36. Strategies and Plans.

The group looked out of the forest at the grounds on which Wilmot had set himself up.

"A camp?" said Paul. "What is he doing camping here?"

"What’s so special about here?" asked Maria.

"Just a couple of hills over is the stronghold of another warlord named Conall." said Paul. "He and Wilmot have been rivals in the professional sense."

"So maybe he is planning on going after him." said Maria.

"Then he would have a lot more men than he does." said Paul.

Maria looked at the assembled men.

There seemed a fair number. She’d estimate a couple of hundred men. Depending on the size of the opponents troops it would not be unreasonable to bring this many.

"How big are Conall’s troops?" asked Maria.

"Nearly a thousand men right now." he said. "He has a lot of control around these lands, and Wilmot’s been itching to take some of it away from him, but he still had the superior numbers."

"But this." he said indicating Wilmot’s group. "This is ridiculous. How does he expect to win with these odds?"

"Maybe that was what he meant when he said your sister could help him achieve his ambitions." said Eachann.

"But she is just a seer." said Paul. "she has no offensive powers."

"But she does have magic." said Eachann quietly. "Magic that frightened some people. Remember?"

There was a silence before Paul shook his head and said.

"I don’t understand."

Maria had been thinking of something her mother had once told her about magic. She hesitated to say anything, but finally spoke up.

"Mother once told me to think of magic as just a power source that has no real form."

Paul turned to her listening intently.

"Each person born with this source can innately manipulate it in a certain way. And can be taught to control it for other purposes. But each person has there limits. Some are very restrictive, such as seers who can only use it for one purpose at most. Other’s have more open options."

"Such as yourself." said Paul.

Maria nodded.

"That’s right." she said. "I am what some like to call a tinkerer. A magic user who can do a lot of little things. I can tinker with the magic to do small spells, like quick flashes of light, or making small illusions."

She demonstrated this by causing a small light to form in the palm of her hand.

She quickly extinguished it.

"You are limited to what you are capable of." she finished.

"But if someone can find a way or is powerful enough, they can manipulate or use other’s magic in a way the other could not?" said Paul. "Is that what you are trying to say?"

"Yes." answered Maria. "If Wilmot is strong enough or has the right tools, he may be able to use Morag’s magic in a way she could not. But it is hard to steal or take someone’s magic, so he must have found something that could help him."

"Or..." said Eachann.

Everyone looked at him.

"He may just need her as a source of energy."

Paul looked to Maria for confirmation.

She nodded.

"That is also a possibility." she said. "But then that would mean that he needs a lot of magic and took her feeling she would give him the push he needs."

"Look." said Paul. "That is all fine, but we really need to figure out what we can do to get her back."

"That is true." said Maria.

She looked over the camp.

"That big tent is probably Wilmot’s right?" she asked.

"Probably." said Paul. "And it makes sense she would be in there, near him. But how do you propose we get there. It is in the middle of the camp with soldiers everywhere."

Maria looked at the sky.

"It will be dark enough soon, we should wait and then I can pop to just outside the tent and Theodore can get you there. Then we can get into the tent before anyone can realise what is going on."

"But they will surely see us emerge out of nowhere, your little trick is pretty flashy." said Paul.

"True." said Maria. "But remember, I said I knew lots of little tricks. One of them can seal the entrance to the tent as well as make it impossible to lift it to crawl under. That will at least stop reinforcements from getting in for a short while. At least until they get a more powerful magician to remove it. Hopefully by then we should be finished and can get out of there."

"That leaves us with just his personal guards and anyone else in there with him." said Paul. "I like those odds a lot better."

He motioned to their two prisoners.

"What do we do with them in the meantime?" he asked.

"We will tie them up right here until we get back." she said.

She looked at Bowen.

"I still have business to take care of with this one." she said.

Bowen gulped noisily.

"You can decide what to do about Eachann." she told Paul turning her back on Eachann.

"Oh I am sure the family will have all sorts of suggestions." said Paul.

They tied the two men to a tree and using some of the men’s own clothing made gags so they could not cry out.

Then they sat in silence waiting for the light to fade.

It was not long before it was time.

The two friends stood and walked to the edge of the forest.

Theodore perched on Paul’s shoulder.

They picked a spot they could see near the tent.

Two portals opened in front of them and all of them stepped through.

They emerged near the tent.

Just as Paul had suspected they were seen.

The three of them moved quickly to the opening of the tent and passed inside.

Maria turned and grabbed the two flaps of the opening and ran her hands along them putting them together while reciting the spell.

The front opening stayed closed . It would hold them off long enough.

She turned to a sight she could not have determined.

In the room were five people.

Two guards, Wilmot, a sorcerer in full garb and Morag.

Morag was being restrained by what looked like shackles made of light that were attach to nothing but the air. She was straining against them as the sorcerer was chanting something.

Upon seeing his sister tied up, Paul let out a bellow and ran at Wilmot with his sword drawn.

And ran into nothing, making him fall onto his back.

The tent was filled with the sound of Wilmot’s laughter.