Dark shores of salvation, p.7
Dark Shores of Salvation, page 7
part #3 of Travails of the Dark Mage Series
“Like not having slaves?”
James nodded. “I could forgive a lot if they could but wipe that scourge from this world.”
“I don’t think such a thing would be possible.”
Sighing, James said, “You may be right.” He canceled the view. “Let’s meet back here after sundown. I may have a way for us to get over the walls.”
Jiron eyed him skeptically. “You’re not talking about that flying door trick Miko told me about, are you?”
Grinning, James said, “Could be. It doesn’t have to be a door, though. We can use anything.” He wondered, and not for the first time, if the legend of witches riding broomsticks had come about because people with power used them to travel. Maybe on this world instead of legends filled with broom-riding witches they would one day have stories of door-riding mages. He grinned at the thought.
“A wagon?”
“The more something weighs, the more magic it will take to levitate it. I’m still concerned about the shimmering field.”
“We haven’t seen that for a while and you’ve been in here viewing a lot.”
“True, but remember, Miko imbued the walls of this room with the power of Morcyth after we decided to use it for viewing. If I do magic within the confines of priestly magic, the shimmering field doesn’t seem to notice me.”
“But doesn’t viewing take the magic beyond this room?”
“Some. I keep it small and only for short durations.”
They both remembered the convergence of three such fields during their sea battle with the enemy. It hadn’t been pleasant.
“And your apprentices? Are they refraining from using magic?”
“Of course. They wouldn’t dare use magic unless I gave them leave.”
Two knucklebones rolled across a dirty floor and came to rest with two swords showing. Cheers and moans erupted as coins changed hands.
“All right you ill-favored arses, we’ll let it ride one more time.”
Bets were given and Scar took up the knucklebones for the sixth time.
“You’re going to lose it all this time,” one sailor exclaimed.
“We’ll see about that.”
He glanced to Hikai who stood in the group of spectators at The Warped Keel, a tavern mainly catering to wharf-rats. The young mage nodded and Scar threw.
Magic caught the knucklebones and as they hopped and rolled across the floor, worked the swords to the top. When they came to rest, the knucklebones had again come up Swords.
“Unbelievable,” another sailor exclaimed. “Five straight passes coming up Swords. It ain’t natural.”
One patron eyed Scar with suspicion. “Me thinks there be some skullduggery afoot.”
“What?” Scar said coming to his feet. “Do you think me a cheat?” He laid his hand on his sword hilt and gave the man a menacing glare.
“It ain’t natural, five Swords.”
“Fine, I’ll bet twenty golds that I can make The Weeping Maiden come up on my next throw.”
The Weeping Maiden was if a sword and the maiden came up together.
“Not with those ‘bones,” the sailor said. He produced another pair. “Do it with these.”
Scar laughed. “Fine. Luck is favoring me tonight and it makes no difference which ‘bones I use.” He set the pair he had been using aside and took the new ones. “So, who wants a piece of my twenty golds?”
Sailors clamored for the opportunity to take Scar’s money. Once he had sufficient betters to cover his stake, he raised the fist holding the ‘bones. “Let’s see that Weeping Maiden,” he said then threw.
Again, magic took the knucklebones and when they came to rest, The Weeping Maiden was up.
With a smug look on his face, Scar turned to the sailor. “Ha! And with your ‘bones no less. Don’t you tell me I be a cheatin’.”
The man’s eyes narrowed. He passed over the five golds that had been his part of Scar’s bet.
“Well, gentlemen,” Scar announced, “it’s been a pleasure but I feel Luck’s soft caress leaving me.”
They clamored for him to remain, but he would have none of it. “I’ll be back another night.” Putting his winnings in a sack, he came to his feet. Off to the side, Potbelly nodded and headed for the door. Hikai was to remain until they both had left before making his departure so they would not appear as if they were together.
Once outside, Potbelly shadowed Scar in case one or more of those he had gambled with decided to take the gold from him. By two streets down, none had made an appearance so he emerged from the shadows and joined his friend.
“How much did we get?”
“Four hundred golds!”
Potbelly whistled.
“We better plan on losing a few tosses the next go round so they don’t get too suspicious.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Scar said. “Next time.”
Hikai joined them a few streets farther down.
“Here’s your share,” Scar said and handed him a small pouch filled with forty golds.
The mage’s eyes widened at the bulging pouch. It was more coins than ever he had at one time in his entire life. A mage in the service of the Empire did not make much, especially one with his meager talents.
Taking the coins, he said, “Thank you.”
“No, thank you,” Scar said and slapped him on the back.
“This will help my master?”
Potbelly nodded. “This will help him a lot.”
“I am glad.”
When they returned and entered the temple grounds, a man watched from the shadows. A crystal dove with a barely perceptible yellowish, glowing ribbon was held in his hands. He waited until they passed from view, then turned and departed.
That night in the Viewing Room, James hunted for a section of town adjacent to the walls steeped in shadows.
