by Dan Oakley
Toddo looked again at the time on his wrist device. “Our friend should be here by now. I don’t understand the holdup.”
We waited for another thirty seconds, then Toddo said, “I’ll try.”
I shifted back so he could access the keypad, and he punched in the code. This time, along with the red flashing light, an alarm sounded.
A stab of panic penetrated my chest. I quickly tried to smash in the code again, but there was nothing that could stop the alarm.
Toddo was sweating now too. “I’m going to try hacking a way in.”
He put both hands on the keypad and closed his eyes, something I’d seen Trella do a lot.
It was something I’d never been able to do. Using my magical energy to hack into electrical things made me uncomfortable, and I’d never had any real success with the technique.
After a moment, Toddo dropped his hands to his side with a grunt of annoyance.
The sound of the alarm was piercing.
“Something is blocking my magic here,” he said, holding up his hands. “You try.”
I shook my head. “I don’t know how.”
“Use brute force if you have to. Your magic should be powerful enough to work its way through the block. I’ve seen what you can do, Tomas. Try.”
“I can’t… I’ve tried before, and it just doesn’t work.”
“You either try, or we retreat.”
I took a deep breath and put my hand on the cold keypad as Toddo put in another call to the admiral on the comms. I didn’t hear what he was saying because I was concentrating so hard on the keypad. First, I tried one hand, and then put another on the other side of the door. My arms shook as the energy flowed through me to the door. It was uncomfortable. Strings of numbers scrolled past my eyes, but they made no sense. The alarm was still ringing, and I knew we were running out of time. I couldn’t do this.
Toddo had told me to use brute force if I had to. Okay. I could do that. I took another deep breath and then flung everything I had at it. I felt the energy burning through my limbs and pushed harder. Blood was rushing in my ears. I knew Toddo was shouting something at me, but I couldn’t hear him.
“Tamper alert” flashed up on the keypad. And a surge of energy rushed back on the keypad towards me, pushing me away. I gritted my teeth and fought back.
The explosion took me by surprise. It felt like a bolt of electricity passed from my head to my toes. My skin sizzled, and my hair felt like it was on fire, but the door blasted open.
My handprints had made scorch marks around the keypad. The door was a splintered mess. Breathing hard, I smiled.
“I did it!” I turned to Toddo, but he wasn’t standing beside me. He was sprawled out across the floor.
Something must’ve hit him. Maybe metal shards from the door had struck him after the explosion?
I knelt down beside him and put my ear close to his mouth.
He wasn’t breathing.
No. No. No.
I put my hands on his chest, trying to drive healing energy from my hands into his lifeless body. Nothing happened.
I tried again, barely noticing how my hands were trembling. Footsteps sounded behind me, but I didn’t even bother to turn around.
I didn’t know it was the admiral and Bayliss until the big man knelt down beside me. “What happened?” he asked.
I shook my head, unable to believe this was happening. “I tried to hack past the system. The code didn’t work, and the door wouldn’t open. The person who was meant to meet us here didn’t show up. I managed to blast the door open, but then I saw Toddo.”
The admiral had been inspecting Toddo’s body. She kept her facial expression passive, but I could see the horror in her eyes.
After a moment, she stood up and looked back at the keypad.
“There was an anti-tamper defense mechanism installed. It electrocuted him. You’re lucky you’re alive, Tomas. Now let’s move.”
“No! I can heal him. I just need crystals or runes.”
The admiral stepped to my side, leaned down, and clasped my chin between her hands, pulling my face towards her. “You’re a healer, Tomas, but you’re no necromancer. Toddo is dead. We need to move.”
I pulled away angrily.
I couldn’t just leave him here. It had been my fault.
She grabbed my forearm. “Don’t flake out on me now, mage.” Her eyes flashed angrily. “He was a fighter. Toddo died for the cause. He knew the risks.”
Anger swept through me so great it felt like a ball of fire burst to life in my chest and flames flickered hot on my skin.
The admiral yanked her hand away and looked in shock at the blisters appearing on her palm.
We heard more footsteps on the metal gridwork.
“Guards,” Bayliss said.
“We are too late,” the admiral said. “I’ll have to order the retreat.”
Bayliss held out his hand to me, despite the fact he’d just seen me scorch the admiral’s hand.
His steady gaze met mine. “I’m not leaving you here, Tomas, come on.”
At that moment, a guard rounded the corner.
Bayliss was first to lift his weapon and take aim. The admiral lifted her uninjured hand, a bright yellow energy ball floating from her fingers.
I stumbled to my feet and flung my arm towards the guard just as another two rounded the corner. They toppled out of the way as easily as twigs blown from a tree in the wind. I couldn’t explain how I did it. Some form of energy, an extension to the shield Valletta had taught me, flowed from my arm and slammed into their bodies. There was a satisfying thud as all three fell motionless to the floor.
The admiral turned to look at me nervously. “Let’s get back to the ship.”
“No, we need to go and get Trella and the others.” Toddo was dead, and I was not about to let him die for nothing.
Somewhere in my jumbled mind, I knew I was acting out and being unreasonable. I was putting her and Bayliss at risk.
