Balancer (Advent Mage Cycle) Read online

  “Alright, so we’ll probably need partners for each sigil, is that right? Someone who specializes in shield breaking and another that can act as a magical partner for the incantation?” Shad glanced at me as he asked this.

  “More than two,” I disagreed just as Dassan opened his mouth. “I’d suggest at least six in each group. You’ll need a guard to act as a protector while the other two do the incantation. And someone who can transport them quickly out of the area, if need be.”

  Dassan gave me a grateful look. “The very thing I was about to say. Captain, when I said that this incantation is long and tiring, what I meant was exhausting. They’re not going to be up to moving much after they’re finished. I could wish for a full circle for each sigil, but we simply don’t have that many magicians familiar enough with the incantation for that to be feasible.”

  “Eight, then,” Shad agreed with a slightly abstracted look on his face. “We’ll have to include the Special Forces as the guard, otherwise we won’t have enough people. But, two magicians for every sigil?”

  “It wouldn’t have to be every sigil,” I disagreed. “Wizard Dassan, correct me if I’m wrong, but because this is a quad-directional alignment, just removing one sigil should make the others impotent.”

  “That’s correct, Magus. Just removing one will suffice. I don’t suggest leaving the other three standing, mind you, but for an emergency fix just knocking one out of alignment will do. Still, that means if Raile is correct about every capitol city being infested by these things, we have fourteen sigils that need to be destroyed. With a little bit of rest in between, we should be able to have one team destroy two sigils in a day’s time. But right now, we don’t have enough people capable of quick transportation. If something were to go wrong…”

  “Point taken,” I said with a wince at the mental picture of disaster in my head.

  “If all we need is someone to guard the other’s backs and offer an additional escape route, I can get them,” Raile assured us. “A few young Mages approached me last night, eager to help.”

  “Raile, if you could contact them and get them here?” I requested.

  “Hope they’re awake,” he responded with a raspy chuckle, drawing a small wooden carving of a woman in flowing robes from his pocket. I didn’t recognize the object, but the power flowing through it felt similar to a mirror. That must be the Coven Ordan version.

  “Fourteen precision strikes,” Shad muttered to himself under his breath. “It will have to be simultaneous, or as close to it as we can manage.”

  “If they can all communicate with each other long distance, it shouldn’t be difficult to coordinate them,” Xiaolang observed to no one in particular.

  Shad groaned loudly. “You call upon the god of misfortune when you say that! Stop it. Alright, while we’re waiting for our Mages to arrive, let’s divide these people up into teams. Dassan, divide them up into incantars and breakers for me.”

  Dassan and Shad waded into the crowd and started directing people. I watched them shift magicians around, feeling my mind and body grow heavy. Revival spells and hot tea were all well and good, but what my body truly needed was some decent sleep that lasted for more than four hours.

  The young Mages appeared before Shad and Dassan were through separating people, looking unfairly alert and enthusiastic. They all seemed to be about my age, so why did I feel so old watching them?

  Once everyone had been divided, Shad started forming people into teams. Chatta stood at his elbow, writing down names and quick information on each team as it formed. It was good that she did so—my memory is not to be trusted with things like that. I’d need that list later.

  I caught Don’s eye and waved him closer to me. “Don. While you were scrying, did you have any ideas on which sigils would be the easiest to destroy?”

  “There’s a few that would be easier to get to,” he answered with a tight, slightly feral smile. “I marked those. Some cities, though, there are no easy targets.”

  “Show me.”

  We leaned over the pool as he quickly navigated to the likely spots. Xiaolang looked on as well, offering a tactical opinion here and there as we plotted mayhem. Shad and Dassan joined us when the teams were formed, helping to choose the best locations for each team. We could only partially do this, since Don hadn’t found all of the sigils yet, but that didn’t mean we were barred from making tentative plans.

