51313 Harbor Street: Circles

(This is raw, unedited, and probably filled with mistakes. It will get fixed as time goes by. Just sit back and enjoy the story as it comes. Thanks for reading.)

Circles

Chapter 1.0

Maze of Madness

By Stephen B. Bagley

"I'm not going to do this," I said, throwing down the overshirt.

Jasone looked at me. As always, his mouth twisted as if he couldn't imagine how stupid I was.

Alissa frowned at us both. Not that I cared what a swamp witch thought.

"Please," Glemma sighed, pushing her long blonde braids away from her face. "Must we go through this again?" She stomped over to me and waved her finger in my face. "We have to wear matching overshirts for the Test. We voted. You lost. We wear Jasone's dragon."

"I'm not going to do it," I said again, although I knew I would have to. I hated the smug expression on Jasone's face just like I hated his rich family, his noble line, his perfect scores in Written, and his athletic skills. Why he got grouped with us remained a mystery. The only redeeming value about it was that he hated being with us as much as we hated him being there.

"I don't like the dragon, either," Alissa said.

Glemma rounded on her. "You voted for it! It's too late now to change your mind."

Alissa shrugged. "Not changing my mind. I didn't like it when I voted for it. But at least it's real."

"The Phoenix is -- was real," I said.

"No proof of that," Alissa said. "None." She stepped over to her desk. "And Mamaboy there wouldn't have paid for any other design."

Jasone scowled at her. "I told you not to call me that."

"Yes, I know," Alissa said, looking unconcerned.

With My Othereyes, I saw magick build briefly in Jasone before he thought better of it. Alissa's home might be the backward swamps of Nola Scrone, but she was easily his match.

"I get so tired of all of you," Glemma said with an exasperated sigh. "Why my parents sent me to this godsforsaken Circle is beyond me!"

"Because they're poor and can't afford better," Jasone said bluntly.

Glemma glared at him. "Then why did you get sent here ... Mamababy?"

Light flared around Jasone. He might be daunted by Alissa, but Glemma didn't carry the swamp witch's power.

"That's enough," Derry, the fifth member of our happy quintet, said quietly. He looked up from his book. "We will be Tested tomorrow. Perhaps we shouldn't waste magick."

Jasone sneered, but he turned away. While Alissa may have held more sheer raw power, Derry wielded his with a careful competence that intimidated everyone. If we had a leader, the unhappy role fell to Derry. But even his skills couldn't forge a unit out of the misfits in this room.

"I don't understand," Alissa said. "Why?"

She left the rest of her question unsaid. We had certainly discussed it endlessly over the past three weeks, ever since Mage Argent announced Aspirants would be Tested in groups. He gave no explanations for this change that upended more than hundred generations of tradition. Not that anyone asked him for one. Circle Mongarth be the poorest Circle in the Empire, but everyone feared Mage Argent. No one understood why he choose this backward Circle when any of the richer ones were his for the taking. People whispered the death of his wife had driven him insane years ago. Perhaps so. Argent didn't share his mind with other Mages and certainly not with Aspirants.

"What difference does it make?" Jasone said abruptly. "When we're dead, the reasons won't matter." He left the main room and entered his room, slamming the door behind him.

"It's to give us a better chance of surviving," Glemma said. "Five of us are better than one of us. That's why they did it. That's what my father says. And he should know." She frowned when none of us agreed. "I'm going to bed."

She stomped into her room.

Derry returned to reading his book. Alissa rose and walked out onto the little balcony. I followed her, not seeking her company, but not ready to go my little room.

In the crisp air, I looked out over the huge circular courtyard. Like all the Circles, Mongarth's buildings were arranged around the courtyard like spokes of a wheel. Three dorms for the Aspirants, one of which was empty due to the rotten roof; the dining hall; two buildings where we were schooled in the Written Ways; a stable; a guest house reserved for use by nobles; the gym; the library; and the two halls that housed the Mages. Flaking paint and weathered wood revealed the shabby condition of Mongarth in general, but the Mages insisted we keep the courtyard tidy, replacing the paving bricks as necessary and trimming the grass back.

One more small building squatted to our left, but I chose to not look there. We would enter it tomorrow, and unless the gods smiled on us, we would die.

Circles

Chapter 1.1

Maze of Madness

Alissa pulled out her pipe and packed it with derva leaves. She called up a flame and lit it.

"I don't know how you stand that stuff," I said, pulling enough power to create a wind to blow the smoke away from me.

She shrugged. "Reminds me of home."

I reminded myself again to never visit Nola Scrone. Bad enough that her home was mostly swamp, but if everyone smoked derva, it would stink to the heavens.

"Why do you think the Mages are sending groups of five?" Alissa asked.

"Because we have 50 Aspirants," I said glibly. "Makes 10 groups."

She snorted. "Answers like that are what makes Mage White dislike you so much."

I disliked the Geomapper as much as he disliked me.

I shrugged. "In three days, it won't matter."

Then she looked at the small Testing building. "I suppose not." She blow out three perfect smoke rings. Despite myself I was impressed. She hadn't used magick.

"Why does the Empire want us dead?" she asked. "It's different in the swamps. Witches are revered. We heal people. We call the fish. We clean the water."

I had great difficulty imagining any of the Mages doing such menial tasks. I certainly wouldn't. Or would I? I hadn't thought much about what I would do if I survived the Testing. I would probably be employed by a noble or merchant. That's the lot of most survivors.

"It's not a matter of wanting us dead," I said slowly. "They want us controlled." It had been explained to me by my father when my magick first manifested itself. "Magick is a finite resource. Too many mages drawing on it leaves too little for anyone to use. So it makes sense to winnow out the weak and stupid."

She shook her head, her charms tinkling. "I don't believe that. In the swamp, the magick is mighty. It's a torrent."

"Because you have fewer mages and more wildlife," I said. "Life generates magick."

"I know that," she said impatiently. "But magick is powerful here, too. I think it's not that we have fewer mages, but we simply have more life. Your cities are so ... lifeless. Other than humans, of course."

"Well, maybe," I said, not willing to argue but disagreeing. "But there are political reasons, too. And it's good for the Mages. We get paid more for our services."

"Do you repeat back everything they tell you?" Alissa asked. "Have you never really thought about it? Tomorrow, we will be Tested. And even in groups of five, most or all of us won't survive."

"A fourth of us--"

"Bah," she sneered. "The numbers are closer to one tenth."

I turned to her. "That's not right."

"Yes, it is," she said. "I've been here four years. I counted the number of Aspirants who survived each year. One in ten became a Journeyman."

"Perhaps they were poor groups."

"Four years in a row?" She arched an eyebrow. "You truly could believe that? What about eight years in a row?"

"Eight?"

She puffed on her pipe for a few moments.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Her face lost all expression.

"My sister Lelisa didn't return from Testing," she said finally. "She died the year before I came here. But she also keep track of those who survived."

I leaned against the iron railing. My stomach clenched. One in ten. The Mages never spoke of the odds of surviving the Testing, but I had heard that a fourth survived for most of my life.

"It's not only Mongarth," she said. "The other Circles are the same."

"It can't have always been like that," I said. "People would have noticed."

"The Mages keep it quiet," she said. "And it hasn't always been like that." She stepped over close to me. "My sister broke into the Archives."

"Gods," I breathed. Only Mages were allowed into the library Archives.

Alissa conjured a protection shield around us.

"She found out that almost everyone survived the Testing in times past. It's only been in the past two hundred years that Aspirants began to die."

"That can't be right!" I said. "It can't be."

Alissa dropped the shield and moved away from me. "It was in her last letter. She sent it to me the day before her Testing. She never returned from the Maze."

"What are you saying?" I asked. "What does this mean?"

"I don't know," said Alissa. "But let me tell you a terrible thing. The Mages don't know, either." She shivered. "Something is killing off Aspirants, and they can't do anything to stop it."

Circles

Chapter 1.2

Maze of Madness

"It can't be true," I said again.

"It is," said Derry. He stood in the doorway. "I broke into the Archives."

"We did," Alissa said.

Derry reached out his hand, and Alissa took it.

I gaped at them. No Aspirant was allowed in the Archives. It was expressly forbidden, and two people who had done so would be Tested with me.

