The Baldari (Book 3) (14 page)

“They came through
Doorways
,” Crissi said.  “They simply appeared all at once, coming through multiple portals.  That’s not all.  They have Casters with them.”

“Casters!” Lyes and Ardra asked simultaneously.

Crissi nodded.  “I don’t know how many, but they have staffs just like ours and are clearly not Baldari.”

“It’s Shym,” Mitty said suddenly.  “I can see her.”  Mitty’s eyes were white and vacant, her vision focused on somewhere else far away.  The warning had triggered something inside her and she was having her first waking vision.  She could clearly see the Guild compound under attack by more than a hundred armed Baldari, and a number of Casters holding aloft their staffs.  The Baldari were on foot, without any of the fearsome mounts they had been known to use of late.  Guild defenders were blasting back, but with the powerful beams from Shym, who Mitty had known and recognized, they were losing the battle.

“Shym!” cursed Ardra softly.  “She has joined the Baldari?”

The last of Carif’s Eight had long eluded every attempt to locate her.  Some had thought her dead, but Ardra had been certain she was still alive somewhere.  She had worried she had some kind of revenge plan in work, but would have never considered anything like this.

“There’s something else at work here,” Lyes objected.  “Even if Shym might aid the Baldari, I can’t see how the other Casters could have been persuaded to join her.  How would they have known where to locate the Baldari for that matter?”

“Shym disappeared with others loyal to Carif,” Crissi said.

“There were not as many remaining as you claim are currently involved in the attack,” countered Lyes.

“It doesn’t matter right now,” interrupted Ardra.  “We have to alert our fellow Casters and arrange for the protection of the nobles here as well as go help those at the Guild.” 

Ardra considered quickly.  She didn’t like Crissi, her ambitions were no secret, but more importantly she had no real combat experience.  She had never faced the Baldari.  The same was true of Lyes, although she felt his instincts would be more dependable if pressed than those of  the manipulative woman.

“Lyes,’” she said.  “You and Crissi will organize the defense here.  I’ll take twenty Casters with me and we will see to defending the Guild.  Hurry.  We must alert our people.  There is no time to waste.”

They turned toward the ballroom where their people were scattered among the guests.  All were mingling with the other guests, the staffs they had carried earlier during the ceremony checked into a storeroom since they were not considered appropriate for the party.  Dividing up so as to be able to gather the Guild members together as quickly as possible, the three Guild members disappeared into the crowd.  It would be necessary to alert the Casters, then return to where they had checked the staffs, and then create the
Doorway
to the Guild complex across town. 

Rigo turned toward Nycoh at the sound of her staff smacking solidly into the palm of her hand.  Like Rigo’s staff of days past, she had designed it so that it could be commanded to her any time she wished to have it at hand.  She had left it at her cottage earlier in the evening.

“There’s no reason for us to wait,” she said.

“Rigo,” Mitty protested as he withdrew his hand from her own as he prepared to go with Nycoh.

“People are being killed,” he said.  “Nycoh and I can help bring an end to this.”

“Be careful,” Mitty cautioned, the concern apparent in her voice.  She knew well how powerful Shym was.  Rigo had confided in her that they had no defense against the powerful beams she and the other members of Carif’s inner circle had been capable of creating.  Only Nycoh had some degree of defense against the powerful magic Shym was known to control.  At this point they didn’t know if the others had the same ability or not.  It could be a very dangerous encounter if they did.

“Watch over Mitty,” Rigo implored Ash’urn.  The elder scholar had also left his staff back a Nycoh’s cottage and without it he was unable to command sufficient magic to be of much help in the current situation.  Rigo was glad of that.  He didn’t want Ash’urn to be in the middle of this. 

Mitty glanced at Nycoh, who gave her a reassuring nod in return.  She was promising to watch over Rigo as best she could.  Together, Nycoh and Rigo ran for the back of the building where Nycoh opened a
Bypass
to the Guild compound as they ran.  They had fought there before and she knew where she wanted to exit. 

