A Mage’s Lament: A Shadow Cities Story

25 Oct 2011 1 Comment

by Miztres in belonging, Fan Fiction, Shadow Cities

“There she is, laying about on her banana lounge like the Queen of Sheba and expects us to be thankful.” Said Mrs Kain to a new resident to the cul du sac, “Calls herself a Mage but what does she ever do but lie around all day.”

“Ooh, that’s the Mage?” The new neighbour craned her neck and stood on tiptoe to see over the fence of the suburban property, “It cost a little more but it was one of the reasons we bought in this area. Suburbs protected by Mages are thought to be safer than most.”

“Poppy-cock!” Mrs Kain spat, “I’ve been 20 years in this neighbourhood before and after this suppose threat from the ether. Spirits! Couldn’t they have come up with something more impressive to scare us into submission? Whatever happened to invasions from Mars? Little green men?!”
“I believe they’re the Animators.” Replied the neighbour only half listening to Mrs Kain’s rant.

Sam lay out under the bright blue sky and listened to her neighbours talking. She groaned inwardly at the two erroneous views of Mages, but  Sam was not in the mood to correct them. Under the sun in the clean well maintained streets of suburbia Sam was an oddity; an oddball. She worked a dead-end job that paid the rent and went nowhere and talked to no one. At least as far as the neighbourhood were concerned.

Throwing off the feelings of anger and frustration Sam slipped away from the suburban scene and into the dim Shadow world. Though behind her she could feel the sunlight warming her skin, her essence in the Shadow world shivered and crackled with power in the cool of the void.

“Who’s in?” She called into the darkness.
“Hey Samkara! I was just about to back down, you just starting?” Came the familiar impression of a fellow Awakened Mage called Spiritbreaker.
“Hi Breaker. Yeah, overtime at work but I need every dollar.” Sam sighed, “Any news?”
” OJ High Command beamed right into a training session with Xax89. A few apprentices were banished, but a bunch of us arrived before the Architect’s could do too much damage. I hear we pipped them on the Campaign Leader board again, probably venting their frustrations.”
“Are any of the apprentices still on?” Sam asked concerned for the youngest mages out in the Shadow lands. With only raw talent and little experience they were asked to take the same risks as the more experienced campaigners.

Banishments could scare a new recruit to the point where they would be unable to find the focus to re-enter the Shadow world. It was essential that as soon as a young one was banished that they jump straight back up.
“Xax89 taught them well. All of them dropped back up almost immediately.”
“Good, I’ll see Xax for their call signs. How’s the spirit hunting?”
“Fast and furious. A spider was seen over Ultimo earlier but disappeared before we could muster a force.”
“I’ll keep my senses peeled. Thanks Breaker.”

Sam scanned her region from what looked like a height of fifty metres, though distance meant nothing in this dark world.  At either end of her realm gateways glowed green as the dominators she’d set up drew power from the rifts. Within their light Sam’s wards, catchers and beacon lit up the roadmap of silhouetted streets that made up the ‘real world’. Sam watched for spirits. Her region was the favoured haunt of House Dannan Spirit, denoted by a twisted tree symbol. Animator headquarters had sent through a number of missions in regards to the collection of House Dannan spirits so all she had to do was sit like a spider in her web and wait.

Time also had little meaning in the Shadow world. There was not sunrise or sunset, no stars or other guides to time except possibly the slow regeneration of personal energies. Sam kept an ear out for other Mage chatter through the ether, as she casually zapped spirits. A few apprentices floated through her realm trying to fulfill their missions. As usual she made them welcome and encouraged their successes. Some had been at the Architect raid and she listened with patience as they recounted the attack.
“The warning came over seconds before the OJ’s beacon appeared. Xax89 sent out a call for mages and peas started arriving from all over. It was intense!” Said one excitable apprentice.
“Xax89 hit first and started yelling for healing, but not all of us know the rune yet!”

Sam sympathised and added the new mages to her list of allies. It was frustrating and a little scary facing a big enemy especially when still learning all the runes that controlled the spell effects. In their minds mages drew a rune shape which focused their thoughts and energies towards, creating a beacon, placing a dominator or even attacking an enemy. Panic and shock from damage could put a mage off, thus interrupt their casting. Anything that broke a mages concentration could seriously damage their effectiveness and have them quickly banished and out of the Shadow lands.