And because I was so shocked -- at least that's what I'm going to say -- it took me another few moments to register they were holding hands and what that implied.

"It's forbidden for Aspirants--" I started, but stopped. They knew the Strictures. They both gave me a humoring look.

"Yes, but few of us keep it," Derry said. "Perhaps we should, but rather than distracting from our Writtens, we found it helped us."

"We're both strong in different Writtens," Alissa said.

"Does everyone ... know about the tenth?" I asked, stopping myself from asking if every other Aspirant had a companion while I did not. And besides, I wasn't completely oblivious. I would have noticed. Wouldn't I?

"No," Derry said. "Just Alissa and I and a few others. And now you."

"Why tell me?" I asked.

"Because the more of us know, the more chances we have of the information spreading," Alissa said. "There have to be Journeymen who realize the attrition rate is higher than we had been told."

"Do the Mages know?" I asked, but as soon as I said it, I realized how stupid it was. "Of course, they do. They could have to."

"We think they're sending in quintets to give us a better chance to survive," Derry said.

"Why don't they stop the Testing?" I asked. "Find out what's going wrong before more of us die."

Derry looked at Alissa. "We don't know. Obviously, the Empire insists on the Testing."

"But whether or not that is the reason the Mages allow this to continue..." Alissa spread her hands.

"The Empire has always distrusted the Mages," Derry said. "And Emperor Tanalos is open about it. Like magick, apparently there is only so much political power available. The Emperor doesn't want to share."

"Then why doesn't he order his armies to kill us?" I asked. People think Mages are invulnerable, but they are not. A knife in the back, a poisoned cup of soup, a carefully shot arrow, a concubine with venomed lips ... all those and more had been used in the past to remove a Mage who sought the Blackened Throne of the Empire. And Aspirants and Journeymen died like other men. We would inflict much damage and kill many troops, but we would die.

"I don't know," Derry said. "This game is beyond me. Perhaps he only wants to keep our numbers down. Mages are useful for many things."

"I don't think it's the Emperor," Alissa said. "How could he interfere with the Testing? How could anyone? The Empire may be the reason the Testing continues, but I cannot see how they could manipulate the Testing when even the Mages cannot do that."

The sun had set while we talked, and I shivered in the rapidly cooling air. In another month, the snows would sweep down from the Glori Mountains. I suddenly realized I might not be alive when that happened. And I shared a sudden terrible thought.

"Perhaps the Mages want the Testing to continue for their own reasons," I said slowly. "Perhaps it is in their best interests if we don't survive."

From the looks on their faces, I realized Derry and Alissa had already thought of this. I shivered again, but it wasn't from the cold.

(Author's Note: I realized I made a mistake on my approach to Circles. I had chosen the First Person viewpoint, but have realized that I need to use Third Person because the story is larger than I realized. It's always a joy when the Story takes hold and leads you to new unexplored places. The first three entries will be converted to Third Person soon, but here's today's entry. Enjoy! One last thing: our viewpoint character is Thomas, who's been talking to you himself until now.)

Circles

Chapter 1.3

Maze of Madness

Thomas would have questioned Alissa and Derry further, demanding answers to the questions they had raised even though he knew they had no answers. His world had shifted, and he felt like he teetered on the edge of abyss. But movement caught his eye.

"Look!" Thomas said, pointing below.

Mage Argent ran across the courtyard, his black robes billowing behind him. Mages White and Verdant ran after him.

"What the gods?" Derry said.

A low rumble filled the air. Alissa jerked her head to look to the sky.

"It can't be," she breathed. "What would they..." She bit her lip.

"What's happening?" Thomas asked, his voice quivering despite his best efforts to steady it.

The three Mages below reached the Testing building. Argent stopped and talked to the other two Mages, but Thomas couldn't make out the words.

The rumbling grew louder.

Argent clasped hands with White. He looked at Verdant for a moment and then swept her into an embrace and kiss that would have delighted all the Aspirants who had privately talked about the possibility of a romance between the Head Mage and his Second.

A silver streak flashed through the air and buried itself in the courtyard, throwing bricks and dirt into the air. Aspirants and Mages ran out of the halls and gaped at the huge metal spike that had embedded itself in the ground. Thomas's gaze followed the chain that was attached to the spike that led to the lowering clouds.

Argent entered the Testing building. Verdant watched him go. She spoke to White. They turned to face the metal spike. Other Mages joined them: Red, Cinnamon, Sandollar, Blanc, Rose, and Oak.

But Forrest, Violet, and Midnight stood across the courtyard from the other Mages. A protection shield shimmered around them. Forrest stood in front of the other two.

"What's going on?" Jasonne ran out onto the balcony and nearly knocked Derry over the edge. Thomas grabbed Derry's shoulder.

"They're coming!" Glemma shouted. "They're coming!" She stepped out and looked to the sky. A vast shadow descended steadily toward the Circle.

"You know nothing," Glemma shouted. "Nothing! No matter what they ask, you know nothing! It's our only chance!"

Thomas gripped the iron railing. "Nothing about what? What? WHAT'S HAPPENING?"

The rumbling shook the building. A bright light stabbed from the sky and focused on Verdant and the Mages gathered around her.

The clouds parted, rolling away as if the gods descended to earth.

A huge cylinder hanging in the air suddenly lit up, revealing a crossed dragon crest. The rumbling began to wane as the four engines to its sides powered down. Lines dropped from it, and men in blue and gold battle-gear slid down.

"It's an Imperial dirigible," Glemma said. "Gods help us all. Gods help us all."

Circles

Chapter 1.4

Maze of Madness

The Imperial soldiers spread out across the courtyard. Small groups of them went to each hall. They carried swords and pistols. Thomas could see students pulling up protection shields. He could sense other students calling magick to offensive spells.

"This is going to get ugly if no one does anything," Derry said.

"Those fools!" Jasone said. "Don't they realize this Circle can tear them apart?" He draw enough power to throw lightning, but Derry and Alissa threw a protection shield around him.

"Idiot," Derry snapped at Jasone. "That dirigible has cannons and bombs and who knows what else! They'll slaughter us."

Jasone's magick strained against the shield, but Alissa held it steady with almost no effort.

"Derry's right," Glemma said, her face sharper and her voice more focused than Thomas had ever seen. "The Mages might be able to stand up to it if they were prepared, but most of us would die." She looked to the east and raised her hand. "And I can sense at least two more are coming."

Thomas didn't know any Aspirant who could perceive the weather and winds better than Glemma.

"Two more?" Alissa asked. "Why two more? That's enough to kill us several times over..." Her voice trailed away.

Derry, Alissa, and Glemma locked stares. Thomas couldn't follow what they were thinking, and Jasone still strove against the shield currently holding him.

"That's got to be it," Derry said. "We've got to get out of here now!"

The three pushed Thomas into the common room. Alissa dropped the shield on Jasone who fell to the floor with a yelp.

"Pack as quick you can!" Derry said. "Any food, waterskins, warm clothing, weapons. Alissa, bring your healing kit."

"No!" Thomas shouted. "What's going on?" He reached out and flooded the room with magick. Alissa attempted to shield him, but his rage allowed him to top her power. "What's going on? You three know something."

Glemma stepped toward him. "Mage Argent has been secretly organizing a rebellion against the Empire. Several of the other Circles have allied with him. The Imperials must have found out. They'll destroy this Circle, torture us for information, then kill us."

Thomas's head swum. He felt like he had fallen into a bard's tale. He dropped his magick and slumped into a chair. "How do you know this?"

Glemma looked all of them. "Because I was part of it."

Alissa breathed a cry of surprise. Derry didn't move.

"Argent recruited me when I came to this Circle," Glemma said. "And because you're connected with me, they're never going to believe you weren't part of it. If we don't get away right now, we'll be tortured without mercy and killed like vermin."

"Traitors!" Jasone shouted. He stood in the entrance of the balcony, magickal currents swirling around him. "Traitors! You won't take me down with you!"

He blazed power into the room.

The room exploded.

Circles

Chapter 1.5

Maze of Madness

Somewhere else ...

In a stone room that had never known light, a woman stood, letting the blackness fill her eyes, her mouth, and her heart until she could See. In the corner, something whimpered. She ignored it as she ignored the screaming of a part of her that she had thought long since died.

In the midnight silence, she softly breathed two words. "Come forth."

