L. Modesitt - Natural Ordermage

What could Rahl do? He still didn’t know where the captain was, or how exactly the Jeranyi and Shyret had been connected. “Where is the captain, ser?”

“He seems not to be around. It could be that he’s at the other station with all the trouble they’re having. That’s not your concern. Your concern ought to be following orders, and it’s clear that you haven’t been.”

Although Craelyt had not said anything incriminating, there was no one with him, and that alone suggested to Rahl that all was not as it should be.

“Ser? Exactly how have I not been following orders? I’ve been exactly where I’ve been ordered to be. I’ve been tested for my arms skills, and I’ve stood duties under instruction.”

Craelyt stopped and turned, facing Rahl. “You were told not to snoop around the Nylan Merchant Association. You kept doing that. You were told to report to the captain. You didn’t. Those failures alone are enough to send you to Highpoint, if not worse.”

“There wasn’t anything to report, ser.” Not until today, Rahl added to himself. “I never even entered the Nylan Merchant Association building, and I’ve never seen or talked to anyone who I worked with or talked to.” All that was certainly true.

“You know, Rahl, you’re one of those types I dislike. You follow the letter of the rules and ignore their spirit. That’s as much insubordination as outright disobedience.”

Rahl tried again. “It’s not against the Codex or the Manual, ser, to walk the streets of Swartheld and to try to recall the memories someone stole from you.”

Craelyt smiled, coolly. “Always blaming someone else, aren’t you. They stole your memories. Why can’t you admit that you forgot? They wouldn’t explain things so that you could understand, but you never made any real effort. They insisted that you take responsibility for your actions, and you just accused them of failing to understand. I know your type, always blaming others. It’s too bad you never could really control your abilities, Rahl. You’d never be more than a half mage, if that. You know, the magisters on Recluce were right to exile you. You’re the kind that always wants someone else to explain. You’ve never really worked that hard. Taryl was wrong. He always is.”

Rahl could feel the rage surging through him. Just who was Craelyt to make such statements? He certainly hadn’t been a loader in Luba.

“The mage-guards don’t need whiners like you.”

Whhhstt!

The force of the fire-bolt threw Rahl backward, almost into the wall. He staggered, both at the force of the chaos-bolt, and at the suddenness.

Whhsst!

Rahl’s shields barely held back the second blow. Why was he having such trouble? Craelyt’s chaos-bolts weren’t that strong. He dodged to one side, behind a stone refuse bin.

“Coward. You always were.”

For a moment, Rahl’s rage surged. Then he swallowed. Anger! That had been what Craelyt was doing. Taunting Rahl enough to get him angry without Rahl’s totally realizing it so as to weaken him. The chill of that realization drained away all fury, and Rahl concentrated on feeling everything around him, letting himself take in the order that was everywhere.

Whhsstt!

Chaos splashed around Rahl, but with his shields gaining strength every moment, he stepped out from behind the stone and walked toward the undercaptain.

For the first time, Rahl caught a sense of uncertainty as he approached the other man, but Craelyt barely hesitated as he drew the shimmering falchiona. Rahl quickly pulled out his truncheon.

“Exercise rooms are for boasting. Let’s see how you are when it counts, whiner.” The undercaptain’s blade flashed toward Rahl.

Rahl slid the heavy blade away, twisting the truncheon just slightly so that the falchiona’s edge would not bite into the dark oak and catch, then used an upward stroke to knock the undercaptain’s blade away.

Whsstt!

The chaos sleeted away from Rahl’s shields, and Rahl moved forward, again deflecting the falchiona, this time downward.

Craelyt went into a crouch for an instant in order to keep control of his weapon.

Rahl slammed the truncheon down on top of the heavy blade, then stepped on it. Without hesitation, he let order flow into the truncheon as he slammed the truncheon into the side of Craelyt’s face. The order flow staggered the undercaptain just enough that he hesitated, if fractionally, as he dropped the falchiona and lunged toward Rahl with a long dagger.

Rahl swung to the side and brought the truncheon down on Craelyt’s forearm.

With the snap of bone, the undercaptain paled, but he mustered enough chaos to fling more at Rahl, enough to stop Rahl for an instant. Craelyt swayed on his feet, and Rahl struck-this time across the undercaptain’s temple. Even before the older mage-guard’s body toppled toward the stone pavement, it began to disintegrate.

Rahl’s mouth dropped open. Had the undercaptain been that imbued with chaos?

After the moment or so it took Rahl to compose himself, he looked down where Craelyt had fallen; but there was little enough left of the undercaptain but his falchiona and a few other metal items. Rahl left them, backing away, and hurrying to the pier-guard station.

Now…what could he do? The captain was missing, the undercaptain dead at his own hand, and Rahl had no idea whom to trust among the senior mages-or who was even around of the few he thought he might be able to trust.

As Rahl hurried toward the pier gates, Suvynt turned and took several quick steps toward the junior mage-guard. “Rahl! What’s happening?”

“There’s a big fire in Swartheld. The undercaptain ordered Nyhart to gather up the available mage-guards and send them out here. He wanted to put more patrols on the piers and to back you up. I came ahead, but he was supposed to be right behind me.” Rahl glanced back over his shoulder.

“He’ll be here, then.”

Rahl looked toward Swartheld. From what he could tell, the fire didn’t seem to be spreading. He sincerely hoped not.

After a time, he looked to Suvynt. “Did the undercaptain send anyone out before me to patrol the piers?”

“No.”

“I’d better start that. Tell the undercaptain that’s where I am.”

“Are you sure?”

“That’s what he said he wanted done. There should be more mage-guards coming, but I’m not a chaos-mage, and there should be at least one of you here.”

“True enough.” Suvynt nodded.

“I’m going to check pier two, where the Jeranyi ships are. If anyone had anything to do with that fire, they might have.” Rahl turned and walked swiftly toward the base of pier two, not waiting for any response from Suvynt.

One of the Jeranyi vessels was already moving away from the pier, her concealed gun ports uncovered. The other had two guards at the foot of the gangway, and another pair on the quarterdeck. The vessel still reeked of whitish chaos.

As he neared the ship, but far enough back so he could not be seen clearly, he once more raised the light shield and used his order-senses to make his way toward the guards, angling in from the side. Then he used the truncheon to tap one on the calf.

“What…” The guard jumped.

“I didn’t see anything,” answered the other sailor. “Stop being so jumpy…”

“…feels like someone’s here…”

“…imagining things…”

Rahl slipped behind the two and eased his way up the gangway, moving slowly so that his weight did not flex the gangway. Just short of the opening where a section of the railing was swung back, he slipped onto the railing and moved aft along the narrow flattop for close to five cubits before setting his boots on the deck.