Silver Mage (Book 2) (7 page)

“I didn’t let everyone walk all over me,” Thad said defensively.

“You could have fooled me,” Humanius said with a smirk. “You forget, I took a good interest in you during your younger days. It always surprised me how you let the women in your life lead you around like a pet.”

Thad turned his attention back to his son and tried to ignore the god’s comments. After spending a
lifetime with Thuraman, Thad knew when he was getting baited and refused to fall into the god’s trap. It was true that he had not always exerted himself when he had to deal with the women in his life, but that by no means meant he was nothing but their well-trained pet. Though a part of him was glad that his son seemed to have a much stronger will when dealing with people of the opposite sex. As soon as those thoughts crossed his mind he heard a smug laugh come from Humanius and for a brief moment was sure that the god was listening to his thoughts.

CHAPTER VII

The rest of the winter moved along without much of an event, and before Bren knew it, the snows had begun to melt. The passes hadn’t cleared enough for a messenger to safely reach Rane yet, but it wasn’t far off. Bren knew that he could use one of the elven messengers, but that wouldn’t impress Monique. In fact, it was more likely to annoy her since she wouldn’t be able to send a message back the same way. His best choice was to wait a few more weeks until the snows had completely melted in the more remote regions of the country.

The only real trouble Bren had faced in the past weeks was over his decision to talk to the guild. The tower was all for bringing in more trade, but they wanted a cut of the tax revenue that they generated. Bren had agreed, but only if they reduced their quarterly stipend from the state funds. So far Bren was still having many talks with Karin about the topic, but if they didn’t come to an agreement soon, it would be too late and Monique or her representatives would be here.

Bren’s silent contemplation was broken when Elyse and Lillian burst into his study. Lillian got along with Elyse worse than she did Faye. Sometimes it was a subject of jokes around the palace, but most of the time it was simply an unneeded headache.

“What is all the commotion about?” Bren asked, rubbing his thumb and forefinger against his temple.

“The brotherhood is moving,” Elyse said, her voice trembling slightly. “We received a letter from King Killian that they have located a large
contingent of the brotherhood to the north. He has requested a meeting with the surrounding monarchs and has asked that we host the meeting since we are considered neutral territory.

Bren grabbed the letter from Elyse’s hands and began to read franticly.

King Farlane of Torin, I regret not having greeted you in person for such a grave matter, but it has come to my attention that a large force of more than three thousand brotherhood soldiers are gathering far to the north. At this time, it is unsure what their purpose is, but I believe it would be in the best interest if the rulers of Rane, Farlan, Abla, as well as you held a concern about this issue. I am also requesting that we hold such a meeting in your land as it is close to all three and still a neutral territory, where I believe all the monarchs will feel unthreatened. I wish to hear a response back as quickly as possible, as I believe this is a possibly dire situation.

Setting aside the letter, Bren quickly penned a letter to King Killian, letting him know that his land was open for his use. As soon as it was done, he handed it to Lillian. “Make sure this gets to the king as quickly as possible.”

“Yes master,” Lillian replied, before rushing out of the room.

“I need to let the masters know,” Elyse said frantically.

“That is my job,” Bren said, slumping in his chair. “Call Karin here so that I can give her an official document about the incident. The King didn’t invite one of them to his conference, but I will allow one to attend me during the meeting.”

Elyse moved to leave, but stopped short of the door and turned back toward Bren. “I am
surprised that you would let one of the masters attend at your side. From what I had heard, you hated most of those in the upper levels of the tower.”

“I can’t say that I like many of them, but this is bigger than my personal issues,” Bren replied seriously.

The look on Elyse’s face changed dramatically in the few brief seconds before she turned back toward the door. Ever since she had started working with him, she always had a mild look of discomfort in his company, much the same as Flynn used to. In those few brief moments, it had become one of near awe. Bren didn’t fool himself into thinking things would get less complicated around the mage, but he hoped that at least some of the tension would start to fade.