She waited, patient as slow poison.

With a metallic scraping, the wall of the universe tore, letting a Void flow into the room.

She threw herself to the floor, not daring to raise her head. Not daring to breathe. She would die before she drew another breath unless her gift was acceptable.

She waited until her head spun and her heart pounded, her lips clamped fiercely shut.

When she could hold her breath no longer, when false spots swarmed before her unseeing eyes ...

"You are worthy in your worship," a quiet voice said that held no human emotion. "Your Gift is acceptable. You may live to serve me. Tell me of your actions."

"The Empire moves against the Circles as you desired," she said. "But Argent has escaped into the Maze of Madness."

The Great Void laughed. "Then he will be ours soon enough."

The whimpering thing -- that is what she forced herself to think of it as -- moved, the sound of its shattered limbs scarping along the floor.

She held herself still, afraid that such noise would anger the Great Void, and it would devour her. A moment passed. She still lived. Perhaps it even enjoyed the small sounds of pain made by -- she forced herself to think of other things.

"What of the Silver Folk?" she asked.

"They will not interfere," the Great Void said. "They will continue to dream until they are devoured. Do not concern yourself. Other of my servants move against them. But I have a task for you. In Mongarth, there is a boy. His name is Thomas Alltree of Leeson. He is an Aspirant. Slay him. Bring me his head."

"Yes," she said. "May I know why?"

"No," the Great Void said. "Do not ask again." The Great Void swirled. "Now receive my power so that you may accomplish my wishes."

Power thundered into her. She gasped and moaned, shuddering in the terrible burning pleasure as the Great Void burned away more of her humanity. She laughed until her laughter became a scream. Finally, the transference ended, leaving her both spent and surging with magick.

"Serve me well," the Great Void said. It moved toward the corner and passed over it. The whimpering thing -- the women's son, tortured and tattered by her own hand as a gift -- was gone as was the Void.

Allanna, First Concubine of the Emperor Tanalos, rose and walked steadily from the room, never noticing the tears on her face. She had a world to conquer.

Circles

Chapter 1.6

Maze of Madness

Jasone saved their lives. He had thrown protection shields around each of them, intending on confining them while he alerted the Imperials. When the cannonball exploded, they were protected.

Protected until Jasone died. He was barely sixteen. Proud to the point of arrogance of his skill with a bow and sword, known to flirt with every girl whether she was noble born or not, earning excellent scores in all his Writtens except Mathematics. The cannonball didn't care. It exploded, scattering his burning remains across the room.

But his shields had given Alissa time to act, time to pull enough magick together to shield everyone. But her hasty shields didn't hold against the explosive force.

Then the floor collapsed.

Thomas fell into the room below. He hit a dresser and rolled off, barely avoiding a falling floor joist that smashed into the floor and continued on. Thomas hit his head and his vision clouded. He moaned. More explosions sounded outside.

Someone -- Glemma with blood dripping down her face -- pulled on his arm. "Get up! Get up!"

He shrugged her off and pulled himself to his feet. Alissa lay on the floor across from him, Derry across her.

He stumbled over to Derry who was already stirring.

"Alissa," Derry said. "Alissa!"

The swamp witch didn't move.

"Thomas!" Derry yelled.

Thomas fell to his knees beside the girl. He checked her pulse. "She's alive. Barely." He took a moment to steady himself. He called the magick to him and directed the flow into Alissa. "No broken bones, but she's taken a bad hit to the head. No brain swelling, though." He increased the blood flow in the area and healed her other numerous scratches and bruises before he turned his power to Derry. The older boy had two broken ribs, one dangerous close to a lung. He healed them both.

Derry grunted in pain.

"Sorry," Thomas said.

"It's all right," Derry said. He looked at Thomas and marveled. "Not a scratch on you."

"Already healed myself," Thomas lied. His senses reached out to Glemma, but she had already healed herself. She gathered up the fire and heat in the room in a round blazing globe that she cradled in her hands. Thomas had never seen anyone -- not even a Mage -- do that with fire.

"Glemma?" Alissa said. Derry helped her up.

"They have to pay," Glemma said, her voice taut with concentration. She walked to the broken wall and stood. The other three followed her.

They looked on a scene from a nightmare. The dirigible had blasted the dining halls and all the residence halls. Everything was burning. All except the small Testing building, and Verdant and her fellow Mages stood in front of it, protected by a shimmering shield of greater power than the Aspirants had ever seen. Soldiers shot bullets at it, but the iron pellets couldn't penetrate. The dirigible was lowering a cannon in a metal cage. Across the courtyard, Mages Forrest and Midnight threw lightning at the shield while Violet protected the three with a shield of their own.

"They're helping the Imperials," Thomas said.

"They're the traitors," Derry said, helping Alissa to stand beside him. "They sold us out."

"Then here's their reward," Glemma said. She shouted a wordless cry and threw the fireball across the courtyard.

It impacted the three Mages' shield and exploded sending flames rolling into the sky.

"Gods," Thomas said.

But when the smoke and flames cleared, the shield still shimmered.

"Not enough," Glemma said.

Soldiers ran toward them.

"We need to go now!" Derry shouted. The four Aspirants climbed over smoking timbers and fallen columns. Glemma threw fire behind them, blocking the way. When they reached the hall that ran down the building, they found it mostly clear of debris, although filled with smoke and unfortunate Aspirants who didn't survive the initial attack.

"Now what?" Alissa asked.

"We can't stay here," Derry said. "They'll finish leveling this building soon. Or the soldiers will find us."

Glemma paused and put up her hand. The others waited impatiently until she opened her eyes. "They've surrounded the Circle. I can sense dozens, maybe hundreds of foot soldiers."

"There's nowhere to run," Thomas said. "We're going to die."

"Maybe so," Derry said. "But we'll make them suffer before we do." Alissa took his face in her hands and kissed him.

The kiss shocked Thomas, but not Glemma. He told himself, Time to grow up. The world's not what the Silver Folk told me. If I want to survive, I must adapt to it.

"There's one place we can go," said Glemma. "We won't be safe, but at least the Imperials can't touch us."

"The Maze..." Derry said.

"It's our only chance," Glemma said. "And it's where Mage Argent went. We might be able to find him."

"This is madness," Thomas said.

"Do you see any other option?" Glemma asked him.

"No," said Thomas after a moment.

Glemma turned to Alissa. "Can you fade us?"

"Yes," Alissa said. "But it won't stand up to a Mage. If we get near Midnight or Forrest, they will see us."

Thunder boomed throughout the Circle. Glemma smiled grimly. "I think Verdant is keeping them busy." She led them down the hall to the far door. It still hung to its hinges. Several Aspirants' bodies slumped on the floor or laid against the walls. Most had been shot. A few stabbed.

"Oh gods," Alissa said. "How can they do this? Why? WHY?" Her voice climbed.

Derry took her in his arms and held her tightly.

Thomas tried to find somewhere to look where there wasn't blood or a dead body. He turned his head and looked into the blank open eyes of an Aspirant that he didn't know, but he had seen in various Writtens or in the dining hall. Thomas knelt. With a trembling hand, he reached out and closed the eyes. He rose and turned back to others. He met Glemma's gaze. Tears rolled down her cheeks, but she held herself proud.

"His name was Leo," she said. "Leonard, I think, but we called him Leo." She turned to Alissa. "Are you ready?"

Alissa swallowed and nodded her head. "Yes. Give me a moment." She walked carefully toward the door, stepping delicately around the bodies. She bowed her head.

Thomas felt the magick rise to Alissa's wavering call. For a moment, he thought she couldn't do it, but as the magick rose, her command of it steadied. She waved them closer.

"Well," Glemma said.

"Nothing for it but to do it," Thomas said.

"I love you," Derry told Alissa.

She smiled and led them into chaos.

Circles

Chapter 1.7

Maze of Madness

His Majesty Tanalos III -- Emperor of the Seven Honored Lands, His Royal Highness of the Undaunted Freed Lands of Stemtis, King of Glorious Nola Farnatho, Protector of the Overson Territories and Principalities of the Blackened Throne, Governor of Serene Nola Scrone, High Lord of the Glori and Thorn Converges, Exalted Chief of the Endless Plains, Over-Knight of the Order of Fire, Arch Priest of the Church of Sandtros, Duke of Sorin, Grand Master of the Merchant Guilds, High General of Armies, Chief Admiral of the Navies, Sky Commander of the Imperial Arial Warriors, Source Lord of Beatifically Waters, and Defender of the Faiths -- looked around the table of his advisors and wished he was dead.

