A Clash of Magics Page 6

“If he has, it wouldn’t hurt to make amends with Seer Caspur,” Trevor said.

  Rorsik withdrew his hands from the top of the desk. “I will do what I feel I have to do, but I will work with Azar’s men to come up with some charms that might work.”

  “Good. We could use the one that is the easiest to make,” Trevor said. “I suppose that is all we have to talk about, unless you have any questions.”

  “How did you escape from the Blue Tower? You didn’t have a magician with you.”

  “My Jarkanese sword can hold some magic, and I found an old breastplate that could as well. The trip to Jarkan drained the magic out of both.”

  “I searched the order’s archives and couldn’t find anything on teleportation or on borrowing magic. I can’t discount the possibility that you are of Dryden.” Rorsik admitted before glancing at the clock on his cabinet. “I have another appointment.”

  Trevor exited the building, glad that ordeal was over. Despite Rorsik’s research and almost-acceptance of his appointment as Dryden’s messenger, the leader still found it easy to be rude to him. Trevor mounted Snowflake to return to the church, discovering that he no longer cared about how Rorsik felt as long as the Order of Golds could create a suitable charm. Trevor didn’t feel the chances were very good. He worried about the situation all the way to the church and on the short walk to a restaurant where the seer joined them.

  “Where is Gorian Custik?” Trevor asked Seer Caspur after they were seated and he had done some thinking.

  “He traveled to Jilgrath with his lady friend.”

  “Glynna Bostik?” Brother Yvan asked.

  The seer nodded.

  “Then we will be traveling through Jilgrath on our way to Ginster,” Trevor said. “I don’t have the faith I should have to rely on Hamel Rorsik to come up with the charms we need to combat the invisible Maskumite magicians.”

  Brother Yvan raised his eyebrows. “He can consult with the magical academy, as well. They might have better methods than the golds.”

  “They do,” Lissa said before chomping on a chunk of buttered bread. “I would know.”

  “Can you make charms?” Seer Caspur asked his daughter.

  “I can, but I suspect these charms will tax my capabilities. It takes more theoretical knowledge of magic than I have. For this charm, the successful magician will have to be very creative,” Lissa said.

  “It won’t hurt to have more people working on the problem,” Trevor said. “It is too much to hope for anyone to cooperate.”

  “Certainly not with Hamel Rorsik,” Seer Caspur said. “I think it is a very good idea to seek Gorian out.”

  ~

  The abundant supply of Zinkel’s ale brightened Brother Yvan’s mood, not that it needed brightening. They had found sources enough in Jiksara, but Trevor remembered the ale tasted the best at the brewery, so they found a suitable inn closer to the brewery that served the drink. After checking in midmorning, they sent a message to the mayor that they had arrived and asked if he could locate Gorian Custik or Glynna Bostik for them.

  “Does this bring back memories of Eila?” Trevor said as the four of them toured the brewery after checking in just before lunch. Zutterak had written out passes to the brewery dining room before they said a final goodbye to the premier, Win, and Siranda.

  Trevor looked forward to the food. It couldn’t have changed since he had last visited the place. He’d never been to an inn or tavern that did such a good job of serving common room food.

  “How fares the world travelers?” a familiar voice called out from a table set for seven.

  “Volst!” Trevor almost shouted. It was so good to see his friend after weeks traveling in the west.

  They sat down, and Brother Yvan introduced Reena to Volst who nodded to the cleric.

  “A better choice?” Volst asked.

  “It would be diplomatic to say different, but better works,” Brother Yvan said with a grin.

  Volst held out his hands. “Don’t tell me anything. I contacted Glynna and her mad magician husband to join us. They should be here soon.”

  “Husband!” Brother Yvan said.

  “It is a very recent thing. Glynna convinced Custik to marry her once they reached Jilgrath,” Volst said. “I don’t see why you can’t reacquaint yourself with the best ale in the world.”

  Trevor smiled, but he didn’t tell him about the Parkintown brew. He’d save that for the story he’d be telling.

