Resurgence of Ancient Darkness (33 page)

“All assault teams are clear. Time to pull out,” she replied.

“Acknowledged. We are pulling out now,” I said.

Around us, the inky black of space began to light up as the fleet opened fire on the station. “
Teleport as far as you can, but stay together. We need to get clear,”
I sent.

Using telepathy we were able to stay together as we teleported over and over, trying to get away from the station. Behind us, it was blowing apart as more and more weapon fire was brought against it. I was struggling to maintain focus and my vision was failing me, but I had to hold it together long enough to get my team to safety.

“Lieutenant Tyrrell, we are moving away from the station as fast as we are able, but we would appreciate a lift soon,” I sent over the comm. Since they could track our comm signal, it would be easy for them to find us.

“Sure, do mind stopping long enough for us to catch up?” she replied.

I almost laughed at that, but the pain in my chest cut it short. I had forgotten that while teleportation is severely limited in distance, it travels at nearly the speed of light, making our continuous teleport hop much faster than the penetration shuttle could match. “Acknowledged. Holding current position.”

Soon Lieutenant Tyrrell caught up with us and picked us up. Once on board I said, “Thanks,” and fell against the wall.

“You okay?” she asked.

“Yeah, just took a little love tap from one of the sentries,” I said.

She smiled and said, “Good work out there. I think we managed to save everyone.”

“Thanks,” I said, still gasping for breath. “I should’ve seen that trap, though!”

She said in a slightly softer tone, “None of us did. We got careless, but we live to try again. Later when you can breathe properly, you will have to tell me about that table and General Order Seventy-One.”

I bent over and coughed up some blood. “Might be a while.” My head was dizzy, but I vaguely heard her call for a medic and felt her lay me down as my world turned red and faded to black.

“Are you ready, Grandmasters?” asked Mantis.

Sitting in Mantis’ study looking up at the tapestries, I wondered if what we were about to do was wise. It seemed to fly in the face of everything we had built the Wizard Council on, but still it must be done. “Yes; at least as ready as one can be.”

“Let us just get this over with,” said Grandmaster Korshalem.

We followed Mantis down to the gate room and through the gate. On the other side was a grand dining hall. In the center was a round table filled with fresh fruit, cooked meat, and various kinds of drink. The room was warmly lit with light stones, and the scent of fresh, spring air was slowly circulating, giving the impression that we were honored guests.

Standing before the table was an older gentleman dressed in the clothes of a successful businessman. He looked like any other businessman to the naked eye, but as a spellweaver I could see his massive power field. There was no question anymore: the “old man” was a master-level magus. The power around him was held tightly in check; not a wisp of it dared to move. It was like everything else about him and this room. He portrayed an aura of control. Nothing escaped his attention, and nothing dared to be amiss in his presence.

Standing next to and slightly behind him was another human. He was distinctly average in all ways, except for his steel-grey eyes. They had a piercing stare filled with power and malice. He wore a light-grey battle suit that was well outfitted with various magical items. He too was a magus, but of substantially less power than the old man.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” said the old man.

“
Mantis, does everything seem good to you?”
I sent. I was not sure why Mantis was included in the invitation: perhaps it was because of his ambassadorial position. I was glad to have him here just in case things went badly.

“
Yes, Grandmaster,
” he replied.

“Thank you, but what shall we call you?” I asked.

“Ah, you grow tired of “The Old Man” so soon? I have taken to that title over the years,” he said. “You may call me Henrik.”

“Greetings, Henrik,” I said.

“Please join me at the table,” he said as he turned and walked to it. He seemed utterly unafraid of us. I wondered if that was because he felt he could trust us to keep the agreed-upon peace, or if he felt we were not a concern. His steel-eyed companion, in contrast, seemed to trust no one and kept everyone, including his master, under careful scrutiny. The power weave around him was more tortured, as if he were hiding a dark secret he dared not let out.

Once we were all seated Grandmaster Korshalem said, “Well, Henrik, I must admit this is a highly unusual meeting.”

“Yes, it is. If you hear me out, I think you will find that this meeting had to happen sooner or later, and I chose sooner. This way we can all meet on peaceful terms,” he said. After this, he leaned back and took a swig of his drink.

“Let us begin with the most obvious question. Why did you call this meeting?” I said.

“Simple. I have information that you need, and you have information I need. Together we can beat back the shadow that is coming, but if we continue to stay separate, the shadow will bring a new era of darkness to both realms,” he said.

“How do we know we can trust you?” asked Korshalem.

“You don’t. Not yet. I know that I can trust you three, so let me tell you what I know. Ten thousand years ago, there was a great war in this realm. The most powerful magi the realm had ever seen fought back and forth for control. Many worlds were devastated in this war, and countless millions were brutally killed. As you already know, a group of magi attempted to end the war for all time by removing their opponents’ ability to reach the weave. This tore and scarred the weave for eons, and the era of technology was born. That era ended when Shadow closed the last rift in the weave, and a new era of magic is on the rise. This much you already know, but what you may not know is what happened during the first years following the tearing of the rift.

“First, many of the elite sorcerers retreated to other realms and restarted their reign there. Some even went to your realm, Korshalem. That is how they knew they could come back here someday.

“The seven master-level sorcerers had foreseen what their enemies were going to do and put plans in place to counter it. They built spirit trap boxes, like the one you destroyed, and sent them out to lie dormant. They also built the tables, which are powered by those spirit gems. Once they had all the pieces in place, they exiled themselves to the Spirit Realm where their magic still functioned. There they have waited for this realm to heal, while continuing to grow in knowledge and power,” said Henrik.

“So far you have filled in a few gaps, but mostly confirmed our suspicions,” I said.