Maureena had told me a story once about anger generating a red mist, and that was how I felt right now. I was furious. So angry.
Logically, I knew I was putting the admiral and Bayliss in more danger, but I turned, ducked through the scorched hole in the door, and entered cellblock 197.
Chapter 25
I wasn’t expecting comfort and luxury, but the sight of the mage cages turned my stomach. There were three cages on one side and four on another. They were only just large enough for someone to lay down flat. If I’d have laid down in one of the cages, my head and feet would touch the metal bars.
The mages were bound with metal rings attached to the wall, and all wore glowing blue ropes twisted around their necks.
Bile grew in my throat. Each of the cages was locked individually.
I realized Bayliss and the admiral had followed me when Bayliss said, “Can’t you just blast them off with magic?”
“No,” the admiral replied. “The cages are constructed of an alloy of copper and Bysandown. It acts as a magic diffuser. I can try…”
She put her hand on the first lock.
An elderly woman in the back of the cage blinked into the gloom.
After a moment, the admiral dropped a hand to her side and shook her head. “It’s no good. Magic won’t work. I hate to say it, Bayliss, but I think our only option is for you to use the plasma weapon to blast it.”
“That could cause projectiles,” Bayliss said. “None of us are wearing armor. It’s just as likely to kill the mages as it is to get them released.”
The admiral nodded. “I don’t see how we have much choice.”
Bayliss turned to me. “Tomas?”
“He won’t be able to either…”
I raised my hand, stared at the lock, and then clenched my fist, imagining crushing the mechanism. I was just as surprised as everyone else when it crumbled to dust.
The admiral was speechless for a moment, shaking her head. “I don’t know how you did that, but I’ll take it. Try
the next one.”
As the admiral helped the elderly woman out of the cage, I moved on to stand beside the next enclosure, which held a short man whose eyes were huge. He had tattoos covering his face and neck and multiple piercings in his ears and through his lips.
I gazed around the room, focused on each lock, and then tried the same movement again, clenching my fist. All six locks disintegrated at the same moment.
The man in the cage grinned at me, displaying a gold tooth.
I walked swiftly along the line of cells, eagerly looking for Trella. In the fourth one I came to I paused, thinking it was her. The woman had the same red hair, but when she turned, I saw she had an arrogant face and dark eyes.
It was not Trella.
I walked on and then caught a glimpse of Trella in the furthest cage. I rushed over to her quickly, taking note of the fact she was paler than before.
Her eyes were unfocused as she blinked at me. “Tomas? No, it can’t be. I’m hallucinating because of this awful drug.”
I yanked open the door to the cage. “No, it’s me.” I pulled her into a hug. “We’re getting you out of here.”
She pushed me away from her and shook her head. “No, you can’t be real.”
When Bayliss reached my side, Trella stared in disbelief.
“It really is us. We’ve come to get you out of here,” I reached up to take the blue rope from her neck.
“Don’t touch it!” the admiral called, but she was too late.
There was a crackle in the air, and a blinding pain ran up my arm.
I snatched it away and the pain deadened, but my arm felt heavy, dull and lifeless.
I shook my arm and felt pins and needles as the blood returned.
“We can remove the ropes back at the ship,” the admiral said.
“Can you walk?”
The seven freed prisoners nodded.
“Good. Follow me, everyone.”
The prisoners hobbled and we made slow progress, with Bayliss and me supporting them. They were disorientated. Was it due to the dim light and poor conditions or due to the Bysandown? I wasn’t sure. Probably a combination of both.
We gathered in the center area outside the cell block.
As before, we touched the tip of each other’s shoulders, and the admiral took a deep breath. “I hope the ropes don’t affect the jump. I’ve never done it with seven before.”
Bayliss grinned. “There’s a first time for everything. I have every confidence in you, Admiral.”
As the admiral readied herself, I gripped Trella’s arm tightly as she stumbled.
She looked up and smiled at me, and then nodded at the red-haired woman I’d mistaken for Trella just moments ago. “That’s my sister, Mesilla,” she said to me.
Mesilla nodded weakly.
They were very alike, but there was a coldness in Mesilla’s eyes.
“Ready?” the admiral asked.
We all nodded and prepared to jump.
Chapter 26
Before she had a chance to start the jump, more guards flooded through the gap between the main ship and the prison block. The admiral sent off multiple yellow energy bolts towards them, slowing their progress considerably.
As she prepared to jump, I swung my arm upwards, generating a red shield, and hoped it would hold as the guards fired on us. In that moment of panic, the admiral initiated the jump. My stomach churned as it felt like we were catapulted in the air.
Then we were back on the Majestic Eagle.
Everyone was talking at once.
The first face I saw was Kira’s anxious one, peering up into mine.
“Where’s Toddo?” she asked.
She looked around the room, attempting to count us again, but it was quite clear that although we had the seven freed prisoners, only three of us who’d gone on the mission had returned.
“He didn’t make it,” I said.
“Tell Finn the jump is authorized,” the admiral ordered, shooting me a sympathetic glance.
As Kira turned to run off to the bridge, the rest of us sat in the seats on the jump deck and began to buckle up. A moment later, there was a faint vibration in the ship, and the runes carved on the walls glowed with a soft pink light.
