Then, from below, came a hollow boom.
“What was that?” Dorrien exclaimed.
They leaned over the facade and looked down. Rothen caught his breath as he saw the pair on the steps below.
“Sonea! And Akkarin.”
“They’ve closed the University doors,” Balkan said.
Rothen shivered. The University doors hadn’t been closed for centuries.
“Should we call out and let them know we’re here?” Dorrien asked quietly.
“Knowing you two are watching could be a distraction to Sonea,” Balkan warned.
“But I can use my powers now. I can help them.”
“So can I,” Rothen added. Dorrien glanced at him in surprise, then grinned.
Balkan frowned. “I would like to communicate the fight to the rest of the Guild.”
“Dorrien and I will keep out of sight until we have an opportunity to help,” Rothen suggested.
Balkan nodded. “Very well. Just be mindful of the moment you choose.”
The forest surrounding the Guild was striped with golden light. Twigs cracked under Gol’s feet so frequently, Cery began to wonder if his second was deliberately trying to make a lot of noise. He glanced back and couldn’t help smiling at the big man’s strained expression.
“Don’t worry,” Cery said. “I’ve been here before. We should be able to watch without being seen.”
Gol nodded. They continued on. As Cery saw glimpses of buildings through the trees ahead, he quickened his stride. Gol fell a little behind.
Then Cery saw a figure crouching beside a tree trunk at the edge of the forest. He stopped and signalled to Gol to stay where he was and remain silent.
By the way Savara was cautiously peering around the tree, Cery knew she was anxious to avoid being discovered. Too late, he thought. He crept forward. When he was a few steps away from her, he straightened and crossed his arms.
“We can’t seem to stop running into each other, can we?” he said.
It was gratifying to see her jump. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw him.
“Cery.” She shook her head at him disapprovingly. “It’s not wise to sneak up on magicians.”
“Isn’t it?”
“No.”
“You’ve come to see the show, then?”
She smiled crookedly. “That’s right. Join me?”
He nodded. Beckoning to Gol, Cery crouched by the trunk of another tree. As he saw what lay beyond, he felt his heart sink.
The University doors were closed and Sonea and Akkarin stood on the steps. The three Ichani were less than a hundred paces from them, advancing confidently.
“You and your friends have done well,” Savara murmured, “if this is all that remains of Kariko’s allies. Perhaps you have a chance, after all.”
Cery smiled grimly. “Perhaps we do. We’ll just have to see.”
Sonea blinked as an image of herself and Akkarin, seen from above, entered her mind. From the angle of the view, the watcher must be behind them, on top of the University. She caught a sense of Balkan’s personality, but no thoughts or emotions.
— If we can sense this, so can the Ichani.
— Yes, Akkarin replied. Block out the images. They’ll distract you.
— But it will alert us to any trick the Ichani try.
— And warn the Ichani of ours.
— Oh. Should you tell Balkan to stop?
— No. The Guild should see this. They might learn—
“Akkarin.”
Kariko’s voice echoed across the grounds.
“Kariko,” Akkarin replied.
“I see you’ve brought your apprentice. Do you intend to trade her for your life?”
A chill ran over Sonea’s skin as the Ichani looked at her. She stared back, and he smiled maliciously.
“I might consider taking her,” Kariko continued. “I never liked my brother’s taste in slaves, but he did show me that Guild magicians can be surprisingly entertaining.”
Akkarin slowly started down the steps. As Sonea followed, she took care to stay within the blended magic of their shield.
“Dakova was a fool for keeping me,” Akkarin said, “but he was always making stupid mistakes. It is hard to understand how a man with such power could have so little grasp of politics or strategy, but I guess that is why he was Ichani—and why he kept me.”
Kariko’s eyes narrowed. “You? I don’t think so. If you are such a master of strategy, why are you here? You must know you can’t win.”
“Can’t we? Look around you, Kariko. Where are all your allies?”
As Akkarin and Sonea reached the bottom of the steps, Kariko stopped. He was about twenty strides away.
“Dead, I suppose. And you killed them.”
“Some.”
“You must be worn out, then.” Kariko glanced at the other Ichani, then back at Akkarin. “What a perfect end to our conquest. I will avenge my brother’s death, and at the same time Sachaka will finally have revenge for what your Guild did to our land.”
He lifted a hand, and the other Ichani followed suit. Strikes flashed toward Sonea and Akkarin. She felt magic batter their shield, more powerful than any strike she had encountered before. Akkarin sent a trio of strikes in reply, but all curved inward to attack Kariko.
More exchanges followed, and the air hummed with power. As Akkarin continued striking at Kariko and ignoring the other Ichani, the leader frowned. He said something to his companions. They moved closer, leaving only a narrow gap between their shields.
— Strike Kariko from beneath, Akkarin instructed.
As Sonea sent heatstrike through the earth, Akkarin sent more curving down on Kariko from above. The other Ichani shifted their shields to meet Akkarin’s strikes just as the ground began to steam beneath Kariko’s feet.
Kariko glanced down, then said something quietly. His companions increased their attack.
— Keep striking at Kariko from all directions.
Kariko appeared to have resigned himself to being the main target. He concentrated on shielding, while the others attacked. Sonea resisted a smile. This was all to her and Akkarin’s advantage. Shielding took more power, so Kariko would be tiring faster.
It seemed they would stand and blast each other until one side finally weakened. Then the ground shifted violently beneath her. She staggered and felt a hand grab her arm. Looking down, she saw a dark hole forming below her feet and sensed a disc of power.
— Hold the shield.
She forced her attention back to their barrier, taking the full brunt of the Ichani’s attack so that Akkarin could concentrate on levitating. The air was full of grass and dirt and strikes. Akkarin moved them backward, but the shifting area of earth followed them. Through the dirt-filled air, Sonea saw the Ichani marching across the disturbed ground toward them.
Akkarin sent a dozen strikes at the Ichani. At the same time, a dozen weaker ones streaked from the direction of the gates. The Sachakans glanced to the side.
Sonea gasped as she saw the figure standing just inside the gates. Blue robes swirled around the man as he walked forward.
“Lorlen!” Sonea gasped. But how could that be? Lorlen was dead. Or was he...?
Kariko sent a blast of energy toward the Administrator. It flashed through the magician and struck the gates. The bars of metal shattered, filling the street beyond with glowing spears and fragments.
Lorlen had vanished. Sonea blinked. It had been an illusion. Hearing a chuckle, she looked up to see Akkarin smiling grimly. Kariko and his companions looked unimpressed. They resumed their assault with greater ferocity.
Akkarin threw a rain of strikes at Kariko, testing the Ichani’s shield. Kariko sent powerful blasts back. Akkarin sent a great net of heatstrike out, curving around to hit Kariko from all sides, just as Sonea had done in her last bout against Regin in the Challenge. Sonea frowned as she remembered that battle. In the second fight Regin had saved his strength by shielding only when a strike hit. Could she do the same. It required concentration...