The Mage's Limits: Mages of Martir Book #2 (29 page)

Gasping for air, Durima looked to her right. Gujak lay next to her, also gasping for air, coughing out an inky black water that resembled crude oil. She herself coughed out much of that water as well, although for some reason she didn't seem to have inhaled as much of it as Gujak.

“By the gods,” Gujak gasped, his voice hoarse. “What … what happened?”

Durima shuddered. “I … I don't know. Somehow, we're alive.”

“All thanks to me,” said a voice above her that she didn't recognize. “Though I don't expect you to thank me if you don't want to.”

Durima looked up at the source of the voice, but as she did so, she found herself staring up at the sun in the sky.

Wait …
Durima blinked.
The sun?

She sat up, her fur dripping wet, as she looked more closely at the sky. Yes, that was indeed the blue afternoon sky of Martir, which ended at the black wall that was the entrance to the Void about a thousand or so feet from them. The sun was in the sky, shining as brilliantly as ever; in fact, after so long in the Void, to her the sun looked brighter and more beautiful than ever. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed feeling its rays shining down on her body, drying her fur and warming her skin underneath.

Then she looked down at what she and Gujak were on. It was some kind of wooden boat, similar to the one that had taken them into the Void, although it was much bigger and seemed less prone to teetering than theirs had. It floated gently on the waves of the sea, waves as clear as crystals.

Finally, Durima looked up at whoever their savior was, saying as she did so, “Whoever you are, I have to thank—”

She stopped mid-sentence when she saw who stood before them. Her feelings of happiness at returning home went down the drain as she looked up at the glowing green skeleton that stood above her, a skeleton which she had never seen before in her life.

“Hi there,” said the skeleton, waving at her as if he did this sort of thing every day. “You look surprised.”

“Durima,” said Gujak, his voice as high as it always was whenever he was afraid. “Why is there a walking, talking skeleton on the raft with us?”

“Because I saved you two, naturally enough,” said the skeleton. “I understand that my appearance is somewhat disquieting, but rest assured I am on your side. After all, I am the God of Mystery and Magic and you two are loyal katabans servants of the gods.”

“The Mysterious One?” said Durima. She coughed again, causing more of that ugly black water to spew from her lungs. “Im—”

“Impossible?” the Mysterious One finished for her dryly. “A myth? I'm afraid I've been called both of those things today by someone already, so you can save your breath for more important questions.”

“I knew it,” said Gujak, causing Durima to look at him and see a big smile on his face. “I knew it! The Mysterious One
is real
. He's not a myth after all. I was right.”

“Yes, yes, good for you,” said the Mysterious One. Then he leaned down toward them slightly. “Now tell me, do you two feel up to saving the world today?”

“What kind of a question is that?” said Durima.

“A very relevant one, considering our current situation,” said the Mysterious. He gestured to their right. “You might want to take a look at World's End.”

Though Durima didn't trust this 'Mysterious One' (who she didn't actually think was the real Mysterious One), she nonetheless looked in the direction he had indicated. Almost as soon as she did, she regretted doing so.

She was looking at World's End, but it no longer looked like the majestic Throne of the Gods that Durima had always known it as. Smoke and flames rose from the tops of the various skyscrapers, with one of the taller buildings having a giant hole in it, as if a titan had punched out its center. Bursts of lightning, flame, water, and every other kind of magic lanced from building top to building top, as if two separate armies were duking it out in the city itself.

Even the waters around World's End were hardly peaceful and tranquil. Several of the katabans battleships Durima had seen prior to her and Gujak's banishment lay in ruins in the water, their hulls burning, with no sign of their crews anywhere. A massive kraken stood amidst most of the wreckage, but then Durima looked at it again and realized that that wasn't a kraken at all, but rather a giant half-god that resembled a kraken mixed with a tiger.

The half-god smashed its tentacles against the sunken ships, roaring like a tiger before it was cut off by a splash of water in the face. An actual kraken had risen out of the sea now opposite the half-god, but it was twice as large as a normal krakens and three times as huge as the biggest battleships in the katabans navy.

