Return of the Runebound Professor
Chapter 734: Biya

Biya paced back and forth through her quarters, her hands crossed behind her back and teeth clenched. It had been too long. The Master Rune should have been secured by now. Her Enforcers should have contacted her quite some time ago, but they hadn’t so much as attempted to reach out.

She was starting to get the feeling that Exal was a better salesman than he was a strategist. Something had gone awry. Even if there had been difficulties, there was no excuse for the continued lack of an update.

Her men were trained better than this. They’d have been in contact in the case of any interference. It only would have taken a few seconds. The complete lack of an attempt on their end to contact her was not incompetence.

Was this a trap set by Exal to weaken my forces?

Biya dismissed that thought almost instantly. It was too stupid of a play. There were far easier ways to attack someone. Exal wasn’t stupid enough to try and antagonize the Herron family. Even with things as they were, Biya was more than capable of ensuring the Torrins had a very bad time indeed.

Exal didn’t strike me as a complete fool. This wasn’t a trap. But what happened? Was our team somehow cut off? Exal could have had a mole that spilled our plans and allowed Spider’s group to set up some manner of trap. That seems like the only possibility.

It was that or their team had come up against someone so powerful that each of them had been killed in little more than a few instants, so quickly that they’d never had a chance to safely reach out to Biya and warn her of what was happening.

She dismissed that thought instantly. It was impossible. There was no way there were combatants that powerful just sitting around Arbitage and twiddling their fingers in wait for someone to try and attack a pair of useless Blacklisted students.

Anyone that powerful just would have taken the Master Rune for themselves, after all.

Biya’s eye caught on the bracelet sitting on her desk. Exal hadn’t tried contacting her yet. He had to know that something was off as well. Unless, of course, he was the reason that the issue had arisen in the first place.

Her eyes narrowed. Her pacing drew to a halt. The chances of Exal turning against her were astronomically low. There really just wasn’t any good reason for him to try and pull something like that off. The benefits were borderline nonexistent. But his continued silence was not making his case much better.

Damn it all. What in the Damned Plains happened in Arbitage? What is going on? There should have been some word. But there is nothing but silence. How do a Rank 6 and multiple Rank 5s just up and vanish?

Biya’s lips pursed. She extended a hand for the bracelet — then paused as a shimmering coil of light ignited within the metal. The partner bracelet had activated. She grabbed the metal circlet and slid it over her wrist as she sat down in her chair, her jaw tight with anger.

Magic beckoned to Biya’s mind and she accepted it, letting darkness wash over her vision as the bracelet ferried her mind away.

***

An old, cobbled street expanded beneath Biya’s feet as her consciousness took form. Orange firelight spilled over her back, cast by black iron poles with lanterns swaying from their hooked ends several feet above. A hazy purple-black night sky hung far above, so smoggy and thick that the moon seemed to have been plucked from the sky.

Exal stood across the road from her. His eyes darted around the street, dancing from shadow to shadow before landing on her. It looked like he’d seen a ghost. Given the delay in the mission, he very well might have.

“What happened?” Biya asked, her words taut. “What took you so long to activate the bracelet? You assured me that this would be a simple task, Exal.”

“Spider had preparations,” Exal said. He hesitated for a second, as if trying and failing to search for the right words to say. “I’ve lost contact with Dayton. Your mages are also—”

“Nothing,” Biya said. Her eyes narrowed. Exal was acting off. He’d practically been choking down confidence the last time they’d spoken, and he didn’t strike her as the kind to collapse after a single failed plan. “Do you mean to tell me you have no idea what transpired in Arbitage?”

“Nothing,” Exal mirrored with a shake of his head. The lamp above him flickered. He edged away from the darker corners of the street. He almost looked scared. “But I think we should call this whole thing off. Spider is clearly a lot stronger than we previously considered.”

“Call it off?” Biya exclaimed. She strode over to Exal and jabbed a finger into the other family head’s chest. “There is a very real chance that I lost a Rank 6 and multiple Rank 5 mages today, Exal. On your promises, mind you. Do you think those grow on trees? Do you think even the Herron family enjoys wasting such valuable resources?”

“I think that sometimes, it’s better to cut your losses while you’re ahead,” Exal said, his voice still taut. His eyes darted around the street again, almost as if he were expecting something to jump out of the shadows and try to strangle him. “We made a miscalculation.”

