Chapter 17: Unrest in the Capital (2)

Chapter 17: Unrest in the Capital (2)

Leaving his sword by his bedroll, but taking his component pouch, he strolled around the camp. In doing so, he heard with his own ears what Tamharu had been reporting. Everybody had their own story.

... entire ousehold killed, he heard a grizzled old man say. Terrible stuff, I tell you. Completely orrible. I saw with my own eyes. Eads ripped off. Blood everywhere.

But there seemed to be plenty of skeptics, too.

Theres nothing nefarious going on at all. Its the wainwrights, I tell you. Wagons are selling out everywhere. Theyre spreading rumors to make money, thats all.

Them and the shipwrights.

Maybe, but better safe than sorry, eh?

True. And thats why Im eading out for business now instead of next month.

After circling around the camp, he heard at least six different rumors about what was happening. Back at the convoy, he found Gandash laying on his back on his bedroll, staring up at the stars.

Xerxes sat on his own bedroll.

Theyre gone, Gandash said.

Xerxes looked over. What was that?

Theres no more meteors, Gandash said. Not a single one.

Xerxes stared up into the sky. Is that so? I havent been looking.

He lay down, put his hands behind his head, and gazed at the glittering tableau.

Ive been watching, Gandash continued. There havent been any.

I suppose thats a good thing.Follow current novels at novelhall.com)

They lay there in silence for a few minutes.

Gandy?

Yeah?

Xerxes opened his mouth to talk, but suddenly his throat tightened, and his chest grew heavy. I.

Minutes later, they entered the chamber, which had a vaulted ceiling and an oblong table in the middle, laden with a plethora of books, scrolls, maps, and the like. Open windows let in outside air and light, and there were even doors leading out to what was surely a balcony, though they were closed. There were also lamps providing light.

Seven pairs of eyes turned in their direction as they entered.

Xerxes heart leapt into his throat. His father, Ataneedusu, stood among the gathered mages. He wanted to run over and throw himself into his fathers arms, but he held back, instead struggling to mask a grin as he nodded. His father nodded back. Many said that Xerxes resembled his father; they had the same eyes, the same smile, and the same prominent nose. The main difference was his fathers spectacularly styled beard. Xerxes still didnt have sufficient facial hair for anything so impressive.

Standing next to Xerxes father was Gandashs father, Dumamu. His beard was similarly styled to Ataneedusus, except it had small jewels braided into it. What was more, Dumamu wore a robe of much finer cloth, and had numerous bits of jewelry elsewhere on him. The difference between him and Xerxes father was obvious to anyone with eyes.

Also present at the table was Mystic Aban Saddi, who was the Head Mage and also the strongest master of arcane arts on the planet. His well-oiled mustache was unusual for a man of Isin, but rumor had it his mother was a foreigner. He wore robes as fine as Dumamus, but instead of the characteristic white, cylindrical hat worn by most mages, he wore a turban of blue cloth. Aban Saddi was one of the only other Buhhu mages on Mannemid, and had tutored Gandash on more than one occasion.

High Seers Ninsunu and Shemesh were present.

Ninsunu, whose name had so recently been mentioned in stories while traveling, studied the Sinitu order, which made her capable of physical transformations, both of herself and others. She was over a hundred and twenty years old, but looked middle-aged. She had dark hair and an aquiline nose, and wore adornments of gold and silver that made her look almost like a noble.

Shemesh specialized in the order of Hasasu, with spells that made him capable of sensing the thoughts and feelings of others, and also giving him the ability to read omens in the stars. This was the same order of magic that Gandashs father studied, although Dumamu was an ordinary Seer, not a High Seer.

Also present was Alwin, who was only a few years older than Gandash and Xerxes. He studied the Nasaru order, that of defense and protection. As one of the newer Seers, he had originally been assigned to go on the mission to Ligish Castle, but had fallen ill at the last minute, and was replaced by Bel. It only now occurred to Xerxes that, if Alwin hadnt gotten sick, Bel might still be alive. He swallowed the bitterness that rose up in his heart when he considered that.

The King Nabuhisnuisin of Isin was present, an old man of noble character who was well-loved by the people, and generally respected by the mages.

As the surviving officers and mages of the convoy entered the council chamber, it was obvious theyd interrupted a heated conversation.

Everyone present went quiet, then Mystic Aban Saddi cleared his throat.

Captain Ishki, your timing couldnt have been better, he said. Or worse.

Note: At this point, all of the major paths of magic have been introduced, some of them in passing. Going forward, I will do my best to make sure their general function is made even more clear. Also, I'm working on a wiki to gather some of this info for easy reference. In the meantime, here is a brief summary of the orders of magic that have been described up to this point:

Nasaru - Defense/Shielding

Asgagu - Combat/Destruction

Balatu - Healing

Sinitu - Transformation/Transumation

Hasasu - Mind Reading/Divination

Buhhu - Summoning