The soldiers around each put a hand on him as Gabriel seized Void and set the pattern. A slow murmur of surprise and awe moved through the crowd as their vision changed. “Do not let go!” he yelled and fueled the shift.
It took no more than two minutes to skim the land. Gabriel knew the area a little, well enough to know where to set them down, and cut the pattern a few miles from where he suspected Balien to be. He excused himself and searched for his friend.
Balien’s army was camped around the southern end of the city in a section of rock formations. Gabriel deposited himself in the middle, getting more than one surprised look and a few swords drawn on him, but he confidently walked towards the center where Balien would be. The Prince’s flag waved from a tall white tent that Gabriel let himself into. It smelled of lavender.
Balien was the brother Gabriel never received, a foster-brother sent to spend the summers in Urima Manor. The blond man stood over a table with a large map spread out. Little characters denoting camped armies scattered around it. Balien looked up with the change of light and nearly knocked the table over.
“Brother!” Balien exclaimed and immediately embraced his friend. “It is good to see you. You are the last person I expected to come through that tent. Come in, come in. What brings you here?”
Gabriel picked up a stone from the ground and looked at the table map. He set it beside Balien’s army. “I brought you a legion of men. They should be here within the hour coming from the south.”
“My sister is a blessed creature.”
“What is happening here?”
Balien ran a hand through his floppy hair. “Shalaban asks for no quarry nor resolution. They simply plow their way through. I have tried to ask to speak with their General, but he will not have it, so now we hold the city.”
Gabriel looked at the map and traced a line from Kinsten Kel to Anatoly city. “How long can you hold them here?”
“They outman us nearly two to one. I doubt Robyn would want to send any more men as it would leave her City undefended, and you cannot be there always.”
“I am usually in Jaden these days.”
“Understandably so. Any word from the Arch Mages?”
“Oh yes, they broke through Jaden’s wards just long enough to get another Castrofax on my wrist. I had to cut it off.”
“I thought Castrofax were unbreakable.”
“No, the hand,” he said and waved it. “We fixed it in due time.”
“And I thought I had it rough bathing in a bucket. What did you do with the wristlet?”
“Hidden in Jaden.”
Balien nodded, looking far off into the map. “Have you ever thought about hunting them all down and destroying them?”
“Every day. I’m missing the black one, the glass one, and two silver pieces.”
“I will certainly let you know if I find them. How fairs my sister?”
Gabriel shrugged. “We don’t talk much anymore.”
Balien frowned. “You? Of all people I thought you two would…. It is not my place to judge. Do as you see fit.”
“This is why I call you brother.”
Balien grinned. “Since you came all this way, can I send you home with a remedy? Something to help you sleep perhaps?”
“You brought your herbs to a battle?”
Balien walked to a chest and rummaged around. “A battlefield is where they are most needed. Without enough Battle Mages to heal, we need lavender and tea tree and cinnamon to fight infection. Alcohol works but the men keep drinking it.” He opened ceramic jars and mixed them into a smaller one, muttering as he went. “Lavender, clary sage, neroli…ylang-ylang?” He frowned in Gabriel’s direction. “Is an aphrodisiac, and you….”
“I don’t want that.”
“We will skip it and add cedarwood and sandalwood. You should sleep fine. A few drops on your pillow will help you sleep. Just breathe it in,” he said, handing it over.
“I might have a nap right now.”
Balien gripped his shoulder. “I am immensely grateful to you for bringing me more soldiers. Do not stay a stranger. I may put you on the field if you show up again.”
“I wish I had more Mages to send you, but mine are scared out of their wits since the Arch Mages made it through. I will come when I can. Don’t get yourself killed in the meanwhile.”
Balien gave him a tight embrace and bowed. Gabriel stepped out of the tent and returned to the legion. They were only a mile out, so he left them to march unaided, making his way back to Jaden.
Mikelle was waiting for him, grinning more than usual in a way he could only describe as diabolical. “I have a gift for you!” she exclaimed and rushed out into the hall.
“What for?”
“For your swearing in. I could not have it delivered in time.” She came in holding a massive long-haired black cat with gold eyes and deposited it on his desk. He looked down at the cat that stood there lashing a huge tail.
“What…is this for?”
“You like cats. You are one. This is a Reglajae mountain cat, bred for being in the snow.”
The cat sat and looked up at him with large eyes. He often noticed cats doing this, as if they saw the tiger in him and submitted. “What’s his name?”
“Smoke.”
“That’s the name of my horse.”
“Coal.”
“Better.” He reached out a hand a scratched the cat under his chin. “Why are you grinning so much?”
“No reason,” she grinned. “How was Anatoly?”
“Robyn tried to apologize.”
“And?”
“And I walked out.”
Mikelle slumped her shoulders and took a seat. “You are going to burst someday from all this anger.”
Gabriel blew his hair aside with an angry moan. Coal walked across his desk, flicking his tail as if it was a weapon and blew parchment around. “I was going to give you your own gift, but you started talking.”
She clamped her mouth shut.