It took him some time but he finally settled on a nearly dark section that had several tall buildings adjoining it. None abutted the wall of course, as to do so would cause security concerns. They were close enough; however, that it would be a short trip from a rooftop to the ground beyond the walls.
One building rose taller than the others and its roof was heavily shadowed. Pointing to it, James said, “That one.”
Jiron nodded. “Just the two of us?”
“Yes.”
“Alright. Let’s go.”
Canceling the view, they passed through the manor-house-turned-temple. Miko had his priests still busily blessing each individual room. A rather bored looking Kip followed his superiors with a tray of sacred oils and other items pertinent to their work.
“Be back in a bit,” James told Miko.
He nodded. “We should finish before your return.”
“Excellent.”
Leaving the temple, they traversed streets that even at this late hour had people upon it. Most were engaged in worried conversation as to what would happen. Would Abu Dar fare better than Lak Tir? Or would it be even worse. More than a few regretted their decision to remain rather than fleeing.
The building that was their destination turned out to be a three-story residence of a rather affluent personage. Marble formed the front doorway as well as the steps leading to it. Light came from most of the first and second-story windows. Only one on the third floor was lit.
Motioning to the alley running along the backside of the house, Jiron said, “It’s darkest back there. Will it work?”
There were still a few windows emitting light from the building next to it that would give them away. James shook his head. “I don’t dare do this where someone can see. We’ll have to get up there another way than me levitating us.”
“Okay then.”
After glancing down the alley, Jiron moved to the back door. To his surprise, he found it unlocked. Next to it was a dark window. He peered through. Seeing the room empty, he returned to the door and slowly turned the handle.
The door opened without a squeal, its hinges having been well-oiled. He slipped through and James followed, closing the door behind them.
Dim light filled the doorway leading deeper into the house. Voices of an elderly couple came from not far away.
Jiron moved to the doorway and listened for a moment.
“They’re down to the right.”
James nodded.
Jiron glanced down the hallway and found a well-lit doorway some fifteen feet away. The voices came from there.
He stepped from the room and they went to the left. There they found a set of steps leading to the second floor. Not hearing the sound of anyone above, they hurried up. One step creaked rather loudly and they froze. When there came no indication that the couple had heard or were investigating, they continued.
They reached a landing where a hallway opened up and ran the length of the second floor, or they could continue up. Jiron didn’t even pause as he made his way on to the third floor. There they located the access to the roof and were soon among the shadows taking refuge atop the building.
The city wall loomed not far off; many guards were stationed upon it. Some remained stationary in groups of two, talking, while others moved about. All eyes were directed outward for signs of enemy incursion.
“See if you can find something large enough for us to sit upon.”
Jiron nodded and headed off to one side of the roof while James searched the other. Several moments later, James heard his voice come from the dark, “Think I found something.” Jiron appeared from out of the dark with a long board, six feet by eight inches.
James eyed the board with a hearty lack of enthusiasm. “Maybe we can find something else.”
“Could always remove the door leading into the house,” Jiron suggested.
Nodding, James said, “That might work, so long as we can replace it once we return.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
James continued searching the roof while Jiron worked to remove the door. During his search he came across two buckets. They would work, but worried that either he or Jiron might fall off such a precarious perch while high over the walls.
“Got it,” Jiron announced. He brought the door to James.
James pointed to a spot on the roof before him. “Set it there.”
Once the door was in position, he climbed aboard and sat centered on the top half. Jiron sat on the other half behind him.
“Are you sure we can do this?” Jiron asked anxiously. Despite the fact that James and Miko had done something similar while in the Waste, now that he had come to it, he was a bit unnerved.
“Absolutely.” Glancing over his shoulder, he gave his friend a grin and asked, “Scared?”
“What? Of course not.” His tone belied his confident statement. “Let’s do this.”
“Hold on tight. I’ll take it slow at first. And whatever you do, remain still.”
“No problem there.”
“We’ll go straight up for a ways, then once we are high enough to avoid being observed, we’ll cross over the wall and land some distance from the city.” He paused a moment then said, “Okay?”
“Got it. Can we just get going?”
James wasn’t entirely excited about doing this either as it was one thing to cruise along a couple feet from the ground. It was quite another to be a hundred or more feet in the air with only his concentration and magic keeping them there. Sighing, he took a calming breath, readied his visual image, then let the magic go.
Ever so slowly, the door rose from the rooftop; he gripped the edge tightly.
One foot in the air, then two. Gaining confidence, he increased their rate of climb.
“How are you doing?”
“This is actually kind of fun,” Jiron said. The earlier nervousness apparent in his voice had vanished.
Yeah, it’ll be fun up until the time we plummet from the sky. Feeling the door gently rock as his concentration slipped slightly, he stifled his inner, negative thoughts and focused on the task at hand.
