Millennial Mage Nove Chapter 99: Only a Mage Protector

Chapter 99: Only a Mage Protector

Tala stood atop the cargo wagon, the light of early morning making the busy work-yard bright.

Lyn had bid her goodbye before the woman headed to work, herself. Tala had paid her housemate/landlord thirty silver ounces before theyd parted ways: twenty for the next months rent and ten for the rug that shed bled upon.

Rusting expensive rug

Tala reveled in the autumn air, stretching slowly now that shed finished charging the last of the fourteen cargo-slots. The passengers and off-duty guards were climbing in through the appropriate doors as she watched from above.

As Master Himmal had promised, the wagon had been adjusted so that her presence on top wasnt a problem, though her movents did cause the body to sway so.

They even increased the width of the wheels to spread the load better

True to his word, there were five accessible cargo-slots, boxing in the nine that were loaded down with goods, bound for Makinaven. The one on the back was as shed seen before, but there were an additional two on each side, mounted to allow the doors to be opened with ease. Each had a short, flexible stepladder hanging down below them to allow for quick entry and exiting.

Despite the cool weather and bits of snow scattered around the work-yard, the dark wood beneath her feet was already beginning to warm in the late autumn sunlight. It was going to be a lovely day.

As she watched the guards entering, she was reminded of how small this trip would be, with regard to required personnel.

Only forty guards, three shifts of ten with ten as backups, would be accompanying them, despite there being more than two hundred passengers. Makinaven, as it turned out, was a popular destination, much more than Alefast, at least for mundanes. And a more dangerous route, especially if they want us to be secure against a full third of our guards being rendered unable to perform their duties.

Three of the outer-accessible cargo-slots had been built out to house the passengers. That was the equivalent of twenty-four mundane wagons worth of space, with the added benefit of having the common spaces combined for a more communal atmosphere and trip, unlike the usual separation between wagons. The passengers were additionally isolated from the movents of the wagons, at large, so the passengers should be very comfortable indeed.

The remaining two accessible cargo-slots were what Tala had expected. One was filled by the guards quarters; accommodations for drivers, which was an unusual luxury given most simply slept in or near their drivers seat in most caravans; and private spaces for the three Mages: Mistress Odera, Rane, and Tala herself. The remaining space in that cargo-slot was taken up with things they might need on the venture, and that could be sold on the other end, if they werent needed, to increase the profitability of the trip.

The last accessible cargo-slot was simply a supply storage for the trip itself. With more than two hundred fifty people, they would go through a lot of food and supplies over the next weeks.

Two weeks. The distance between Bandfast and Makinaven was not too different than that between Bandfast and Alefast, but the need to traverse the forest made the estimated travel ti much longer. If the forest cooperates, it only takes a week, but so unlucky caravans have taken more than a month. They were prepared, regardless, at least with respect to supplies.

The chuckwagon, the only other wagon on this trip, was in place behind the cargo wagon, and there were no fewer than five cooks already busily working in and around the rig. They also had a dedicated driver, which Tala had been inford was only possible because the drivers were being given accommodations in a cargo-slot.

Child.

Tala absently tossed a bit of jerky to the side for Terry, as she watched a servant push the last of the passenger cargo-slot doors closed.

She was suddenly bumped to one side, and she staggered slightly, causing the wagon to rock beneath her.

Tala spun, glaring at the diminutive woman standing behind her. What.

You were ignoring .

How was I to know you were speaking to ?

Is there anyone else around?

Tala narrowed her eyes. Old crone.

Mistress Odera grinned back. Yes?

Tala threw her hands up. Fine. What do you want?

Mistress Odera gestured towards the forty-two indicator symbols, glowing to Talas mage-sight through openings in the wagon-top. It seems that youve done your duties as the dinsional Mage. Is that correct?

It is. Tala was hesitant in her answer. Why does thatoh. Rust.

Good. That ans, with those duties accomplished, you are now only a Mage protector until tomorrow morning, and entirely under my authority.

Yeah I walked into that one. So it would seem.

