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Cold Magic

Fighting for her life with a necromancer wasn't the absolute worst way to start her day, but Kadri thought it a close second.

Dust and decay's stench clogged her nose, punctuated by the creak of bone rubbing on bone. Kadri rolled, tapping the aid of her Djinn of Swiftness, enhancing the lynx's already honed reflexes. Still, the swipe of a skeletal hand barely missed the white tufts of her ears. Finding her footing and gaining distance on the four Resurrected hounding her, she tensed to lunge, rapier at the ready, her short tail lashing with the rhythms of battle. Djinn glow pulsed, the tiny spirit feeding her power. A quick thrust to the eye dispatched these monsters, thank the gods.

Pity there were so cursed many of them.

"Next time, perhaps you'll believe me?!" Jumana shouted, fending off another pair of bright-eyed horrors, the holy talisman of her order held aloft. "Pitching camp in a city of the dead is not a good idea!" Light from the rising sun gleamed emerald off the gem. Her cousin's dark, typically serene feline features contorted into a snarl, the spattered light flaring. Reanimated bone crumbled, the skeletons staggering back.

"If there is a next time," Kadri shot back, jabbing an onrushing beast in the eye, and sidestepping its disintegrating corpse to face the next. "We shall have the aid of a powerful Djinn to dispatch the problem." Step, thrust, and step...

Bones crunched, and Jumana was at her shoulder, the glowing totem shoved towards their attackers. "If there is a next time, I will be journeying back to the temple, and allowing you the sole pleasure of their company."

"And miss out on the excitement?" The skeletons winced from the glow of Jumana's talisman, allowing Kadri an easy opening. Step, thrust, thrust, step, thrust.

Magical glow died from hollow eye-sockets, bones clattering to the cracked flagstones. Kadri waited, rapier poised in case any should reassemble, but it seemed the necromancer had fled--for the moment.

Jumana huffed, lowering her talisman and tucking it back into her robes. "Your notion of 'excitement' rather differs from mine, cousin."

"Your notion of excitement is a hot bath after working the temple gardens." Kadri grinned, sheathing her rapier and brushing the grave dust from her leather vest. "But I'm glad you allowed me to drag you along."

"Fool's errand," Jumana muttered, her ears flattening.

"Perhaps, but a necromancer will bring a tidy bounty from the guild."

"Where did he go? I lost sight of him when the Resurrected came out of there." Jumana nodded at the ruined building to their right; a small homestead of crumbled brick. Like most of the others they had passed in the abandoned city, little more than a pile of rubble--a monument to its long-deceased inhabitants.

"North, toward the palace." Kadri released her connection to her Djinn of Swiftness, its blue-tinged glow fading from her 'other' sight. The small creature was nearly tapped, and would require rest. She tapped her Djinn of Vision, blinking as her sight magnified three-fold, sharpening the image of the distant marble columns and pitted spires atop the gentle slope of the city's hill. Multiple streets wound their way up toward the edifice, and if they followed the easternmost path...

"There." Kadri pointed to a nearby tavern with a collapsed roof. "There's an alley behind which will lead us up the path he took." She'd only caught a brief glimpse of the man--if it was a man--robed in dark purple, but his hurried flight from their approach, and the following attack of Resurrected, left little doubt of his allegiance.

"Kadri," Jumana's hand, warm on her shoulder. "Is pursuit wise? He could summon an army to lie in wait for us."

Kadri dismissed her Djinn, turned to her cousin with a smile, and clasped the panther's forearm. "You have as much reason to capture him as I, even if you don't care for the guild."

Jumana's eyes lowered. "Yes, and there have been disturbing rumors in the temple as of late, regarding followers of Shuul. They have a new high priest, who claims a bloodline to Sosthenes."

Kadri's pulse quickened, a chill ghosting along her spine. "The necromantic king? Was his line not purged after the battle of fallen roses?" She was no student of history, but everyone knew that.

"The same. The order of saint Aluma has naturally been concerned, and inquisitors are looking into the matter."

Kadri considered for a moment, then shook her head. "No. We pursue him, capture him alive for the guild to question, and find that Djinn of Winter as well. The prize is too great to forego." A prize that would gain her the badge of a guild band leader, and a reputation which would attract valuable contracts.

