Wizard's Blood [Part Two] (62 page)

The next day they got lucky. The second portal they tried deposited them on a hilltop adjacent to a small road that led down towards a medium sized village. The village lay nestled in the valley between the wide river and the foot of the towering mountains behind the town. The road could be seen continuing past the village, and further up the road another grouping of buildings could be seen. Even at this distance there was something powerful and exclusive about them.

The Academy, Jolan thought.

It looked to be eight or ten miles to the village, and at least a couple of miles more to the second set of structures. That left them exposed longer than Jolan liked, but he was ready to declare success and make this their operational portal. The portal opening faced the river and the trail so their arrival could be noticed if someone happened to be looking at the right time, but it was out in the country enough that it would be unlikely for anyone to be there at the dusk hour they would arrive. They would have to move swiftly to make it all the way into town, over to the Academy and back, and then all the way back to the portal by dawn. It could mean covering at least two and a half miles every hour. It might be wise to consider bringing horses for part of the journey.

“
I think there might be another one closer,” Asari said suddenly. He had been carefully examining a map of the various portals, and there were five scattered along the river at various locations. If we have the scale right, I think there is one a mile or so beyond the village, on the far side of the river.”

The far side wouldn’t pose a problem. Jolan could see the sturdy bridge that crossed the river near the middle of the village. A portal a mile or so beyond the town would reduce the distance they had to cover to something in the vicinity of ten miles as opposed to the twenty-five they were probably looking at from their current location.

“
Do we know the identifier?” Jolan asked.

That was part of the problem. They could narrow down the portal identifiers for the area, but pinning them to a specific device hadn’t been very consistent. They usually had to try one and see where it let them out. Trying to get to this next portal could take a number of tries.

“
We know what we expect to see now,” Asari countered. “We could go home, start planning, and a couple of us could try the remaining portals. I bet all we have to do is pop out, and have a quick look. If we can’t see the river and the Academy across the way, then it isn’t the one we are seeking. By tonight we should know. Either way, we can be ready to scout the area tonight with the intent of making the rescue the next day.”

The thought made Jolan dizzy. He could possibly see Shyar in a little over a day. He’d felt he had failed her, leaving her captive for so long. He could only hope she understood why things had worked out this way. Making a quick decision, Jolan said, “Let’s try it Asari’s way. Asari and Luzoke can scan the most likely portals while the rest of us review what we want to do tonight.”

* * * *

Asari and Luzoke found the correct portal after three tries. As Asari had guessed, it was located just over a mile north of the village. Located in a stand of trees less than a hundred feet from the river, it was almost invisible. They could arrive and stay hidden until they confirmed the coast was clear of any observers.

On the side of the river where the portal was located, the country seemed mostly wilderness toward the north. Lots of trees and slow rolling hills made up the lake shore. Asari could spot a couple of structures nestled into the choice spots on the sides of the smaller hills overlooking the river, but the bulk of the village was located to the south.

Given the shorter distance they had to cover, Jolan decided to delay their departure until almost eleven that night. He reasoned the villagers would have mostly gone to sleep by then. This was a support town. In addition to some of the staff from the Academy itself, the village supplied workers to the factories that the Academy had chartered in the area. It was midweek, so most would have to work the next day, meaning they would retire earlier than they might on one of the end-of-week days.

They arrived to the sounds of water creatures in the night. Croakers sounded as they walked toward the river, and a light breeze lazily moved the branches of the smaller trees. Although it was late in the summer, the river was still near the top of its banks, indicating a goodly supply of mountain snow fed this particular waterway.

Asari took the lead, directing them down the river toward the village. Everyone knew the intended direction, but Asari seemed to instinctively pick the easiest route through the underbrush. Once they reached the village, of course, they would have to walk as a group, pretending they had every right to be there and acting as if it didn’t matter who saw them.

Halfway to the village they came upon a trail heading their way, which made their progress swifter and more certain. The trail gradually widened and became a real road, with the number of residences increasing the deeper into the town they walked. Almost without realizing the transition, they found themselves in an area with many shops and places to eat, most shut down due to the lateness of the hour. A few proprietors could be seen through the windows putting away items or simply cleaning up in preparation for the next day’s business.

The group stayed close to the water, the path widening and turning to stone. Before long they approached the bridge, a wide stone structure that spanned the river by crossing between two small hills on either side of the water. Slightly arched, the bridge allowed boats to pass underneath, yet was more than wide enough for people and carts to pass either direction at the same time.

As they started across the bridge, Jolan watched the members of the group. All of the mages had
shield-pairs
in place, even the spy-mages and Ronoron who were dressed as soldiers. Only Asari was without some kind of protection. Since the shields offered protection without giving off a detectable signature, it had seemed the best way to proceed. The spy-mages were on full alert, enjoying the chance to finally see first hand something of the inside of Ale’ald. Only Ronoron might be more actively scouting the area. He was watching everything, totally alert. His first time on a real mission was obviously a source of enjoyment and pride to the man.

As they approached the other side of the river, it became clear that more people were up and working in this part of the village. Along this side of the river were a number of docks, most with a boat or two tied up. Some were being loaded, and a few were dispatching cargo. On the docks, crates of cargo were swiftly carried away and into warehouses, or moved from their temporary resting place onto one of the boats.

