She Who Has No Name (The Legacy Trilogy) (54 page)

‘Why just take Samuel?’ Eric asked. 

‘Firstly, because he is the one she actually wants and
,
secondly, he also                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
has
the uncanny ability to remain completely invisible from magical detection.  He can sneak about the palace to his heart’s desire once he is inside.  The more of you that go with him, the more danger there is.  I can escape at any time once the task has been completed, but I do not want anyone nearby at the time.  It would be very dangerous for them.’

‘And what are we to do?’ the Emperor asked.  ‘Just wait here?’

‘Yes,’ Balten replied.  ‘Keep as quiet as you can and stay out of trouble.  Let Lord Lomar take care of you and
,
whatever you do, never leave this refuge.’

Samuel considered the plan carefully.  As long as he had his ring
,
he would not be worried and
,
with Balten beside him, the two of them would be more than a match for any witch.  ‘Very well.  I agree.’

They talked more until the cool evening came and
then
they ate cross-legged on the floor
,
devouring
the flat bread and tender
,
seasoned meat that Lomar fetched for them from outside.  As darkness fell over the city, coloured lanterns were raised along the streets and music played from all corners—horns and flutes and stringed instruments, all playing their individual melodies, somehow in harmony.  Male and female singers alike crooned and warbled aloud until late, when the sounds dimmed and the crowds began returning to their homes.  One by one, the rescuers retired to bed, until Samuel was left alone with Lomar, standing atop the roof of their hideaway and looking over the sleeping city.

‘It will not be easy, achieving what we have set out to do,’ Lomar stated.

‘I did not think it would be, but we have little choice,’ Samuel replied.

‘You have always had a choice, Samuel
, w
e all do, yet you have striven on, always doing what you felt as right.  I had little idea when I first met you that you would become such a hero.’

‘I have never been a hero.  I’ve only ever done what I had to.  Few choices I have made have been for valiant reasons.’

‘Ah, but perhaps that’s what makes you stand out, Samuel.  You feel you have made no choices, but it is your noble nature that drives you.  A coward will always run from the difficult choices, but it is in your heart to run towards them.’

‘You give me too much credit, Lomar.  Many others have done as much as
I have
and more.  In fact, many of those have sacrificed themselves so I can stand here today.  All I have that has kept me alive until now is luck—and I hope it stays with me a little longer.’

‘Some would say luck, Samuel; others would say fortune
or fate, or perhaps even destiny.’

‘Don’t start on that,’ Samuel told him.  ‘I’m not superstitious.’

Lomar only laughed.  ‘Yes, I remember.  Still, we all do what we can, don’t we?  The mountain and the sky do not notice the affairs of men and to them our lives pass in the blink of an eye.  Yet, occasionally, a man comes who can blot out the sky—who can move the very mountains that ignored him.’

‘What are you saying?’

‘We all sometimes do what we must, or avoid doing what we know we should do, but we cannot escape out destinies, Samuel.  That is all I am saying.  When I saw you becoming the great magician I had always hoped for, I was worried, for in every man is the seed of good and evil.  I am glad you have turned out like this, but even a good man can be forced into making bad decisions.  I just want to tell you this, because we have few true friends in life and you have become one of the best
in mine
.  We magicians know that well, always being buried in our studies and duties as we are.  I don’t know what will happen in the coming days, but I am glad we met, Samuel.  The world will become a better place because of our friendship.  That is all I mean to say.’

‘Thank you, Lomar.  I feel the same.  Do you sense something bad in the air?’

‘
On
the contrary, Samuel.  I feel something wonderful.  I know that all this will turn out for the best.  It is only the enactment that will be difficult for us.  If we can get through that, I am sure happy days will be waiting for us.  I have been thinking of that moment for a long time and I’m glad our struggle is nearly over.’

‘True.  I can’t wait to put all this behind us.  Everything has been too complicated for far too long and Icrave for a simple life.’

‘We are like trees, Samuel.  We start off small, yet grow into great and splendid things.  We can accomplish much in our lives, but even we magicians are still only made of wood.  We grow our branches as full as we can, but the fire of our magic consumes them.  We must keep growing if we want to feed that fire, but what a terrible equation it is.  If our branches grow too heavy, we will crack; if the fire grows too great, we will be consumed.  What a sorry life it is to be made of wood.’

‘What are you saying now?’

‘Only that I am tired, Samuel.  Our obsession with magic consumes us
,
and
one day, if we are not careful, it will burn us to our core.  For once, I would like the chance to sit still and rest
,
and forget that I am a magician.  Our duty has laden us with so many burdens, I feel my boughs are about to break.’

‘You surprise me, Lomar.  I never thought I would hear such words from you, although I do not disagree with you.  I am not sure if we can give up our ways.  Magic is in our nature.  It would be hard to separate the fire from the wood once it has begun to burn.’

