A couple more light spells streaked into the fray before Harold deployed a smokescreen. “Fall back!”


    The loud scuffling gradually quieted down, though a certain captive dark mage did not let the scene fall into silence. There was a click and the sound of a door swinging open. “I’m going to kill—Gordon?! What the fuck!” Marvin’s coughing echoed in the corridor. “Where are the others?”


    Trey subtly slid the wand he had wielded back to its owner as the smokescreen began swirling before it disappeared altogether. Trey first noticed a shining orb hovering near the ceiling, providing ample light to the area. Underneath it was a sickly Marvin and the heroic Grand Oracle. On the ground was what remained of Hektor; his corpse had been cleanly cut into two halves.


    Trey next observed that one of the side passages leading from the corridor had been blocked off by a solid wall of hardened metal. The barrier’s surface was twisted and uneven, with globs of molten metal that had begun to form before they cooled. Smaller droplets had splattered outwards, leaving sharp, glistening shards scattered across the ground.


    “Is that Hektor Ba’an?” Gordon asked with a raised brow pointing to the top half of the corpse.


    Marvin nodded, maintaining the confused expression on his face.


    “Hmph,” the headmaster pondered with contempt. “I expected more.”


    Marvin still remained puzzled. “Gordon… What are you doing here?”


    “How about ‘thank you, Gordon, for saving my wrinkled ass?’”


    “Thank you,” the dark mage said, “but what are you doing here?”


    Gordon examined Marvin carefully before turning his attention to Bree, who lay on the floor, her consciousness waning. “I need to get both of you back to Eva, it looks urgent. Can you help?” The question was directed at Trey. The armored guardian nodded and bent down to scoop up the fire magic teacher.


    Marvin glanced at the sealed corridor. “What about—”


    “I have alerted the town guard and hopefully they’ve surrounded the place by now,” Gordon said. “I’m still fully expecting them to slip away, though, because someone wants to play vigilante and not properly plan a sting operation.”


    Marvin frowned.


    “I knew you were up to trouble,” the Grand Oracle said as he led the way up the stairs. “You’re not as sneaky as you think you are.”


    “What?” Marvin questioned dumbly.


    “Wait,” Gordon said. “You still haven’t figured it out?”


    “Figured out what?”


    “Oh, this is precious,” Gordon said with a chuckle. “You’ve gone stale in your old age.”


    “I have not!” Marvin countered, his attempt to raise his voice sending him into a coughing fit. “Did you use divination magic?”


    “Nope,” the Grand Oracle replied, smiling with glee at his colleague’s befuddlement. “Really? The great Marvin Kalo can’t figure out how he got caught?”


    “Just tell me you old coot!” Marvin said, his scowl deepening.


    Gordon placed his hands together in front of him in a very child-like gesture of excitement. “You might have avoided Soul Inquiry when you arrived on campus, but you aren’t the only new teacher this year.”


    Marvin’s eyes shot over to Bree as a wave of realization hit him. “Ah, unicorn piss!”


    “I was astonished to discover that my prodigy fire mage was in cohorts with an old colleague that had disappeared years ago,” Gordon admitted. “What amazed me even further was to discover that this long-lost dark mage had uncovered a sinister plot within the walls of my own academy and was feeding information to a certain student, helping her onto a fast track to become a professor.”


    “I’m sorry,” Bree said weakly from Trey’s arms.


    The dark mage shook his head. “It’s not your fault,” he begrudgingly admitted. “I neglected to mitigate that risk.”


    “So when the two plotting teachers leave campus for a ‘social’ visit to Koljun,” Gordon continued gloating with a smile, “I decided to follow along and see what you’ve been cooking up. Good thing, too, or I would—once again—have needed to find a new pair of magic teachers.”


    “Thank you for the save,” Marvin grumbled.


    “You''re welcome,” Gordon said with a hint of haughtiness as they stepped out of the warehouse, met by the sight of several guards bustling about. His tone shifted to one of seriousness. “You’ll be telling me exactly what you’re up to once I get this mess sorted out.”


    Marvin’s face was already pale from the night’s ordeal, but Trey could see the tension ripple through him as he braced himself for the coming confrontation.


    “Captain Novar,” Gordon called out, his voice steady and authoritative. “Thank you for your assistance at this hour and under such urgent circumstances. Have you seen any signs yet?”


    The captain shook his head. “No one has reported anything. They must still be inside.”


    The Grand Oracle nodded but didn’t look convinced. “I must get the wounded back to Windrake,” he said, “but I’ll be back.”