At the edge of her vision a glow of energy alerted her to a presence. She turned her perspective and focused on the orange balls of light bearing down on her position.
“OJ’s at Newlington beacon. Gather at the gateway.” She directed carefully to the other Animators. A general shout to the ether would have also alerted the Architects advancing towards her that they had been spotted. With a thought she dropped mana into the beacon and moved back to the nearest gateway to wait.

The orange glow grew and eventually resolved itself into a group of six balls of glowing energy. They advanced across the blackness between gateways by warping over each other in what they called Leapfrogging. The Architect’s philosophy tainted their auras the sickly orange that reminded Sam of rust.

Balls of soft green energy started arriving at the seemingly abandoned beacon and warping across to the gateway where Sam waited. Originally ‘peas’ had been a derogatory name given by the Architects, but it was quickly adopted by the Animators as it just seemed right.

“Where are they Samkara?” Asked an Evoker from interstate who was always itching for a fight regardless of where.
“North-east. I figure we wait until they start attacking the dominators and beacon, let the ward do its job, then attack.” Sam replied as she mentally pointed out the each structure of her realm.

Sam focused her thought on the approaching enemy. A number of the mages she didn’t know, new or from out of the area, but one stood out as a real issue.
” MadamX!” The Evoker exclaimed seeing the mage as Sam did, “Who did you annoy? I put up a beacon here I think, we’re going to need more help.”

“We know you’re at the gateway waiting for us Samkara, ” Came a voice through the general ether to all mages. “You’ve been a long time sitting in your spider-web of gates here. Time to share in your good fortune.”
“I am always willing to share with the less fortunate, Madam.” Sam retorted sharply, “What Architects have a problem with is sharing a peace treaty. What happened to the seventy-two hours promised for this area?”
“What High Command doesn’t know…” Came the reply and Sam was sure she could hear the smirk.

The first bolts of energy rippled over the orange orbs as a prequel to their barrage. In response, the knot-work design of the ward leapt into the air automatically attacking the Architects sending them reeling. Unfortunately the ward was no match to a concert of mages attacking together. The ward exploded, sending energy waves like glowing plasma rippled through the area, rocking every mage present.

In an instant, Animators leapt the gap from gateway to beacon and took the Architects head on. The ether rocked and buckled under the force of so many mages enforcing their will on the primal energies at their disposal. One of the Architect mages set up a beacon that not only gave the Animator mages one more target to deal with but also allowed other enemy mages through to join the fight. Soon the area was swarming with mages both orange and green. Mage auras bounced around the site as they positioned for a better strike, dodged attacks or were thrown out of the fight altogether and banished.

“Sam-an-tha.  Wake up sleepy-head, I’ve come to visit!” Sam’s conscious mind was forcefully dragged away from the battle and back to late afternoon suburbia. She blinked unsure of where she was and unused to the light from the dying day. Staring down with an inane smile and a plastic bag full of fresh vegetables was a middle-aged man. “Well aren’t you going to invite me in for a cup of tea? I brought veggies from the garden.” He held up the bag to confirm this statement.
“Da-ad!” Sam climbed stiffly from the banana lounge and ushered her father inside. “There’s a battle in the Shadow lands and I have to get back.”
“Oh there’s always a disaster or battle or near calamity. All I know is you spend too much time lying around and not enough time looking after yourself. Look at you, moving like an old woman.” The sixty year old dismissed Sam’s concerns with a wave of his hand. “When are you going to give up this nonsense and start living your life?”
Sam held her breath. She wanted to rant and rave but she had to get back, had to see what was happening in the Shadow lands.
“Please, go sit down. I’ll be with you shortly.” She took the bag off him and directed him to the lounge.
“Don’t be too long or I’ll have to call out the FBI.” Sam’s dad joked and she ground her teeth.

Sam closed here eyes and concentrated on re-entering the Shadow lands, but the peace essential was lost. Within the space she usually cleared of all distraction in preparation for the leap to into the ether were  her father’s admonishment, the comments of the neighbours and every other taunt that she had been afflicted with over the time she had been a mage. With a sigh, Sam finally realised that  links with the Shadow lands was unattainable at present and reached out her hand to turn on kettle.

Story Continues in A Mage’s Revelation