Battle Mage: The Dark Mage (Tales of Alus) by Donald Wigboldy Jr Read Free Book Online Page B

To me the magic used didn’t feel right, but then again it is one of the least practiced arts. How useful can reanimating bones be anyway?” she added with a nervous laugh.
    “What if it went beyond reanimation and actually restored life to the being? If you could bring someone back to the state before death and gain their obedience while the undead person could still think and learn, wouldn’t that make it a bit more useful than merely using a body as a puppet?”
    The girl looked dubious as she questioned, “Necromancy can do that?”
    “Have you heard of a resurrection man?”
    Shaking her head, Palose discovered why she revealed no distaste for his predicament. Though he didn’t want to see her disgust at his condition, he said, “They are men that are retrieved from death shortly after dying so there is no decaying flesh and their minds work like they did when they were alive. A warlock can imbue certain orders and guidelines to follow from what I have heard to make them obey the caster’s wishes.
    “Their skin is warm. They can bleed and eat like any normal man or woman beyond that.”
    Kneeling at the edge of his collection of books, the apprentice said, “You seem to know a lot about their abilities for someone apparently just starting to learn about them.
    “I am Sylvaine, by the way.”
    “Palose Rosaren,” he nodded taking in her looks once more as he tried to decide if Sylvaine was truly what she seemed to be. “What school of magic are you most comfortable with if it isn’t this?”
    “Mostly the elements like fire and wind,” she answered with a shrug. Palose noted that the hem of the tunic had slid up to bare her knees and so far nothing showing was a disappointment. “My master sent me here to find a book that teaches how to harness spells that nullify elements. There is supposed to be a night shield spell among others in this section.”
    Her eyes glanced to the shelving and pulled free one of the tomes. It was thick and laden with dust on the top. Sylvaine offered it to Palose and stated, “This one teaches about those resurrection men.”
    Palose noted the cover and wondered how he had missed it. The title was simply called ‘Resurrection’.
    She started to rise and the mage joined her. “I still need to find the book on darkness spells,” the girl said apologetically.
    “Thank you for finding the book and the information on the other starter books. I’ve seen both of them in my piles, so I think that will be a good start,” he stated taking her right hand in his.
    Her cheeks colored at the touch and he thought that only made her look more attractive. Her dark curls slid forward as she dipped her head in a nod. “It was nothing really,” she replied.
    As her eyes looked at his, Palose added, “You know you are quite an attractive girl, Sylvaine.”
    He noted her eyes seemed to lose a bit of focus and the mage thought that he felt a strange connection form between the two. To his surprise, Sylvaine lifted her head and kissed him on the lips. Her pupils seemed unusually large even for the dim light of the library. As the girl settled back on her heels, she shook her head as if to ward off dizziness.
    Her lips had tasted sweet, he thought as Sylvaine’s eyes refocused once more. Blinking a couple times, her eyes returned to the way they were before and she stated again, “I had better find the book on night shields before my master gets angry with me for taking too long. It was nice meeting you, Palose.”
    Hurrying off, the girl seemed to unerringly find her needed book and disappeared the way she had come leaving Palose to ponder the sudden kiss. He had felt something between them and wondered if it wasn’t more than simple chemistry. Though he knew little of coercion magic, it almost seemed like what he had heard rumored of the affects of such spells.
    With a shrug and a moment’s searching later, the mage found the two books Sylvaine had mentioned as well as taking the one