Shades of the Past: The Morcyth Saga Book Six (47 page)

Why?! James had always treated him so fairly
and nice. All the while he sent away his best friend only to be
tortured and maimed. He looks at the hand missing three fingers.
Never again will it hold a knife.

“Jiron,” breathes Tinok weakly. “I’m glad you
found me. I want to go home.”

“You will my friend,” he assures him. “You
will.”

Then Tinok’s head lolls to his chest and he
begins to topple over. “Tinok!” cries out Jiron. Catching his
friend, he knows the truth but doesn’t want to face it. Tinok is
dead.

“
NO!”

With rage nearly consuming him, all he can
think of is to find James and make him pay for the death of his
friend. Getting to his feet, he casts one last glance to Tinok then
draws one of his knives as he leaves the room of pain behind.
Running down the hallway, he returns to the doorway where James’
footprints pass through.

Racing through the door, he pauses as he
takes in the jumbled mess of footprints that crisscross the empty
room. Finally realizing they exit through the open door, he runs
over to it and discovers the hallway leading away on the other
side.

Running down the hallway, he finds a wet spot
where it looks like James had lain at one time. The footprints grow
more distinct as they lead further down the hallway.

James sent me away.

The words of Tinok fuel the rage already
burning within him. The sight of his friend lying broken and wasted
on the table continues to run through his mind.

Betrayer! Murderer!
His
vision becomes tinged with red as his rage mounts to even further
heights.

The footprints lead him to another open door
further down the hallway. Swinging it wide, he quickly scans the
room and sees his quarry on the far side approaching another
door.

With knife in hand, he races across the room
as silently as a cat. He must strike first before the betrayer has
a chance to use his magic. Ten feet from the murderer of his
friend, his prey turns and sees him attacking. A wave of force hits
him and sends him flying twenty feet backward where he lands on his
back.

“Traitor!” James yells as he removes a slug
from his belt.

“Murderer!” screams Jiron. Getting back to
his feet he draws his other knife. With both knives in hand, he
charges forward. He sees James’ eyes flick toward the ground just
in front of him and dives to the side just as…

Crumph!

…the floor explodes upward where he would
have been.

Rolling to a stop, he catches James’ arm
movement as he cocks back his arm to launch his slug. Jumping to
the right he hears the slug strike the wall behind him.

A rumble shakes the floor as the section
surrounding the area James’ magic exploded falls into the room
below. Staggering, Jiron again hurtles himself forward. “I’ll kill
you for what you did to Tinok!” he yells as he closes fast.

Crumph!

The floor under him explodes outwards. Thrown
through the air, he lands within several feet of James. Picking up
a loose stone deposited on the floor by one of the blasts, he
throws it and connects with the side of James’ head.

Knocked backward, James staggers in a daze as
Jiron closes fast. Unable to concentrate sufficiently to use his
magic, he tries to flee. Tripping over the loose rubble the blasts
strew across the floor, he falls to his knees. Then from behind,
one of Jiron’s knives catches him across the back, opening up a six
inch long cut. He dodges to the left and immediately turns onto his
back and tries to scoot away.

“Oh no you don’t,” Jiron says as he follows,
“you’ll not get away that easily.” Grabbing his foot, Jiron stops
him and says, “I’m going to do to you what you did to Tinok.”

James tries to get away but Jiron grabs his
hand and says, “First, I’ll start with the fingers.” He puts a knee
on James’ chest to prevent him from getting away.

“I didn’t do anything to Tinok!” he cries
out. “It was you who betrayed me! Traitor!” Taking a large piece of
rubble, he tries to strike Jiron in the side of the head. Jiron
sees the blow coming and lashes out with his hand. The blow causes
the stone to fly out of James’ hand.

“Lies!” he screams. “Nothing but lies have I
had from you, one I called friend.” Pulling James forefinger to an
exposed position, he brings his knife to it. “This is for
Tinok!”

Crack!

The floor beneath them, weakened by the
blasts, is no longer able to support their weight. With a loud
crack, it gives way.

