Mage guardian 1, p.41
Mage Guardian 1, page 41
The small girl frowned. “She said that the Covenant Minister is crooked. That he secretly leads the organization that captured me, and....” She swallowed and glanced away again, as if trying to escape those memories. “And she said that, because you’ve gotten so close to Redwood’s true identity, and have come so close to outing the Breeders already, that you’re pretty sure he’s about to enact his secret plan early.”
“That’s right,” Rune said. “And that plan is to kill King Celtis today, while he’s exposed, in the Adeptus Day parade that will run through Maple.”
He couldn’t be certain of this, of course, but Rune’s gut told him this was it. Rune had gotten close enough to the truth—and had not been caught or killed doing it—that any smart man would feel threatened at this point.
And a powerful person with ill intentions, when backed into a corner....
He’ll take the first and best opportunity to enact his plan, and that will be today, while King Celtis is away from his palace.
Iris curled her hands into fists and drew them close to her chest. “Narcissa said he plans to kill the whole royal family, and seize power. That his organization will seize power with him.”
Rune nodded. “There will be chaos, and Redwood will be able to kill and betray a lot of Adepts and Guardians before anyone even thinks to fight back.”
Now, Rune himself wasn’t a huge fan of the regular old Covenants, but most of those men and women did police the country, keeping people safe, and preventing war. Chaos was the least of what would happen if Redwood succeeded, especially knowing he approved of abduction and abuse of magical women.
There was a chance, a real tangible fear, that this coup could turn the kingdom into a dark oppressive place.
The idea made his blood boil, and Iris flinched, her wispy blonde hair snapping around her head. She must have felt Rune’s rage through the bond, but he hoped she realized it wasn’t directed at her.
Rune took initiative then, and reached out to lay his hand on hers, just like Narcissa had done. When she didn’t jerk her hand away, he leaned close and said, “Listen, Iris. This is all very serious. What happened with you and me—the bond—we can discuss that later, and figure out a solution. I will honor any wishes you have.
“But today, we need to solve a much more immediate problem. And I can’t give you all the details yet, but you staying behind... well, it’s actually critical to the success of the plan.”
She looked up again, her pale eyes sharpening. “I want to help. I don’t want to sit here.”
Rune drew a breath, measuring his words. He didn’t want to tell her that their bond was too new, and that she had no Eternities to use yet, which would just make her a liability. He didn’t think she’d appreciate that.
“Look,” he said, “I’m gonna let you in on a secret. The plan today? I haven’t told the others how it ends. They think they know how it will go, but I’m actually keeping a secret from them. It’s for the good of the mission, though. And it’s the reason I need you to stay here.”
Her brows drew even lower, suspicious.
Rune raised his hands to placate her, continuing, “You will understand at the end of the day, I promise. And I also promise I’m not forcing you to stay behind because I think you’ll be useless in the field. It’s just currently the best way I can make use of you. You’ll still be crucial to the mission, provided you do not leave this room. That is critical. Do I have your word?”
She chewed her lip for a moment, scrutinizing his gaze, and then straightened. Her hand slipped from beneath his as she crossed her arms.
“Fine,” she said. “I’ll stay behind. But only because Narcissa trusts you. And—” at this, she raised a finger “—if I find out you were lying, and just hiding me away here to protect me, I’ll....” She trailed off, seemingly searching for words. “I’ll make you regret it. Somehow.”
Rune chuckled and leaned back. “Duly noted.”
She huffed and averted her eyes from him again. “So what is this plan, anyway? What are you going to do? Narcissa wouldn’t tell me a thing.”
Still smiling, Rune placed both palms flat to the smooth maple tabletop. “We’re going to do the only thing we can do. We’re going to kidnap King Celtis before Redwood can kill him.”
Chapter 41
The city was still just waking up to the Adeptus Day celebrations when Rune found himself with Lenore and Ria, in a warehouse in the ritzy district of the city. With Lenore’s help, and her abilities, they’d snuck into the warehouse without triggering any alarms. She walked ahead of him, while Ria trailed behind.
