The Unmage (35 page)

Timo led the way through the tunnel, past a third workroom that directed even more mage mist into the tunnel. Now it was impossible to walk without stepping into the magic. By the time they reached a fourth room, Timo’s body hummed with power and mage mist crawled over him.

Had any Mages ever done this before? Walked through the rivers of power that they collected to run the island? He had to believe not, otherwise they’d all be teeming with power, or at least Inigo would be. He’d never heard his mother or Rorik talk about this—he had to assume that if a Mage had ever known about this they had kept it to themselves. Just as Timo had to keep it a secret from Mage Guild. He shuddered. What would a Mage like Inigo do with so much pure power? Or a man such as his father had been?

He looked back and met Kara’s worried gaze.

“I’m not even doing anything,” Timo said. “It’s just . . . collecting in me.”

Kara reached a hand out. Where her hand brushed his arm, the mage mist retracted.

“Why doesn’t the magic withdraw from me?” Timo asked. “It usually does.”

“Perhaps it’s the intent,” Kara said. “Without intent behind a spell, power might simply be attracted to you because you have your own.” She shrugged. “Or maybe because you can use it?” She looked over at Santos’ body. “I don’t think he knew about this.”

“Neither do I,” Timo said. “And
none of them
can ever find out.”

He met Kara’s solemn gaze, and she nodded, slowly. “No one in all of Tregella would be safe.”

TIMO SLID DOWN
the wall to sit beside Kara. Santos’ body hovered just down the tunnel, and Reo and Elman were scouting ahead, searching for a way out.

According to Elman, the power from these workrooms went to the surface where minor Mages used the magic to control the water system. The Mages at the surface were awake—and had enough magic to create small spells. The group needed to find a way out of the tunnel before they reached them.

By now Timo was so used to the mage mist that swirled along his body that he only noticed it when it reacted to Kara’s presence and retreated from her.

“Do you think it’s night yet?” Timo asked.

Reo had been adamant that they not leave the tunnel until it was dark outside. The light from the mage mist flickered and cast odd shadows on Kara’s face.

“Close,” Kara replied. “I think.” She studied the bottom of the tunnel at their feet. “Do you see the colours?” she asked. “Of different Mages’ magic?”

“Yes.” Timo paused. Other than with Yash and Wuls Samma he’d never really talked much about his abilities. “Santos’ mage mist was green.”

“Grass green,” Kara replied sadly. “To me it was the colour of hope.”

“Hope,” Timo repeated. “I suppose I might have come to think of him that way too.” He glanced at her. “Although you were the one I hoped to find.”

“Even though I killed both your parents?”

Timo sighed and looked away. “I found some old documents that my father had spelled,” he said. “In Rorik’s study. Even after so many years I didn’t want to touch them, the spells were so malevolent. My father was not good.”

“Nor was our mother,” Kara said. “Although I didn’t want her dead.”

“Our mother had to force herself to believe her own lies in order to live with the things she’d done.” He shrugged. “Does that make her better than Valerio Valendi?” He dipped a hand into the mage mist that pooled by his feet. “If she’d known about this source of power, I don’t think she would have used it for her own gain. At least not as ruthlessly as my father would have.”

“Or the council,” Kara said.

“No luck.” Reo joined them and crouched on the other side of Kara.

Elman stood a few strides ahead in the tunnel.

“We went as far as we dared,” Reo said. “There is no exit before the workroom of minor Mages.”

“I can direct enough power to create an exit anywhere we want it,” Timo said.

“How would we know where to make it?” Kara asked.

“Elman?” Reo turned to the guard. “Do you know where we are? What might be beside or above us?”

Elman walked a few steps along the tunnel, peering up at the ceiling. He shrugged.

“Are we east of the minor Mages? I think there’s a park above us. At least I remember walking through one in order to get to the workroom up there. But I’ve only had that duty a few times. If we’re east.”

“We’re east,” Reo said. He pointed towards the side of the tunnel. “Timo, can you burrow through here? On an angle so we can walk up it. And make the walls solid so that they don’t cave in on us.”

“I’ll try,” Timo said. He walked over and placed his hands on the tunnel wall. The dirt felt rough and damp beneath his palms. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the feel of the earth and the magic that coursed through his body.

He’d said that he could do this, but he’d never tried anything like it before. Up until now most of his magic had been spells either assigned by Rorik or stolen from him. Spells that he knew worked because so many others had cast them before him.

Most Mages didn’t create new spells until they were well into their Journeyman years. But just as he’d taught himself to feel the intent behind a spell, just as he’d taught himself to evade the traps that had been set to hurt or kill him, Timo knew that he could do this. Because he had to, there was no other choice, so he
would
.

With his feet placed firmly in the stream of mage mist, he started to gather the power and direct it towards the wall in front of him. The rock and dirt before him slowly started to crumble and fall away. Mage mist swept it down the tunnel, back the way they’d come. He felt his companions shift until they were upstream of the earth that was flowing faster and faster.

The river of mud and dirt avoided Timo, skirting past his feet as it flowed downhill. He took a step forward, past the original tunnel wall, and still the earth kept sweeping past him. Another step and then another. Eventually he had to drop to his knees and crawl as the height of the tunnel diminished. His feet were no longer in the stream of magic and yet it still answered to him, still continued to excavate earth at his request.

Eventually the flow of dirt faltered and then stopped. Roots dangled above his head and a worm wriggled free and dropped onto his shoulder. Timo brushed it away and quickly retreated out of the new tunnel.

When he stepped back into the flow of mage mist he felt power surge through him, replenishing what little he’d used to dig the way out.

“I didn’t break through to the surface,” he said as he joined the others. “But it’s close. If anyone were to walk above it they might fall through.”

