Magus (Advent Mage Cycle) (12 page)

I skidded to a halt next to her side, anxiously laying my hand against her chest. When I felt it rise and fall with shallow breaths, I closed my eyes and uttered a quick prayer of thanks. She wasn’t dead. “Night, call for help.”

“
I already did. Xiaolang is coming.”

He’d better be bringing a doctor with him.

I didn’t dare move her, as I had no idea what kind of injury she might have sustained. She was a good three or four feet away from where she had been standing, which said that she had been knocked quite some distance. I did anxiously feel around her, checking for any open wounds, but didn’t find any blood. Her hair was singed around her face, and there were light burns along her forearms, but I saw no signs of any major injuries.

“Garth!”

I snapped my head up and around. Xiaolang was just inside the entrance to the market, Hayate slowing to a lope. The dragoo could barely stop before his master had thrown himself off and to the ground. “Chatta?” the captain inquired anxiously.

“I think she’s just unconscious, but I can’t tell,” I replied in frustration. Why couldn’t I have had at least
one
Jaunten ancestor that was a doctor?

Xiaolang nudged Night away so he could kneel next to her, doing the same anxious check that I had just done. He lifted her head very carefully, fingers combing through her head and around her skull. “I feel a significant bump, but nothing more than that. Her brain is emoting properly. She’ll be fine.”

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. Thank the guardians…

Xiaolang looked up and scanned the area around me, a frown gathering on his face. “Garth, where’s the magician? I thought you were battling him here.”

I bared my teeth in a feral smile. “He’s underground.”

Those penetrating blue eyes locked with mine and I knew that I didn’t have to say another word. He could feel quite clearly the rage still simmering within me. “Let him up,” he ordered softly.

I didn’t want to. I wanted that man safely dead, well away from the people he had tried to take from me.

“Garth,” Xiaolang reproved.

Shifting, I lifted Chatta as I rose to my feet. I kept one eye on her as I turned to watch Xiaolang. There was no sound from the Mage but I didn’t need it to know exactly where he was. It would be so easy to just let the earth merge back together, keeping him forever trapped underground. So terribly easily. If I were not perfectly in control of my magic, I could do exactly that without even meaning to.

The ground was still trembling, inching closer as if echoing my thoughts. Xiaolang grabbed my shoulder with a firm grip and with his touch, my rage was divorced from me. I blinked at him in shock, reeling at the sudden loss of that overwhelming emotion.

“Garth,” his voice was deeper, firmer than his usual tone, “let him up.”

I felt numb, detached from all emotion except a projection of serenity from Xiaolang. Without that rage dictating my magic, it was easy to obey his command. With a deep breath, I turned to face the fissure and focused, breaking off the piece of earth the Mage was lying on and raising it to the surface.

He had definitely been battered by his fall. I noted in an analytical fashion that number of scrapes and gashes covering his skin. His right arm hung limply at his side, bone poking through the skin, and his knee was at such an angle that it must be broken as well.

When solid earth was beneath him once again, Xiaolang released me, and with it his control. My emotions slammed back into me and it took a few moments before I came to grips with them again.

Without looking away from him I requested, “Xiaolang, get the sealing amulets from Chatta’s saddlebags. At least four.”

“
I’ll fetch them,
” Night volunteered. He scampered away in the next moment, treading carefully to avoid tripping.

Night trotted back with the saddlebags clenched between his teeth. “
Here.
”

“Where are the sealing amulets?” Xiaolang asked.

I shifted around a bit and pulled up a handful of amulets, all loosely tied together by their cords. “The blue disks are sealing ones.”

Xiaolang took them from me, deftly undoing the knot and taking four of them. “Can I put these on him?”

“Of course,” I answered, stealing a peek at the still captive Mage over my shoulder. “They’ll become active as soon as they are in contact with him.”

“Good.” Xiaolang didn’t say anything more, but the look he gave me said that he wasn’t going to let me near that Mage again anytime soon.

That was probably wise.

