Battle Mage: Winds of Change (The High King: A Tale of Alus Book 11) (79 page)

"What do you think, Bas?"

While the first time they had fought had felt more personal, a grudge needing to be righted; Sebastian had to admit that subsequent encounters almost felt more like intense sparring. They pushed each other to the edge giving bruises and minor wounds to their enemy, but neither had taken the final blow to kill the other. It may have just been coincidence, but the man did have to admit deep down, he wished that the Betrayer could be redeemed.

"There is probably no way he can ever come back from what he did in Windmeer," the owl said of the betrayal that had nearly destroyed the guardian city from within. "Until I finally defeat him for good, or he kills me, I guess we won't know if Palose can truly do it."

Magnus looked perplexed by his words and after a moment of silence between them, the fire wizard clarified as much for himself as the others listening, "He isn't a killer, until he kills you? That is a rather dangerous condition. If you are relying on a man who brought in the enemy army to kill hundreds of men, women and children inside of Windmeer to stay his blade from your throat; I think that you are putting your neck on the headsman's block."

There was little more to say and the mage held his tongue. His future was equally murky. Magnus had been right. More Hollow Swords needed to be made, but with too few dragon mages available, he needed to be on the frontline as well.

Sebastian also hoped to protect Katya, someone who shouldn't be in battle so young, even if her magic was powerful enough to make warlocks shy away from her side of the battlefield. The girl was needed, but she was also only thirteen. A child, her brother wished that Katya hadn't seen battle so young.

They would need to return to battle soon, however, to protect the fleet and to try and stop the emperor in his conquest of Litsarin. If the island fell, he wondered how long it would take for the focus to return to Southwall once more.

Spies had been brought to Ensolus through his portals and the points had been shared with the wizards in Hala before he had left. At least they had turned that part of the war against their enemies, but it was too soon to tell whether it would be enough.

He tried to put aside his worries for awhile. Winter was nearly upon them and things would likely change again.

Chapter 41- Prologue

A hiss escaped the man's mouth preceding the guard reaching for his neck. Pulling at a barbed dart, it was too late for the man in the nondescript leather armor. Eyes rolling back, the soldier's legs gave out under him toppling the guard onto the floor unconscious.

His partner started to move at the sound, but he missed the words of the wizard entering the doorway behind him until too late. Like the other guard, his thoughts ceased as magic put him to sleep artificially.

The wizard entered with a handful of men with covered faces. Gloves to avoid leaving any prints and soft leather boots to muffle their steps made the assassins capable of taking their enemies by surprise. They fanned out looking for other soldiers in the large building that appeared common enough both from the outside and inside also.

Moments later, the two men were dragged to the center of the room. Only light from the windows high on the walls and the open doorway gave any illumination to the warehouse's interior.

Once secured, the assassins disappeared back into the warehouse's shadows guarding doorways and other points where they would have an advantage if someone should suddenly appear. They waited for only a short while as guardsmen, dressed more like mercenaries who might guard a merchant, led another pair of men to the first door.

The air of magic surrounded the one, while the other man's golden chains and jewelry made him stand out as someone whose riches couldn't be set aside even for a moment.

"This is it?" the rich man asked looking at the dusty warehouse as he wrinkled his nose in distaste.

"Yes, my lord, we have been watching out for the king's men for almost a month looking for where they might lead us," the wizard stated quietly as if he feared being overheard.

"How has Alain been able to send men here, Hessen?" the other man asked turning his looks from the warehouse to the wizard beside him.

"I used to be part of the portal team out of Red Hall, my lord. There is a lingering presence of that magic here."

Looking surprised by that information, the rich lord questioned, "Does that mean that the king has turned against us to join this Dark One he loves to go on about? We need to pay taxes to fund a war with the north. We need to give our children to the halls to become wizards... to send north. Our soldiers go north with our money and now we have this gate inside of my city?"

Hessen said nothing for a moment. The lord didn't appear to need his answer, but when he frowned at the wizard, Hessen answered, "It is possible that one of his wizards finally discovered how to open the gates for Southwall. It would serve our armies well, if we could match the emperor's movements with his very own magic."

The dark haired lord snorted derisively. "Emperor... no one has ever seen this man or being. Creatures supposedly roam north of Alain's wall, yet we have seen no other evidence of an enemy near New Harbor.

"Alain uses this myth like the other kings of Hala to keep us in his pocket. We are servants... no, slaves! To this king, but now he goes too far bringing this evil magic into my city."

"Count Terris, what do you propose to do?" the wizard asked curiously. "New Harbor is part of Southwall, so technically the king can do what he wants here as well."

The count scowled and replied, "We will see about that.

"Can you disable this gate of his? Can you stop them from slipping into my city like thieves in the night?"

The wizard nodded as he started forward and picked up first one stone and then another. Chanting a word, the stones began to turn red as if heated. It only took a moment longer before both stones turned to dust. A second spell spread the dust which clung to a rectangle in the air. Lines of power then grasped the edges of the floating doorway pulling it to a center where the dust and the glow collapsed into nothing.

Nodding with a frown still on his lips, the lord stated, "If he wishes to come to my city, then Alain will have to come through the outer gate and show me the respect I deserve. If you are through, Hessen, we should discuss who we can trust from your guild. Surely the word on the streets can't be ignored any longer.

"The people want to stop wasting our money and men on Alain's war. I want to know who else is with us."

