and strike with a speed that is
undreamt of by your armies. Most don’t have my level of skill, but
can you imagine what two or three hundred magicians like Sane could
do. If that were to happen you wouldn’t be king for very long.”
King Kale bristled at the thought. “Is that
some kind of veiled threat? I thought that we were going to have a
civil conversation, not a list of absurd demands.”
“It is no threat and what I ask is the bare
minimum required to achieving peace,” Byrn tried to mollify his
king and father, “I am merely trying to get you to see this
conflict as I do. I have a greater understanding of what a magician
is capable of than you do.”
Kale shook his head, “It’s impossible. The
people are scared. If magicians were suddenly allowed into their
midst, then it would cause a panic. We would have another
revolution on our hands and I do have my enemies. They would see my
capitulation as a sign of weakness and capitalize on that paranoia
to seize power.”
Byrn sat on the windowsill and thought about
the king’s words. It would seem that they were at an impasse, but
he was thankful that they were not pressing him for a solution. The
Collective would never agree to be imprisoned again in domains or
otherwise.
“Then there will be no truce,” Queen Wendi
concluded and neither man uttered a word of disagreement. “Instead,
there must be an alliance.”
Kale grinned wolfishly. “The wheels are
turning. Watch closely, Byrn, this is something that most men do
not get to see. Your mother is content to plot with me behind
closed doors, but she possesses a fierce intellect to rival my most
accomplished warlords.
“What do you have in mind, my dear?”
“Long ago you gave Sane a choice to serve you
in exchange for his freedom. What if we extended that offer to the
Collective as a whole? No one could question their strength as an
army and so taking them under our banner could only be seen as a
sign of strengthening the kingdom. As part of the payment for their
service, we could extend that freedom to all magicians.”
The king paced the room as he considered the
ramifications of such a course of action. Would setting the
magicians free end this war or simply make it easier for the
Collective to take over the kingdom? “I am not so sure about this.
What assurances do I have that once they have their freedom they
will not seek to take over the kingdom either through force or more
subtle magics?”
“If an agreement can be reached with the
Collective, then I will be the first to swear my loyalty to you and
will serve as your personal magician as Sane once did. I can detect
even subtle uses of magic and will not allow you to be manipulated
through enchantments,” Byrn suggested.
The queen chimed in, “Having the ‘infamous
magician-prince’ back in the fold and serving faithfully would go a
long way toward showing that all is forgiven with this recent
rebellion.”
“And what of the collars?” an intrigued Byrn
asked. Janus was behind the collars and few knew of the cost of
life to make them. He really wanted to ask how much they knew about
the magician collars, but feared knowing the answer.
“They will be destroyed and the policing of
magicians will fall to the Collective in accordance with the Kenzai
Order. Will the Collective agree to this?”
Byrn did not take long to think on it. “I
believe that most will agree to that.” His only question was would
Xander agree? Besides being supremely powerful, he was also well
regarded among the Collective unless things had drastically
changed. Convincing him would be key to this negotiation’s
success.
“So you do not have the authority to speak on
their behalf?” King Kale’s mood sunk. His brows furrowed in
aggravation. “How long will it take for you to speak with the
Collective and return with those required to make this covenant a
reality?”
“I have not been in contact with them for
some time, having only recently returned
undreamt of by your armies. Most don’t have my level of skill, but
can you imagine what two or three hundred magicians like Sane could
do. If that were to happen you wouldn’t be king for very long.”
King Kale bristled at the thought. “Is that
some kind of veiled threat? I thought that we were going to have a
civil conversation, not a list of absurd demands.”
“It is no threat and what I ask is the bare
minimum required to achieving peace,” Byrn tried to mollify his
king and father, “I am merely trying to get you to see this
conflict as I do. I have a greater understanding of what a magician
is capable of than you do.”
Kale shook his head, “It’s impossible. The
people are scared. If magicians were suddenly allowed into their
midst, then it would cause a panic. We would have another
revolution on our hands and I do have my enemies. They would see my
capitulation as a sign of weakness and capitalize on that paranoia
to seize power.”
Byrn sat on the windowsill and thought about
the king’s words. It would seem that they were at an impasse, but
he was thankful that they were not pressing him for a solution. The
Collective would never agree to be imprisoned again in domains or
otherwise.
“Then there will be no truce,” Queen Wendi
concluded and neither man uttered a word of disagreement. “Instead,
there must be an alliance.”
Kale grinned wolfishly. “The wheels are
turning. Watch closely, Byrn, this is something that most men do
not get to see. Your mother is content to plot with me behind
closed doors, but she possesses a fierce intellect to rival my most
accomplished warlords.
“What do you have in mind, my dear?”
“Long ago you gave Sane a choice to serve you
in exchange for his freedom. What if we extended that offer to the
Collective as a whole? No one could question their strength as an
army and so taking them under our banner could only be seen as a
sign of strengthening the kingdom. As part of the payment for their
service, we could extend that freedom to all magicians.”
The king paced the room as he considered the
ramifications of such a course of action. Would setting the
magicians free end this war or simply make it easier for the
Collective to take over the kingdom? “I am not so sure about this.
What assurances do I have that once they have their freedom they
will not seek to take over the kingdom either through force or more
subtle magics?”
“If an agreement can be reached with the
Collective, then I will be the first to swear my loyalty to you and
will serve as your personal magician as Sane once did. I can detect
even subtle uses of magic and will not allow you to be manipulated
through enchantments,” Byrn suggested.
The queen chimed in, “Having the ‘infamous
magician-prince’ back in the fold and serving faithfully would go a
long way toward showing that all is forgiven with this recent
rebellion.”
“And what of the collars?” an intrigued Byrn
asked. Janus was behind the collars and few knew of the cost of
life to make them. He really wanted to ask how much they knew about
the magician collars, but feared knowing the answer.
“They will be destroyed and the policing of
magicians will fall to the Collective in accordance with the Kenzai
Order. Will the Collective agree to this?”
Byrn did not take long to think on it. “I
believe that most will agree to that.” His only question was would
Xander agree? Besides being supremely powerful, he was also well
regarded among the Collective unless things had drastically
changed. Convincing him would be key to this negotiation’s
success.
“So you do not have the authority to speak on
their behalf?” King Kale’s mood sunk. His brows furrowed in
aggravation. “How long will it take for you to speak with the
Collective and return with those required to make this covenant a
reality?”
“I have not been in contact with them for
some time, having only recently returned
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