Xiaolang approached the huddled man and slid the amulets over his head. A petty part of me was viciously satisfied to see the Mage sobbing hysterically, gulping in deep breaths. When he noticed me, he stared in frank terror.

Xiaolang kept a tight grip on the Mage as he turned to me and said, “The Dom of Jarrell found me earlier. We’re all to use an inn over on the main street. Why don’t you leave Chatta and this idiot with me. We’ll take care of her. You need to stay here.”

“I should go with her,” I protested.

Xiaolang looked me square in the eye, repeating in a firm tone, “Stay here.”

I looked down at the woman in my arms. I knew that he would take care of her. That wasn’t something I needed to worry about. It was just my protective instincts were insisting I shouldn’t let go of her. A part of me recognized that Xiaolang was right, I shouldn’t be near the Mage while my control was still so tenuous. After a brief internal struggle, I forced myself to nod.

“Fine.”

~*~

It takes a lot for me to lose my temper. Maybe that's why it takes a long time for me to cool down again. Usually when I am truly angry about something, I'll either take a long walk, or go wrestle with one of my brothers.

This time, I put all of my energy into fixing the city around me.

Destruction was everywhere. I started with the courtyard that I had battled the Fire Mage in, since most of the damage done there was my fault. The fissure especially took a lot to fix, as I had to put the buildings back together that had slid into the crack. I winced the entire time I was repairing it. The whole thing was messy and a very sloppy display of power. With every mend I made, the more embarrassed I was that I had lost control.

I’d been far too enraged to care about a clean capture.

Aside from the massive hole in the ground, the main structures of the buildings, and the holes in the cobblestone, there wasn’t much else I could fix. I could do little about the wooden buildings, as I just didn’t have the spare energy to tackle the problem. Wood is not one of my best elements and it always takes more focus and energy on my part to build anything out of it. Reconstructing a single building would have done me in, so I chose to ignore the wood and set up the framework for the stone or brick structures.

With Chatta still unconscious it was all up to me to do the repairs, but that might have been a good thing. By the time that I was done, it was well past dawn, and I was so exhausted that I didn't have the
energy
to be angry anymore.

When the last repair had been made, I dropped heavily onto the ground, leaning my weight against a building. Sweat was pouring down my face, stinging my eyes, so I swiped at my skin with a dirty shirtsleeve. The coolness of the brick against my back felt marvelous, and I let my eyes fall closed as I enjoyed the sensation.

"
I think that's everything,
" Night observed.

"I hope so," I groaned weakly. "I'm all out of energy."

"
Yes, so I see."
He sounded more amused than tired, the brat. "
If you can climb onto my back, I'll take you to the inn."

Just the thought of standing was too much for me. "Give me a moment," I pleaded.

"Magus?"

I didn’t recognize the voice. During the course of the night, I had met quite a few people as I went around fixing the city. Some of them were noticeably nervous in my presence, but most of them were just grateful that I was helping. I opened my eyes and let my head flop to the right so I could look at who was calling me.

If I had possessed the energy, I would have scrambled to my feet at that moment.

The Dom of Jarrell was standing there. His attire was enough to tell me who he was, the formal dark suit having his family crest embroidered on the right breast. He looked to be in his early forties, although that could have been because of the soot emphasizing every tired line around his mouth and eyes. He was filthy as I was, from his sandy blond hair down to his scuffed boots. In his hands were two cups, one of which he was holding out to me.

"Thank you," I said in heartfelt gratitude, taking the cup and draining it one long gulp. Then I let out a happy sigh. Never has plain water tasted so good.

The Dom came to sit next to me, letting out a tired groan as he put his back to the building. "You've done excellent work," he commented with a small smile. "More than I would have asked of you. Thank you."

I was too tired to think of some sort of eloquent response. I settled for a simple, "You're welcome."

"Captain Xiaolang assures me that the Mage responsible for this is under tight security." There was a question lingering in his light blue eyes.

I wasn't sure where this statement was going, so I just nodded.

"What will happen to him when he is taken into Hain?"

Ah, that's what he wanted to know. "He will be stripped of his magic."