Good. I will be atop this wagon for most days of our trip. I would like you to observe from atop the chuckwagon, while Master Rane and the Guardsn provide encircling defense. She looked at Terry. Will you be of help, or do you wish to remain as you are?

Terry glanced to Tala. She shrugged, and so, he squawked and bobbed. Hell help, but-

Mistress Odera spoke overtop of her. Good. He can drive back anything that gets too close. You can support him if he chooses to engage sothing within the outer ring of our defenses, or address any secondary breaches. Questions?

Three.

Mistress Odera smiled. Ask away.

First, is the chuckwagon reinforced for my effective weight?

Mistress Odera hesitated, then sighed. I even knew about that ahead of ti and failed to account for it. She shook her head. Very well. We will both be on this lead wagon. Next question?

It seems like youre preparing us for a lot of attacks. Is this route really so much more dangerous?

Youve only taken the one trip to Alefast and back, correct? Including when not under contract?

Thats correct.

Yes. This trip will be much more dangerous than that one.

Wellalright then. She lapsed into silence.

After a mont, Mistress Odera cleared her throat. So?

Hmmm?

Whats the third question?

Oh I didnt actually have one.

Then, why did you say you had three?

Because I had two and figured I would think of a third by the ti I got there.

But you didnt.

But I didnt.

Mistress Odera snorted a laugh. Youve had so incredibly nit-picky teachers in your life, havent you?

Tala shrugged. Thats not entirely true. Most of them were fine, but most also didnt like

too much. She sighed. I now understand that a good part of that was how I acted, and a part was how my iron made them feel while around .

Mistress Odera nodded. I see.

After another long mont, Tala turned away, looking for where she would sit for the first part of the journey. Then, she hesitated. Wait. I do have a third question.

Mistress Odera gave her a look of patient expectancy.

Did you really forget about my increased weight?

By the plan I put forward, it seems that I did.

Tala narrowed her eyes at the older woman. You just wanted to see how I would react to you acting in error.

That is quite the assumption.

So?

Sowhat, child?

How did I do?

Mistress Odera cocked an eyebrow. I told you that you could ask three questions, not that I would answer them. She smiled. Now, have you seen your quarters, yet?

Tala frowned. So, youre going to be like that? She groused a bit, then shook her head. No, I havent.

Id recomnd that you do. We arent leaving for another half-hour or so.

I can see them tonight.

Mistress Odera gave her a long-suffering look. Go look at the room, Mistress Tala. Then, co back here, and well go over a few more details.

Tala gave an exaggerated bow. As you command.

Mistress Odera snorted a laugh. Dont start sothing you cant maintain, girl. But she was smiling, nonetheless.

Tala didnt comnt as she climbed down, still not sure what to make of the woman, as a whole. Thankfully, the cargo-slot in which she would be sleeping was mounted right beside the ladder.

As she stood on that ladder, it was an easy step over, onto the lip of the entrance. The cargo-slots door swung inward smoothly, towards her left, and Tala moved inside, closing the door behind herself.

She was in a common space, extending before her and mainly to the left. Guards were already lounging, reading, or otherwise resting before their shifts began. The space was lit by simple magic constructs, which would function off the ambient magic in the air, even right outside a human city. For the mont, they appeared to have been empowered sufficiently to remain lit until they reached the wilds.

Off to her right, clearly marked doors led to two latrine stalls. Soone had tried to explain to her how the waste was contained, and how it would then be shunted out the door at need, but she hadnt been interested enough in the topic to pay close attention. Dont need that anymore, anyways.

She crossed through the common space, stopping just inside a short hall at the first door on the right; it was marked Dinsional Mage.

She pulled out the key shed been given and unlocked the door. They built all this in here, in just a couple of days? It was impressive. Theyd have to tear it all out before she could allow the devices to power down, too. I hope its worth it.

She stepped inside, Terry on her shoulder, and closed the door, locking it behind her.

It was dark, but not pitch black.

