Sweat dripped down Talon’s face, and he smiled. I’ve finally mastered it. He thought, releasing the power. He closed the book he was reading and placed it back on the shelf. The hidden archives had been the greatest source of knowledge that his father had shown him. Without this room, he would be like any other rogue power user, weak and stupid.
Grabbing a nearby towel, Talon wiped his face, his anxiety rising. Today was the day he was going to tell Peitar and Arthur that he could use the power. He almost told them his secret last week. Instead, he told himself to wait to make sure he wanted to let them know.
All of his thoughts led to the same conclusion. He had no choice. Talon would be using his friends and they needed to know what he could do. That also involved the commander of the royal army, Corvin Malice. How the commander would react was anybody’s guess but he suspected Corvin wouldn’t mind. It was a risk, yet he felt confident the three of them would hold his secret.
He walked out of the hidden archives and straight to the throne. Before entering, he created a ward that would prevent anyone from sensing the power in the room. Once that was done, he walked in.
Talon wasn’t surprised to see Peitar, Arthur, and Corvin already in the throne room, flanked by a few guards. “Thanks for coming so quickly,” he said. His heart was rapidly beating, and he forced himself to take a deep breath.
“You mentioned you had something to tell us,” Corvin said.
“I do,” Talon said and turned to the guards. “Leave us.”
The guards shuffled out of the room and Talon made sure nobody else was in the room before breaking the silence. He hoped his instincts were right. “Before I begin, Corvin, do you have anything for me?”
“I do,” Corvin said. His hands were resting behind his back. “Vandalor is sending an embassy here as we speak. They should arrive within two weeks.”
“Excellent,” Talon said. Whoever Vandalor was sending should easily be convinced to sign a treaty. That was a big hurdle to get the first nation to sign, perhaps the others would be more willing once word got out. “What about Arthur and Peitar’s training?”
“I would say they are good to enter your service,” Corvin said. Peitar and Arthur straightened as Corvin continued. “Arthur is an excellent swordsman. His technique is far cleaner and he should do a great job protecting you. Peitar is great at adapting and the two of them fighting together are nearly unstoppable. You picked good men to serve you.”
Perfect. Talon hadn’t expected his friends to become exceptional fighters so quickly. Perhaps his plans would go smoother than he hoped. “I need to know if you three can be trusted,” Talon said.
“Of course, your grace,” Peitar said.
Arthur appeared more relaxed, “I have sworn my life to you. Nothing you say will leave this room unless you command it. I wouldn’t tell my mother.”
“I served your father faithfully and will do the same for you,” Corvin said.
Father always told me Corvin was the most trustworthy person he knew. “All right. If you tell anyone, there will be consequences,” Talon said and summoned the power. The sweet feeling of invincibility swept through his body. He could do anything and nobody could stop him. “I can use the power.”
The moment the words left his mouth, fire appeared on the palm of Talon’s hand. Peitar and Arthur goggled, their mouths hanging open in shock. “You’re full of surprises,” Peitar said and Arthur nodded along.
Corvin didn’t react at all. Not so much as a flinch. The commander stared at the flames before turning his gaze back to Talon. “This explains some things,” Corvin said.
Talon cocked his brow, which got a slight grin out of the commander. “The assassination attempt. I couldn’t fathom how an assassin could kill two royal guards effortlessly but struggle to kill an unarmed king,” Corvin said.
“Rickard had a hard time believing my story,” Talon admitted. “But how can you argue with a king?”
“That’s the thing, you can’t,” Corvin said.
Talon released the power. “Remember—this must remain secret. Nobody else can know.”
“My lips are sealed,” Peitar said.
“Your secret is safe with us,” Arthur said.
“Why tell us now?” Corvin asked.
“Things are in motion,” Talon was being vague. He couldn’t let anyone guess what he was up to, not until the time was right. “I’ll have things for you to do soon and I can’t hide my abilities for some of these tasks.”
“I can’t wait to go on my first mission,” Peitar said excitedly.
“You’ll be going sooner than you think,” Talon said. Part of him wished he could keep his friends away from this mess. Despite their training, neither Peitar nor Arthur understood what a battle was like. The adventures they thought of wouldn’t turn out to be as exciting as they hoped. “I have something else to attend to. You’ll hear from me shortly.”
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“We’ll be ready when you call on us, your grace,” Arthur said with a bow.
Talon didn’t say anything and opened the bond he had with Qidan. The mage was close, that was good. He hurried outside of the throne room and went up a flight of stairs. Qidan must have known Talon wanted him as he was standing in the middle of the hall, waiting patiently.
“Follow me,” Talon never broke stride as Qidan matched him. He opened the nearest room and waved the mage inside first and then he walked in, closing the door behind him. Calling upon the power, Talon created a barrier to prevent sound from leaving the room.
“I take it this is an important conversation,” Qidan said. He had gotten so used to Talon using the power that he no longer twitched.
“How hard would it be to locate people who could use the power?” Talon asked. This stage of his plan was dangerous. He couldn’t risk a single word leaving this room.
“What?” Qidan said, unable to hide his surprise. He quickly recovered. There were many questions he asked and was used to Talon ignoring them. “Finding someone who can use the power isn’t difficult.”