Jiron loses his grip on James as they both
plummet to the floor below. They fall for what seems like a long
ways before they land on the floor of the room below. Hitting hard,
the breath is knocked out of Jiron. James is dazed and the orb that
he carries falls from his hand and rolls across the floor.

It takes a minute before they are able to
move again, James is the first to get to his feet. He tries to
summon the magic but due to the blow to his head, is unable to
concentrate sufficiently. Moving away from where Jiron is working
to get back to his feet, he hurries around a raised dais sitting in
the middle of the room, to the door on the far side.

A noise behind him causes him to glance back
and sees that Jiron is almost upon him. He turns to face him as the
knife falls and grabs the descending arm with both hands.

“Now, let’s finish this!” Jiron says as he
brings his other knife in position to strike

Crack!

From above, another section of the ceiling
directly above them gives way and falls. Still locked together,
they both jump to the right to avoid the falling stone and land on
the dais. A flash of light and then they’re plunged into
darkness.

“Milord?”

Roused from his slumber, Kerith-Ayxt finds
his aide Aezyl standing at his tent flap. “Yes?” he asks. Sitting
up on the edge of his cot, he motions for his aide to enter.

Aezyl enters the dark tent as a candle flares
to light on the lone small table. Coming to stand before his lord
he says, “It’s over.”

“They’re dead then?” he asks.

“It would appear so,” his aide informs him.
“We detected magic being used and then nothing. When we looked for
them all we found was darkness.”

“Excellent,” he says. “Continue keeping an
eye on their last known position just in case.”

“By the way milord,” Aezyl says as he hands
the High Lord Magus a courier pouch. “This arrived an hour ago,” he
explains. “When the messenger arrived at the School, they sent him
up here.”

Taking the pouch he sees the seal of the
Emperor emblazoned on the side. Sighing, he says to his aide,
“Thank you. Keep me informed if there is any indication they are
still alive.”

“Yes, sir,” he says and then turns to leave
the tent.

He sets the pouch on his cot as gets up to
pour himself a glass of wine. Not the recommended drink for those
who work with magic, but as he’s the High Lord Magus, no one will
gainsay him about it.

After filling his glass with wine, he
replaces the wine bottle in the travel pack. Picking up the courier
pouch he moves over to the table where the candle burns. He takes
his seat and places his glass of wine on the table. Opening the
pouch, he pulls out a single letter.

It bears the seal of Lord Cytok and reads as
follows:

Lord Magus,

You are to take as many mages as are able
and set out forthwith to intercept the invading army before it
leaves Empire controlled territory. Speed is of the essence. Leave
no survivors.

Lord Cytok

Kerith-Ayxt puts the letter down and takes a
moment to savor the last of his wine before leaving his tent.
Outside he finds his aide Aezyl standing by the fire with a mage of
the First Circle.

“…Baerustin and other places like it are the
reason the School was founded in the first place,” Aezyl says to
the First. “When you achieve the Second Circle you will learn in
more detail the events that turned this once thriving city into
what you see today.”

“You mean a mage destroyed Baerustin?” the
First asks.

“In a way yes,” replies Aezyl. “An experiment
gone wrong in a time when mages worked blind, trying to discover
ever more powerful spells and enchantments. Many of the rules and
laws that you have already been taught were just speculations at
the time. Magic was unleashed here, magic of a most fearsome sort.
Before the citizens understood the danger they were in, many were
killed.”

Kerith-Ayxt listens as his aide relates the
tale of Baerustin to the First.

“Brother beset brother, father turned on
sons,” he continues. “None now recall just what the mage who
unleashed this upon Baerustin was attempting to accomplish. But the
magic is still active, even after a millennium.” He turns to gaze
directly in the First’s eyes and says, “It turns you mad if you are
exposed to it for any length of time.”

“Then, we are to go mad?” he asks in
apprehension.

Shaking his head Aezyl says, “No. Here above
the sand we are safe.”

Kerith-Ayxt clears his throat.

Aezyl turns and sees his lord standing there.
“Yes milord?” he asks. The First bows to him and then moves
away.

