Highmage's Plight (Highmage’s Plight Series Book 1) (10 page)

George sat down and put it on. Nothing happened. “Staff, extend rapport, maintaining shields in case of feedback.”

‘Acknowledged. Extending rapport under shielding. Seeking uplink.”

Outside Greth called out, “I heard something down the hall. I’m going to check it out, be right back.”

“Fine, fine,” he heard Lawson say as the computer bank in front of him began to glow, matching the warm inviting light staff now cast.

A diagnostic flashed through George's mind.

Q U E S T O R : I D E N T I F Y

GEORGE BRADLEY, TERRAN UNIVERSITY

N O T F O U N D

ACADEMIC OVERRIDE, TERRAN UNIVERSITY, ARCHAEOLOGY DEPARTMENT,

RESEARCHER GEORGE BRADLEY, MASTER COLONIZER FLEET PROTOCOL, CODE A – 50U78093 – ADD TO QUESTOR’S CREW DIRECTORY.

C R EW MA N G EOR GE BR AD LE Y ADDED. W EL COME ABOARD CHIEF ENG IN EER.

George’s concentration was broken by Lawson, shouting, “Hey! You can’t!”

Then, George was struck from behind. Staff flared as he lost consciousness and he felt the computer staff wrenched out of his hand. He writhed in agony then knew nothing more.

“It was that Berrick, wasn’t it? I’ll kill him!” Cle’or shouted.

“They took your mage staff?” Se’and asked.

“Computer staff: I don’t do magic. And yes, he did.”

‘Which is how we learned about our little problem,’ Staff commented.

George nodded, “Which is how I learned about another change in my relationship with this fellow here,” he said as he stroked the handle of his staff.

“What change?” Balfour asked, George never having shared this tidbit before.

“Oh, my computer friend and I can’t be parted at least by any great distance.”

‘Five point six feet to be exact.’

“What happens?” Se’and asked.

“We die,” George said.

“Ladies, remember,” Se’and said, “Staff stays with Lord Je’orj here.”

Fri’il swallowed then said, “So what happened next?”

George sighed and told them.

Councilor Berrick and his men had an accident when they took staff, one which Greth later explained resulted in quite an explosion. The Core wasn’t damaged, however, it just started glowing.

George awoke in agony on that big cot in the guest room of Greth’s family residence as Qapin brought Staff back to George.

“What happened?” George groggily asked.

Qapin sat down beside him. “I must ask your forgiveness.”

“Just tell me what happened.”

Qapin shook his head and felt something was different about the staff. It wasn’t as cool to the touch. George looked at it and found it covered in some leathery material.

“George, I’m very sorry for what happened. My people were being superstitious fools. Berrick and his friends apparently thought that your staff would power our systems for years to come. But when he took it from you, while you were linked to the Core, he learned the price of his foolishness.”

“Qapin, what happened?”

“Berrick lost his hand. I suppose it could have been worse, he could have lost his life. Then the staff just went black. It was dead and Lawson thought you were too.”

George uttered, “Staff report.”

‘Systems coming back online. What happened?’

Qapin shamefully looked away and explained, “You reactivated the Core. It is rather displeased with our behavior.”

He fixed his eyes on George and explained further.

“It refers to you as the ship’s Chief Engineer, highest ranking officer presently on board… I suppose that means my title as Qapin passes to you, Sir.”

George laid his head back. “Great. Just great.”

Dinner was an interesting affair. It was troll formal. Sadly, Councilor Berrick was not able to make it. Mendra broke that news as the guests arrived.

“Chief Engineer,” each said, formally acknowledging George as they passed him. George looked up at them and acknowledged, feeling like a child. He shook a lot of hands, city councilors, and that of the Holy Archivist of Prect, who held George in his gaze throughout the evening.

Lawson whispered, “He’s Berrick’s brother-in-law.”

Well, that explained that. It also seemed everyone was related to everyone else, which George guessed should have come as no surprise.

The high point of the evening was when Qapin proposed the toast. “To our Chief Engineer: we look forward to your repairing our systems.”

Blazing pain knocked George right out of his seat and he heard and echoing voice in his mind,
You must come to me! Come to the Empire! Brook no delay!

George blinked rapidly as Greth and Lawson tried to help him up as Mendra shouted for everyone to get out of her way.

“I’m fine,” he muttered as he blinked back the afterimage of a silver haired man with pointed ears.

George rose to his feet with the help of Greth and Lawson, and felt compelled to leave at once. Drowsily, George said, “I can’t stay.”

“What do you mean you can’t stay?” Qapin asked.

“Apparently, my ride home is waiting.”

“Your what?” he said.

“Sorry, old figure of speech, which apparently was lost on your ancestral voyage here.”

Lawson said, “But, George, you can’t go. You’ve so much to teach us, to teach me.”

“The Core can do that now that it’s in phase with you. Just use the uplink.”

“Where will you go?” Mendra asked.

He pointed east. “Thataway.”

“But, George, the Core doesn’t recognize us as crew as it does you.”

‘He has an excellent point there, George.’ Staff quipped.

“That’s easy,” George assured. The staff flared in his hand as he linked with the ship’s computer.

“Additions to the crew directory,” George called.

STANDING BY.

“Lawson, Assistant Chief Engineer,” he announced as the dwarf troll suddenly grinned.

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“Mendra, Chief Medical Officer.”

