A Mage's Power (Journey to Chaos) (41 page)

“Are there any guards?” Culmus asked.

“Two. They come every hour.” She scurried ahead of them into
a dead end. “The entrance is hidden; the fifth block up.”

The wall
looked
solid. It even had moss and slime
covering each block. A casual eye would see nothing but an ordinary sewer wall
that hadn't been touched in years. The Black Cloaks were hiding with the same
principles Basilard lectured on: when looking for a needle in a haystack, the
question is not “will I find it” but “how long until I find it.” Even with
Alice's tip-off, he wouldn't have believed it if he didn't have a violently
pulsating handkerchief in his pocket.

A lack of cameras didn't necessarily mean a lack of
surveillance, so Eric made a show for them. He brushed away dust and cobwebs
and tapped random stones. Then he shrugged exaggeratedly and exhaled loudly.
Finally, he put an arm around Culmus and guided him away from the hideout's
entrance.

“There's nothing here, let's go.”

Culmus jerked Eric's arm off. “What are you talking about!?”

Eric winked. “I know you're disappointed, but we didn't find
anything.”

Culmus replied with an equally loud sigh. “You're right.” He
let his shoulders drop. “That reward will never be ours after all, huh?”

“Afraid not.” Eric supported the clearly depressed Culmus
out of the tunnel and then said to Alice, “Thanks for your help. Here's your
payment.”

He reached into his pack and put the promised wedge of
cheese on the ground. He shouldn't have been surprised, he really shouldn't
have. Alice mashed the cheese up, molded it into a ball, and rolled it away.
The cheese wedge was too unwieldy for her to carry home as it was so she made
it manageable. Eric let out a genuine sigh.
Will I ever get used to this?

“Have you made the plan yet?” Culmus asked. Eric nodded.

First, he created the barrier that was supposed to protect
them from any magical sensors the kidnappers might have, and with any luck,
shield the mana he was channeling into the spell so it didn't destabilize the Fog.
The Dark Veil eagerly wrapped about him and flew through his barrier to Culmus.

Was that supposed to happen?

No. It should have been more complicated than that.

Whatever works, I say.

They returned to the dead end. Eric pushed the stone and
suddenly he wasn't in the sewer anymore, but hurtling through space. His head
spun, his stomach turned and he thought he would throw up. Just as suddenly,
the world closed back around him and Culmus was steadying him.

“Teleportation sickness. It'll pass.” Eric nodded and took
deep breaths. “The Black Cloaks may have greater resources than we expected.
They used a standing teleportation rune just to create an 'untouched wall'
look. The fifth stone teleports the user through the wall. It's a three-foot
jump.”

Footsteps approached from two directions; one from the right
and another from the left. They were in such a hurry they collided into each
other and fell at the mercenaries' feet.

“Abyss cursed lead head!” Dark Sword shouted. “Get out of my
way!”

“Where's the fire?” a woman with nunchaku asked and laughed.

“We don't know!” Dark Sword shouted again. “That's the
point!”

“She has to be here somewhere. The teleporter won't work
without a keystone.”

They stood up and ran down the central passage. Not once did
they notice the mercenaries.

“If the teleport wouldn't work without a keystone . . . how
did we get in?” Eric asked.

“The kidnappers must be lazy . . . or someone unlocked it as
they left!”

“You don't mean . . . .”

“Yes!” Culmus said, a large grin on his face. “Kasile
already escaped!”

Chapter 15
The Man with Red Eyes

As thrilled as Eric was at the possibility of Kasile
escaping on her own, he couldn't help feeling irritated. After a day of sewer
diving and monster fighting, he wanted to finish the mission they came down here
for. To find that she had already saved herself was . . . annoying.

Kasile!

What?

You said you'd WAIT!

Kasile bristled.
You were taking too long!

Are you at least in their hideout?

Unfortunately. I haven't found the exit yet.

Stay where you are. We'll come to you.

I'll find the exit before you find me.

No, you'll get lost.
Now that he thought about it,
they
could get lost too . . .
Wait for us.

Who’s with you? That friend you were talking about?