The news of a large contingent of brotherhood soldiers spread throughout the entire city, even before he received an answer back from the tower. Bren was amazed at the speed at which bad news could travel. He didn’t know who had started the rumor, but he wished that he could have just a little more time to prepare before it had been brought to the public eye.

When Elyse returned, she found Bren pacing back and forth in his study nervously. “The members of the council of masters requested for you to come to the tower at your earliest convenience.” She said, trying to keep her composure, but it was clear that the situation had her flustered.

“They requested my appearance?” Bren asked, raising one eyebrow slightly.

“Master Turneal might have phrased it a little differently, but I am sure that was the true meaning behind his words,” she replied, her eyes darting to the side so she wouldn’t have to look him in the face.

“Since Master Turneal asked so politely, we might as well head over,” Bren said, laughing to himself.

“Right now?” Elyse asked surprised.

“I don’t think we really have much of a choice,” Bren said with a sour expression. “The news has already started to spread around the city. If we don’t come up with something to tell the people, things could get out of hand.”

“How did they find out?” Elyse asked with a look of accusation on her face.

“Don’t look at me, this is as much of an inconvenience for me as it is the tower,” Bren said, grabbing up his leather overcoat and heading for the door. Elyse didn’t continue the questioning, she simply fell in line behind him as he walked down to the main hall.

Bren was surprised to find that all of his guards, not just the regular contingent of five were waiting for him below. As soon as he saw that they were dressed and ready for battle, Bren knew that Cass had summoned them the second he had heard the news. He knew that Cass’s actions and foresight shouldn’t surprise him, but he still couldn’t help but being amazed at his friend’s complete control of the situation.

Without a word, his guards formed around him an Elyse making the mage look around nervously. “Do you expect to be attacked?” She whispered to Bren.

“Last time the Brotherhood began to move out, the young king nearly ended up on the funeral pyre. No reason to take chances,” Cass said with a large smile. “Don’t worry though, if anything happens I will make sure to keep you safe.”

With the way Elyse blushed, Bren could tell that Cass’s attempt at flattery had worked. Bren hoped that his friend wouldn’t take it too far. The palace already had a steady stream of women who he had wooed and forgot about. Bren liked Cass, but when it came to women, he was more of a threat than the Brotherhood ever was to the magical races. Bren made a mental note to tell Elyse about Cass, just to help ensure that problems inside the palace were kept to a respectable level.

As Bren marched through the streets, people began to gather. At first Bren could only hear raised whispers over the sound of the boots on the ground, but before long people started shouting their questions. Bren continued toward the tower as if he couldn’t hear the voices of the people around him, though he desperately wished that he could address their fears.

When he reached the tower, he found that a large number of people had already began to gather around the massive building. Some of the people were human, but most of those who had gathered belonged to the magical races.

The gathered crowd moved aside for him and the raised voices seemed to hush as he passed by. Wanting to get this over with as soon as possible, Bren quickened his pace and nearly ran to the large double doors of the tower.

“Everyone except Cass and Elyse needs to stay back in the main corridor of the tower,” Bren said as they neared the steps leading up into the upper levels of the tower.

“Not this time Majesty,” Cass said with an air of authority in his voice. “On the other visits to the tower there was only a limited threat, now that threat is undefined so we need at least six guards to ensure your and master Elyse’s safety.”

Bren knew better than to argue with Cass when he was in guard mode. He would have a better chance of convincing a frog that it could fly.

“Let the masters know that we are here and don’t expect to be left waiting all day,” Bren said, trying to mimic Cass’s voice when he approached the small desk at the base of the stairs. He didn’t wait for a response, he simply walked past the desk and continued up the stairs.

Only one tower guard tried to stop them as they advanced to the council chambers, but Cass’s stern glare and half drawn sword quickly changed his mind. When they reached the large double doors to the council chambers Bren didn’t want to wait, but he knew that busting in would only cause problems later. Thankfully, they didn’t have to wait long before they were admitted inside. Apparently the council was still in session from receiving Elyse’s report on the Brotherhood’s movements.

