A Crucible of Souls (Book One of the Sorcery Ascendant Sequence) (64 page)

Mazoet struck the ground again, sending another wave. The girl stood firm, only to be met with another volley of the glowing red balls, these ones appearing out of nowhere above her and slamming down.

She must have diverted strength from her shield to ward against the wave, as some red balls broke through.

She gave an inhuman shriek. Aidan collapsed as the sound penetrated his skull.

Another wave sent the girl and boy flying backwards into the dark. Her clothes burst into flame, and her companion threw himself on her to smother them. Wrapped around each other, they rolled in the dirt.

With the flames extinguished, the girl and her companion recovered and backed away, glaring at Mazoet. After a few paces, they turned and ran.

Mazoet’s shoulders slumped. Cel Rau staggered to his feet, reaching for Chalayan and checking him for signs of life. The swordsman met Aidan’s eye and nodded.

Aidan’s head pounded. He wiped his ear, hand coming away red with blood. Steam rose from the ground outside the circle.

Mazoet turned to face them.
“
That went well, don’t you think?
”
he said with a weary grin.

Chapter Forty-Eight

A flicker of movement down the hallway. Caldan kept his eye to the keyhole, watching for further indications they had been discovered.

Moments ago, a rattling of metal had woken them both. Blurry-eyed, Caldan raised his head from the workbench where he had fallen asleep. Senira groaned as she levered herself to a sitting position.

Caldan raised a finger to his lips. Metal rattled as the door latch was tried again and voices murmured on the other side. Footsteps retreated.

He saw movement but couldn’t identify who had been there. Senira came up behind him.

“
I think we’ve been discovered,
”
he whispered.

Senira immediately looked frightened.

“
It was bound to happen, but I didn’t think it would be so soon.
”

“
What are we going to do?
”

“
I’m guessing they’ve been rechecking all the areas to see if anything has changed, and this door wasn’t locked before. They’re probably looking for something to open it with.
”

“
We should get out of here.
”

Caldan pulled her away from the door and into the workshop area.
She’s right. We should avoid fighting, if we can.
“
If they look through the keyhole, they’ll see us in here. We need to pack up and leave before they come back.
”

Senira nodded and busied herself gathering the food and bits and pieces they thought would be useful. Caldan went to the workbench and hurriedly stuffed the pieces of metal and paper into his sack.

“
Leave the pile of rags and the teapot,
”
he said.
“
They know someone’s been here, so don’t waste time hiding them.
”

“
If you say so. What are you doing?
”

Caldan reached up and placed one of his paper figures into a nook in the brick wall. He glanced around then placed another figure above the main door, sitting on the lintel. Opening his well, he linked to both of the
craftings
. Keeping two strings going for any amount of time was difficult, but he could manage.

“
They look creepy.
”
Senira eyed the figures with suspicion then went back to gathering their scavenged supplies.

“
They’re just
craftings
. Weak ones at that. They’ll be able to sense who comes in here and relay that back to me.
”

“
Why do you have to make them look like people?
”

“
Because… one day I hope to be able to make them move,
”
Caldan replied with a shrug.

Senira shuddered.
“
That’s definitely creepy.
”

“
No it’s not. I can get paper animals to move, but it’s harder with stronger materials.
”

Senira shook her head.
“
Come on. You can experiment all you like once we get out of here and we’re safe with the masters.
”

She sounded confident they would reach safety without any problems. Caldan wished he was as sure.

Muffled voices reached their ears.

“
Quickly,
”
hissed Caldan, grabbing Senira’s shoulder and propelling her towards the other door. He opened his well and disengaged the
crafting
lock he had placed on the door.

Senira poked her head outside.
“
All clear… I think.
”

Caldan stood close behind her and pushed his head through the gap above her blonde hair. It looked clear, but he wanted to be certain.

He reached into a pocket and drew out a paper shape covered in runes. Unfolding its wings, he frowned in concentration, linking it to his well, and then gently tossed the
crafting
into the corridor. Pressure built in his head as he maintained the three strings.

Wings flapped and the bird rose close to the ceiling then glided down the corridor. Adorning its surface, the runes glowed faintly in the dark.

“
Oh,
”
gasped Senira.
“
That’s… beautiful.
”

Caldan grinned.
“
Still think they’re creepy?
”

“
The bird isn’t. Those other things were.
”
She looked up at him.
“
What’s it doing?
”

“
Scouting. It’s crafted to tell me if there’s anyone around, like the figures I left in the workroom. Though because it’s made of paper, it won’t last long.
”
He paused for a moment.
“
All clear. Let’s go.
”

Senira stepped into the corridor followed closely by Caldan. He closed the door behind them and re-fused his crafted lock. Whoever tried to follow them would have a hard time opening it. Though if they got through the other door, maybe they wouldn’t. Well, it would delay them for a while, and that’s all they needed.

Caldan took a hold of Senira’s hand.

“
Can you let go, please?
”
she asked.

“
Sorry. It’s because I can shield you, if it comes to that. I need to maintain contact with you.
”

“
Oh. That’s all right, then.
”
She gave him curious look.
“
You can shield two people?
”

“
I’m fairly sure I can.
”

Senira looked doubtful but gripped his hand tighter.

They crept along the dim corridor, feet scuffing on the flagstones. Ahead of them came a pale orange light, where Caldan knew the corridor split to the left and right. Left would lead to the gardens and right to a courtyard frequently used by the apprentices when they tested their smith-crafting.

