A Mage's Power (Journey to Chaos) (24 page)

“I'm sorry, kid,” the owner told Eric. “I can't give that
away; it's too expensive.” Eric stammered apologies, quickly returned it, and
came back with a charm to warn off nearby monsters.

“Team, you're dismissed for the day,” Basilard said as they
left the store.

“No training?” Tiza asked.

“I'll train you if you want, but if there's somewhere else
you'd rather be, you're free to go.”

“Really?!” the battle mage asked.

Basilard grinned. “When I train you, I want you focused on
training. Your mind is clearly focused elsewhere. Go.”

Eric smiled as wide as he could and bolted.

The high school was in the Blue Town of Imagination and Wisdom,
but he made it without stopping for breath. He arrived half an hour before
school let out. For once, he was happy to be a mercenary.
This is good. I
can practice what I'll say.

When the bell rang and he saw Annala, his mind blanked. She
wasn't wearing a dress, but she still looked different somehow. He decided it
was the scowl.

“Annala! Listen . . .” She was already walking away.
Flushing in shame, Eric walked after her. “I-I'm really sorry about not meeting
you after the Joust.”

Annala didn't stop; her back stiff. “I understand,” she said
formally. “You obviously had something more important to do.”

The sharpness of her tone made Eric cringe. “Well . . . I
did,” he said helplessly. “The princess was kidnapped and we had to chase her.
It was spur of the moment.”

She stopped, but her back was still firmly against him, “The
papers didn't say anything.”

“I know! Believe me, I know. My mentor cut a deal. It was
like this . . .”

“Hmmm.” Eric dearly hoped she would believe him. He hated
being in the doghouse. “Eric,” she said and paused. The silence drew out.
Although Eric didn't realize it, Annala's forgiveness meant more to him than
that of any of his previous bosses.

“I never knew you were such a creative liar.” Her voice
cracked and her shoulders shook. Eric slumped. He felt absolutely miserable.

“Annala, I'm really, really sorry! I wish I could make it up
to you—”

Revas and Oito laughed. Eric whirled in confusion. He
couldn't fathom what was so funny about his begging. He knew he sounded
pathetic, but was it really
that
funny? Annala shook violently.
She
must be offended by their insensitivity
. She sounded like she was choking!

“Annala?” She was indeed choking—on her
own laughter! Eric slapped his forehead. “So that was all an act?” he asked
dryly. Annala nodded. The strain of holding in her glee was too much for words.
“And you're not really mad?” he asked hopefully. Annala nodded a second time. “You
can laugh if you want.” Annala nodded a final time and joined the demons in
their laughing fit.

Walked right into that one.
Annala forgave him and he
made her laugh, so he didn't mind. He didn't ask her about the dress because he
really didn't want to know. Annala would have told him if she found a boyfriend—or
worse.
We're close enough friends that she'd tell me something like that . .
.right?

That night, while studying
Introduction to Magecraft,
he
heard a knock on the door of his bridgehouse. His friends had curfews and he
couldn't imagine why his teammates would visit so late. He checked the
peephole. Beyond the door was a smiling face with pink eyes. It was the first
time Eric had seen him since the mysterious tip-off about the Joust.

“Aio . . .” Eric said calmly, “You knew about the
kidnapping, didn't you?”

Aio blinked. “What are you talking about, Roomy?”

“You told me to keep an eye on Princess Kasile!”

“Well, of course I did. Everyone dresses up at the Joust and
since the princess is such a knock-out already, I figured she'd be downright
staggering.” The light in Aio's eyes dimmed somewhat. “Roomy, what do you live
for?”

 “Huh?” His friend wasn't given to waxing philosophically;
the deepest thing Aio had ever said was, “Mana and pudding are both life givers.”
“What's this all of a sudden?”

“Well, everyone has a dream they want to accomplish. Your
mentor wants to pass on his sword and your teammate wants to be a paladin. It
gives them purpose. Do you have anything like that?”

Eric said nothing.

“If you died tomorrow, would anyone miss you?”

“Aio, stop, you're scaring me . . .” The look in Aio's eyes
was unbearable; empty and despairing.

 “Would you miss me?”

“Of course I would; we're friends. Now knock it off!”

Aio's eyes lit up, like clicking a lamp. “Great! So can I borrow
five gold?”