  “I have started to split my time between helping my father run Jilgrath and teaching at the academy,” Volst said. “The dueling club hasn’t been resurrected yet.”

  “Will it ever?” Lissa asked.

  Trevor thought she might have picked up something with her talent.

  “Maybe not, but I don’t think I’m ready to hang my sword on a wall, either” Volst gave Trevor a look that said his friend’s traveling days might not be over.

  “Do you know anything about advanced charms?” Lissa asked.

  “I know they exist, but it isn’t my expertise,” Volst said. “Wait for Custik.”

  As Volst said it, Custik and Glynna walked in hand-in-hand. Somehow, they looked odd as a couple to Trevor, but then if Lissa and he did the same, Volst might think them as odd.

  They sat down, and Trevor made sure everyone had a mug of ale before he started. The only interruptions to his story were ordering their food and a short period where Trevor wolfed down as much food as he could before continuing. Since he was among his closest friends, he didn’t leave out a thing.

  “I knew the cuirass was old and magical, but I had no idea it held so much significance,” Custik said.

  “I’ll know more when we reach Collet,” Trevor said.

  “Duke Arcwin sounds almost as good as King Arcwin,” Glynna said.

  “Duke is more than enough for me.”

  “And for me,” Lissa said, grabbing Trevor’s hand. He had mentioned their growing relationship as part of his story.

  “And the fate of the world is up to me?” Gorian Custik said with a twinkle in his eye.

  “I have my money on Hamel Rorsik,” Volst said. He pursed his lips to pretend he withheld a smile. “Gorian and I should consult with the academy. It would be fun to beat the Order of Gold to the charm.”

  “If there are two different charms, all the better,” Trevor said. “One might work better than another or something. I’m not a charm-maker so I don’t know.”

  “You are right,” Glynna said. “I’ve made plenty of charms in my day. I saved a few books on charms that might be of use to Gorian and the academy.”

  “I’ll speak to the current Chief Trustee of the academy,” Volst said. “I work with the trustee all the time. We can come up with something.”

  “But will it work?” Custik asked.

  “You can be the one to tell us,” Volst said.

  Custik’s gaze turned to Lissa. “I understand that Lissa knows a camouflage spell or two, but they don’t work that well in the light.”

  “I can work with Lissa,” Glynna said.

  “Make it three of us,” Reena said. Brother Yvan gave her a surprised look. She made a face at him. “I can contribute. My magic is almost as good as anyone’s.”

  “A Dryden cleric wouldn’t have said that,” Volst said.

  “I’m not a Dryden cleric or didn’t you notice?” Reena said.

  Volst just smiled and lifted his mug to her.

  “Glynna, Lissa, and Reena will work on evaluating spells,” Trevor began. “Volst will get a distinguished fellow at the academy to help Custik. I’m sure we can get something figured out before Hamel Rorsik tells us he has created a working charm.”

  “We can’t wait here that long,” Brother Yvan said.

  “And that is why Brother Yvan and I will continue on to Collet while the process gets started. We will return and see if we can help finish the task,” Trevor said.

  “I’ll join you, if you don’t mind,” Volst said. “We won’t be gone that
long, and all I’m needed for here is to make an introduction or two. There is a possibility that Custik already knows the right person.”

  “We will see,” Gorian said. “But we won’t need your magic, Volst. I hope you don’t mind.”

  The man grinned. “Not if I can ride next to Des and Snowflake.”

  “I have reverted to Trevor.”

  “I don’t care what you call yourself.” Volst lifted his mug to start a toast.

  Trevor lifted his own mug and enjoyed being back among his friends again. The only one missing was Win, but Trevor was okay with that, and he knew Win was too.

  “I have a few things to discuss with you,” Gorian said to Trevor as they walked out of the pub’s dining room. “Invite Glynna and me to dinner, and we can talk tonight. I suggest you spend the afternoon getting the academy to talk to me. They aren’t as hostile as Rorsik and his band of golds, but they aren’t my bosom buddies.”

  “Consider you two invited,” Trevor said. He caught up to Volst.

  “Were you wondering if I can introduce you to the new Chief Trustee?” Volst asked.

