Chapter Ten

 

 

Mage Reegar watched from the edge of his territory as the lamia hauled Mr. E away before he could run to the side of his mage. Fury and frustration ripped through him as he pounded against the barrier that bound him to Reegar Hall.

Bara and Luken came up behind him, and Bara asked, “What is wrong?”

“The lamia, they have Imara and Mr. E. They are at the mage lab.”

Luken was dialling, and he gave a clipped account into the phone, and then, he did it again. “Bara, stay here.”

Bara looked at him. “Like hell.”

Reegar looked at them both. “Go!”

They ran.

A minute after they ran, he felt a fantastic surge of spectral energy. Reegar took one step after another, and to his determined astonishment, he was running across the lawn and heading for the broadcast point of the energy. Imara had to be there, there was no one else who could do what she did with spectres.

 

* * * *

 

Imara lay in the serpent’s coils as she was inflicted with dozens of cuts. Her head remained clear, which was a deviant construct in itself.

N’sha was hissing with delight that Imara had created the spells to bind her familiar when she had made one of the privacy spells. The moment Midian saw it, she knew that it was the spell they had been looking for to bind their enemy.

Imara blinked. She knew the spell. She had made it out of cotton plants, Jell-O powder, the smoke from dry ice, and a dollop of whipped cream. It was a spell of soft silence to give her a moment of privacy from Mr. E when she was on a date with Argus. She had never considered it binding, but the power was in the heart of the mage.

A whisper came to her. “What can I do?”

She blinked. It was Reegar’s voice, but he wasn’t physical.

She whispered. “I have to set him free. I need to cast the last spell.”

“I understand. Prepare to focus.”

“It is my world right now.”

She could feel the frustration and restriction that Mr. E was wrapped in, and this would make it better.

She watched her right arm lift.

N’sha blinked. “What are you doing?”

“Giving him what he needs.”

Her arm was dropped across her chest, the glass shattered and the liquid seeped out. She focused and smiled. “Give him what he needs.”

The lamia reared back, but Imara was beyond that. The golden energy lifted her, and it shot off to one side and struck Mr. E in the other lamia’s hands.

Imara thought, Heal his past, mend his soul, brighten his future, give him what he needs.

The kitten was enveloped in power, and the smothering of their connection disappeared in a blaze of energy.

 

Imara must have passed out because when she woke up, chaos surrounded her. Argus’s gryphon was wrestling with N’sha while Chancellor Deepford-Smythe was pelting the ancient creature with bursts of lightning.

Imara tried to push herself to a kneeling position, but she slipped in her own blood.

A thunderclap of magic struck on the far side of the green space, and Imara watched a strange mage levitate Midian before smashing her to the ground.

Imara gave a silent cheer and watched everything from her hands and knees.

The battles around her weren’t hers. She had one fight right now, and that was to stay conscious.

“Imara... oh god. Stay still. I have something that might stop the bleeding.” Bara appeared at her side, and she started wrapping the wounds.

Imara felt the burn of the slices all over her body as the wrapper tightened against her skin. She exhaled sharply but kept her silent screams to herself. Bara was helping, and she didn’t need guilt.

Luken was standing next to her, and Imara could feel the protective shield that he had around her. She teared up. When another set of men came to stand with Luken, she fought a sob. Michael and Alexander Demiel joined their youngest brother, and the wall around her solidified.

Alexander turned from the defenses, and he knelt at her side. “Ah, sister. What did they do to you?”

Imara looked up at him through her exhaustion. “Whatever it was, I didn’t like it.”

He smiled slightly. “I got my guild status in healing. Can I help you?”

She nodded. “Sure.”

“This is going to hurt.”

“I expect nothing less.”

Alexander chanted, focused and then wrapped her in enough energy to sear her soul. She was lifted off her hands and knees, and the burn along her nerves kept her focused until he set her on her feet.

Imara looked around and said, “Help me over to Midian. I think I can end this.”

Bara took her arm. “Which one is Midian?”

Imara pointed to the one on the ground with the other mage. “Her.”

They started to move as a unit toward the mage and the slowly writhing lamia.

“Can someone get me a pebble?”

Alexander bent and picked up a handful from a flowerbed that they passed on their way. “Choose one.”