Or if the gods wouldn't grant that -- and he would rather they didn't -- he wished terrible death upon his advisors, particularly the First Concubine and General Abetis. High Mage Granite could die along with them. The rest of them could be exiled. Except for good old Arch Priest Severn who seemed the only advisor appalled by the latest atrocities committed in the Emperor's name but executed by the Councilors.

As if catching his thoughts, Allanna glanced his way. He dropped his gaze and continued to play with his game, a ball and cup. The cup, of course, was carved of crystal, and the ball of rare blood wood. He had become proficient with it over the years, once going 300 times without missing one. Immediately, Allanna called a Court Celebration of his accomplishment. And because of the role forced upon him, he had to pretend to be pleased and excited as did the courtiers, although he knew they held only contempt for their imbecilic emperor.

Except he wasn't an imbecile. He should have been one. From the time his great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather Maxicus the First took the Blackened Throne, his family married only those deemed noble enough. Maxicus the First married his second cousin. Their son Maxicus the Second married his first cousin. Their son Tanalos the First married his half sister. Their son Tanalos the Second married his niece. Their daughter Queen Tanaicus married her brother. And so on. With each generation, more undesirable traits arose. Naturally the Councilors said that royal blood was not subject to the laws of trait inheritance. In a way, Tanalos thought, his family had been the subject of an extensive breeding program to produce a line of easily controlled idiots.

But trait inheritance didn't follow the dictates of the Council. From what Tanalos had read in the rarely used Imperial Library, he was a throwback. A fluke. Although no one would call him a genius, he easily held the highest intelligence of his line for several generations. He also had regained an ability no one besides him and his poor father knew he held. If Allanna or Abetis ever found, he would die of a mysterious aliment soon after, one of his many idiotic sons would take the throne, and the Council would continue to rule.

Since childhood, he and his father had planned to change that. And after his father's death, he had continued on. Carefully he had gathered allies. Lais, the Third Concubine, stood with him, mostly because she desired the status of First Concubine. Hashan, his wife and second cousin, also supported him. He could count on Archpriest Severn and perhaps Admiral Melleon who hated Abetis. The Emperor's Guard would stand for him. Unfortunately, it had taken him seven years to gather this meager amount of allies. They weren't enough. He wasn't enough. And there wasn't not enough time for him to change this mad course the Council had embarked on.

Allanna had turned her eyes away from him. He focused once again on Councilors' discussion.

"All the Southern Circles have signed a loyalty pledge," Mage Granite said. "And most of the Western. Of course, we expect the Eastern to do so. Only Gritgarth might be a problem."

"I have two airships on route to Gritgarth," Abetis said.

"What of Mongarth?" Allanna said.

Granite smiled coldly.

Tanalos shivered.

"Unfortunately, Argent didn't sign the pledge," Granite said. "We were forced -- regrettably -- to act with extreme prudence toward Mongarth. The battle is going on now, but I expect a favorable report soon."

"Was the pledge even offered to him?" Severn asked, his face severe with anger.

Allanna slowly turned her head to look at the old man. The priest met her gaze firmly, impressing Tanalos. He couldn't do that. Not even when he had to do his yearly duty. He always made certain the servants extinguished all the lamps and closed the drapes before he joined her in the Imperial bed and touched her icy body. He couldn't repress a shudder thinking about it now.

"The records will show he was offered and refused," Granite said. "The loss of life is upon his head."

"See to it that the Criers know of his refusal," Alanna said. "We do not want to be charged with his crimes."

"What of the Aspirants?" Severn asked.

"Naturally, our troops will do everything they can to protect the students," Abetis said smoothly. "Battles are unfortunately beyond the control of anyone. The early dispatches say the majority of the students chose to stand with Argent. May the gods give them wisdom to submit to the proper rule of law before any of them are harmed."

Melleon snorted, but said nothing. The only Circle that his ships could reach sat on the Island of Lone, and for now, the Council had decided to not risk a conflict with a Circle that could easily shut down shipping through the Three Arms of Dovus if provoked.

"I still don't understand why this action was taken," said Councilor Cyran of Nola Scrone. Tanalos would have approached Cyran, but the man approached every problem with the finesse of a hammer.

Most of the nineteen Councilors sighed, but a couple looked as if they supported Cyran. Tanalos noted their faces and names.

"We've already discussed this exhaustedly," Allanna said, her voice sharp. "The Circles were not promoting loyalty to the Empire and the Emperor. The other schools teach obedience and citizenship, but the Circles were refusing to do so. Many were contemplating open rebellion, perhaps in league with the Blood Horde."

"Not all the Circles," Granite broke in, looking sharply at Allanna. "Only a handful of Mages who have grown too powerful and arrogant. Idiagarth, my Circle, has always served the Empire with unswerving loyalty."

"Of course," Allanna muttered. "Of course. If only the other Circles were so wise."

"Hear, hear!" one of the other Councilors, a toady of Granite named Ferus.

"I still don't understand why we didn't hear of this so-called rebellion by the Circles until a month ago," Cyran said. "This seems to be a failure of our intelligence division!"

Melleon bristled on that. "There had been nothing to find until then. The Circles had been very careful--"

"Or perhaps your spies weren't diligent enough," Cyran cut in.

The Council dissolved into bitter shouting as it often did.

Tanalos continued to play with the cup and ball, but he noted Allanna's face. As the discord grew, she smiled slyly. For some reason, the First Concubine was pleased by the fighting. He wondered why.

He also wondered why she and Abetis had attacked the Circles. The trumped-up charges had been quickly brought into the Council and acted upon with just as much haste. He knew Abetis hated Mages -- the general delighted at any chance to strike at them -- but what did Alanna have planned? And why was Granite helping them, particularly since he and Abetis had always been enemies until this?

He couldn't shake the feeling that the Empire was in terrible peril. And he, its supposed protector, could do nothing to save it.

Circles

Chapter 1.8

Maze of Madness

"When you enter the Maze, it will be different for each of you," Mage Cinnamon said. "For some, it will be simply a maze with traps and beasts to overcome. For others, it will present their worse fears or their greatest temptations." She looked around the room at the Aspirants, all of whom hung on her words. "Or it can be totally different, something completely unexpected. The Maze is beyond our ken. It always has been. It always will be. Only the foolish believe they master the Maze, and the foolish will not exit because they will be dead."

As Alissa led them slowly across the shattered courtyard, Thomas found himself split, one part of him horrified by the carnage around them, the other part remembering the meager information that the Mages had shared with the Aspirants about the Maze.

"Every Circle has a Testing building, and every Testing building has a Gate into the Maze," Cinnamon said. "You will find that the histories are incomplete. We do not know if the Circles were founded on Gate sites, or if Gates were conjured where Circles were built. If they were conjured, such magicks are lost. The Gates that exist are the only Gates that have existed for the past two thousand years."

The unschooled believed Mages could do anything, including becoming invisible. But Aspirants soon learned the limitations of the magick. True, a Mage could do almost anything in theory, but a Mage soon exhausted the available magick in an area in reality. Or a Mage could draw too much magick and burn to ashes in moments. Or Mage could get a spell wrong, perhaps by losing concentration or misdrawing a conjure circle or forgetting a word. A Mage who made a mistake several hundred years ago made the crater that now was known as Habais Lake in southern Nolo Farnatho. The Mage, of course, didn't survive.

And other limitations had to do with the nature of the world itself. The laws of gods put strict boundaries on magick. Priests believed the gods did this to protect mankind from evil Mages. Some Mages believed the gods did it to protect themselves. Still other Mages didn't believe in the gods; they believed the boundaries arose from the very nature of the universe. Whatever the reason, Mages could not become invisible, but they could fade.

If an Imperial soldier looked closely, he would see the vague outline of Thomas and the other Aspirants as they crept toward the Testing building behind Alissa's fade shield. But he would have be attentive and be looking at just the right angle. And he would have to do so while the Verdant and the remaining Mages tore down the heavens to throw spheres of fire and bolts of lightning at their foes.

