Forging Divinity by Andrew Rowe Read Free Book Online Page B

of his robes and boots. While Taelien put the boots on in place of his absurd makeshift greaves, Lydia switched out Istavan’s robes for her own. His robes were slightly large, but she had no way of repairing the hole he had made in her robe with his incendiary spell. The damaged robes would have aroused suspicion on their way out, but oversized robes would not. Their formal uniform tunics were carefully tailored to fit each sorcerer, but the colorful robes they wore during daily business were much more varied in size and shape.
    Why was Istavan here in the first place? Lydia adjusted her newly-acquired robes and belted her sword back into place. He’s not supposed to be due back for weeks. Moreover, if he is back, why wasn’t I informed? Someone must have told him about the sword – otherwise he would have had no reason to be in the armory. There’s nothing else being stored here that has value to a sorcerer...is there?
    Lydia quickly glanced around the room. “Dominion of Knowledge, illuminate that which is touched by your cousins,” she said, raising a hand to her forehead as she spoke. A flash of green in the corner of her eye drew Lydia to look toward Taelien, and she nearly blinded herself when her eyes settled upon the sheathed weapon he was holding. Gods around us , she considered, nothing should shine like that .
    Her illumination spell was designed to be subtle – a quick indication of anything present with a detectable sorcerous aura. The power of the sorcery should have been irrelevant; the spell was not designed to display that. What could be causing that? Another defensive reaction? Several overlapping dominions, like I speculated about before?
    Lydia turned her eyes away, ignoring the bright after-image from the weapon’s unexpected illumination. She saw no indication of any other objects in the room with a sorcerous aura. She did a quick scan over Istavan’s fallen body and found nothing on him, either. This particular spell would not detect his ability to use sorcery, or anyone else’s – it was only designed for finding objects. Similarly, it wouldn’t pick up the nightmare spell’s effect. She had other spells designed for tracking and identifying sorcerers and active spells.
    “We should get moving,” Lydia said, blinking to end the effects of her detection spell. She knew that supper would keep the palace staff relatively busy for the next hour or more, but she didn’t need any additional complications.
    “Ready when you are.” Taelien belted the sheathed Sae’kes around his waist and headed for the door. Lydia followed closely behind him, and then took the lead after they stepped outside.
    The sorceress lifted a finger to her lips in the universal gesture for silence, and then began to lead the way toward the palace’s first floor. Once there, she knew they would begin to encounter more guards and palace workers.
    Istavan could have been told about the prisoner by someone other than the other sorcerers , Lydia considered as she walked. If he hasn’t seen any of them yet, perhaps he thought he could get to the weapon first and do something with it. That would explain why he was not aware of the plan, and why I wasn’t warned.
    Or, alternatively, Morella could have told Istavan about the sword. She didn’t seem to want to deal with the rest of us for some reason – maybe she’s hiding something.
    Intriguing possibilities, but all bothersome , she concluded.
    Taelien had fallen into position behind her and to the right, which Lydia noted to be an excellent position for him to protect her flank, given that most of the hallways that branched off from the main hall were on that side. It could have easily been coincidence, but it was also plausible that he was familiar with the layout of the palace and taking his position for strategic purposes.
    For a time, their footsteps were the only noticeable sound, until they came near enough to the banquet hall to hear the sounds of supper.