A small amount of the light that hit the cargo-slot was distributed into this expanded interior. So, she had enough light to see. Mundanes probably wouldnt though. Thats probably why the magical lights are in place out in the common space.

There was a bed for her, and a few hooks for her accessories. Simple, and no more than I need.

She carefully lowered herself onto the bed and found that it was able to support her weight. What did they stuff this with?

Despite her weight, it seed to hold up well under her and was surprisingly comfortable to boot.

As she examined the structure, Terry walked across the bed and squawked in irritation. As small as he currently was, he wasnt heavy enough for it to be cushioned for him.

tal. The structure of the bed was tal. It looks like tubing of so kind. Fused at the junctions to make a near-seamless whole. As she moved, it creaked ever so slightly. They even gave it large runners instead of discrete feet to distribute my weight on the floor better.

They really did think of everything. Ill pull out my bedroll for you, Terry. Youll be plenty comfortable.

That seed to mollify the avian.

Tala unlocked her door and moved back out into the hall, resecuring it after she was through. She turned around as the door behind her opened.

Rane stepped out. Mistress Tala, good morning. He quickly pulled his door closed; not so quickly, however, that she couldnt see inside.

Good morning, Master Rane. His room was easily double hers in size and she saw a servant working away, inside, seemingly doing whatever servants do. He looks familiar Is thatManth?

Rane smiled happily. Yes, he was available again, for this trip, so he was assigned to , once more.

Thats good?

Rane nodded, turning towards the exit. Yeah; its nice to not have to get to know soone else, or work through the finicky minutia of a new servant.

Tala walked beside him, giving him an incredulous look.

Ahh, rightprobably not sothing youve ever dealt with.

No, I cant say that I have. When have you?

My family had servants, and I interacted with them a lot, growing up. And whenever Grediv had us spend any ti in Alefast, he would get a servant to handle the minor details for himself and .

That would have been nice. Tala groused.

Rane gave her an odd look. You do know that you could have had a servant, if youd wanted one.

Yeah, but She let out a sigh of defeat. Fair enough. Youre right, but I think Im good, as I am. They pulled the door open, and hopped down, the door swinging shut on its own. Well-designed hinges.

Have you seen our third? I havent had a chance to et her yet.

I haveshes up on the cargo wagon.

And she can hear you perfectly. The womans voice ca down to them. Co on up, Master Rane. The three of us should talk before we get underway.

* * *

Tala stood at the front of the cargo wagon, eyes scanning the surrounding landscape. Terry wassowhere, probably having a grand old ti, depopulating the local fauna.

Mistress Odera had gotten the caravan into the formation they would hold for the whole trip. Her reasoning had been sound. Practice when not under pressure.

As such, the guardsn were prepared for a vicious defensive battle, which Tala greatly hoped would never co. Three were stationed atop the chuckwagon, their shields mounted in place, crossbows ready to accept whatever specialized bolt was required, and they had a lot. Fastened to the top of the wagon, beside each emplacent, was a segnted quiver holding at least twenty different types of quarrels, four of each.

They had a dinsional chest affixed to the center of the space, which held more of every type, so that they could refresh their stock as needed. That must be expensive to maintain

Around the two wagons, the seven remaining on-duty guardsn rode in a loose, ever-shifting formation. Thankfully, each had a very simple set of directions, which, when combined with the other mounted guards different instructions, created the defensive pattern. Each rider had what looked to be a bundle of spears, varied similarly to the archers ammunition. Each bundle looked to have been designed for quick selection and armant of a mounted rider. Tala knew enough to know that she, herself, would be laughably incompetent if she tried to design such a thing.

Rane rode in slow circuits around their moving wagons, inside the circle of guards.

Tala was tasked with ensuring nothing obvious showed up to threaten them from the front. She wasnt to engage. Mistress Odera had been explicitly clear on that point; she was simply to inform. At her observation, they had already scared away two groups of thunder bulls that had lingered in their path.

Around her regular sweeps of the rolling plains before them, and the dark line of trees so fifty miles distant, she read one of Hollys books, trying to deepen her own understanding of physiology, anatomy, and her spell-forms. Every bit of understanding she gained would increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the workings, and that could only profit her in the long run.