Eric paused again. “ That's why you're here at . . .” He
looked over at his wall clock. “Ten at night? . . . To borrow money?” Aio
nodded. “Then what was all that philosophy about?”

“Oh, it says in this book . . .” Aio pulled out a pocketsize
book labeled
Mooching for Morons
. He opened to a marked page and read. “
Tip
Four: 'generate fear of loss in the target and they will be so moved they will
give more than they normally would. If for no other reason than to get you to
stop. Good for borrowing money from friends
.’”

Eric deadpanned. “Good night, Aio,”

“But Roooommmyyy! What about my five gold?”

“You're not getting it.” Eric closed the door. He leaned
against it and sighed. Aio was a great friend, but he could be incredibly
annoying sometimes.

He returned to his desk and resumed his study of elemental
spells. After an hour, he gave up; he couldn't get Aio's face out of his mind.
He closed the book and went to bed. He rolled over again and again; Aio's voice
haunted his mind. “If I died tomorrow, would you miss me?”

The next morning, he asked Mia about Aio's mission. She said
he was at the Heleti General Hospital doing stand-up comedy for bed-ridden
patients. An E-rank mission; absolutely no danger at all. Unless Aio was
heckled
to
death, he was safe.

 “So what's it going to be today?” Tiza moaned. “Babysitting,
grocery shopping, painting?”

“None of the above. Tiza, let me be the first to tell you
that your efforts in capturing Dark Staff have not gone unrecognized nor
unrewarded.”

Tiza instantly perked up. “Really?”

“Draw your sword and place it on my desk.” Mia pulled a slip
of paper out of its point. “I have here the bill for a C rank Escort Mission.”

“Really?!” She lunged for it. Eric would have laughed if he
wasn't afraid of the consequences. She sounded like a child being offered candy
for good behavior.

Just as her fingers touched the edge, Mia pulled it away. “Leader
was impressed with how you handled yourselves so she's decided to let you try
something more dangerous.”

“Well, what is it?” Basilard asked.

The coveted bill darted in and out of Tiza's reach. “You'll
guard a merchant and her caravan as they travel to Kyraa through the Yacian
Caverns.”

“Yacian Caverns . . .” Eric muttered. The name sounded
familiar, and in a flash, he remembered. “C class monsters live there! The
place is full of them!”

The Monster Rank Scale cataloged monsters according to their
level of power and aggressive behavior. E class, the lowest rank, were the
Tsiaq pigeons Eric stole poop from on his first mission. They were dangerous
enough to be ranked, but anyone with a weapon could defeat them. Next were D-class,
like the Cecri he fought before leaving. They were too dangerous for normal
people, but novices could handle them with effort.

 C class were in a whole other league: faster, stronger,
greater instincts and more likely to have special abilities. An army of novices
were cannon fodder before just one C class. Entering a cave packed with them
made Eric sick.   

“Of course,” Mia said, not budging, despite Tiza's lunges. “That's
why you've been hired.”

“But who’s gonna guard us?!”

 Basilard clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Calm down, Eric.
I'm a Squad Five Senior, remember? C class are nothing to me and together you
should be able to hold one off until I finish it.”

“Should?” Eric asked nervously.

“Hand it over already!” Tiza shouted. “You smiling,
red-haired ditz!” Mia smiled even more irritatingly and waved the bill into her
extra space pocket.

“You know, there's, like, also a mission, like, from the
seamstresses,” Mia started with a fake accent and spinning finger. “And they,
like, totally want to, like, dress you up again. Would you, like, prefer that
mission instead?”

Tiza paled. “You wouldn't . . .”

Mia smirked in such a malicious manner, Eric felt a chill. “I,
like,
totally
would.”

Tiza backed away from Mia's desk and bowed. “I'm very sorry,”
she said unashamedly. “I was too excited and said things I shouldn't have.
You're definitely not a ditz; more people should smile as much as you do, and
your hair is beautiful.”

Mia's smirk returned to her usual cheerful smile. “Why,
thank you. I try to take care of it.” She pulled the bill back out of the air,
but Tiza stood still.