  By the time we had our targets marked, the teams formed, and a rough battle plan outlined, it was well past noon and my brain felt like mush. Since no one had really gotten any decent sleep in the past two days, we called a halt and dismissed everyone.

  I pushed myself back to my feet in creaking degrees. “I suppose I should go to Chahir and update Vonlorisen next.”

  Chatta planted herself in front of me, arms crossed over her chest and a firm set to her jaw. “Nap first.”

  Was it my imagination, or was she wreathed in a heavenly glow? “I can have a nap?”

  “Have? I insist you take one! I do not want you falling asleep halfway to Chahir.”

  Errr…good point.

  “You’ll want to wait for the cover of darkness before visiting him anyway,” Raile observed nonchalantly. “You don’t want anyone seeing you and reporting it to the Star Order. After all, you’re supposed to be in the capitol, not coming back from Coven Ordan.”

  That was enough justification for me. Now, where was the nearest bed…?

  ~*~

  Over the next few days, I spent so much time coming and going from Coven Ordan that it was a miracle I didn’t run into myself. Most of the trips were requested by Shad and Dassan. A scrying could tell you what something looked like, and the location of it, but it doesn’t give you a good feel of the land. Shad treated the scrying pool like a very enhanced, colorized version of a field map. Certainly, a commander could plan off of a field map. But if the choice was there to look at the terrain first hand, a good commander would take it. I was nothing more than a ferryman during these recon trips, but I kept my ears open as Shad, Xiaolang and Dassan talked tactics. Part of the duty of the Jaunten was to learn everything we could as opportunities presented themselves. I might not ever use this information in my lifetime—at least, I hoped not!— but my future descendants might need it, so it behooved me to learn just in case.

  Seeing everything firsthand also showed me just how devious the Star Order could be. The sigils weren’t just hidden around Star Order buildings or in the gardens that they liked to keep. We found one embedded in the keystone of a bridge, hidden in a very pretty and elaborate scrollwork pattern. If Dassan hadn’t traced the outline of it for me, I’d never have spotted it. We found two others that were part of the outer wall of the city. That had too much irony for me. For them to put something that could kill people into a structure meant to protect them…I couldn’t decide if that was ingenious or pure evil.

  I’d thought that over the past two years of searching all over Chahir for awakening magicians that I had seen every corner of the country, but as it turned out I’d missed a few areas. The very southern coast had an amazing amount of forest area that looked untouched. I knew both major mountain ranges rather well, as I’d travelled by foot through both of them, but it still surprised me when we came across forests and fertile valleys that held sizeable cities. The thought of these places left barren of all human life…it shook me to my core.

  Dassan and Shad outlined plans on which sigils to attack first, and which ones might be harder to tackle than others. Their debates held a certain fascination for me because their viewpoints were so radically different. Shad, who didn’t have an ounce of magical blood in him, looked at the sigils and evaluated the terrain they were in: Did the sigil stand in an open place, leaving many angles of attack, or was it in a more covert area that could be easily defended while the magicians worked? Dassan’s first question was how strong was the shield over this sigil? How long would it take to break through that and be able to destroy the sigil it
self? Would it take all of the energy of the magicians or could they take down this one and still have the ability to do one more in the same day?

  Listening to them debate the pros and cons of each location opened my mind to a perspective I’d never had before. I learned more just listening to them than I would have by asking questions.

  So I zipped all over Chahir and back with three tacticians, kept my ears and mind open, and waited for all of our targets to be found. Half a dozen magicians lived next to a scrying pool for three days. They hardly rested until every major city in Chahir had been searched and they were positive that every sigil had been found. Between all of them, we had a very detailed map of where every sigil stood.

  With all of the research, searching, and planning that we did in those days, one would think that I would’ve been mentally prepared to execute those plans. I didn’t feel that way at all.

