Battle Mage: The Dark Mage (Tales of Alus) (53 page)

Elzen grunted without committing, but reminded her, “We have to watch him until midnight again, by the way.”

Groaning at the thought of another odd hour guard duty, the girl nodded as she looked at his green eyes right before her face. It was a slower song and though some dancers would maintain more distance, the two friends were as close as many of the lovers. Their timing and motion always seemed to work together and that made Rilena wonder not for the first time, if she could ever have deeper emotions for this young man. He was always there for her as only Sebastian had been before him. That mage was just a friend, more like a brother than something more, but was Elzen the same?

“As long as the others don’t mind watching over him, we get to keep having fun, right?” the girl queried again rhetorically and smiled.

“First, you were my dance partner and now my guard,” Garosh stated as he pulled off his boots sitting on the side of the bed. “If you really have to watch me so closely, there’s more room in the bed.”

Rolling her eyes, Rilena countered with little venom, “You weren’t that great a dance partner, Garosh. Sleep alone and maybe I’ll forget you ever said that.”

She could feel Elzen and the other guards tensing at the unwanted solicitation.

With a sigh, the big man replied, “It was a joke, but truly this continual watching me try to sleep must be as uncomfortable for the lot of you as it is for me. I haven’t had people watching me sleep since I came out of the birthing chamber. If I had ever wanted to jeopardize the trust I have been trying to build with your people, I could have done it by now.”

“You think that you could get away with something while two battle mages, two wizards and a handful of Southwall’s best soldiers are within steps of you?” Elzen spoke up from where he once more leaned back against a wall. To keep awake, most of them would try to remain standing over the four hours before the squads changed. “You wouldn’t be able to get any spell off while I am here, or have you forgotten the training yard?”

Garosh stood to pull off his shirt. He was incredibly warm blooded and even though the day had been warmer as spring was knocking at Windmeer’s doors, it was still a bit chilly for Rilena’s taste. The giant patted the air between them and answered, “I have not forgotten, my little friend, but remember that you aren’t always here, not that I have any doubts that most of the other guards wouldn’t be as skilled. Still, a truly resourceful wizard with sufficient power and skill could have escaped or caused mischief by now. I assure you that I didn’t come here with any such thoughts in mind.

“I have gained enough respect for your battle mages though. First there was that Sebastian I keep hearing about and wish I could have actually met. His extraction of your trio was outstanding and, of course, Elzen here proved that he is the better fighter as well. It really is a shame that I could not have met the man who is revolutionizing your battle mage corps.”

Rilena shook her head. “He isn’t revolutionizing it. Sebastian is just coming up with new spells. Without the ravens and other officers, he wouldn’t be able to accomplish as much, plus they pushed him to grow in the first place.”

Again the giant put out his hands as if to ward off the refusal of his compliments. “I miss spoke. He is an important part of the change, however. I think that much we can agree on here. After all, I keep hearing how he has managed to get your wizards to start working with your mages in a way that is new, or have I heard wrongly?”

“Just go to bed, Garosh,” Elzen ordered pointing towards the large bed. One of the biggest mattresses in Windmeer was there and still the giant made it look small. “Arguing over this isn’t letting me hear your snoring, which I, and I think I say for everyone here, we truly enjoy hearing every night we’re stuck here.”

Sliding into bed, Garosh nodded to the mage and said, “Well, I certainly would hate to ruin your guard time, while I am trying to sleep like a normal person.”

The man’s eyes found Rilena one last time before lying back and pulling his covers over his shoulder and turning away towards the far wall.

Rilena was often amazed that the giant could ever sleep with people watching over him. She wasn’t sure how exhausted she would have to be to do the same every day. The guard was set and now the ten guards inside the room had to wait for their relief.

Ensolus

“Are you ready?”

Acheri looked at him as several men dressed like falcons of Southwall waited patiently in the gate room. It was a small assembly compared too many of the portal teams that had passed through there, but it had to be to accomplish the mission.

“Kolban still wants to do this even after the warning bells?” Palose questioned the girl more from nerves than believing the mission would be halted even for the warning bells that had rung through Ensolus the day before.

Sighing as the girl could see through the question as a means to procrastinate, Acheri pushed a lock of dark hair back over her ear as she contemplated answering his question. Though her hair was tied back in a pony tail and she was dressed in a black dress which was a rare color for her, that one lock of hair had plagued her three times since Palose had met up with her and the team of assassins gathered in the chamber.

“The warning bells are for some island that was important just after the Cataclysm as your people call it. Even if it is important, Kolban has other people that can handle that. You have your duty here or
has your conscience suddenly turned you soft for the people of Southwall? Has your heart turned from your new home, Palose?”

Frowning at the jab, the mage retorted in annoyance, “Of course not. If it had I wouldn’t care about those warning bells and I wouldn’t be here to start this gate either; since I can leave anytime as you know.”

Squeezing his chin, Acheri shook his face like a mother teasing her small child. “Don’t go getting testy on me now, Palose. Not when I still really enjoy having you around.”

To his surprise, the girl pulled him down close enough to kiss him full on the lips. If she wasn’t just messing with him, then Sylvaine might be right about the princess being interested in him for more than just the novelty of being a resurrection man or for his portal points. He couldn’t even tell Sylvaine for now, since she had been sent out along with her mistress in a team of twenty for some mission that she couldn’t tell him about as usual. It was her first mission since the trip to the Dimple Mountains and likely to be the first of many as the snows should soon be over even near the Dragon’s Spine.

