World Sphere - 231 -

Chapter 231:

Not bothering to recall the Maelstrom, I opened my dimensional closet and retrieved the small transport I had built with Remy to move inside dungeons quickly. Since I didn’t have the cats with me, the small craft could handle taking me to Skyhold. Before lifting off I decided to contact Malik.

The aether tech communicator only contains a small amount of adamantine, but it was still immensely valuable. The outer casing was an alloy similar to bronze—at least I could detect tin and copper, but I was unfamiliar with some of the other metals. It was clam-shaped and opened with a hidden hinge. Inside was a single button. I pressed it until I heard a soft click and a soft repeating buzz. “Hello?” I asked, feeling a bit uncertain.

The buzzing stopped, and a clear voice came through. It was Malik’s. “Storme, give me a minute. I am in a meeting.” I heard soft murmurs in the background and shuffling before hearing a door close. “I am inside a privacy bubble. Have you returned to Skyholme?”

“Very recently,” I said, trying to obscure the Maelstrom’s speed. “Bugbear warriors and kobold saboteurs are invading the lowlands here. Approximately a hundred thousand of the bugbear brutes. There is no sign of the mind reapers, but the bugbears seem to be organized by someone with influence.”

“Interesting. Why do you say that?” Malik asked with a slight slur, and I guessed he had been drinking. He didn’t seem fazed by the size of the bugbear army.

“They appeared leaderless but organized—a few mages and some kind of null-aether bomb or weapon,” I said.

“Or spell…” he mused. “It would have to be at least tier five…and the range would be limited. Excellent information. We haven’t heard of a bugbear army yet, so very useful information—anything else?” he said, delighted. I was sure he would earn some acclaim from being the first to report it.

“Do you have anything for me?” I asked.

“Nothing you cannot get from your local Adventurers Guild. There are a large number of attacks from the Endless Dark and more every day. Thirty-nine at last count, including yours. All very well coordinated. I do not believe there are any other threats near Skyholme, but I will have my assistant check the maps and let you know if there is. Contact me anytime,” he finished, and the connection went back to the buzzing.

I snapped the communicator closed and once again felt this was more of a game to the Houses in the Passage while thousands of people died fighting out here. I angrily took the controls and dashed off to the War Coucil.

As I descended on Skyhold one of the red taxis came around one of the structures in the dock yard and missed me by fifty feet. I cursed and would have to make sure my lightning reflexes spell was active the next time I flew low.

I was not in a good mood when I exited my craft. Six Marines had weapons drawn, but quickly apologized when they recognized me. Captain Liam came rushing down one of the gangways connecting the slips. “High Mage! I was waiting, looking for the Maelstrom!”

The Captain escorted me into Skyhold, and I talked as we walked. “How have things been in the capital? How are the civilians handling the news that we are at war?”

“Most are unaware. There is some nervousness among the sailors and marines getting ready to head to the lowlands, High Mage.” I nodded, remembering Loriel had committed a significant force to send. I didn’t like fighting the battles of the Sadian Empire, but the more damage I did, the safer Skyholme’s people would be.

The same admirals and captains were in the war room as last time, and perhaps a few new faces. I headed straight for Admiral Sebastian, looking to take out my ire. “Admiral, did Remy discuss universal traffic patterns with you for small craft? I was nearly killed by one of those red taxis.”

Perhaps it was my tone, but the entire room fell into silence. I hated putting Sebastian on the stop like this. He turned to another Skyholme Admiral I didn’t recognize. Perhaps I needed to attend more formal dinners with how few faces I recognized here. “Admiral Lanthier, why have the small craft rules not been instituted?”

Lanthier shifted nervously. He was definitely too young and ruffled to be an admiral. “The rules are still being revised and we haven’t discussed a manner to enforce them. The fines need to be approved by the Sovereign as well,” he said nodding to Loriel.

“Double the proposed fines,” Loriel said, eyeing me. “I don’t want our High Mage killed by a zealous taxi.”

She sounded sincere in her support, so I gave her an olive branch. “I will assign three of our taxis to the Navy to enforce the rules. Just be sure they follow them as well.”

“That is most generous,” Prince Antioch said with a brilliant smile. “Perhaps we can find it in the budget to purchase three more to bring the number to six?”

