Spy Glass

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by Maria V. Snyder

in a breath. The tunnel spun and Galen blurred. This was

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  Maria V. Snyder

  worse than being tortured. I reined in my swirling emotions.

  Think! Plan!

  The obvious answers appeared first. Don’t use magic. Kill

  Galen. Find Yelena.

  He laughed. “You can try to kill me, but you lack that killer

  instinct.” He resumed walking.

  I fell behind, hoping distance would help dilute the

  connection.

  “You should ask me about the last side effect before you get

  too far away from me,” Galen said over his shoulder.

  “Why?” I demanded.

  “The test subjects felt too ill when separated more than a

  few hundred feet from their creators.”

  That one was hard to believe. In fact, the whole situation

  sounded ridiculous. I tried to suppress my fear and panic.

  I’d been in bad situations before. However, I couldn’t keep

  the thought—that if Galen told the truth, then I was truly

  screwed—from my mind.

  “Fear, panic and was that a hint of acceptance at the end?”

  he asked.

  Frustration boiled. “Would you stop that!”

  “Make

  me.”

  If I had any chance of escape, I had to block him. Unsure

  how to build a barrier, I envisioned a thick glass wall between my emotions and Galen’s.

  He smirked. “The first link in the chain, binding you to

  me.”

  “Why do this to me? You could have just dragged me along

  with you.”

  “True, but your glass magic is valuable to me and my part-

  ner. And I’m aware of your history. You won’t use your magic

  because I ask nice or because I threaten you with bodily harm.

  I guess I could have kidnapped someone you cared for, but

  that would complicate things. This is a perfect solution. Once

  the chain is complete, you’ll be my…”

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  Galen pretended to be deep in thought. “What should I call

  you? My creation? My offspring? No, they suggest a fondness

  between us. My victim? My dupe? My servant? No, they’re

  not quite right. I think the best descriptor is my slave.”

  “How many times did you practice that speech?” Sarcasm

  and fury sharpened my tone.

  I spent the rest of the trip imagining all the ways I would

  kill him. The depth of my creativity surprised and inspired

  me.

  We exited the mines and entered the dark forest surround-

  ing Ognap. A half-moon peeked out between clouds as a warm

  breeze rustled the leaves. “How long—”

  “Two days,” he said.

  I considered escape as we hiked through the foothills. Soon

  the lanterns from Ognap f lashed between the trees. When we

  reached the outskirts, I bolted for town.

  Galen laughed and yelled that he would wait for me on the

  south road. I ignored him. Instead I debated if I should report Galen to the Ognap security forces or find Nic and Eve first.

  Potential power throbbed inside me. With this much magic,

  I could contact Yelena from here.

  No. No magic. I headed toward the inn. The streets were

  deserted at this late hour. I hit the wall about four blocks from the Tourmaline Inn. Not an actual wall, but the…force that

  slammed into me caused me to stumble. It seized my body

  and yanked. I stepped back before I realized what I was doing.

  Concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, I man-

  aged to go two more steps. Sweat dripped from my brow and

  soaked my underclothes. The miner’s uniform’s rough fabric

  seemed to tighten around me.

  My muscles trembled and I struggled to remain on my feet

  as bouts of nausea and dizziness rolled through me. Unable

  to go another inch, I searched the pockets of the coverall for

  some clue I could leave behind to let my friends know I was

  still alive. But my switchblade and lock picks were gone. No

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  surprise. Instead, I called Quartz. Sinking to the ground, I

  rolled into a ball to wait.

  When Quartz trotted into view, relief soothed. Her disap-

  pearance could be a clue for the others.

  Fire Lady safe, she said in my mind with pleasure.

  Shock at hearing her creamy voice inside my head domi-

  nated for a moment. I pulled it together and asked, Is that my horse name?

  Yes.

  Why?

  Quartz was confused I needed to ask. Images of me gather-

  ing a molten slug of glass f lashed in her mind. Control fire.

  Her choice of words reminded me of Galen. I had used

  magic to contact her! Did I just imagine the sound of a click

  in my mind? Another link in the chain? How long was the

  chain?

  Quartz nudged me with her nose. Smell different.

  I wrapped my arms around her neck. Unwilling to break

  our bond, I asked, Good or bad smell?

  Fire brighter.

  I sensed that was a positive thing.

  Smell not herd.

  Which meant she smelled Galen’s magic and didn’t like

  it. In other words, both. Either way, I needed to stop using

  magic.

  The need to be with Galen overcame me. I couldn’t resist

  any longer. In a fog, I mounted Quartz. Spurring her into a

  gallop, we chewed up the distance between me and Galen.

  With each stride the horrible pain subsided until I wilted in

  relief.

  I met up with him on the south road. Galen sat on a brown

  horse with white socks. Her mane had been braided. The thin

  braids hung from her head to her shoulders.

