Summoner School 7: A Reverse Portal Fantasy, page 2
“I can help,” Atlesia said and pulled out some potatoes.
“Same,” grandma said and poured two teas, handed one to Sarya, and the other to Caros. “It’s been quite a while since I’ve been able to cook for a large crowd. Especially one with magic.”
“I’ll always welcome the help,” the Appalachian mage said and started to cut what looked like venison.
“I’ll take some, too,” I said as my stomach growled. “Okay. I’m going to go over everything just so that we’re all on the same page. First thing this morning we attacked the technomage facility in the city. They’d been making transportation amulets from the designs that Stacy came up with before she defected. We tried to get all of them back, but another technomage--”
“Amanda,” Stacy said when I faltered with the name.
“Amanda,” I grinned and nodded in appreciation. “She was making the transportation amulets that let the technomages into the Magia Schola realm so that they could attack the school. That clearly didn’t go as well as they planned, but that doesn’t seem to have deterred them. Now, technomages are supposed to be against any type of magic use, but they seem to have ganged up with the cultists. My guess is that they were promised a magic-free human realm once Jason and the rest of the cultists get the immortality and resurrection spells together.”
“That’s about as smart as chasin’ after yer banehound when he’s got a big piece o’ meat in his mouth,” Bubba chuckled as he threw Atlesia’s chopped potatoes into a boiling pot of water. “Them cultists ain’t the type to just give up an entire realm.”
“They won’t,” grandma agreed. “Especially since the human realm has so much potential for mana. It’s one of the reasons that Kruwyn started here, and why Joseph followed in his father’s footsteps.”
“We all know that they’ll never turn over the human realm, but Joe and Charles probably think that they can turn on the cultists once everything is said and done,” I said. “Either way, the enemy of my enemy seems to have come into play. That’s not good for any of us. It seems like they worked together to attack the elven palace during a magical council meeting.”
“There were a lot of shadow creatures and technomages,” Sarya confirmed and then forced down the mana tea.
The redheaded elf glared at her brother when he tried to set the tea down without drinking it, and Caros sighed heavily as if his little sister was the bane of his existence. Sarya smirked and then flipped her long red ponytail in satisfaction before she turned back to me. There were still a few wrinkles around my mate’s eyes, but the rich cinnamon color had returned to her skin like she was recovering her mana.
“I apologize for my failure,” Katar spoke up from the living room. “I knew that Balian was young, but I failed to realize that he would be so easily seduced.”
“It’s not your fault,” I said with a reassuring smile. “He’s young, and Wisteria is a beautiful nymph. I wouldn’t be surprised if she has broken hearts all over the nine realms. You’re sure that Dorian will be okay watching her?”
“Very sure,” the head of the elven guard chuckled. “Dorian’s mate is a man.”
“Oh,” I nodded and laughed. “Then she’s really out of luck. He’s elven, right?”
“Naturally,” Katar shook his head. “I’m surprised we have any good relations left with other species after the way Dorian and Caros act.”
“I am the future head of the magical council,” Caros said. “It is my duty to make sure that elves are recognized for our greatness.”
“It’s your job to make sure that we all get along,” Sarya huffed. “And so far you suck at it. Speaking of which, where is Rarus? I thought that he was coming to help with the fight.”
“The minotaur?” Bubba asked over the sizzle of steak in a cast-iron pan. “He done left. Somethin’ about checkin’ in on his family. His brother was supposed to go talk to some siren about somethin’. Got the feelin’ that he was worried his little brother might fall victim to her wiles.”
“They did date,” I said. “Ramis thinks that she’ll be able to help us find the technomages. Or at least, their allies in the ocean.”
I took a breath and went through the recap again in my head. They’d already heard about the base and could see how well our raid went this morning, so there was no point going over that, and they knew about the attack on the elven palace. I nodded to myself and then ignored the rumble in my stomach as the smell of food permeated the air.
