Master Mage (30 page)

My people could take over its care,”
Killian suggested, his voice slightly stronger than before. “We
have thousands scattered all over Kurt, most of whom would be glad
to see our wanderings come to an end.”

Thad watched Maria closely. It was easy
to tell that she was conflicted over the notion of marching into
Rane. “Maria, the Katanga came to our aid when we needed it, and in
the process of keeping your land safe, they have lost more soldiers
than even all of Farlan has given. We have an army of Vathari who
see more than one simple battle and have requested that we let them
enjoy the hunt for as long as possible.”

Thad could see that his words struck
Maria hard, but there was still concern in her face. “If we leave
Rane be, it might be years before they come again, but they will
come again. Next time, we might not find such friends willing to
aid us should we not aid them in kind. For the Katanga, that means
giving them a home.”

“If I give you a kingdom, what would
you do with it, Killian?” Maria asked, her voice turning
serious.

“It would be for my people, not for
me,” Killian answered honestly. “I would suspect that we would
continue as we have. We might even rebuild the merchant network.
The Brotherhood had a great idea and if used in the right way would
be a great profit to the monarch who controlled it.”

“And if that should come to pass, I am
sure that that monarch would remember those that helped them gain
their seat of power.”

Thad could tell that Maria was leading
the conversation in a very narrow path. He had never seen the young
queen so demanding or so forthright with what she was after. For
the first time, the mantel and crown of her station didn’t seem as
simple decorations that adorned her.

“My people are not keen on forgetting,”
Killian replied with a repressed smile spreading to his
face.

Maria turned back to the rest of the
ground and looked Sae-Thae directly in the face with a stern and
regal look. “Looks like we are going to war. I hope you don’t plan
to drag it out, though. I do wish to see some level of normalcy
returned during my lifetime.”

The rest of the night continued on as
if the discussion had not taken place. It was a time for
celebration. The long attack on Farlan had come to an
end.

That night, as Thad lay awake, unable
to sleep, he thought about everything that had happened over the
past few months. The war had been bloody and had cost him more than
a few friends. A part of him wished he had spoken against the
continuing of the fight, but he knew that if they let up now, the
Brotherhood would not relent. It wasn’t in their nature to give up.
By all accounts, they had been around long before the Fae War and
bided their time until the opportunity arose that allowed them to
nearly wipe the magical races from the world.

In truth, he doubted that even the
destruction of Rane would end the threat of the Brotherhood for
good, but it would go a long way in keeping them at bay. It would
give the chance for the magical races and those mage-born to live
without constant fear of death from the shadows. It had cost a lot
of lives to see that chance brought about, and in the end, Thad
hoped it would be worth it. Many things in history had started out
righteous in nature but turned foul as they aged.

Good and evil—must
everything be labeled for you? Who is to say what is wrong or right
in this world? A long time ago, when you stood on the battlements
of Southpass Fort, one of the soldiers told you that every soldier
on both sides believed they were right. I see that evident in
everything. The Brotherhood believes they are pursuing the work of
the true god, the same god who created man. Can you honestly say
that they do not hold some form of validation in their
beliefs?

“No creature should be killed based on
the circumstances of his birth,” Thad retorted angrily.

I did not say that I
disagreed with you, only that they do. You need to think past your
own set of narrow beliefs. Otherwise, you will never see
everything. No two people you have met have agreed on everything,
and I doubt that you shall ever find two such people. Even I,
created from your own thoughts, do not agree with you on many
things.

Thad knew that Thuraman was right.
There was no true right or wrong between them and the Brotherhood.
Some of the Brotherhood’s actions could be defined as evil, but
their initial purpose was one set down by their beliefs in a god.
The god who created man might wish for their destruction, but it
was no longer a god who held control over their lives. No, it was
now up to man to define what was right and wrong within the
confines of their own hearts. That was why there were kingdoms and
queendoms—so that laws may be imposed to form order. Not all the
laws were just in the eyes of every being, but that was the folly
of humankind. There were always going to be dissenting views. In
the end, the best they could do was move forward and try to live on
what they believed to be right.

That is a little better, but
I still think it’s a little narrow. I think it would just be better
if you were honest with yourself and didn’t allow yourself to be
ruled by the laws of others. Why do you let that scrap of a queen
order you about? Why do you listen to any of them? You should take
Rane as your own. Build your kingdom so that the only laws that
matter are the ones you decide that do.

Thad thought about Thuraman’s words for
a moment. He could build his own land where he could welcome all
the magical races. It sounded grand, but in his heart, it wasn’t
for him. “I have seen what power has done to those around me. I do
not wish to rule the lives of others. I think I am better suited to
the station I hold now,” Thad replied honestly.

Thuraman continued his complaints,
saying anything it could think of to push its master into the
direction he wanted. Nothing he said seemed to get through to Thad,
and when the mage grew tired of his words, he was pushed to the
back of the mage’s mind, where he could scarcely be
heard.

Thad had no urge for great power. He
had enough problems with his life as it was, and being a king would
only make things harder in the future. No, now that the war was
nearing its end, Tad had only a few thoughts on his mind, and the
first of those was building a school for those who wish to study
the art of magic. It was past time that the Mage’s Tower had been
rebuilt, and if he was going to accomplish that, he would need time
and freedom that running a country wouldn’t allow.

CHAPTER XXIV

It was three days before the army was
ready to march once again. Sae-Thae had urged them to leave much
earlier, but Maria and Killian had insisted that they wait for the
Katanga tribes that had been only a few days away.

