Ultimate magic, p.15
Ultimate Magic, page 15
Shocked looks erupted over the line.
“Aw hell,” Olivia said, clapping a hand to her forehead. “I liked him. I know you must be hurting really bad, Alec.”
She was the only person concerned for him, however. At the news of Uriel’s death, the other talking heads in the room erupted in a flurry of conversation.
“We should strike now,” Rawiri Igneous’s father was saying. “Take back Nessus immediately. My airships can do the job. The people will cheer for us, and the veil of Chaos over that city will finally retreat—”
“It’s a tactical error!” Alison Raleigh argued. The sight of the spunky young rebel holding her own against Rawiri’s old and venerable father would have been amusing, had it not come at such a time. “We need to fall back to the Haunted Isle and regroup!”
“You’re not listening to me!” someone cried.
“Without Uriel, why do we even bother having this alliance at all!”
“—all in the same boat against Chaos—”
“—no, I don’t really care—”
“QUIET!”
The whole Council fell silent as one. That last voice was Brutus, who was sternly glaring at each member of the alliance in turn, daring them to contradict him. “All of you listen to Diamondspear. I get the feeling he has much more he wants to say.” Then Brutus turned to Alec, blowing out his heavy moustaches. “And I’m sorry for what happened to Uriel, Alec. He will be missed.”
“He will be missed,” came the reply around the table.
“Thank you,” Alec said. He cleared his throat and prepared to begin, knowing full well that the next few minutes would determine the trajectory of his life. If he couldn’t make a speech that would keep the whole crew together, they’d fall to the forces of Chaos. All of it lay on his shoulders now.
He looked down at the Ring of the Archon on his finger. And at the severed stub Baldir Diamondspear had left behind.
“I received something,” he stammered, trying to raise his gaze back to the crowd. “From the… the Archon. I, I… the Ring…”
The room appeared to be on the verge of chaos itself. Half a dozen voices rose in tandem to interrupt Alec, eager to take authority away from the young Diamondspear.
But before they could, a final branch along the tree lit up. A latecomer to the meeting.
“Um, hello?” the voice asked. “Is this thing working?”
Everyone fell silent. All save for Alec—who recognized that voice.
“Master Abel!?” he gasped, feeling for a moment like a foundling of the Archon Temple again. “Is that you?”
It wasn’t just Master Abel. As Alec watched, half a dozen orphans from the Archon Temple muscled into the shot, appearing on the screen. They were older, as was Alec himself, but he still recognized one-eyed Mortimer and Marcus, jostling for space against the old monk.
“Alec, man, it’s so good to see you!” Mortimer said, leaning forward until his face filled the screen. “Wow, you’re looking dapper! When did you go off and become a noble?”
Alec began to laugh. “I’ve been on quite a journey.”
“Yeah, I’ll say,” the foundling replied. “Hey, we heard all you people arguing by the way! You need to shut up and remember who our real enemy is! We’re fighting the forces of Chaos here, and Alec’s pretty much the only guy left between us and total obliteration! So you need to stop fighting and unite!”
From the mouths of babes, Alec thought, chuckling to himself. “I’m sure the noble houses appreciate the lesson.”
“Noble houses!?” Marcus said, craning his neck. “Oh, let me see! I want to see…”
“Yes, you’ve all seen Alec Diamondspear,” Master Abel said, shoving his way back to the front of the screen. “Rest assured, young man, all the foundlings are here. Even if you cannot see them—they would never all fit in this odd contraption. I didn’t understand why Tanuin insisted we have one, but now I see matters more clearly. You needed these boys to give your friends some Archon Temple wisdom.”
“Something like that,” Alec said. With the foundlings on the line, Alec suddenly felt his worries evaporate. It seemed like only yesterday he was worrying about not looking a fool in front of them—now he found himself commanding armies. What a life.