The one thing that troubled him was that the mission seemed rather sudden and yet was oddly close to the time that Acheri had been acting jealous of his gift of the touchstone necklace she had noted on the apprentice. Palose just hoped he was worrying over nothing and that Sylvaine would be safe. He had found that his feelings for the apprentice had grown more, since her trip to the fortress. A special twin stone sat in his pocket at all times now. It would tell him if Sylvaine were in trouble or otherwise harmed. With its magic, the mage could be a portal away from helping the girl, though he knew that rushing in to help would only hurt her chances in Ensolus in the long run.

A slap to the side of his face from the princess knocked him out of his reverie started by the unwanted kiss. Unwanted, yet he hadn’t exactly fought back even as he told himself that she was the princess and could do what she wanted, even stealing a kiss.

“Fine,” he grunted as the mage turned to face the gate point designated on the floor in front of him.

The portal spell that he used was the one that transported one or two people normally. With his stolen strength garnered from Atrouseon, Palose guessed that most of this team could walk through without fear of loss, but Acheri was there as well to assist. The sliver of power gifted to the girl from the emperor dwarfed his magic like an inferno to a candle or maybe now a campfire with his added power.

When her magic added to the gate, the door that was usually only a little wider than he was grew to six feet wide in a blink. The mage knew that she wasn’t even trying compared to what she could truly do. Wondering if he was truly even needed for his part in the magic, Palose stepped out of the way as the six men hurried through the portal. Once through, Acheri and the mage followed.

“I still don’t know why you want me along for this part of the plan,” the dark mage said to the girl as he took the lead of the team escorting them towards the castle. The touchstone had been placed inside of the city walls and near enough the castle gates that even the strangers to the city should have been able to find their way.

“Lanquer was considered a hindrance by the emperor... and me, so you will keep me safe and help me return home when it is time,” the girl explained briefly as she knew that what he had been ordered to do should have ended his complaints.

“I understand that, but if I am recognized by the guards, then that will put you and the others at risk also.”

In spite of his reservations, the dark mage still led the seven through the streets quickly towards the castle’s inner wall. Acheri caught his hand making him keep her at his side. He heard the girl mumble a spell and felt the brief flaring of her muffled magic. Feeling his whole head tingle, Palose looked at the princess curiously seeing her left cheek tinged red like the rest of the world by the war god’s moon over head. The attack would happen near midnight, which was Turas’s domain. Blood would flow under the red moon’s light which would have honored the god had those of Ensolus believed in him or cared.

“There I placed an illusion over your face, so now even Sylvaine wouldn’t know you,” the girl stated revealing there was still some jealousy in her heart. “Now will you stop worrying and lead us into Windmeer?”

If her safety was on his shoulders alone, Palose knew that worrying was the last thing that he should stop; but he said no more as the guards at the gate were in sight and probably earshot as well the way the stone streets and walls carried sound. “Evening,” Palose greeted the guards casually.

“
Gettin’ here a little late, ain’t ya?” one of the soldiers stated stepping in front of the group.

“It’s not a crime to hit the bars in the village last I heard,” he said trying to sound a bit belligerent as if he had been drinking. The rest of the men had begun talking loudly and acting half drunken as well.

The soldier didn’t appear to buy the performance and he pointed to Acheri accusingly, “Is this one of the girls from the bar? You know the rules about sneaking the city girls into the men’s wing of the castle.”

“Yeah, don’t get caught,” Palose winked and added as he laughed at the joke, “but this is actually Lady Carithine’s handmaiden. So get this, she actually lives here so I can sneak her back anytime.”

“She’s a little young, isn’t she?” the guard asked looking a little more convinced.

Palose pulled her into him as he gripped her by the waist, and leaned in towards the guard as if to whisper. Like most drunks, the mage spoke in a loud enough whisper for all the men nearby to hear, “She looks young, but give her a year to fill out and she’ll be inspiring men to take castles by themselves. Besides she’s older than she looks and certainly knows more than you think.”

Acheri pulled back striking him in the side with her elbow looking annoyed at his talking of her as if she wasn’t there. Either that or the girl hated to be told she wasn’t as pretty as she would be in a year. Palose didn’t know, but played up the hit as if it had been harder than it was.

“Aw, come on. You know I think you’re beautiful. Don’t be that way.”

The guards began to laugh as well as the assassins in disguise. One of the men complained to the sole guard blocking the team, “Come on, Njord. Give ‘em a break and let ‘em pass. They’re obviously mages, but you can let ‘em have their fun.”

Looking at the battle mages, the man added, “Njord, don’t like mages much. He thinks they’re a bit snooty and he was with a group that lost to a single mage in a sparring match last summer. That kid made his whole squad look like chumps.

“Of course, the same kid helped stop the castle from falling last year too, so I guess he’s pretty good.”

Growling unintelligibly, Njord stepped out of the way waving them through. “Go on. Get! Just make sure
ya sleep it off ‘fore tomorrow’s work.”

Grabbing Acheri’s hand, Palose dragged her with him begging her forgiveness until they were out of earshot. The assassin’s quieted their laughter and followed the other two into the castle. After that, it was Acheri who led the way. The girl hurried them along knowing that they had to beat the guards who would arrive at midnight. Timed properly, they would find Garosh’s room just before the next team started their shift.

Chapter 28- Inferno

Rilena yawned as she stood near the foot of the bed. The falcon had wandered quietly to a place where she could see through the window. They were high enough up that she could make out the upper part of a tower outside, but mostly the woman could see the stars. While the stars broke up the black sky in a tapestry of faint light, the stone of the tower below looked red as was the moonlight streaming onto the floor. Turas would hold the sky for a couple more hours before the third brother would give shiny hope to a new day.