Lusam: The Dragon Mage Wars Book Two Read online

  LUSAM II

  THE DRAGON-MAGE WARS

  Book Two

  by

  Dean Cadman

  (c)2015

  Chapter One

  The three dark agents of Aamon approached the battle scene from various directions. Each had sensed the huge spike of magic used there by someone only minutes earlier, swiftly followed by the unmistakable pulse from the death of a powerful mage. Helveel had been suspected for many months as the possible location of a rogue mage: one who had somehow slipped through the Empire's nets, and managed to evade its agents ever since. The agent who had been sent to Helveel to check the city had confirmed that a mage was in fact living in Helveel. He had reported witnessing the residual effects of magic on, and around a corpse several months ago in a back street in west Helveel. Unfortunately when his report had first been delivered to the Empire it had been accidentally overlooked, and then forgotten about for several months, until being rediscovered recently by a keen eyed young mage named Grice. In his report to the Empire he had claimed that a massive amount of magical force had been used to kill the man in question. However he had yet been unable to locate the mage responsible for the act. All living things contained magic, even some inanimate objects contained power to varying degrees. Anyone capable of even the smallest amounts of magic were able to see the magical potential in others by the strength of their aura. The intensity of a person's aura is a direct indication of their magical potential. Having a powerful aura however does not immediately make that person a powerful mage, that takes years of training and practice, and not all survive the process.

  When the report of this rogue mage was first received by the Empire, it caused a huge amount of confusion and concern within its ranks. Confusion at how, when and where this young mage had been trained so quickly, and without the knowledge of the Empire. Then concern quickly grew as rumours began to circulate of potential hidden training facilities, ones that were unknown to the Empire, and also that Afaraon had somehow discovered the Empire's secret plot to exterminate all magic from within its lands. Even worse for the Empire, it had been suggested that Afaraon had developed a means of somehow hiding the aura of a mage, and that must be the reason this rogue mage could not be found in the city of Helveel by one of their best agents.

  The leader of the Thule Empire, Lord Zelroth had killed dozens of his own followers in a sudden fit of rage after discovering the news of the misplaced report, and the possibility that his plans for Afaraon may now fail, even after over two centuries of preparation. For more than two hundred years, Lord Zelroth's agents had been systematically killing all newborns in Afaraon who were capable of wielding any kind of magic. The time was fast approaching when he had planned for his forces to attack the High Temple of Aysha, and crush it completely. With no magi to defend its walls, it would fall quickly. As far as he knew only a few old priests remained inside its walls, and they were no match for him, or his army. Soon the temple and all the treasures within would be his, and all of Afaraon would bow down to him, or die.

  After learning the information contained within the report, Lord Zelroth sent dozens of his best agents to intercept the rogue mage in Helveel. Their task was to kill him, but first to learn the truth about how and where he had been trained, and then put an end to any resistance Afaraon may be attempting to muster, before it had a chance to swing the balance of power in their favour. All roads in and out of Helveel were to be constantly monitored in case the rogue mage tried to leave the city. Once the remaining agents were inside the city walls, they would comb the city from one side to the other in search of the rogue mage. There would be no escape for him this time.

  The three agents of Aamon viewed the battle scene together. In the centre of the small cobbled street one man lay dead on the floor with a fatal chest wound. More disturbing however was the body of their colleague, smashed beyond recognition and slumped against the wall at the far end of the street. Only a few minutes earlier the agent had reported capturing a young boy capable of using magic, and now he lay dead before them. Viewing the scene using their mage-sight it became even more shocking. The amount of magical residue in the area was quite staggering. Never had any of them witnessed such power used in a single place before. Using so much power that fast could have killed any of the men standing there, and they all knew it.

  All three men wore the long black robes of their order, and all three openly wore the sigil of Aamon distinguishing them as necromancers of their faith. Most followers of Aamon chose the path of necromancy over other forms of magic. It was the preferred dark art of their leader Lord Zelroth, and of their God Aamon. One of the three men wore a second chain made of silver which had a small skull pendant attached at the bottom, just visible below his sigil of Aamon. This symbol signified he was a higher ranked mage within their order, and therefore more powerful than the other two men now accompanying him. This agent's name was Zedd, and he recognised he was the highest rank to have arrived at the scene, and set about trying to decipher exactly what had led to the death of his colleague. “See if you can raise him, so he can tell us what happened here,” he said to one of the other two men, pointing to the dead agent. The man immediately obeyed and set about trying to re-animate his fallen colleague, while Zedd looked more closely at the scene before him.

  “Sire,” said the necromancer attempting to re-animate his colleague, “I can't raise him. The damage is too great, or maybe the amount of magical residue is interfering with my spell, I can not tell which.”

  Zedd nodded in reply and walked over to the body of the other man, who had obviously been stabbed in the chest. He started to chant a spell over and over, getting slightly louder with each recital, until he noticed a slight twitching of the dead man's fingers.

  “STAND!” commanded Zedd, and the corpse obeyed. “Are you able to speak?” asked Zedd. It wasn't always possible for the dead to communicate after being re-animated, it depended how long they had been dead, and what injuries they had sustained to cause their death in the first place. This cadaver however looked quite fresh and in good condition, so he fully expected it to be able to communicate with him.