By necessity, they could not move fast, Thomas with his hand on Glemma's shoulder, her hand on Derry's, and his on Alissa who led. The fade shield wavered the faster it moved. They had to walk around bodies and rubble. And they had to stay away from soldiers. More swarmed into the courtyard, shooting their rifles and pistols at the shield maintained by Mongarth's Mages. The cannon, half melted from the magick thrown at it, smoldered under the dirgible. The far end of the dirigible had crashed against the dining hall. It burned as soldiers attempted to fight the fire.

Overhead another dirigible hung in the sky. It shone arc lights in the courtyard revealing the carnage. Thomas could hear Glemma whimpering as they made their way past body after mangled body. Many Aspirants had died on the courtyard, but many more soldiers had learned the final lesson about the power of magick. Blood pooled in areas, and Thomas thought about how hard it would be to clean the blood up and wondered if they would use mops. He fought hysterical laughter.

Verdant still stood as did Red, Oak, and Sandollar. But White, Rose, and Blanc had fallen, their bodies collapsed inside the shield. Thomas couldn't see Cinnamon, either. Across the courtyard, only Forrest still stood. Both Violet and Midnight lay behind him. Forrest no longer threw power at the other Mages, only maintained the shield surrounding him.

For a moment, Thomas felt a flare of hope. Perhaps the Imperials had miscalculated the troops needed. But at that moment, Red fell, her body smoldering. She had drawn too much magick for too long and paid the price. Their shield wavered. Oak shored it up, but Thomas could see it wouldn't hold much longer. Sandollar collasped. The shield blinked once and nearly fell. Pulling so much magick that he nearly stole Alissa's power from her, Oak brought the shield back up.

"Surrender, Verdant," Forrest said, his voice magically cast to everyone in the courtyard. "You cannot win."

Verdant flashed a feral grin. "Burn, you volking bastard." She threw lightning at him. His shield easily absorbed it.

"Foolish woman," Forrest said. "Your Aspirants are dead. Your Circle is destroyed. Argent has left you here to face the wolves. What say you now of your lover?"

"He will return," Verdant said. "And he will make you pay. Every last whoreson of you."

"No," Forrest said. "He will not. You think he is safe in the Maze, but soon I will lead more Mages in there after him."

"You cannot!" Verdant said. "It is forbidden!"

"So many things are," Forrest said. He made a sign with his hand. The dirigible overhead shot its cannons at the shield. The explosions nearly knocked the Aspirants off their feet. When the smoke cleared, Verdant and Oak sprawled motionless on the ground.

"Check them," Forrest said, motioning to the soldiers. He dropped his shield and walked toward the downed Mages.

Only two more steps and the Aspirants would enter the Testing building.

At that moment, Forrest stopped and looked directly at them. He looked startled and then laughed. "More babes for the slaughter."

Circles

Chapter 1.9

Maze of Madness

On the outskirts of Tallshadow Forest near the Glori Mountains ...

Rylor Skysong, Captain of the 33th Flight of Silvercloud, groaned and wiped blood from his eyes with a shaking hand. He could feel the broken bones in his body grinding as he tried to pull himself up. The pain made his vision whirl and tunnel, but he held grimly onto consciousness.

He turned his head. Around the clearing he could see the bodies of his flight. Most were clearly dead, their gyrocopters broken into smoking pieces, either by crashing or by the attack. But over to left, someone else -- please let it be Myton -- moved. Rylor stumbled toward the pilot.

"Rylor..." Myton groaned.

"Thank Mother Earth," Rylor said, dropping to his knees by his brother.

"What ... the others..."

Rylor looked around the clearing. He saw no other movement. Three of the pilots still hung in their harnesses, one of them dangling upside down. The other two had fallen out of their gyrocopters. Smoke and escaping steam swirled around the machines.

"Dead," Rylor said. His head pounded. He tried to pull magick from the sky, from the earth, anything to heal himself, but the magick only trickled in, more an indication of his condition than the availability.

Myton tried to sit up, but couldn't. "Ry ... what ... what was that? It looked like... It couldn't be." He looked at Rylor.

"I know," Rylor said. "I know. But it was."

"What have the humans done?"

"I don't think it was the humans," Rylor said. "I don't think they have the magick ... or the knowledge." He realized his goggles had remained somehow remained on. He pulled them off and dropped them. He wouldn't be flying any time soon. In fact, he would probably lose his rank. Silvercloud didn't reward captains who lose their entire flight.

Myton leaned to one side and vomited blood and bits of flesh.

"Oh, gods, Myton," Rylor said. "I've got to heal you."

"No time," Myton whispered. "You've got to get away. Before it comes back. You have to leave me."

"Not going to happen," Rylor said with as much force as he could muster. "Now hold your tongue. Got to patch you up." He stretched out his hand. This time, the magick came faster, but he couldn't do much. He found the internal injuries. He couldn't do much, but he could heal the worse of the wounds. The healers back at the Silvercloud could do the rest. If they could survive long enough to reach it.

It took all his concentration, but he did what he could for Myton. Then he turned his meager healing magick on himself. He couldn't heal himself completely, but he hoped it would be enough to let them find safety before the creature returned. He couldn't imagine the magick -- or could it be science -- that had been used to create such a thing. Who would create such a beast? And why?

His flight had been flying a regular patrol along the Tallshadow Forest. Nothing out of the ordinary. They passed a small village -- Trappen -- that seemed unusually quiet, but Rylor hadn't decided to investigate. They could be at a handfast or perhaps out in the fields. He looked for signs of life, people in the fields, horses or dogs, but found nothing. He circled around, the seven members of the flight following him.

His brother came up alongside and signed to him. "Where are the people?"

He shook his head and circled the village again, this time going lower. No dogs came out barking, no chickens scattered, but the sun would be setting soon. The flight needed to be back at Silvercloud before the curfew. Other than the stillness, he saw no signs of unusual activity. He signed to his brother. "We'll come back tomorrow."

His brother signed it to the other members of the flights, and they banked and headed back toward Silvercloud, the aerie of the Silver Folk. Suddenly his gyrocopter lurched in a terrible wind. He fought the controls. Opened the power valve full. Stabilized for a moment. Again the copter lurched. If he had been higher, he could have recovered, but too late. The tiny gyrocopter hit the ground hard, tumbling rotors over wheels. He took several blows, and his world dimmed. The copter finally halted on its side, one of its rotors buried in the ground, steam venting from its cracked engine. He unfastened his harness and fell to the ground, rolling once. Above he saw a huge winged creature circling in the sky. His vision blurred and went away. Unconsciousness claimed him for a few moments.

And now he stood and held out a hand to pull Myton up.

He felt the slight coolness as a passing cloud covered the sun. "Come on," he said. "We've got--" He stopped at the stricken expression on his brother's face.

Rylor looked up. What he thought was a cloud was not. Impossibly, a huge dragon floated above them, its ebony wings spread to the thermals.

"Goddess have mercy," Rylor breathed. He drew Myton up, and they limped toward the trees.

The black dragon dropped out of the sky like a bolt from the gods.

"Run!" Rylor said. "Run!"

The dragon hit the ground. The ground rippled, a shockwave that threw the brothers to the earth.

Rylor scrambled to his feet, pulling Myton up. If they could get into the trees, the dragon would be too large to follow. He wondered for a mad moment if it could breathe fire, but surely magick or science had its limits.

Any moment he expected the dragon to attack, but they reached the trees unharmed. They stumbled through the underbrush, seeking enough deeper forest where the dragon would not be able to reach.

"Have ... to ... stop," Myton gasped, bending over. "Can't..."

"We have to!" Rylor said, trying to keep the terror from unmanning him completely.

Myton nodded and stumbled on.

Rylor made the mistake of looking back. He would never be able to forget what he saw.

The dragon fed on his fallen friends, picking their bodies out the wrecked gyrocopters. It lifted one of them up in its front claw. And the pilot -- who wasn't dead after all -- screamed once before the dragon tore his head off. And ate it.

Circles
Chapter 1.10

Maze of Madness

Mage Forrest stepped forward. "Surrender, children."

Alissa didn't move. The other three Aspirants looked at each other.

"They killed everyone else," Thomas whispered. "He won't spare us. They can't let us live."