The Dom blinked, surprised. "That's possible?"

"It takes a full circle of people to do it, but yes, it is."

He thought about that for a long moment, turning it over in his head. Finally he nodded. "Good. We were never properly introduced. I am Overlyten, Dom of Jarrell."

"Rhebengarthen; thank you for the gift of your name." I gave him a half-bow, which was as polite as I was going to get in this position.

Overlyten grinned, an expression that made you overlook the lines of fatigue around his eyes and mouth, and the layers of dirt and sweat. Looking at that brilliant smile, I felt his sincerity. "Welcome to Jarrell, Rhebengarthen. Well met. Well met, indeed."

Chapter Six: The Best Laid Plans

Night made good on his promise and dragged my sorry carcass to the inn. My body was aching all over, so exhausted that every muscle felt strained. Still, crawling straight to a bed barely crossed my mind. I wanted to see Chatta first.

Xiaolang must have been on the lookout for me, for I’d barely dismounted in the stable yard when he appeared from the inn’s back door. He looked me over from head to toe, a slight smile tugging at his mouth. “I’d say you were busy last night.”

I braced myself against Night with my forearm, afraid that if I didn’t, I’d just pitch to the ground face first. “I went around the city and fixed all the damage I could. Chatta?”

“She was seen by a doctor, and he agreed she’d be fine,” Xiaolang assured me, stepping from the doorway. “She took several potions that hastened her healing process. Right now, she’s resting and waiting for you.”

So. I let out a deep breath. “Am I allowed inside now?”

“Yes,” he answered, smile going crooked, “although I think I’d better help you, considering how unsteady you are. I think you overdid it, Garth.”

I didn’t have a good response to that.

“Night, Shield is in the stable at the moment,” Xiaolang directed with a nod toward the cramped building. “He’ll help you get all of the tack off.”

“
Sounds heavenly
,” Night responded with a sigh. With a last look at me, he walked off.

Xiaolang grabbed me by both elbows and started frog marching me toward the inn. I was tired enough to appreciate the help instead of feeling uneasy about it.

I felt like I needed to say something to him. Working all of last night had put things into perspective for me. I’d been given enough time to think about what if’s. The answers had unnerved me thoroughly. Last night I had resented Xiaolang’s interference. This morning I felt very differently about it. “Xiaolang? Thanks.”

I think he knew I wasn’t really thanking him for his help right now. “You’re welcome,” he replied softly.

My brain was a bit sluggish, so it took a few seconds for me to think of the obvious question. “Does Chatta…know?”

“I told her the basics of what happened,” he answered calmly. “Garth, there’s no reason for you to feel either panicked or guilty about the events of last night. In your position, I’d probably have killed him.”

I put my hand against the doorjamb, pausing before entering the inn, so that I could turn and look him in the eyes. His gaze was steady on mine, without any judgment. He would have killed the Mage? But… “You stopped me from doing that.”

“You’re not a killer. We’re different in that regard. Carrying his death with you would have been too heavy of a burden.” He gave me a wry, pointed look. “Just look at how you feel from injuring him.”

Empaths, I tell you. There are moments when it’s unnerving to be around them. The fact that he was right on every count was too much for me to take in at this moment, so I let it drop. Tomorrow. I’d think about it all tomorrow.

I lowered my hand and continued into the inn.

Fortunately for my shaking legs, the rooms given to us were on the main floor, so I didn’t have to navigate any stairs. Xiaolang steered me down the hallway and to the one open door. He released me as soon as I entered the room, waiting just outside.

Chatta was on a narrow bed, propped up against the headboard, rooting through her saddlebags. At my entrance, she looked up, face lighting up in absolute relief. “Garth.”

I barely took two steps before she flung herself off the bed and fitted her arms around my waist in a tight hug. I returned the embrace just as fiercely. No matter how many assurances I was given, it was only now that I felt truly reassured.

“You’re filthy,” she said against my shoulder before pulling back a few inches to look up into my face. “And your magical core is far too low.
What
have you been doing?”