Imara looked at the options and grabbed two. Each was round and nearly spherical. She wasn’t sure if she was strong enough to do what she was about to attempt twice, but she knew she could do it once.

“How close do we need to get?”

“I need to be within ten feet of her,” Imara grunted.

Bara whispered, “Why?”

“She has something I need.” Imara kept putting one foot in front of the other, and Alexander took her other arm to help support her. The contact was agony. His healing may have temporarily sealed the wounds, but the venom was still in her bloodstream. It was acid, and it would burn its way out of her. It was just a matter of time.

She felt what she needed the moment she was within range. “Stop here. I can do the rest.”

Luken said, “We are not leaving you.”

She gave her brother a long look. “Fine. But when we are done here, get me to the other one. She will probably come to us, but just in case, I will need to get to her as well.”

He nodded.

She held out one of the stones and took a few slow steps forward.

Midian looked at her, and her eyes widened in shock. “You are still alive?”

“For now. Why?”

“Eadric killed her mate. Revenge was mandated.”

“Why now?”

Midian smirked. “We needed to get past his defenses. You handed us the spell. We had to strike today because of your exam.”

Imara nodded slightly in understanding. “I was leaving the school.”

“This was our chance. So, how will you spend your last few minutes?”

Imara gave her a cold smile. “You won’t need to know that.”

She held out the hand with the stone in it, and with some concentration and a few murmured words, she ripped Midian’s spectre from her and put it in the pebble.

Midian gasped, twitched, and her serpent body faded, leaving only her human form behind.

“What... what did you do?”

Imara looked at her in surprise. “You and your sister took mage courses, became masters. I took your magic from you and put it in this pebble. It will explode in a few seconds, but enjoy being human for the rest of your natural, human lifespan.”

She looked to Luken. “Please throw the pebble as hard as you can.”

Michael grabbed it and hurled it upward. “Luken doesn’t have a good pitching arm.”

The stone shattered in the air above them in a cloud of bright blue particles.

The scream that heralded the approach of the other lamia was all that Imara needed. She turned and pulled on the magic as hard as she could, breaking the woman free of her shifted body as centuries of magic were crammed into the small rock. She threw the stone upward, and it was still too close when it exploded.

Arms came around her and lifted her up; she heard voices calling her name, but everything around her was dark. At least her family was safe.

 

She woke several times with lights flaring around her and folk shouting orders. Each time she sought the comfort of Mr. E, he whispered in her thoughts. Still here, Imara. You lie quiet and let them help you.

You are pushy for a kitten. I am glad you are all right.

You made sure of that. It was an amazing spell; now, go to sleep and let them heal you.

Bossy kitty.

You bet I am.

She smiled and stopped fighting sleep.

 

Waking up in a pristine white tent was a surprise. She thought she had been treated at the college medical centre.

The mage from earlier was sitting at her bedside. He was older, had a thick wave of black hair that caressed the back edge of his collar with the rest combed back, a small silver streak was just starting over one temple. His face was slightly dusky with a long, straight nose that was nearly a weapon in itself but managed to make his face—as a whole—rather handsome. The amber eyes made her pause. She knew those eyes.

“Who are you?” Her first words were a little rude, but she meant them.

“My dearest mage, I am amazed you don’t recognize me in this form.”

She stared at him and blinked. “Mr. E?”

“Please, when I look like this, call me Eadric.”

She blinked again. She went to rub her eyes, but an IV confined her hand. She looked up and found a red bag hanging from a pole. “What?”

“Ah, the lamia venom had completely infiltrated your systems, so several complete transfusions were necessary. Your mother was not a match, nor was Luken, oddly enough. Michael and Alexander were matches, as were Lio, Hyl, Kitigan, and several other students who saw your fight and volunteered to be type tested.”

She blushed. “They all donated?”

“There was a line of XIA agents being tested. Several of them donated, and their blood was the first rinse to get the venom out of your system. Magic has been used to keep you stable, but everyone was relieved when you began to breathe on your own again.”

He reached out and squeezed her free hand.

“So, you are a person now?”

He cocked his head. “I am still your familiar, but you gave me what I needed to fight for our lives. So, now, I have a few more forms. This one included.”

She scowled. “Was that what you looked like?”

“It is fairly close. I was older when I was captured, but I think that the small silver streak is a nice touch.” He lifted his head, and she burst out into sobs.