Forrest motioned the soldiers forward instead of hitting them with a spell.

"He's exhausted his magick!" Derry said.

Glemma drew magick to her. She caught a hard wind and blew dirt, stones, blood, and smoke at the advancing soldiers.

"Run!" Thomas shouted. He rushed toward the door, pushing Alissa ahead of him. She dropped the fade shield. Derry caught Glemma's hand and pulled her along.

The soldiers, slow to react, now began to fire at them.

The four Aspirants tumbled through the door. Bullets whistled past them.

Derry rolled and came up, his hands outstretched. The ironwood door swung shut. Derry magick-locked it.

"That won't hold," he said.

"Alissa's been hit!" Glemma cried.

Thomas rushed to the unconscious girl. Blood began to spread across her back. He grabbed at the magick and sent healing into her body. The wound refused to heal.

"It's a iron bullet," he said. "It's got to come out."

The door shook as soldiers tried to batter it down.

Derry poured magick into the door, strengthening its planks. "This won't hold!"

Glemma pulled up her skirt and slid a knife out of a leather sheath. She handed it to Thomas. "Will this work?"

"Too large a blade," Thomas said. "But we have no choice. Hold her down." Glemma pushed down Alissa's shoulders and added magick to the hold.

He used the blade to open up the hole the bullet had made. He could see smoking curling out of the wound as the iron heated from his magick. He sent magick into the blade to burn off any bad humours attached to it. "I'm sorry, Alissa." He worked the knife into wound.

Alissa awakened and began to struggle. She screamed.

"Just a moment more!" Thomas said. "Hold her still!" The knife tip found the bullet. He worked it out until he could reach it with his fingers. The blackened ball of iron burned him. He could see glowing symbols on it. He tossed the nasty thing aside.

"It's okay, Alissa," Glemma said. "It's out. It's out."

Thomas unleashed the full force of his healing magick. Glemma's eyes widened as the wound closed, the flesh drawing together tightly and closed until only a faint pale pink line remained. It vanished, leaving only her torn top and the congealing blood as evidence that she had ever been shot.

"Gods," Glemma said, awed. "How did you do that?"

He ignored her question and looked around. He had never been in the Testing building. Aspirants were forbidden by the Strictures, but he now thought most of the Aspirants hadn't kept the rules as he had. The building was barely thirty paces deep and fifteen wide. One magicked lantern hang from the ceiling, giving light. The door seemed to be the only entrance. At the back of the room stood two tall columns of black stone. A third shaft of the same stone lay across the columns. The columns made a doorway of sorts, but Thomas could see the back of the building through the opening. He could see no entrance to the Maze and no exit from this death trap.

The door shuddered. Cracks begin to show.

"They're bringing up a cannon," Derry said.

"Where's the Maze?" Thomas shouted.

Glemma helped Alissa up. The swamp witch's face looked as pale as new snow, but she pulled magick and began to regain strength.

"Through the columns," Glemma said.

"There's nothing there," Thomas said desperately.

"There will be," she said, stepping toward the columns.

Outside a cannon bloomed. Pieces of the door flew into the room, pelting the Aspirants.

"Hold hands!" Glemma shouted. She grabbed Alissa's hand, Thomas grabbed Glemma's, and Derry grabbed Thomas's. The four ran toward the columns.

The door exploded behind them.

They ran through the columns.

Into the Maze.

Into madness.

Circles

Chapter 2.0

Into the Maze

"You will find that some historians claim the Maze was made by Mages," Mage Cinnamon said, fingering her long black braid as she paced in front of the class of Aspirants. "They claim the ruins at Ebongarth are proof Mages held more knowledge once than what we currently do. Perhaps, but it seems more likely the Maze was made by an ancient race that preceded man's arrival." She paused and surveyed the class. "I know this will surprise you, but the Silver Folk say the Maze predates their civilization, and they have recorded history at least three millennia before man arrived. No, it seems certain the Maze was created by an unknown race of powerful beings for reasons we cannot begin to understand."

Whatever Thomas had expected from the Maze, he hadn't expected this featureless circular room. Derry wandered around the room, pressing on the black walls. Glemma and Alissa sat in the center, the older girl with her arm around the still-shaken swamp witch. Thomas stopped at that thought. Alissa had saved his life, all of their lives. She was more than a swamp witch, a name that he instinctively knew would be hurtful.

"Well, now what?" Glemma asked.

"Maybe we broke it," Derry said. He shrugged. "One Aspirant at time for centuries before, and suddenly we four come in."

"I'm sure more than one person has been in the Maze at the same time," Glemma said. "Think of all the Testing and all the Circles."

"It's forbidden," Thomas said automatically and felt his face flush. Alissa and Derry didn't pay any attention, but Glemma quirked her mouth.

"Yes, there have been multiple entries," Derry said. "It only makes sense."

Thomas nodded, not trusting himself to not say anything else stupid.

"It's learning us," Alissa said. "I can ken it. Somewhat." She looked up. "It's like an animal. Or a living being. I've never felt anything like it." She looked surprised. "And it's surprised that I can sense it. That hasn't happened before." She shook her head. "Maybe I'm gone insane."

"Well, it is called the Maze of Madness." Derry grinned at her.

"She's the best kenner White had ever seen," Glemma said. "He told the whole class that he could teach her nothing."

Alissa shook her head again. "I have a lot to learn. My mother could ken a horse fly from a mile away."

"And Thomas is the best healer I've ever seen," Glemma said, looking at him. "Which is strange because I don't remember him doing that well on the Writtens or Practicals."

Thomas shrugged and turned away. He couldn't have this conversation. Not yet.

-I know what you are.-

"What?" Thomas said, startled. The other three looked him.

"What what?" Glemma asked.

He shook his head. Derry sat down beside Alissa, and she rested her head against him. Glemma lay down and looked at the ceiling and the light globe that floated above.

-I know what you are, Thomas Alltree of Leeson. I know why you're here. I know what the Silver Folk have planned. All your secrets are mine.-

Thomas breathed hard. The voice was in his head. Was he going mad?

-No. No madness for you. Only pain and sorrow and finally an unending death. If you fail.-

Who are you? he thought fiercely.

-You will learn soon enough. Pay attention, youngling. The world falls toward the abyss. The only slender hope for survival is if you learn what you truly are and do so quickly enough to take action.-

Learn what? What do you mean? What? But the voice -- if he had actually heard one -- didn't reply.

"Something's happening," Alissa said. "The Maze has learned us."

On the previously wall, two wooden doors slowly materialized. Above the doors, a wooden plaque appeared.

"What's this?" Derry said.

The four moved closer together.

Words appeared on both doors and on the plaque. The left door read: This door leads to life. The right door read: The other door lies & this door leads to death. The words on the plaque read: Only one door leads to life & only one door tells the whole truth. Choose.

"It's like a bard's story!" Glemma said, excitedly. "A riddle."

"Can we trust the Maze?" Derry asked. "Maybe both doors lead to death. Maybe we should wait."

"For how long?" Glemma asked. "I conjure a little water from the moisture in the air and from our..." She blushed. "Well, we will have water for a while, but we have no food."

"I've never heard of an Aspirant dying of starvation," Alissa said.

"But the Aspirants who die don't return," Derry pointed out.

"I think the ceiling is lower," Thomas said.

"What?"

The other three craned their heads and watched the ceiling.

"He's right," Glemma said. "It's definitely lower. Can't you feel the heat from the light?"

"So if we stay, we will be crushed," Derry said. "Charming."

"It's the left door," Thomas said.

"Explain," Glemma demanded.

"If the right door is true, then the left door leads to death because it's lying and the right door also leads to death because it's telling the truth, but only one door leads to life and one to death," Thomas said slowly. "But if the left door is true, then the left door leads to life and the right door leads to death."

"But then the last part of the left door statement would be true," Glemma said.

"A half-truth," Thomas said. "Not the whole truth."

"I think he has it," Derry said. "What say you?"

Glemma looked doubtful, but she nodded her head.

"We can't stay here," Alissa said. "I'm with Thomas."

Thomas looked up. The ceiling had lowered until it hung only a couple of feet above Derry's head.

"Left door it is," Derry said.

He walked over and examined the door. "No latch." He shrugged. He touched the door. The right door vanished.

"Not dead," Derry said.