  “I am. Custik said it would be better if he did not accompany us,” Trevor said. “Professional jealousy?”

  Volst sighed. “Not as bad as with the golds in Jiksara, but Custik has a way about him that brings out the worst in people. Glynna and you are the exceptions.”

  “Even you?” Trevor said.

  “I’m a minor exception too. Let’s see my father, first.”

  Brother Yvan wasn’t quite in agreement about having Reena stay in Jilgrath, Trevor told him that he would bring the pair back to Collet if they could charge up the sword and his cuirass.

  “It will be done,” Brother Yvan said. “You can get Custik’s magic into your sword and then use either of the ladies’ magic to get you to Collet and use the charged magic to get back. I’m not sure there is anyone in Collet who can provide enough power.”

  “Then we know how to retrieve our ladies.”

  Brother Yvan smiled. “I like the sound of that.”

  ~

  Reena and Brother Yvan joined Lissa and Glynna in talking about how to create invisibility or mimic it well enough to test out any charms that were developed. Trevor couldn’t help them with any of it, so he took a carriage to the main square.

  Trevor walked into the mayor’s office. He’d never been in the offices when he spent time in Jilgrath before. Raszak Gwent always had come to him or to the police station. Volst sat among others behind desks in the mayor’s office area. He jumped up as Trevor entered the room.

  “Father, I brought Des Boxster along. I will caution you, that he now goes by Trevor Arcwin. I don’t know how he will react if you call him Des, though,” Volst said as he ushered Trevor into his father’s office.

  The elder Volst rose from his desk and came around to shake Trevor’s hand. “I always liked your real name better, Prince Arcwin.”

  “Actually, I am now a real duke. Unfortunately, my domain is far away in Brachia.”

  “Brachia? In the heart of the enemy?”

  “Pretty much. I have met King Worto, but he is currently quelling some disturbance on the eastern Fulerian border. Surprisingly, he rules loosely in Brachia.”

  “Sit down and tell me a quick summary of what you’ve been up to. I am glad you finally killed Jeruld Kantak’s odious cousin.”

  “I did. I’m sure Volst told you the details,” Trevor said.

  “Twenty times, at least,” Volst said.

  Trevor gave Volst the elder a condensed version of his travels, leaving out the magical and emotional elements he included earlier in the day.

  “How can I help you?”

  “You can let me go with him,” Volst said.

  Trevor looked at Volst. A grown man was asking his father for permission, but Trevor only had an inkling of what the relationship was really like.

  “The wanderlust is still lusting away?” the mayor said.

  “It is. I’m only teaching two classes at the academy. You have enough assistants now.”

  The mayor sighed. “Promise me you won’t get killed.”

  “I can’t have any fun if I do that. You know me.”

  Volst’s father assumed a defeated expression. “Bring him back to me, preferably alive.”

  “Do you want to stay here or come to Collet?” Trevor asked Volst.

  “Collet. I only need to get Custik accepted by the academy. He’s a gold, and frankly, it isn’t just his personality, but his exalted rank that has been a barrier.”

  “Very well. Brother Yvan and you can trade insults or something on the way,” Trevor said.

  “You won’t regret it.”

  The mayor sighed. “From the look on his face, it looks like he already does.”

  Trevor didn’t feel regret about Volst joining him, but he didn’t know how Lissa would react. If Trevor really was the messenger, he’d need another good sword at his side. A magician with a sword was even better, and Volst was trusted and battle-tested.

  Leaving the father and son to work out their commitments to each other, Trevor walked across the square and entered the building where the chief trustee worked. He didn’t have Volst with him or an appointment, but he hoped he’d be able to snag a few minutes of the trustee’s time.

  He sat next to the secretary’s desk. The man came and went and finally motioned to Trevor.

  “Chief Trustee Gillisek will see you now.”

  Trevor had never met the chief trustee before. He walked in to see a woman sitting behind the desk. She was tall and more than fit. Without the obviously feminine shape, she was as tall and looked as strong as a man. He wondered if Custik’s problem was also a roving eye.