No, Culmus.

Culmus came to rescue me, too?

A wave of sugary love and rainbows flooded their link. It
manifested as a romantic daydream staring Kasile as the damsel in distress and
her boyfriends, plural, as the hero. Apparently, Siron was here somewhere. It
was just the ace he needed to win this argument.

Yes. You should have seen how worried he was and how much
he wanted to save you.

That doesn't mean I'm going to hide and wait for him!

Of all the princesses he could be friends with it had to be
one that thought she could rescue herself . . .
The exit is a teleport and
you need a key stone to unlock it.
He didn't tell her the teleport was
unlocked for obvious reasons.

So that's what this is. I was wondering why that rogue
had such an expensive necklace.

 Wait!
The link was silent. Kasile was ignoring him.
Eric growled. The handkerchief shinned and pulsated like a strobe light.

Boom-bom! Boom-bom! Boom-bom!

That is another disadvantage. At a certain proximity, it
becomes useless.

And you tell me this now?!

Any mage worth their mana could figure it out on their
own.

“Well, Culmus, we're going to have to find her our . . . selves?”

Culmus was gone. Dropping his shoulders, Eric sighed
heavily. Culmus was a Regular but he doubted the melee could defeat the entire
band without mage back up. It was then that he was hit by the absurdity of his
situation.

I'm rescuing a princess with a mercenary, a
sentient
staff, and a ghost. It's like one of those RPGs I used to play when I was a kid
. . .
Another absurdity crashed his train of thought.
When I was a kid
the first time.
He sighed again.
This is definitely not what I imagined
doing after college
. He chose a random direction and hoped Kasile was at
the other end.

At first, the hideout didn't appear too different from the
sewer: dank, dreary, and covered in moss. Then he noticed the walls were made
of metal instead of stone. The rooms he checked had rusty shackles chained to
the walls and one even had an iron maiden wearing a green skirt.
I'm not in
a sewer, but a torture chamber!
He'd be seeing the business end of that
iron maiden if he was caught. Then he bumped into someone and it was neither
Kasile nor Culmus.

“Uh . . . sorry about that!” Eric said quickly. “I'm just in
such a hurry to find the princess!”

“Are you Dark Staff's replacement?” asked a man-spider wielding
a spear.

“Yep!” Eric said even faster. “Introductions later.
Recapturing the princess comes first.”

“Hold on,” said a humanoid alligator baring a bow. “If
you're one of us, then—”

Eric jumped backwards. “Hide in night! No Sight!” They
lunged. “Dark Bolt!”

The spell splattered like a spitball on their barriers and
encompassed them in darkness as thick as their own Dark Fog. “Speed bump, jump!
Mole Hill!” They tripped on his second spell and fell flat. “You can't stay on
your feet! Go to sleep! Thunder Slumber!” Static sparkles danced in their eyes
and their eyelids dropped.

Eric almost fell over himself. Three spells in such quick
succession, after burning out several times on the way here, left him gasping.
He leaned forward on his staff and prayed that no one else came down this
tunnel before he caught his breath.

“I heard shouting down this way!” a voice shouted. “Let's
check it out!”

Eric leaned heavier. “Abyss take you, Tasio.”

As quickly as possible, he dragged one of the fallen rogues
into a cell, ripped off their cloaks, and pilfered their keystone. The hem just
barely settled when more rogues turned the corner.

“What happened here?” one demanded.

“A warrior with a huge sword knocked him out!” Eric pointed
further down the tunnel. “He ran that way, shouting for the princess!”

“Abyss take it. Another rescuer is all we need. Come on,
let's go!”

Eric ran with them until the next tunnel and then wheezed
from exhaustion. The group leader called him a worthless chunk of dung then
told him to guard the tunnel and inform them if he saw the intruder again. Said
intruder nodded and dropped out of the pack. Once they were out of sight, he
smirked. Those wheezes were fake. He still needed a swig of Mana Juice on his
way back, though.

Kill them! They will sound the alarm as soon as they
awake!

Nah, I got a better idea.

An idea better than mine!?

