Hemlock And The Wizard Tower (Book 1) (51 page)

Hemlock realized that she was being led to the audience chamber.

Upon entering, she saw Falignus seated formally in the throne of the head of the Guild.  He motioned to her to sit beside him.

As she did so, Falignus motioned to the wizard who had escorted her.  That wizard moved along the length of the hall, exited, and after a few moments escorted a familiar figure though the far entrance.

Hemlock watched as the wiry s
enator
,
Samberlin,
walked proudly along the length of the audience chamber.
 
He seemed nonplussed by the elder
wizards
that were
depicted in
two ranks
of statues
that he passed
between as he walked.
Hemlock thought that it was more than just
familiarity with the chamber;
pride seemed to ooze out
of the man in a palpable way.
 

"
Samberlin
, what an unexpected surprise
,
" Falignus called out loudly and sarcastically.
 
"I've invited Hemlock to sit i
n on our little chat," he added.

Samberlin
bowed to Hemlock briefly
.
"The
latest
shipment of potions was not sufficient."

"
Samberlin
, this is a time of war.
 
We must all tighten our belts
,
" Falignus responded ligh
tly, inspecting his fingernails.  Looking at Falignus, Hemlock felt that a large portion of his former grace had passed away at some point since she had last seen him.  He looked drawn and irritable.

"Be that as it may, honored sir, we have trouble on our hands now.
 
These
last
weeks of light shipments have depleted our reserves of potions.
 
We've already cut back on non
-
critical deliveries
to our merchants,
"
Samberlin
responded with an acidic tone, his eyes d
ark and almost feral.

Falignus made a mocking gesture of sympathy mixed with chagrin in
response.
 
"What's a w
izard to do?
 
We'll have to tell the people that magic is going to be rationed for a time until the City is safe again.
 
We'll impress an army to join
us in battle against Gwineval."

"I don't thin
k you fully grasp the situation," replied Samberlin.  "
Your strict control of magic has been unpopular.
 
Certain
covert
elements have resisted this control.
 
Per your counsel
,
we've chosen to suppress the nature of this conflict
with Gwineval
from discussion amongst the people.
 
We can't simply reverse course now without riskin
g an open revolt.
 
It will take
weeks upon weeks to condition the people to accept this type of situation
, and even then, success would be far from certain
.
 
This conflict cannot continue
– the risks are too great.
 
You must sue for peace."

Falignus laughed a shallow laugh which ignited into an angry outburst
.
"I will never sue for peace with Gwineval!
 
He will be utterly destroy
ed!"

"He has control of the Oberon now.
 
Your situation is untenable
," responded Samberlin, unrepentant in the face of
Falignus' anger.

Falignus stood with a start and his arms rose above him.  Sheets of roiling fire burst forth and encircled Samberlin, crackling dangerously close to the loose fitting tunic which the Senator always wore.

Samberlin, for his part, retained his impassive look despite the deadly display of force.  Hemlock, again, found herself impressed with the old Senator.

"I have made arrangements, Falignus," Samberlin shouted over the fire.  "Were I to meet a mysterious end, certain letters would be opened by various parties.  I think it would set off a chain of events you’d find most unfortunate."

Hemlock could see Falignus struggling with the competing forces of his emotion and his reason.  She grasped his arm and he looked down at her sharply, rage and hurt in his eyes.

Pulling away from Hemlock and looking back at Samberlin, he lowered his arms and the fire dissipated as quickly as it had been conjured.

"So Samberlin, I refuse your request to sue for peace.  Where does that leave us?" Falignus asked coolly, all traces of his former rage suddenly gone.

Samberlin did not hesitate. "I’m afraid that I must resign as your councilor and partner in policy.  I will have to prosecute an inquiry into your conduct and the Oberon supply.  I will do what I can to delay or blunt any rash action on the part of the Senate, but I will no longer be able to take these private meetings with you."

Falignus sighed. "Fine.  Fine.  Samberlin, I’m curious: do you really feel that this is in your best interest?  Do you feel that I will be defeated by Gwineval?"

"I fear that there are significant risks that you will be defeated, yes; not the least of which is the young woman seated beside you, if I may be so blunt."

Hemlock was angry at the old Senator, for his words shone with the brilliance of truth.  She feared that Falignus would feel the same way–and that he would offer to sever ties with her for fear of losing his alliance with Samberlin.

She glanced at Falignus, and was relieved to see that he did not appear moved by Samberlin’s analysis.

"Samberlin, I am troubled by your conclusions, but I can only conclude that you’ve finally lost your edge after all of these years.  Gwineval will never defeat me.  I’m not even concerned about it," boasted Falignus coyly.

Samberlin replied with a bow to Hemlock and then a bow to Falignus, which he accented with a theatrical sweep and crack of his robes.  The gesture was unmistakably defiant.

Falignus chuckled as the old Senator withdrew from the Chamber.

