Battle Mage Bonds (Tales of Alus Book 13) Page 6

  Harder or softer, the silver moved the same way as the stronger steel used in the Hollow Swords would though this seemed somehow more graceful. He didn't use the dance magic like this for a sword, Ashleen thought as she continued to watch as symbols began to form along the length of the silver. They looked like vines working around the blue gemstones creating something beautiful that seemed somehow alive as well.

  He had a wizard's staff that almost felt alive too; the girl remembered and wondered at what he planned for this piece.

  Sebastian picked up the decorated silver and touching one end to her wrist. His magic made the metal wrap around her arm coiling it together tightly until the tail end finished attaching to the main body of the bracelet. It was only a little over an inch wide after it tied together and it felt surprisingly light weight on her arm.

  Lifting her hand up and down at the wrist, the girl tested how it still seemed to move with her flesh without ever getting in the way or binding her skin in any way.

  "It feels interesting, but how will I remove it when I want to bathe or sleep, Bas?" she worried over the impractical creation.

  "I'll show you later," the mage answered sounding unconcerned, which was likely true. If he could make it move to join around her wrist, Sebastian could just as likely make it loosen once more, Ashleen thought to herself.

  "How much for what I've used including both items, of course?" the mage questioned acting like he hadn't just created a masterpiece in minutes. No artisan could have managed such a thing even if they had a month, Ashleen guessed.

  Starting out of his stupor created from watching the mage using his magic, Narhorn replied, "What will you be using to pay for them?"

  Sebastian pulled out the pouch and withdrew one of the rectangular gold bars. "Gold should be easy enough, I would think."

  Chapter 5- Katya's Birthday

  Finding a quiet, secluded alley between some buildings on the way towards the outskirts of town, Sebastian created a portal sending them home to their room at the inn. It was strange to call an inn room home, but after several months living there, it had begun to feel that way to them.

  While he had originally considered walking outside of Sardon to call up his doorway, Sebastian had begun to feel tired. Though his wounds were healed, the weakness that they had warned about was evident when he felt like he couldn't walk those extra blocks without having to rest.

  As soon as the portal winked out of sight, the mage moved to sit on the edge of bed. It wasn't enough so Sebastian lay back placing his head on the pillow watching as Ashleen looked from her new bracelet to the mage and back.

  "It really is too much, Bas," the girl said feeling that the gesture was both too extravagant and yet extremely thoughtful as well. With conflicting emotions, she wanted to just say thank you, but her guilt over what he had spent on her remained.

  The pouch, hidden once more inside the waistline of his pants, was quite a bit lighter; but the mage was actually surprised by how much he had left from the excursion. "Don't worry about it," he said sounding tired to his ears. "I wanted to do it, so I did. Besides I have more money than I need to last me most of my life, but if I need more I just need to make some swords. The profit I can make from selling to local merchants can keep me in gold for the rest of my life."

  Slipping off her boots and the stockings inside, Ashleen crawled into bed from the other side to place her head on his shoulder. Her left hand rested on his chest where the girl could look at the bracelet on her wrist. The gems and intricate lines tracing the entire length of the original silver serpent made the piece look very expensive. It was something that a princess might wear, if he had made it removable anyway, Ashleen thought to herself.

  "So how do I remove it when my wrist needs a break anyway?"

  "You should already have guessed that," he responded with his eyes closed. His voice sounded awake enough, but Ashleen noted his need to rest. "I didn't have you acting like my apprentice these last few months without having you pick up anything, did I?"

  His tone was sarcastic and teasing, but he finished with a chuckle. The girl still frowned, though partially from wondering what he meant by his words.

  "Just channel your magic into it. It'll respond to your thoughts to unwind, if that is what you want."

  "It's very pretty by the way. Thank you," she officially made sure to express her gratitude. The money aside, Ashleen knew that it was a gift from the heart and should be accepted that way.

  "If it obeys magic the way it should, you can do more with it than just wearing it by the way," Sebastian added with a yawn.

  Frowning slightly at the bracelet with its blue gems sparkling in spite of the gray light, Ashleen asked, "What do you mean?"

  Opening his eyes, the mage placed his hand over the bracelet channeling his magic into the silver. The runes began to glow before the winding line unwrapped from her wrist easily under his control, but instead of just pulling it free, Sebastian made it wrap around his forefinger. Snapping his hand forward as if to flick it free; the bracelet appeared to become a barbed chain. It whipped the air writhing like his barbed wire runes though limited from lengthening beyond the original limits of the silver he had made it from originally. The gems disappeared making the whip's color and texture seem to become more like blue glass than silver metal.

  When he was done demonstrating the power of the runes set into the bracelet as it became a ring then a barbed whip; Sebastian retracted the length back into a ring before placing it back around the girl's wrist letting it slither onto her skin before becoming the pretty bracelet once more.

  "If you ever need it, it can become a weapon that can react to your magic and defend or attack for you. It should act like the runes on my right arm," he said before closing his eyes again.

  Looking at the bracelet curiously, Ashleen contemplated the item for several minutes as he rested breathing steadily and slowly making her arm lift and fall with each breath. Like his magic, Sebastian made the bracelet and her arm move independently, she thought.