“Yes, Eric,” Basilard said. “The three of you should be able
to.” He accepted the bill from Mia. “I think you guys can handle it, and
apparently, Tiza does to.” Said fighter glared. “And in the off chance that
anything
does
go wrong,” Basilard showed him the scry he had shown Tiza.
“I'll just call Mia and she'll send a rescue. What do you say, Nolien?”

Nolien stood at attention. “I look forward to it, Daylra.”

Seeing that he was outvoted, Eric relented.

 After collecting their supplies, they left for the East
Gate where their client was waiting. She was a kangaroo, dressed in clothes of
fine muslin and a leather cloak. She pulled a watch out of her pouch and tsked.
“Two minutes late. Penalty.”

Tiza made a face. “It's just two minutes. What's the big
deal?”

“Time is money!” the kangaroo countered. “That's why I
travel under the Yacian Caverns: I get to my destination quicker and spend less
money on transportation.” Eric wondered why she didn't get an airship.
It
would be faster, but also more expensive . . . I guess she's crunched the
numbers.

“Did you spend any money in the last two minutes?” Tiza
asked. The kangaroo scowled.

“Tiza, don't sass the client,” Basilard said. Tiza crossed
her arms. “You must be Miss Anuzat.”

“And you must be Wasting-My-Time. I don't need to know your
name, 'Mercenary Leader.'”

Basilard shrugged. “Whatever you say, miss.”

The caravan consisted of giants carrying large bags over
their shoulders, humans wearing backpacks, and camels with packs on either side,
but no riders. The latter no longer surprised Eric; in fact, he had come to
expect it. Each camel had three packs and they were all filled to bursting.

“What are you dealing in here?”

“I don't see how that is relevant to your job,” Anuzat said
and hopped to the head of the caravan.

“Even merchants think they're better than us . . .” Tiza
muttered, “ . . . We're not the ones fast-talking people out of money for junk
they don't need. We earn an honest living.”

“For once we agree,” Nolien muttered.

From the East Gate of Roalt, the caravan and its guards
marched towards the Yacian Mountain Range. This was the farming district.
Farmers of all shapes and sizes were hard at work seeding their fields and
talking to growing plants. Other farmers had a different kind of work;
patrolling the fields with scythes and standing on watchtowers with bows. As
long as Team Four was in the Farmer's area, they weren't attacked by monsters.

Beyond the farmland there was a river that irrigated them
and to the far south a range of hills. Without farmers to plow and rake over
it, evidence of mana storms could be seen; like South Gate, unusual landmarks
dotted the area. Not that Anuzat took any notice of them. If they were in her
way she marched by them without fear.

  Four more days would pass before they reached the base of
the mountains and another nine days to reach Anuzat's destination. They marched
all day, only stopping for meals and rest stops; when it rained, the caravan
pulled out jugs to collect it and when the sun shined, they levitated laundry
to dry. No one in her caravan complained because Anuzat didn't and she carried
twice as much.

They were attacked by monsters no less than three times an
hour and Tiza jumped at the opportunity. Much to her disappointment, Anuzat's
giants made quick work of them. They worked in unison to kill the beasts and
strip them down for parts. Anuzat supervised the operation and divided the
spoils. Naturally, the mercenaries received nothing. Tiza joined their ranks in
hopes of a fight only for Basilard to pull her back. Night fell before she got
into a fight and that was with one of the giants. Though there were many inns
along the way, they spent the night in tents off the side of the road.

Eric noted with interest just what exactly defined a road in
this world; a beaten dirt path. There were no paved roads or anything
resembling a land vehicle. He already ruled out Tariatla lacking the technology
because it had giant metal ships flying almost silently in the sky. Eric
described this paradox to Nolien and the healer replied that highways would
violate the Peaceful Coexistence Act in the International Avatar Alliance
Constitution. The two mages spent the night and part of the next day discussing
modes of travel in their worlds.

The range came into view on the second day.
No wonder
Anuzat wants to go under them!
The mountains were steep and rose to jagged
peaks; going over them would be difficult even without native monsters. Eric couldn't
see where they ended. A path underground would take a fraction of the time.

Another thing he liked about being a mercenary was the
abilities he learned. The magic he used to kill monsters could be used against
a mugger, and it saved him a fortune on air conditioning. His magic would do
him little good here. Then again, Leader Ridley, Mia, and Basilard all thought
they could they could handle it, so he forced himself to relax.