"At least not yet," Glemma said.

The door swung open revealing a dark corridor. Derry conjured a magick globe to light the way.

The ceiling suddenly descending faster.

"Go, go, go!" Thomas shouted.

The four ran into the corridor.

"Thomas, stop!" Derry shouted.

Thomas froze, his foot hovering above the floor.

Derry knelt down and took out his dagger. Carefully he cut a thread that stretched between the walls. "It's a trap trigger, I'd bet."

"The room's gone," Alissa said.

Behind them stretched only corridor, showing no sign of the room they had just exited.

Circles

Chapter 2.1

Into the Maze

"Perhaps it can't adapt to four of us," Glemma said for the hundredth time.

Thomas didn't even bother glaring at her this time. What was the point? She wouldn't stop talking.

"Oh gods," Derry muttered.

Alissa, however, answered, "If the Maze really has existed for thousands of years, groups had to have entered it. I think it's still studying us."

"That doesn't mean it was able to adapt to groups just because they entered before," Glemma said.

"Maybe we're going to the wrong way," Derry said. "We've been walking for three and half hours now." He consulted his pocket watch. "Three hours and 37 minutes to be exact."

"And it's so helpful to exact now," Glemma said.

"At least we know how long we'd have to walk to go back and go the other direction," Derry said.

The corridor ran two ways. They had chosen one at random. Nothing seemed to distinguish either direction. The walls and floor were the same featureless white stone -- or a substance that looked like stone. A strange glowing material made up the ceiling. Alissa had used magick to lift Derry up to examine it, and he said it was cool to the touch. As they walked, the ceiling lit before them and darkened behind them.

They had stopped two times before. Once to allow Glemma time to Shape her clothes. Derry and Thomas had been wearing the school uniform of brown leather boots, brown trousers, cream long-sleeved shirt, and golden vest. Alissa worn the same, but she had removed her vest back at the school and it was lost. Glemma, however, had already changed into her night clothes: flowing white robe with a long silky overcoat. She had jammed her feet into her boots before all the madness descended on the school, but her clothes needed Shaping to keep them from limiting her movements.

Thomas and Derry had stood with their backs to the girls as Glemma removed her clothing and Shaped trousers and a shirt from her robe. She left her overcoat as it was. She had worked quickly because they expected an attack or trap or some other difficulty. But hours of walking had taken the edge off their caution.

The second time they stopped was when they started arguing about the Maze and what they were doing. Derry thought they must have gone in the wrong direction. Alissa believed the direction didn't matter since both directions were still the Maze. Glemma did not want to retrace their steps. Thomas had no idea about what they should do, but sided with Alissa, but only did so because he knew it annoyed Derry.

They also took inventory of their belongings. They didn't have much. Glemma had a silver necklace and several silver rings. Alissa had a pouch carrying derva leaf and her pipe, a compass that only spun aimlessly in the maze, a multi-use knife with two blades and a saw, and a several pendants and bracelets strung with leather cord. Derry had his dagger, three copper pennies, a silver shilling, a tin collapsible cup, and a box of sulfur matches. Thomas had his dagger, four half-pennies, an acorn that he had picked up a couple of days ago, and the Traveling God necklace his mother had given him on his fourteenth birthday.

"Not much," Derry said.

"Well, aren't Aspirants supposed to enter the Maze with only their magick and wits?" Alissa said.

"Yeah, but I could do with an apple right about now," Derry said.

"Don't mention food," Glemma said.

"They're not usually chased into the Maze, either," Thomas said.

"My sister intended to carry a backpack," Alissa said. "Rope and food. A waterskin. Aspirants are allowed to carry whatever they want." Her face saddened. "But it didn't help her."

"At least we have a cup," Glemma said, and she had pulled enough moisture out of the air to fill the collapsible cup so that they could all have a drink.

Now, they stopped again. Thomas sat down, not paying attention as the others argued. He felt exhausted. The weight of his secret made him uneasy. After all, they were in danger, too, but did shared peril give them the right to know the truth? Or as much of it as he knew. Which was precious little, it appeared. The world held dangers he never imagined.

"Hey!" Derry said, pointing down the corridor.

Thomas scrambled to his feet. Fog flowed toward them.

The four bunched together.

"I can't put a shield up!" Alissa said.

Thomas tried, but the magick wouldn't be forced into a shield configuration.

Glemma attempted to push the fog back by calling a wind. She succeeded in clearing a space around them, but the fog rolled around them.

Derry held his dagger at ready. Thomas followed suit.

"Boys," Glemma said. She drew magick to her.

Thomas blushed. He was an Aspirant, not a warrior. He drew magick and prepared an energy bolt. Derry danced power along his dagger's blade until it gleamed.

The fog thickened, clouding out the ceiling light. Soon it was as if they stood in the fading light dusk.

Alissa conjured a sphere of light, but it did little to cut the gloom.

"I think we should get close to the wall," Derry said. "Keep anything from getting behind us."

"Hold hands," Glemma said, grabbing Thomas's.

"Put your hand on my belt," Derry told Alissa who did so. "I might need both hands free."

Glemma pulled Thomas closer until they stood inches apart.

The fog had increased until they could barely see each other even as close as they were.

Derry moved toward the wall. Three steps, two more, several more.

"I must be going down the hall," Derry said, his voice uncertain. "We should have reached the wall..."

He turned and took several steps more before stopping. "I can't be this turned around. The walls aren't there."

Something flashed by them in the fog. Alissa screamed.

"What was that?' Glemma said, her voice quivering.

Thomas conjured a light and channeled as much magick as he could into it. The fog lit up, but the visibility remained the same.

"What should we do?" Alissa said.

"Can you raise a shield?" Derry asked.

"I don't know," Alissa said. "I keep trying, but the conjuration won't form. I can almost get it, but then it collapses."

"Keep trying," Derry said. "No one is better at shields than you are."

"Quiet!" Glemma hissed. "Something's coming."

Thomas extinguished his light and drew up magick for a bolt.

Overhead something huge passed over them, its shadow blocking out the light for several moments.

"Oh gods," Glemma whispered. "Oh gods. What is that?"

"I don't know," Derry whispered. "But I don't think we want it to find us. Let's move."

"Where?" Thomas said.

"Anywhere but here," Derry said.

He led them forward. The ground beneath them changed, becoming mushy and wet. Thomas looked down. He could see greenish mud and what looked like small vines or roots.

Alissa gasped. "I recognize this. The smell, the winds, we're in Nola Scrone. We're in the swamp."

The fog thickened more.

"We're thousands of miles away from Nola Scrone," Glemma said.

"Are you sure?" Derry asked Alissa.

"Yes," Alissa said. "The smells, the sounds ... We're in the blessed swamps! If we could just see..."

Glemma drew magick to her and conjured a wind. The fog thinned, and Thomas caught a glimpse of black water and mossy trees draped with vines.

"It's Nola Scrone," Alissa said excitedly. "That plant is wardvine. It only grows in Nola Scrone."

Derry took a couple of steps forward drawing the others long with him.

Thomas made one misstep in the muck and fell. His hand slipped from Glemma's. The fog flooded back in and swallowed up the other three.

Just like that, he was lost.

"Glemma! Derry!" he shouted, waving his arms around, hoping to touch them.

They didn't respond.

"Alissa!" he screamed.

Nothing. Why didn't they call?

Or maybe they were and he couldn't hear them. He sent out feelers of magick, but the fog reflected them back to him.

He took a couple of steps forward, still reaching out. He panted, feeling lightheaded.

Get a hold, he told himself. They can't be more than a couple of steps.

He shouted again, but the fog swallowed his words. He swore.

"Such language," a woman's voice said.

The fog swirled around him and cleared. He stood on a knoll of moss surrounded by black water.

"Who's there?" he shouted.

The fog parted.

Glemma smiled at Thomas.

She was naked.

Circles

Chapter 2.2

Into the Maze

Verdant opened her eyes. She hurt ... everywhere. She reached for magick and screamed as pain flooded her body.

"No, no, no," a man said. "You're collared, sister. No magick for you."

When the room stopped spinning, Verdant turned her head. Forrest sat on a chair across the small strangely shaped room from her.

"You volker," she said.

"Sticks and stones," the Mage said.

