Blood of the Earth (17 page)

When he arrived at the entrance to the tower, Kelvin was waiting for him. Alexander dismissed the stone wall sealing the doorway and they began the long climb. Alexander’s legs burned from the exertion, especially after all of the stairs he’d climbed the previous day, but he pressed on through the pain and reached the top of the tower relatively quickly. The little room just below Mage Cedric’s meditation chamber was just as he had left it, just as it had been for thousands of years. He left Kelvin and Boaberous there and pushed through the shield that guarded the highest room in the entire Keep.

He carefully gathered up Barnabas Cedric’s dry and brittle bones, wrapping them in the blanket from the little bed inside the Wizard’s Den. Next he took the books from the bookshelf and carefully moved them to the top of the staircase. Finally he dragged all of the furniture from the room, leaving nothing but a bare stone room that existed in its own dimension.

He spent the next several minutes moving everything down to the room below. Alexander didn’t see an aura of magic in any of the items, but he asked Kelvin to examine them just the same.

“Nothing is enchanted, but several of these books are quite interesting,” Kelvin said.

“How so?”

“This one appears to be a treatise on the creation of a magical keep including the enchantment of a heartstone,” Kelvin said. “This one is a spellbook detailing the creation of a Wizard’s Den, and this one is a spell capable of calling forth a mountain range. I suspect he used this spell to create Glen Morillian. Of course, all three of these spells can only be cast by an arch mage. These other books contain a variety of spells that can be cast by master- or mage-level wizards. Some are quite powerful. Most are known spells but I believe a few of them are unique.”

“Take the ones you can make good use of but leave the Wizard’s-Den and the mountain-range spells here,” Alexander said.

They carefully wrapped the spellbooks in a bed sheet and began the long descent. When they reached the level with the bridge leading to the wyvern aerie, they stopped for a break. Alexander watched the horizon, hoping to see his wife and sister returning from their outing. He wanted to be angry with Abigail for leaving without warning but he was more concerned for her well-being and worried about burdening her with power. She wanted to live a simple life and he was asking her to give that up. It wasn’t fair and he knew it, but he also knew with certainty that it was necessary.

He waited for an hour or so, until about noon, when he saw them in the distance. He breathed a sigh of relief as he started across the long bridge spanning the distance between the tower and the aerie.

He was standing on the platform when they floated in for a gentle landing. Isabel pulled her release strap, unbuckling her armor from her saddle, slipped off Asteroth and went straight to Alexander. She hugged him without a word, then said, “I’m sorry I left without telling you.”

“You were helping Abigail. I’m just glad you’re both safe.”

Abigail dismounted and faced Alexander with a mixture of defiance and chagrin. She knew it had been foolish to leave the Keep, but she was still angry that he was asking so much of her.

“Did you find what you needed?” Alexander asked.

She nodded with resignation.

“Our home is gone, Alex. Burned to the ground. I guess I always thought we’d be able to go back to our lives once this was over, but I can see now that the lives we had are gone. I don’t like it, but I accept it. Deal in what is, not what if, right?”

Alexander smiled softly and hugged his sister.

“I seem to remember hearing that once or twice when we were children,” Alexander said.

“Anything happen while we were away?” Isabel asked.

Alexander’s mood darkened as he nodded.

“Quite a bit actually,” Alexander said. “Shivini is loose in the Keep. He killed a couple of young women and attacked Wren, beat her up pretty good, but nothing that won’t heal.”

“Where is she?” Isabel asked.

“Safe in her quarters. Her wounds should be mended by now. That’s not the worst of it, though. Shivini has damaged the Keep. It’s only a matter of time before Blackstone loses all of its magical protections and weapons.”

“Dear Maker,” Isabel whispered.

“There’s more,” Alexander said. “I consulted the sovereigns and they believe you’re in great danger from the taint left by the wraithkin. They gave me two possible solutions but both are difficult, to say the least. For now, it’s important that you don’t use your link to the realm of light.”

“What do we have to do to get rid of the wraithkin’s taint?” she asked.

“Either kill the wraith that Phane summoned to create the wraithkin in the first place or make a potion with some very difficult-to-obtain ingredients that might kill you anyway.”

“I vote we kill the wraith,” Abigail said, “whatever that is.”

“I tend to agree,” Alexander said. “Unfortunately, we don’t have a banishing spell and the thing can’t actually be destroyed.”

“We may have a banishing spell,” Kelvin said, hefting the load of books he was carrying. “One of these books deals with combating dark magic. It will take some study to be certain, but I’m hopeful.”

“That would be a relief,” Alexander said. “The sovereigns believe that the wraithkin will be stripped of their powers if the parent wraith is eliminated.”

“What do we need to make the potion?” Isabel asked. Alexander could see the trepidation in her beautiful colors. It made him angry. Phane would pay for doing this to her.

“We already have a number of the ingredients,” Alexander said, thinking quickly. The sovereigns had told him to keep the existence of the blood of the earth a secret from everyone, and he was inclined to take their warnings seriously.

“We need nectar from the vitalwood tree and the tears of a dragon,” Alexander said, lying about the last ingredient. He hated lying to those he loved and trusted the most, but it was necessary. Phane had eyes and ears everywhere. Isabel was infected with his dark magic and, as much as he hated to face it, she might be turned against him. He couldn’t afford to let the secret of the blood of the earth slip, not to anyone, but least of all to Phane.

“What’s a vitalwood tree?” Isabel asked.

“How are we going to make a dragon cry?” Abigail asked.

“The vitalwood is an ancient tree that lives on the Reishi Isle,” Alexander said. “As for the dragon’s tears, I’m working on that.”

“Killing the wraith sounds like it might be easier” Abigail said. “Do you remember Tanis? We’ve faced a lot, but nothing like her.”