Poetic Justice
.

Dragging the other rogue into the cell, he shackled their
arms and legs. Then he ripped off sections of the second guy's cloak to make
blindfolds and gags. Then, because he was a practical-minded mercenary, he
stripped them of their valuables: weapons, armor, gold, and other items. The
keystone necklaces looked particularly expensive: a pink diamond housed inside
a larger white crystal so pure it was transparent. All this loot he stashed in
his pack. There was so much he had to wedge it in. Far from frustrated, he was
giddy.

With all this stuff, coming down here will be worth it
even if Kasile escapes on her own!

You sound like a mercenary.

I
am
a mercenary
. He shouldered
his pack and raced down the hallway. Despite the additional weight, it felt
lighter than it had all day.

Wearing the keystone and black cloak transformed him into
Dark Staff. No one else questioned his allegiance and he even got a tip on
Kasile's location. He could barely restrain his laughter. Following the tip, he
spotted a flash of silk beyond the next corner. He dashed for it. Euphoria
filled him
. I'll keep my promise! I'll redeem myself! The Altar of Rebirth
was worth it!

There she was. After nearly a month of planning and
preparing, Kasile was right there in front of him. All her jewelry was gone,
her hair was tousled, and her dress was stained with blood. It might have been
the side effects of breathing too much Fog, but he decided to surprise her.
Instead of her good friend, she saw a stranger wearing a black cloak and fired
a mana bolt at him. It pierced his barrier and beamed him on the head. A second
struck him from behind and he blacked out.

The mage awoke to a crackling fire. He blinked twice and
rubbed his forehead.

 It was a steel room but furnished better than a cell. With
a fine desk and chairs, pictures behind thick glass and a bookshelf, it could
be a warden's office. His staff lay at his side. With these, he came to the
conclusion that whoever hit him wasn't his enemy. The fire was in the center of
the room and warmed two people: Kasile and someone with blood red hair.

The only other people he'd seen with this shade were
Basilard and his nieces, Mia and Raki. His shirt and pants were interwoven with
metal plates and his gauntlets reached his knuckles. Eric would bet his staff
they hid an ace or two. He sat up and the rustle of his clothes attracted the
man's attention. He gazed at Eric with blood red eyes.

“Oh, good, you're awake,” he said with a smile. “Sorry about
konking you on the head. With that cloak, I thought you were with them.”

Eric smiled in return, though his was rather pained. “Yeah,
that was kinda the point.” To Kasile he added, “Are you all right?”

“Yes, I'm fine. And you?”

He rubbed the back of his head. “Considering the double
headshot, I'm feeling pretty good.”

“Sorry again, I never thought someone would get here before
us.”

“Who
are
you, anyway?“

The man extended his hand. “Police force in charge of
Ataidar Sector 1: The Bloody Daggers. I'm their chief and royal spokesman, Plas
Bladi.”

Eric shook his hand. “Would you be related to a Basilard
Bladi?”

“Oh yeah, he's my li’l bro. Do you know him?”

“He's my sergeant.”

Plas's whole face lit up. “Wonderful! It's about time he
took another team!”

“
Another
team?” He knew Basilard had other students
but he never said he had another team. He never gave it much thought before,
but now his curiosity was piqued. “He had one in the past?”

“I'm sure he'll tell you about it . . . When he's ready.”

Eric knew it wasn't a long story; this one was long and
painful
.
“How long ago was it?”

Plas grinned. “Gonna do a little detective work?”

Eric shrugged. “I just want to know how long my mentor took
a break from being one.”

“If you're so curious, why don't you ask that nutcase . . .
what's his name . . .Aaloon?”

Eric still had bruises from his last encounter with the
Record Keeper. “I'm not that curious.”

“How about a deal: You tell me how you're here and I'll tell
you how long ago Basilard had a team. The princess told me everything but how
you found her.”

The truth was out of the question. Even for a world of magic
and monsters, having a ghost in your head wasn't normal. Even if it was, he
promised the old healer of Kyraa he would keep Dengel a secret, so he opted for
a middle road.