Chapter 16

It didn't take us too long to get back to where Arch and the Department forces were hunkered down behind a series of barricades.

"John, you mad bugger, welcome to the party," he greeted me with a massive grin on his face. "Good work with Johannes and Ímar, though I do recall telling you to be bloody careful."

"Was down to my team in the end," I replied. "They took them down; I just got them close enough to do it."

"Nearly killed yourself again," said Arch. "You're going to have to try and break that habit; you only need to get it wrong once."

"Thought I had this time," I replied. "But for some reason my regeneration spell kicked in when I was unconscious."

Arch frowned. "That shouldn't be possible, John," he said finally.

"Well, I never did it, not knowingly," I replied.

"Something to look into assuming we survive this," Arch said. "What we have is a standoff. They can't get in and we can't dislodge them. They are using snipers backed up by a Mage to protect them from our taking them out. So far they've killed 27 of my people as they usually send a blast with the bullet and catch them out."

"Can't we do the same?" I asked.

"Our guns aren't that accurate," Arch said. "Only good for close in work."

I frowned. "Why use guns?" I asked. "We can hurl a rock telekinetically just as fast and more accurately."

Arch just looked stunned. "I never thought of that," he admitted shamefacedly.

"We could also bring the roof down on them at the same time as a massed hellfire blast too," I said. "There's over a mile of rock above us so I think we can spare some."

"I'm glad I'm not facing you, John," said Arch with an evil grin. "You'd make a terrible foe."

It took a while to set up but we used all our journeymen to focus on the roof above the jumbled up rocks at the edge of the cavern where the enemy were under cover. They unleashed a series of compressed air displacement spells around six foot under the rock surface without breaking cover and exposing themselves to the enemy. The result was impressive, as tons of rock from fist sized shards to large boulders exploded out and down onto the enemy positions, just as all our qualified Mages let fly with a torrent of mixed hellfire and lightning bolts at them too. Whilst all Mages can protect themselves to a degree from both magical and physical attacks, the majority are not good with multi-tasking and tend to do either one or the other; this can give an experienced attacker an advantage at times. The attack achieved its aim and the noise was horrendous, coupled with the heartrending dying screams of our enemies during the aftermath; but it took the heart out of them and we were able to advance cautiously into the jumble of rocks looking for survivors. There weren't many, out of an enemy force we reckoned at five to six hundred we found only seventy two alive, many of the higher ups (we assumed) appeared to have committed suicide when we brought the roof down and they saw no way out. But we did have at least four of their Mages who had simply been knocked unconscious.

Arch was pleased with the result. He'd considered our casualties far too high before our final blow fell. In total we'd lost thirty three Mages of whom thirty were fully qualified and would be difficult to replace easily. We'd also lost three journeymen in an ambush where only the more experienced Mage survived and was deeply traumatised by the experience. This along with over one hundred injuries varying from minor to extreme had proven a costly victory for the Department. Morgana, joined by Mage Vera and Mage Elymas, also toured the field of battle, though I'd guess a normal military historian would only consider it a skirmish. They observed whilst we used our powers to dig bodies and a few wounded out of the debris.

"You have Mages Johannes and Alexiy in your custody," stated Elymas. "I'd like them turned over to the Coalition for questioning."

"You were warned as to what would happen if your people were found in restricted areas," said Mage Vera. "I will permit you to observe and participate in their interrogation here though in regard to this incursion."

Elymas grimaced then nodded his assent. There wasn't really a lot he could do about it and the size of the enemy force appeared to have him quite shaken.

"Quite a force for a mere prison break was it not?" said Morgana.

"Had your people not been expecting it, we would have been overwhelmed," said Vera.

"Are all our wounded evacuated now?" asked Morgana.

"Yes," said Vera. "We're treating theirs here and have help coming in from various places."

"Make sure they only treat them," said Morgana frowning. "We don't want anyone silenced because the enemy have infiltrated our ranks."

"Rowenna's people have their four Mages under treatment and guarded by people I trust," replied Vera. "I expect we'll get some answers soon. We can continue our interrogation of the prisoners tomorrow."

"Good," said Morgana and Elymas nodded his affirmation as well. "Arch, once all the bodies and wounded are out I want you and the Department people to raise the debris back to the roof and lock it in place. Just in case our enemies decide to come knocking or we haven't smoked out all the traitors yet."

"Yes, Mage Morgana," said Arch formally.

It took the combined efforts of nearly forty Mages to raise all the debris back up to the roof and fuse the pieces into place. Whilst one High Mage could probably have lifted the mass, it was the area it covered that required so many people. It took quite a bit of effort on our part to hold it and fuse it solid enough so that it wouldn't come crashing right back down again, well not unless we wanted it to.

Once this was done Morgana contacted the Council and informed them of events at Kurukshetra and Elymas was allowed to do the same for the Coalition of the Pure. It didn't take long before sixteen Mages whom I presumed represented the Council ported in, including Simon and Rowenna, along with five from the Coalition.

"Why was the Council not informed of the activities of the European Department for Investigative Studies?" came a querulous enquiry from one of the Council Mages.

