“So, you are absolutely correct, Mister Cartwright. I cannot be fully trusted, and neither can Professor Dulaney.” At the same time, Dulaney started to rise from his chair, a question on his lips, but Master Courtney waved him down. “Sit, Franklin. I know some of this is a shock to you, but I can answer your questions later. Right now, I need to make my position clear and settle the matter of how we can help the boy.”
Dulaney closed his mouth and sat. Will tried to hide his surprise. Franklin? Professor Dulaney’s first name is Franklin?
“From this point forward, you are all part of a new cabal,” said Courtney. “A conspiratorial group with the express purpose of undermining the status quo. Does that sound sinister enough for you?”
Janice stifled a faint laugh. “Yes, sir.”
Lord Courtney continued, “The risk here is mine, for the moment. I’ll help you and I’ll share my own small betrayal of the king so that you can find some small amount of trust in me. I won’t ask you to share your own secrets. I have been seeking the secret to unlocking the feats of wizards-past for most of my career. That interest is what led me into my present field of research, and it has in fact driven all my studies since I was a young man.
“Initially I sought that knowledge for the sake of knowledge itself, but after I deduced the nature of elementals and the graduation seal, I gained a second motivation. I wanted to find a way to overturn the status quo, to undo the unnatural grip that the king has over wizardry in Terabinia. That confession alone is probably enough to warrant a death sentence, if the king ever considered me a real threat. As it stands, however, he knows I can never openly defy him.
“The course of my research has been mostly a failure, for I have never discovered even the smallest clue as to how our forebears managed their seemingly impossible feats, but I have advanced the state of Magic Theory considerably. I have codified and calculated what they could do. As I sought to understand, I was able to clearly define the strengths and abilities that were necessary to enable the spells, potions—and most importantly at this moment—the rituals of the past.”
The old man’s gaze focused on Will. “Mister Cartwright, do you truly believe you can perform in the same capacity as one of those wizards of old? I’m not asking rhetorically. I need to know because it will greatly affect what is possible if we try to create a ritual for this situation.”
Will blinked, then answered in deliberate fashion. “Yes, Master Courtney. I am inexperienced, but Arrogan told me the foundations were solidly laid within me.”
The old scholar smiled faintly. “I appreciate your trust, Mister Cartwright. I’ll do my best to remain worthy of it. When this is over, do you think you would consider sharing more?”
He frowned. “What do you want to know?”
“How it is done, how you were trained. Every year I see hundreds of students pass through these doors, lambs to the eventual slaughter, either in this life or the next. Imagine what could be done if we could teach them another way in secret. Imagine if those same students began leaving the school without graduating. It might be the slow but inexorable beginning of a revolution.”
Will smiled. “I think I’d like that.”
“Then we’d better start working on this ritual,” said Lord Courtney, his face lighting up with unconcealed enthusiasm.
Chapter 50
Tiny had gone back to the house, having nothing he could contribute, and Will and Janice now sat at a large table with Master Courtney, Professor Dulaney, and two of Courtney’s senior research fellows, David McCandish and Elizabeth Sundy.
Lord Courtney took charge of the meeting. “First, we must decide what spell effect will be central to the ritual. Naturally, it would be best to have a complete and balanced spell in advance, one we could work upward from, though I can’t think of anything currently known that could fit those requirements. Second, we need to decide where the epicenter will be so that we can plan the geometry and calculate the power and control requirements. It goes without saying that the physical design elements will have to be minimal since we have little time to work.”
Will had been thinking about it for some time already. “Have you looked at the works of Linus Ethelgren?”
Professor Dulaney coughed. “His Majesty has had us digging for information regarding him and other important figures from that era for days now. Unfortunately, it appears that someone has carefully removed every volume related to Ethelgren and his work.”
Slouching, Will reached under the table and activated the limnthal. When he straightened up, he held Battling the Darkness in his hand. “Do you think this might help?”
“Where did you get that?” demanded Mistress Sundy.
He and Janice glanced at one another, then he admitted the truth. “I stole it.”
“From the restricted section?” The senior researcher seemed incredulous.
He nodded, and Master Courtney intervened. “Elizabeth, let’s table those questions for now. It’s more important to stick to the matters at hand.”
Will opened the book and thumbed to the location of the spell he had been thinking about, then he pushed it across the table. “I’ve used this spell several times in the past few days. It kills vampires without hurting humans. It also passes through solid objects, so if it could be made larger, and extended in the vertical as well, so that it will pass through the sewers and hidden underground areas, it might do the trick.”
They studied the spell for several minutes, then David McCandish asked a pertinent question, “How long do we have to design this thing?”
Master Courtney looked pointedly at Will. Swallowing quickly, he hurried to answer, “Until tomorrow morning. If we don’t manage to do this and clear them out before then, the king plans to do something drastic.”
“Define drastic,” said Elizabeth.
“I can’t,” said Will. “But it’s safe to say there might not be a city here anymore.”
She frowned. “So, he’s planning a ritual of his own, but with less selectivity.”
Will shrugged. “I don’t know the specifics, but in my experience he rarely bluffs.”
David nodded. “It makes sense, according to a certain brutal logic, though the idea is horrific.”
Master Courtney had been busy sketching something out on a large sheet of paper. He pushed it over so that his two associates could examine it. “I’m thinking something roughly along these lines, but we’ll need to do the calculations carefully to sort out the specifics.”
The two other researchers glanced at one another, then Elizabeth pointed something out. “The tolerances are too tight. This looks like an imitation of some of the old historical rituals. We need to think in modern terms if this is to be doable.”