The Magicians' Guild

Chapter 9 An Unwelcome Visitor

A chill wind whipped the rain into flurries and clawed at winter coats. Cery pulled his longcoat tighter and hunched deeper into the folds of his scarf. He grimaced as the rain beat at his face, then resolutely leaned into the wind.

It had been seductively warm in the bolhouse with Harrin. Donia's father had been in a generous mood, but even free bol could not tempt Cery to stay - not when Faren had finally allowed him to visit Sonea.

Cery grunted as a tall man pushed past him. He glowered at the back of the stranger as the man strode on down the road. A merchant, Cery guessed, from the way the rain glistened on new cloak and boots. He muttered an insult and trudged on.

When Cery had returned from the thugs' shop, Faren had questioned him about the night's work. The Thief had listened to Cery report, expressing neither praise nor disapproval, then simply nodded.

He's testing my usefulness, Cery mused. Wants to know what my limits are. I wonder what he'll ask me to do next.

Looking up, he scanned the street. A few dwells hurried through the rain. Nothing unusual in that. Ahead, the merchant had stopped and was standing beside a building for no reason Cery could see.

Continuing down the road, Cery glanced up at the merchant as he passed him. The stranger's eyes were closed and he was frowning as if in concentration. Stepping into the next alley, Cery looked back just in time to see the man's head snap up and his eyes focus on the road.

No, Cery thought, his skin crawling, beneath the road.

He looked closer, examining the merchant's clothes. The man's shoes were both familiar and unusual. A small symbol gleamed in the dull light...

Cery's heart skipped. Turning, he broke into a run.

Through the rain, Rothen could see the shape of a tall cloaked man standing on the street corner opposite him.

- We're close, Dannyl sent. She's somewhere below these houses.

- All we have to do is find a way in, Rothen replied.

It had been a slow and frustrating day. Sometimes the girl had used magic several times in a row, and they made good progress. Other times they waited hours only to find she made a single attempt, then stopped.

He had noted quickly that his cloak, while hiding his robes, still marked him as someone too well dressed for the slums. He had also realized that several cloaked men loitering in one area were going to attract attention so, as the magicians drew closer to the girl, he had ordered most of them to move away.

A buzz at the edge of his mind snatched his attention back to the girl. Dannyl moved from his position and entered an alleyway. Checking with the other searchers, Rothen decided that the girl must be somewhere below the house to his left.

- I think there's an entrance to the passages here, Dannyl sent. A ventilation grille in the wall, like we've seen before.

- This is as close as we're going to get without revealing ourselves, Rothen sent to the searchers. It's time. Makin and I will watch the front entrance. Kiano and Yaldih keep an eye on the back door. Dannyl and Jolen will enter the passage first, since that's the way she'll probably try to escape.

When all had reported that they were in position, he instructed Dannyl and Jolen to go. As Dannyl opened the grille, he started sending images to them all.

Climbing through the opening, Dannyl dropped to the floor of the passage. He created a globe of light, and watched as Lord Jolen followed. They separated, each disappearing into the dark passage on either side.

After a hundred paces or so, Dannyl stopped and sent his light forward. It continued for several paces before reaching a turn.

- This goes under the street, I think. I'm going back.

A moment later, Lord Jolen sent an image of a narrow descending staircase. He started down, then stopped as a man stepped out in front of him. The newcomer stared at Jolen's globe light, then turned and fled into a side passage.

- We've been spotted, Jolen sent.

- Keep going, Rothen replied.

Dannyl had stopped sending images so that Rothen could follow Jolen's progress. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Jolen started striding down a narrow passage. As he reached a turn, dust, noise and a sense of alarm battered Rothen's senses. Confusion followed, as all of the magicians started sending questions.

- They've caved in the passage. Jolen replied, sending an image of a wall of rubble. Dannyl was behind me.

Rothen felt a stab of apprehension. Dannyl?

Silence followed, then a faint mental voice.

- Buried. Wait... I'm free. No harm done. Go on ahead, Jolen. They obviously meant to stop us getting past here. Go on and find her.

- Go, Rothen repeated. Jolen turned from the wall of rubble and hurried down the passage.

A bell chimed. Sonea looked up from the fireplace and climbed to her feet. A panel in the wall slid open and Faren stepped through. Dressed in black, with his striking eyes gleaming, he looked suitably insect-like and dangerous. He smiled and handed her something wrapped in material and fastened with cord.

'This is for you.'

She turned it over in her hands. 'What is it?'

'Open it,' Faren urged, folding his long limbs into one of the chairs.

Sitting opposite him, Sonea untied the string. The material fell open to reveal an old book with a leather cover. A large section of pages had come free from the binding. She looked up at Faren and frowned.

'An old book?'

He nodded. 'Look at the title.'

Sonea glanced down, then looked up at him again.

'I can't read.'

He blinked in surprise. 'Of course.' He shook his head. 'I'm sorry, I should have realized. It's a book on magic. I had someone look in all the pawn shops and scavengers' dens. Apparently, the magicians burn their old books but, according to the shop's owner, this one was sold by an enterprising and disobedient servant. Look inside.'

Opening the cover, she found a folded piece of paper. Picking it up, she immediately noticed the thickness of the parchment. A sheet of paper this well made usually cost more than a meal for a large family or a new cloak. Unfolding it, she looked at the black characters curling in perfect lines across the page, then she drew in a breath as she saw the symbol stamped onto a corner. A diamond with a 'Y' dividing it - the symbol of the Guild.

'What is it?' she breathed.

'A message,' Faren replied. 'For you.'

'Me?' She looked up at him.

He nodded.

'How did they know how to get it to me?'

'They didn't, but they gave it to someone they knew had connections with the Thieves, and he passed it