“Right,” I said. “So, one of the elven guards was seduced by Wisteria. She’s a nymph that worked at the underground arena.”
“The one who stabbed you?” Atlesia said and tilted her head.
The smile on my girlfriend’s face was just a little too serene for the murderous intent behind her eyes, and I almost felt bad for Wisteria. If we needed help with any interrogations, then Atlesia would definitely volunteer, especially since she’d stayed by my side for the three days that the nymph had put me in a coma.
“The very one,” Sarya answered. “But I get first dibs on her since she helped to kidnap my parents.”
“You two can fight about that later,” I shook my head and brought their attention back to me. “I’m not sure how much she actually knows. We’ve seen how good Jason is at manipulating people, and she was left behind to deliver her message.”
“If she knows anything, then we’ll figure it out,” Katar said. “And I’ll keep both of you ladies in mind when we do the interrogations later.”
“All I need is a nap,” Sarya said around a yawn. “And then I’ll be ready to burn her alive.”
“Maybe not completely,” I said. “We still need her to be able to talk.”
“What was the message?” Mike spoke up.
I smiled at my roommate and his ability to get everyone back on topic. They all had a lot of rage toward the technomages and cultists, and with good reason, but that wouldn’t help us if we didn’t come up with a plan. I took a deep breath and prepared to tell them what Wisteria had said, especially since they’d either all blow up, or they’d go as silent as the grave.
“We have three days to give them the last piece of the immortality spell,” I said and then waited.
“Which we ain’t doin’,” Bubba broke the sudden silence that fell. “Obviously. I’m bettin’ you already got a plan?”
“Of course,” I grinned and sighed with relief when no one started to shout. “Rina, Mike, and Stacy will continue working on the tech side of things. We’re going to need a hell of a lot more shotguns and shields than we needed for the fight this morning, because we’re going to take the fight to Jason. He’ll probably contact us soon to tell us where to meet him. He’s smart enough to know that we’ll fight back, but he’s also conceited enough to think that he can beat us. Especially with the technomages on his side.”
“I can work with Tanner to keep an eye on the other bases,” Stacy said. “I might even be able to use that laptop that we stole to find out where they’re manufacturing the new suits and weapons.”
“Good,” I said.
“I’ll get the gnomes working with us,” Rina said.
“Perfect,” I said.
“I’ll talk to the minotaurs and nymphs,” Atlesia said. “And the tree-people. It won’t be hard for me to travel around. Everyone knows that I like to have exotic plants in my greenhouse, so it’ll be the perfect cover.”
“And I’ll tell the dwarves,” Sarya said.
“I’ll go with you to do that,” I said. “We can go tomorrow morning after you’ve gotten some sleep.”
“I’ll notify the family members of the magical council,” Caros said. “They’ll know to be discreet. I’ll also need to inform the families of those who died in the palace today. It’s only right that it comes from a Kaylen.”
“Good,” I nodded and counted each species off on my fingers. “The fairies and the giants are likely working with Jason and the cultists. We already know that most of the pixies are. I’ll go talk with Ira after Sarya and I meet with the dwarves. If anyone can figure out how to make a really good fake, then it’s her. I’ll give that to Jason while our army attacks his base. Rina, Mike, that means that you guys need to figure out where it is.”
“No problem,” the gnomish woman said. “I’ve already started to get more signals from the magical tracker that’s tuned to his mana.”
“I’ll tell the villagers about this once they’re sobered up,” Bubba said. “Not all the details, of course, but enough to wet their whistles. Ain’t none of them traitors, but we can’t be too careful nowadays. I’d bet the farm that almost all of ‘em are gonna volunteer to take those bastards down.”
“We have a plan,” I said. “I’ll let you guys know where the meetup is once Jason reaches out to me. We only have three days to make enough weapons to fight the technomages and the cultists, so we need to work fast. And we need an army big enough that we actually stand a chance. There’s no way that we can let them get their hands on the last piece of the immortality spell. It would mean millions of deaths across the nine realms.”