A humanoid voice announced the jump was completed.
I noticed we hadn’t had the usual countdown, and guessed Finn had overridden that particular security feature.
My stomach was still churning as the image of Toddo laying on the deck of the prison ship haunted me.
I stayed buckled to my seat and didn’t look up until Kira entered the jump deck again.
“The jump went well,” she told the admiral.
“Good. Kira and Bayliss, could you remove all the blue ropes from the prisoners? The rope is harmless to non-magical entities.”
Kira headed straight for Trella, carefully unwinding the rope from her neck. “I’m so glad you’re back with us.”
Trella smiled, but the Bysandown was still affecting her strongly. She looked exhausted.
“My turn,” Mesilla said and stepped forward in front of Bayliss with an imperious look.
Bayliss shrugged and helped to remove the rope.
“What happened to Toddo?” Kira asked.
After a pause, the admiral said, “He died a hero.”
I unbuckled my belt finally and stood up. “It was my fault. I blasted the lock mechanism, and the kickback from the explosion must have killed him.”
The admiral narrowed her eyes. “It wasn’t your fault. It was the anti-tamper design of the locks.”
Maybe she was right, but I couldn’t help wishing I’d taken more time to think things through before just throwing all my energy at it.
I noticed the admiral gingerly cradling her hurt hand.
“How is your palm?” I said, nodding at the blistered skin. “I’m sorry about that.”
She looked down at her hand and turned it over. “It’s not too bad. I’ll heal it just as soon as we’re finished here. I want to debrief the freed prisoners first.”
“You burned the admiral’s hand?” Trella asked, a frown furrowing her brow.
“I was angry. Toddo had just died, and I was filled with frustration. It felt like my skin was burning from the inside out.”
“So you burned her on touch?” Trella asked.
I nodded. “I guess.”
I remembered back to a time just after I’d met Trella when she did something similar to me when I touched her without permission.
“When did you learn to do that?” she asked.
I shrugged. “I didn’t learn. It just happened.”
Trella’s frown deepened. “You need to be careful, Tomas. That’s an advanced technique. Uncontrollable magic is dangerous.”
Despite the heaviness in my chest, I smiled. “You sound just like Valletta.”
“Who?”
“Valletta, my new mentor.”
“New mentor, huh? You didn’t waste much time. I’ve not been gone that long.”
My face fell, but she smiled. “I’m kidding.”
“I suggest we get moving and head straight to Kavius tonight. We have many jump mages on board and could make the journey within forty-eight hours.” I turned to see Trella’s sister standing with her hands on her hips, looking directly at the admiral in a challenging way.
The admiral’s face was like thunder. “No, we’re all going to have the night off. The ship is cloaked, and there’s no way they could follow us here. We’re safe enough to take a rest, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
“I disagree. I believe we should push on to Kavius.”
The admiral’s face tightened, and a muscle jumped at her temple. “We are having a night off.”
Mesilla turned away with a toss of her head. Despite the circumstances they’d been kept in, she seemed confident and very sure of herself, sure enough, to even challenge the admiral’s authority. It made me wonder just how high up in the resistance she was, or how high
up she’d been before she was captured.
Beside me, Trella pulled a face. “Ugh. She is my sister, and I love her,” she muttered, “but I’d forgotten just how annoying she could be.”
I smiled. I’d missed Trella. And it was good to have her back.
As the admiral decreed, we had the night off. It was bittersweet. I was thrilled to have Trella back, but losing Toddo had hit me hard.
I carried my goblet of purple wine over to sit beside Draylan.
He looked up and gave me a half-smile. “You know, for a member of the mage resistance, Toddo was a pretty decent man.”
“I didn’t think you liked him,” I said, pulling out a chair.
Draylan was quiet for a moment and then said, “I respected him. He was prepared to fight for what he believed in.”
We clanked our glasses together and then sipped the wine.
Trella had brightened considerably after the last few hours. The Bysandown was fading rapidly from the systems of all the ex-prisoners.
My chest tightened as she smiled. She clapped along, grinning in delight to Bayliss singing a dockers’ song. I laughed together with the rest of them at the crude chorus.
I was anticipating a boozy night ahead.
The admiral entered the mess room, looked around at everyone’s relaxed and happy faces, and smiled.
In fact, the only one who didn’t look very happy was Mesilla, Trella’s sister. She sat, stony-faced, beside Trella. Even Gaio and Hillyard had forgotten their earlier tantrum over not being included in the mission and were clapping along and laughing at Bayliss.
The admiral walked over to Draylan and me and held up her hand. “See, all better.”
Her palm was smooth and unmarked.
“I’m glad. I’m sorry… I’m sorry about Toddo too.”
“So am I. I’ll miss him.”
When Bayliss finished his song, the admiral called everyone’s attention to make a toast to the fallen fighter.
“Make sure everyone has a full glass,” she said, and then paused for Draylan to top up the goblets. “To Toddo,” she said. “A good and brave fighter. For the brave and the free!”
She lifted her glass high, and everybody repeated the final words of the toast and lifted their own goblets. “For the brave and the free.”
