Michael Foster - She Who Has No Name

‘Of course not. No,’ Jacobs stated resolutely. ‘This is the stuff of nonsense and fairy tales. We have problems of flesh and blood to face, not fantasies, Lord Samuel.’

‘But demons and creatures do seem to exist. We defeated one at Hammenton, and even our own Grand Master Anthem has mastered the Great Spell of Summoning. Is it notconceivablethat some truth may lay in these rumours?’

‘Utterly not,’ Anthem said, raising his voice. ‘While it may be possible to summon beasts that seem hellish to us, the notion of demons is inconceivable. I think that if you are listening to sources that purvey such bunk, Lord Samuel, you would do well to turn away your ear. As High Lord Jacobs affirms, we have no time to entertain nonsense when lives are at stake.’

Samuel nodded and accepted the clear direction that he should remain quiet on the matter.

‘If there is little else to learn here, let us rest,’ High Lord Jacobs then announced. ‘We will meet with the Empress this evening. I’m sure our recent arrivals also need rest after their arduous journey.’

With that, most of the men dispersed slowly from the room, leaving the last of the Lions scratching their headsandindeepdiscussion. Lomar walked with Samuel along the halls, as Goodfellow rushed ahead to organise a room for them.

‘I hear you had a harrowing escape, Samuel,’ the brown-skinned magician stated. His face was marked with deep wrinkles of kindness, and they only seemed to be deepening with age,while the rest of his skin around the creases remained smooth. It gave him a mixed appearance of wizened age and mirthful youth.

‘True, but at least we did escape.’

‘And no word of Eric?’

‘I was going to ask you the same thing,’ Samuel said, ‘although I have the feeling he will be back when it suits him.’

‘Oh?’

‘I’m almost certain I felt him use his Journey spell. As such, he is probably skulking around the city somewhere, waiting for an opportune time to show himself.’

‘I thought he was having trouble with that spell,’ Lomar suggested.

‘So he made out but,in reality,he guarded it like a jealous child. If he does return, I’m going to speak to the Grand Masters about him. Such a spell could make a great difference to the war.’

‘True, but you should take your concerns to High Lord Jacobs first. He is leader of the Council. That is the correct point to voice your concerns.’

‘I understand, but you know me, Lomar. I’ve never been one to follow such formalities.’

Lomar smiled warm-heartedly. ‘So I’ve come to realise-but you would do better to keep the Council onside where possible. Few of usOutlanders are fond of formalities, but the Turians cannot live withoutthem. In any case, no one can make Eric give up his spell unless he wishes. I think I understand why he is hesitant to give up the knowledge of such a magic. Firstly, everyone likes to feel special-even magicianslike us. He has great ability, but the frustrations of youth still cling to him. Perhaps he will not feel so protective of his skills after another year or two, as he continues to mature. Secondly, once he does release that knowledge, it will undoubtedly make its way into the hands of every capable magician in Amandia, Turiaand beyond. No matter how hard we triedto keep such a secret, it could never be kept for long. There are very few Great Spells like this left unfound and,although not many magicians would be capable of casting it, its effect would be tremendous. Life would beinfinitelymore treacherous if magicians or even entire armies could appear anywhere they wanted. Eric may be acting selfishly but,in truth, it is probably for the best.’

Samuel nodded reluctantly. ‘You are probably correct.’

‘I usually am,’ Lomar added.

‘Then we have that in common, too,’ Samuel added and Lomar smiled in return. ‘But one more thing. It has been some time since I last spoke with anyone from the Circle, but their members seem adamant that demons do exist and that the return of their kind is a reality. Could it really be true?’

‘I am sceptical of such things, Samuel, but we are magicians after all and must we consider all possibilities, no matter how far-fetched.’

‘So you believe it?’

‘I’m not ruling it out. However,’ Lomar continued, ‘it looks like the Paatin armies will be here long before any demons come to harry us, so there is little point debating the fact. We must prioritise our threats; therefore,I must agree with Grand Master Anthem on this. Let’s put the notion aside and focus on greater things for now.’

Samuel considered the point thoughtfully. ‘And you have been into the desert? Do you know anything of the Paatin people?’

‘Sadly, very little. I have skirted their lands, for the Kabushy delta lies to the south of those dry wastes. My people never felt the desire to explore north, for there was little point,and Kabushy do not like to leave their wetlands but once I began my studies as a magician,I ventured there on occasion to quench my curiosity. I explored the very edges of their lands and learned some of their tongue, but I never saw anything that would have led me to believe they were capable of such armies. As Grand Master Tudor stated, they are a quiet and noble people,solitary and nomadic.’

‘Then the desert seems to have some great secrets hidden in its heart.’

‘Well said and true,’ Lomar said. ‘But come, you must get some rest and I have much to do. I am sure we will discover much more about the Paatin in the coming days.’

With that, the two parted and Samuel set about finding what had become of Goodfellow and his room.

The two of them retired for the rest for the day to a small room in the heights of the Mage Tower,overlooking the vast city that sprawled and cluttered below them. Goodfellow was already awake and looking out the window when Samuel opened his eyes.

‘There’s someone at the door,’ he said, still looking up at the ceiling.

‘Oh?’ Goodfellow responded, turning from the window and blinking the room back to clarity behind his spectacles.

Samuel sat up and swung his legs to the floor. ‘Come in, Eric!’ he called.

The handle turned and Eric Pot walked in sheepishly. ‘I see you both made it back safely.’ He shut the door behind him and leaned upon it hesitantly, waiting for them to respond.

‘We’ve been waiting for you to turn up,’ Samuel stated.

Eric was obviously trying to think of an excuse, but then simply shrugged his shoulders. ‘What else could I do? I didn’t have time to take you with me.’

‘You used your Journey spell to return to Cintar?’ Goodfellow asked. Samuel thought that his bespectacled friend was going to reprimand the other Eric, but Goodfellow only continued on with excitement. ‘Astounding! That’s a long way. I didn’t realise you had such control.’

‘Yes. I arrived right in the middle of The Pride-which did surprise some of the patrons,’ Eric replied. ‘I didn’t even mean to use it at all. When I started to panic,I cast it without even knowing. I guess I was thinking how nice it would be to be back in my favourite old inn-and it happened.’

‘We could have done with your help, Eric,’ Samuel stated flatly. ‘You could have made all the difference.’

‘The battle was already lost, Samuel,’ Eric said in his defence. ‘I didn’t intend to leave and,once I had, I wasn’t about to risk going back. Anything could have happened.’

‘I guess we’ll never know.’

‘It doesn’t matter now, Samuel,’ Goodfellow interceded. ‘What’s done is done. I’m just glad Eric is here and we know he’s safe and well.’

‘Does the Council know you’re here?’ Samuel asked suspiciously.

‘Now they do. At first, I had to lay low, but once you two and Grand Master Tudor returned,I told them I’d also just arrived. They seemed too busy to care all that much.’