Read Online The Sac'a'rith by Vincent Trigili - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Vincent Trigili
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the wall. Remembering the danger their claws presented, I quickly leapt off and drew my knives. It was recovering when a bolt of lightning arced through the air and killed it.
Looking around the room with my eyes closed I could not see any more of them, and the coldness had left the room. I slowly opened my eyes and saw the magus I had batted aside struggling to get back up. “Sorry, I had no time to warn you.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said weakly. “It’s fine. I’d much rather be knocked over than turned into a walking corpse.”
“How did you do that?” asked one of the other magi.
“Do what?” I asked.
“You spotted the wraith and fought it with your eyes closed,” he said.
“I’m not sure. I could feel its presence right away, but at first I could see it only when I closed my eyes. Very weird, but I didn’t dare take the time to open them again.”
“Excellent work, Zah’rak! Your training is really coming along! What you used was a power you were born with that we call Sight. It allows you to see using only your mind. Creatures like the wraiths can’t hide from Sight,” said Narcion. “Now, with the shields back up we are safe. Let’s see what we can determine about this station.”
“You should have full command access now,” said Felix.
Felix and Narcion were busy with the terminals, so I walked over to the other two. They were doing their best to stay quiet and out of the way. I decided that I should try to make some kind of amends for our rocky start. “Hey, sorry about getting rough with you back there,” I said to the one who had tried to probe my mind earlier.
The magus looked scared and swallowed hard. “It’s okay. I understand.”
“Can you get into the head of anyone you want to?” I asked.
“Any mund … well, with anyone who is not a magus it is easy,” he said. “Other magi can be much harder.”
“So you can read me right now?” I asked.
“No, at least not without you knowing. I tried that once and it did not go well for me,” he said with a weak smile.
“What is your name?” I asked.
“I don’t have one,” he said.
It was then I noticed some very old scarring around his neck. He must have been a slave also. I pointed to the scars on my neck. “It seems we have something in common.”
He nodded in silence.
“What should I call you, then?”
“I used to be known as Crivreen. I guess I can be again.” He was a bit chubby and had the kind of hair that always looked unkempt. His face had the soft features of someone who had given up fighting and was letting circumstances take him where they would. There was a deep loneliness in his eyes.
The other magus with him was as different from Crivreen as possible. He was obviously a bodybuilder and no doubt took a lot of pride in his ability to lift heavy objects. He had several scars on his face that hinted at a rough past. He always seemed to stick close to Crivreen, as if to protect him.
“So, Crivreen, how can I protect myself from someone trying to read my mind?”
“Well, if you don’t have the gift, I can’t teach it.”
“How do I know if I do?” I asked.
“He does. Teach him,” I heard Narcion call out from behind us.
Crivreen looked very nervous and stumbled over his words as he tried to talk. I reached out and placed my hand on his shoulder and said, “Look, it’s okay. Narcion asked you to teach me, so go ahead. I won’t hurt you.”
He nodded and walked over to a security terminal. After making an adjustment he said, “Look at this screen. Do you see anything odd?”
I looked, and it showed a view of the room we were in, but I was the only one in the room. “But that doesn’t make sense.”
“We can use this monitor so you can see how you are doing. Before I can teach you to defend against a mental attack, I need to teach you how to hide like the rest of us are doing. We can completely drop off all electronic sensors, like this one, at will. The same skill that is
Looking around the room with my eyes closed I could not see any more of them, and the coldness had left the room. I slowly opened my eyes and saw the magus I had batted aside struggling to get back up. “Sorry, I had no time to warn you.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said weakly. “It’s fine. I’d much rather be knocked over than turned into a walking corpse.”
“How did you do that?” asked one of the other magi.
“Do what?” I asked.
“You spotted the wraith and fought it with your eyes closed,” he said.
“I’m not sure. I could feel its presence right away, but at first I could see it only when I closed my eyes. Very weird, but I didn’t dare take the time to open them again.”
“Excellent work, Zah’rak! Your training is really coming along! What you used was a power you were born with that we call Sight. It allows you to see using only your mind. Creatures like the wraiths can’t hide from Sight,” said Narcion. “Now, with the shields back up we are safe. Let’s see what we can determine about this station.”
“You should have full command access now,” said Felix.
Felix and Narcion were busy with the terminals, so I walked over to the other two. They were doing their best to stay quiet and out of the way. I decided that I should try to make some kind of amends for our rocky start. “Hey, sorry about getting rough with you back there,” I said to the one who had tried to probe my mind earlier.
The magus looked scared and swallowed hard. “It’s okay. I understand.”
“Can you get into the head of anyone you want to?” I asked.
“Any mund … well, with anyone who is not a magus it is easy,” he said. “Other magi can be much harder.”
“So you can read me right now?” I asked.
“No, at least not without you knowing. I tried that once and it did not go well for me,” he said with a weak smile.
“What is your name?” I asked.
“I don’t have one,” he said.
It was then I noticed some very old scarring around his neck. He must have been a slave also. I pointed to the scars on my neck. “It seems we have something in common.”
He nodded in silence.
“What should I call you, then?”
“I used to be known as Crivreen. I guess I can be again.” He was a bit chubby and had the kind of hair that always looked unkempt. His face had the soft features of someone who had given up fighting and was letting circumstances take him where they would. There was a deep loneliness in his eyes.
The other magus with him was as different from Crivreen as possible. He was obviously a bodybuilder and no doubt took a lot of pride in his ability to lift heavy objects. He had several scars on his face that hinted at a rough past. He always seemed to stick close to Crivreen, as if to protect him.
“So, Crivreen, how can I protect myself from someone trying to read my mind?”
“Well, if you don’t have the gift, I can’t teach it.”
“How do I know if I do?” I asked.
“He does. Teach him,” I heard Narcion call out from behind us.
Crivreen looked very nervous and stumbled over his words as he tried to talk. I reached out and placed my hand on his shoulder and said, “Look, it’s okay. Narcion asked you to teach me, so go ahead. I won’t hurt you.”
He nodded and walked over to a security terminal. After making an adjustment he said, “Look at this screen. Do you see anything odd?”
I looked, and it showed a view of the room we were in, but I was the only one in the room. “But that doesn’t make sense.”
“We can use this monitor so you can see how you are doing. Before I can teach you to defend against a mental attack, I need to teach you how to hide like the rest of us are doing. We can completely drop off all electronic sensors, like this one, at will. The same skill that is
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