Jumana stiffened, but nodded. "Much as it pains me, I must agree. Allowing a necromancer free reign would be reprehensible. But..." she held up a finger, pointing at Kadri's chest. "Should we succeed, you will cease these foolhardy solitary missions, and speak to Cephus about joining a proper guild band. Agreed?"

Kadri laughed, striding toward the tavern, her firm booted steps sounding impossibly loud in the silent city. "Who spoke of a solitary mission? I count two of us."

***

If the city outside were a ruin, then the palace was a perfect match. Collapsed columns left large piles of rubble, and suspect areas of sagging roof that Kadri didn't trust to pass under, let alone linger beneath. The great barred gates were thoroughly blocked by fallen chunks of masonry, but Jumana's use of her Djinn of Passage had uncovered a trap door accessible from the guard post at the base of the wide palace steps. A swift kick augmented by Kadri's Djinn of Might had dispatched the rotted wood of the outbuilding's barred door, and now they stood inside the massive expanse of the palace's great hall.

"Aluma, preserve us," Jumana murmured, looking around and holding her talisman aloft. Its soft glow barely penetrated the clutching shadows. "I hope you know where we are going, Kadri."

Silently, Kadri agreed. Aloud, she said, "The document I read spoke of the northern lord's love of art, and the galleries he kept which visiting nobles could view. The Djinn would have attached itself to an object he found precious in life. It's likely to be in one of them."

"And how certain are you another medium hasn't found it and bonded it already?"

"A Djinn that rare? It would be known to the guild, surely. And the rock-fall in Hideshi pass was only cleared last month." Looking about, it was difficult to imagine looters preying upon whatever hidden riches the palace might hold, despite the years since the catastrophic earthquake had levelled the city. Deeper shadows in the floor at the edge of their light spoke of gaping holes, which likely led to a painful, if not fatal, fall. Her nose itched, the urge to sneeze almost overpowering. Rock dust, mold, and death.

"Of course, your Djinn of Infinite Knowledge," Jumana grumbled.

"Not at all; my instincts. Can you give us a little more light?"

Jumana closed her eyes, murmuring a prayer. The emerald gleam beat the encroaching shadows back another few paces.

"Better."

To their left, a mostly intact stairwell spiralled upwards to an invisible destination. To the right, past one of the yawning pits in the floor, dark archways beckoned. If her research in the guild library proved reliable...

She walked to the stairs, beckoning Jumana to follow. Her belly grumbled, protesting their lack of breakfast, thanks to the surprise attack. No matter. Food could wait. The hunt was on. Together, they ascended, their bubble of light gradually bringing an upper landing into view, and leaving the floor below a lake of black.

"Stay ready," Kadri said. "He's run once, and is likely to hide, but--"

A ghastly moan. Metal rattled, underscored by the clatter of bones. Sorcerous pinpoints glowed in the darkness above. The stench of death assaulted their senses on a gust of stale air.

"Or," Kadri finished, wincing, "he'll have summoned an army."

Growling, snapping, some with scraps of decayed flesh still clinging to bone, the Resurrected marched from the gloom. Rusted coats of mail and pitted blades glinted in the light of Jumana's talisman. The remains of palace guards, wakened from their rest. Shields, maces, spears--some wore visored helmets, guarding their vulnerable eyes from all but the most accurate of thrusts. Spying the two felines, the undead charged. Ten, twenty, no, thirty...

Jumana seized the sleeve of Kadri's shirt, pulling her back down the stairs. "Run! We can't fight that many of them!"

Kadri didn't bother to argue, turning to flee the charging horde. Upon further reflection, a necromancer was indeed worse than that nest of baby chargnels she'd encountered. She hated running from a fight, but there was something to be said for a little discretion over blind courage. The pair of them pelted down the stairs, Jumana managing to keep pace with Kadri despite the hindrance of her acolyte's robes.

A shock of cold air. Spires of glittering ice rose from the stone steps, blocking their path two paces from the relative safety of the grand hall floor. Kadri skidded to a halt, steadying Jumana as she nearly tumbled into the freezing wall.

"That's--" Jumana began.

"I know," Kadri growled, whirling. The tide of Resurrected were closing in, weapons brandished, glowing eyes intent on their prey. Behind them, at the top of the staircase, a dark robed figure stood, impassive. Djinn light flared pale around his head. A necromancer and a medium, magical power that shouldn't exist within the same being. The unsettling impression of hidden eyes meeting hers chilled her blood, joined by the sense of an invisible, malicious smile. "He found it ahead of us."

