Sorcerybound (World's First Wizard Book 2) by Aaron Schneider (ready player one ebook .TXT) 📕

The floating face just stared at him.

“That would be why they call it a secret,” it remarked dryly. “But I have to confess, my attempt at the process seems to have been imperfect. As a result, mastering the shade and its entropic nature makes coherence and cohesion difficult.”

Milo stared back, making no effort to conceal his incredulity. When he didn’t respond, Imrah, if that was what it was, gave a short, irritable sigh, which Milo as her former pupil was quite familiar with.

“It might be difficult to believe, but I hope the messenger displayed my intentions, and what I’m going to ask should seal the deal, as you might say.”

“I’m listening,” Milo said, chin raised. Behind him, Ambrose uneasily shuffled his feet but voiced no objection, for which Milo was thankful. He didn’t need anything dividing his attention right now.

“I want you to bind me to the cane I gave you,” the cloud-swaddled ghul stated. “Without the structure inherent in a well-made fetish, I am losing the battle to keep the shade bound to me. If you do this for me, I will promise indefinite service and advice, until such time as you pass me on to another or deplete me unto destruction.”

Ambrose muttered a disbelieving assemblage of profanity while Rihyani gave a small, silver-noted laugh.

“She certainly doesn’t lack for determination, I’ll give her that,” the fey said, and Milo could feel her smile at his back.

“That’s putting it mildly,” Ambrose growled. “Magus, please tell me you're not taking this seriously?”

But Milo most certainly was, and as Imrah watched him, she could plainly see that.

“Unlike the rest of you, our young magus understands the position I am placing myself in to ensure my survival.”

“She’s not wrong,” Milo admitted as he slowly nodded. “If I bind her shade to the cane, she becomes its power source.”

“And a potent one at that,” Imrah added with more than a hint of pride.

“And treacherous,” Rihyani said flatly. “What happens in the heat of battle when you call on her and she isn’t there? She’s already proven that she’s patient enough to wait for the opportunity to turn on you.”

Imrah’s eyes narrowed at the fey, thin lips curling with disgust above the nest of fangs. Apparently, the enmity between the two was enough to last beyond the grave.

“Or even worse,” Ambrose chimed in quickly, “she decides to blast you or someone else with flames when you don’t want her to? Waits until you’re in a petrol refinery or something and then BOOM!”

Imrah drew her gaze from glaring at Rihyani and looked at Milo.

“Should I explain it, or do you wish to?” she asked archly.

Milo looked over his shoulder at the two behind him, hoping he didn’t sound as haughty as his former teacher as he explained.

“Yeah, it doesn’t really work like that,” he began, eyes darting from Rihyani to Ambrose and back again. “A shade bound to a fetish like what she is talking about, as a sort of essence battery and not as an actual animator, means she wouldn’t be able to do much of anything without me directing it. A necromist has to give her power direction and focus. Otherwise, it is all potential. She’d be bound inside forever unless I depleted her past the point of cohesion, and then she’d be gone forever. It’s a possible eternity bound in a small, unmoving length of stone.”

Silence followed his explanation, and out of the corner of his eye, Milo saw Imrah give a nod of approval.

“Why would you choose that?” Rihyani asked at last, staring uncomprehendingly at the ghul’s face. “How could such a life seem worth living?”

“I knew eternal life would have a cost, and more than that, it affords me time,” Imrah replied coolly. “The plan was to provide myself with a more suitable, enduring vessel, but best-laid plans and all. This keeps me from slipping into madness and the void and gives me time to plan for the future.”

“Future of what?” Ambrose asked with a derisive snort. “Supporting old knees and being stood up in the corners of entryways?”

“Eternity is a long time,” Imrah replied. “Perhaps in time, the magus will find new uses for me, and if not, maybe the person he passes me to will.”

The room once more lapsed into silence, and in the quiet, Milo could feel the unease of those behind him. Yet for all of that, the potential gain couldn’t be ignored. If she were bound inside the fetish, he wouldn’t just gain absolute control over the potent repository of essence for necromistry, but also her knowledge. No more cryptic answers or dueling bluffs; he would ask her a question, and she would answer it as truthfully and completely.

Despite all the misgivings, could he let this opportunity pass him by?

“Tell me about the Guardian working with Stalin,” Milo said, staring hard into Imrah’s face. “Do that, and we could have a deal.”

“Milo,” Ambrose began sharply, but a shushing sound from Rihyani stilled him.

“I don’t know for certain about Stalin, as the name is not known to me,” Imrah began, but reading Milo’s face was quick to add, “But if it is the Guardian I think it is, I have much to share.”

“Go on,” Milo said.

“His name is Zlydzen of Domov, a dwarrow, and one of the founding Guardians,” she explained. “As you might’ve guessed from your readings, ghuls and dwarrow do not typically interact except violently. Zlydzen was different; seeing past rivalries and petty squabbles. He understood what was at hand.”

“Which was?” Milo asked.

“Extermination,” Imrah stated flatly. “Never numerous, our kinds were losing more and more ground to humans, and it was only a matter of time before we were discovered and slaughtered. Zlydzen was the first of the gathering revolutionaries who understood that if we did not gather weapons and allies, both old and new, we’d have no chance to stem the tide.”

“How simplistically extremist of him.” Milo chuckled dryly. “So what weapons, old and new,