“Guess I should get back to the palace, then,” Katar said and stood. “I have a nymph to interrogate.”
“I’ll go with you,” I said. “Bubba, can you make us a couple of plates to go? Something tells me that it’s going to be a long night.”
“I’ll join you later,” grandma said. “You guys go ahead, and I’ll bring Sarya and the food with me after she’s had a good nap.”
“I’m fine,” Sarya said. “The tea revived me enough--”
“I don’t want sass from you, young lady,” grandma wagged a wooden spoon at my mate. “Your mother and father are friends of mine, and you’re mated to my grandson. That means that you and your brother are family. Now, like it or not, you’re going to go lay down for a few minutes. Both of you. And then we’ll get to work. You’re no good to anyone dead.”
“She’s right,” I said and kissed the back of Sarya’s hands. “You can join me once you’re better.”
“Fine,” the redheaded elf sighed. “But I’m only sleeping for a little while. Come on, Caros. Let’s go find somewhere to nap.”
Caros looked like he wanted to argue, but decided against it when grandma pointed the wooden spoon at him like it was a challenge. I’d been on the wrong end of that threat before and almost felt bad for the haughty elf. He sighed dramatically and then followed his sister to a room while I stood and looked around the kitchen and living room.
“You guys be careful,” I said with a threatening look at Atlesia and my grandmother. “We’re about to play a very dangerous game. Don’t tell anyone about our plan that you don’t one hundred percent trust, or we’re all going to die.”
A murmur of assent went through everyone, and I sighed with relief. They’d be okay, they had to be, but first we needed to find out what Wisteria knew. I watched as Katar opened the portal to the elven palace’s dungeons, looked around one more time like I needed to memorize everyone’s faces, and then walked through the magical doorway.
It was time to find out exactly what the nymph knew.
Chapter 2
“You’re finally back,” Wisteria purred.
I rolled my eyes at the nymph as she peeked out from behind the heavy metal bars of her dungeon cell. There was a dark streak that wound around through the silver bars that looked like it could be iron, and my guess was proven correct when Wisteria went to lean against one and then jumped back with a hiss. I’d heard all the legends about fairies being allergic to the metal, but it was good to know that the other supernatural creatures couldn’t handle it, either.
“Of course we are,” Katar rolled his eyes. “You should be careful with those bars. We wouldn’t want your pretty skin to get marred. You know that wounds from iron don’t heal as well.”
“Not that she’ll be alive much longer,” Dorian said and looked up from the dungeon guard’s desk.
My pocket warmed as Bane returned to his onyx before the portal could close and lock him in a different realm, and Storm floated through right before the magical gateway shut out the sounds of the farm party. I told my wind elemental to check the rest of the palace and let me know if my banehound needed to make another appearance, and she took off like a mini hurricane.
Dorian glowered at Wisteria like he wanted to gut the traitor right then and there, and I wondered just how hard she’d tried to seduce him.
The only thing that I knew about elven mate bonds was that they were one and done, so it made sense that the beautiful nymph wouldn’t be able to sway him, especially if his mate was male. Dorian sighed, stood, and walked around the desk as if another conversation was the last thing that he wanted to have with our captive, and I almost felt bad for the haughty elven guard.
“I think we should keep her alive,” I said and leaned against the nearby wall as if I didn’t have a care in the world. “I mean… it would be a pretty good punishment to make her watch as Jason and his followers fall. Maybe we could put them all in the same dungeon. If the stories my grandmother told me were right, then iron stops spells, doesn’t it?”
“Not all of them,” Katar smirked and leaned on the wall opposite of me like we were just having a casual conversation. “But a good number of them. Certainly anything that Wisteria could come up with. Jason does seem pretty competent, though, so he might be able to cast a couple. Of course, we’ll probably just have to kill him. It’s not like we know where he is or anything. We’ll just have to… what is it you humans like to say? Nuke them? I think I heard a human mage say something like that. I have no idea what it means, but it does sound definitive.”