Tapping her Djinn of Might, Kadri unleashed a mighty kick at the wall of ice. Her booted foot rebounded, shockwaves of pain travelling up her leg. Instinct screamed for her to duck, an instant before Jumana's warning shout. She ducked. A breeze whistled past her neck, followed by a grating crunch. Frigid shards sprayed her cheek. A hand axe stuck into the ice, its handle vibrating. No time for another try. She unsheathed her rapier, and spun to meet the first wave of Resurrected.

Step, duck, thrust, parry spear, spin around broadsword, thrust. Two skeletal warriors fell. Her next attack clanged off of a helm, and she was forced to throw herself ungracefully to the side to avoid beheading. Step, step, thrust. A wooden shield knocked her rapier aside. A blade grazed her elbow, opening a rent in her shirt. She desperately needed her Djinn of Swiftness, but it was still tapped, and the light of her present Djinn was fast weakening.

"Kadri! Come to me, I can send us through the stairs!" Jumana warded off of the beasts, protected from their direct assault by the glow of her amulet for the moment. More warriors crowded her though, pushing those in front closer, and polearms quested to find vulnerable flesh, if the panther's concentration should waver a fraction.

Kadri parried a sword thrust, snarling, and dispatched her attacker with a neat jab to its glowing eye. The Djinn glow in her other sight altered from red to silver as she swapped her Djinn of Might for its Iron kin, and charged headlong toward her beleaguered cousin. Weapons clattered and bounced off of her suddenly armored skin, shredding her shirt sleeves, scraping tufts of mottled fur. Shockwaves of agony rattled her bones, the Djinn's power unable to reach beneath the outer flesh. It would only last a moment, its strength was already near drained...

Yowling a battle cry, Kadri shoved through the final line of skeletons, stumbling into the tiny sphere of protection Jumana afforded. Her hand found her cousin's, cold palm meeting warm.

"Now!"

Jumana didn't hesitate, white Djinn glow springing up next to her shoulder. The pair of them sunk into the stone of the stairs, dropping away from their attackers. Kadri's stomach flew to her throat, all sense of direction vanishing.

Darkness clutched them. The chill of crushing rock all around. Light couldn't penetrate the surrounding stone. Which way was safety? Had they escaped the skeletons only to be buried alive? She could breathe, but she was blind, deaf, dumb. Utterly helpless.

"This way." Jumana's gentle voice in her ear. A tug on her arm. Kadri walked, trusting her cousin and the guidance of her Djinn. Jumana had used the creature once already. Would it have the strength to bring them out?

Step followed agonizingly slow step, like slogging through a marsh. Kadri's heart thundered in her ears. Was their pace slowing? If only she could see.

Blinding light seared her eyes. Kadri cried out, throwing an arm up to shield them. Fresh air filled her lungs, free of the rot and dust. They stood upon a hillside, grass underfoot instead of stone. Kadri looked up, and saw the northern wall of the city above, the spires of the palace stretching above it, not unlike bony fingers.

"All the way through the hill, Jumana? I'm impressed. Have you been practicing?"

Beside her, Jumana fell to her knees, gasping. "Nearly didn't have enough left for that," she said, her Djinn light winking out. Her tail lashed, ears flattening "Thank the green Lady that I haven't had much need of its aid as of late."

Kadri slid her rapier into its sheath, then dropped beside her, drawing the trembling panther into an embrace. "And you can thank the Lady for me as well. I'm sorry, cousin. I shouldn't have--"

"No," Jumana said. "Don't apologize for being who you are, Kadri." Pulling back, she flashed a weak smile. "Without you, how would I ever experience such excitement? It does grow dull in the temple."

Kadri chuckled, despite the shaking in her own limbs. Necromancy was on the loose. A powerful sorcerer capable of wielding multiple forms of magic. Problems she would need to bring to the attention of the guild master. She would request permission to join the band pursuing the man--if indeed he was a man. There would be other chances for increasing her repute and garnering new Djinn. For now, she was grateful to be alive. For now...

"I believe," Kadri said, linking her arm with Jumana's and rising, tugging both of them to their feet, "once we return to the city, we should investigate your notion of 'excitement'."