I could almost read Antioch’s mind. I doubted all six would be patrolling the skies over Skyhold. I assumed some would be used for transporting admirals and nobles. I just shrugged but have Remy make sure we made a decent profit. “Tell me about the war plans.” I moved to stand beside Callem, whom I trusted to give me honest answers to questions about their proposed tactics.

We huddled over the map as the Sadian Admiral gave an update on the bugbears. “After the High Mage’s attack, they pulled in their flanks and fortified their defenses. They are still marching on these two cities in the next day or two. The kobolds have destroyed bridges here and here, preventing our largest cities from reinforcing quickly.”

“We lost one of the scouts over these mountains last night,” another admiral said, pointing behind the encamped army.

A Sadian in different colors stepped forward and I think he was a general as the amirals gave way. “We have fifty thousand men here and one hundred thousand here, but the larger force is very green and outmatched against the bugbears. We are going to use them in reserve when this body engages. Depending on initial contact will determine if we risk bringing the skyships down.”

“When is the attack planned?” I asked.

“When they reach this city. It could be tomorrow or the next day. They have been more cautious since your attack,” the general replied. Why did I like this man more than the admirals? It took me a second to realize that he lacked the admiral’s haughtiness.

“Good. I will land behind their lines and attack from the rear,” I said, placing my finger down in a valley. It wouldn’t be the exact place I would attack from, but I would attack from somewhere behind their lines. “Give me an hour’s warning before the attack.” That would give me plenty of time to get the Maelstrom down.

The conversation turned to boring tactics and contingencies for the next hour. Callem took time to explain what they were discussing and to educate me. I chose not to ask questions as this was out of my depth. My attack from behind would distract and pull defenses to their rear, allowing the forward elements to engage with an advantage. Callem volunteered to fly with me again. I wasn’t sure if his goal was to protect me, or not be part of the Skyholme fleet. The Skyholme fleet was being held back until they knew for certain what was grounding the skyships. In the interim, they were shepherding soldiers from the various cities in the Sadian Empire to the front lines. When the meeting ended, I returned to the Shiny Platinum.

Significant progress was made on the Ravenhawk, and I suppose I should start on laying out the runes. Rippon was walking the bone ash skeleton of the new ship with two young men. He was very vocal about the mistakes they had made and told them how they were going to fix them before the build proceeded.

Remy came out from behind a stack of dark treant wood. “Storme! What do you think?”

“Looks like the bones of a sky whale,” I said, amused.

Remy looked mock stricken at the criticism. “Don’t forget we need an aether crystal for the Ravenhawk.” He handed me the paper for the aether crystal requirements and I winced. That didn’t even include a buffer for additional runes.

“Do you get the tier three invisibility runes?” I asked as I reviewed the paper.

“They should be here in a few days. Is the Ravenhawk getting them too?” he asked excitedly.

“Probably not. They are threefold as complicated and take up a lot of space. I will give you some excellent shields and the lesser invisibility runes,” I informed him, handing back the paper after memorizing the requirements.

“You need to get to Bherturm soon. There are three skyships there for you to artifice,” Remy said offhandedly.

“Crap. They couldn’t get them to Skyholme, so I could do it here?” I lamented. Bherturm is a dwarven city where we had contracted to have three skyships built each year. They would be used as traders and dungeon hoppers, with the excess sold to Skyholme.

“The shipyard business has increased considerably. Thorsten has lost two of his artificers in the last six months. If you go assist him, I am sure you can get some deep discounts,” Remy hinted. “Also,” he said tentatively, “our contract to supply dungeon lumber to the Bherturm might get more difficult as the war spreads. It will be more difficult to acquire.”

“War is never good for anyone, Remy. Which reminds me, tell Mera and Fera to include it in the daily news. I want the people to know not just what's happening on the islands but also in the Sphere—anything that might affect them.” Remy nodded, probably not quite understanding, but took notes to hand off to the twins.

I went back to my room in the Shiny Platinum to find a hungry Adrial. “You are such a good girl for not breaking into the cold box or breaking down the door to plunder the kitchens.” I rubbed her head, and she nudged me hard and licked my arm. “Fine! I understand. You're hungry!” Without Kiara in my head, I didn’t have a constant reminder of the cat’s presence and needs. I gave her fresh raw meat and let her run on the roof gardens. Would have to take her to the Progenitor Dungeon or let Adrial delve with Aelyn’s team so she could burn off her energy.