    Still cradling Bree in his arms, Trey trailed behind Marvin and the Grand Oracle for two blocks until they reached an unattended teleporter. The Grand Oracle ushered them onto the platform and then waved his sabre around activating the runes. In a flash, they were back in Greshelm. They navigated through the city and back through the gate to campus. Heading up several floors in the Elysium Spire, they arrived in front of a door, which the headmaster knocked on several times.


    The door opened revealing two surprised women. “Papa? What happened?”


    “Skye? What are you doing here?”


    The Grand Oracle cleared his throat. “Eva, Professor Adams needs your attention immediately. After you get her settled, Professor Kalo has necrotic poison in his system that will need to be cleared.”


    “Are you sure I shouldn’t take care of the poison first?” Eva asked.


    “Nah,” Gordon said. “Professor Kalo is learning a very important lesson right now. I would hate to cut it short.”


    Marvin glared at his smirking colleague.


    “I’m headed back to Koljun,” the headmaster announced. “I want everyone to remain here and wait for my return.”Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    Trey stepped through the door into a suite that rivaled Marvin''s faculty housing. While there was no office, the living area was slightly larger, and he noticed an additional bedroom connected to it. Eva guided him to the spare bedroom, indicating that he should place Bree on the bed.


    The elf brought in a basin of water and began her work. “Skye,” she called out without looking up. “Trey has injuries as well. Would you like some practice?”


    Trey tilted his head to the side, surprised by Eva’s perception.


    “Trey?” Skye’s voice came from behind him. “Are you hurt, too? Get over here!”


    Trey turned and headed back to the main room to face a concerned sorceress. “Maybe you should take care of Marvin first,” he suggested.


    “Do you know how many healers can clear out necrotic poison?” Skye asked with her eyebrows raised. “There’s a reason the Grand Oracle brought him to Eva. Now let’s get this armor off you so I can get started.”


    Trey undressed and settled onto the sofa. Skye approached, carrying a sizable glass aquarium teeming with vibrant green plants and swimming fish. “What’s that?” he inquired.


    “Not everyone is a mage,” she said, giving him a knowing look. “Some of us have to work for our mana. I find it easiest to pull mine from the algae and fish.” She began waving her hands over the top of the aquarium.


    “I guess there wasn’t a lot of algae in Lovarn,” Trey replied.


    Skye giggled. Having gathered enough mana, she began pulling water out of the tank and applying it to Trey’s shoulder. “Eva gave me the tip about the algae,” she said. “She’s not a sorceress, but she studies a lot.”


    “You practically figured it out yourself,” Eva said, emerging from the bedroom. “You study just as much as me.” The elf headed over to the other sofa where Marvin was resting, his eyelids closed.


    “You alive, old man?” Trey called out.


    The dark mage only grunted in response.


    Eva sat by his side and started pouring water into his mouth. “I apologize, but flushing out necrotic poison is not the most comfortable process.”


    Trey turned back to Skye. “What about capture-the-flag matches? Your magical performance so far has been very impressive.”


    “They put lots of ants in the soil,” she said as if it was common knowledge.


    “You can pull mana from ants?”


    “Yes,” she answered. “They’re actually a great source of mana. Very strong compared to their body size and there’s millions of them.”


    Trey shrugged, causing pain to shoot from his shoulder.


    “Stay still!” she scolded him. “I’m not as fast as Eva, but I’ll get you patched up. You’ll be as good as new for my birthday.”


    Skye’s words caused him to freeze for more reasons than one. Even though he wasn’t looking at her, he could feel her smiling possessively over him.


    A wretched noise coming from the other sofa interrupted their silence. Trey glanced over seeing Marvin gasp for breath as Eva forced more water down his throat. “Sorry, Professor Kalo, but this is just the beginning.”


    ***


    Everyone was resting when the Grand Oracle returned, the sour expression on his face reflective of his mood. “The town guard discovered a tunnel that offered an escape route into a nearby lumberyard. There was no sign of the fugitives.”


    Marvin sat up, intently listening to the report.


    “So, Marvin,” Gordon said, not bothering with formalities in front of the students in the late hour, “tell me what you were doing in Koljun—and you get one chance to tell me the truth.”


    Marvin glanced warily at Eva and Skye.


    “Don’t use them as an excuse,” Gordon chided. “You know what’s coming. They may as well hear everything.”


    Marvin sighed. “I received a tip that Harold Greene was in the area and decided to investigate. I was going to inform you of any relevant findings, I assure you.”


    An amused smile spread on Gordon’s face. “Ah, so you ventured to Koljun for the good of the academy then? Without telling me, of course?”


    “I felt like I could’ve helped clean up loose ends without causing any trouble,” Marvin said. “I guess I was wrong.”