"Because someone upon the Council was suspected in complicity with these attacks, Mage Hermes, along with other activities previous to this," said Simon. "Mage Morgana brought these suspicions to me and I authorised her to investigate as per my office as Senex veneficus penitus orbis."

"How long have these suspicions been known?" asked the Mage called Hermes. "What other secrets are you keeping from us, Simon?"

"We have a major hostile incursion from another realm probably with the connivance of someone on the Council and you're worked up about the fact I'm keeping secrets, Hermes?" asked Simon mildly.

"What evidence do you have that the Council may be compromised?" asked a female Mage.

Morgana stepped forward and produced a crystal showing Mage Robert's confession and death along with various other items including the Old One evidence as well as the recent incursion in Nottingham, the Tunguska event and the capture of Ímar Ua Donnubáin.

"Both the Coalition and certain members of the Council believe both sides have been infiltrated and compromised by these unknowns. We believe we have some of the Coalition's traitors, though possibly not all and now seek to question Mage Heinrich over his claims on Ímar Ua Donnubáin's death, Mage Julia," stated Morgana.

"We should be discussing this in closed session!" demanded Hermes. "Not in front of these Coalition upstarts, junior Mages and journeymen."

"The Coalition has just as much a stake in outing an enemy of our Earth as we do, Hermes," retorted Simon. "These junior Mages, journeymen and women have fought, bled and died in defence of the Council's prison. Do they not deserve answers as to why?" he finished mildly.

"Public deliberation tends towards grandstanding and playing to the gallery, Simon, as well you know," Hermes replied heatedly. "Quiet deliberation where mitigating factors may be taken into account is the best way to discuss a Mages potential folly."

"Mitigating? What on earth could mitigate an invasion force of over five hundred hostile bodies, aided and abetted by traitors within, to storm our securest facility, killing thirty three Mages of all ranks in the process and wounding over a hundred others, some severely?" Simon calmly replied. "Indeed I asked specifically for Mage Heinrich to attend this gathering to face and openly respond to the accusations. I have to ask myself why he has not deigned to grace us with his presence."

"Perhaps he was delayed or attending to some matter that could not be put aside," muttered Hermes, who was clearly not enjoying the Council being in the spotlight and having some potentially embarrassing matters discussed in public.

"I doubt it," said Simon grimly. "I sent two of the Councils own special enforcers to make sure he attended here. "They have not responded to my attempts to communicate with them since their arrival at Mage Heinrich's apartment in Shanghai."

"We may have lost more Mages, Mage Simon?" asked Morgana.

"I fear so, Mage Morgana," replied Simon.

"Do you wish for some of my people to investigate, Mage Simon?" Morgana asked.

"If you would, Mage Morgana. We'll continue our discussions here in the conference room in the prison itself. If you Mages from the Coalition would care to join us?" Simon requested.

"Mage Arch, take a full team with you to Shanghai. Be very cautious, Heinrich is one of the most able assassins I've ever met and is very subtle and ingenious in the use of obscure and low level spells to disable and kill those whom he has been despatched to deal with," Morgana ordered.

"At once, Mage Morgana," responded Arch.

"John, do you have some Null amulets available?" Morgana asked.

"Yes, my Mage," I answered.

"Get them, then lock onto Mage Arch's team and hand them over. Do not attempt to do anything other than observe, John. I know you well enough to know you'll hang around to see what happens, but you are no match for Heinrich if he's there still," Morgana requested me.

"Yes, my Mage," I replied formally.

It didn't take long to port back to my apartment and pick up several of the Null amulets I'd been working on, particularly in regard to the more complex though more stable experienced Mage models. These would activate and de-activate very quickly by pressing a small stud on the back, though they required a lot of internal power from the Mage using them to activate it. I then locked onto Arch's mental track and ported into Shanghai in China. It was certainly not the Shanghai of today, industrial. It was grim and neglected by the then ruling powers of China. The once impressive port city of the 1850s looked tarnished and definitely in need of regeneration. Still there were some nice buildings and it was at one of these that Arch had assembled his team. We were all being very careful to stay out of sight. Laowai or foreigners in Shanghai or indeed China in general in those days were still quite rare and we did not wish to use any magic that might alert Heinrich, if he were still at his apartment. Though most agreed that if he'd had to deal with two Council enforcers he wouldn't be there.

I handed over the amulets and explained how they were operated and watched as Arch's team slipped over in the darkness to swarm up the steps towards Heinrich's ground floor apartment door. The team reached the front door without being spotted and used a minor spell to open the lock before operating their amulets and letting the front Mage step inside. There was a binding flash of light as a series of very heavy duty wards tried to overcome the amulet the Mage was wearing. She was quickly joined by another and a third until the wards finally went down. Joining Arch I followed the lead Mages in to see two bodies that were identified as the Council enforcers, though oddly they did not appear to have suffered violence simply dropped dead in their tracks. We searched the apartment carefully, half the team keeping the amulets operating whilst the rest scanned using all their senses. Though apart from the usual artefacts and accessories any Mage would have about them in a magical sense there was nothing unusual other than the wards themselves.