  “Yes master...,” it replied instantly.

  “Tell me how the man in the black robes died?” Zedd asked, pointing towards his fallen colleague.

  “I do not know master,” it replied. Zedd knew it was impossible for it to lie to him, so he guessed this man must have died before his colleague had.

  “Tell me what happened here before you died,” Zedd asked, annoyed at the fact he would more than likely never know the full story now.

  “We were following a girl, my boss wanted us to capture and take her back to Stelgad. I stabbed her friend in the stomach and she killed me,” it said calmly. Zedd had already noticed another bloodstained dagger on the floor when he had first arrived, now the scene started to make a little more sense to him. He walked over and retrieved the dagger before returning to the re-animated dead man.

  “Is this the dagger you used to stab the friend of the girl?”

  “Yes master,” it said looking at the dagger in Zedd's hand.

  “Was it a boy that you stabbed with this dagger?” asked Zedd, almost certain he knew the answer to the question already.

  “Yes master. I killed him with it,” replied the corpse.

  “Apparently not,” he said, still inspecting the knife. He spoke a single word, and the body of the man collapsed into a heap on the floor and didn't move again. Zedd stood there thinking about what he had just learned and started putting all the pieces together in his mind. Either the boy was dead, or he had survived and was now trying to rescue the girl he had been with. He now knew they wer
e heading for Stelgad, so if the boy had survived, and he tried to follow them he would be caught on the road for sure. Zedd mentally kicked himself for not asking the corpse how many men had been with him, he couldn't re-animate the corpse a second time, nobody could, it only worked the one time.

  It didn't matter, one or one hundred, the outcome would be the same Zedd thought to himself. He didn't care about the girl or her captors, but he did need to know what had happened to the boy. Was he now slumped in a doorway or alley somewhere bleeding out, or dead? Or did he have the ability to heal himself, and had he already left the area? Healing magic was difficult to learn, and took many years of training to achieve. Looking back at his fallen comrade, and knowing the approximate age of the boy from the recent report he had sent before his demise, it seemed impossible that he could have learned both offensive and healing magic in such a short time.

  Zedd carefully touched the blood still on the blade, and rubbing it between his fore-finger and thumb was pleased to see it was still fresh; it would be easier to track the owner of fresh blood, providing of course, he was still alive. Zedd placed the dagger on the floor in front of him and took a step back. He started to chant another spell and the dagger began to turn slowly in circles. The dagger gained more and more speed, until it was no longer possible to see it was actually a dagger at all. Zedd released the final word of his spell, and the dagger stopped dead, pointing South. It only took Zedd a moment to realise the implications of where the dagger now pointed.

  “The boy still lives. He is trying to reach Stelgad to rescue his friend, but he has chosen to go through the southern forest to save time. We must follow him so we don’t lose track of him again,” Zedd said loud enough for the other two men to hear. Both men visibly paled at the news. Neither would willingly enter so deep into the southern forest, knowing the stories of the creatures said to inhabit the place.

  “Sire, if the boy entered the forest it's certain he won't return,” one of the men stated. If there was one thing Zedd hated more than anything it was a coward. The man had sealed his own fate speaking out like that.

  Zedd turned to the man who had remained silent and said, “You will gather our forces here in Helveel, inform them of the situation, and then have them head towards Stelgad with all possible speed. If he does make it through the forest the Empire will be waiting for him. Let them know we are dealing with a powerful mage, and not to take any chances.”

  “Yes sire,” replied the man looking somewhat relieved he didn't have to enter the forest.

  “You're with me, let's go!” Zedd informed the pale looking necromancer still standing in front of him. Zedd recovered the dagger from the floor, and placed it safely in a leather pouch for later use. Then he turned and started running towards the southern forest, with a less than willing companion following close behind.

  Chapter Two

  After thirty minutes of constant running Lusam finally gained his second wind. He was very surprised at the fitness level of this older man, fully expecting him to lag behind long before now. Lusam noticed how easily he set the fast pace, even wearing his heavy shield and sword; he never seemed to tire.

  Lusam had been wondering for a while just how Renn knew where he was going. The forest was quite dense and looked the same no matter which direction they travelled. Feeling confident he could speak now while running he asked, “How do you know which way to go?”

  “That's easy enough. Stelgad is south of here. As long as we keep the moss that grows on the north side of the trees facing us, then we are travelling south. Eventually we will see the road that runs through Stelgad, “ Renn replied, still maintaining his pace.

  “Okay, that makes sense I guess, but how will you know which way to travel on the road to reach Stelgad, when we eventually find it?” Renn laughed and replied, “That's easy too, there is a river that runs alongside that road. If it's clean we turn west and follow the flow of the river, if it's full of refuse we turn east and follow it back to Stelgad.”

  “I see,” was all Lusam managed as a reply.

  Lusam wasn't sure how long they had been running when Renn slowed to a walking pace. He guessed maybe a couple of hours at least while varying their pace from running to a slow jog, and then back to running again.

