Chapter Six #3
Vadim Maur stared hard at his apprentice.
A small tic worked at the lower corner of his right eye, the only visible sign of his anger.
Well, that, Kolis thought, and the thirty-degree drop in temperature in his office chamber.
He wasn’t about to ask about the angry red burn marks scoring the left side of the High Mage’s pallid, cadaverous face.
No doubt one of his many experiments had gone badly, but Kolis wasn’t fool enough to remark upon it.
“She is a master of Spirit?” Vadim asked, his voice a chilling hiss.
“Without a doubt, master. Last night, she spun a Spirit weave that completely controlled over two hundred minds—Fey included—for over seven bells. None of them was aware of what she was doing until it was too late. She wasn’t even consciously weaving.
I’ve never seen the like. I was there in the body of my umagi Jiarine Montevero, and she has enough hearth witch in her that I could see the flows. They came from Ellysetta Baristani.”
“And your mind, Kolis? As you were close enough to see this weave, did it control your mind too?”
Kolis flushed and dropped his gaze. “I am ashamed to admit it did, High One. Even knowing it was a weave, I could not deny its dictates.”
Silence fell. The room temperature plunged again, and frost crackled on every surface. “So, she’s a master of Spirit as well as Fire . . .”
Kolis’s eyes widened as Vadim Maur’s hand twitched towards the scorch marks on his face. Ellysetta Baristani had done that? Dark Lord’s Scythe! How was it possible?
The High Mage’s silver eyes began to darken with spinning clouds of black and red. “Not at all the ungifted wretch my pets have long tried to convince me she was.”
Even knowing that his master’s anger was not directed at him, Kolis felt the chill of it ice his veins. The captives would regret their duplicity. The walls of Boura Fell would soon echo with their screams. Despite himself, the Sulimage could almost feel pity for them.
“You will bring Ellysetta Baristani to me.” The wintry command snapped Kolis back to attention.
“I anticipated your request, master.” In a quick rush of words, he explained about the gift he had prepared for Ellysetta Baristani. “I’ve already arranged for its delivery, and ensured there will be no way to trace the gift back to either my umagi or myself.”
The High Mage tapped a contemplative finger against his lips, and the room began to warm as the worst of his anger passed. “The idea has merit, but you lose much control once the package leaves your possession. What is your alternate plan in case this one fails?”
Kolis swallowed and cautiously admitted, “I haven’t fully prepared it yet.”
“The key to success, Kolis, is planning for failure.”
“I know, master, and I have arranged for my newest umagi to serve as the Baristani girl’s Honoria, in the hope that she could be of greater service to me. I thought perhaps an abduction at the wedding, should the gift not work as intended.”
The High Mage shook his head. “The Tairen Soul will be there. It is too great a risk.”
“Yes, Great One, but it seemed the best option. I considered having my umagi open a portal during the Bride’s Blessing, when they are sequestered in the cathedral’s Solarus for the purification, but she would be outnumbered and unlikely to succeed.
” The only people permitted to accompany a bride into the Solarus during the Bride’s Blessing were the priest, the bride’s mother, and the Honoria—and neither Lauriana Baristani nor Greatfather Tivrest were Mage-claimed.
For all his posturing and arrogance, the archbishop was a man of deep faith, and he had staunchly resisted every one of Kolis’s attempts to turn him.
“I’m pleased you considered an attack during the Bride’s Blessing; it was my first thought as well.
The isolation makes for a perfect opportunity.
” Master Maur smoothed the silk-lined velvet cuff of his purple Mage robes.
“And though you would be correct about the unlikelihood of your umagi’s success, assuming she was our only agent in the Solarus, I’ve already considered that problem and devised what I believe is a very workable solution.
” One silvery brow lifted. “Did you know that Ellysetta Baristani was once under the care of the Church exorcists?”
“No, master, I didn’t know that.”
“Mmm, well, she was. I received word just a few chimes ago from Primage Keldo. His umagi in Hartslea discovered it.” The High Mage sat back in his chair and steepled his hands beneath his chin.
“Apparently, young Ellysetta suffered regularly from violent ‘seizures’ in her childhood. The Church determined she was demon-possessed and convinced her parents to approve an exorcism. According to Keldo’s umagi, the girl’s father had a change of heart before the exorcism could be completed, and the family fled Hartslea rather than give her up to the priests. ”
“That’s very interesting, master.” Kolis tried to infuse a tone of appreciation in his voice, even though he didn’t see how the information helped them.
“The mother is still quite devout and openly hostile to the Fey. I’ve been playing on her fears, hoping to use her to separate the girl from her guards, but so far she has steadfastly refused my bait. ”
“Your man in the north, the priest, he is an exorcist, is he not?”
“Nivane? He is. It was how I first Marked him.” Like many of his northern-bred brothers, the young priest had been born with a remnant gift for weaving Azrahn, and when he’d unwittingly woven it while attempting to exorcise one of Kolis’s umagi, he’d granted Kolis a foothold in his soul.
“Parts of the Grand Cathedral are extremely ancient,” Vadim Maur continued, “built in an age when Demon Princes were a considerable threat. The initial purpose of the Solarus was purification—but not for brides. It was a chamber used almost exclusively for exorcism.”
“I’ve never heard that before.” Now the appreciation in his tone was genuine as Kolis’s mind began to race with possibilities.
“The knowledge was lost long ago. I only discovered mention of it in an ancient Merellian text. As part of its initial purpose, the Solarus was built to withstand even five-fold weaves.” The High Mage pressed his steepled fingers against his lips and smiled.
“The entire room is a cage built to hold demon-possessed magical creatures. There is no better place in all the world to steal a Tairen Soul’s mate. ”