White Serpent, Black Dragon: Eve of Redemption Book Two by Jackson Joe

Author:Jackson, Joe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aethon Books
Published: 2020-05-18T16:00:00+00:00

15

Complications

Dominick lived in a rather nondescript house in the northeast district of the city. Kari was surprised at its simplicity; the archmages of the major cities she’d traveled through over the years typically had large towers like Lord Black’s.

Dominick’s house, by contrast, was cozy and modest, its lower level one large, open room around a fire pit. In the corner was a ladder that led to half an upper level where his bedchamber was, and each corner of the lower level was dedicated to one use: pantry, study, storage, and sitting area. It seemed a perfect home for a solitary person.

I’d never live in a house like this if I lived alone, though, Kari thought.

The wizard gestured to the sitting area while he walked to the study corner. Kari took a seat. The deep chairs didn’t see much use, and she waved away the cloud of dust that puffed up. With a smirk, Eli plopped down beside her, and they waited to see what Dominick was getting from his study.

Dominick searched through a bookshelf, and from the look of the worn leather bindings, Kari guessed they were his spell books. Sonja had only a single spell book, but that was partially because Sonja was having difficulty mastering magic. Kari expected her sister-in-law would have many more spellbooks as she mastered magic.

Kari sighed, regretting that she hadn’t seen her sister-in-law before she’d left for Lajere. Sonja was busy studying under DarkWind’s resident archmage, Gareth Maelstrom. Sonja was growing frustrated with trying to master the arcane; while she was able to do amazing things with it—particularly the conjuration of protective shields and wards—she had trouble with nearly everything else. Maelstrom considered Sonja brilliant and a wonderful student, but he was at a loss as to why arcane power didn’t respond properly to Sonja’s call. Kari had overheard Maelstrom say Sonja did everything perfectly, but something was not reacting properly when she tugged on the “mana strands” that arcane practitioners called upon.

I wonder if studying under another wizard might help Sonja.

Could it be something in Maelstrom’s style that left her frustrated? Gareth was widely recognized as one of the greatest wizards in the world, but few had ever seen evidence of it. Maelstrom was at least several centuries old, and many of his deeds had either preceded Kari’s attendance at the Academy, or else had happened after her death. She knew he was instrumental in defending DarkWind from Seril during the Apocalypse, but Maelstrom was not one for flashy demonstrations or public displays. He used his arcane power when it was needed, but otherwise lived a sheltered life.

Kari’s contemplations came to an end when Dominick approached with a black, leather-bound tome. He placed it on the short table at the center of the sitting area. He had it opened to a page depicting several strange symbols, and after he took a seat, Dominick ran his fingers over the page. Kari noted that his fingernails were long but filed almost to a point, like a rir claw.

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