Wizard Rebellion (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 5) Read online

  “Do you want this weapon, Rick?” asked Tam.

  Richard shook his head. “No. It’ll be more effective with someone in armor. I’d probably be too busy dodging arrows to fire accurately. Too bad we couldn’t get a second helmet. Telsa won’t be able to see in the dark.”

  “My mages have spells that can take care of that,” said Master Garis. He pursed his lips. “On second thought, I may have something even better that can help. Come with me.”

  Tam and Richard gathered the repaired equipment and followed the old gnome out the building, through several twisting streets. As they walked, Tam drew stares in her Dragar power-armor, but no one tried to interfere. Richard had a feeling the gnome was well known in the city. After about fifteen minutes, they arrived at a long, three-story building.

  “This is the city’s armory,” explained Master Garis. “It’s mostly empty now what with the siege and all, but we’ve kept a few items in the vaults that we’re holding in reserve.”

  Richard followed the gnome into the building with Tam bringing up the rear. The guards let them pass without comment, then one of them left in a hurry as soon as they got past.

  “I’m guessing he’s gone to ask for orders from his superiors,” Richard said.

  “No doubt,” laughed Master Garis. “He should’ve saved his energy. He’ll have trouble finding anyone who outranks me.”

  Richard smiled. He’d liked gnomes ever since he’d met them on his first mission to Portalis. Even when they made veiled threats, they did it in a jovial manner.

  Before long, the three of them arrived at a double set of metal doors. The gnome waved one hand and said a few words Richard heard but quickly forgot. The two doors opened to reveal a large room with shelves. The room was mostly empty.

  Master Garis walked over to one of the lower shelves and pulled down a hooded cape along with a set of goggles. He handed them to Tam.

  “Here. Your friend might need these with her armor.”

  Richard looked at the gear as Tam held them up to take a closer look.

  “What are they?” asked Tam.

  “The cloak was brought back from the land of the elves. It can help the wearer remain camouflaged. It won’t make your friend invisible, but it can hide her from a cursory inspection. The goggles were created by my cousin. He’s a tinkerer. I combined his creation with a spell of my own making. When your friend is wearing these, she’ll be able to see during the darkest night or even in a blinding dust storm. The device over the left eye is attuned to energy readings given off by stealth and invisibility spells.”

  “Don’t you need them?” asked Tam.

  The gnome laughed. “Not anymore, my young friend. My cousin made these goggles for me many years ago. My race can already see in the dark, and I’ve gotten advanced enough with my spells that I no longer need supplemental aids to spot hidden creatures or objects. I think they’ll serve your friend better than me during our current crisis.”

  Richard nodded his head in thanks. “I’m sure Telsa will put them to good use.” He had a vision of Telsa from her pre-Academy days. She’d been fresh out of the university with zero military experience. He thought of the deadly killing machine she’d become.

  “In fact,” Richard told the gnome, “I think she’ll put them to very good use.”

  Chapter 25 – Donner’s Gap

  __________________________

  Colonel Dandridge hadn’t liked the plan. As related by Jerad, the colonel had said he was positive anyone going on such a foolish mission was facing certain death. The colonel also told Jerad his only regret was that he couldn’t go with the raid himself. As commander-in-chief of the city’s defenses, he needed to remain in town.

  Although the colonel reluctantly agreed to allow the raid, he forbade Jerad from going. Richard’s friend had immediately resigned from his honorary rank and informed the colonel he was going. Colonel Dandridge wisely relented and gave him permission. He also immediately restored Jerad back to his honorary rank of major.

  Jerad was old-school. He had suggested Trinity, Tam, and Telsa remain in the city. The women hadn’t been impressed. They’d promptly told Jerad what he could do with his suggestion. Once it was obvious the three women were going, Matthew and Tia had tried to insist they were going as well. For once, Myers and Richard presented a united front. The teenagers must have realized they didn’t stand a chance, so they agreed to remain behind. When Myers mentioned the two teens had capitulated a little too readily, Jerad had them placed in a locked room at the city jail until the raid was over.

