Battle Mage: The Lost King (Tales of Alus) (6 page)

As offices went, it was quite large and had two reasonably big windows on a third wall letting in a fair amount of light for a stone castle, but the mage had been shuffled from one stone room to another since the meeting led by Darius and they were getting repetitive. First, he had been in the impressive meeting room, then he and Darius went to another to speak with the high wizards, then in another room they spoke with the king and his advisors. Lastly, he stood in this office before the leader of the battle mages.

He wasn’t sure which meeting had held the most nerves for him, but standing in front of Raven Leros, his brown eyes seeming to pierce through him, was easily up there. “So, falcon, why is it that you’ve found yourself here and why should I allow you to go?

“Pushing this mission through will mean letting my fellow ravens from Falcon’s Keep and Windmeer know that you will not be returning soon. That news may bring a lot of complaints since you have apparently become quite the celebrity among the mages of the north. I’ve been getting reports since last summer about you and all the achievements you’ve had, both good and bad.

“While your ability to create spells for mages is quite valuable, you also seem to find trouble everywhere that you go as well.” He picked up a folder opening it to reveal nearly an inch thick pile of papers. Pulling one Leros stated, “Saved your squad from a night ambush from the nomads north of the wall.” Another sheet, “Used strange magic to disrupt enemy armies, saved air wizards in an as yet undiscovered way, led the wizards and mages of a pursuit unit to save them from more enemies, fought and discovered the apparent saboteur of Windmeer who brought the enemy inside using portal magic. The list seems to go on and on. Now there is this new incursion behind our wall that you have discovered and this link to the Grimnal.”

Standing alone in front of the raven’s desk, Sebastian could feel sweat beginning to form on his forehead. The way his superior read the list of incidents made it sound more like an accusation. While he
had been praised at Windmeer, maybe Raven Leros saw his continued ability to be near the center of those encounters as something less than heroic.

Raven Leros continued after placing the folder back onto his desk, “I could see this as a new falcon having extreme luck and skill. I could also wonder at how you of all people seem to continually be able to find your way through these challenging situations.

“You’re young, but you were a relative latecomer to your magic or the seekers would have found you sooner. Only five years of training, less than one season at the wall and already you are a falcon that has led so many so often. This trip to the tournament you led a team of both wizards and mages, I hear?”

“Yes, sir,” Sebastian responded as the raven asked him to answer just with his eyes. “I was given permission to gather some wizards to train and learn how the wizards’ duels worked. The extra mages came along to learn as well, though none were ready in the few weeks we had to train.”

“But you were.”

He nodded. “Yes, sir, I have always been strong at dueling with weapons and our basic magic. I was able to take those skills and expand upon them for the tournament.”

Raven Leros began to stride back and forth along the path behind his desk. “On one hand, I see a falcon with the ability to think outside the box and accomplish missions that many would fail, but on the other I see this asset to the corps that maybe we can’t risk losing at sea on some wild goose chase. Explain to me how you came to be tangled up in this mess brought to us by Eirdhen and why I should let you go?”

Well, he wasn’t being accused of working for the Dark Emperor’s forces at least, Sebastian thought as he took in the raven’s line of questioning. “Running into Garosh and subsequently meeting Darius, who even has an idea of how to find the Grimnal, leads me to believe that someone has to go. Perhaps it is finally time to find him after all these years and discover why he left us to face the emperor without him.”

“But that doesn’t tell me why you have to go,” the raven countered as Sebastian paused to consider.

Nodding at the observation, the younger man continued, “I think that it will take an open mind and a lot of patience to go on this mission. It’s unlikely to be a short journey and we have no idea what could have kept him from returning for so long. With the stories of the Grimnal’s heroism and his immortal abilities, we have to wonder if the emperor had some part in his disappearance.

“Perhaps you could send someone else instead of me, but how many people do you have that would be willing to take a chance that this isn’t a waste of time? If you send someone who doesn’t care, I don’t think that you will ever see this mystery solved. I want to know why he hasn’t come to help us. I also think that I can find him with Darius’s help.”

The raven stopped his pacing to look at the young man still standing before his desk as if rooted to that one spot. “Who do you plan to take with you?”

“We’ve discussed taking part of the team I brought with me. Yara, my healer, is also my closest friend, so if possible I wish to bring her. Having a wizard capable of using each element might come in handy along the way as well. As to the mages, I think some need to remain behind to bring what they have learned back to the corps for training.”

Eyeing the mage, Raven Leros countered, “Having best friends among the wizards can lead to a lot of trouble.” The older man inferred that he knew they were more than friends. “There can be penalties for both sides.”

Understanding what his elder meant, Sebastian heeded the warning, but they had already considered such things long ago. “There comes a point where wizards and mages need to go with their hearts. The corps and guilds seem to believe that they own us to use as weapons, but they forget that we’re people that need a reason to fight as well. Saying that, there is also a time and place for everything.

“Whether the High Wizards approve my need for wizards of my choice is already a foregone conclusion. We’ve talked and if I can convince the wizards I want to bring to extend their time with me for this new adventure, then I will have them. There is just the question of who I will have from the falcons and that comes to you.”

He had turned the conversation back to Raven Leros, who frowned noticing the turn. The older man turned his head away from the mage letting a slight smile come to his lips. Admiring the young man’s ability to stand up to him and even trying to put him in the hot seat, he couldn’t help but smile at the future of his corps. “Decide who you need to send back to Windmeer, but before you begin this trip I think that you need to try and teach the mages here some of this new art. I’ve sent a few men to try and bring back more of your magic, but since you are here it would be a good time to see some of it first hand. The duels were an interesting demonstration to say the least.