“I’ll look,” Reo said. “To see if it’s dark enough. And make sure no one is there to see us exit.” With that he was gone, quickly scrambling out of sight.

Timo clenched his hands and turned towards Kara.

“He meant that he’ll kill anyone up there, didn’t he?” he asked. “When he said he’d make sure no one sees us.”

“If he has to,” Kara replied, her face grim. “In order to keep us safe.”

Timo nodded and leaned against the wall of the tunnel and looked at Kara, the sister he’d never had a chance to know. She was worried that her husband, the father of her children, would need to kill again. To keep them safe, she’d said. But would it? Would one more death keep them safe? Would Old Rillidi be the safe haven he’d been promised now that Santos was dead? Or would Timo’s presence put them at even greater risk?

He had magic, as did his half-brother Giona. And Barra Eska, if she stayed. But one freshly trained Mage and two Journeymen would not be able to hold off all of Mage Guild forever. One day the Mages of the council would regain their powers—either their own or by using others. Or worse, they would realize they could use the pure magic for their own ends. Inigo would not hesitate to let the island and everyone who lived on it sink into the bay if it meant he could use this magic.

He looked down at the magic that eddied around his feet. Someone had to stop them—stop Inigo, stop the council, stop the endless succession of Mages, each more ruthless and power mad than the last, who would do anything, sacrifice
anything
, to have enough power to control everyone else.

Only Santos had been free of that arrogant ambition. And now he was gone and someone else had to stop them.

IDLY KARA SWUNG
a foot towards the flow of mage mist. It ebbed away from her, then rushed into the space her foot left when she swung it back. Reo had only been gone a few minutes.
Too soon to worry
. She pushed her hair out of her eyes and sighed. It was never too soon to worry. He’d return, he always did, but if he’d had to kill again a little piece of him would be gone. And as always, she’d try to fill the empty place it left with love and laughter, but this time, without Santos, it would be harder. She glanced at Santos’ body—it floated just out of the way. Dirt was piled almost to the Mage’s back, making it look as though he was resting on the ground rather than being held aloft by magic.

What she’d said to Timo was true—the colour of Santos’ mage mist had always been the colour of hope. And now that it was gone—
he
was gone—she had to find something else to give her hope. Timo was part of that, but it wasn’t fair to him for her to pin all her hopes on him.

He was the same age she’d been when she’d left her mountain home in Larona all those years ago, and Gyda knew she’d been timid and naïve and totally unprepared for what the world would send her way. She’d grown up fast, because she’d had to. So would Timo. He already had. Both his mother and his mentor were dead—killed by the same people who had been trying to kill him for months.

“We can go.”

Reo was at her side. As usual, she hadn’t heard him. She looked into his eyes and nodded in relief. Whatever he’d found at the end of the tunnel, he hadn’t had to kill.

“It’s dark, close to midnight,” Reo said as Elman and Timo crowded around him. “There was a guard but I told him I was with Elman and he promised to stay away.”

“Who was it?” Elman asked. “Did he say?”

“He gave his name as Callub.”

Elman grunted. “I know him. Not well, but I think we can trust him.”

“He’ll do what he said?” Kara asked. “Stay away? And not tell the guild?”

“I think so,” Elman said. “Those of us without magic look out for each other. He’ll help, for my sake.”

“Good,” Kara said. She went to Santos’ body and gently tugged it forward. “I’ll follow Reo with Santos. Once we’re outside Elman and Timo can come through. Timo,” she turned to her brother. “Can you fill in the hole after us? We don’t want anyone to follow our path.” Timo was right; they could not afford to have Mage Guild discover this source of power and what it could do. Without Santos to protect them, it could mean the death of everyone on Old Rillidi.

Timo nodded.

“Let’s go,” Reo said.

Kara followed him up the rocky path. His wariness spread to her, making her flinch at the odd shadows the mage mist illuminated along the path. Staring at Reo’s tense shoulders made her ball her hands into fists, one wrapped around Santos’ robe as she pulled him along after her.

Yet another night spent on Mage Guild Island, trying to escape with their lives. The last time, she and Reo had outrun her mother and had to kill Valerio Valendi. Now her mother was dead and Valendi’s son—her brother—was as desperate to escape as she and Reo had ever been. She hoped it was easier this time.

TIMO FOLLOWED ELMAN
along the newly created tunnel, mage mist trailing his footsteps. He’d need power to close the tunnel off once they were out and was concentrating on siphoning off a single thread of power from the main artery.

Ahead of him, Elman dropped to his knees, and Timo copied him, dirt and rocks beneath his hands and knees as he scrambled through the tunnel. Elman disappeared, and then Timo’s head jutted up and out of the earth. He grabbed hold of Reo’s outstretched hand, and the Assassin pulled him out of the tunnel.

Timo brushed his grimy hands against his trousers. It was night but there was enough mage mist for him to see the dirt-smudged faces of his companions.

“I’ll be a minute,” Timo said. He turned to the pit they’d climbed out of. “I need to bring some of the earth up along the passageway.”

“We’ll wait there,” Kara said, pointing to nearby some bushes. She gripped his shoulder before she reached out for Santos’ body.

It was an eerie sight. The faintly visible body floated waist high, and the mage mist that covered it cast long shadows on the faces of the other three.

Timo reached out with his right hand, pulling the power to him. He focussed on drawing it from deep underground, on bringing the recently dislodged earth with it and returning it to its original resting place—making the island whole where he’d torn it apart.

“Elman? Is that . . .” the voice trailed off.

By the time Timo swiveled his head to look, Reo had his hands on a man’s neck.

Timo took a few steps towards them, unsure what was happening, what, if anything, he should do.

“I thought you were going to stay away,” Reo whispered.