As they crept past crates piled high to the ceiling, however, Rune noted that each wooden box had a metal object Artificed into it. If they disturbed a single crate, or attempted to steal one, alarms would be blaring in moments.
“I have to admit, it’s genius,” Lenore said, furtively crossing a gap in the crate towers ahead of him. The warehouse was windowless, which added shadows to the place, so that her brown skin and leathers made her fade into the dimness, even when she didn’t use Shadow Walk.
“No one would ever think to sneak into a merchant warehouse to steal nothing,” she continued.
This was the reason they hadn’t come across any obstacles in getting in, and wouldn’t have much trouble getting out, either. Only the crates themselves had any security.
“Honestly, how do you think up this shit?” Lenore asked.
“With my dick,” he joked back. “What else?”
She smothered a laugh as the three of them reached the deepest corner of the warehouse, Ria silently bringing up the rear. She was too nervous to talk much, mentally or otherwise. She wasn’t used to skulking around like a criminal.
“Right here,” he whispered to Ria, indicating the inner wall of the warehouse beside their hidey spot. The space between the wall and crates was so narrow that Rune could barely squeeze through it, but he managed to butt himself up against Lenore and free up some space around Ria.
“Well, that explains why you’re so smart,” Lenore said. “You think with your dick, which is bigger than your brain.”
He laughed quietly and whispered, “Cheeky little thief, I’ll have to punish you for that comment, later.”
“Only if you catch me,” she whispered back as Ria put a hand on the wall.
He watched with pride as she used her woodcrafting skills to accurately affect the metal wall instead. He knew it was a draining endeavor for her, so he reached out into his many “rivers”—as he liked to call all his bonds—and fed her a little energy that he drained from Narcissa.
Narcissa was waiting nearby, sitting in a tea shop with a brew, just in case he needed her to Buff him. He didn’t need her for this part of the plan, though. She could spare the power to help Ria cut a door in this wall.
Suddenly, a horse brayed on the other side of the metal-sheets, probably hearing them with its animal senses. Rune wasn’t startled. He’d already known there was a stable on the other side—Lenore remembered the layout of the next area, from a heist she’d pulled off years ago.
Still, when the cut sheet of metal started to fall away from them, Rune darted forward to catch it. They could make some noise, but a piece of metal clanking down could still get them caught.
“Sorry,” Ria said, her voice jumpy.
This high-risk situation was stressing her. Rune wished he hadn’t had to put her through it, but the warehouse was the easiest way to access these horses without drawing any attention to what they were doing. The inner-city stable was too large and too full of witnesses, to be entered from anywhere but its shadows. Well, not exactly a proper stable. It was part of the warehouse; this was a merchant guild-building, which rented out sections of it to the highest bidder.
And today’s bidder was the biggest of all of them.
The horse carriage before them belonged to the King Celtis himself.
“You’re doing great,” Rune assured Ria, stepping past the cut piece of metal and into a small paddock. The huge black stallion huffed smartly as they entered, blowing air out his nose like a dragon blowing smoke, following them with dark, intelligent eyes.
“Easy, boy,” Rune said, holding his hands up. “We’re not here to hurt you.”
It was the truth. They weren’t here for the animal. Unconvinced, the horse stamped threateningly. Rune kept himself between the creature and Ria as the two of them crossed the paddock into the storage stall next to it.
“You sure you’ll be able to get the timing right on this?” Lenore said. She was staying behind to watch their exit, and he had the sense she was deliberately avoiding any thoughts regarding the horse.
“Trust me,” Ria sent back, “I know how to manage a harness.”
“And I’m using Treehugger, Rune added. In this state, he knew everything he needed to know for this task. “Not to mention my father used to forge harness components. Don’t worry, Lenore, we’ve got this.”
