Magus (Advent Mage Cycle) (22 page)

"That's still insane!" she snapped back.

"Chatta, I would
never
hurt you," I pointed out impatiently. "I don't need to worry about it."

"And if I'm hurt in front of you, and you're not able to help me, for whatever reason? What then?" she demanded.

Then…well then, I was in trouble.

My face must have said something to that effect, because she nodded in dark satisfaction. "That's what I thought."

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to be calm and patient. "Chatta, that oath didn't change anything."

"Oh?" she challenged archly.

"Do you honestly think that I could ever stand by and just watch you be hurt?" Her expression changed, becoming pensive. "I would do everything in my power to protect you, you should know that. The oath I swore was only for your father's peace of mind."

She fell silent, thinking that over. "Yes…I guess I do know that." Her eyes cut to my face, eyes narrowed. "And
you
realize that feeling goes both ways?"

"Of course," I readily agreed.

"So I just got mad at you for no good reason?"

I smiled, but wisely didn't say anything.

She blew out an irritated breath. "All right, I'll drop it. So my father knows that you'd never marry me without permission. Does
your
family know about this oath?"

"I never told them," I said easily. "Guin did, though."

"Then there's no way for me to tease them with a fake wedding ring," she lamented.

She was still on that? "No, probably not."

"You're taking all the fun out of this, Garth."

I rolled my eyes. "Your father did that, not me. Now that you're satisfied, can I have breakfast?"

"Lunch," she corrected. "It's past noon."

I didn't care what meal of the day it was, I just wanted food. "Lunch, then."

Chapter Eleven: Mages

I'd gotten a chance to have that bath, and into some clean clothes. De Lien was fussing around me like my own mother, keeping people at bay long enough for me to get cleaned up. Then she practically dragged me into her kitchen, intent on shoving food down me (not that I was complaining). I was just sitting down to eat a late lunch when the Magus came in.

Magus Tyvendor wasn't exactly what I was expecting. For one thing, he looked more like a blacksmith than a Mage. His large, solid build and slightly ruddy skin probably had something to do with that impression. And his eyes were penetrating, so much so that you felt like he was examining your soul when he looked at you. That was hardly a comfortable sensation.

He bowed slightly in greeting, hands splayed out to either side. "Tyvendor, Air Mage from Coven Ordan. We seek the balance."

I gave him a half-bow from my seat. "Rhebengarthen, Earth Mage of Hain. Thank you for the gift of your name."

"Do you mind if I join you, Magus?" he asked politely.

"Not at all, please do." My curiosity was eating at me, but my stomach was threatening to revolt if I didn't feed it soon. I compromised by taking a quick bite while the Magus sat down, then asking a question. "Chatta's told me your history, and a little about your purpose here. Why are you so interested in the magical politics of this continent?"

"We've always considered Hain and Chahir to be home," Tyvendor answered slowly. By the way that he was watching me, I gathered that he hadn't been expecting that question. At least, not yet. "Some of us would like to return and live here."

"Why have you waited until now?" I really wanted the answer to this question. Why had they waited until Mages appeared again?

"Actually, your awakening was a catalyst," Tyvendor admitted. "We've been toying with the idea of returning home for generations now, but we didn't feel it wise to do so. Bromany demands a great deal of our time and talents—we didn't want to alert Chahir or Hain to our presence, and have them do the same thing. No one wants to be caught in the middle of a tug of war."

I understood what he meant perfectly.

"When Mages began to appear again, we thought it safe enough to announce ourselves. Neither Chahir nor Hain could demand our services when they already had Mages of their own." He grimaced. "Or so we thought. We were naïve—we had no idea what the situation would really be over here."

"I'm glad you came," I told him honestly. "We can use the help."

"So your King told me, although you seem to have adjusted to your magic quite well." Those light blue eyes were sharp and appraising. "This barrier that you erected over Q'atal is very impressive."

I squirmed a bit, uncomfortable under this praise. "I had a lot of power to draw from—that helped."