That was no mere kraken. The magical power radiating from it pegged the beast as none other than the Kraken Goddess, Goddess of Kraken, Fish, and the Storm. Durima recognized her because she had served the Kraken Goddess once. She watched as the Kraken Goddess lunged at the tiger/kraken half-god, wrapping her tentacles around it and dragging the monstrosity beneath the waves in a violent struggle that sunk what little debris of the battleships remained.

Then a massive, earsplitting explosion caused Durima to look back at World's End itself again. A chunk of the roof of one of the skyscrapers had been blasted off completely, falling down into the streets below. Durima did not hear it fall, but she did not doubt that it would crush many innocent katabans, assuming that the city's inhabitants had not evacuated as soon as the battle started.

“Oh my gods,” said Gujak, putting his hands against his mouth. “What's going on there?”

“The first war to ever bring its battle to World's End's shores,” said the Mysterious One in a flat voice. “Half of the invading force is something called the 'Limitless Army,' essentially a group of the Northern Isles's worst criminals trained by Jakuuth Grinfborn, though this part of the Army is led by two katabans sisters known as Rema and Gonar.”

“Grinfborn?” said Durima. She scowled. “I thought he was in jail.”

“He escaped a while ago,” said the Mysterious One. “And of course, the other half of the army is the half-gods, led by Uron. The Limitless Army attacked from the north and the half-gods struck from the south. No one saw them coming, not even Skimif, which is why World's End is in such terrible condition.”

“Where are the gods?” said Durima. “Who is fighting the enemy?”

“The gods are there,” said the Mysterious One. “Not quite as many as they need, perhaps, seeing as most of the gods are still afraid of Uron, but they're there nonetheless. The Soldiers of the Gods are also present, though their numbers are rapidly dwindling because they're not as strong as the Limitless mages or the half-gods. Skimif is there, too, and is probably the only reason why Uron hasn't succeeded in demolishing the entire island yet.”

“What about the people?” said Gujak. “You know, the katabans who live there?”

“From what I've gathered, quite a few were killed in the initial attack due to being unprepared for the assault,” said the Mysterious One. “But when the gods came in and began fighting off the Limitless and the half-gods, most of the katabans evacuated via the ethereal. They're currently migrating due north, though where they're going, I can't say.”

“Probably trying to get as far away from this war as they can,” said Durima, shaking her head. “How long has this battle been going on?”

“Not long,” said the Mysterious One. “Half an hour at most. Nonetheless, as you can see, World's End is already dangerously close to falling. That's why I saved you two, so you could save it.”

Durima laughed. “Us? Mysterious One—if that's your real name—you do know
why
Gujak and I were banished beyond the Void, yes?”

“I am aware of your accidental killing of the Spider Goddess,” said the Mysterious One, nodding. “So?”

“So the gods will kill us if we tried to help,” Durima said. She was starting to get the feeling that the Mysterious One wasn't the brightest god in the Southern Pantheon. “And even if they did allow us to help, what are two weak katabans supposed to do against Limitless mages, an army of half-gods, and Uron himself?”

“You two are wild cards,” said the Mysterious One. “Uron thinks you're dead, so you can use that to your advantage.”

Durima frowned. “How the hell are we supposed to do that? Are you suggesting we attack him and hope he is too surprised to kill us?”

“I am suggesting nothing,” said the Mysterious One, holding up his hands as if to pacify Durima. “I trust that you two will be able to come up with a way to stop Uron. If you can take him out, the half-gods will become afraid and disorganized, which will make it easier for the gods to defeat them. The Limitless mages will fall even more easily, because despite their power, they are still mortal and therefore not even half as strong as the gods.”

“So the only reason that Uron's army is causing so much trouble is because the gods are too afraid of Uron to go all out?” said Gujak.

“Exactly,” said the Mysterious One, nodding. “Skimif is currently fighting Uron, but it's only a matter of time before Uron touches Skimif with the God-killer. I trust that you two realize exactly what would happen if Skimif died today.”

Durima remembered how frightened the other gods had been when they had learned of the Spider Goddess's death. And the Spider Goddess was one of the more obscure goddesses, hardly as respected or famous as Skimif.

“Will you fight alongside us, Mysterious One?” Gujak asked. “If we're going to fight Uron, we'll need all the help we can get.”