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“Qapin is now second in command of the ship,” which apparently was the highest captaincy rank allowed since the ship still recognized its senior captain as "location undetermined."

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“Greth is colonel of the ships marine detachment.”

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“Councilor Berrick is barred from attaining crew status as is the Head of the Ship’s Archives and all his current staff members until such time as I as senior officer rescinds this order.”

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“You will assist the designated crewmembers and those they so designate in education and repair of systems, noting that system functions may have to be tested, even if they should, according to all known laws of science, be inoperable.”

ACKNOWLEDGED.

“Chief Engineer, George Bradley, out.” Staff’s glow dimmed as everyone stood proudly.

He felt a twinge of a headache coming on as he added, “With that taken care of, I can be on my way tomorrow.” The headache quickly faded.

‘George, that was weird.’

“You're telling me,” he said under his breath and smiled at his new friends.

“What does colonel of marines mean?” Greth said.

“Look it up, you’re gonna love it.”

Cle’or was giving George the oddest look at that point in his story. Se’and remained impossible to read. Her mind never leaked a thought either, George realized, as opposed to Fri’il whose thoughts bordered on hero worship.

No, not good at all
, he thought.

‘Maybe you’ll get lucky, George.’

He coughed and glared at his staff.

‘George! I meant maybe she’ll fall for Balfour.’

Now the elfblooded Balfour coughed, obviously overhearing that last mental remark. He whispered, “You do realize I’m a lot older than you?”

George smiled. Balfour looked about twenty-six, making George the older in appearance.

“But that story doesn’t explain the blade,” Se’and said.

“Or your wyvern cloak,” said Me’oh.

“No, it doesn’t, does it?”

“Come on, Je’orj, please tell us,” Se’and asked.

Her being the first to ask surprised George.

“Please,” Fri’il said.

“Oh, all right.”

“George, your ugly face has grown on me.”

“Thanks, Mendra.”

She smiled, “I made this for you. We don’t want you to catch cold out there.” She presented him with a folded cloak which caught the light in such a way that he had difficulty looking at it.

“Go on, put it on.”

George wrapped himself in the heavy cloak.

“It’s from the wyvern that tried to kill you in
Ashra Kodiu
. It only seemed fitting since we wrapped your staff in it so we could handle it when you were unconscious, that the rest be worn by you.”

“Uh, thanks,” George said, not really wanting to reflect on those details.

Greth drew his knife from his belt, “You will need this.”

George looked at the blade’s discolored metal, nearly black. “This isn’t steel.”

“It’s an alloy that magery can’t harm.”

“You make it?”

“It is our greatest secret. Please ask no more about it.”

“All right, thank you.”

Qapin said, “When you face magery, that blade will sunder it. It can even rend spells cast against you. Keep it with you always!”

“I will, I promise.”

“The giving of a knife,” Greth said, “also means we are blood brothers.”

“Does that me you want me to cut myself with it?”

“Cut yourself? No, please do not. Being of the blood of humans has been sacrifice enough for our people.”

George nodded, looking up at him. His eyes were so kind for a troll out of a nightmare. “I will lead you to our border. It is best to go soon before the others realize their chief engineer has left without doing any more great miracles.”

He looked about, “What of Lawson?”

“Lawson,” Qapin said. “That young man doesn’t want you to go.”

Mendra said, “What’s worse is he wants to go with you.”

“I don’t think it would be wise,” George said.

“It wouldn’t be,” Qapin agreed, “he’s Assistant Chief Engineer and has much to learn from the Core. He will have much to teach us, I have no doubt.”

“Who would have thought those who are ugliest could be so important to our People?” Mendra asked.

George simply nodded.

Greth led him out through the warren of long abandoned corridors, when they heard the sound of running feet. Greth drew his knife then saw it was Lawson and put it away. “How did you find us?”

“The Core’s re-routed Internal Security. I could see you on the monitors.”

“You’re doing well with the systems then.”

“Core’s begun teaching me and it wants me to teach the younger children while they are still small enough to wear the uplink helmets. It’s got two more terminals running on the upper level so I can keep them out of the Core.”

“That’s great, Lawson.”

“You know I want to come with you,” Lawson admitted to George.

“You can’t.”

“Yet.”

“Lawson,” Greth rasped.

Lawson smiled, “You watch for me. I’ll find you! We engineers gotta stick together!”

George gave him a hug, which was easier to do than the awkward one he had given to the crying Mendra, who was nearly ten feet tall. “Study hard, my friend, and encourage those kids to as well. Prect needs more like you.”

“Don’t go,” Lawson whispered.

“I have to. It’s my only chance of getting back home.”

Lawson stepped back and jabbed his finger at Greth, “You take beyond the border!”

“I’ll take him as far as I can.”

Greth turned the manual hatch and opened the door to the outside world where the sunlight was bright. All George could see for miles was sand stretching to the horizon. He glanced back at Lawson and felt a mental tugging and heard a quiet voice,
Come. Come to the Empire.

George stood up and stretched.

“You can’t just end the tale there, Je’orj!” Fri’il pleaded.

“Oh, yes, I can,” he laughed.

“Balfour’s told us about his nephew Casber seeing you battling in the Great Waste.”

“What? Oh, that was nothing.”

Cle’or probed, “You fought more wyverns, didn’t you?”

“An army of them! So, I really don’t need your help.”

Se’and shook her head, “You’re a terrible liar! That whole tale was a lie, wasn’t it? Living with trolls, bah!”