I went to my workshop to work on the runic layout for the Ravenhawk. It was not too difficult because the important part was that the aether ballasts had to be configured around the skyship's center of mass. Once that was done, you could work out all the other runes from there. My eyes were burning by the time I finished, but I had a solid plan for the runic layout.

When it was midmorning, I forced myself to get some rest. Adrial had curled around the chair protectively. I scratched her ears, getting a soft purr in return. “I miss her too, but she is training. Maybe you would like to train with her? There are a few beast tamers at the Academy now. You two could fit right in?” Adrial tilted her head, confused, and I sighed.

As soon as I fell into bed, she jumped up at the foot of the bed, curled into a massive ball, and looked at me with her green glowing eyes. She would lie on the floor if I told her, but I let her stay and fell asleep.

I was woken a few hours later by one of the communication stones in my space. I hadn’t gotten enough sleep and irritably removed it. Selin's voice came through. “Storme, Kiara has gotten into some trouble.”

“Did she kill someone?” I asked. “Is it imperative I come this very moment?”

“No…” Selin responded.

“Can it wait a few hours?” I asked pleadingly.

“I suppose. Kiara will be in my office when you arrive,” she said before disconnecting.

I tried to get back to sleep. My body knew I needed rest, but my mind was worried about Kiara. With Adrial trailing behind me, I went to the kitchen, made us breakfast, and then headed to the Academy. We rarely walked the streets anymore, and Adrial moved from my left to my right side to scare away the people. She enjoyed the game and having to do all the work now that her sister was not on the other side of me.

I found Selin behind her desk and Kiara sitting in the corner. The mental connection snapped into place immediately. “Not my fault, father, the others are too weak.” I looked at her, but I would let Selin explain.

“You said you needed a few hours, but it has been less than one,” Selin said, bemused.

“So, what did Kiara do?” I asked, ignoring Kiara’s explanations in my head.

Selin looked over at Kiara, who rolled her eyes. It was a very human expression that Freya probably taught her. “She still has her strength from her phantom cat body. She injured eleven people in her combat practice.”

“And?” I asked, not quite understanding.

“She put her fist through a young woman’s stomach. Tore off the arm of another while trying to throw them. Shattered almost every tooth in another. She…” I held up my hand.

“Why did an instructor allow this to happen?” I asked. At least she hadn’t used her mental confusion attack on anyone. No one would have a defense against the tier four attack.

It wasn’t a class. Kiara just wandered into some students training, and they asked her to join. “I didn’t use any weapons. Just my body and whips,” Kiara said in my head.

“So, is she kicked out then?” I asked. It was my academy, but maybe I should have given Kiara more time to acclimate to her new body.

“No, but she has earned several demerits for the extra healing,” Selin said with a sigh.

“Do you understand what you did wrong?” I asked Kiara.

“Don’t play hard with people,” she said aloud in broken speech. “I want to stay. I want to learn.”

I sighed. “Keep her away from the other students until the instructors can get her an understanding of what is expected of her,” I said. Adrial was sniffing her sister, who sat with her arms crossed, clearly unhappy. “Also, Kiara, I want you to spend time in your phantom cat body and hunt with your sister.” I didn’t think it was a good time to leave Adrial in Kiara’s care. Too much could go wrong. I had made a mistake. Kiara’s mind was just too young, and I had pushed too hard on her.

We talked about leaving instructors to watch over her before I left to check on the array around the Dungeon Academy. I was getting ready to return to the Shiny Platinum for lunch when a communication stone buzzed in my dimensional space.

It was Callem’s stone. His wizened voice echoed from it. “Storme, the Sadians are almost petitioned for an attack. Maybe two hours before the mages start with ranged spells, and not long after the front lines will clash.”

“Understood. I will pick you up in the Maelstrom shortly.” I swapped communication stones again and called Blaze. “Blaze, it’s time for round two. Pickup Callem in Skyhold and you can get me at the Academy.”

“Understood, High Mage,” Bleiz’s voice echoed before his voice cut off.

“Never a second’s rest for the High Mage,” I muttered to myself. Adrial hissed in agreement.

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