Coming level to the top of the wall, they closely watched the guards upon it. None noticed the odd occurrence of the vertical rise into the sky of two men upon a door. James lifted them another fifty feet so as to avoid being illuminated by the guards’ lanterns. He brought them to a halt and then slowly moved horizontally. Once they were beyond the wall and unlikely to be observed, he again paused momentarily before beginning the descent.
He heard Jiron sigh when they settled on the sand of the beach. “That wasn’t so bad.”
Though the dark hid his grin, it came through when he said, “No, it wasn’t.”
They left the door behind and made a circuitous route toward the main gates. When they came into view, James stepped onto the road and after moving closer, halted. “Wasn’t this about the distance they stopped before Lak Tir’s gates with their machines?”
“I’d say it was pretty close.”
“Okay then, let’s begin.”
Sending his senses into the ground, he created six spells, twenty feet apart that would remain dormant until triggered. It was his hopes that by remaining dormant and inactive they would escape notice until too late for the enemy to do anything to counter them.
Each was set to leach for two seconds in a twenty foot radius before detonating. The same trigger code was integrated within the spells so a single command would set them off simultaneously.
Once those were in place, they went where they thought the commanding priest and his entourage would stand based on where he had stood during the attack on Lak Tir. There he set several more. Again, each had the same trigger code as the previous ones.
After that, they spent the next two hours circumventing the walls putting similar ones in place along the sections where the enemy had launched attacks on Lak Tir. With any luck, they would get a good portion of the attackers.
When Jiron realized the scope of what James planned, he said, “You do realize that after this, they will come at Abu Dar with everything they have.”
James sighed and nodded.
“And since you will be the cause of it, I have known you long enough to know that your conscience will not allow you to simply walk away and leave these people to face the enemy’s wrath. It could be quite terrible.
“By doing this, you are committing yourself to fight them.” He laid his hand on James’ shoulder. “And to defend the people of Abu Dar.”
“Ever since I saw Meliana flee with Kenny and her father, I knew it would come to this though I tried to rationalize why I wouldn’t have to. But the more I thought about it, the more I came to realize that despite the good they seem to be doing, they must be fought.” He paused a moment then glanced off into the distance. “Why does it always come down to bloodshed and war? And why must it be me to deal with it?”
“The gods put you here for a reason,” Jiron said. “It would seem they are not yet through with you. You’re not alone in this.”
James turned to his friend. “I know, and thank you.”
Jiron grinned. “Let’s get this done before the sun comes up or we’ll be stuck out here until tomorrow night.”
Nodding, James said, “We have one more to do then we’re finished.”
They continued along the wall to the seventh and final area where he intended to set his ‘spell-mines.’ Once completed, they returned to the door. Then up into the air, over the wall, and back down onto the roof from where they had first departed.
Jiron set the door back into the roof access and they made their way down through the building to the ground floor. The elderly couple had retired to bed and the house was dark. It was a simple matter to leave through the front door.
“In the morning I have a few more to set within the walls, then we’ll be ready.”
“Think it will work?”
James nodded. “At least the first time. After the initial attack, they may learn to counter it. Won’t know until we try.”
“Come on, let’s get an ale before we return.”
“Sounds good.”
They headed for a nearby tavern that still showed some life left to it. After what they had just done, an ale was just what they needed.
Chapter Seven
“Going to take Potbelly and Hikai on another food run.”
Scar’s announcement was met with several nods and little suspicion. James and Jiron were off doing something secret and with night already three hours old, it was the perfect time to fleece some of the locals and sailors who were stuck in port. None of the merchants wished to face the ships of the enemy and so kept their ships at anchor in the harbor. Sailors had little to do while in port other than drink and gamble. Which, according to Scar, was the perfect combination in those you planned to fleece.
The temple’s kitchen was in full swing. Miko had discovered two locals with some experience cooking large amounts of food and hired them to run things. Even though they had only been open a day, the line for food had grown long. The supplies initially gathered on the day they had broken into the town’s storage area had already nearly been depleted by a third. Miko figured he could make the rest stretch for a couple more days but then they would be in trouble.
Scar found this to be a good opportunity to visit the taverns and play some knucklebones under the guise of a food run. Most of what they won during their previous gambling expedition had been given to Miko with a vague explanation as to its origins. Scar and Potbelly kept the rest for their troubles.
The high priest was fairly certain that the coins had been earned by nefarious means, but he took them and used them to help the poor and destitute of Abu Dar.
On their way out, he pulled Shorty aside. “Give us two hours then meet us at the entrance to the sewers.”
“Got it. Want me to bring Tinok and Kip?”
Scar nodded. “Yeah.”
“See you there.”
As he turned from Shorty, he caught sight of Miko looking their way. Their eyes met, then with a grin and shake of the head, the High Priest of Morcyth walked off toward the kitchen area. Not for the first time he wondered just how much Miko knew about the goings-on around him. But there were coins to win, so not giving it another thought, he grabbed Potbelly and Hikai and headed into town.