  "You remade your runes on the silver and created a wizard's ring?" the wilder marveled at the piece that Sebastian had seemed to make with little effort.

  "I suppose that you could call it that," the mage replied sounding pretty coherent even if she thought that he was close to falling asleep already.

  "If you wanted to, you could make other weapons besides the Hollow Swords; couldn't you?"

  "The runes can be placed on almost anything, but would require magic to activate things like the bracelet. I could make armor strengthened by the runes, but it would require a wizard to power the extra defense. Instead of that, I can put them on our soldiers where their bodies' energy can be used to strengthen and protect their skin directly.

  "Working with a wizard can charge the Hollow Swords, but I don't know if that would be worth the effort. How many wizards do you know willing to share like that?"

  Picking up her hand to lightly slap his chest admonishingly, Ashleen reminded him, "Hey! I did that working with a soldier on Litsarin covering for you while you brought more help, you know. Most wizards with half a brain should see that being able to share their power with a soldier can be pretty useful. He was stronger than I am, but I could give him the sword to amplify the spell that I placed inside of it."

  "I suppose that even selfish wizards might find it more convenient to share their magic if it meant that a soldier risked their life instead of them," he agreed. "And no I am not saying that was what you did. I am just saying giving wizards Hollow Swords to pass along to regular soldiers might be viewed favorably with more than just those wizards like you."

  Lifting her hand and with it the bracelet, Ashleen tried to use her magic to make the runes shift the metal. The serpent like metal started to unwind, but the girl reversed the coil to reform it into the decorative jewelry as he had originally given it to her. Since the wilder knew that she could make it do as he said, Ashleen preferred keeping the gift where it was to appreciate i
t.

  Her eyes lifted to face him. With his eyes closed, Sebastian could be asleep; but she sensed that he wasn't letting himself drift off just yet.

  "Too bad you are so tired. There's still time before dinner, if I haven't lost track of the time completely after that trip.

  "We haven't had time alone since before you left for New Harbor, after all."

  Teasing her, the mage replied, "There were many times where just you and I were in the hospital room alone together."

  Again she slapped his chest in good hearted annoyance. "That is not what I mean and you know it."

  "Perhaps you should explain it further," Sebastian said with a slight smile.

  Feeling the girl shift on the bed beside him, he opened his eyes when Ashleen placed her hands on his upper stomach as she moved to sit on his legs. Her slight smile at his noticing her looking at him was playful. The satin dress spread across his legs behind the pretty blond making Sebastian place his hands on her legs sliding upward slipping his fingers beneath the cloth as he rubbed her legs slowly.

  She leaned forward bracing herself on the pillow to either side of his head until she could kiss him on the lips. Pulling back she whispered, "The healers suggested that you rest and not strain yourself for at least a week..."

  "What they don't know..." he said with a chuckle pulling her back to him again.

  They made an appearance before dinner surprising Hilda Alamore, the inn's owner. Her husband, who had a black smith's forge behind the inn, might have inherited the inn from his family; but the dark haired woman ran the inn while his interests often kept him away from the people using the inn. Along with the couple, their children were old enough to assist them in various ways as well as a few other workers that were mostly family given jobs by the well-to-do owners.

  Having been there for awhile, Sebastian and Ashleen had nearly been adopted into the family it seemed. Seeing their return, Hilda found Sebastian quickly with a smile for one of her favorite guests. She quickly made them give up what had kept him away, like she always did finding the battle mage's life interesting from what he was allowed to say. There were more secrets that he often had to withhold from the woman, but Hilda didn't seem to mind. He was also a guest and not her child after all.

  Without their presence around Hala, friends that had been staying in the inn had moved back to the free housing for wizards and mages. It was a bit of a surprise to Sebastian since Elzen and Serrena had also become close of late. A mage and wizard respectively, they had to split up. Elzen had gone to the mage corps barracks and, according to the inn keeper, apparently it had been an order from the corps. Without Sebastian around for him to help, the younger mage was being assigned tasks as befitting a local falcon; but it sounded like he could even be reassigned soon.

  The order had apparently upset Serrena, though the fiery, young woman had tried her best to act like it hadn't bothered her. Unfortunately for the wizard, her ability to hide her emotions was like trying to hide behind glass with a light layer of dust, easily seen through if looked at closely. Still the mage's return to the corps meant their need for a room was less necessary, so Serrena had gone back to the fire guild to stay. It was also the location of the local portal where any wizard with the talent had been called to send Hala's forces throughout Southwall and even beyond.

  Without their friends, the couple ate their meal in relative quiet. They danced, which was one of their favorite things to do together; but when the mage began to tire, Ashleen didn't bother to push him to stay and they returned to their room for a good night's rest.

  In the morning after breakfast, Sebastian opened the gate in their room and went back to White Hall. By late morning, Katya was free and surrounded by several apprentices when they met up again.

  She spotted her brother and practically leaped onto him to give him a hug. Releasing him after a moment, the girl pointed to the small wrapped box in his hand with a grin and asked, "Is that for me?"