‘But I feel the day is coming when this particular tree will be shedding its leaves and
getting
ready for winter.  That will be a wonderfully dull time indeed.  Our lives as magicians are set.  We have access to all manner of powers and abilities, yet we can never share in some of the most precious experiences that the common folk enjoy every day
.
We can
never enjoy having a babe in our arms and having it look up at us with trusting, loving eyes.  We can never experience that child growing
up
and fulfilling, even exceeding
,
our hopes.  Nay, being a magician is a curse and we are denied the most sacred human act of creating young and prolonging our species.  We are just drones to support the nest—watching, not being.  What a curse it is.’

‘Your heart weighs heavy tonight, Lomar.’

‘It’s true, Samuel.  I have been waiting in this city too long and I’m afraid my spirit
is
not
its
usual sel
f
.  I can’t say how glad I am to see you.  I don’t look forward to seeing you in danger, but I am ashamed to admit I am glad you are here.’

‘This business will all be done soon.  Come—let us rest.  Tomorrow will be a busy day.’

Lomar agreed and they returned inside to find their beds.

Morning came and Balten led Samuel through the crowded streets, climbing steadily until they neared the foot of the palace, built into the side of Mount Karthma.  Just as Balten had warned, as soon as they neared
the entrance
, the guards came running with their spears lowered, and Balten had to jabber at them feverishly until they believed him.  He had to draw off his headscarf to prove his point and desperately motioned for Samuel to do the same.  The men seemed hesitant and looked as if they would skewer the pair anyway, but another quick burst of gibberish from Balten had them leading the two magicians into the open maw of the great palace entrance.

‘Well, it looks like your plan has worked,’ Samuel said.

Balten replied hesitantly.  ‘So far.  Let’s see what happens after this.’

Their escorts marched them into the cavernous palace.  The
building
was open and airy, filled with water features and decorations
;
rich tapestries and translucent
,
billowing curtains.  At first, it seemed as if they were heading upwards and Samuel thought they may be going to have their audience with the Queen already, but they took an abrupt turn into a corridor that led them through a layer of spells and into the side of the mountain.  Dark tunnels led away from the main passage and each looked ancient and foreboding, dark and uninviting.  Already, Samuel could feel the magic-muting properties of the mountain at work around him. 
The sensation
was dim, but seemed to grow stronger with each step
he took
along the corridor.

‘I can feel the stones at work already,’ Samuel said.

‘This mountain is where they sourced the stones for your School of Magic,’ Balten stated, ‘and the stones of the Mage Cell in the palace.’

‘All the way from here?  How did the mountain possibly get such power?’

‘No one knows—not even Cang.  These rocks are older than anything else upon the earth.  Their creation is a mystery.’  He was then quiet as he listened to the guards’ banter.  ‘It looks like we will not be meeting the Queen just yet,’ Balten muttered.

The guards argued somewhat as they escorted the two and Balten only had a moment’s notice to warn Samuel, before the two were split up.

‘It sounds like they were expecting us.  The Queen is going to test our mettle.  She could make us wait quite some time down here.  Don’t do anything foolish.’

‘I won’t.’

‘And one more thing.  Give me your ring.’

‘What?  Of course not.’

‘If you don’t, they will take it anyway and everything will be lost.  Give it to me and I will return it when I can.  Quickly!’

Samuel had no choice but to obey the insistent magician for
,
either way
,
he would lose it.  He secreted the thing to Balten and the man tossed it into his mouth and swallowed it with a gulp.

‘What are you doing?’
Samuel
asked Balten with alarm.

‘Don’t worry,’ Balten appeased him.  ‘I can get it back later.  I’ve swallowed much larger things before.  Your ring will be a simple matter to retrieve.’

‘I’m not sure I will want it back,’ he said, but Balten was too busy to reply.

The guards him gave him a rough jab with the points of their spears and Samuel was parted from Balten
; the guards
turned
him
away and into a dim side path. 

Another group of guards was waiting at a branch and the first lot handed Samuel over to them.  These guards were shirtless and brutish
-
looking
,
as if they had spent years under the earth.  They were lucky if they had five teeth between them, and they gawked at Samuel with bloodshot, puffy eyes.  They lacked spears, but each held a jagged-toothed dagger with loosely veiled desire to use it.  One of them grabbed a length of rope and bound Samuel roughly around the wrists and turned his pockets inside out, searching him roughly.  They pulled him through a further series of dank passages.  It was cold and damp here and already the stifling sense of the mountain above had Samuel feeling half
suffocated.  He could feel the effect of the mountain, but that did not worry him so much as he had feared; he had long grown accustomed to being separated from his magic.  It was more the enclosed space that had him worrying and the terrible feeling of an empty pocket without something jiggling within it.