  In short order, Richard and the other raiders left the city in the dark of night using one of the city’s secret entrances. After a few hours, Richard found himself blindly holding onto the back of Telsa’s belt as she led him along a boulder-strewn canyon leading to Donner’s Gap. Since the canyon was close to the gap, they’d left their horses behind with a rear guard. The rest of them had made the last few kilometers on foot. On more than one occasion, their group had a close call with orc patrols. Fortunately, between Telsa’s goggles and the spells of Master Garis, they’d avoided detection.

  Richard stumbled in the dark. He silently cursed his luck. Master Garis had decided to accompany the raid along with one of his senior mages. Between them, they’d cast night-vision spells on everyone but him. They’d tried to cast the spell on him, but it kept failing. Richard assumed that was due to his resister ability. Each time they cast the spell, his Power automatically countered the spell just enough to make it fail.

  “Great,” Richard mumbled as he stumbled on another stone. “A fat lot of good being a resistor does. Healers can’t heal me, and even a simple night-vision spell doesn’t work. What I’d like to know is why I can’t resist fireballs or lightning bolts? Now that’d be useful.”

  Master Garis happened to be walking right behind Richard and gave a stifled laugh. “Because that’s not the way things work, my friend. My night-vision spell was trying to change you. Your Power apparently detected the attempt and resisted. The magic of a fireball spell, on the other hand, is used to create heat and fire in a specific area. The resulting fireball’s effects will burn you, but the magic of the spell isn’t trying to change you. As a result, there isn’t anything for your Power to resist. Based upon what you’ve told me of your abilities, I do think your natural resistance probably does reduce the damage you take from spells.”

  Richard was in no mood. Once again, he was going into battle with a handicap. Everyone except him would be able to see. This sucks, he thought.

  Telsa stopped. Richard heard the sound of creaking leather along with a lot of voices. Whoever was ahead of them wasn’t trying to be quiet.

  Straining his eyes, Richard tried to see to no avail. “What’s happening?”

  “There’s a large contingent of orcs ahead moving some type of battering ram,” said Telsa. “There’s also a lot of orcs just about everywhere I look. They stretch back down the valley as far as the eye can see.”

  Richard tried to see again but fared no better than his earlier attempt. He could make out a lot of campfires in the distance, but nothing up close. “I can’t see a thing.”

  The dark form that was Telsa turned around and thrust something into his hands. “Here. Put these on.”

  Richard felt the obvious form of the goggles in his hands. “No,” he protested. “You’ll need these when we attack.”

  “You’ll need them even worse,” replied Telsa. “One of the mages can cast one of those see-in-the-dark spells on me. I’m not a resister. So stop being stubborn and take them.” When Richard continued to hesitate, Telsa jabbed a finger into his chest. “By the way, if I even so much as think you’re trying to give them back to me because I’m a woman, I’ll kick your ass from one side of this valley to the next even if I have to borrow a chair to stand on in order to do it.”

  The thought of the short Telsa dragging a chair around and standing on it as she kicked him made Richard smile. He didn’t think he’d gi
ven the goggles to her because she was a female, but he wasn’t as sure as he should be. He reluctantly slipped the goggles over his head.

  The valley below suddenly became as clear as if he’d been looking through the thermal filter of his battle helmet. As Telsa had said, a couple of hundred orcs were manhandling a large battering ram along a narrow, rocky road. Other large pieces of siege equipment were spaced behind the first as they waited their turn to get through the narrowest part of the gap. He could make out thousands of other soldiers camped out around small fires dotting the valley floor.

  Richard heard Master Garis say a spell behind him. He sensed a buildup of energy leave the gnome and settle around Telsa.

  “Much better,” said Telsa. “I can see again. How long will this spell last?”

  “About two hours,” said the gnome. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to help Master Diamass refresh the others’ night-vision spells before we attack.”

  After the gnome left, Jerad, Myers, Emerald, and Lieutenant Rirely gathered around Richard and Telsa.

