“I guess I can understand that. It doesn’t make it fun to be on the receiving end, though.”
“No,” Marcus said with a slight chuckle, “I don’t imagine it would. Gavin, for all the long years since our victory in the Godswar, I have been what some have called ‘the Instrument Outside of Time.’ I have moved through the background of the world, ensuring everything we built during the Founding is protected and handling any extraordinary situations that arise, usually in a manner that makes a point. Take Kalinor, for example.”
“Who? Oh…you mean the guy who used to own Kiri?”
“Yes.”
“I’m still amazed that you were able to convince him to turn her over to me. Kiri is…well…she’s striking; I can’t imagine it was easy.”
“Gavin, I never convinced Kalinor to turn Kiri over to you. He was of the same opinion you are and felt there was nothing for him in giving her up.”
“Then, how…?”
Marcus invoked a Word of Power, “Klaepos.” Gavin felt the power slam into him, but it didn’t hurt as much as he was expecting. A circular area in the air just above the table’s surface began rippling like the surface of a pond into which a stone has been thrown. The rippling increased until the circle flashed a bright, white light.
Gavin found himself looking over a patch of ground near a road somewhere. Round protrusions of what might have once been stone drew out a rough design of an estate with a manor wall and various outbuildings plus the manor house. Inside the rectangular line of the manor wall, the ground was charred and blackened. There was no grass. There were no trees.
“Marcus, what is this?”
“What you see is all that remains of Kalinor’s estate. The man’s majordomo was in truth one of my agents…had been for some time. When I approached Kalinor with a very generous offer, he chose to decline it. My agent spirited away all those he felt could be saved or were innocent, and I laid waste to the rest.”
Gavin stared at the circular image. His jaw worked for some time before he spoke.
“Marcus, how could you do that? How many people were still there?”
“I don’t know. I trust my man, though. He had been there for the better part of three years and knew everyone on that estate better than they knew themselves. If he felt that only the kitchen staff and their families should escape, you can rest assured no innocents died there. This, Gavin…this is what it means to be Kirloth. We do what must be done to safeguard the world.”
“No! I don’t care what you say, Marcus. I would never d-do…that!”
“In a way, you already have. Do you remember when you met Kiri? The slavers who attacked you?”
“What of them?”
“Do you know what happened when you invoked that Word? Do you even know what Word you invoked?”
Gavin felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t remember much from his first invocation, but he did remember the Word. He had yet to ask Marcus what it did, and now, it seemed asking was no longer his choice to make.
Marcus accepted Gavin’s silence for an answer. “You were focused on the slavers when you invoked the Word, yes?”
“You know I was.”
“The Word you used was one of the fundamental Words of Interation, Gavin, one of the most powerful. Fifty-three slavers throughout the southwestern warrens died that day, and only three people know the truth. Well…four, now.”
Gavin collapsed against the chair. His skin felt cold, clammy. His breath came in short, ragged gasps, and he couldn’t quite process what Marcus was telling him.
“The town guard consulted the Magister of Interation, and he confirmed it was an Interation effect, but he wasn’t able to tell them anymore than that. The effect was beyond his capability to duplicate; he’s a mage, you see.”
“You said four people know, now. You and I are two; who are the others?”
“Ovir and Valera. I don’t believe you’ve had the occasion to meet Valera yet. As I mentioned earlier, she’s the Magister of Divination, but she’s also the Collegiate Justice, overseeing all offenses at the College.”
“Why am I not in jail for murder?”
“Honestly? Because I don’t really give a damn about slavers. I abhor the entire institution, and if I had my preferences, the entire group would be dead. You’re far too valuable as a wizard to spend a brief time in the city dungeon before visiting the headsman’s block. Besides, an old friend said to train you as only I can, which tells me you have more yet ahead of you.”
Gavin sighed.
“But fifty-three people, Marcus! They were someone’s sons and daughters!”
Marcus shook his head, frowning. “Gavin, everyone dies; it’s just a question of when, how, and what we do with the time we have. They certainly were not making much of theirs.”
“So that makes it okay? It’s perfectly fine just to sit back and decide who lives and who dies…all because of which family we’re born into?”
“When the situation calls for it, yes. That’s what Kirloth does, Gavin: make the hard choices no one else can face. It makes for a lonely life at times, but I have no problems sleeping at night, especially considering some of the situations I’ve prevented.
“Now, the reason I decided it was time to have this discussion is that Valera asked to speak with you. The new class is starting in a few weeks, and the College always assigns mentors to the new students for their first year. For the life of me, I can’t see why she wants you for the task; you’re not an enrolled student, but she wants to discuss it with you all the same. If you choose to do it, it will come from your personal time; I refuse to take time away from your studies. She’s in her office right now, if you want to see if she’s available for that discussion.”
“The Magisters’ offices are on the second floor, right? The floor right below us?”
“Yes, they are, but Valera works out of the Office of the Collegiate Justice on the main floor. It’s the first door on the north side of the west hall.”
“I’ll try to speak with her now.” Gavin pushed the parchment across the table to Marcus and stood.
Chapter 20
Gavin followed Marcus’s directions to the main floor and soon found himself standing in front of a door labeled, “Office of the Collegiate Justice.” He took a deep breath and opened the door, stepping inside.
Gavin’s eyes first landed on a petite brunette sitting behind a desk in the center of the room. She looked up when Gavin entered, and he saw her eyes were a strong, vibrant green. She wore white robes with vermillion runes on the cuffs of her sleeves, and Gavin remembered from a recent lesson that the robe color indicated a person’s philosophy toward the Art, while the color of the sleeve runes indicated the person’s specialization…if any.
Gavin wasn’t familiar enough with the runes yet to know the young woman’s rank, for the runes themselves proclaimed the person’s rank within the Society of the Arcane, but he did know white robes meant the person felt the Art should be used to protect others. Vermillion runes meant a specialist in Tutation, the School of Magic dedicated to the study and advancement of protective effects, such as wards, shields, etc.