  “There is a stream up ahead. I suggest we drink what we can and rest a while. I have only one waterskin, so we will have to share between water sources,” Renn said walking towards the small stream. Lusam had noticed several berry trees growing near the stream, and decided to collect some berries after he had first quenched his thirst. During their long run Lusam found it difficult to think about anything else apart from rescuing Neala. His mind was still full of the same thoughts as he knelt down and started absent-mindedly collecting the edible berries, and placing them in a large leaf he had removed from a nearby tree. He couldn't help thinking about what would happen to Neala if he didn't reach Stelgad in time. He remembered the story Neala had told him about the night she had been forced to flee Stelgad for her life, and the fate of her fellow guild members. He was in no doubt her life would be forfeit to this man Shiva, should he fail to rescue her in time.

  Lusam didn't hear Renn walk up behind him, and when he placed a hand on his shoulder he was abruptly startled out of his torturous daydream.

  “Don't worry lad, we'll get her back,” he said gently squeezing Lusam's shoulder, before taking a seat beside him on the bank of the stream.

  “I hope you're right. I really do,” Lusam said quietly.

  “I see you know your berries,” Renn said, nodding towards the small pile Lusam had collected. He knew Renn was only trying to take his mind off Neala by changing the subject, and he was grateful for it.

  “Yes, I know most of the edible plants and berries in the forest. I spent most of my childhood visiting the forest with my grandmother. She taught me what I could and could not eat,” Lusam replied, smiling at the fond memories. Memories that seemed so distant now; like another lifetime.

  “Your grandmother?” Renn asked looking puzzled. “Oh, you mean Asima your Hermingild.” He took a small amount of berries from the leaf and started eating them.

  This time it was Lusam's turn to look puzzled as he asked, “I knew her name was Asima, but what is a Hermingild?” At that moment Renn realised just how little Lusam must know of his own situation, and of his possible future potential. Nor did he know how incredibly important he may be in the fight against the evil hordes of Aamon, now washing over the land he called home. There wasn't enough time for Renn to answer all the questions that Lusam would surely ask if he continued with this conversation. He wasn't sure it should even be him that gave Lusam that information. He knew enough of Lusam's family history to fill in some gaps, but not everything.

  Deciding to try and change the subject back to the matter in hand, he turned to Lusam and offered him the waterskin,

  “Here, drink some of this lad. We need to get moving again before the light fades. We'll need to make camp well before nightfall. This forest is filled with many dangers at night, and we need to be ready for whatever comes.”

  “Dangers? Do you mean wolves?” Lusam asked, forgetting about the strange reference made to his grandmother.

  “No. Not wolves lad. There are far more dangerous things that wander this forest at night than wolves. Let's not waste the daylight we have left.” Renn retrieved his waterskin, refilled it quickly at the stream, then resumed his run in a southerly direction without another word. Lusam scrambled to catch up and matched the big man's pace for the rest of the afternoon.

  It was about two hours later when the light noticeably began to fade fast. The shadows of the now huge trees began to merge into one, as the sun began to disappear beyond the hidden horizon.

  They continued to run at what seemed an even faster pace for the final few minutes, before Renn abruptly came to a stop. He turned to Lusam and said, “Here. We'll make camp here for tonight lad. I have enough food for us tonight, but tomorrow we must h
unt for fresh supplies.”

  Lusam looked around at the spot Renn had chosen as their camp for their first night in the forest, and was a little confused. Apart from a large fallen tree, it looked no different from the countless miles of forest they had been running through all that day. He quickly decided not to question the merits of the location Renn had chosen, as he was more than ready to stop running and rest for the night. In fact, he was so tired he thought he could sleep for days given a chance, until the reality of Neala's situation once again entered his mind, then he was equally sure he would get no sleep at all that night.

  Renn started to clear an area of ground where they would later sleep, removing the fallen branches and rocks. Lusam followed his example and in no time at all they had a good size area clear of any debris likely to cause discomfort. Lusam then started to collect the fallen branches closest to camp as firewood. He intended to collect enough to see them through the coming night when he was stopped in his tracks by Renn's hushed voice,

  “No fire tonight lad. We don't want to be advertising our location to anyone, or anything that may be nearby when it's dark.”

  From the look on Renn's face Lusam knew he was serious when he said no fire. It was warm enough this time of year that he doubted he would miss the warmth of a camp fire while he slept. The thing that confused him most was the contradictory signals Renn was giving out. Not long ago he had told Lusam there were dangerous animals in this forest, even more dangerous than wolves. Now he didn't want to light a camp fire. Everyone knew animals are scared of fire, surely it would be their best defence whilst they slept, against any wandering beast that may fancy them as a midnight snack.

  Having spent most of his childhood in and around a forest very similar to this one, Lusam decided he wasn't unduly worried about any wild animals that may, or may not reside within its borders. He knew animals given a choice would avoid humans at all costs, unless cornered, injured or extremely hungry. He had seen a large amount of game animals and evidence of them during his long run through the forest that day, so he doubted very much that any predator could be hungry enough to attack them because of hunger alone. He decided Renn's warning of dangers hidden within the forest were more likely down to his lack of knowledge of his surroundings, and his decision not to create a camp fire only strengthened Lusam's opinion.