“Alright,” Alec said, calling for order. “I know you’ve all seen the Diamondspear—the ancestral weapon of my house.” No one dared claim that Alec was not of that House now—he’d live and die a Diamondspear, as Uriel had requested. “What you didn’t know, and I wasn’t aware of myself until recently, is that the Diamondspear was built to house this ring…”
Over the course of the next fifteen minutes or so, Alec explained everything he knew about the Ring of the Archon. He told the group about fighting Dean Jonas Wolfe (the members of House Igneous all hissed at his name) and explained the change that had come over the old headmaster when he’d been exposed to the Archon’s ring.
“You think that ring could really cure the High King’s madness?” Rawiri asked as soon as Alec had finished. “We should definitely try that!”
“If that’s the case,” Alison Raleigh retorted, “then I would argue the more important thing to do is to show the Ring of the Archon to Baldir Diamondspear a second time. He’s the most dangerous acolyte of Chaos by far—destroy him, and the remaining forces in the Kingdoms won’t stand a chance!”
“Haven’t you heard anything?” one of the noble houses shouted over the line. “We have to destroy that airship they’re building! The Incinerator, or whatever it is! Otherwise our Houses are finished!”
Alec listened to the fighting go on for a few more moments. It irritated him mightily to be spoken of like he wasn’t even in the room—like he’d become little more than another war resource for people to deploy and exploit.
“Unfortunately for you all, I am the bearer of this Ring,” Alec said, cutting off further argument. “And my plan is to take the Titan’s Claw to the High King and convince him to see reason. Does anyone know where he is?”
The High King had many estates throughout the world. He could have been at any of them—and if Alec knew his guesses, the forces of Chaos had probably sent the man to a far off one to keep him from seeing what was going on under his reign.
“The Royal Hunting Grounds,” Brutus said. “To the far North. Our Majesty never fails to bring home a stag from the autumn hunt, and the deer are thickest in the woods during these weeks. Mating season.”
“Then that’s where we’ll go,” Alec said with a nod.
“But it’s a war zone!” Olivia said, looking panicked. “None of you know about it?”
Confused looks filled the room.
“We haven’t heard,” Alec said, cocking his head to the side and gesturing for Olivia to speak.
“The High King’s council declared a state of emergency around that area,” Olivia said. “Something about familiars going berserk. They deployed a bunch of airships up there to keep the peace…”
Olivia trailed off as the connections clicked together in her head. A few moments later, Alec saw it dawn on the rest of the meeting’s participants.
“Son of a kobold,” Olivia said with a snort. “It’s fake! They’re just up there protecting the High King. No wonder nobody’s heard about it except for familiar fanatics like me!”
“So our destination is surrounded by the forces of Chaos,” Alec said, rising to his full height before the assembly. “I will still go. Uriel’s final command to me was to bring the Ring of the Archon to the High King and free his mind—and on my honor as a Diamondspear, I accepted that command. I’ll take the Titan’s Claw to the Royal Hunting Grounds.” He looked around the room, taking in both the people sitting by him and the ones far away. “Who will go with me?”
Almost as soon as the word me had left his lips, Tanuin sprang from his seat. “My Lord Diamondspear,” the elven ranger said, smoothly dropping into a bow. “It would be an honor to accompany you on this voyage. My blade served House Diamondspear for many years—let it serve still!”
Even though Alec had expected it, he was still shocked by Tanuin’s depth of emotion. “Of course you’re coming,” he said with a little laugh, clapping his friend on the shoulder. “It wouldn’t be a damn fool misadventure without you!”
“I’m going,” Eleira said firmly. “As your betrothed, Uriel’s last commands apply to me as well. I’m both honor and duty bound to follow you to the High King, and break his madness.”
Alec started to argue, but Tanuin held up a hand with a smile. “Better not,” he said, chuckling. “You wouldn’t want the rest of the alliance to see her dressing you down in front of everyone, would you?”
Alec laughed. “Of course you’re coming,” he told his beloved, helping her to her feet.
Trystara flew over the table, her wings spread wide as she landed next to Alec. “I’d kill you if you tried to leave me behind,” she said simply, flexing her claws. “I’m your familiar. I go where you go.”
