Shadow Mage (Blacklight Chronicles) by John Forrester Read Free Book Online Page B

to cast the binding spell. The characters glowed faintly, shimmered, and disappeared. Did it work? Talis stepped onto the spot where he’d cast the binding, and felt a prickling along his feet and ankles. He jumped up, and sighed in relief as he fell slowly to the ground.
    He glanced out again at the Nalgoran Desert. Fixing his eyes on the Temple, he steeled himself and leapt off the cliff.

7. PORTAL SPELL
     

    Talis didn’t realize that by binding the spell to sand, the slow fall spell wouldn’t last very long. He started plummeting fifty feet above ground, his stomach lurching up to his throat, and quickly thrust out his palms towards the ground and cast the wind spell Mistress Cavares had taught him. Twenty feet from mangling his body on protruding rocks at the base of the cliff, the wind spell caught purchase on the ground and pushed him up and away from the mountain. He cast the spell several more times until he finally landed and rolled on the soft sands of the Nalgoran Desert, his heart pounding in his chest.
    He let out a sigh of relief, amazed he hadn’t died, and looked up wonderingly at the towering cliff and walls. Had he really been crazy enough to jump from way up there? Thankfully he survived the fall, survived the insanity of the gods slaying most of the wizards of the Order, and he now wondered what lay ahead for him….
    As he started for the green hillside capped with the Temple of the Sun, Charna, his pet lynx, padded over to greet him. She yowled like she knew something was amiss. Charna loved the Temple and spent most of her time sleeping in its shady corners, and hunting field mice and rabbits at night in the surrounding meadows. But when Talis came around she devoted herself entirely to him.
    Tired and hungry, he wished he’d brought food. If only he’d kept more supplies at the Temple. But probably the only food around was what Charna hunted. No matter; if it came to that, he’d be forced to hunt for food as well. He had to stay close to the Temple for fear of arrest or attack from House Lei’s guards or even by the Order itself. But no one would dare try to touch him here, with the power of the black crystal, would they?
    Later on that night, after searching unsuccessfully for food in the temple, Talis climbed to the top of the Temple to his favorite spot with a clear view of the stars. He often slept here at night, bringing a blanket to ward off the evening cold. The Huntress, the Great Bear, the Treasure Box. The gods and mythological figures gleamed in the black sky. Were the dark gods pleased with all the mayhem they’d brought to Naru? He couldn’t believe Master Viridian was really gone, and slain in such a horrific way. The night chill sank into his bones and sent a shiver through his body.
    “Thank the gods, Talis…I prayed I’d find you safe here….” Mara hoisted herself up and over the wooden beam and ambled towards him, the air around her seemed tense and concerned.
    “Mara! I can’t believe you made it out of the city. It’s all such a mess…such a sad and horrible day. Your father is furious with me. Are you angry at me…because of your uncle’s death?”
    “Ralakh Lei? He’s was a drunkard and a glutton…I’m not surprised the gods chose him to die. No, I’m not angry at you, surprised yes, but not angry. I’m upset with my father, causing so much trouble, accusing you of killing my uncle. It was an accident, wasn’t it?”
    “Mistress Cavares was teaching me Rune Magic…out in the swamplands.” Talis told her the story, shaking his head in disbelief. “I can’t understand any of what’s happened. Master Viridian dead? We’ve woken something into our midst, something better left alone….”
    “The gods… But how could he die like that?”
    Down in the Temple courtyard, Talis heard grunts and curses that sounded like Nikulo.  
    Talis stared down, and spotted Nikulo scratching Charna’s chin. The lynx purred so loud Talis could hear it all the way