"Yes, my lord," the wizard said obediently and followed the count in the safety of his guardsmen.

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For World Maps and More Go To:

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Other books by Donald L. Wigboldy Jr.

From the Tales of Alus series:

The High King: A Tale of Alus

The Emperor’s Shadow War

Battle Mage: A Tale of Alus

Battle Mage: Winter’s Edge

Battle Mage: The Lost King

Battle Mage: Dragon Mage

Battle Mage: Dark Mage

Battle Mage: A Hero’s Welcome

Battle Mage: Forging New Steel

White Hall

Modern Tales:

Voran the Night Guardian

Standing Before Monsters

The Mermaid’s Chest

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Previews of other books by Donald Wigboldy:

Where the story of Sebastian began:

Battle Mage: A Tale of Alus

Chapter 1- The Difference

             
The sun shone down upon the courtyard through a thin haze of fog still stubbornly sticking to the mid-morning air. Finches and sparrows chirped and sang from the nearby gardens or as they soared over the ten foot walls separating the Court of War from the neighboring gardens. White Hall and its accompanying towers loomed to the south of the long courtyard throwing shadows over much of the grounds below. The Tower of War was dark against the morning light and its shadow nearly touched the base of forty foot protective walls.

              Above the sounds of the birds, multiple clangings could be heard as sword met shield or sword on sword. In the Court of War more than a dozen men worked at perfecting their art. Four pairs of grey shirted men exercised their skills against one another as four older men in black coached or quietly watched their students at play. A thirteenth young man, also of the grey, performed a dance with his blade.

              Wind flowing up Hill moved to the Bear stands Alone. Iron Jacket met Thrush from the Thicket. Maneuver after maneuver followed as he pictured his invisible opponent moving to counter his own. Back and forth he fended and struck. Press an advantage then retreat as the momentum shifts. Protect and attack. Force and defend.

              Dark blond hair began to drip with sweat. The grey shirt darkened. Tanned arms glistened and his palms tried to moisten and make his grip tenuous. A shift of the leather coated handle scraped away most of the moisture and stiffened the grip as he shifted back to the better hold once again. Tirelessly the young man fought his invincible foe. His breathing came through parted lips as lungs called for more air.

              Two of the pairs picked up towels to dab at damp brows as the men in black gave comment on their performance. Chuckling heralded some comments. Frowns followed others. The men walked back in White Hall through the small door at the base of the Tower of War. The other men continued work as a new trio, one black and two greys followed much the same as those before.

              The other pairs tired. One of the teachers called a halt as a sword caught a shirt slicing the material cleanly. The young man with the torn shirt hugged his opponent briefly knowing he owed his life to the other who had barely pulled his swing enough to avoid killing his friend. The students and teacher spoke as they walked towards the little door and commented on what had gone wrong. The sound of blades clanging continued and a new pair came into the courtyard followed by their watcher before the last of the early morning groups retreated inside to contemplate their performances.

              The thirteenth man shook his head free of sweat as it threatened to drip into his eyes. The invisible opponent smiled and backed the young man off with an invisible thrust that only the two could see. The dance went on.

              A door opened in the eastern wall. The sun had risen nearer to noon. The grey dripped and danced without seeing three men looking in from the doorway. Quiet laughter and talking wafted in with the singing of finches and chirps of sparrows. One dressed in a white robe trimmed with red points spoke and the others laughed again. The grey saw only his opponent and the dance goes on.

              The three are joined by a fourth. His trim is also red like his freckled cheeks. He comments on the grey and is again greeted with laughter. Stepping further through the doorway, the freckled blond chants a short phrase and conjures with his hands briefly before thrusting his palms at the ground. Dust rolls quickly in a small ball straight for the young man in grey.

              An explosion of dust jumped up nearly at the feet of the swordsman. The grey stumbled and spit dust. A hand wiped at the dirt stinging both eyes as laughter carried to a now attentive young man.

              "Ha ha, Sebastian," the young wizard called jeeringly to the half blinded young man. "You call yourself a battle mage? What good is all this training if you can't see, boy?"

              "Magnus, you jerk!" the boy in grey snapped and sheathed his weapon into plain, leather scabbard. "You just ruined my exercise. I hope that you're proud of yourself."

              The man in white glanced to his friends with a smile and replied, "As a matter of fact, I am. You know something though, I just don't get why you so-called battle mages need such a nice courtyard to play in. I mean really, the real soldiers don't have these kinds of courts. They go outside or behind the kitchens or something, but here we real mages have to hear all your banging back here day after day and for what I ask you? This could be a pretty nice garden if we let some of our nature and earth mages in here. Sounds good actually." He turned to one of the others with a blue stripe instead of red. "Make a note, Linus. I think maybe Arrimus or Mishael might enjoy the challenge, don't you?"

              "Like the founders would allow you to do such a thing, Magnus," Sebastian replied with a frown of annoyance. Both students knew that the young wizard was just making idle threats, but the comment still rankled.

              The wizard shrugged, "Maybe not now, but one day they'll see that your kind aren't worth all this effort. After all, it's not like you're truly in a wizard's class. A real mage could shatter those little swords of yours and any wimpy magic that you can barely force up. By the gods, I just don't understand why we have to put up with you all.

              "I say let's put you where you'll do some good. The infantry or maybe just the cooks. What do you have to say about that, Sebastian?"