The Sorcerer's Legacy (29 page)

“So what are you going to do up here?” Azerick asked when Alex said he intended to stay in the north awhile.

“Well, I see a lot of kids around that could use some fighter training. If you plan on opening your own school I could help train the martial side of it,” Alex suggested.

“Sure, that would be great. Zeke has his hands full with the bulk of the students and would love any help he could get,” Azerick responded with interest.

“Now tell us what happened to you while you were gone,” Rusty demanded.

Azerick told his tales of woe and of triumph once again. The telling seemed to be getting a little easier with each repetition but he still could not hide the pain of Delinda’s loss. His friends expressed their sympathy while Colleen openly wept and held him like a sister he never had.

Rusty saw the changes that had been wrought in his best friend. In many ways, he was the same old Azerick; strong, willful, independent, and cunning but he also saw the coldness behind his eyes that was absent before, or at least not such a large part of his character. He saw not the boy that would do what he had to survive, but the man that would and could kill in an instant to protect what was his without hesitation and without remorse.

He was not afraid of this man, but afraid for what he may do to others if provoked. Rusty was also afraid of the toll that something like that would take on his friend.

CHAPTER
10

Duchess Mellina sat upon her seat of power in the spacious audience chamber listening to a report from her captain of the watch.

“You are certain of this, Captain?” the duchess asked.

“Yes, Your Grace. Several of my men witnessed the magus ride into the city several weeks ago and leave shortly after a mass exodus of many of the city’s homeless, most all of them street children with a handful of adults mixed in,” the captain reported, standing rigidly at attention.

“And why am I just now hearing of this exodus, Captain?” Duchess Mellina asked severely.

The watch captain swallowed nervously before responding. “Your Grace, the reports were written up by the watch commander on duty and sent through the magistrate’s office. Due to the weather, the clerks were not at work and several reports were backlogged. The watch commander on duty did not feel it was important enough to bring it personally to your attention at the time. It was not until the patrol reported further unusual activity at the magus’s tower that the first report was brought to my attention, at which time I investigated the magus’s activities within the city and came to you with a full report.”

“Damn bureaucracy,” the duchess muttered rubbing her temple with her first two fingers. “And do we know what his intentions are with so many of my less fortunate citizens?”

“My men questioned several vagrants as well as shopkeepers within the city. A few of the vagrants reported they had heard that the magus had offered food and shelter to see them safely through the winter. Some of the bakers, butchers, and the miller report having delivered a large quantity of food to the keep. The labor guild also reported that they had sent numerous carpenters to the keep just before the first significantly heavy snows fell. They built over a hundred beds and made repairs on two buildings that were once likely barracks or servant quarters of some sort, Your Grace.”

Lady Miranda smiled widely. “I think that is wonderful news, Mother. You were so worried about the poor folk, especially the children. Don’t you think it is wonderful?”

The duchess ignored her daughter for a moment. “Do we have any knowledge as to the disposition of those who left the city for the magus’s keep?”

“No, Your Grace, but one of my road patrols spotted two sleighs traveling north just yesterday. They bypassed the city so I must presume they were bound for the keep. No one would be foolish enough to travel beyond the northern border at this time of year even if the pass was not impossible to cross, which it is,” the captain answered.

“Thank you, Captain, please let me know if you come upon any further information,” Duchess Mellina ordered and dismissed the captain.

“Is that not wonderful news?” Miranda repeated.

Mellina sat tapping a manicured finger against her chin as she thought through all of the implications of Azerick’s doings.

“Wonderful? Yes it is good news for my citizens, but it makes me look like a fool and completely inept as a leader,” the duchess replied sourly.

“Mother, you should not be so cynical. Your people love and respect you.”

“Miranda, you must learn to look at all angles of a situation if you are to be a good leader,” her mother informed her. “On the surface, the magus’s actions appear completely humanitarian and benevolent, and they may very well be. However, they may also be a prelude to the usurpation of my authority in a long-term plan to take my throne.”

“Mother, he is not that kind of man,” Miranda insisted.

“Are you so sure, child of mine? Recall your first meeting the magus. He stood by and watched several men die before he stepped in to render assistance. He turned one of my nobles into a donkey creature, and yes, it was only for a couple days and the man was extremely rude. He also threatening a contingent of my guards, and yes, the sergeant was rude as well. In your dealings with the man, what is your judgment of his character?”

“I am not certain, Mother, he is a complicated man and hides his emotions well,” Miranda replied before she realized how damning that sounded.

“So here is where we stumble upon the very problem. We have a powerful but reclusive wizard who, through his act of
kindness,
will have won over the hearts of many of my citizens, and not just those he sheltered. How many will look favorably upon him when they hear of his benevolence compared to my actions and abilities during this brutal winter? How many pockets has the magus filled with his gold, where did he come upon such a vast hoard, and what is he doing with those children? Indoctrinating them into his own personal army?”