  “I didn’t think you’d reach the inn,” he said, then peered

  past my shoulders, seeking with his magic. “Good. You weren’t

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  followed. I’d hate to leave dead bodies in our wake. Come

  on.” He urged his horse into a gallop, heading south.

  We followed. The road snaked along the Emerald Moun-

  tains foothills and ended at the border of the Daviian Plateau.

  Small villages and other working mines dotted the area. A

  tiny town called Delip was located farther south, but nothing

  else of note. The Warpers had lived in the plateau before they

  invaded the Citadel. Perhaps a few still hid there.

  When the sun rose, we camped on the edge of the Avib-

  ian Plains, staying back far enough to avoid triggering the

  protection. Galen’s saddlebags were filled with supplies, and

  he even managed to obtain a set of my travel clothes. As he

  cooked stew, I changed behind Quartz, glad to be out of the

  miner’s coverall. I wadded it into a ball and stuffed it behind a bristle bush, leaving what I hoped was another clue.

  Starving, I downed the meal without care and collapsed

  near the fire.

  Nightmares plagued my sleep. I dreamed of Teegan and

  Reema. They cried for help; someone had set fire to their

  house. I reached and pulled magic, dousing the f lames. But

  their clothes had ignited. The harsh scent of burned f lesh

  spurred me to extinguish the fire on them and to send healing

  magic for their blisters.

  The fire then traveled to
Leif and my sister. Once they

  were safe, it spread to Councilor Moon and Faith. I kept the

  inferno at bay until I used all my energy. When I reached the

  point of exhaustion, the f lames rushed in and engulfed me.

  I jerked awake. My skin tingled and my bones felt as though

  they had been baked in an oven. Our campfire had gone out

  despite having plenty of wood. Fatigue weighed on me as if

  I hadn’t slept at all. The effort to get ready depleted the little strength I had left. Unable to resist the warm sunshine, I

  napped as we rode, trusting Quartz to keep me safe.

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  We kept close to the border of the plains as we headed

  south. Galen avoided the small towns in the foothills of the

  mountains. We traveled at night and slept in the morning.

  By the fourth day of our trip, we reached a deserted section

  of the Cloud Mist’s lands. The f lat land between the mountains and the Avibian Plains narrowed. In a couple days we would

  reach the Daviian Plateau.

  When we stopped for a water break, I summoned the

  strength to ask Galen about our destination.

  “You have enough information to figure it out on your

  own,” he said.

  I had been concentrating on finding a way around our blood

  connection without success. Reviewing his comments from

  inside the mine, I pieced them together. He desired control

  over the black diamonds and super messengers. If the gems

  had been found in Vasko’s mine, then he wouldn’t have staged

  his own death. So my theory of the diamonds coming from

  the Bloodrose Clan was correct.

  “We’re going to Lion’s Claw Peninsula,” I said. “How—”

  “Did I find them?” Galen finished for me. “I didn’t. Walsh

  Bloodrose came to me. Or rather to Vasko, but he wasn’t home

  at the time. Lucky for me. Walsh and Vasko had attended the

  Magician’s Keep together, but Walsh was just as happy to work

  with me.”

  I thought about the Bloodrose leader. Walsh preferred to

  live with his family in relative isolation. They harvested oysters for income. Fisk had mentioned a sudden inf lux of oysters. If

  Walsh wanted to ensure privacy, what better way than to drive

  his fellow oyster farmers out of business and buy their farms.

  That would also keep the farmers from discovering the black

  diamonds. But Walsh couldn’t sell those rare diamonds without

  drawing attention to himself. So he sought a middleman.

  “Does Vasko believe those black diamonds came from his

  mine?” I asked.

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  “Yes. Poor guy.” Galen tsked. “Lost his most trusted em-

  ployee and the location of all those expensive black diamonds

  in one cave-in. He’ll be desperate for more.”

  “But you’ll just sell them to him. Why go to all this trouble?”

  “All Walsh cares about is money and his family. He has no

  desire to wield the political power he would have by control-

  ling the black diamonds and the super messengers. Fortunately

  he wanted something, and he was happy to let me run the

  diamond business as long as the money kept f lowing in and I

  brought you to him.”

  Not for my glass magic. Those black diamonds rendered

  my little animals obsolete unless he was worried about the

  competition. But that didn’t sound right.

  “Okay, I’ll ask. Why?”

  Galen grinned. “He was fascinated by you and your powers.

  With Quinn’s magic adding to his family’s resources, he

  wanted more magicians. Hard to get magicians to join a cult

  on the edge of nowhere. And the Council tends to get involved

  when one of them goes missing.”

  He didn’t wait for me to reason it out. “When I found your

  blood, I thought to sell it to Walsh so he could inject it into his family members and create more magicians. But then I realized

  he was willing to give me more than money if I brought you

  along. And I’ll get a bonus because everyone thinks you’re

  dead, you can’t run away and you’ll be incapable of refusing

  an order. Walsh is going to be ecstatic.”