And with that, he and Ria began working on the horse’s leathers, committing high treason, for the greater good.
* * *
One re-sealed metal door and one sneaky exit later, the three of them picked up Narcissa from the cafe and headed toward the town square. Ria and Rune had swung by earlier, counting their steps, while Lenore scouted the aqueducts. With her Agility magic, she could climb them the best.
They stopped beside a huge sign erected for the parade. If Rune didn’t know better, he’d say the two bases to the sign had once been gallows, and had merely been retrofitted to display the huge wooden sign arching over the roadway between them.
Not for the first time, Rune read the words, musing at how apt they really were.
In bold, big letters, it read, WELCOME NEW ADEPTS.
I will, thank you, he thought to himself. By the end of the day, he planned to have one more bond.
“Are you really sure about Camellia?” Lenore sent him as the four of them found a shady alley in which to wait. Ria and Narcissa had trusted his judgment implicitly, without questions, but Lenore was a woman cut from shrewder timber. She understood that trust came with risks.
“I would trust Cam with my life,” Rune replied. “She wasn’t tricking me at the compound; she really is trapped in her bond. And she needs my help. I can’t abandon her.”
Lenore didn’t like it, but she fell quiet as his mind filled up with his last image of Cam. He could vividly picture the way she’d fought her Guardian’s control over her body and mind, the way her stiff persona had suddenly dropped away, replaced by a rush of words, as she tried to steal a few moments of freedom inside her own head.
Find me at the Smoke and Bell. I can help you.
Rune’s fist tightened at the memory, and the blow of parade horns filled the air.
* * *
Rune waited until he could spot the king’s parade float. By then, a dozen of the crazy contraptions had rolled by. There’d been dancers dressed up as trees, a whole orchestra playing the Orennian national anthem, and a platform full of color and attractive men and women whose only job seemed to have been to blast confetti through massive cannons. The crowd was hooting and screaming with exuberation, too riled up to notice anything suspicious.
“It’s time,” he sent Lenore. “Are you ready?”
Beside him, Lenore stood with her arms crossed below her ample breasts, scowling at the float of a flame dragon passing by. For Adeptus Day, all the floats depicted epic battles fought by Covenant. Even the confetti and orchestra, at least according to some public opinion director’s interpretation of said battles.
However, none were quite as magnificent as the dragon. And standing on this dragon float was a woman dressed up as Lenore.
Not his Lenore, but the person she used to be, the fearsome noblewoman Loralyn Aurensus. The best-in-class Adept who had been handed over to a Breeder-raised Guardian, and who had almost become a part of the organization they were fighting today.
But, in the end, she hadn’t given in to her first Guardian. She had discovered his treachery, and she had found the Breeder ways sickening. She’d been killing Breeders in secret ever since.
So she knew more than any of them what today would mean. A traitorous splinter cell was poisoning the Covenant from within, and if they didn’t stop it, law and order would fall into chaos as the Covenant went to war with itself.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she finally replied, once the paper-covered wooden caricature of the dragon had passed. “Although I wish you’d just let me do it,” she added testily. “It would take less energy that way.”
She definitely had a point, but the Queen of Streets was not the person he needed for this job. A hot day was brewing, with the sun bearing down hard even in the shadows, and although Lenore always wore makeup, a little sweat could reveal her scar any moment. If she was recognized as the serial killer that she was, today’s mission would go sideways fast.
No sane person would believe the word of an outlaw, and it was imperative that the king be convinced.
“You know I need you elsewhere, helping Ria and Narcissa,” he told her.
The two were nervous even now, in the warm shadows behind him, pressed up against the outer wall of a mercantile. Despite their commoner’s clothing, they couldn’t help but stand out, as beautiful and nervous as the both of them were.
He could sympathize with their worry though, and shared some of it himself. The weak point in his plan was that he didn’t know precisely when Redwood would act. If the Minister got to Celtis before they did... well, all bets were off.
