Tara Duncan and the Spellbinders (33 page)

“That's correct,” said a voice they all knew well. “You shouldn't have been included in the spell. But I doubt it will upset your father. We know he supports our cause.” Just then Tara noticed a familiar figure standing near Magister.

“Deria!” exclaimed Tara.

“Good morning, darling.” The young woman was smiling. She wasn't masked, and her black and white magpie was perched on her shoulder.

Tara didn't smile back. “Why, Deria? What does your betrayal get you?”

Deria's face contorted with rage, losing all its beauty.

“Betrayal?” she hissed. “Who's talking about betrayal? Your grandmother, that crazy old woman, was prepared to let your gift rot. To hide your power, when it should be on display for all to see!”

“Does that mean you aren't the person who tried to kill me?” asked Tara very calmly.

Deria turned pale and took a step back.

“Kill you?” asked a baffled Magister. “What do you mean, kill you?”

“Ask her,” said Tara, pointing at Deria. “During my presentation in Omois, one of the apprentices lost control of his Transfer Portal, and it blew up. Someone took advantage of the raging vortex to try to get rid of me. And I suspect it was Deria.”

Magister's mask swung toward the young woman, and she turned even paler.

“It wasn't me, Master! I swear it!” Deria's magpie left her shoulder and cautiously flew up to a ceiling beam. “Why would I do such a thing? I'm loyal to you. The girl is talking nonsense!”

“No, what Tara is saying is true,” said Sparrow bravely. “When she tried to close the Portal something opposed her, and she nearly died.”

“But I didn't do it,” Deria protested as the Bloodgrave's mask darkened. “I swear it wasn't me, Master!”

For a moment, the mask became completely black. Deria stumbled backward in terror, realizing she might only have a few seconds to live. But Magister relaxed and his mask lightened again.

“Find out who wanted to kill her and get them,” he said sharply. “Take the Hunter with you.” By now, Deria was almost white. “Bring me the guilty party—alive, if possible. Oh, and one more thing: because you were living at Isabella's, we didn't want you to go through your Initiation. You were so close to her that she might have discovered that you were one of us. But I think it's essential now. We'll schedule your loyalty oath ceremony soon—very soon.”

The order had so shocked Deria, they thought she was going to faint, but she held on.

“Er, excuse me,” hazarded Cal, interrupting the discussion. “What do you plan to do with us, now that you've kidnapped us?”

“We didn't kidnap
you
,” answered Magister, turning his attention from the trembling young woman. “We only wanted Tara. But I'm happy to see that Her Royal Highness has also done us the honor of a visit.”

With mock courtesy, he bowed to Sparrow. Modeling her response on Tara's, Sparrow gave him a brief, regal nod.

“You're all here, so you're going to be our guests for some time. In your case, Your Highness, we'll have to talk with your parents.”

“Meaning you're going to ask for a ransom,” translated Cal. “I can't say I'm surprised. But my parents don't have any money, so I'll ask again: What are you going to do with us?”

From Magister's attitude, Tara sensed that he didn't like people standing up to him. He nodded his head slightly and Cal suddenly fell down, clutching his throat and apparently unable to breathe.

Sensing his companion's distress, Blondin flew into the room like a red streak, ready to attack. But Magister waved his hand, and the fox barked once and collapsed, unconscious.

“For starters, we're going to teach you to respect your elders,” Magister snarled. “The old dragon clearly doesn't know how to teach the younger generation manners. Then, when that lesson has sunk in, we'll see what we can make of you.”

He gave another nod, releasing Cal. The boy rolled onto his side gasping, his face crimson.

“Just one more detail,” Magister said with an evil chuckle. “Don't bother trying to use your accredi-cards to reach your masters. We disabled them.”

Disappointed, Tara bit her lip. That was exactly what she'd thought of doing.

Magister opened the door, allowing a frantic Gallant and Sheeba to race in, then left.

Before reluctantly following him, Deria gave Tara one last look.

“I had to reveal my allegiance to bring you here,” she said. “I hope you'll understand that everything I've done has been for your own good.”

Tara just glared at her. The young Bloodgrave sighed, ordered her magpie back onto her shoulder, and closed the door behind her.