Moments later she and Rigo stepped out onto the small hill overlooking the Headquarters building.  They were concealed from those below by a stand of trees and were somewhat protected from attack by three large rocks that stood more than two man heights tall.  The Headquarters building was badly damaged, but not completely leveled.  All resistance had been overcome, suggesting any who had been in the facility were now dead or captured.  Dozens of Baldari could be seen inside the remains of the structure.  They were obviously searching for something, probably hoping the storerooms in the lower levels were filled with Casting supplies as had been the case in the past.  They were going to be disappointed.  Anything of any value had long ago been relocated to a more secure location.  Other than offices, the building had seen minimal use and was scheduled to be replaced as soon as Queen Jusay gave the go ahead.

As Crissi had indicated, the Baldari were on foot, none of the fierce mounts in evidence.  Several Casters were also present, walking around the perimeter, watching for any resistance to the activities of the Baldari.  In the distance Rigo could see and hear the battle raging at the residences of the Senior Casters.

Nycoh raised her staff and released a multi-pronged fork of bright magic.  Each of the dozen sharply focused narrow beams speared a Baldari warrior, slicing through them and killing them on the spot.  The blast of magic caught the attention of the invading Casters, who turned in response to the attack.  Rigo had already targeted one of responding Casters, his
Brightfire
intense and effective, consuming the woman in a bright flash of light.  His second beam took another at the same time as Nycoh wrapped the third in a sheet of bright red fire. 

“Come!” Nycoh said, pointing toward the residence that was on fire.  There were more Baldari here, but they were less of a problem than more Casters.  Besides, there was no one left alive here to protect.  She made another
Bypass
as they ran, and they exited a short distance from the attackers.  Large sections of the dormitory had collapsed and sections were burning.  Blasts of magical fire shot out at the attacking Casters, which were returned quickly by the five Casters that Rigo quickly counted.  One of the attacking Casters released an intense beam of green energy that ripped another section of the structure apart.

Shym
.  Rigo was about to unleash his
Brightfire
at the woman, when she stepped into a
Doorway
, and disappeared.  He knew she had to be close, and searched frantically for the spot to where she had relocated.  He hadn’t heard her shout, but the other Casters were suddenly aware that he and Nycoh were there and turned to meet the threat.  Five was too many and he didn’t have time to make a
Bypass
.  Without shields and something to hide behind, he was in trouble.  Nycoh released a series of fireballs, which caused a couple of the attackers to duck, but they had the advantage of something to hide behind.  Then, suddenly Ardra was there with a number of Guild Casters.  Two of the attacking Casters were struck with killing beams, and the others quickly jumped through urgently created
Doorways
. 

A green beam swept through the group of defenders who were still appearing out of Ardra’s
Doorway
, killing several before the rest could scatter.  Nycoh jumped into the attack, the beam having revealed where Shym had relocated to earlier.  As Nycoh unleashed her own attack, Shym attempted to incinerate her with a second of the powerful green blasts.  Nycoh’s beam struck Shym full on, but instead of killing the rebel Caster, a shimmering multicolored ball flared around the woman, the energies of Nycoh’s attack somehow interrupted and dissipated.

The green beam that Shym had launched at Nycoh was true as well, but Nycoh was stronger than before, and while she didn’t possess the kind of shield that Shym had just demonstrated, she was able to turn the beam harmlessly aside.  Four more beams struck Shym’s shield before she could attempt another attack.  The air around her grew hot, but nothing reached the woman. 

Then suddenly, and without warning, Shym turned and stepped through a
Doorway
she created behind her.  Rigo noted that other
Doorways
had been created by the remaining Casters and they were also retreating, along with the surviving Baldari.  A few of the Baldari were cut down by the defending Casters before they could escape, but within seconds all surviving attackers had disappeared.