  The Star Order had been in power longer than the Jaunten existed. Removing their authority in Chahir had been a huge accomplishment on Vonlorisen’s part. Still, knowing that I would face some of their most crafty and ancient magic, I couldn’t help but wonder if he had the easier task. I knew from experience what breaking a 200 year old spell felt like. When we’d found the first hidden library in the cave, I hadn’t even been the one to break the glamour hiding it. Night had done the work, and the backlash had still set my head ringing. I couldn’t imagine what those sigils would do.

  And that wasn’t even considering the very real possibility that the Star Order might detect what we were trying to do and attack us!

  I woke up fuzzy headed and dry eyed after tossing and turning all night. Worries and spinning conjecture had kept my mind active, allowing little room for rest. Even splashing cold water on my face didn’t help.

  I finally gave up at dawn and crawled out of bed, threw on the first set of clothes on hand, and went downstairs. Sallah’s and Aral’s house had a stillness to it, so I knew that no one else was awake yet. Of course, only an insomniac would be awake at this unholy hour.

  I went to the front porch, not wanting to wake anyone up. If they’d managed to find rest, all the better. I leaned against the front railing and stared sightlessly outward.

  The cool morning air gradually warmed as the sun rose, gentle rays tinting everything gold. I lifted my face to it, eyes closed, and tried not to think for a little while. The warmth against my skin soothed me and time seemed to slip away.

  The front door opened and closed behind me with a soft scrape.

  “You’d make a lousy field commander,” Shad said as he joined me at the rail. “You’re too much of a worrywart.”

  “No arguments there.” I turned to look at him. He looked perky and rested. Maybe I should have woken him up after all. “We’re ready?”

  “That we are,” Shad agreed as if my tone hadn’t been questioning. “Everyone knows what they’re supposed to do, our targets are decided on, and all we need to do now is go break things. I don’t know why you’re worrying.”

  I didn’t either. “I don’t know, Shad. I just feel like we’ve missed something, or overlooked something. I just can’t put my finger on what.”

  “Well, if you’re right,” Shad put a comforting hand on my shoulder, “then it will happen at the worst possible time and do a horrific amount of damage.”

  I eyed him sideways. “Was that supposed to be comforting?”

  “Oh, you wanted to be comforted?”

  No way was I letting that slide. I grabbed him around the neck and started ruffling his hair. Laughing, he fought his way free and retaliated. We had each other in a mutual lock when Chatta poked her head out the door. She took us in from head to toe before shaking her head slowly from side to side. “And here I was worrying that you two might be on edge about today.”

  “It’s impossible around this guy,” I objected to Chatta.

  “So I see. Well, I hate to interrupt this lovely male bonding, but breakfast is on the table.”

  Shad dropped me at the magic word ‘food,’ giving me nothing more than a parting tug of the hair before darting inside. Reassured despite myself, I followed him.

  Chapter Fourteen: Surprises

  Fortunately, I didn’t have to worry about transporting everyone to their target. In fact, I only had one core group that I needed to bring to Chahir—to Alvacon, to be precise. Everyone else had been assigned times and routes and went in by different means. Even Coven Ordan didn’t have enough Earth Mages to travel by earth path, but every type of Mage has their own method of travel, some more circumspect than others. Some groups left much earlier in order to land outside of a city’s limits and then walk in, avoiding a showy entrance.

  Each team had either a caller or a mirror broach on them in order to coordinate the attack.

  I let Shad, Dassan and Xiaolang worry about coordinating everyone. I didn’t have the head to keep track of details like that. My main task was to bring my team to Alvacon and guard Chatta and Dassan’s backs as they destroyed the sigil. Night, I think, just came along to keep an eye on me.

  We arrived in Alvacon by mid-morning, a good hour before the designated time. The sigil that we wanted to destroy stood in the center courtyard of a now abandoned Star Order temple. I brought us up in a clear patch of ground, looking around as I did so. All around us were the highly cultivated flower beds and shrubberies that only the very wealthy could afford to tend. This highly structured look has never been to my taste, and I took a little perverse satisfaction that since no one was around to frantically prune everything, the shrubs were starting to grow in whatever direction they pleased.