They stopped short of the intersection, hugging the walls.
“
It’s clear,
”
whispered Caldan.

Senira frowned at him.

“
The bird,
”
he reminded her, pointing at the paper
crafting
sitting in the middle of the intersection. A wisp of smoke drifted up from it.

“
You first,
”
she said, waving him ahead.

From the courtyard to the right, Caldan knew there were two other doorways entering the area. From either of the two, he was confident they could make their way outside the guild buildings.

One of the crafted figures in the workshop alerted him to a presence entering the room, though he couldn’t tell who or how many. A faint tug on his awareness from the other
crafting
above the door told him they were moving swiftly. If they had broken through his
crafting
lock on the first door, it wouldn’t be long before they broke through the second.

“
We need to move. Come on.
”
He grabbed Senira’s hand and rushed ahead.

Both his links with the crafted figures in the workshop shattered simultaneously. A crackling sound filled the corridor, and behind them the door to the workshop swung open.

Caldan activated his shield and his skin tightened. With a thought, he extended it around Senira.

Through the doorway strode the tall, pale-skinned woman from the cells followed by two men. The bells in her dark hair tinkled as she stepped forward.

“
Hello,
”
she called.
“
I see you.
”
She laughed warmly.

“
Run!
”
yelled Caldan. He sprinted towards the corner, dragging Senira with him.

A violent force hit them from behind, lifting them off their feet. Senira screamed. They tumbled to the ground just shy of the intersection. Caldan strained to hold onto Senira’s hand. His shield held, though it keened with the strain. Sparks flew as globes of yellow light sizzled past them and struck the walls.

A strong scent of lemons reached him.

Another cluster of yellow lights flew at them, spread wide to cover the width of the corridor, striking both of them. The force pushed him back, and he lost his grip on Senira’s hand. With a faint pop the shield around her vanished.

A second cluster followed behind the first. Caldan watched helpless as two slammed into Senira and she staggered, screaming. Her knees buckled and she collapsed in a heap. Smoke billowed from two charred circles on her body.

Her eyes glazed over and were still.

“
No,
”
he sobbed.
“
I had you.
”
You should have been safe.

“
Take him alive,
”
he heard Bells yell behind him.
“
I don’t care about the girl.
”

Caldan grabbed his sack and scrabbled around the corner on hands and knees. He glanced back at Senira lying on the cold stone floor. His face burned, and he dripped sweat. He should have kept her safe. She had relied on him. And now she was dead.

Caldan’s body ached from where the lights had hit his shield. It had protected him from the energy they emitted but not from the physical force.

He lurched to his feet and stumbled into the courtyard, straight for the exit ahead. At the opening, he paused and thrust his hands into his pockets, dragging out fistfuls of paper. He crushed the shapes he had painstakingly folded that night, but he didn’t care. It didn’t matter now. All that mattered was escaping alive.

He scattered the paper to the ground and disappeared through the doorway.

With a wrench, his link to the bird shattered, so he knew they had reached the spot where Senira lay. He needed to hurry.

In front of him, the corridor headed straight. Doors spotted the walls on either side, but he knew they only led to classrooms and offices, dead ends. At the end of the corridor stood another door with bound metal edges. This one opened onto a side road next to the guild buildings.

He ran along the corridor, not caring if he made any noise. At the door, he fumbled with the latch, clicked it open. Turning, he glanced behind him. No one. They probably didn’t know which way he’d gone. He drew out another piece of paper.

A shadow moved in the courtyard. He guessed they should be standing among his discarded paper shapes.

Caldan opened his well and linked to one of them, then another, then another. Gritting his teeth he linked to a fourth. His head felt ready to explode. He linked to a fifth. Panting, he filled all five with power but didn’t activate them. He reached into his well and pushed as much as he could, and then ruptured their anchors.

All five shapes were consumed in an instant as he unleashed the power flowing through them. It had no shape, no purpose. He simply set it loose.

A painful light erupted in the courtyard. Air shook around him. A hot wind rushed down the corridor into his face.

Caldan held his breath and waited. One moment. Two.

A figure appeared from the courtyard. Bells tinkled.

The lady stood there, clothes steaming. Spots of blood spattered her face. There was no sign of the two men with her.

“
Naughty,
”
she said, and stepped forward.

Caldan dragged himself through the door and slammed it shut behind him. The narrow alleyway was empty. As fast as he could, he folded a paper into a square and wedged it between the door and the frame.

He reached for his well, but in his panicked state it slipped from his mind’s grasp. He dragged in a deep breath and reached again, fumbling like it was his first time. There. He linked to two different
craftings
on the paper, filled them with force from his well and ruptured one of the anchors.

Around the paper, the metal glowed orange, then red, then white. Caldan struggled to hold onto his
shaping
. Metal liquefied and dripped between the door and the frame. Caldan closed his well. In the cold air the metal solidified, welding the door shut.

He grabbed his sack and ran, never looking back.

What felt like hours later, he stopped running. He bent over, hands on knees and sucked in huge breaths. People he had passed looked at him like he was a madman, and he thought for a while he might be. He hadn’t stopped taking random turns, ducking into the narrowest back lanes and alleys he could see.

He looked around, having no idea where he was. Somewhere between Barrows and Dockside, he guessed. He remembered crossing a bridge over the River Modder some time ago, though with the twists and turns he had taken, he probably hadn’t covered that much distance.