“We are moving north at first light,” the
High Lord Magus states. “The Emperor wishes us to deal with the
invading army before it can reach friendly territory.”

“Then we are to destroy it milord?” he
asks.

Nodding, Kerith-Ayxt replies, “Yes. To the
last man.”

The sudden plunge into darkness disorients
Jiron just enough for James to wriggle free. “Come back here
murderer!” he hears Jiron saying not too far from him.

“I didn’t murder anyone,” replies James as he
gets off the dais and moves quickly around it. He can hear Jiron’s
breathing as he follows.

The room has grown cold, very cold. He tries
to formulate a spell to use against Jiron but he simply can’t
concentrate well enough. The blow to his head still has him unable
to summon the magic.
The ring!
Reaching into his pouch, he
searches for the ring all the while continuing to back away from
Jiron. He steps lightly so as not to announce his exact location.
His fingers search the pouch but fail to find the ring.

“Tinok told me of how you sent him away the
night Cassie died,” he says.

Tinok? Tinok was here too?
A feeling
that something’s definitely not right comes over him.
Dave and
Tinok being here at the same time? Unlikely.
His mind begins to
throw off the anger and rage as cool logic asserts itself.

Vague outlines begin to appear as his eyes
adjust to the darkness. “Jiron,” he says. “When did you talk to
Tinok?”

“After you fell in the water,” he replies. “I
followed you and found him.”

“You followed me?” he asks. Suddenly, his orb
springs to life in the palm of his hand. It’s a strain to hold even
that much magic, his head is throbbing so badly. Seeing the knife
rise to strike, he says, “Wait!”

The knife pauses. “Why should I, murderer?”
Jiron asks.

“How did you get past the monster in the
water?” he asks.

“There was no monster,” he says. “I did find
where the Empire was holding Tinok. He was mutilated!” His eyes
still show the intensity of emotion at what was done to his
friend.

James sees the knife begin to move and
hollers as fast as he can, “If the Empire controlled this area,
then why didn’t the mages follow?” He closes his eyes and braces
for the knife to strike. When the attack doesn’t come, he opens his
eyes to see the knife but inches from his throat. Jiron stares at
him with a thoughtful look on his face. He can see the rage
beginning to melt away.

Then it all clicks together. The smell of his
grandmother’s cinnamon rolls; Jiron seeing the headless torso;
finding a room right out of one of his campaigns. “It wasn’t real,”
he says to him. “None of it was.”

“But…” he stammers and then looks down at the
front of his shirt. The blood that had stained it from when he held
Tinok is no longer there. “I held him in my arms,” he says as the
hand holding the knife drops back to his side.

“I know,” James says laying a hand on his
shoulder. “I found Dave. He told me you were an agent of the Empire
and had handed him over to them at Ironhold.”

Jiron’s head comes up. “I did no such thing,”
he asserts.

“Just as I did not send Tinok away,” he
states with conviction.

“Then what happened?” he asks.

“I don’t know,” he admits. “Maybe this place
is cursed in some way, turns people against each other.”

Jiron sheathes his knife. “I’m sorry,” he
says. The rage which so threatened to consume him has now
completely left him.

“So am I,” replies James with a sad grin.
“What do you say we get out of here before anything else
happens?”

“Yeah,” agrees Jiron. “Let’s get out of
here.”

The light from the orb reveals that they are
no longer in the room they landed in when they fell through the
floor. This one is much smaller. A raised dais sits prominently in
the center of the room, the room itself is only two feet wider than
the dais. It’s what’s depicted upon the dais that concerns
James.

“Jiron look,” he says as he draws Jiron’s
attention to the symbol of three dots forming a triangle with lines
running between them.

“That’s not good,” he says. “But why would
they have a temple here in a place that’s cursed?”

James glances around the small room. A
shudder runs through him from the cold that’s leeching the warmth
from his body. “I’m not even sure we are in the same place.”
Looking down at himself, he finds the front of his shirt no longer
shows where the lightning bolt had struck him. He touches it to
reassure himself it was never really there.