Maria Snyder - Storm Glass

“Time to dance,” Sir said. He and Tal bent over Kade. Crafty raised her arms.

“Now,” I yelled. I yanked my wrists from the cuffs and broke the glass spider in half. Kade leaped to his feet and tossed the net over Crafty. She yelped in surprise.

Bite Tricky, I ordered the spider.

Jumping from the pile, I grabbed one of the empty orbs. From the doorway Janco threw Kaya’s orb at Kade. He caught it in midair.

Janco spun and the clangs of a sword fight rang from the hallway as he blocked the entrance to the room. A snippet of a rhyme, “Five against one is so much fun,” hopefully meant Janco kept Namir and his men occupied. He wouldn’t last long.

An angry breeze stirred to life. And died.

Devlen smirked. “Now what?” He pointed to Tal and Sir, both had swords mere inches from Kade. His fingers grasping the stopper to Kaya’s orb, Kade grimaced with pain.

The spider had disappeared, leaving behind a nasty red welt and a livid man. Crafty found the hole in the net and shrugged it off of her. It landed in a heap.

“Crafty isn’t the only one who knows how to work a null shield,” Devlen said, breaking the silence. “It was one of the first skills I learned.” He considered Kade. “Now if the Stormdancer releases the energy inside his orb while he’s caught in a null shield, I’m assuming we’ll all die. But I really don’t think he wants you to die.” He turned to me. “And what are you planning? Unless one of us attacks you with magic, the empty orb is nothing but glass in your hands.”

I had miscalculated and underestimated Devlen. Failed. The rings of steel and grunts from the hallway ceased with a curse. Janco came into the room with his hands behind his head. Rutz and Shen following with swords aimed at his back.

“Did I miss the party?” Janco asked.

“Oh no. We’re just beginning,” Devlen said.

I still held the orb.

Devlen stepped toward me unconcerned.

I could smash it on his head or use a broken shard to cut my throat.

“Back into your chains like a good girl.” His manner confident. He expected me to obey without hesitation.

Being an accommodating doormat, I had always listened to him. Not this time. Glass was in my hands. It throbbed with potential.

I reached. Reached toward Devlen and siphoned his magic. The clinks of glass sounded like hail on the windows. He struggled in panic, but to no avail. I pulled until he had nothing left.

Crafty started to move her null shield to encompass me, but I reached for her power before it touched me. Crafty’s magic rained into the orb for many minutes until I drained her dry. I turned to Tricky and plucked at his small power. It refused to budge. He grinned with triumph until a gust of wind slammed him into the wall, knocking him unconscious.

I staggered back as Kade used the air to disarm the rest of the men. The realization of what I had done knocked me to my knees.

I didn’t channel Devlen’s and Crafty’s magic.

I stole it. Using my own powers.

Dizziness and exhaustion swirled. Pressing my forehead on the floor, I closed my eyes.

I WOKE TObright sunshine reflecting off the snow. In bed and able to move freely, my day started better than the previous ten. Twenty? Exhaustion weighed on me like a heavy blanket. And from the way his body slumped, I guessed Kade was tired, too. Or it could just be from sleeping in a chair. His head rested on the back, his elbows propped on the arms, hands laced on his stomach and his legs were spread out in front.

“Kade,” I said.

He woke. The cuts on his face had scabbed over, and the bruises faded to a grayish-yellow. He shot me a sheepish grin. “I’m not much of a guard, sleeping on the job.”

“Guard? What’s going on?” Is truggled in to as it ting position.

“Relax.” He pushed me back onto the pillows. “I’m here to guard that you don’t get out of bed and to fetch things for you. Are you thirsty?”

“Very.”

He poured a glass of water from the pitcher on the night table and handed it to me. I downed it, stopping only when a dagger of ice knifed my forehead.

“Easy. There’s plenty of cold water around here.”

I glanced around the room. One bed, night table, chair and fireplace. Spartan and warm considering we were on the northern ice sheet.

No longer able to delay the question, I asked, “What happened?”

Kade sobered. “After you…harvested the magic from the magicians, I had to fill three orbs with the energy from the blizzard or risk having the station blown over and buried by snow. When I returned, Janco had secured the others.”

“Tell Janco to keep a close eye on Tricky. He still has a small bit of magic.” My magic.

Kade said nothing. He refused to meet my gaze, and I sensed he wasn’t telling me the whole story. “Spill,” I ordered.

“Your orb…” He paused as if trying to find the right words. “Your orb is filled with…with diamonds.”

This time I managed to sit up without a struggle. “Diamonds? Are you sure? They could be high-quality glass.” Glass made sense.

He didn’t respond. Instead he pulled a clear sparkle from his pocket and handed it to me. The diamond burned ice-cold then a vision of Devlen formed in my mind’s eye. He wore his own face. I dropped the gem onto the table. Flabbergasted, I couldn’t begin to contemplate the ramifications. Why diamonds? I remembered a vague connection between magic and diamonds, but failed to grasp it. Bain Bloodgood would know.

“My suggestion would be to not tell anyone you have this new ability,” he said. “Only I know you harvested their powers without them attacking you.”

Kade rubbed his hands on his legs, then jumped to his feet. “If the Sitian Council finds out…”

“I’m arrested and locked in the Keep’s cells until the Council decides what to do with me, which, according to Yelena, would be a long time.”

“You’ve already thought about this.”

“Yes. Zitora mentioned the possibility as an exercise in logic. I can’t lie about it, Kade. I’ll tell Zitora and the other Master Magicians and let them choose how to handle it.”

Kade slumped on the edge of my bed. “The right decision.”

“You don’t look happy about it.”

“I’m thinking selfish thoughts. If you’re locked up in the Keep’s cells, I will have no one again.”

“What about Kaya?”

“I’ve thought about what you said back at the Keep.”

“When I called you as thick as a fog bank?”

“Funny, I had forgotten that part. But I had plenty of time to consider your words, and your actions these last couple days have taught me much. I’m going to say goodbye to Kaya.”

“The right decision.”

Before Kade could respond, Janco poked his head into the room.

“Ah, the glass warden’s awake. Good! Ari’s coming with backup. Should I pretend we barely survived without his help or gloat that we didn’t need him at all?”

“Tough decision,” I said.

“You can’t go wrong with either one,” Kade said.

“You guys are no fun. I have to go with the gloating. But no mention of that magic stuff. It ruins the effect.” Janco rushed off.

Ari arrived with a handful of men. He ignored Janco’s smug boasts and proceeded right to the heart of the matter. “What do we do with them?” he asked.

He referred to Sir, Tricky and the others.

“Arrest them. They’re here illegally. They used magic. Smuggled goods,” Janco said.

“Can they still use their magic?” Ari asked me.

“Only one. The rest have been…neutralized.”

“One?”

“Sleeping,” Janco said. “Until we figure out what to do with him.”