The Mage's Limits: Mages of Martir Book #2 (4 page)

At least it's not raining,
Durima thought, looking up at the sun in the sky.
It's not even misty today. Think this is the first time I've seen the sun in three months.

She heard something skittering across the stone nearby, causing her head to whip to the right. A tiny, black spider was crawling along the ground near the disc-shaped fish. Without even thinking, Durima slammed her right fist down onto it, despite the fact that the spider probably hadn't even noticed her.

The spider had reminded her of the deceased Spider Goddess and Durima's own hand in the Goddess's death. Although that had been a year ago, it seemed like it had only been yesterday that Durima and Gujak had been captured by the Spider Goddess, who had tried to eat them, only for her to end up on the receiving end of the God-killer.

Durima didn't want to remember that. All her life, she had thought of herself as a loyal and devout follower of the gods. Sure, she didn't necessarily like each god equally, but she knew better than to conspire against them. It was a fool's errand and she knew that the only proper punishment for rebellious or disobedient katabans was nothing less than death.

But like all living beings, Durima and Gujak didn't want to die. It was technically what they deserved, after everything they had done, but just because they technically deserved it did not mean that they could get over their fear of being put to death that easily.

That was why they hadn't told anyone where they were going. After the fiasco at North Academy, in which some frightening being known as Uron had killed yet another goddess, the two had escaped in the confusion to Bleak Rock.

The reason for choosing Bleak Rock as their new home was simple. The island was well known for its mysterious and otherworldly nature. Most beings—mortals, katabans, and gods alike—always steered clear of it. Magic did not work on Bleak Rock exactly the same way it worked in the north or even on other southern islands, a fact Durima knew well after living here for a year and almost always being surprised by her spells acting in ways they were not supposed to.

Granted, Durima feared that the gods would get over their superstitious fear of Bleak Rock and sink the whole island into the southern seas anyway, but so far, they had not seen even a hint of the gods anywhere. As far as Durima could tell, the gods had completely abandoned her and Gujak, maybe even forgotten about them. Or maybe they associated Bleak Rock with the Spider Goddess's death and were too afraid to come for fear of their own lives.

Better than being executed for our crimes, I suppose,
Durima thought.
Though it still doesn't explain what they're doing, exactly, if they're not after us.

Another cold gust of wind blew through her fur, causing her to shiver even more violently, but she still didn't want to go back inside just yet. She wanted to enjoy the sun for as long as she could, as she had no idea when she would see it again, especially with the unpredictability of Bleak Rock's weather patterns.

Sometimes, great clouds of mist would surround Bleak Rock and cover the sky, clouds of mist that would remind Durima of her former master, the deity known as the Ghostly God, the God of Ghosts and Mist. There were none today, but she still thought about him anyway.

Like all of the other gods, Durima had not seen or heard from him in over a year. She found it strange because she assumed that the Ghostly God would want to take them in personally. After all, their accidental killing of the Spider Goddess had to have made the Ghostly God look bad in the eyes of his fellow gods, seeing as the only reason she and Gujak had been on Bleak Rock at all was because he had ordered them go to there.

Maybe that's why he's ignoring us,
Durima thought.
Maybe the other gods hate him for being so easily manipulated by Uron. He probably can't show his face in public anymore and doesn't think bringing us in will redeem him in the eyes of his siblings.

Of course, that still didn't make Durima feel better. Sooner or later,
someone
would come after her and Gujak. Who, she didn't know, but someone had to come after them. It was a miracle that they had been free for so long, despite spending an entire year in one specific location.

Anyone else would have let their guard down after so much time had passed with so little action. Not Durima, though. Having been a soldier in the Katabans War, she knew that just because everything seemed peaceful, did not mean that the enemy was not hiding somewhere nearby, waiting to take you down the minute you lowered your guard.

So far, that has not happened just yet,
Durima thought.
But as soon as Gujak or I get careless, we're done. I saw it happen to too many of my fellow soldiers during the War to have any illusions about safety.