The moment they left, Tara's shoulders sagged and she sighed.

Fabrice cried, “Wow! Until now I didn't even know that it was because of Tara that I was here. I had a hunch there was a mistake because of Manitou, but I would never have suspected Deria!” “She thinks what she's doing is for the best,” said Tara wearily.

“I'm sure she feels her choice is the right one. I'm terribly sorry to have dragged you into this whole business.”

“Don't worry about it,” said Sparrow kindly. “We're all together, and that's what counts. I'm happy to be with you. I wouldn't have wanted to let you do this on your own.”

“Me either,” said Cal, stroking Blondin, who was gradually reviving. Then he made an awkward move and yelped, “Jeez! I'm really hurting!”

“You know, Cal, you shouldn't provoke people who are bigger and stronger than you,” observed Sparrow sarcastically. “It's not good for your health.”

“You got that right! Next time I'm kidnapped I promise to keep my head down. Meanwhile, would somebody mind explaining the rest of why we're here? I think I missed an episode.”

Tara smiled at him and started counting on her fingers.

“Episode 1: the dragons encounter spellbinders on Earth, and war breaks out. Episode 2: they're already fighting the demons, so the dragons decide to ally themselves with the spellbinders and invite them to OtherWorld. Episode 3: together they manage to defeat the demons. Episode 4:—”

Sparrow jumped in and picked up the thread: “Episode 4: Master Chem makes a big mistake. He gives some spellbinders too much power and they turn against him. Those spellbinders misuse dragon wisdom and become the Bloodgraves. Chem meets one in the magic shop to warn him that he is ready to admit to the other dragons what he did, and set all of OtherWorld against the Bloodgraves. Right now, OtherWorld and its rulers only consider them a minor irritant. They don't understand them or the danger they represent.”

Tara continued: “Episode 5: the demons realize it was because of the high wizard spellbinders that they were defeated. So they decide to forge an alliance with the Bloodgrave spellbinders. Thanks to the Demon King and his magic, the Bloodgraves are now preparing a plan against the dragons that will allow them to rule the universe!”

“That's completely nuts!” exclaimed Cal. “But do we get to rule along with them?”

“Cal!” shouted Sparrow and Tara at the same time.

“Kidding!” he shouted mischievously. “Just kidding.”

“You don't understand,” explained Tara soberly, “because you've never been infected by demonic magic, as I was. Did you see Deria's reaction earlier to the Initiation? I'll bet twenty to one that Magister has found a way to infect the apprentice spellbinders with demonic magic.”

“You think so?” asked Cal with great interest. “Is it dangerous? Because your thing with the metaphors was pretty funny.”

“Cal, it took more than a hundred wizards to cure me,” Tara said seriously. “And while I was under the demonic influence I almost killed you all a half-dozen times when you annoyed me. A few more days and you and your jokes would have been on your way to a meeting with infinity.”

“Now that's not funny,” he admitted. “Not funny at all. So what do we do?”

“I think the Bloodgraves want to turn us against our parents,” said Tara with a frown. “The high wizards will be taken by surprise if their own children attack them, and won't have time to defend themselves. As a plan, it's both subtle and smart. So we've got to escape this place as quickly as possible and warn the high wizards. By the way, why did it take you so long to join me in the magic shop?”

“That was Angelica's fault!” snapped Cal, shooting a dirty look at the girl sulking in a corner. “Just when you ran into the store, we realized that she was following us and very furious. She rushed in after you, gave you that enormous slap . . . and after that, it's all a bit fuzzy. You launched the tornado of the century right in the poor merchant's shop, Deria and Dragosh showed up and decided to fight OtherWorld War One over again, and we all wound up here.”

Fabrice was practically rolling on the floor laughing.

“Man, how I've missed you guys! I didn't understand all of what you just said, but I get the feeling things have been pretty lively after I left. Not like here.”

“Oh really?” asked Robin. “Why?”