  Jerad spoke in a whisper. “The lieutenant confirms the valley floor’s too boggy to hold the siege equipment. They’ve got to use the road to get it through. If we can cause enough confusion, maybe we can block this gap and buy the city some time.”

  “So what’s our plan?” Richard asked automatically deferring command to Jerad. “And what the heck is that smell?”

  Emerald sniffed the air. “Swamp gas and peat moss would be my guess. Ain’t it sweet?”

  “Yeah,” said Lieutenant Rirely. “It probably reminds the orcs of their home. Most of them have bedded down for the night in the swamp. The campsites near the road appear to be for other races.”

  “Which leads us to our plan,” said Jerad. “We’re going to divide into three groups. The two mages, Chancee, and most of the lieutenant’s troops will take up a position on the high ground to our left. Thanks to the mages’ spells, they should be able to create a lot of havoc with their bows and crossbows. Gaston, Rick, and Telsa will attack that group moving the battering ram. Emerald and a squad of soldiers will try to set it on fire while the wizard scouts keep the orcs off their backs. Trinity, Tam, and I will take up a position about four hundred meters down the road. There’s a bend there. If we can destroy a piece of equipment at that location, we might block it for a little while.”

  “And then?” asked Emerald.

  “Then we’ll play it by ear,” said Jerad. “Just cause as much confusion as you can. We’ll rendezvous back at the horses when things start to get too hot.”

  Richard scanned the valley again. He didn’t like what he saw. “When those orcs in the swamp get here, we’ll be paying the piper. Our backs will be against the cliff face. Those of us who are wizard scouts can levitate up assuming we have Power left in our reserves. Emerald and the other ground-pounders will be trapped.”

  “Hey,” said Jerad a little defensively. “I didn’t say my plan was perfect. If you remember correctly, I argued against coming in the first place.”

  Myers snorted. “If you’ve got a better idea, Shepard, then out with it. Otherwise, stop your whining.”

  The animal that was Richard’s temper rattled its cage as his dislike for Myers took hold. A small hand touched his shoulder and squeezed. The hand belonged to Telsa. Richard understood his friend’s silent admonition. He needed to stay calm. With an effort, he forced his temper to stay in check. He knew Telsa was right. This wasn’t the time or place to let personal animosities get in the way.

  But I swear, Richard promised himself, when we’re out of here, Myers and I are going to have it out.

  “The two mages will be with the archers,” said Jerad ignoring Myers comment. “They’ll cover your withdrawal. They can levitate Emerald and her team up the cliff.” He stared hard at Myers. “Now, unless anyone has any useful suggestions, I recommend we get in position. When you hear my team attack, it’ll be the signal to start. Now, let’s get going.”

  “Wait,” Richard said.

  “What is it, Rick?” asked Jerad. “If we wait too long, a patrol’s bound to discover us.”

  “I know,” Richard said. “Just give me a second.”

  Something on Richard’s passive scan just below the level of the swamp was drawing his attention. He reached out and downward as he concentrated on the troublesome spot. He intertwined a stealth shield with an active scan and sent it toward the center of the swamp. An idea began to form in his mind.

  “Myers,” Richard said. “You’re a diviner. What do you see below the swamp? Make sure you stealth your scan. I’m sensing a lot of magic users scattered around those orc camps.”

  “I don’t need you to tell me how to do a scan, Shepard,” said Myers between clenched teeth.

  Despite his brother’s words, he sensed Myers wrap a stealth shield around an active scan and send it out. Richard traced the scan as it moved up and down the valley floor concentrating on an area below the swamp. After about thirty seconds, Myers line of Power pulled back.

  “Do you see it?” Richard prodded.

  “See what?” asked Emerald. “What are you guys talking about?”

  “Yeah,” said Jerad. “How about letting the rest of us in on it?”

  Myers answered first. “That smell’s not all swamp gas. There’s an oil field below the valley.”