  “The famous Prince Trevor Arcwin. Sit down.”

  Trevor was surprised she didn’t use the Boxster name.

  “I should have said the famous and infamous Desolation Boxster?” Gillisek asked.

  “I go by Trevor Arcwin.”

  “I prefer that. You have a few minutes of my time. Make them productive,” the Chief Trustee said.

  Trevor changed his story a little, adding more magic and emphasizing his run-ins with Maskumite magicians in Brachia and Okora.

  “I’ve never trusted the Maskumites,” Gillisek said. “I have written them offering to do exchanges, but I was rebuffed each time. They all cluster in what they call their enclave in Khartoo. My previous position at the academy included arranging for foreign students of high potential. Sometimes the academy needs different challenges to make teaching more palatable.” She tapped a finger on the writing pad in front of her. “So what is it you want of me?”

  Trevor had expected Volst to have this conversation, but he decided to plunge ahead. “The leaders of the world need charms, so they won’t be exposed to invisible magicians.”

  Gillisek almost giggled. “Exposed? Invisible? A curious turn of the phrase, but I agree. Do you think we, at the academy, can come up with something?”

  He described his visit to Hamel Rorsik and the chief trustee became amused. “I’d love to show up those stuck-up pigs,” she said. “I’ll need an outside expert.”

  “Gorian Custik?”

  “He said he would help?”

  Trevor nodded. “I also have a group working on duplicating the invisibility spell. One of them already knows a camouflage spell that isn’t as good, but it is a place to start,” Trevor said.

  “Have Custik come over tomorrow morning, and I’ll pick out a few good research magicians.”

  “Not Grantak Poket?”

  Gillisek laughed. “You do know him, don’t you? Custik and he probably won’t get along, but he is one of our best. You can warn Custik about him.”

  “I will,” Trevor said. “Why isn’t he sitting in your chair?”

  “It would be too uncomfortable for the both of us,” Gillisek said.

  The woman had a sharp sense of humor, Trevor thought.

  “He was counseled that he was in the be
st position in the academy and since he didn’t have what it takes to become a gold…”

  “He decided to stay.”

  Gillisek nodded. “Poket did. The Brachian woman didn’t return, so I think all of your group will be safe from him.”

  “I’d like to take Linny Volst with me,” Trevor said.

  “That’s an easy request,” the chief trustee said. “Linny is a wonderful person, but I think you spoiled him. His classes have become less focused, if I may use the term. He may leave, but I will tell him he can always come back to the academy. What his classes lose in rigor are made up by entertainment value. He is one of the favorite professors, but I can stand to give up a favorite right now.”

  The chief trustee didn’t elaborate, but Trevor knew that politics were part of the mortar of the academy. “I’ll be seeing Gorian tonight and will tell him to drop by tomorrow.”

  “Early tomorrow would be best,” the Chief Trustee said.

  ~

  Reena, Lissa, and Glynna had been busy. Each of them had some kind of hiding spell, and they had a list of approaches to creating an invisibility spell that might be used to test the charm. Trevor didn’t know the mechanics of such things, so he had to accept their claims. Custik vouched for them, so that was as good an evaluation as he thought he’d ever get.

  They decided to eat dinner at the inn. All but Custik knew of better places around Jilgrath, but it was clear that Custik wanted much more detail about Trevor’s experiences.

  Once dinner was out of the way, with everyone getting more current on their personal situations, Custik leaned toward Trevor. “Go into as much detail as you can remember during all your experiences with the ancient devices.”

  “My teleportation?”

  Custik frowned. “I don’t like the word, but yes. I’d like to understand what kind of progress you’ve made.”

  Trevor started with the experience in Gnarled Wood and ended with taking Keith Garman to Collet and back. “It seems I’ve gotten better at it, but I don’t know why. I can’t go anywhere on my own, I need someone else’s magic.”

  Custik nodded and thought for a bit. “Dryden is definitely at work, here. I wasn’t so sure when we were able to transfer from the Blue Tower, but I am now. There are too many coincidences, especially with the cuirass.”