“Yes you do,” Alec said, glancing across the table. “Anyone else?”
Jolenta and Vodalus shared a look.
“A dangerous mission?” Jolenta asked, cocking one flawlessly manicured eyebrow. “One with very little chance of success, and a very great risk of turning us all into little bits of sausage beneath Chaos’s boots?”
Alec chuckled. “One that will either save the world, or give us a big, heroic death. The kind that will be sung about for generations.”
Jolenta laughed. “Well, I’d be a fool to miss out on that!” she said, standing up and dragging Vodalus with her. “We’ll be heroes with you, Alec Diamondspear!”
“You haven’t killed us yet,” Vodalus added. “And really, how could we let the spirit of Poicstesme die without throwing ourselves into the breach!?”
At that, many voices began offering support. So many that Alec was honestly taken aback. “I know you all want to help us,” he said, silencing the room. “But we plan to leave at first light. Most of you simply can’t make it here in time. The best thing for you is to stay where you are.”
“What else can we do?” Rawiri Igneous asked.
Alec’s eyes narrowed. “Prepare for war. Once Maimonides and Viya decipher those documents, and we free the High King, we’re going to hit Chaos hard and fast. We’ll want everyone in the fight as much as possible, so get your troops and your airships ready. When I give the command, we strike as one. Understood?”
Oh, they understood. Cheering filled the hall, so loud that Alec was nearly struck deaf. As they applauded their new leader, Alec looked around the room and saw how he was surrounded by his friends and family, all ready to support him.
He had a plan. And a fellowship of friends to make it happen.
Now they just had to free the High King’s mind.
Chapter 11
The Titan’s Claw cut through the night sky like a hot knife through a loaf of black bread. The faint glow of the runes on the underside of Maimonides’s airship made the only light, bathing the deck in a wan glow that bought to mind long nights at the Royal Academy and dangerous adventures. From his position on the bridge, Alec set the coordinates as close as he could get to the Royal Hunting Grounds without being seen and turned the deck over to a guard. The ship would fly throughout the rest of the night, coming to a rest just outside of Chaos’s scanning range.
Then, once they were all rested, they’d fly to see the High King. And their future would be set, one way or the other.
It’s a shame Maimonides isn’t checking out this view, Alec told himself as he descended from the bridge. But the gnome and his new girlfriend had taken to the documents Uriel and Alec stole from the High King’s library the way a fish takes to the water. Alec had very little doubt that if there was a weakness in the construction of the Chaos Immolator that would allow them to destroy the airship, the Shadebringer and his paramour would find it.
So that was one worry to be safely tucked away. Leaving only about a million others.
Even now, late into the night, he knew the Shadebringer and Viya were deep in the heart of the ship, working. All his attempts to get Maimonides and Viya to remain behind at the Northmund Estate had failed. Despite the danger, the old gnome had wanted to be here—or perhaps he just couldn’t take the sight of Uriel’s ancestral home just yet.
Alec could understand that, too. It would be a long, long time before he ever thought of the Northmund Estate as truly his.
As he descended below decks, the sounds of conversation reached his ears. A smile spread across his face as he listened to his friends drink and gossip. Some things never change, Alec thought, and maybe he didn’t want them to change. It felt good to be surrounded by people who he cared about and who cared about him, and that was something he never wanted to stop.
Most of the talking seemed to be coming from the dining chamber. Alec made his way there, picking up a bottle of something dark and strong on the way. It felt like the night before a pitched battle, and Alec had heard tales that a little bitter helped a man forget his troubles at times like this.
It wasn’t all that long ago that Alec had fantasized about being a soldier in the King’s Expeditionary Force. Had he achieved that fantasy, he’d have been halfway across the world, fighting on some foreign battlefield. While the High King did what, exactly? Chased magical game across his forest?
There was so much wrong with society, Alec now understood. Leaders didn’t lead, and the paragons of excellence intended to help the people lined their own pockets instead. He hoped that once he defeated Chaos, the Archon’s light would come back into society—but for the moment, he’d be satisfied with just safeguarding magic for another generation.
