Circles, Chapter 1.6

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.

Copyright 2011 by Stephen B. Bagley. All rights reserved. No copying without prior express written permission. Thank you for reading.

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