“What about Mortham tower? How many mages are there? How spread out are they? How often do the mages meet?”
“That’s a lot of questions,” Qidan said. He pursed his lips and let out a sigh. Betraying the mages was going to be difficult for him. “I would say there are about two thousand mages. There are perhaps five hundred at the tower itself, and meetings occur randomly. Some years can have dozens of meetings or less than ten. Depends on the situation or what is going on in the world. Why do you ask?”
“I’ve been thinking about the mage problem. Sooner or later the mages will learn I can use the power. Perhaps I slip up one day or someone overhears or sees’ me use the power. Hopefully, that’s a long way off but I want to be ready,” Talon took a deep breath. He saw no point in delaying the inevitable. “The only way to protect myself is to create an army of power users and keep them a secret until my numbers equal or surpass Mortham tower. Do you think this is achievable?”
Qidan stared at Talon for a few seconds. Talon could see the conflict in the mage’s eyes. He wondered if his advisor would tell the mages if he released him from the oath-keeper bond. While curious, he would never risk such an action.
“Remember that you are loyal to me, not your mages,” Talon said.
“I know, old habit,” Qidan finally said. “This is achievable. I already told you there are tens of thousands of potential power users in the world.”
Talon felt some of his tension ease. That had been his biggest worry. Finding power users was going to be challenging without letting the mages know. With so many candidates out there, he imagined a year or two was all he would need to match Mortham tower. It was good for him that the mages didn’t actively recruit. If they did, the odds of him succeeding would be low.
“You are creating a bigger risk if you try to recruit your own mages,” Qidan warned. “As your advisor, I highly recommend you think about this.”
Despite the seriousness of this conversation, Talon found himself amused. Qidan’s old instincts were kicking in, trying to protect his mages. Oddly enough, he trusted the mage, mostly. “If I don’t do this, there is no way I stay in power. It could be years or tomorrow but when my secret gets out, there will be nothing I can do against Mortham tower without my own mages.”
Qidan didn’t say anything. Talon was okay with that. “I have a mission for you. I need you to recruit ten power users to start and expand the group as quickly as possible.”
Qidan’s face paled. “I can’t do that.”
“Yes, you can. Remember that you answer to me and this isn’t a request. You will recruit ten power users and train them well,” Talon said harshly. He could see the mage thinking furiously, trying to find a way out of this. Qidan would quickly find that there was no way out. He didn’t have time to train mages, that was a problem he had quickly identified.
“Where would I train them? There’s no safe haven for rogue power users,” Qidan said.
“Luckily for you, I have the perfect spot,” Talon extended a hand, summoning a portal in the center of the room. “You first.”
Qidan walked through the portal and Talon followed. The portal winked out of existence once he walked through. They were in a forest, deep in Azzellia. There was nothing but wildlife here. The nearest village was over a hundred miles away. He had created portals around this forest until he found this spot a couple of days ago. This was the perfect, out-of-the-way location to hide an army of power users.
“Where are we?” Qidan asked.
“A forest in Azzellia. Remember this location. Nobody will be found here,” Talon said. He wondered if his uncle used a place like this to learn the power. If only he was alive and hadn’t tried to kill me. He would have supported this move.
“What about food? Shelter?” Qidan asked.
“Food is plentiful. At worst, you hunt some of the wildlife. Would be great training for future recruits. However, I will have food brought. You’ll need to use the power to establish a camp. Start small, then expand as our numbers grow,” Talon said.
“That shouldn’t be too hard,” Qidan said.
“I know. The power is a great tool, one that has been restricted from the world for too long. How far would we have advanced if you mages used your powers to help? Locking yourselves away or going after people who threaten your power is of no use to the rest of the world,” Talon said. That was one thing he had learned from his readings. In the past, mages actively contributed to technological advancement. They used to heal people and life for the average person was good. For too long the mages have kept to themselves and technological advancement had slowed tremendously because of it. That was going to change.
“You aren’t wrong,” Qidan admitted. “Despite what you think of us, a lot of mages believe we should be more involved in helping. Too many disagree and that’s why mages keep to themselves.”
“That’s why I’m changing that with my mages. You will need to make appearances at the palace. We can’t have anyone whispering that you went missing,” Talon said.
“Of course. It’ll take me at least a week to find ten recruits, longer if I have to stay at the palace,” Qidan said.
“I know. I bought you a week. Anyone who asks will think you are running an errand for me out of the kindness of your heart,” Talon said.
“What errand would that be?”
“The possibility of a power user attempting to kill me.”
“The mages won’t like not being told about this,” Qidan said.
“That’s why they won’t be told. Worst case scenario, I tell them my spies told me and that time was of the essence. Don’t worry about that, you have bigger concerns,” Talon said.
“I take it you want me to start now?”
“Yes. I’ll be back here in a few days to check up on you. Good luck,” Talon created a portal and stepped through, leaving Qidan behind. He hoped this risk would pay off, yet what choice did he have? He was dooming not only himself but all of Aidris if he sat back and waited for the mages to discover he could use the power. This was the best way forward.