“No, he really did,” Jolenta was saying as he opened the door. “All over the library floor! My poor Voynamir was so rattled up, I had to keep her in a special box for a week…
The sounds of conversation died out as Alec entered the room. Jolenta, Vodalus, Eleira, Tanuin, Maimonides, and Viya all sat around the table, with several plates of food and bottles of drink between them. The party had apparently been going on for some time, while he’d been upstairs on deck shepherding the Titan’s Claw over a particularly tricky patch of rivers.
“Looks like the gang’s all here,” Alec said, taking a seat next to Eleira. She smiled and nodded, letting him know she’d saved it just for him. “What are we talking about?”
“The past,” Jolenta explained, giving a characteristic flourish of her hand. “And the future!”
Alec thought over her words and nodded. “Much rather talk about the past,” he agreed, popping his bottle and pouring some of the rich, dark stuff into a glass. “It’s already happened, it’s set in stone—much less messy than the future. Future you get into arguing way too often.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Tanuin snorted. “I’d much rather talk about the old glory days anyhow.”
“Yes, you do seem to have plenty of those,” Jolenta said with a narrowing of the eyes. “Why don’t you tell us a little about them, Tanuin? Some exciting, juicy story—with lots of action and intrigue!”
“And a beautiful woman, perhaps?” Vodalus added.
Tanuin gave the pair an awkward smile, then took another sip of his drink. “Sorry,” he said, putting his feet up on the table. “Classified.”
Viya, who up until now had been quietly downing more liquor than Alec had ever seen a woman drink in his life, put her glass to the side and scoffed. “Classified? Who do you work for, light elf? You’re sitting across the table from the Lord of House Diamondspear!”
“I’m perfectly aware of that,” Tanuin said with a drunken grin. “And who the hell are you calling light elf?”
“That’s what we call your people,” Viya said with a sassy shrug. “Since you’re all so pale and all. Which doesn’t make any sense when you think about it, because it’s my people who spend all their time living underground! So shouldn’t we be the pale ones, and you the ones with the smooth, flawless skin the color of a grape?”
Maimonides nearly choked on his drink. “Where did you hear a thing like that, dear?”
“Why, you said that to me,” Viya said with a predatory smile. “When you were nodding off the other night, darling. Don’t you remember?”
Alec had rarely, if ever, had cause to see the great Maimonides the Shadebringer flustered. Much less when matters of the opposite sex were involved. The gnome took a hasty drink of his liquor to hide his emotions, nearly coughing so hard he spit them out. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, gesturing over Tanuin’s maniacal laughter. “If you’re just going to make up stories, I can make them up too…”
Jolenta sported a wicked grin. “I can tell you what isn’t a story,” she said, nibbling her bottom lip. She had the air of someone with a secret they simply can’t keep to themselves, which wasn’t exactly the demeanor you wanted from someone part of a secret plot to save magic and the world. “Have a gander at this!”
Jolenta slid her hand out of her robe, revealing a ring with a splendid diamond on it. The women of the table oohed and aahed it appreciatively, and even Tanuin looked impressed.
“Vodalus and I are engaged!” Jolenta cried, the words burning into a squee of delight.
The room erupted in congratulations. Vodalus did his best to avoid blushing, but even the quiet, stoic student couldn’t keep himself from turning red as Maimonides and Tanuin clapped him on the back.
“Don’t worry, it won’t happen until this is all over and done with,” Jolenta explained to Eleira. “And we wouldn’t dream of scheduling it any time near your wedding, darlings. You’ve been wearing Alec’s ring longer, so you have pride of place!”
“Although if they were on the same day, that would be a pip,” Vodalus said sardonically. “I imagine there’d have to be a duel or something dramatic like that.”
“Ah, a duel!” Jolenta pressed herself into a mock swoon, pretending to faint. “Two men fighting over a woman’s hand—what could be more romantic than that!”
“Flowers,” Tanuin said with a guffaw.