Rising to her feet, Durima slung the disc fish over her shoulder and headed into the opening cut in the stone of Bleak Rock that led to its interior. She would take these fish to Gujak, who would then prepare them for their lunch, and then she and Gujak would spend another few hours or so sitting around in the darkness.

Because there just really wasn't much to do here. Gujak had taken to exploring Bleak Rock, which was apparently far larger than it appeared, for over the past year he had discovered a vast tunnel network that extended deep under the island, possibly even beneath the sea floor. Where it went to, neither of them knew, as most of the lowest tunnels were flooded with water or blocked off with heavy stone, but it was there nonetheless. The only hint of what lay below was a severed human hand, though who it had belonged to, they didn't know. They had left it where it was, as there was no point in taking it with them or doing anything with it.

Durima slid down the steep slide that always used to get her during their first month or two here, but after a year of living on this island, she could now slide down it as easily as if she was born to do it. She came to a graceful stop at the bottom, where she stood up, wiped off the grime her behind had collected as she went down the slide, and then looked to her left, toward the only tunnel that led deeper into the island's interior.

“Gujak!” Durima shouted, her voice echoing off the narrow walls of Bleak Rock's interior. “I got the fish! Get the fire going because I'm hungry!”

There was no answer, which immediately put Durima on high alert. Gujak always answered her whenever she announced that she had returned with food. He wasn't sleeping at this time, because he didn't take his afternoon nap for another hour, at least. And she doubted he was down in the lower tunnels, as there was nothing down there that Gujak could possibly want.

Then why didn't he answer?
Durima thought.
Either he's dumber than I thought … or someone or some
thing
got him.

Durima's hair rose on her back, a habit she had developed over the past year or so whenever she sensed danger. She had been afraid that this day would come, the day when the gods finally gathered the courage to storm Bleak Rock and kill her and Gujak for their unforgivable crime against the Pantheons. Granted, she couldn't sense any godly presences in the area, but the gods were perfectly capable of cloaking their presences if they wanted, meaning that there could be a whole Pantheon of gods underneath her feet that were just waiting for her to come down and check on Gujak.

Her body's instincts told her to run, but Durima stayed where she was. While running seemed like a logical idea, Durima had nowhere to go. If she went to any other island, she would likely open herself up to certain death from the gods. There was still a possibility, however small, that Gujak was indeed all right, that there was a perfectly innocuous reason for why he had not responded to her yet, and it was a chance worth taking.

You have no choice, Durima,
she thought.
You'll have to go down below and find Gujak.

Bracing herself for whatever was to come, Durima began walking to the left, toward the tunnel that would take her to the staircase that would lead her down to the chamber below, where Gujak usually was at this time of day.

-

As Durima descended the slippery stone staircase, she stopped every two steps to listen for any sounds of enemies waiting in the dark. Her ears, although superior to mortal ears, picked up nothing except for the dripping of water somewhere in the distance. She didn't smell anything, either, except for her own wet fur that had yet to dry and the stench of the fish slung over her shoulder, which were starting to rot in the damp air.

This reminded her far too much of her and Gujak's first time going down these steps, when they discovered webbing left over by the Spider Goddess. Back then, the Spider Goddess had taken them both by surprise and almost succeeded in killing them. Durima did not expect a repeat of that event here (minus the Spider Goddess, obviously), but she nonetheless paid closer attention to her surroundings and senses in an attempt to detect any dangerous enemies lurking within.

Yet the interior of Bleak Rock seemed as dark and silent as always, aside from the slapping of her footsteps against the wet steps of the stairs. She tried to walk as stealthily as she could, but her bulk always made that a challenge, so she doubted she would have the element of surprise on whoever was hiding in wait for her below.

Finally, Durima reached the bottom of the steps. She stopped and listened once again, hoping that she would catch anything that shouldn't be here. Again, there was nothing, although she still heard that water dripping somewhere nearby.