The Mysterious One shook his head. “I've never been much of a fighter. I stayed out of the Godly War, avoided getting caught up in that apocalypse mess thirty years back, and am in no mood to possibly die at Uron's hands today. I've done as much as I should, and probably more.”

“But this is your world, too, isn't it?” said Gujak. He pointed at World's End. “Won't you help your brothers and sisters on World's End save Martir? They could use your help.”

The Mysterious One made a clacking, rattling sound, which might have been his way of chuckling. “My world … oh, that's rich. No, Martir isn't my world, but I do care about it nonetheless.”

“Aren't you a god, though?” said Gujak. “Aren't all gods from Martir? So doesn't that mean that this
is
your world?”

“Let's change the subject,” said the Mysterious One. “I'm rarely this talkative, so why don't I just get you two to World's End, where you can help Skimif get rid of Uron?”

“Assuming there's anything we can actually do about Uron, of course,” said Durima, glancing at the war-torn city.

“Just think,” said the Mysterious One, tapping the side of his head. “What can you do to help get rid of Uron? There has to be something.”

Durima scowled. She wanted to say that there was literally nothing that she and Gujak could do, that Uron was far above their power level, and that any attempts on their part to stop Uron would only end in their deaths.

Then a thought occurred to Durima, a plan that she had never considered before but which suddenly caught her attention. She looked at Gujak and said, “I've got an idea.”

“What is it?” said Gujak. “Does it involve us fighting Uron?”

“Not really,” said Durima, shaking her head. “If it works—and it might not—it should end with no one fighting Uron. We'll need to work together to do it, though. Are you in?”

Gujak scratched the back of his neck and looked toward World's End as the rooftop of another skyscraper went flying sky high. “I have a feeling I'm going to regret this … but okay.”

Durima then looked up at the Mysterious One again. “We will need your help for this one.”

The Mysterious One shook his head. “Can't guarantee that. As I said, I normally keep under the radar; in fact, most of my fellow gods don't even believe I exist. But I suppose I can assist you in some minor way here, if necessary and if it will help us save Martir.”

“Good,” said Durima. “Because I am going to need you in case Gujak fails. So you two, gather round and I will tell you about my plan. We'll have to be quick; I have no idea how long Skimif and the gods can keep Uron and his forces at bay. If we don't get this plan rolling right away, everything we know will be destroyed.”

Chapter Twenty

E
verywhere Darek looked, mages were fighting mages. Near the First Dorm, Jiku was fighting Raka, while on the steps of the Arcanium, Irliza, the pyromancy teacher, was fighting Rujan. Bursts of magical energy flew through the air, only to explode and rain flame and heat on anyone who was unfortunate enough to be underneath them when that happened.

Quite a few bodies already lay unmoving in the courtyard, most of them Darek's fellow students, though he saw a few Limitless soldiers as well. The library's front doors had been blown off their hinges completely, allowing Darek to hear the sounds of people battling inside. The statue of the God of Reading lay across the steps of the library, broken in half straight down the middle, smoking like it had been on fire not too long ago.

He ducked to avoid a thick vine that went shooting off from a duel between a Limitless soldier and Noharf Ximin nearby, then jumped onto the path as the grass under his feet caught fire. No one seemed to have noticed him yet, not even the Limitless, but that was good because Darek needed to find Jakuuth, and fast.

Then he saw the goalposts from the sports field come flying over the dorms. One of the goal posts struck the Third Dorm, smashing through the roof (no doubt into Darek's and Jiku's room, unfortunately), while another impaled itself in the ground nearby, missing Darek by a few feet. The impact of the second goalpost sent dirt and grass into the air, forcing Darek to hold his arms up over his eyes to avoid getting the dirt in his eyes as the soil and grass rained down on his head.

He looked desperately around the area, searching for Mom or the Magical Superior or Jakuuth, but all three seemed to be absent. He did, however, see one of the Limitless soldiers unleash a burst of flame at one of the younger students, instantly incinerating that student without another word.

Without thinking, Darek swung his wand at the Limitless soldier. The soldier suddenly became a solid block of ice. Then Darek swung his wand again and the ice block shattered, turning the soldier into little more than chunks of frozen meat that lay scattered all over the courtyard.