The Chamber of Death (10)

I felt entirely helpless, at Mother's mercy.

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Mother greeted the men in warm lilting tones, and one of them conversed with her quietly. They seemed like co-conspirators in some strange court plot.

Another of the Agalin mages — of course that's what they were — repeated the survey of the corpse, while two others surveyed the walls and contents for echoes. 

The remaining two mages maintained the Interdiction.

It was one of the few times in my life that I have felt entirely helpless. I'd felt trapped before, obviously. And belittled, and oppressed, and constrained. But I'd always had my arts at hand, even if I'd been reluctant to use them. 

Now, blocked from the use of my gift, I was at Mother's mercy.

I watched their interaction closely. I suspected that they weren't entirely strangers to each other. They paid me almost no heed. 

Neither did the local mages. I could hear more of the isolated words between the rest of the mages than the whispers and mumbles of Mother with her friend. I couldn't make sense of any of them.

I considered. If Mother knew this mage, it should imply a positive outcome. Freedom. Sending me on my way with my father's body. Anything else would suggest ... a plot, a ploy, or some kind of manipulation. 

Did I think that of her? I hadn't, until today. I knew she was keeping something from me. I didn't know what. Maybe something relevant or important. Perhaps an innocent secret, something meaningless or innocuous. 

The Agalin leader seemed entirely at ease. He had the utmost confidence in himself and his abilities, and, I expect, in his fellow mages. Competent and professional, all of them. He looked at me, long and hard, and said a few more words to Mother. Then they approached me together.

Mother seemed reluctant to speak, but the mage's eyes slid from me to her, and she was compelled to begin. "I've explained your arrival, the aid of the Lanstone, that you came because he was dead. Their survey agrees that he died naturally."

How did the leader know that? They hadn't conversed with him. Did he have some kind of mental connection or control over the others? No wonder they worked so well together, like a single entity almost. But the other mages had spoken words to each other. They didn’t share their leader’s gift.

Mother continued, "However, in crossing their Boundary in this way, you have contravened one of their laws. It seems they're quite averse to unexpected guests. 

"They shall release your father into my custody. I have been given authorization to farsend your father home. I shall do that very soon, along with a letter to your brother explaining the situation. Doing so will not break my exile, as long as I don't accompany him.

"However, you must atone for your, uh, crime."

"Crime?" I was about to launch into a rigorous legal defense, and I suppose she could see it.

"Hush. Listen. They take these matters seriously. Your sentence is one year of imprisonment. I'll be waiting for you when you're released, and I'll answer all your questions then."

"Sentence? Don't I at least get to defend myself? Plead my case? There's no trial, no inquiry, or anything?"

"It just happened. You just watched it. I was your advocate. And he is your judge. It is done. Agalin justice is swift and sure, as well as intractable. We must accept what IS."

"You knew this was going to happen."

"I had an idea it might," she conceded.

"To what end?"

"I didn't plan it. I just didn't quite manage to prevent it. Anyway, it will do you good to be away from home for a time. You'll be able to see things with fresh eyes, a new perspective. And it will do your brother good too, give him time to find his feet in his new role. He'll welcome you back with open arms and believe whatever you tell him about your time away."

"You came up with all this just now?"

"Yes. What? Have you learned nothing of the world since I left?"

"I am to be imprisoned for a year."

"You have always been my guide-star. All I've done has been for you, for your liberation. Trust that I'm on your side."

"And trust that you didn't kill Father."

"Of course." She flashed me a smile.

The leader mumbled something in Agalin, and Mother tilted her head as if in acknowledgement.

"It's time," she said. "They're ready to take you away. They'll farsend with you — and the Interdiction — to the place they'll be keeping you. I'm sorry. I did all I could. I love you."

I didn't know if I could believe her innocence in all this, but I believed that she loved me. Almost unbidden, the words, "I love you too," tumbled from me.

And then she was gone.

Or rather, I was gone from the chamber of death, along with my captors. 

The Interdiction was gone — I could feel it dissolve as we arrived.

A bright parched courtyard, the tropical sun beating down. I had a moment of hope and of elation — without the Interdiction, I could escape!

I was wrong about that. Everything was wrong. Everything felt wrong. I could see the men standing around me, but I couldn't feel them. I couldn't sense their essence. It was as though magic itself had been erased from existence. 

It was a symptom of the shock, of course, of the rapidity with which events had come. My thoughts were still struggling to catch up to a rather obvious truth: my prison was inside a Folly.

Continue reading with Part 11 - The Currents of Magic.