Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Third Mission, Part 2


    “Someone here to see you,” Deserey told Yue, finding her training with Xander. “Guard said it was a High Mage outside.”


    “A High Mage? What would he want with—oh!” Yue exclaimed. “I’ll be right there. Xander, if you’ll wait for me—”


    Xander looked at her flatly. “I’d hate to call you stupid, darling, but you must know that at this point I wouldn’t leave you alone. I’m coming with you, and that’s final.”


    Yue crossed her arms under her breasts. “Do you not trust me?”


    “That isn’t the question,” He responded, sheathing the sword. “Now, I’m sure the High Mage won’t be kept waiting. What does he want to talk about anyway?”


    “I’m sure you''ll know soon enough,” Yue scowled, following him as they walked to the entrance of the Vanguard grounds, where High Mage Aegon was waiting for her. When he saw them, he smiled softly, and shook their hands.


    “It is good to see you again, Yue.” He said. “You must be Xander.”


    “Aye,” Her boyfriend responded. “That’s me. You must be High Mage…er…one of them, anyhow.”


    “Exactly,” High Mage Aegon smiled. “Now, can we find somewhere more private?”


    “We can,” Yue responded. “But aren’t we safe from prying eyes?”


    “Not if we flaunt us being together,” the High Mage pointed out.


    “Follow me, then,” Yue said,


    “Where are you going?” Xander asked.


    “The warehouse. There are still plenty of empty rooms in there. I know which ones. No one will see us there.”


    “Good thinking,” Her boyfriend responded.


    The warehouse loomed over them, and opening the door, Yue stepped in, in wonder once again at the amount of doors in the hallway.


    “Made by mages, I presume?” The High Mage asked.


    “Just so,” Yue nodded. She looked over the doors, noting the ones that had a minute red cross through them indicating someone was staying there. One had no cross, and so she opened it, finding a bare room with no furnishings, yet no dust. “Will this work?”


    “Perfectly,” High Mage Aegon sat down, legs crossed, gesturing for them to do the same.


    “What’s the news?” Yue asked.


    “There isn’t much, and not all of it has to do with your little problem.”


    “What other news is there?”


    “You shall see,” The High Mage said. “I would like to start by saying that that I and the other HIgh Mages attempted to track—”


    “Don’t say her name,” Yue interrupted. “I prefer not to know.”


    “As you wish,” He continued. “We tried to track her, and found nothing except her clothes.” He waved his hand and a dress appeared in the room. Yue almost vomited, closing her eyes as tears flowed down. “That’s hers, isn’t it.”


    She nodded. While it had been night, she didn''t believe she would forget any of the details anytime soon. The dress was tattered and torn now, with holes all around it, especially the chest and lower area, but it was hers for sure.


    “That is bad news,” He said. “And I think they did not kill her. Whether you take that as good or not is your choice.”


    “That is horrible,” Xander breathed. “And this is…”


    “The person I kidnapped,” Yue said.


    “I am so sorry for what I told you to do,” High Mage Aegon said. “I understand how hard it was for you to go through this, and I do not know if you made the right choice, but I do not think you made the wrong one either. In your situation, I do not know what I would’ve done.”


    “Thanks for the encouragement,” Yue told him drily. “What else is there?”


    “Ah, yes,” The High Mage said, waving away the dress from existence. “This is one thing your Captain already knows. The Horde is amassing its forces already. Some ships have arrived on the other side of the island.”


    “And you don’t attack them because…”


    “Captain Kol hasn’t announced any attack,” The High Mage responded. “He hasn’t told you?”


    “Wants to stifle in panic, I expect,” Yue told him. “When is the news from?”


    “Almost a day ago now. Well, I hope you do send forces to stop it. The more you cripple them before they all arrive, the better.”


    “I didn’t expect them to land so soon,” Yue said. “It seems rash and very foolish.”


    “That means they are confident,” the High Mage responded. “I don’t take that as good news.”


    “Fair,” Yue admitted.


    “Still, we must do something about it,” Xander put in for the first time in a while. “We could send in scouts first. How many ships have arrived?”


    “About a dozen, all near the field.”


    “That’s a lot,” Xander whistles. “That must be over a thousand of the Horde. I wonder if they want to attack in waves.”


    “Like the beasts?” The HIgh Mage asked. “Doubtful. I think they want to take us out immediately.”


    “We can let Captain Kol make the decision,” Yue butted in. “Can we get to the real issue?”This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    “So impatient, the Sterkona,” High Mage Aegon shook his head. “But, I understand.”


    “What is going on? I’m here,” Xander said. “So you might as well explain it to me.”


    “I asked High Mage Aegon to look into how we can take away the Cult’s control over you,” Yue said.


    “When?”


    “A while back,” Yue said. “Before the kidnapping.”


    “Thank you,” Xander smiled at her. “So, is there any way?”


    “Technically, yes,” High Mage Aegon said, looking perturbed. “But it may be impossible.”


    Yue hung her head. “So, that’s it?”


    “No,” Xander’s eyes blazed. “He said there is a way. We’re not giving up yet.”


    “I researched the topic,” the mage said. “And I found the magic behind this. We refer to it as Magical Voodoo, due to it having a resemblance to the non-magical kind. It is a powerful form of magic, and there is only one way to break it. To remove what is holding him, or in this case, to kill the person controlling him.”


    “Then that’s simple,” Yue exclaimed. “Wait, but we did that!”