But Rune had good reason to believe Redwood wouldn’t make the killing public. It would be easier for him to dictate the story if it happened away from prying eyes. He’d wait until after the parade.
And by then, the king would be long gone.
Lenore crossed her arms and looked away from him. “I know, I know. I have to play babysitter. Take my powers, you big brute, and go.”
Rune nodded and mentally warned the others of what was coming. They slid to the ground, backs to the alley wall, waiting.
Rune was starting to get good at borrowing their abilities, and he knew how not to waste time. Within seconds, he had stolen Lenore’s magic, used it on himself, and transformed into mist. By draining all three of his Adepts at an equal rate, he was able to spread out the drain on stamina. By the time he had climbed to the top of the WELCOME ALL ADEPTS sign, they were starting to feel the drain, but were all still functional.
“Tired?” Narcissa replied. “Who are you calling tired?”
“Us, you silly bookworm, Lenore groused.
“Well, I feel great,” Narcissa sent back. “Rune, can you take the rest from me?”
On his perch, still in his shadow form, Rune assented, and obliged her. He felt a collective sigh of relief from Ria and Lenore as the power-drain focused solely on Narcissa.
“Oh, that tickles,” she sent.
“Ugh,” Lenore snipped. “A woman gets one taste of cock, and suddenly she gets cocky.”
Ria giggled, and Narcissa did too, and suddenly all his Adepts were laughing into their hands in that alley like a gaggle of idiots.
As for Rune, his invisible eyebrows were shooting up. A woman gets one taste of cock....
It was a crass way to say it, but Lenore had a point. Losing her virginity had strengthened Narcissa. Rune hadn’t actually thought about how his bond to Narcissa would be affected by last night’s lovemaking, his focus had been on fucking, but it must have been quite an improvement. He could sense her well of energy even now, though it was fading as he drained her.
He’d have to maintain shadow form for a few minutes yet, but he had a feeling she’d still be standing when he finished. The reservoir of their bond had deepened since yesterday.
If that’s not true love, Rune thought, then what is?
Chapter 42
Five minutes later, Rune’s Adepts had all vanished, taking their positions. Even as they left his view, Rune wasn’t worried. Lenore was guiding them. The dangerous maze of aqueducts beneath the city was nothing to her, especially with her Agility buff in full swing.
Narcissa was definitely flagging now. She would be weak by the time the king’s float got to Rune, but she would still be standing, at least.
And that moment was approaching faster than ever. The details of their target float came into view at the far end of the parade. It was an expansive representation of the Tree of Life. Rune recognized this particular Tree as a copy of the one that grew from the public terrace of the king’s palace. It had always been the most symmetrical Tree that he’d ever seen.
This float though, was more than a good replica. The leaves sprouting from its branches were real, as if a real-life Tree had been grown into the shape of the float. Rune couldn’t imagine the expense of Artificing something like that, but as it came closer, he realized it wasn’t a real outcrop. It was just a poplar tree groomed to the likeness of a Tree of Life. Even without his Treehugger, Rune could still recognize a few mistakes here and there.
Regardless, the common people loved it. The Tree spread its branches over the citizens who crowded next to the street, granting them shade from the midsummer heat.
All of this dragged along by a single black horse.
The horse was being amplified by an Adept, Rune knew. As it approached, he also noticed agents of the Covenant sifting through the crowd, watching it like hawks. They would have checked the cart thoroughly for tampering before the king ever set foot on it.
But not the special harness the horse wore.
Rune shifted in place as the king closed the gap between them. At fifty or so feet away now, Rune could start to make out the features on the king’s face. As a born-and-raised country bumpkin, Rune had only ever seen pictures and statues.
The king was a tall, robust man, about as large as Rune. He might have made a decent Guardian, if he’d spent more time bulking up his frame. He wasn’t skinny, per se. His broad shoulders and tall build were garbed by expert tailors to enhance his presence, to sculpt him into the perfect specimen to demand awe and intimidation.