She could feel the collar around her neck. She ran her hands along the metal. She felt bracelets around her wrists. "You would use iron against a fellow Mage. What are you?"

Forrest sighed. "I'm a Mage on the winning side, Clarissa."

"Don't call me that."

Forrest waved his hand. "Yes, yes, yes, we're all Mages here. We give up our names and families and personal bonds when we become Mages. Except we don't."

Verdant struggled to sit up. Her vision dimmed. She sank back.

"Slowly," Forrest said. "The shield backlash was nasty. Oak was a powerhouse. As unyielding and stupid as his name, but a powerhouse nonetheless."

She swallowed. "He was a better man than you."

"Perhaps I'll improve," he said.

Finally she sat up. She was on a narrow bunk. Her robes had been taken, and she was only in her underclothes. She refused to cover herself. She would not be embarrassed by things she couldn't control. She could feel and hear a low humming. "I'm on a dirigible."

"Yes," Forrest said. "The Imperial Airship Sky Favor."

"Why?"

"As the lone survivor of a nest of traitors, you're being taken back to stand trial for treason and then executed in a manner befitting your crimes." He made a mocking face of dismay. "As an example to others." He flicked a particle of dust off his robe. "Probably there will be some torture, also. An attempt to gather more information on your rebellion."

"I'll never talk," Verdant said.

"Yes, you will," Forrest said. "By the time they finish, you will be babbling." He laughed harshly. "Trust me, I know."

"How can you do this?" she asked. "We were your friends."

"Never friends."

"Then at least your colleagues."

"Not even that," Forrest said. "You and Argent think you know what's going on. You think you're rebelling against a corrupt Empire. You think the Emperor is mad. You think the Silver Folk will come to your aid. You think the Maze..." He stopped. "The sheer volume of misinformation you carry astonishes me. You've been misled, fooled, tricked."

He rose and walked slowly toward her.

"Time for you to learn a few things, lovely Clarrisa," he said. His magick pinned her to the bunk. "Time for you to learn who's your master."

She couldn't move. Couldn't escape. She twisted her face into a smile. "Then come on. This is the only way you'll ever have a woman."

He stopped, but only for a moment. He smiled. "I wonder if you'll think of Argent."

"Burn in hell," she said.

"Probably," Forrest said. "All in good time. But before then, we're going to have a good time."

Verdant clamped her lips shut and promised herself no matter what he did, she wouldn't cry out.

Circles

Chapter 2.3

Into the Maze

Tanalos leaned forward at the table and looked at the others gathered in this private room in the Emperor's private quarters. "So, what do we know?"

"Not much, my lord," Lais said, her long black hair flowing across one shoulder. Her carefully selected gown showed off her lush body to its best advantage even if she was only attending a meeting. Lais was always conscious of being Third Concubine. Tanalos would raise her if he could, he had often told her, but Allanna's father, Duke Shadrow of Stemtis, held more lands and gave more troops to the Imperial army and navy than Lais's father could.

Hashan, his wife, by contrast wore only a simple navy blue robe with a white ermine belt. Her father, Duke Hammera of Nola Farnatho, had given her to Tanalos as well as two legions and one hundred warships. Hashan never worried about being replaced, at least not by Tanalos. They were fairly certain Allanna had attempted to have her poisoned several times, but there was no proof that would hold in court.

Of course, such an accusation would lead to immediate civil war. Shadrow would not allow Allanna to be hanged as a traitor. Hammera would protect his daughter. No one wanted a repeat of the Forty Year War in which Hammera and Stemtis would clash and lay waste to themselves and the surrounding lands.

"We know Allanna, Granite, and Abetis are working together," Maxwell Thord, Head Guardsman of the Emperor's Guard, said. "We know the attacks on the Circles are part of their plan. We know most Circles have submitted to Imperial oversight. And we know Mongarth has been totally destroyed. No survivors."

"The Criers are saying Mage Argent deliberately destroyed Mongarth and killed the students," Lais said.

"Nonsense," Hashan said. "I knew Argent. He would no more do that than I would. They killed children."

"One of my contacts in the airship corps says many of the soldiers and their commanders questioned the orders," Thord said.

"But they still carried them out," Tanalos said bitterly. "I guess the Imperial Army doesn't shirk from killing children. They should get a medal for it."

A brief silence.

"My Emperor, they had their orders," Thord said gently. "Soldiers are trained to not question their orders. They must trust their leaders to give them honorable orders."

Tanalos looked away. It was always his fault. His and his ancestors for allowing the Council to slowly usurp the powers and rights of the Emperor.

"I'm apologize, Thord," he said. "You are correct."

"You couldn't save them, my husband," Hashan said. "Their deaths can be laid at the feet of General Abetis, Mage Granite, and the Great Bitch."

"At least one airship hung back," Thord said. "Sky Favor developed mysterious engine trouble and did not participate in the bombing of Mongarth. A court-martial will be convened, of course."

"Who's the captain?" Tanalos asked.

"I will find out," Thord said.

"If we can, let's try to help him," Tanalos said. "Apparently he has a conscience." He looked around. "Anything else?"

"I have invited Admiral Melleon to luncheon tomorrow," Hashan said. "I will attempt to ascertain his sympathies."

"Be careful, my sister," Lais said. "Melleon is ambitious. I do not know if he is honorable."

"I am always mindful," Hashan said, smiling coolly. "I thank you for your unnecessary but considerate advice."

Lais bowed her head to a careful degree. Tanalos suppressed a smile. Of all his women, he trusted only these two. And in certain ways, he believed it was better for him -- certainly healthier -- if they maintained a certain distrust of each other. They were certainly united in their hatred for Allanna.

"I have been speaking -- carefully -- to Commander Helio," Thord said. "He seems receptive, but the time to approach is not yet."

"I trust you to proceed as best," Tanalos said.

"One more thing," Lais said slowly. "It may mean nothing."

"Go on," Hashan said.

"Amando is missing," Lais said. At Tanalos puzzled face, she added, "Allanna's oldest son."

"Amando ... is he one of mine?" Tanalos asked.

"No, my lord," Lais said. "From her previous life. Before she was exalted."

Tanalos recalled brief glimpses of the boy. Red headed. Tall for his age. A shy smile.

"Perhaps he ran off," Thord said. "But I find it strange she didn't notify the Guard."

"A young friend of his told me he had been acting strange for several days before he went missing," Lais said.

"In what way?" Tanalos asked. For some reason, a shiver ran down his back.

"He was apparently terrified," Lais said. "He told of strange dreams. Of creatures in strange garb." She leaned close. "Two days after, he did not come to the morning meal. Allanna sent her personal bodyguards to find him, but when they did not, she simply said he would return eventually. She acted ... unconcerned."

"The Great Bitch has never been an attentive mother," Hashan said.

Tanalos thanked the gods -- and the potion he consumed before he did his duty with her -- that she had never borne him any children.

"True," Lais said slowly. "But she seemed fond of him. And by not attending the morning meal, he broke one of her rules. She doesn't stand for that."

"Thord, tell your guards to search for him," Tanalos said. "Be discreet, but very thorough. I feel this disappearance may be important."

He stood. "In the coming days, we can expect protests from the parents of the killed students. Be aware they will blame me, not the Council. I don't think Allanna is ready to replace me yet, but this may give her an opportunity to do so. Be alert. I do not think any of you will survive my passing, and they may target you first." He favored each of them with a long look. "You are all precious to your Emperor. Do not fall. We may yet outwit our enemies. We will meet in two days hence."

Thord stood and bowed. He left by a seldom used door.

Lais rose leisurely and gracefully. She courtesied to them both, although hers to Hashan was barely polite. So grateful, she seem to float from the room.

"She is very beautiful," Hashan said, watching him watch her.

"No more so than you," Tanalos said.

"I wish that were true, my Emperor," Hashan said. "But I come from country stock. My grandmothers borne children, fought wild animals and barbarians, and raised many children. We did not breed for beauty. We bred for utility." Her face shadowed.

Tanalos held out his hand. "Come to me, my wife. Let my love be proof of your beauty."

Hashan hesitated. "Thank you. But by your leave, not tonight. I am exhausted and not feeling well."

He nodded, feeling his heart sink. "Of course."

Hashan courtesied and left the room, leaving the Emperor alone with his worries and fears.

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