“Majesty, we didn’t expect for your visit to come so swiftly,” Sae-Thae said as soon as Bren and his guards entered the room.

“Why have you brought a small army into this chamber?” Master Turneal asked, half standing from his seat.

“I ordered my guards to stay below, but they refused the orders. It would seem that while I have some faith in the council, they do not, seeing how last time I was unoccupied, I was thrown into the dungeon and nearly killed by the Brotherhood.”

Master Turneal didn’t respond, but the look on his face clearly stated his complaints clearly. “We have learned that you have received news from King Killian about the brotherhood as well as a request to
host the members of the other royal houses in a meeting here in Torin. Elyse also said that while it was not stated, you would be more than willing to allow the council to attend as well. Is that true?” Sae-Thae asked his voice calm, but each word held a small bight to them.

“Most of that is accurate Master, but I can only rightly ask for one to accompany during the meeting. I am merely being asked to host and as I do not have as much power or presence as the other houses, it would be deemed rude to ask for more,” Bren said, watching the eyes of the other masters closely. Turneal wasn’t happy, but the rest seemed to understand his predicament.

“I guess that is the best we can hope for under those conditions,” Sae-Thae said, sounding disappointed. “Now on to the matter of the people. It has become quite clear that they have already learned of this news. May I ask if you know the source that spread the news?”

“The source of the rumor is unknown to me, but if we learn that it was one of my own, then I can promise you that they would not be let off lightly,” Bren declared.

“I don’t think there will be a need for that,” master Carnear said with a thin smile. “When information like this is spread, punishing the person responsible usually only leads to more troubles. What we need to do now is decide how we should address the situation.”

“That is easy enough, we should simply let them know what we know, and that we will do everything in our power to keep them safe,” Turneal said as if it was the only answer.

“I agree with Master Turneal,” Bren said, the words feeling heavy and rotten as they came out of his mouth. “I believe it would be best if a few members of the council, as well as myself, let the people know what is happening. I think this is the perfect time to show them, no matter our differences, we will stand together to protect them when it is needed. I believe it would also be best to do this today. There is already a large number of people gathered outside and the longer we take, the more restless the people will become.”

“I believe that is an excellent idea,” Sae-Thae said quickly, before Master Turneal could voice his obvious objections.

“Master Turneal, Master Rouma, would you be so kind as to accompany his majesty while he addresses the public. I believe he would be the best choice as it would seem that he has a better grasp on the current situation.

Bren could almost feel Master Turneal’s hate as they walked down the stairs back toward the ground level. “Do either of you know of a way to amplify my voice so that everyone will be able to hear me clearly?” Bren asked in an effort to ease some of the tension.

“Master Turneal is a master with wind magic so I believe he will be able to take care of your needs, isn’t that correct Master Turneal?” Master Rouma said with a sly smirk.

“Of course I can do something as simple as that,” Master Turneal said, his voice low and dangerous sounding.

“Then I shall be relying on you master,” Bren said calmly, though inside he was anything but.

Before they reached the doors leading out of the tower, Bren could hear the voices of the many people gathered outside. Taking a deep breath, Bren
looked over to Cass and his friend gave him a confident nod.

As the doors swung open, the loud cries slowly died down and before they reached the amassed group, it was as if all the noise in the world had come to a crashing stop.

“Ready?” Bren asked Master Turneal, who simply nodded in reply, his face no longer holding the look of contempt and open hate it had before, though his eyes clearly showed his true feelings.

“People of Torin,” Bren said loudly, but his voice rang throughout the small square like a raging thunderstorm. “As you might have heard, King Killian’s men have found a large force of the Brotherhood far to the north. At the moment it doesn’t look as if they are moving toward us, but we cannot ignore the movements of our enemies. As soon as the weather permits, we will be hosting Rane, Farlan, and Abla so that we may discuss the best course of action. During this time, patrols will be increased and the magical warning wards will be checked daily by the tower to make sure that we all remain safe. I ask that you do not panic and remember that we shall do everything within our power to keep you safe.”