"You had a lot of power to draw from, which probably made the whole situation harder to manage," Tyvendor corrected in dry amusement. "Don't tell me otherwise. I know better."

De Lien turned around sharply. She had been doing something at the kitchen sink, but was obviously listening. I didn't need to look at her face to know that her suspicions were aroused. I carefully side-stepped the issue. "So it's sound, then? I haven't had a chance to check my work."

"Perfectly sound. I went over it thoroughly. That doorway you created was a particular stroke of genius. I didn't know you
could
leave a hole like that in a barrier without the whole thing coming down on your head. How did you manage that?"

"It's the trees," I explained after swallowing another bite. The food was really good, but I wasn't giving it the attention it deserved. I was too caught up in the conversation. "This forest has been around for a
very
long time. It's soaked up the energy of the ley lines under it. I was able to anchor the barrier in two specific trees, building the barrier up around it."

His eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Would that make the trees the keystone? That's dangerous, you know. What if someone tries to chop down those trees?"

"They'll get the shock of their life," I answered, chuckling at the mental image that had popped up in my head. I could just picture some poor sod trying to chop down that tree with an axe—and getting blown out of his boots in the process. "Those two trees are sheer power—just touching them will make your hair stand on end. Trust me, you can't cut them down."

He gave a noncommittal "Hmmm."

"
Garth, aren't you finished yet?
" Night stuck his head into the doorway.

"Will you be patient?" I replied in exasperation. "I've barely been up an hour! And I'm starving."

"
Everyone keeps asking me questions about you. I'm tired of repeating myself,
" he complained.

"Is this your Nreesce?" Tyvendor was staring at Night with a strange expression on his face.

I found it odd that in the past two days he hadn't met Night yet. "Yes, this is Night. You two haven't met?"

"I'm afraid I was too distracted studying the barrier to get more than names," Tyvendor apologized.

"Then let me do the introductions." I waved a hand between them. "Night, this is Magus Tyvendor, Air Mage from Coven Ordan. Tyvendor, this is my Nreesce, Night."

"
Pleasure, Magus.
" Night was returning Tyvendor's scrutiny like for like.

"I hope you don't think this impertinent, Night, but who was your mother?"

"
Advent Eve.
"

Tyvendor went rock still, and he made a strangled sound like a duck choking on a cracker. "Are…you her only son?"

Night exchanged a glance with me—why was he asking this?—but answered. "
Yes, I am.
"

"Trivoxor," Tyvendor breathed shakily.

My fork dropped out of my nerveless fingers, clattering to the plate. "How did you know that?" I demanded sharply. Only four people knew of Night's true name—including Night and me—and there was
no
way that either Professor O'danne or Professor Bryer would tell Tyvendor this information.

Tyvendor had to swallow twice before he could get words to come out of his mouth. "There is a prophecy, from before the Magic War. It…mentions him."

I looked to Night to see his reaction. My brain was too stunned to think up a rational response. My Nreesce looked just as pole-axed. I wanted to demand answers, but didn't feel comfortable doing so with De Lien in the room. Not that I didn't like her, but—this was not a secret that should get out.

She must have sensed this. De Lien left the sink, patting me on the shoulder as she passed me. "I think you need some privacy."

I smiled at her gratefully, only relaxing when the kitchen door was shut. Then I turned back to Tyvendor, pinning him in place with my eyes. "What do you know of the prophecy?"

He licked dry lips, a little nervously. For some reason, he was staring back at me like I had just sprouted a second head. "You've read it?"

"Yes." I didn't feel like elaborating any further.

"A great deal of knowledge has been lost in Hain. Let me recite it, just to make sure we're talking about the same thing."

I thought that a sensible idea, and nodded for him to continue.

With a deep breath, Tyvendor recited calmly, "The Mother shall give birth, and her son will be named Trivoxor. Blood shall be mixed with his coming; strangers shall seek him. A Rider shall be chosen. Great power shall be his, and all shall know his name. When Trivoxor has chosen a Rider, the Balance will be restored. The son will be named Trivoxor and blood will be mixed with his coming."