“Stand up and brace yourself on something,” he said. She rose and put her hands on the desk, bending a little at the waist. He stood behind her. She abruptly straightened and gave him a venomous glare. “Knock it off and turn around,” he sighed and turned her back around. When she was positioned, he drew Spirit and laid patterns in both hands, sinking them into her lower back. He gripped her waist tightly as the patterns took their effect, which was right about the time Lael walked in.
Gabriel looked up. “It’s not what it looks like.”
“It’s exactly what it looks like,” Mikelle replied, wavering on her knees. Gabriel kept her standing.
“I…would leave but am interested at your explanation.” Lael smirked.
“Stand up slowly,” Gabriel said, holding on as she straightened. “How does that feel?”
“A little tight. What did you do?”
“No, how do you feel?”
Her eyes brightened, and she suddenly spun her head around. “My fatigue, it’s gone!” She broke from his hands and marched around the room with a look of amazement. “What did you do?”
“Your kidneys were too small and failing. I repaired them to compensate for an adult.”
“You can do that?” Lael breathed.
Mikelle wrapped her arms around Gabriel’s neck giving him a sound kiss on his cheek. “I don’t know how I could repay you.”
“Stop riding my horse.”
“I could bring dinner up instead!” she said and released him, rushing off.
“Did you come to meet my cat?” Gabriel sighed.
Lael eyed the big black creature on the desk. “I was always more fond of dogs.”
“I am insulted.”
“I came to see if there was any word from Anatoly City.”
“Yes, Shalaban marches on it.”
Lael had most certainly referred to Robyn, but the news was immediately distracting. “Why?”
“They don’t know, but I moved some troops around and saw the fron
tlines were functioning.”
“I must write to her Grace. Can we spare any Battle Mages?”
“No one will leave Jaden. You know how hard it was for Dagan to find twenty people to hunt specters. This is not our battle. Anatoly must handle their own problems, for Jaden has plenty of their own.”
Lael nodded slowly in agreement. “I will leave you to your work.”
Chapter 19
Gabriel set his shift bent for Arconia, off the west coast near the Black Cliffs. He had been there once before to hurriedly deposit Lace and had made a swift retreat, but it never sat right with him. The girl had been his ally and companion. It was not right of him to deposit her.
He cut his shift behind the great white mansion and took in his surroundings. It was a small, fully-functional property with cattle, chickens, and a substantial garden. The air was warmer than Jaden since the kingdom sat lower in altitude and longitude. Gabriel embraced the warmth on his face.
Not all were as well educated as those he usually spent time with. He was not surprised when no one recognized what his white clothes meant. Several servants gave him pleasant nods until he got closer to the structure. A page in a pale blue coat rushed out to greet him in Arconian.
Gabriel asked to be taken to Lace, and the page invited him as he vanished to find the lady of the house. Lace lived alone in this mansion. Her parents owned many homes through Arconia and usually stayed in the capitol Rabier. It was a beautiful old structure with soaring ceilings, tall arches, and windows everywhere to illuminate the pale walls dotted with portraits. He sauntered into the foyer that smelled of roses and saw a massive vase filled with flowers.
“Gabriel?” the soft voice came above him. He looked up the staircase, and little Lace, dressed in a flowing yellow gown, rushed down the stairs. She threw her arms around his neck, “Whatever are you doing here?” The young page behind her cast a knowing look as he strode off.
“We left on ill terms last time, and I wanted to ease your mind.”
She released his neck which made him relax a touch and took up his arm instead. Lace led him up staircase, and he flagged down a passing maid requesting tea for her sitting room.
He took a seat. “I left you unceremoniously and did not want you to think ill of me. I caused you great grief and never apologized for it.”
She laid her hand on his knee. “Yes, yes and you frightened me terribly, but I know you did what you had to. I forgave you long ago.”
“You’re a gem. I miss your company.” He had shared a part of himself with her that no one else he cared about had, and it made him feel connected to her on a deeper level.
She rubbed his leg. “I am happy to be home though. I handle one of my parent’s mines not far from here, so I feel like I have purpose again.”
“Shouldn’t you be resting?”
She laughed and slapped his knee. “I am pregnant, not an invalid. I can do everything I always did. Do not think women are so fragile.” She was just beginning to show through the dress.
“I’ve never dealt with a pregnancy before.” Gabriel said awkwardly.
“Oh, I see. Do not worry yourself.”
“I…” he trailed off. “I want to make sure the child is taken care of.” He raised a hand to the ceiling. “I know your family is wealthy and can afford whatever they desire, but I want to aid from a distance.”
“I assumed you would want to remain absent entirely.”
“I don’t know what I want,” he sighed and leaned back. “I want to be there, but I don’t want anyone to know.”
She tittered. “They will learn. People know I was in the Anatoly party, and word is getting around why we went. People are bound to figure everything out.”
“Really?” he breathed and looked at the ceiling as if it had answers. “Only a few in Jaden know. I’d like to keep it that way as long as possible.”
“You may want to tell people before they hear it from someone else.”
He drummed his fingers on the armrest but sat up nobly as a maid brought in peppermint tea. The peppermint reminded him of Maxine.
“Let us talk of happier things. What news from Jaden?”