  Joking around with her, he looked towards the ceiling and asked, "Why would I have a gift for you, little sister? Is there something important enough to demand such a thing?"

  Katya played his game and proclaimed throwing out her hands, "It's my birthday!"

  Her friends and Ashleen couldn't help laughing at the girl's goofy display. It was something expected among some siblings perhaps; but in front of a group of wizards and in their school, it was rare to see someone ignoring the tension White Hall seemed to instill in its students much of the time.

  "Well, I guess that would be a good enough reason then," he replied managing to remain straight faced in spite of his sister before handing over the box. "Happy birthday, Katya."

  His sister took the box and didn't even wait to leave the hall before opening it. The sight of the necklace with the green sapphire made a couple of her friends gasp and even Katya's eyes opened quite a bit wider. Everyone could tell that this wasn't a typical gift given by a poor falcon.

  "It's beautiful, Bas, but it looks so expensive," the girl marveled even as she began pulling it from the box. Even guessing the cost made it something that her farmer parents could never have hoped to afford to give her; Katya didn't stop to try and refuse his generosity like Ashleen had with her bracelet.

  "Well, I didn't have time to try and get the kitchen to make you a cake like you did for me last year," her brother said with a smile, "so I had to make up for it somehow."

  One of the girls, a red haired novice by the lack of stripes on her dress, said almost sounding envious, "My parents couldn't have afforded to make it up to me that much."

  A boy with apprentice white with green stripes tapped her on the forearm gently as he tried to make up for the comment saying, "It looks like he chose green to go with your eyes, Katya. Happy birthday, we're glad that your brother could make it back for you."

  Katya thanked him and took the other girl's hand saying quietly, "My parents can't afford a necklace like this either, but my brother has apparently figured out a way, Briahnna."

  "Well, let's see if we can get the kitchen to make you something special for your birthday as well," Sebastian suggested gesturing towards the hall behind him where the smells of food managed to entice him already. It was still a little early for lunch on White Hall's time, but the sun rose later than in Hala so he had been up almost two hours earlier than those at the school.

  "That has been taken care of already," a wizard in her black robes with silver trim said walking up from behind the apprentices. A woman probably close to middle age with brunette hair and gray eyes, she wasn't acting like a strict teacher but more like a friend, he thought, even with the apparent age difference between her and Katya. "I can't have my apprentice starving on her birthday, now can I?"

  Grinning at the wizard, his sister replied, "You didn't have to do that, Ylena, but I'm glad you did. Will you join us?"

  "Well, of course, I didn't go through the effort of getting the cooks to make a cake just to let you all eat it without me," the wizard replied shaking her head.

  "Let's go then!" Katya said causing a rush past her brother not bothering to wait for him or the other two wizards to follow.

  "I guess we should follow," he said with a sheepish look aimed at the diplomacy wizard.

  "We haven't met yet," the woman said moving towards the two lingering in the hall. "I am Wizard Ylena, your sister's mentor, though only in diplomacy magic. Katya has been remarkably driven to learn multiple disciplines as you probably already know. Unfortunately I am not able to learn dragon magic, but with winter upon us I no longer need to share her. We have been focusing on her diplomacy magic and skills as much as possible while I have her attention."

  "With the Dark One dead," Sebastian said lowering his voice slightly since the subject was still a touchy one for some people, "she won't be needed on the front line at least."

  "Litsarin is no longer at risk?" the wizard questioned sounding a bit surprised.

  "They no longer have the leadership or interest app
arently. Their armies pulled back, though most simply moved north to the towns and cities that were already taken. With Ensolus in a shambles, including most of their portal points destroyed, they might not be able to return home."

  "Perhaps they simply prefer the warmer weather?" Ashleen countered with a smile.

  Sebastian chuckled at the idea. "Well, that would be another good reason."

  The diplomacy wizard smiled at the thought, but seemed to be thinking beyond the weather. "You are certain that he is dead?"

  Looking surprised by the question, the mage stated, "I was there when he was killed. His power couldn't be missed, but his new body gave out under the strain of using his powers. It might still have been flawed or maybe it was too soon to push his body that hard, but it took a lot of magic and wizards to kill him even so."

  "So the head of the snake has been cut, but what of those that remain. We know that the Dark One had other cities and certainly there are generals and wizards that might have designs to harness the position of power that is now vacant," Ylena mused. "I wonder with him gone what will happen there? Will someone just as evil, but maybe less powerful in magic, seek to consolidate power and continue the Dark One's vision?"

  Her questions made Sebastian frown, but more because they had merit than because they annoyed him. "We still have spies there, but I haven't been in charge of meeting them since the battle with the Dark One. I think that command wanted to give me a break or maybe it was simply the white wizards of Hala trying to take charge of the new magic."

  Realizing that he was speaking to a wizard, and a teacher besides; Sebastian wondered if he should have kept the accusation to himself.

  Ylena managed to avoid taking his charge to heart and said instead, "Winter might contain the Dark One's cities for now, but the snow and cold won't last forever. Destroying him and the portals of his city might lead to a new enemy or a possible new friend. Only time will tell us which is possible.