If Terrys frequent, flickering visits were any indication, he was feasting joyfully, his contentnt evident every ti Tala saw him. Maybe, I should find a way to let him get out more On the way from Alefast, hed seed content to rest near her. That was sothing he had likely rarely been able to do, if ever. Now, hes had more than two weeks of rest, and so the hunt is what draws him.

She knew that she sotis viewed Terry as a pet, no matter how many tis he had proven to be more. I need to be treating him like the equal that he is. With a nod to herself, she pulled out a larger than usual piece of jerky and waited.

A mont later, Terry appeared beside her, the size of a large dog. He looked at the jerky in her hand, then up to her face.

She tossed the jerky to him and sat down so that his head was a bit higher than hers. It was actually sowhat intimidating, looking up at the clearly predatory terror bird. She took a deep breath and smiled, speaking softly so even the driver, just a few feet away, wouldnt hear. Hey, Terry.

Terry bobbed, coming a bit closer.

I want to treat you more like the partner that you are. I dont want to just have you be around.

He continued to eye her.

Can youlet

know, if theres anything I can do for you, or anything that we can do?

He tilted his head, first one way then the other. Finally, he bobbed his head.

Thank you.

He moved forward and bumped her head with his. It probably would have bruised her, without her defenses.

Tala grinned and lightly headbutted him back, in turn. I do like having you around.

Terry bobbed once more and vanished.

Ill take that as a good sign. He doesnt have to cling to my side but still likes to be here.

She returned her attention to her current tasks.

Aside from the thunder bull families, a small flock of burning sparrows had swept their way and had been dispersed with a few well-placed bolts. The effectiveness of the guardsns ammunition kept drawing Talas mind to the anti-magic weapons like those quarrels. They are fascinating bits of magic. Armants that are empowered by their target. Tala shook her head. They wouldnt work against anyone who had a good handle on their own powerwould they?

Tala glanced back towards Mistress Odera. If Tala hadnt been looking for, and felt, the slight tendrils of magic, stretching from the woman at all tis, in all directions, Tala would have thought her asleep and blind to the world.

Clouds had rolled in through the morning as they left Bandfast behind, and a light dusting of snow had already fallen. Because of that, Mistress Odera sat, wrapped in a blanket, seasoned with white. Tala, herself, had pulled on her leather shoes and wide-brimd hat.

Are there weapons that work on Archons, like the guards munitions affect arcanous beasts?

Mistress Odera opened her eyes. Yes and no. She closed her eyes once more.

Tala shook her head. Care to elaborate?

Mistress Odera smiled, keeping her eyes shut. If you are in control of your own power, it cannot be turned against you, unless wielded by one greater than your control. Her smile widened. I, myself, have resisted the influence of beings and Archons classified as Refined. Her smile faded. Such control is unusual, however. Her eyes opened, locking gazes with Tala. Ill wager you now have the strength to fight a Fused and hold your own. Youd likely win as often as not, but if it ca to a contest of wills? She shook her head. You might even fall to another Bound.

Tala grimaced. I am working on strengthening my will, my soul.

As you should, but you have crippled yourself, as anyone with eyes can see.

She cocked her head. How so?

You do not face your greatest fear.

Tala snorted derisively. Im not afraid of dying, Mistress Odera.

Mistress Oderas eyes opened, seeming to pin Tala in place. No, Mistress. You are afraid of living.

Tala rocked backwards in her seated position. What? She opened her mouth to respond, but nothing ca to her. Isis that true?

Mistress Oderas eyes were already closed, once more, and Tala could see the flow of power pick up around the Mage. If her mage-sight was right, Mistress Odera had expanded her awareness back to nearly a hundred feet out from the wagon in every direction.

Even after four hours, it should have been impressive. But, at the mont, Tala didnt have the ntal space to contemplate that.

Instead, Tala found herself sitting, staring forward. Is she right? Am I afraid to live?