    “Oh, Marvin,” Gordon said, shaking his head. “It pains me to imagine how gullible you think I am.” With that, the Grand Oracle focused intently on his colleague. Marvin, in turn, clenched his jaw tightly and widened his eyes. Trey paled as he realized what was happening.


    “Interesting,” the Grand Oracle said after a long, tense moment. “Your mind defenses are stronger than I remember.”


    A knot tightened in Trey’s stomach as he sensed Eva’s gaze shift toward him.


    Marvin shrugged. “You’re used to practicing against the elf. I have a few years on her.”


    Gordon chuckled, though kept a keen eye on his dark magic professor. “More than a few.”


    “Let’s not resort to this,” Marvin said gloomily. “I don’t want to be your enemy. I went to track down Grimstone. I believe he has an artifact that I want to see destroyed.”


    Gordon scratched his beard. “What artifact?”


    “I believe he has Grimmault’s Soul Mirror in his possession.”


    The Grand Oracle’s eyes widened. “A Soul Mirror?”


    Marvin nodded solemnly.


    “And you think Grimstone has it?”


    “Yes, and we are getting closer!” Marvin said with excitement flickering in his eyes. “Did you see how they sealed that corridor? I’m convinced that was Grimstone’s handiwork.”


    “That contraption that nabbed you was pretty nifty as well,” Gordon remarked cheekily, earning a scowl from his colleague.


    “A Soul Mirror would be significant,” Gordon said as he stared thoughtfully off into space. “Grimmault could still be directing his followers through such an artifact, even from beyond the grave. Why keep such a mission shrouded in secrecy? You obviously needed me.”


    “I may have posed as your enemy to secure meetings with suspected collaborators,” Marvin replied. “Keeping you out of the loop granted me the freedom to act in ways you might not have approved of.”


    “How did you connect with Professor Adams? And how did you sniff out Greene all the way from Old Barn?”


    “It’s Lovarn,” Marvin corrected him. “You knew I was close with Pravion. We were both cocky bastards when we were younger. Hated each other at first, but realized we had more in common than we cared to admit. I visited the Adams home a few years back. I hadn’t seen Martha since… Well, you know. Bree was just coming into her powers, looking forward to a bright future and excited about enrolling at Windrake. I kept in touch, and when I caught wind that Grimmault’s Soul Mirror was mentoring a successor I used my inside man—or woman, in this case—to aid in my investigation.”


    The Grand Oracle folded his arms. “How do you ‘catch wind’ of something like that?!”


    “That’s a professional secret,” Marvin replied.


    Gordon groaned. “Very well, but I expect you to keep me updated on your progress. No more secrets, professional or not.”


    “Understood.”


    “Also, be careful about putting my students in danger,” the headmaster said, gesturing to Trey. “I know the situation is different with him, but he’s still a student.”


    Marvin''s eyes started to roll, but he stopped and settled with a terse nod instead. “I’ve been meaning to ask: did Professor Greene leave anything behind? I assume you didn’t give him much time to pack?”


    The headmaster tapped his chin thoughtfully. “I think someone went through his belongings and put everything away. You might want to check with Jeffers to see if he knows where it all ended up.”


    A yawn escaped Marvin’s mouth.


    “Am I boring you?” Gordon challenged, though a smirk emerged on his face.


    “Just wait until you’re the one having necrotic poison forced out of your system,” Marvin shot back.


    Gordon snorted. “Let’s get some rest. Marvin, you and I should plan to return to Koljun soon to search for any lingering clues, but that can wait until tomorrow.”


    Marvin nodded, rising from the sofa, eager to leave the suite. He motioned to Trey, and they made their way to the door. Skye gave Eva a quick hug before prancing over to join Trey.


    Gordon peeked into the spare bedroom where Bree still rested. “Eva, would it be all right if Professor Adams stayed the night?”


    The elven healer nodded.


    “Oh, and Marvin,” Gordon called out to his colleague who had just just escaped the room. “We need to be on alert. They made a move tonight, and even though they failed, I doubt they’re finished. And there’s still a hidden mind mage to uncover—we can’t afford to be blindsided.”


    With that, the door shut, leaving Marivn, Trey, and Skye in the hallway. Once the trio descended the stairs and exited the Spire, they exchanged their farewells and Skye strolled off for the dorms.


    Marvin, however, lingered by Trey’s side. “How does Eva know your name?”


    Trey’s jaw dropped. “After everything that’s happened tonight, that’s what you’re worried about?”


    Marvin frowned and looked away.


    “He’s going to be pissed when he finds out you lied to him,” Trey said.


    The tired dark mage glanced over his shoulder at the towering building. “It wasn’t a lie,” he replied. “It just wasn’t the truth.”