Master Mage by D.W. Jackson Read Free Book Online

cared to burned
on the pyre.
    Before you even entertain
the thought of children, you might want to do something about the
Brotherhood first. As long as they are around, all they would have
to look forward to is assassins.
    Thuraman was right. The Brotherhood
should be at the forefront of his thoughts. As long as they were
around to threaten mages, any children he might or might not have
would be in danger. The first step to ensuring that never happened
was protecting Farlan at the moment.
    His resolve strengthened, Thad walked
briskly back to the barracks, ready to get a good night’s sleep so
that he could head out at first light. There was still plenty to do
before the snows melted in early spring, and he couldn’t do them
from here.
    While he was ready for sleep, Thad
found the barracks a bit livelier than he had expected. Given the
morning and evening exercise routines and the hard day’s labor,
Thad had expected the soldiers to want nothing more than to crawl
into bed. Instead, they were up playing cards, rolling dice, and
generally having a good time.
    As soon as he entered the building, he
was immediately drawn into a dice game. As the night rolled on,
Thad’s purse continued to grow lighter until he finally begged off
for sleep. Even in his bedroll, Thad had a hard time shutting out
the noise, but before long, he was fast asleep.

CHAPTER V
    The ride back to the capital was as
lonely as the ride out, but Thad didn’t let it bother him. Lady was
a good horse, and he pushed her to her limits in a rush to return
home. Plans swirled in his head, and without the forethought to
bring some parchment and a quill, he feared they would disappear
before he could put them to pen.
    The night before Thad expected to
arrive back at the palace, he found himself pacing around the
campfire anxiously. Every day, the pressure had mounted, and now
instead of just an unwanted burden, he felt a great responsibility
as well. Before, he had just seen it as another duty, but over the
past few days, his views had changed. He was no longer running
through his tasks out of a sense of revenge or duty to the
queendom. There was no longer the thought that others should or
could perform the duties. Now he knew that not only his future but
the future of every child born with magical powers rested on the
upcoming war. Most would find that knowledge unbearable, but for
Thad, it was a boon to his spirit that strengthened his resolve to
see it through to its end.
    “Thad, what have you gotten me into?”
Tuck’s voice said, ringing in his ears.
    “Did something happen?” Thad asked
worriedly.
    “That’s hard to say,” Tuck replied, his
voice slipping between humor and confusion. “I was able to get in
to see the queen with little trouble once I mentioned your name,
but it was hard to tell if she was happy or mad to hear you were
alive. Shortly after I told her of what was going on, she politely
asked me to wait outside.”
    “What happened after that?” Thad asked,
Tuck holding his full attention.
    “I don’t know. I have been waiting
outside for near a half hour. There is a great deal of commotion
going on behind the door. Honestly, it sounds as if she’s doing her
best to destroy the room single-handedly. What did you do to her to
make her so … wait a moment. The door’s opening back
up.”
    Thad continued his pacing, hoping Tuck
was all right. Eloen was a strong-minded woman and was not above
using violence if she thought someone deserved it, but Thad doubted
she would harm a messenger. As the minutes dragged on, Thad’s worry
mounted, and he found himself chewing nervously on his
nails.
    “Thad, Thad … how in the nine hells
does this thing work? Thad … if you can hear me, you better answer
me this instant,” Eloen’s piercing voice demanded.
    “Eloen, it is nice to hear from you. I
had heard rumors about a new queen in Abla. Who would have thought
it would be you?” Thad said honestly, happy that his old friend had
not