Nycoh made as if to jump through one of the
Doorways
before it could close, but Rigo placed a restraining hand on her shoulder.  As strong as she was, there was no way to know what she would be stepping into.

“Where did they go?” an enraged Ardra demanded when she realized the attackers had escaped her force.  She had had them outnumbered and now they were simply gone.

“I don’t know,” Nycoh said cautiously.  “There is no trace of where the
Bypass
they created goes.  The end points are completely masked.”

“Perhaps your skill at detecting such things is not as refined as some.  We need to get another to check before all trace fades.”

“She’s right,” Suline said, stepping forward.  Ardra knew of Suline’s skill with
Doorways
.  She had been at the party and joined the group that had come in defense of the Guild’s people.  “There is no trace of the
Doorway
end points.  At least these portals are not like those seen at the border where no sense at all of the
Doorway
existence can be detected.  It suggests that the Casters who made these are not the same as whoever has been relocating the Baldari in the past.  These portals were made by Casters with the same kinds of abilities we possess.”

Ardra looked around.  It didn’t appear as if the attackers planned on returning.  “Check Headquarters,” she ordered several of the Casters.  “Set up a defensive perimeter.  I want to know immediately if any of the invaders are spotted again.”

It didn’t take long to establish that the Baldari who had been ransacking the remains of the Guild Headquarters had disappeared as well.  One of the Casters must have made a detour and opened a
Doorway
to allow them to escape.  It appeared that the
Doorways
that had allowed the Baldari to appear so suddenly had all been the work of the Casters.  No one had seen a Baldari create one.  While several of the attacking Casters had been killed, a number, including Shym, had escaped.  Two of the attackers had been positively identified as being from Malla, where the seven Casters had been taken by the Baldari not too long before.  In all, fourteen of the Guild Casters had been killed, and more than thirty wounded.  The Headquarters was no longer usable, and the northern dormitory was more than two-thirds destroyed.

While Ardra put her team to work checking and helping the wounded, Rigo and Nycoh jumped back to the party hall to check on the situation here.  Mitty ran to him when he appeared.

“Where’s Jeen?” Rigo asked Ash’urn as he walked over to where Mitty still had her arms wrapped around Rigo.

“She took the Three Kingdoms’ leaders back across the Ruins,” Ash’urn said.  “Most of the other nobles have been relocated as well.  They were taken to Lord Chaten’s place, and from there are being returned home by the Casters Ardra left behind.  There has been no attack here.  I don’t think they knew this event was in progress.”

Rigo explained briefly what he had witnessed.  “We have serious problems,” he said.  “We need to warn Daim, and we will need to rethink our whole defense strategy.  Somehow the Baldari or whoever is behind them can turn Casters, and I would guess wizards.  That means any who are captured must be considered a possible asset for the enemy.  Shym had a personal shield that even Nycoh could not penetrate.  That’s something else we have never seen before.  Fortunately the other Casters didn’t appear to be similarly protected.  That might change, however.  With Casters creating
Doorways
for the Baldari that will allow them to appear anywhere in the kingdoms, and shields we cannot overcome, we are in an unsustainable situation.”

“If this Shym was immune to harm, why did she break off her attack?” Ash’urn asked.

“I don’t know.  They all suddenly withdrew.  Perhaps this was a test of some kind.  We need some answers, and we are going to need to find some means of overcoming this shield or we are lost,” Rigo said.

Ash’urn felt that Rigo’s comment was a partial reflection on his own inability to come up with answers, although Rigo wasn’t thinking along those lines.

“What are you going to do?” Ash’urn asked.

“Mitty and I are going to the Outpost.  Nycoh plans to stay here and coordinate with Ardra.  I suspect the new Queen is going to demand some answers.  I need to speak with Daim.  Do you want to come?”

Ash’urn shook his head.  “I want to talk with Fen.  He was looking into something.  I hope he was as successful as he sounded when he left the Outpost a couple of days back.”