I felt a cold shiver run up and down my spine. What he had recited was word perfect for the prophecy I had read, nearly two years ago, except for that one sentence.

"Repeat the last part,
" Night requested. To my mental ears, he sounded a little…disturbed.

"When Trivoxor has chosen a Rider, the Balance will be restored. The son will be named Trivoxor and blood will be mixed with his coming."

"
Garth…that's not the prophecy you read to me.
"

"It's a little different," I agreed. "Tyvendor, the part about the Balance being restored when Trivoxor has chosen a Rider…where did that come from?"

"It was in the original texts that came with my ancestors," he answered with a helpless shrug. "You have a different version?"

"Yours was nearly word perfect, except that sentence." And that sentence was giving me the creeps.

"The Seer who gave the prophecy was one of my ancestors," Tyvendor said this while keeping a careful eye on both of our faces. "I believe it to be the most accurate version."

That wasn't the answer that I wanted to hear.

"That was another reason that we came here," Tyvendor continued, when it was obvious neither Night nor I would say anything more. "We knew that Advent Eve had to be very old, if she were still alive. We wanted to find her son, and figure out if he had chosen a Rider or not."

"And if he had?" I kept the question neutral.

"Then we were certainly going to keep tabs on them both." Tyvendor met my eyes levelly. "Can you blame us, considering the nature of that prophecy?"

"No," I sighed heavily. "I can't." After a moment of thought, I added, "Can you tell me what it means?"

Tyvendor snorted, amused. "The wonderful part about prophecies is that they can be interpreted a millions ways, and only hindsight will tell you what they really mean."

That was unfortunately true.

~*~

There was an unexpected side effect to the barrier that I hadn't foreseen. I knew that the Q'atalians could pass in and out of the barrier with ease, of course. I designed it that way on purpose. What I
hadn't
known was that they could feel it when they passed through. More, that apparently it felt oddly pleasant to do so.

After my late lunch with Tyvendor and Night, I went out to see for myself what my handiwork looked like. The first thing I saw was a group of children, ranging from perhaps three years old to thirteen, all jumping back and forth through the barrier and squealing with delight.

"
They've been doing that since yesterday
," Night said at my elbow. "
Apparently, it never gets old.
"

"They can feel it?" Most non-magical people couldn't feel magic at all, unless it was in vast quantities.

"
I think it's because of their empathy. They certainly feel
something
when they pass through."

I found that very interesting.

With eyes and magical sense, I took a better look at the barrier. It was shaped like a huge dome overhead, transparent for the most part. If you looked at it in the shadows of the trees, you sometimes caught a hint of green in the barrier. I tested it in a few places, but Tyvendor was right. The barrier was perfectly sound.

"Garth!"

I turned, looking behind me. Shad was approaching at a quick lope, but he was smiling slightly, so I doubted that he was looking for me because there was some sort of emergency. It took him only a few moments to catch up to me, and he stopped, not even breathing hard.

"Xiaolang wants to leave tomorrow morning," he informed me.

I blinked at this. "So soon?" I expected for him to want to stay longer, all things considered.

"We've already been here five days," Shad reminded me. "And we weren't supposed to come up here to begin with. I think Xiaolang is feeling like he's neglecting his duty to Chahir."

Knowing Xiaolang, that was probably exactly what he was thinking. "Hmmm. Well, all right."

Without any transition, he changed subjects. "Did you say something to Chatta?"

Apparently while I was sleeping, Shad had met Chatta. I wasn't surprised by this, as Shad had proven to be a true people person. I didn't know why he was asking me that question however, and eyed him sideways. "Why?"

"Because she keeps muttering darkly to herself. She wasn't doing that until you woke up." Shad had both eyebrows arched, expectantly waiting for my response.

Curse his observant hide. I kept my answer short and concise. "I gave her father an Oath of Protection. She just found out about it."

Shad whistled softly. "I haven't known her long, but she strikes me as the independent type."