  This sigil had been cleverly disguised as part of a water fountain in the center of the garden. The fountain itself stood at a little over seven feet, spewing water from three sides into a shallow pool. Inscribed into the main pillar was the sigil, an elaborate and complicated design that made absolutely no sense to me.

  Chatta had spent three days learning everything she could about sigils and blood magic so that she could assist Dassan with the incantation. No surprise to me, she slipped her shoes off, rolled up the hem of her pants, hiked up her robe to bare her ankles, and stepped into the pool to get a closer look. Dassan joined her, also shedding his shoes before stepping into the water.

  One moment everything was normal, even peaceful, for such an early summer day. The next I felt an insane explosion of power. I could literally feel a ley line becoming exposed and power rapidly filled the air, becoming so thick that I could almost taste it.

  Chatta and I whirled at the same time, facing the direction it was coming from.

  “Garth, what—” she exclaimed in growing horror.

  “It’s a ley line,” I answered, cutting her off. “Some idiot has tapped into a ley line!”

  From the building, a dozen or so young men spilled out of the doors, a variety of weapons in their hands. I ignored most of them, eyes frantically searching for the one that had recklessly attempted this insanity. I didn’t even need a magical sense to know which one was messing with that ley line. He’d kneeled, a complex engraving drawn into the ground, his hand in the center of it. A drawn incantation, then? It certainly looked that way.

  I wasn’t going to give him time to complete whatever he was attempting. Yanking my bon’a’lon from my belt, I snapped it open and charged.

  The Priest—he couldn’t have been in more than his mid-twenties—jerked his head up, saw an armed man bearing down on him, and panicked. His other hand slammed down onto the ground, and rocks from every direction shot toward me.

  Snarling, I threw up a barrier, deflecting this primitive weaponry. We were close enough to strike at this point, and I took a swipe at him. The Priest was more agile than expected and ducked, rolling away. As soon as he was up again, he hurled more stone in my direction.

  This time, I couldn’t just ignore that stone so easily. Those rocks were at least partially covered in Star Order magic, and when they hit my shields, it hurt. I couldn’t help but wince
in reaction. Busted buckets, but it was like that battle around the pool all over again. I couldn’t keep my shields up fighting this Priest; it would simply be too distracting and cumbersome.

  Without hesitation I dropped the shields. I could hear my team mates engaging the other Priests around me. I called mentally to Night, Guard my back!

  He gave me a mental acknowledgement in return.

  The Priest tried to take advantage of this momentary pause to do more serious damage. He hurled even more stone at me, some of which were in chunks larger than my head. I bared my teeth in a feral smile. If that idiot thought I was defenseless against stone, he was sadly mistaken.

  I caught the stones and stopped them in their tracks, letting them drop heavily back to the earth. A few, very small pieces got past me, which was unavoidable considering the sheer volume of stones whizzing through the air. I didn’t worry about them too much. Even if they did hit someone, it wouldn’t cause more than a bruise.

  More importantly, my little trick had given the Priest-Mage serious pause. He hadn’t expected for me to be able to stop him. He froze, staring at me uncertainly, his face gathered into a frown. “Who are you?” he demanded, a hint of fear in his voice.

  “Rhebengarthen, Earth Mage,” I introduced myself with a mocking bow. “And you are a dead man if you don’t close that ley line, now!”

  In hindsight, it probably hadn’t been wise to tell him what I was. It panicked him, being faced with a full-fledged Earth Mage. Rather than scaring him into giving up, it obtained just the opposite effect. I felt it as he yanked more power from the ley line, probably in an effort to become immediately more powerful than me.

  I slammed my own magic into the ground, trying to shut his connection off. It was impossible—I’m only human. And a human doesn’t have the ability to handle that amount of sheer raw power. “No, don’t, you’ll burn out!” I yelled at him.