. He didn’t quite understand what she was telling him and he also knew she wouldn’t be able to get close enough to him again to clarify.

  Danton drew his own sword.

  “I know you don’t think I am just going to stand here and let you run me through,” Arran said.

  Danton appeared more arrogant than ever, “I don’t see that you have a choice. You can’t use your powers against me and furthermore, if you don’t comply, I will have your companion sliced into strips. Seize her!” Danto
n’s men grabbed Teoni. She fought but they were strong.

  Arran shook his head for her to stop resisting. He turned back to Danton, “Why don’t you fight me fair and square. Why don’t you earn being the blue mage.”

  Danton pointed his sword at Arran’s chest, “No, I think not. I have you right where I want you. Why would I risk fighting you?” he lunged forward and Arran dodged his blade.

  Arran called forth the wind to blow Danton back but as predicted nothing happened. Danton thrust the blade again and nicked Arran’s left arm. Arran looked at the blood and realized the meaning of Teoni’s message. He clenched his fist and slammed it down into the ground. The earth shook with violence and the shock knocked Danton down. Arran turned and slammed his fist into the ground in front of Teoni and she and the men holding her fell. Teoni nodded to him, scrambled up, and ran for safety.

  “Impossible!” Danton said, “How did you guess it?”

  Arran knelt to the ground and placed both hands flat. He commanded the earth to shake and vibrate. He wanted the earth to open up and swallow Danton whole. As soon as the ground began to open, Danton turned and fled. Arran let up from the ground only it didn’t stop rumbling. Now concerned. Arran returned his hands to the ground and commanded the earth to stop quaking but he had apparently already started a reaction underground regardless of his magic. He tried with all his might to get the earth to stop. “What in the two hells?” He said. And then he remembered the teachings of Glea. She had once told him that of all the elements the one the witches and therefore the blue mage used least, and should use least, was that of earth. It was too unpredictable and unstable. A little manipulation of it could be disastrous. Now, he understood why. He could sense the layers of earth underneath, all stacked up on top of one another. They were all shaking and moving along to others and causing them to shake too. When he stopped one from vibrating there was always another.

  Finally, after trying for a while he seemed to get it under control, “No wonder the amulet excluded the control of the earth element.” He said.