“The apprentice Bloodgraves all think they're super-accomplished,” said Fabrice with exasperation. “‘Check out my powers, I'm hot stuff ' sort of thing. And we're given lots of tests where we have to practice fooling nonspells and manipulating them with illusions. I hate that garbage. Oh and they're brainwashing us to convince us that the nonspells are supposed be our slaves. It's totally lame. Can you imagine me telling my dad that he's going to be my slave? He'd knock my block off before the words were even out of my mouth! And the worst of it, not a single person here understands my riddles!”

“What, you mean we're supposed to
work
too?” asked a horrified Cal, who'd picked up on only that part. “Here I was about to say that the only good thing about being kidnapped is that at least you don't have to do anything. Know what? I suddenly feel a powerful urge to punch someone.”

“Hey, don't look at me like that,” protested Fabrice.

“Don't worry, I didn't have you in mind,” said Cal with a faint grin. “You're much too fat for me to punch. I'm not at all sure I'd win.”

“Fat, me?” protested the athletic Fabrice. “What do you mean, fat?”

“Come on, boys, cut it out!” said Sparrow. “What were you telling us about this place, Fabrice?”

“It's a kind of laboratory,” he answered, scowling at Cal. “We're constantly being given aptitude tests. And what's drilled into our heads is contempt for the races that don't practice magic—and even some that do, for that matter. Almost all the Bloodgraves here look down at me because my parents are nonspells. And to answer the two unspoken questions on your minds: no, I haven't undergone any kind of initiation, and no, you can't escape from here. I tried twice, but it can't be done.”

“Oh yeah, why not?” asked Cal, who was naturally drawn to the idea of escape.

“The place is a real fortress. I have no idea what country we're in, but the building is surrounded by grounds and high walls. Levitation spells don't work outside. And there are chatrixes roaming the grounds at night.”

“Chatrixes outside?” exclaimed Sparrow. “They must be crazy!”

“I hate to interrupt,” interrupted Tara, “but what's a chatrix?”

“They're monsters,” answered Sparrow somberly. “They look like the giant hyenas that lived on Earth in prehistoric times. Their fur is completely black, so you can't see them at night. They can tear your leg off with a single bite. Plus, their saliva is poisonous. If you get bitten but manage to escape, you'll die within two hours, and they'll feast on your carcass. Finally, they're immune to all offensive magic, which makes them pretty fearsome enemies for spellbinders.”

Tara shuddered, but said, “Well, we'll just avoid crossing the grounds.” “It isn't that simple,” said Fabrice. “There's no other way out.”

Fabrice then told them about his arrival with Manitou and how enraged the Bloodgrave master had been when he realized they'd kidnapped the wrong person. He was about to describe a typical day in the Fortress when Cal and Blondin's stomachs rumbled simultaneously, which made everybody smile.

“All right, I get it,” said Fabrice with a chuckle. “Come on and eat, and I'll introduce you to the others.”

They followed him to a big dining hall where a lot of people were eating breakfast. Hairy things with lots of teeth were running here and there, and Tara recognized Magister's Mud Eaters. She scanned the room, but nobody there looked like her mother. She felt her heart sink. Was she really in the Gray Fortress, the place where Selena Duncan was imprisoned?

They were waited on by nonspells, men and women who wore short black robes with rope belts, and necklaces around their necks. The spellbinders noticed that the nonspells seemed terrified. They never raised their eyes, and the Bloodgraves treated them as if they really were slaves.

“Wow, is it breakfast time already?” exclaimed Cal. “Now I understand why I'm so hungry. How long were we unconscious?”

“No idea,” answered Fabrice. “I was just told a few minutes ago to go to the infirmary. That's all I know.”

“Rats! I was hoping to figure out what country we were in by the time difference,” said Sparrow.

Tara looked over the huge, almost silent dining hall. “Doesn't the architecture give you a clue? On Earth, countries' architectural styles vary a lot.”

“Hey, that's a thought,” said Sparrow. “How would you describe the Fortress, Fabrice?”

“Well for one thing, it's big,” Fabrice said, sitting down with a mug of hot chocolate. “The door lintels are very high, and there are passages going every which way, as if the Fortress had been built by enormous rabbits. There isn't any magic in the walls, and you open the doors using handles. No tapestries, no declaration, no nothing. It's big, drafty, and depressing.”