    “Exactly!” High Mage Aegon exclaimed. “Which means the chain holding him has more than one link. The most hopeful outcome is that there are only two links: the one who created the control and the person controlling you, Xander. But there could be dozens, even hundreds of links.”


    “Damn,” Xander cursed. “Is there no way to know who the links are?”


    “That is why I am here!” High Mage Aegon explained. “And not all hope is lost. We can force the one who created the control to break the chains. I doubt he will be easy to break, but if we can, then we can sever your connection.”


    “Yes, but how can we tell who it is?”


    “There is a process,” the man responded. “And it is surprisingly simple. It may hurt a little, but it will only do you good.”


    “Anything to cure him,” Yue said. “Anything.”


    “I agree with her,” Xander told them. “Try everything.”


    “Okay, prepare yourself, then,” Aegon told him, grabbing his head and placing his thumb on his forehead. “Whenever you’re ready.”


    “What, now?” Xander asked. “I thought you’d give me time to prepare myself.” yue grabbed his had, and he smiled over at her. “I’m ready, High Mage. Do your magic.”


    High Mage Aegon closed his eyes and squeezed.


    And Xander screamed. The sound pierced Yue’s heart as she latched on Xander’s hand. His eyes flew back, exposing only the milky whites as he kept screaming. His body began to flood itself with a pitch blackness that leaked from High Mage Aegon, who was whispering to himself, Yue assumed, to control himself. As Xander kept screaming, yue wished to help him. Sensing the urge, High Mage Aergon spoke from where he was working his magic.


    “Don’t,” He groaned. “It’s working. The Cult is just…strong.”


    And so the ritual continued for almost five minutes, and in that time, Xander did not once stop screaming, somehow finding a way to keep expressing his pain. Eventually, he fell back unconscious and High Mage Aegon gasped. Yue rushed to embrace Xander, whose head lolled.


    “Is he okay?” She asked.


    “He’s fine,” High Mage Aegon told her. “He’ll wake up soon. It was a success.”


    “And?”


    “His chain has fifteen links,” he said. “I know all of them, but I also know who created the control. Paien Hunfsed, an old mage, but a very powerful one. I did not know he belonged to the Cult. It will be tough to get him to break the chain, but if we can capture him, then it may be possible. There is one problem, though.”


    “What?”


    “He’s dead,” the High Mage said. “I performed the funeral myself.”


    “Did you see his dead body?”


    “We don’t do that with mages normally. The Healing mages take care of that.”


    “So, he’s evidently alive. We’ll have to find him. Can you do it?”


    “I don’t know,” The mage admitted. “I can certainly try, but I doubt I’ll be successful.”


    Suddenly, Xander sat up, gasping.


    “Are you okay?” Yue asked.


    “Oh, I’m fine,” Not-Xander’s voice came, and Yue gasped. “Hello, Sterkona. And hello, High Mage. It is good to see you, but I am very disappointed, anyway. I should punish you for this, Yue, but I still need you. Still, something needs to happen. From now on, anytime anyone says the word Cult around him, he will be tortured, his mind filled with pain.”


    “We will get him out of there,” High Mage Aegon growled.


    “Oh, you may try, but I do have control over Yue Zhang, and you both know that,” Not-Xander said. “How about we cut to the chase here! Yue, you are to wound the High Mage severely, trapping his magic.”


    “No, I will not allow that!” The High Mage exclaimed.


    “What? I don’t get it!” Yue said.


    “Let me explain,” Not-Xander said, brandishing a knife. “This is a special knife. I want you to stab him in the stomach with it. It will not kill him, as long as he gets help soon after. Because this knife will take away his magic temporarily.”


    “For a week,” the High Mage groaned. “But as long as I’m vulnerable, they can try whatever they want. Yue, I can’t let you do this.”


    “Then poor boyfriend dies,” Not-Xander cackled, giving Yue the knife. “Here, stab him.”


    “Why don’t you tell her to kill me?” High Mage Aegon asked.


    “Because she wouldn’t be able to, and we both know that. You would stop her before she could do anything. So, I want the next best thing.”


    “Yue, don’t,” The High Mage warned. “I am more important right now than Xander. I know you care about him, but if you leave me vulnerable, only Gods know what could happen to me.”


    “I guess we’ll have to take those chances,” Yue said sadly, and stabbed at the High Mage.


    The knife paused an inch away from Aegon, who sighed softly.


    “I can’t let you do this,” He told her as he worked this magic. “I am sorry, but—-AAAAGGGHH!” He fell to the ground, clutching his head.


    “Do it now, Yue,” Not.Xander told her. “Do it now or Xander dies.”


    Yue brandished the knife and closed her eyes. WHy did she have to do this? It wasn’t right and she knew it.


    But she would do anything for Xander.


    With a yell, she stabbed the High Mage, and this time, it worked. The man screamed as the knife plunged into him, evicting a spray of blood from his stomach.


    “Now, you better get out of here, Yue, and leave the knife,” Not-Xander said. “Let’s hope he can find a hospital soon enough.”


    “Shouldn’t I get him there?” Yue asked.


    “Leave him. You don’t want him to snitch.”


    “He still might.”


    Not-Xander shrugged. “Take the chance.”


    Yue looked at the groaning High Mage.


    “I’m so sorry,” She whispered.


    Then she fled the scene, Not-Xander in tow. High Mage Aegon’s screams followed her as she ran. She hoped he lived long enough to get his magic back.