  “How did you know I’d link you to Vasko?”

  “I planted enough clues to frame his son. A little goodbye

  present to him, keeping him busy trying to explain Finn to

  the authorities. Also, once the Master Magicians learned about

  those super messengers, any idiot would know they’d send you

  to investigate.”

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  I followed the logic. “I’m going to work for Walsh.” Which

  might not be as horrible as I expected.

  “He plans to make you a member of his family. You should

  be honored.”

  “Am I going to make glass messengers for him?”

  Galen dismissed the notion. “Any glassmaker can make us

  those messengers. You’ll be needed for other tasks.”

  “For

  example?”

  “You’ll be required to birth more magicians in order to

  expand Walsh’s happy family.”

  Birth more magicians. Didn’t expect that little revelation. It was far worse than anything my overactive

  imagination had produced.

  Galen delighted in my shocked silence. “I’m to become a

  member, as well. I’m looking forward to doing my part for

  the family. Walsh has developed this whole breeding program.

  It’s quite impressive.”

  I rallied. “I’m still able to refuse orders.”

  “Not for long.”

  We continued the journey south, reaching the Daviian Pla-

  teau on the sixth day. Any chance I’d have to seek help from

  a fellow traveler or local died as we turned west and entered

  the plateau. No one lived there. The Daviian Warpers had

  tried, but they were long gone.

  The f lat expanse stretched to the horizon. Brown clumps

  of grass dotted the cracked and sunbaked soil. A few stunted

  trees clung to life.

  “Do you have enough food and water?” I asked Galen.

  “We’ll let Quartz lead us to water. As for food, I should be

  able to snare a few rabbits.”

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  It would take us ten days to cross the plateau. Ten days with

  the sun’s heat beating down on us, and we were only halfway

  through the heating season. At least we would be on the coast

  before the blazing hot season.

  In order to find water, I had to communicate with Quartz,

  using a small bit of magic each time.

  Halfway across the plateau, I felt restless and craved…action.

  When we stopped, I paced around the campfire unable to

  sit.

  Food did not help. Water failed to quench the unrelenting

  need. Pulling my hair just to feel something different only

  helped for a second.

  Galen watched me with a gleam in his eyes. Eventually the

  plateau faded from my awareness as the hunger dominated

  all my senses. It hurt. An ache stabbed deep within me as if a

  person squeezed a pressure point on my heart.

  I huddled on the ground, rocking back and forth. No posi-

  tion eased the excruciating desire.r />
  A cool touch on my skin sent a surge of instant relief. I

  looked over at Galen. He crouched next to me with his hand

  resting on my shoulder.

  “You desire more magic. Let me—”

  “No.” I knocked his arm away and the all-consuming

  yearning f looded me. I rolled into a ball. Now that I was

  aware of what would relieve the pain, I felt worse.

  At one point, I pulled magic to me, packing it into my

  body, hoping it would satisfy my hunger. It didn’t. In fact, it was just another link in the chain binding me to Galen.

  “Opal, let me help you,” he whispered in my ear.

  Shaking with an unstoppable desire, I nodded.

  “Relax your left arm,” he instructed.

  I let him pry it from where I had clamped it around my

  knees. His touch no longer cooled. Through my haze of pain,

  I realized he straddled me. Then metal pricked my arm. A

  mere annoyance compared to the crushing need. Liquid fire

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  347

  raced through my veins, extinguishing the agonizing desire,

  leaving me limp and gasping.

  Galen leaned over me. He held a syringe.

  “Whose blood?” I asked.

  “More of mine.” He rubbed his thumb over the spot. I

  hissed in pain.

  He moved away. Spent, I f lopped to the ground. Now I

  truly understood how Devlen felt. How the addiction was

  to blame. Ulrick, too. He didn’t know what he had gotten

  himself into when he agreed to switch souls with Devlen.

  I considered. This “treatment” had been free. What would

  the next one cost? Would I be able to resist? If I kept using

  magic, it wouldn’t matter. Galen would force me to do what-

  ever he wanted.

  Twenty-six days. The trip from Ognap to the Lion’s Claw

  Peninsula lasted a total of twenty-six long, horrible, terrible days. Heading west, we crossed the plateau, cut through the

  narrow tip of Cowan’s lands, bypassing my hometown of

  Booruby—those days had been my darkest of the trip, en-

  visioning my family and friends gathered for my f lag-raising

  ceremony—and we skimmed above Bloodgood’s southern

  border. Galen avoided all major towns and cities.

  We arrived at the Bloodroses’ outer wall in the afternoon.

  Located on the tip of the Lion’s Claw Peninsula, the compound

  was isolated from the rest of the Bloodgood lands. The narrow

  finger of land jutted out into the Jade Sea. Blue-green water

  glinted from both sides of the peninsula. The extra beachfront

 

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