“It’s kind of hard to explain,” I grinned. “But it basically means to turn them to dust. Nothing survives a good nuking. And the land can’t be used for years after. I wouldn’t mind doing that once we find the base. It’s only a matter of time before our friends can track it down, and Jason has a lot more enemies than followers. It’s not going to be hard to find allies who will keep watch for a moving base.”
Dorian looked between us with a confused expression for a few seconds and then smirked as he caught on. Wisteria already looked like she was about to freak out at the mention of killing her beloved Jason, and the haughty elf looked like it was Christmas morning as he strolled up to stare at the nymph through the bars.
“I think that we should take her with us,” he said. “It only seems fair. I mean… She did kill Balian with no remorse, and he was just a kid. It only seems right to let her watch Jason die. Especially since he left her here like garbage. Guess he didn’t really care--”
“He loves me!” Wisteria shouted and balled her hands into fists. “That’s why he trusted me with this assignment. He saved me from the underground arena after that flower nymph released the corpse flowers. And he nursed me back to health before he gave me the most important job he had at the moment. He trusts me with the entire operation.”
The three of us all exchanged glances, and I pushed off the wall to walk over to the cell. I stood just close enough that she wouldn’t be able to grab me before I could back up, grinned, and then waved my arm around at the otherwise empty dungeon.
“If he cared about you, then why do you think that he left you here all alone?” I asked. “You’ve been here for hours. It’s already night, and the attack happened this morning, but here you are… all alone.”
It looked like Wisteria was about to say something, but then she just took a deep breath and walked to the other side of the cell. The nymph checked her nails as if the conversation was suddenly boring, and I watched as a mask of indifference slid over the traitor’s face.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she said and let her hand fall. “But you’ll never convince me that Jason left me here to die. I’m sure he’ll be here any minute. And he’ll kill all of you.”
“Yeah, right,” I laughed and shook my head. “He’s left you here to die. You delivered your message, and it’s the last piece of the spell that he wants, not you. Do you really think that he’ll give up everything that his grandfather and great-grandfather have been working for just for you? After all that he’s done? You do know that he’s the one that killed Alec Enzaron, right? And the headmaster was on his side. Stabbed him right in the back.”
“Probably so that he could get into your good graces and find out what else you knew,” Katar said and kicked off the wall he was leaning against. “It makes sense. You and your friends did find their underground maze in the giant realm.”
“We did,” I nodded. “That was about the same time that the ringmaster moved the underground arena. But you’d know all about that, right?”
I watched the nymph’s face carefully and caught the almost imperceptible way her eyes widened at the mention of moving the underground arena. She’d been the bartender long enough that the ringmaster might’ve told her why they left the giant realm, but the fact that he hadn’t meant that Wisteria was not nearly as close to the other cultists as she thought. I studied the traitor’s body language as she crossed her arms over her chest and then glared in my direction.
“The ringmaster always moves every few months,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “It’s not anything new, and it certainly has nothing to do with you. I mean… Do you really think that you’re so important that we’d avoid you? Please! Talk about an ego. The only thing that you’re good for is earning money in the arena and the spell piece that you stole from Jason.”
“Stole?” my grandmother’s voice came from the stairs behind me.
The old woman had a tray of simple sandwiches balanced in her hands, and Sarya walked carefully behind with a pot of what smelled like mana tea and a large pitcher of water. My stomach growled at the sight of the food, and I realized that I hadn’t been able to eat at Bubba’s. Grandma must’ve had the same thought because she shot a smile in our direction and then set the food down on the guard’s desk.
“Is your hearing bad, old woman?” Wisteria asked and strolled closer to the bars. “You stole it. That piece of the spell belongs to Jason and his great-grandfather. I don’t know how you got it, but you have three days to get it back to us before we kill the entire magical council.”