“I know one question I have is where has a simple mage found this extra power you’ve demonstrated. Whether you draw it from somewhere else or have found a way to make yourself stronger, there is something that you haven’t begun to share in the trainings I have been privy to so far.”

Sebastian cringed slightly. Once more he was being asked to train the corps, but this need to find extra strength was a troublesome one. If mishandled, drawing in the strength that he had used during the tournament could easily kill a mage or even a powerful wizard. Darius had said as much in their conversations.

Smiling slightly as the raven looked at him once again, the mage replied with a slight coloring of the truth, “I shall do what I can, sir.”

Mid afternoon saw a lull in the patronage of the Black Smith’s Inn and became a quiet area for Sebastian to bring his team together. Darius sat listening as the results of this meeting would also affect what would be needed for the quest.

Sitting on the table with his feet on a bench, Sebastian looked at this group that he considered his friends and wondered how they would decide. Mages and wizards alike sat or stood in a semicircle before him waiting for the mage to explain what all the time spent at the castle had been about.

Taking a deep breath before a conversation he expected to be very long started, Sebastian began, “I am being sent on a mission in a little over a week that will take me away from Southwall for awhile, so I won’t be returning to Windmeer with you. The mission will require more than just me, of course, and I will need people that I trust so I needed to ask you, my friends, whether some of you will join me.”

The strange use of those words led to eyes searching both Sebastian and each other, but they remained ready to listen.

“We believe that Gerid Aramathea, the Grimnal, is still alive and hidden somewhere by the emperor. With Darius’s help, I think I can find him, but what holds him and what dangers there might be are unknown. Having a strong team of people like you will help ensure the success of this mission.”

That confession brought whispering both to themselves and to those next to them. Questioning if the Grimnal could even be alive after all this time was chief among the questions. Collin spoke to Sebastian first quieting the others as they listened, “The man’s been missing since the early years after the Cataclysm. What makes you think that he’s even still alive? If the emperor had him, I would think that he would have found a way to kill him by now.”

Darius answered that, “While he has been missing a long time, evidence indicates that he is still alive somewhere. We just have to find to find him.”

“Is the high wizard going along?” Serrena asked with a frown.

“No, I have matters to attend to in Windmeer, if the word we received about the surrender of Garosh is correct,” was the answer from Darius.

Sebastian added, “This will be a voyage, so any air or water magic I can bring would be helpful, but there will be a likely need for anyone who wants to come.”

Brenner began to shake his head. “I have commitments that I can’t ignore indefinitely and this sounds like something that will not end soon. My talent with air will have to be left to someone else to replace.” The eldest wizard on the team, the air wizard had honored his commitment to help Sebastian train for the Winter’s Edge tournament, but hadn’t joined. A bit quiet and reserved, the man was the least interactive with the team, but even so Sebastian had come to see him as a friend. The answer was disappointing, but not unforeseen.

“My granddaughter, Annalicia, will be able to help in that matter,” Darius replied easily diffusing the significance of Brenner’s refusal. “It is her ship that you will be using. The Sea Dragon is one of Malaiy’s fastest frigates and should serve you well, while Anna also wishes to join you on this quest and can act as an air wizard in his stead.”

Fighting a need to glance at Yara, Sebastian merely nodded assuming that they could only use the ship with the lady’s permission. He just hoped that the woman’s slight affection was simply in reaction to his helping save her life. If not, there could be some problems ahead. Not wanting to get into what he couldn’t control, the mage ignored the potential trouble and continued on with the rest of the team.

Collin shrugged, “I don’t know how useful an earth wizard might be on the ocean, but I’ll come if it’s all right with my guild.”

Nara nodded and added, “It’s the same for me, in fact, having a chance to be the ones finding the Grimnal could be a chance of a lifetime.”

Looking less sure of himself, Liam glanced at Shara and appeared unsure of his answer. The nature wizard smiled back and said quietly, “I need to get back to Fort Maridith anyway, so you might as well put your talents to good use.”

“But I thought maybe we could…,” the man looked deflated at the thought of losing his crush so soon. While he had always tried to make the others believe that Sharamar was just his sister’s friend and that he cared for her like a little sister, it had become quite obvious that she was much more than that to Liam.

Giving him a kiss on the cheek, Shara placed a hand on his far shoulder leaning into him before saying with a smile, “Go. It’s not like you can come with me right now. Go on an adventure and bring me back some stories.”

With a big sigh, Liam shrugged as he answered, “I guess that I am in too.”

Serrena looked ready to leave immediately and simply nodded her head curtly. The fire wizard had been trying to learn everything that Bas could teach her and had somehow become a student of the mage. Having her willingness to tag along was not surprising.

All of his mages looked ready to join him as well, but Sebastian knew that not all of them could go. Someone needed to take his teachings back to Windmeer and Falcon’s Keep. Even White Hall would probably want to add his spells to the curriculum of the school. The fact that some would remain behind was something he would share later. First, he needed to see who could learn his newest spells and pass them on to other mages. It was one requirement set by Raven Leros before he could get permission from the eldest raven in the corps.

“Then I guess that we will have a few days to train and prepare,” he stated aloud even as he withheld the bad news from the other mages.

As the group broke up with most planning to check out more of the capitol city, Sebastian held up Brenner pulling him aside. “I know that I have no right to ask this of you, but can you drop my sister, Katya, at White Hall on your way back to Windmeer?”

The elder wizard was a little more than a decade older than Sebastian and still not considered that old comparatively but, had he not been a wizard, he could easily have been a father of someone around Katya’s age. Such a gap in age and a generation removed led Brenner to hesitate. He was also not the type that made acquaintances or friends easily. The thought of taking the girl on such a long trip seemed to make the wizard uneasy. “I don’t know…,” he began.