“They also put a curse on your family, Vydor. They did their best to make sure you were never born. Personally, I am glad that failed. They fear your rise to power more than anything else, as you represent the return of their archenemies. They believe your family will be their downfall, and anything that has them scared is a good thing in my book.

“The tables, as you have no doubt figured out, are binding points for them. It is the way they can return to this realm, or any realm in which there is a table. Their physical bodies have long decayed away, so they can only return if they suck enough spirit force from people who live here. That box you destroyed is one of several out there harvesting energy for them. That slave ship your people captured was intended to fill another box of gems. If they get enough, they can return at full power with all the learning and growth of the last ten thousand years behind them.”

“I can see how that would be bad for everyone in this realm. What has this to do with me?” asked Korshalem.

“You have found and destroyed one of the tables in your realm, correct?” asked Henrik.

“Yes,” said Korshalem.

“The sorcerers in your realm have failed to find a new spellweaver among their ranks, so they are leaderless at this time. They fear the power you are gaining while they flounder, so in desperation they struck a deal with the seven ancient magi and are helping them to return, to take over both realms,” said Henrik.

“How can you know this?” asked Mantis.

“I have spies among them,” said Henrik. “They are being fools, obviously. Once the seven are back, they will crush those six sorcerers and anyone else who might pose a threat.”

“What happened to the old Council of Wizards?” I asked.

“Most of them were consumed by the casting. I believe the rest of them, and what remained of the elites, traveled to other realms and retired in peace. In truth, they fell out of the story and were lost to history,” said Henrik.

“Henrik, you have done well in your information-gathering. What is it you need from us?” I asked.

“A few things. But first, here is something to help to prove to you that I am to be trusted,” he said, and moments later an exact replica of the crate that Shea had destroyed floated into the room. I could see it was tightly bound with spells of Henrik’s casting, but definitely contained many trapped spirits.

“If I was the evil that you imagine me to be, I would keep this and tap its power for myself. Instead, like the illuminescence battery array I helped you eliminate, I want this destroyed. I know you have the ability to do it, since you have done it safely once already, and I know you would never use this yourselves, so I give it to you as a token of trust.”

“
Korshalem? Mantis? What do you think?
” I sent privately.

“
As far as we know he has been completely honest with us so far, and he did help you a couple of times in the past,”
sent Korshalem.

“
I think we need to hear him out completely,
” sent Mantis.

Looking the box over, I could see the pattern to unweave it, but that would release the energy into the room. That would be a tremendous amount of spiritual energy, and I was not confident I could safely contain it all. It would be best if I brought it to the Spirit Realm to do the unweaving where the energy release would be harmless. Yet somehow Shea had pulled it off safely. “You could unweave this as well as I,” I said.

“Yes, but that would mean bringing it to the Spirit Realm where the seven currently are,” he said.

“I see. That indeed could be a problem,” I said.

“One I am not ready to deal with, at least not alone. However, you destroyed one crate already without bringing it to the Spirit Realm, so I would suggest we destroy this one in the same way,” said Henrik.

“
I would not advise giving away your secret to him, not yet, but how did you manage that?
” sent Korshalem.

“Since you have been so forthcoming, I will give you a nugget of information. Shea was the one who destroyed the other crate,” I said.

“Shea? It would figure. She’s the one magus whom I gravely underestimated more than once already,” said Henrik.

“
Do you have any idea how she did it?”
asked Korshalem.

“
No, but I think this time I will arrange to watch. We should destroy that crate before he changes his mind and uses it,
” I sent.

“
Agreed,”
replied Korshalem.

“So, where does this leave us?” I asked.

“Simple. You and I build our respective kingdoms in this realm and leave each other alone; but we combine all our forces to take down the seven ancient magi. Korshalem, I will stay out of your realm if you enter into the same agreement,” said Henrik.

“I am not one to make a truce with sorcerers,” said Korshalem.

“I think you will find that the stark contrast between wizard and sorcerer that you see in your realm does not exist here. In this realm, there are many sides in many battles. Everyone is someone’s enemy. For example, many tribes see Vydor’s group of wizards as the evil that must be eliminated. Your realm is so much smaller, at least the space you have populated so far, that sides can be clearly drawn. Here, that can never be the case. Vydor, you must realize this or you would not have created the Wizard Kingdom as its own nation. We must be clear on this: the real danger to each of us is the seven ancient magi, and not anyone in this room.”

“You said you needed information from us. What are you looking for?” I asked.

“For one thing, how to destroy that crate, but I see that that will have to wait. Secondly, I know that Shadow and his team have found another table and are heading towards it as fast as they can, but I have completely lost track of them. I would like to know how they found that table so that I can look for more, and where it is so I can be ready to help, if need be,” he said.

“I understand what you are saying about there being more than one side in this realm, but the weave has chosen Vydor as grandmaster of the realm. There can only be one,” said Korshalem.

“I am not contesting his rank. I am merely saying that if we do not work as a team, the seven ancient magi will return, and a new era of darkness will be born. They cannot make new tables now. The tables have to be made in this realm by living people of this realm, so if we destroy all the tables they cannot return,” said Henrik.

“Until someone gets the idea of building one for them,” I said.

“Yes, which is why this cannot be a temporary agreement. We must forge this alliance for all time,” he said.

“How strong are they now?” asked Mantis.

“It is hard to say. I have not directly encountered one yet. I know Spectra forced one into retreat, but I suspect she was mostly bluffing and fooled the magus. If I had to guess, I would wager they are probably approaching elite level,” he said. “But every table we find and destroy sets them back. Every crate that is not delivered slows their growth.”

“
What do you two think now?
” I sent.

“
I think he is right. We have no choice but to team up, but I do not like it, not at all,”
sent Korshalem.

“
Are we certain he is being honest?”
I asked.

“
I believe him,
” sent Mantis.