“Of course, Your Grace!” Captain Brague shouted in support. “He could subvert them then release them back into the city to spread dissent to undermine your authority and raise his own standing in the eyes of the populace!”

“Precisely, you see, Miranda, Captain Brague understands the intricacies of politics and being a cautious leader,” Mellina told her daughter.

Encouraged, Captain Brague took a step forward, his armor squealing in protest. “Or he may be a necromancer and is turning them into nearly indestructible undead creatures.”

“Yes, thank you, Captain.”

“Or transforming them into hideous monsters with the strength of ten men to lay siege to the city!” he zealously cried, his armor screeching loudly in affirmation.

“Thank you, Captain; that is quite enough.”

“Or maybe he is using them in some foul sort of blood rite to summon a hoard of demons from the bowels of hell!” the captain continued undeterred, shouting in zeal while his armor screeched in protest.

“Yes, Captain, we get the point now shut up!” the countess shouted in a rare use of increased volume. “And see to getting that armor repaired, that noise pierces my brain like ice pick shoving through my ear.”

“Yes, Your Grace, my apologies, Your Grace. I have been to the armorer several times but he has yet to discern the problem,” the captain replied sheepishly.

“Then go see him again,” Duchess Mellina ordered.

“Yes, Your Grace,” Brague answered dutifully.

Miranda was distraught and a little angry at everyone’s portrayal of Azerick as a monster. “Surely you do not believe this nonsense, Mother, you met him.”

“Oh relax, Miranda, of course I do not, but these are the things a responsible ruler must think of. The fact remains that the magus has done more to protect the citizens of North Haven than I, their proper leader, has,” the duchess replied. “So what are we to do to improve our standings with our own people?”

Captain Brague stepped forward once more with a squeal of metal on metal. “Let me take two score of guards and arrest him for treason, Your Grace,” he begged.

Both women turned an icy glare onto the captain and his obnoxious armor. “The magus has done nothing treasonous, Captain,” Mellina frostily informed him.

“Sedition?” he asked hopefully.

“No, Captain.”

“Unlawful assembly?”

“You may go, Captain Brague,” the Duchess said in dismissal. “Miranda, I want you to go see our minister of treasury and withdraw enough funds to purchase vast quantities of bread and anything needed for making enough soup to feed everyone at least once a day, preferably twice a day that do not have enough food for their families. If there is not enough gold in the treasury, have the treasurer borrow it. I will not have my people starve or think me compassionless for their plight.

“I also want hunters to scour the forests for game. I know meat is scarce and we need all they can bring in. Have the magistrate draw up a proclamation ordering all taverns, inns, and stables to provide shelter in their common rooms for one adult or two children for every fifty square feet of floor space. The owners will be paid ten copper shills for every person they allow to sleep in their common rooms and five shills for the use of their stables per night to be paid from the city treasury. I do not want the guilds accusing me of filling their establishments with non-paying customers. The inns and any other establishments with large kitchens will also act as the distribution points for the bread and soup.

“The magistrate will create a census bureau to verify the accuracy of each establishment’s compensation claim and warn them of severe penalties for padded or fraudulent claims,” Duchess Mellina ordered. “We are broke enough as it is.”

“That is a brilliant plan, Mother. This is why the people love you,” Miranda told her mother sincerely.

“You may not think so when I start pawning off your inheritance to pay for it all,” she replied only half-jokingly.

Lady Miranda raced from the hall to enact her mother’s relief plan.

The screeching of metal announced the return of Captain Brague. “Your Grace, I found an article of law regarding anyone wearing the color royal blue that is not in the immediate royal family. It is an old law but it is still legally on the books and the penalty is quite severe. I am almost certain I saw the magus wearing a royal blue shirt once,” the captain said, holding open a thick tome and marking a passage with his finger.

Duchess Mellina wearily buried her face in her hand, rubbing her temples with her thumb and two middle fingers, and brushed the captain away.

***

The next two weeks passed far more smoothly than all the previous ones even with the extra people in the keep. It was directly because of the extra help that things became more organized and controlled. With the magi students divided between three instructors and Colleen graciously volunteering to teach a general education class, everything ran better.

Zeke and Ewen were ecstatic to have Alex’s help in teaching fighting forms. Even the quiet bodyguard, Jansen, started working with the arms instructors after a couple days. With the smaller class sizes, the learning pace of most of the children increased accordingly. The clack of wooden swords and bright orbs of light of various hues flying about the keep was now an almost constant occurrence.

Azerick and his friends were seated in the dining hall enjoying a small repast on one of their few days off from teaching. Wolf walked in from the kitchen munching on a piece of bread with Ghost faithfully at his side.

“Hi, Wolf, I am surprised you are not out playing with the others,” Colleen said.

“I was, but I saw a bunch of riders coming up the road so I thought I would tell Azerick, and since I was here, grab something to eat,” Wolf replied.