“I know,” Alexander said. “I’m hoping we can reason with Bragador, but it would be good to have a backup plan.”

“I’ll have Wizard Ely study these books immediately,” Kelvin said. “For now, I must return to my workshop to begin the task of creating another collar, and Lucky will need those bones to begin formulating the transference potion.”

They returned to the tower and made their way down to the Hall of Magic. Kelvin went to his workshop, sending one of the new wizards to find Wizard Ely, while Alexander went to Lucky’s workshop.

When they entered, Lucky was busy setting up glassware on a table. He smiled at Isabel and Abigail. “I’m glad to see you’ve returned. We were all worried about you.”

“I know, I’m sorry I left without telling anyone,” Abigail said, giving Lucky a hug.

“You should probably go find your mother,” Lucky said. “She was worried more than most, even if she tried to hide it.”

Abigail nodded, dutifully heading for the door.

“You should also find Jack,” Alexander said with a knowing smile.

She was blushing slightly as she left the room.

“I have Barnabas Cedric’s bones,” Alexander said, placing the bundle on the floor next to the table.

“Ah, excellent, I should have the potion complete by evening.”

“Good. We’ll be ready for him tomorrow,” Alexander said. “I expect him to make trouble at the war council.”

“I’m sure you’ve thought of this but I feel it needs to be addressed,” Lucky said. “You will have to kill his host in order to be rid of him.”

“I know,” Alexander whispered. “I wish there was another way, but he has to be stopped, no matter the cost.”

In the back of his mind, Alexander worried that Shivini would possess someone dear to him and feared he would be forced to make a terrible decision. Worse, he knew what his choice would be. He had to eliminate the shades. They were the greatest threat of all. If they succeeded, everything for all time would be lost. If Phane or Zuhl won out, the Seven Isles would suffer a thousand years of tyranny, but at least the world of time and substance would survive. The shades represented the end of all things. They had to be defeated.

“I don’t understand,” Isabel said. “How do you plan on killing a shade?”

“I’m not going to kill him, I’m going to put him in Cedric’s Wizard’s Den and close the door. He’ll be trapped forever. Unfortunately, whoever he’s possessing will also be lost.”

“Oh Alexander, what a terrible choice to have to make,” she said, putting her hand on his cheek.

He nodded, looking into her piercing green eyes and hoping selfishly that the price would be bearable.

Chapter 14

After a quiet lunch with Isabel, Alexander went back to his meditation room and sat down. He needed all the information he could get prior to the war council. It took longer than usual to reach the firmament. He was distracted by his worry for Isabel. After finally clearing his mind and acknowledging each stray thought, he was able to reach the place of empty-mindedness that led to the firmament.

He floated there, trying to absorb the mood of the world in the midst of such strife. People were afraid, many were suffering terribly. Their emotional distress was reflected in the infinitely complex music of the firmament.

He brought his awareness into focus over his head. With a thought, he shot high into the sky until he was floating many thousands of feet over the Seven Isles. He located the Isle of Fellenden and focused on a point over the Gate. The world rushed past as his awareness flitted thousands of miles in a blink. Two heavily armed legions were encamped around the Gate. Alexander made a mental note of their strength and rose higher into the sky.

From his vantage point, he could see the swath of destruction carved into the countryside by the passage of such an enormous army. They cut a straight line to the city of Fellenden. He had visited the city with his clairvoyance before and found it to be devastated. Now there were a few inhabitants but they lived in the dark places, taking shelter and picking the bones of the city for what sustenance they could. For all intents and purposes, the city was abandoned.

He followed the trail of Zuhl’s army as they made for the coast on the northwestern edge of the Isle of Fellenden. He found about half of Zuhl’s forces encamped around a massive shipyard on the southern edge of the Iron Oak Forest. They were busy falling the ancient trees and dragging them to the many mills set up nearby to cut the trees into boards for use in the construction of the giant ships for Zuhl’s fleet.

Zuhl had ten berths with the beginnings of a warship starting to take shape in each. Alexander moved in closer and saw the scope of what he faced. The ships would be enormous, easily capable of transporting a thousand troops each. The first ten were more than half complete. Alexander had no idea how many ships Zuhl planned to build but an armada of just ten of these ships would easily tip the balance of power in his favor, especially with such a massive army at his disposal.

Alexander spent some time surveying the operation and the defenses of the shipyard. He estimated about four legions held the area with at least as many slaves working in the giant operation. He rose into the sky again and went in search of the remaining soldiers in Zuhl’s army. He found them one legion at a time.

Each of the four remaining legions was systematically pillaging the entire island in search of supplies, slaves, and any magic they could find. The people of Fellenden were totally at the mercy of the marauding soldiers. They were suffering terribly. The corpses of thousands were scattered in the wake of each legion as they moved about the island searching for plunder.

The magnitude of the devastation sickened Alexander. Even Phane hadn’t caused such suffering. The wantonness of the scorched-earth war Zuhl was waging kindled a rage within him that nearly interrupted his connection to the firmament.

With a mental effort he calmed his mind and went looking for any other sign of activity on the island. A few streamers of smoke rose from deep within the Iron Oak Forest. With a thought, he was floating over the ancient trees. Their colors screamed of life and potency to his second sight. They were undoubtedly descendants of the vitalwood trees that Alexander had only recently learned of.

He sent his awareness into the canopy of the trees and found extended camps of Fellenden soldiers and refugees. The people who had escaped Zuhl’s rampage across their homelands were preparing to wage what war they could against the invaders. Alexander felt a swell of pride within his soul. Even against impossible odds there were always those willing to risk everything to preserve a world worth living in. These people were his allies even if they didn’t know it. He decided that he would help them in any way he could.