Unlike the original army, the Vathari
preferred to move at night, when their eyes were not burdened with
the sun’s glare. Thad took up his own place around the soldiers of
the night, the shadow walkers he had trained with back in
Sae-Thae’s village. They welcomed him with open arms. A few of the
shadow walkers made jokes at Thad’s lack of practice with the art.
Thad had to agree he had set aside the gods’ gifts, preferring to
use his own power out of fear. That time had long passed. The fight
with the armored soldier had proved that he needed to start using
his full abilities.

The Rane army had a great lead on them
and from all reports were quickly returning to their own capital.
The Vathari were disheartened at the news that they would find no
battle immediately, but Thad was sure that their boredom would be
relieved once they crossed the border of the two
countries.

Thad was amazed at the difference in
attitude among the few members of the original army. Near the end,
when they had been gathered at the Farlan capital, everyone was
quiet and solemn as they awaited the end. Now they acted as if that
had been a lifetime away. Thad found them joking and talking among
the Vathari as if they had been long-lost friends.

Thad had to admit that he had expected
more tension among the different groups. Elves, Vathari, dwarves,
and humans were all gathered in one place. The only thing missing
was the dragon, who had returned to its home among the volcanoes
far to the west. Thad wished the creature had stayed not only to
aid them but for him to study. He was left wanting, though, with
only Sae-Thae’s knowledge of the beast in replacement.

On the long rides, Thad talked often
with his old mentor about everything he wished he had been able to
do back during his visit to the underground city. It was not just
things that had piqued his interest but also things that he was
sure he would need to know in the near future. Things not only
about magic but about the other races as well.

“The dragon is the creature born of
fire. They are massive creatures with a very high intellect, but
they are few in number. They live alone and only come together for
short periods, every few hundred years, to mate. As a rule,
whenever we find one of their kind, we kill it. There is no greater
fear than the world becoming overrun with the beasts,” Sae-Thae
said as they sat inside his tent as they waited for the heat of the
day to pass.

“What of the other races?” Thad asked
as he scribbled notes in a small leather-bound journal. “I have met
the Nadari, Vathari, elves, dragon, dwarves, and even a few of the
creatures of the sea, but I have yet to meet those of light and
energy,” Thad asked probingly.

“That might be hard for you to do,”
Sae-Thae replied in a scholarly tone. “The Alienear were all nearly
killed during the Fae War. The entirety of their race lived within
the storm plains in central Kurt. They look much like humans, but
they are always ringed by a faint glow of energy. They were the
easiest for the Brotherhood to find once the war broke out. I
cannot even rightly say if any still live.”

“What of the creatures of light?” Thad
asked, crestfallen, but still with lingering hopes that some might
yet have survived.

Sae-Thae gave Thad an odd look of
disgust. “Those are one creature we Vathari care little about. As
you know, we love to hide things, just as the dwarves love secrets.
Though unlike the dwarves, the things we keep hidden are desires,
some so dark that we must lie to ourselves about them. The cherubim
find fun in exposing all things hidden. Neither the Vathari nor the
dwarves are particularly fond of their kind. They are nothing more
than self-righteous annoyances to the world.”

It was clear to see the disgust that
Sae-Thae had for the cherubim without him putting them to words. It
was understandable given that light and dark were too separate
entities, but Thad had not expected such vehemence among the
magical races.

“Even their god loves to search out
anything hidden,” Sae-Thae continued. “His favorite blessing is to
allow its bearer to detect any untruth that might fall on his
ears.”

“That might be useful,” Thad replied
without thinking.

Sae-Thae gave Thad a harsh look. “There
are many kinds of lies, my friend. Some lies are done purely out of
the designs for evil, and some are given out of necessity. A number
of mages have gone mad thanks to the god of light’s blessings. Some
things are not meant to be known.”

“Still, I believe many merchants would
give their arms for such a gift,” Thad replied, not agreeing with
his friend. How many times in his life would things have gone much
better if only he knew that the people around him were being
truthful? Then again, he could also see the mage’s point. He
himself had things he wished to be left unknown and would not enjoy
people prodding into his own secrets.

Thad was not very strong with light
magic. He could use it to some effect, but his strongest was that
of earth and energy. “What is the attribute of those born of
energy?” Thad asked, his curiosity aroused.

“I thought that would be clear to you,”
Sae-Thae said with a thin smile. “If I was asked by many, I would
say stupidity. Energy is the most powerful of the magics. Anyone
who has handled them knows that all too well, but it is also the
most difficult to harness. Energy loves to jump around, moving from
one thing to another. Whatever attracts it at the time is all that
is within its focus. I have heard of an Alienear that spent its
whole life looking for where the sun went when it set. I have also
heard of one who spent but a breath’s moment on the birth of his
only child. They do not think of much beyond what attracts them.
That is why they mostly stayed within the plains.”

“I think ‘stupid’ might be a little
harsh,” Thad replied defensively. “I do not jump around from one
thing to another.”

“I forgot that you think everything you
do out thoroughly before you rush into action,” Sae-Thae replied,
his voice heavy with sarcasm. “Then again, ‘stupid’ might be a bit
too straightforward a term. ‘Lacking forethought’ would be better
in your situation.”

“I don’t—” Thad started to say, but he
was quickly cut off by his staff.

Disagree all you would like,
but there is much truth in his words. How many times have you been
told to think ahead? To plan. And while you do on occasion, in the
end, you act purely out of instinct, and more often than not, it
turns foul for you in the end. Everyone else knows that you lack
forethought when things get heated. No reason to look foolish in
denying it.