They passed a couple of locals, and one man dressed in a uniform. No one paid them much attention, although the man in the uniform seemed a bit surprised to see wizards and military walking together so congenially. They turned north as they exited the bridge and started up the wide road toward the Academy. Hopefully anyone that saw them would assume they were staying there, and had been out for a stroll. Clearly, this side of the river was the industrial area, whereas the side with their portal was where people lived.

Within a half mile the town thinned, and soon they were back into the open. A few structures were seen off to the right, most likely more factories of some kind. As they walked they looked for places that they could hide, and routes that would conceal them from watching eyes. Tomorrow they might have to make their escape under pursuit. Jolan hoped not, but one had to plan for the worst possibility. The trees along the river offered the most concealment, but frankly, much of the path was quite barren of anything but grasses, leaving little in the way of places to hide. It would have been nice to be able to simply cut across the river from the portal, but a boat would be quite obvious to anyone watching since nothing else was moving out on the water this time of night. Besides, where would they get a boat, and how would they navigate against the current, which appeared swift in places?

Another hour of walking took them as close as desired to the castle. Jolan could see the factories Shyar had told Tishe about. His skin prickled. Shyar was there, inside the building he faced. So was his enemy. He longed to rush in even now. If only they’d told Shyar to escape tonight, she’d be waiting and they could end this today instead of having to wait another full day.

Jolan shook his head. They were doing this the right way. Now that they’d walked the path, they knew better what to expect. Tomorrow everyone would be prepared. Tomorrow he’d be back together with Shyar.

Ronoron stepped out of the portal into the stand of tall trees along the river in the middle of the afternoon. He was alone. Once he was certain the coast was clear, he turned back to the portal and executed a protected spell to shut it down. That made the second major transgression in the last several hours. He knew that his former life was now past, and he was taking steps that would be hard to explain to those who considered him friend. After he accomplished his task however, he hoped they would see his actions for the brave and bold act they were.

Ronoron was tired of being left out. He was fed up with being considered the poor weak level three with only the ability to perform special functions more suited to supporting research. Dragons, if it hadn’t been for what he could do, Jolan and the rest would never have gotten started on the trail that led them to Ygooro and eventually back to Earth.

For a long time he’d felt an integral part of the group, but in the last year he felt a bit cast off. He’d been able to help with the portals a bit, but even there he’d been given the less important assignment of checking out locations in safe Seret. No one seemed to care that it had been his family in Kimlelm that had been killed when the Ale’ald forces had moved into his old homeland. He knew this for certain. Before they’d started keeping a close watch on the portals he’d slipped into Kimlelm alone one day and found out the truth. Cheurt needed to pay for the loss of his family, however poorly they might have treated Ronoron in the past.

So, now he’d take action on his own while the opportunity presented itself. He’d managed to convince Jolan to bring him along on this adventure, even though it was very clear that Jolan didn’t think his presence was needed. Ronoron had been very attentive to everything they had seen the previous day, and was certain he could blend in easily enough to make his way to the castle during the day. Blending in was a specialty of his, having learned the need to not stand out overly much when mixing with the more advanced mages at the College. Weak as he normally was, now he had power, and he knew the spells of concealment which would aid him when needed. From what Tishe had told them about what she had gleaned from the mental pictures Shyar had sent about getting in and out of the castle, he didn’t think he’d have too much trouble there either. In worst case, he’d kill the guards and just have to move quickly.

He’d of course tried to get Jolan to consider going after Cheurt while they were here in Ale’ald. The impact on the war would be profound. Jolan, however, was too focused on getting Shyar away safely. He’d said they could mount another attempt on Cheurt afterwards, with Shyar probably a significant part of any plan using what she knew of the inside and her level seven capabilities. Ronoron didn’t agree. It would be hard to come back. Once Cheurt realized that Ale’ald’s defenses had somehow been thwarted, he’d make sure that so much extra security was in place they’d never be able to make an attempt.

At the moment he was almost equivalent to a level seven. With Shyar free, that made two level sevens against Cheurt’s one. Had Luzoke and a few others been here, the man would be so outnumbered he wouldn’t have a chance. Jolan was correct in that Cheurt was on his home ground and many war wizards would be close at hand, which could present a problem, but Ronoron was convinced if they moved quickly it would all be over and they’d be gone before anyone was able to react. Well, it didn’t matter now.

Ronoron realized that back in Cobalo his actions would soon be discovered. The afternoon planning meeting would start in another hour or so, and they’d realize something was up when he didn’t show for the meeting. As eager as he’d been to be part of the mission, his absence would be a dead give away. He wondered if they would start after him immediately or whether they would stick to the original plan. They would have to have some doubts, which would slow them down. Of course, once they checked with Morin and learned the portal here had been activated for a short time they’d be certain.

Jolan would already be upset and trying to figure out what had happened to his amulet. Getting that had been the key to all of Ronoron’s plans. He wasn’t proud of himself, but he’d longed for the device since the day Jolan had allowed him to try it out and see what effect it had on him. Ronoron had been stunned at the power he’d suddenly commanded. For the short time he’d been allowed to use the device he’d not only been the equal of the other mages at the college, but in some ways he’d been superior. Jolan had been extremely surprised at the incredible effect the device had had on Ronoron as well. For most of the mages tested, the device had a far lesser impact. Meekly handing the device back to Jolan after the testing was complete had been one of the hardest things Ronoron had ever done. If Jolan hadn’t already told him the device was one-of-a-kind due to an element that couldn’t be duplicated by them, he would have begged his friend to build him one.