Making sure her claws were ready, Durima stepped out of the stairwell and into the chamber where the God-killer had been prior to her and Gujak's theft of it. As always, the room was wide and circular, with a stone walkway running around its perimeter and the middle being nothing more than a pool of salty water that came from who-knows-where. The stone peninsula from before jutted out halfway over the middle, where Durima saw someone standing on it that she had never seen before.

Her first thought was that the person was a human, because he was largely hairless, aside from a purple tuft on his scalp, and he was humanoid like them. Then she noticed the large, falcon wings that sprouted from his back, saw his armor, which shone like a brilliant crystal, with a stylized depiction of the Temple of the Gods carved in it, and she immediately knew where he was from, even though she didn't know his name.

“Durima,” said the being, his eyes literally shining as he looked at her. “Also known as the Devil. Veteran of the Katabans War. Fought briefly under the command of the Pseudo-Grinf before becoming a double agent and working with the Katabans Council to bring him down.”

Durima snarled, “Are you just going to stand there and recite facts and trivia, like a couple of Tavian priestesses, or are you going to arrest me, Soldier of the Gods?”

“So you know what organization I belong to,” said the Soldier. “I don't need to ask how you guessed. “

“Of course you don't,” said Durima. “Every katabans recognizes the crystal armor that only Soldiers wear. I was offered the job myself once, after the end of the War, but I rejected it because I had no interest in becoming a dog of the Katabans Council.”

“I was told you are a rebellious one,” said the Soldier, “which explains why you and your friend ran, rather than face justice at the feet of the Katabans Council.”

“I'm not afraid of justice,” Durima replied. “I'm just … well, it doesn't matter. How did you find us? Where is Gujak?”

The Soldier tapped his chin. “You were easy enough to find. There was nowhere else in all of Martir that you could have possibly disappeared to but this island, where no one, not even the gods, goes to. Granted, we didn't want to come here, but if justice is to be served, that sometimes means doing things we'd rather not.”

“Still haven't told me where Gujak is,” said Durima. “Is he alive? Did you kill him, you bastard?”

“The role of a Soldier of the Gods is not to kill criminals, but to bring them to the Katabans Council, who will give them the fair hearing and punishment that they deserve,” said the Soldier.

“Avoiding the question,” said Durima. “Of course you did. I never could get a straight answer out of any of you guys.”

“Gujak has been detained by my brothers-in-arms,” said the Soldier. “There are three dozen of us in total. If I fancied, I could order them all to attack and kill you on the spot and tell the Council that it was necessary because you had resisted arrest.”

The ease and quickness with which the Soldier came up with that lie surprised Durima. Then again, knowing how scummy the Council could be, she became less surprised at this Soldier's behavior.

“But I should introduce myself,” said the Soldier. He pointed at a star-shaped badge on his shoulder armor. “I am Commander Erich, Commander of the Soldiers of the Gods. I was given strict orders to bring you and Gujak in for your unspeakable crimes against the gods.”

“We didn't mean it,” said Durima. “It was an accident. We didn't go to this island planning to murder a goddess. We'd have been idiots to even entertain that idea.”

“That will be for the Council to decide,” said Erich. “You now have two options: One, drop any rebellious thoughts of fighting me and come peacefully; or two, I beat you within an inch of your life and drag you to World's End myself.”

Durima considered those two options. If Erich did indeed have three dozen Soldiers with him, Durima knew that she would lose against them in a straight battle. Yet she didn't want to give up and let Erich take her and Gujak to World's End, where they would likely be executed for their crimes.

“If you are thinking of fighting me, I think it's only fair that I inform you that I also fought in the Katabans War, like you, and that I was the first place winner of the International Katabans Swordsmanship Championship for three years running,” said Erich. “Though in recent years, I've retired my old blades in favor of these.”

Erich held up two crystalline tiger claws that were clamped to his hands. The claws looked as thick as swords and far sharper.

“Mican crystal claws,” said Erich. “Very rare, but very powerful. This particular set was said to have been created by Mica herself shortly after the Godly War. They're supposed to be unbreakable and unable to decay or break down no matter how often you use them. They are easily capable of cutting through steel … or flesh.”