He sighed and got up, carefully lifting her out of the bed and setting her on his lap with the IV next to them.

When she finished crying, he whispered, “This is a turn of events, huh? Normally I am in your lap.”

She snickered and leaned against his shoulder. “Are you safe now?”

“As safe as I can be. The pardon has come through from the guild, by the way. You are my last mage.”

She gasped and looked up. “Wonderful. How do I set you lose?”

“Oh, I am not getting loose, not until you get a familiar to replace me that is as magnificent as I am. You also have a lot of plans for the future, and I am in them, so it would be rude to have to adjust your trajectory.”

She laughed. “Right. Thank you. Are you still a kitten?”

“I can choose the kitten for easy transport, a larger cat when I am on my own, or my hellcat appearance if need be.”

“Wow. That must be nice.”

He gave her a gentle hug. “It truly is. How are you going to adapt to the scars?”

Imara looked down at the silvery slices that crossed her arm in places, and she shrugged. “I will adapt. They are part of me now, and I don’t recall reading about a lot of lamia survivors.”

“There are none. They die screaming within a day of their attack. You got lucky that you were close enough to call for help.”

She smiled. “I called for Reegar. He would know what I wanted. Where is he, by the way?”

“He’s waiting outside with the others. We didn’t want to overwhelm you.”

The air ruffled the walls of the tent. “Where are we, by the way?”

“Ritual Space. Adrea offered to host your transfusions and recuperation here so that no one could interfere with it.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Did you play tag with Blueberry?”

“Of course. He is an excellent companion and wonderful conversationalist. You have introduced me to the most fascinating people.” He grinned and gave her another hug.

She sighed and carefully got to her feet, holding the IV pole in one hand. She walked slowly with the soft white gown clinging tightly to her in an ancient toga design. She opened the tent flap and walked out into afternoon sun. Mr. E was behind her and taller than she would have imagined.

A gathering of people was sitting in another marquee, so Imara wandered over to where her friends, family, and intimidating strangers were gathered.

Bara was sitting and holding Luken’s hand, or she was holding his.

Imara walked up to her, and she asked the most important question of all. “Was there any of that cake left over? I am pretty sure I passed the exam.”

Luken whooped and jumped up, hugging her tight before letting Bara in for her turn.

The next twenty minutes were rounds of tears, hugs, and a sweet kiss from Argus that made her rise up on her toes.

“I didn’t know if you would make it.” He whispered it against her ear.

“I didn’t either.”

“I don’t want to lose you.”

She leaned back and smiled at him. “I will always fight to stay.”

“I will have to take that as good enough.”

“You will. Just as I have to take your little journeys into homicide and raging trolls as part and parcel of who you are. You have your world, and I am glad it crossed into mine.” She stroked his cheek.

Chancellor Mirrin cleared her throat. “Should I be giving some kind of safe-sex speech here?”

Reegar laughed. “It wouldn’t do any good. Imara will take care of herself, or she will choose not to. You have little say in the matter. She’s a strong person.”

Imara hugged Argus and looked at Reegar. “You are still able to roam?”

“Yes, whatever you did went into the bedrock of the college. All of the spectres have a range they hadn’t imagined, though only I retain the physical presence.”

“You are special.”

He grinned and then sobered. “That was dangerous.”

“Detonating the spell on my body? Yeah.”

“No, facing a lamia.”

“Oh, that wasn’t a choice. We finished confirming the exam, and then, she shook my hand, and the first venom entered my system. I didn’t do anything after that but run as long as I could. I think I made it thirty feet outside the lab before N’sha got me.”

Reegar blinked. “Then what happened?”

“I couldn’t reach Mr. E, so I called the spectres. You were the only one that showed up, but I know that you knew about the bracelet. If they were after my familiar, all I could do was give him the tools to help himself. I had no idea anyone else would show up.”

Argus murmured, “Luken called me.”

Mirrin nodded, “And me.”

Imara reached out, and Luken came to let her squeeze his hand. “Thank you. I may be pretty flippant about it, but I like being alive.”

He grinned. “It was my pleasure. I am just glad that I guessed Argus’s number on the first try.”

The folks gathered laughed at what they thought was a joke, but Imara looked at Luken and knew the truth. He had simply gotten lucky. It was what he did.