He spent several minutes recounting the attack of Arch Mages, his amputation, as well as Shalaban’s attack on Anatoly.
“I had no idea,” she finally said as he finished.
“It seems you are safer here.”
She took up his left hand. “It looks good as new.”
“It was carefully healed.” He was still getting used to feeling with it, and her nails on it made him shiver. She grinned from ear to ear.
“Will you play a game of Tiles with me? It is so dull without Mikelle.” He nodded, and she fetched a box with blue and green tiles. They played several rounds until she came out the victor. Their pot of tea finished, Gabriel looked to the ocean to see the sun beginning its decent.
“I must return to Jaden,” he said sadly.
“I am glad you visited.” He took her hand and kissed it, holding it tightly.
“I…never apologized for that night,” he said lowly. “I should have told Nolen no and—”
She squeezed his hand. “Do not fret your head about it. I vowed to help you any way I could, even if it meant bedding you, so Nolen would not send someone worse.”
Gabriel winced, “It’s not as simple as that.”
“Banish this guilt from your mind. It is not yours to bear.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Jaden needs you.”
He stood and drew her to her feet. “I will return when I can. I would bring Mikelle, but she would tell you all my secrets.”
She grinned and gave him one last kiss on the cheek before he broke away.
Maxine sat open to Void with a searchers-pattern trained on Gabriel, waiting for him to leave Castle Jaden. He had been stagnant for a while, and she worried he had gone to sleep. But he zipped north minutes later and stopped outside Evyne on the edge of the Dead Lake. She followed, arriving in half a minute.
She had seen many Head Mages in her time, but he wore the white garb the best. White had the tendency to make large people look larger in the wrong places. He was so long in the legs and broad in the shoulders that white made him look more lanky and imposing. It helped that most of his trousers had strips of embroidery or ribbon that ran up the outside seam, elongating his legs.
She stopped and could go no further, feeling a disparage-shift pattern already set up. Gabriel hooked his thumbs over his belt when he saw her, ready to loosen them to fight if necessary.
“How old are you, Head Mage?” she asked.
“Twenty-four.”
She tapped a finger on her lips as she sashayed forward. This evening she chose a dress with two slits up the sides to show off her legs. The movement of her hips played eye games with her thighs. “I know of only one Head Mage who was younger. A woman actually, twenty-two when she took the Seat.”
“Did she die fighting the Arch Mages?” he asked snidely.
She gave him a sympathetic look. “Is that your fate?”
“I seem to have no alternative.”
She stopped walking within a few feet of him. Despite Maxine’s height, he still had a few inches on her. “Well, I have the tools to aid you.”
“Yet you offer me no promises that I will not have to fight you in the end. As far as I know, you are giving me the tools to my own demise.”
“If you use them incorrectly, yes. And if you use me incorrectly.” She touched his jaw with her finger affectionately, but he only glared down at her. ‘So guarded.’
“I want to teach you a bloom-pattern,” she said. “As you know, Void alters body and mind and very rarely anything else. It is not considered a weapon, but it can be effective in a war or a home.”
She laid a complex pattern of black strings, twisting them over each other. He watched cautiously but with great interest. So far he had been able to replicate the patterns with only one demonstration, and she could only imagine how high his intellect
was.
She held up the knot of strings. “The bloom-pattern causes feeling of hope to bloom in ones chest. It is very hard to alter emotions, and this is the only successful pattern I know. Mages of old tried to change will and love and instill fear and sadness, but they were all unsuccessful and usually ended with someone’s death. Thankfully you only have to worry about this one. I would like to try it on you.”
He eyed it warily, and she saw his fingers wiggle as if preparing a pattern, but he stilled and nodded. She pressed the pattern into his head.
His countenance immediately changed, but not the way she expected. Most Mages brightened and smiled, but he closed his eyes and lowered his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He stood silently for a few moments and stated “Take it out” with a voice that wavered. She pulled it free and let it unravel into nothing. “Let’s not try that again.”
“Are you well?” she asked and put a hand on his forearm. ‘Are you so devoid of hope that even a little would bring you to your knees?’
He dropped his hand; his emotions composed, and replicated the pattern with expert precision.
“Excellent.” She stated. “This pattern can only be used when you are close to someone and will slip loose if you walk too fa’ away. You have a good thirty steps. I like to use this pattern to push someone who is on the edge of decision. Now, how strong are you feeling tonight?” He shrugged. “I have a pattern that will pinch nerves and cause pain.”
“Go ahead,” he sighed as if he had no choice.
“I do not want to hurt you, Head Mage.”
“Go ahead,” he repeated.
She ignored his ‘everyone else does’ implication and set the pattern. “This is called the pierce-pinch and can be set as small as a single nerve or as wide as foot in diameter. This pattern also only works if you are holding the pattern. It cannot be set into someone and left to fester. Pick a location.”
He bent his arm and pointed to upper area, tucking his wrist under his other arm. She supposed he had every reason to be paranoid. Carefully, she set the pattern into a muscle, watching his face for a reaction. He did not wince, so she widened her hand to extend the surface area of the pattern. He finally grunted quietly, and she pulled the pattern loose.
Unlocking Void (Book 3) Page 13