  “Not just an oil field,” Richard said. “There are several large pockets of natural gas below the surface of the swamp. That whole area’s like a giant tar pit waiting for a spark to set it off.”

  “I suspect it would take more than a spark,” said Telsa. “Even if you were able to set one gas pocket on fire, I seriously doubt it would spread.”

  Richard wasn’t discouraged by his friend’s comment. “You’d be right if we didn’t have two diviners with us.” Turning his attention to Myers, he said, “Did you notice those lines of Power in the swamp? If we could tweak them a little, we might be able to start a chain reaction.”

  “Tweak what?” asked Emerald.

  “The gas pockets,” replied Myers. “Everything releases Power. Shepard’s talking about connecting the lines of Power given off by the gas pockets together. If we could get a couple of pockets to ignite, the whole swamp might go up.”

  “Are you talking about an explosion?” asked Jerad.

  “No,” said Myers, “nothing so dramatic. Still, it would be a sizeable fire nonetheless.”

  Ever the leader, Jerad took charge of the discussion. “Can you manipulate the lines of Power from here?”

  “Unfortunately, no,” Richard said. “We’d have to go into the swamp. Plus, we’d have to blow a hole through the mud deep enough to reach a gas pocket and set it on fire.”

  “How do you plan on doing that?” asked Jerad. “Can the mages make an explosion powerful enough? We don’t have anything that could do it unless you’ve been holding something back on us.”

  “First off,” Richard said, “I doubt even Master Garis has a spell capable of doing what we need done. Fortunately, we do have someone who could do the job.”

  Myers growled, “Out with it, Shepard. Either tell us what you’ve got in mind or let’s get moving on Jerad’s plan.”

  “Fine,” Richard said “but, I haven’t got it all worked out yet. Telsa’s a projector. I think she could blast a hole deep enough to get down to one of the pockets. My scan picked up a pocket that was only about twenty-five meters down.”

  “I saw that one as well,” said Myers. “It’s about a kilometer up the valley and in the center of the swamp. We’d be right in the middle of the orcs. Only wizard scouts could make it.”

  “What about ignition?” asked Jerad. “Will any of that Dragar equipment you salvaged do the job?”

  “Negative,” Richard said shaking his head. “We’ll need one of the mages. A couple of well-placed fireballs down Telsa’s hole should do the job.”

  Jerad made his decision. “Fine. Then let’s get started. Who’s going to go?”

 
; * * *

  The fires of the orc camps showed up brightly through the goggle’s thermal view. Richard knelt on one knee as he waited for an orc patrol to get past their hiding place. After a few seconds, he noticed a distortion ahead of him move.

  Telsa’s definitely hard to see when she’s got that cloak activated, he thought. I think it’s even better than one of the Empire’s camouflage suits.

  Richard turned and motioned to Master Garis. The gnome rose and signaled to Myers who was bringing up the rear. They were all being very quiet while getting close to their destination.

  A blur to Richard’s left front caught his attention. Nothing showed on his passive scan, but he’d grown to trust the goggles in the short amount of time he’d been using them. They’d already bypassed several checkpoints manned by invisible creatures. Reaching out, Richard touched Telsa. The distortion that was Telsa turned. He held up his left hand in the shape of a pistol with the thumb pointed downward. It was the universal signal for ‘enemy in sight.’ Telsa changed her direction to angle away from the blur.

  Within another five minutes, they reached their destination deep within the orc encampment. Dozens of fires could be seen through the swamp grass and brush. Richard and the others formed a tight circle facing outward. All they could do now was wait. Richard hoped they wouldn’t have to wait long.

  Fortunately, they didn’t. A loud explosion from the direction of the cliff face reverberated through the valley. It was followed by several other blasts. Horns blew as shouts erupted from the orc camp.

  Richard sensed Telsa drawing Power from her reserve in preparation for blasting a hole to the natural gas pocket ahead of them. That’s when things began going wrong. A streak of energy came from the direction of the blur Richard had spotted earlier.

  “Shields!” Richard shouted.