Once Samberlin had gone, Falignus turned to Hemlock. "Ready yourself, for the battle with Gwineval nears.  Samberlin doesn’t understand Gwineval like I do.  I knew that Gwineval would never confront me until he feels that he understands the Wand and has a clear advantage over us.  I suspect that that point is now very close at hand.  I’ll admit that the military prowess of this Tored has taken me off guard, but it may actually play into my plans.  Now there is only a single Oberon obelisk remaining.  It is the only place left to defend… and to attack.  It is there that we will soon travel to kill Gwineval."

Hemlock felt bloodlust surge in her veins.  It was an unfamiliar feeling–having been dormant for many days.

She nodded and stood.

Falignus rang a bell which sat beside his chair.  The attendant wizard returned and escorted Hemlock back to her room.

As she walked, Hemlock’s mind was dark with a renewed fury at the thought of confronting Gwineval, that seemed more intense than it had been prior to her recent joyful evening.  It made the joyful memory of the ball seem even more remote and dreamlike.

Hemlock lay
in her chamber that night and stared at the ceiling.  The events of the day had left her uneasy. 
The exchange between Falignus and Samberlin made her realize how tenuous her position in the Wizard Tower was
. 
She again contemplated escape, but she felt weak within the Wizard’s force field which surrounded her room and she feared that Falignus would retaliate if he suspected her to be disloyal.  She remembered the Wizard’s prison room and the suffering that she had experienced there. 
It made her feel world weary.  With these
troubling
thoughts in mind
,
she drifted off to sleep.

She dreamed strange dreams of other worlds and
of
Safreon. 
He
appeared in her dream and spoke to her
in her old home in the Warrens
.

"I don't know what is happening Hemlock
,
" he said.

"Safreon, I feel strange, I have great power
,
yet I'm scared
,
" she responded.

"Hemlock, I've seen writing in the clouds portending doom
,
" h
e stated, also seeming scared.  This was doubly alarming to her because s
he ha
d never seen him scared in life–
only resigned in the face of danger.

"Take courage, I've seen no such signs in the sky
,
" she said
,
in an attempt to reassure him
.

But then he gestured outside
,
and she walked
to the window and looked
out and up
toward
the sky
,
with some concern.  She was relieved to see nothing unusual beyond a pale azure
sky f
illed with
luxurious
white clouds.  As she looked, however, a great black line began to roll slowly across the sky.  As the line passed across her view, the
blue
sky seemed
to be
engulfed, leaving only a deep black void flickering with stars.

Hemlock fell to her knees, unable to take her eyes off of the incredible spectacle.

"SAFREON!" she cried.

Hemlock somehow knew that a
great tempest
was
engulfing the world
,
and
that it would be
only moments before she was swept away in the tumult.  Everything faded to
a quiet
white as she closed her eyes
and the black line travelled overhead
.  She remained conscious in her dream state.

She experienced a strange force in that whiteness, vast
and almost terrible in its power, which
washed over her mind in waves of textured
purity so sharp that they made her cry out in pain
.

With a start
,
she awoke in her bed, deeply troubled.  She sat up and rested her feet on the
wooden planked floor of the room.  The
sensation
of the wood on her feet
gave her an odd comfort
,
although the troubling feel of the dream seemed to linger for several minutes as she again reclined in bed and tried to return to sleep.

She heard an unfamiliar noise in the chamber. Fearing that she still dreamt, she pulled the sheets up higher. But there it was again, an unmistakable metallic noise. She vaulted out of bed and landed in a prone position, ready to take evasive action.

She saw something there in the moonlight of her window, a metallic figure that was shorter than a man or woman, and which was made up of a dizzying array of mechanical parts.

It was one of the mechanical gnomes that the wizards used as servants–of the same ilk as her former companion, Merit.

Somewhat relieved, she thought,
I will have to remember to ask Falignus about this intrusion.

The small figure took a few steps forward, and there was a subtle sound that Hemlock recalled: tiny gears whizzing and whirring and the gentle hiss of steam exhalations.

As the figure spoke, Hemlock considered with a start that perhaps the figure wasn’t just one of Merit’s ilk and that it could actually be Merit. 

"Miss Hemlock?" the figure said quietly.

"Merit!" Hemlock cried and ran over to hug the small figure awkwardly.

"How did you get in here?" she cried.

"The wizards never changed the wards for the servants at the cavern door of the Tower.  I suspected that they wouldn’t.  Nobody ever notices us.  Some Tanna Varrans smuggled me into the City and dropped me off in the chasm near the lake.  I was able to enter the Tower using my old passphrase."

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Gwineval sent me to talk to you, Hemlock," he answered in his distinctive way.

Hemlock’s features darkened.  "Gwineval?  Why?"

"He fears that you mistook his intentions with the Wand, Hemlock.  We both do.  We need to rescue you from here!" Merit said.

"Merit, what’s between Gwineval and I is our business.  You shouldn’t be involved," she replied.

"But I am involved, Miss Hemlock.  You’re both my friends and I can’t believe that you are here with the wizards willingly.  Gwineval believes that you have formed an alliance with Falignus and the wizards, based on news from the City.  Is this true?"