“You made a miscalculation,” Biya corrected with a shake of her head. “And you gave me false promises. I see that look in your eyes, Exal. Did you really kick the hornet’s nest without being ready for a response? You’re the head of the damn Torrin Family, boy. Act like it.”

“What are you insinuating?” Exal asked, a faint note of anger cutting into his tone.

Biya let out a bark of laughter and shook her head. “You might be a prodigy, but you’re still nothing more than an inexperienced child. Did you really think everything would just go according to your plans? That all the pieces would fall into place without resistance? There is always a chance that your opponent is better prepared than you expect. And what does it matter?”

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Exal hesitated for a moment as the lantern above his head flickered. The urge to roll her eyes nearly overwhelmed Biya. The idiot was so terrified of spider that he was letting his fear warp their connected mindspace.

Fool. He’ll pay for the damage he did to my forces… but this is an opportunity too good to pass up. If Exal is really this weak, then I can work my way into his confidence and take control of the Torrin Family from within. I’m sure there’s some worth to be extracted from them before they collapse.

“Spider is nothing more than one demon,” Biya continued. She could taste the weakness like it was blood in the water. “Ready your defenses. He has enemies everywhere. His forces are concentrated around Arbitage. Just because our first attempt at handling this failed doesn’t mean the next one will. We have the attacker’s advantage, and he can’t siege a city. That would rally the families out of fear of them being next.”

Exal just shook his head. He didn’t even say anything. The lantern above him flickered once more, then snuffed out with a faint hiss.

“Stop being a damned coward,” Biya snarled, her anger getting the better of her. “You’re safe, you blind fool. How does a minor threat like this have you so badly cowed? I was the one who bore the brunt of the damage here, not you. Three of my men are almost certainly dead. Their runes are wasted. Do you really think I’m going to let you back out of this just like that?”

“You don’t understand,” Exal said, his voice choked.

The cobblestone beneath his feet cracked. Biya’s gaze flicked down to it. Her lip curled in derision. She never could have guessed the confident idiot that had convinced her to commit men to his cause was this pathetic.

I must be growing senile. How did I let a whelp like this trick me? I was so certain he knew what he was at least somewhat capable… but he’s probably already wetting his pants.

“I don’t understand?” Biya repeated mockingly. A shadow passed over her as the night grew darker. Exal’s fear was so thick that it was actually managing to warp the world. That was actually rather impressive. The boy must have had a fairly strong soul.

“You need to leave,” Exal whispered. Something passed through his eyes. Biya might have called it a flicker of determination if the trembling fool before her wasn’t literally shaking in his boots. “Run away. While you still can.”

“Run away?” Biya exclaimed. “How were you broken so easily? Was the Rank 5 that died your lover? You think I’m leaving after this? Oh, no. You’re paying for the debt you owe me, Exal. The Torrins are getting me that Master Rune. That was our deal, and you’re not going anywhere until it is fulfilled. Now cease your trembling. Spider is at Arbitage. He isn’t at the Torrin Estate, much less your safe room — and he’s most certainly not here. You’re safe, idiot.”

The lamp above Biya’s head sputtered. For an instant, darkness wrapped the street in its clingy embrace. Then the light whimpered back to a pitiful, whimpering mimicry of its previous intensity.

Biya’s stomach leapt into her throat.

There was someone else in the street.

Someone who shouldn’t have been there.

Standing between her and Exal was a ragged man in a weathered professor uniform. Stubble clung to his chin and scraggly hair framed his cold features. She might have mistaken him for a beggar who had stolen the uniform of a rather destitute instructor if it weren’t for his presence in this place.

There could be no beggars here. Beyond herself and Exal, there shouldn’t have been anyone here at all. Not unless Exal had brought them here.

Not unless she had been betrayed.

A cold realization slammed down on Biya’s shoulders. She grabbed for the bracelet on her arm, only to find that it was no longer there. Her wrists were bare.

The ragged man smiled, but the amusement didn’t reach his eyes. “Biya. Exal told me all about you. I have to say, though. It’s rare that I find someone that’s wrong on every single count.”

“Who are you?” Biya snarled, calling on her soul. Runic power wasn’t going to work properly in a mindspace. Anything that transpired here would be a battle of the soul more than anything else. “And I have no idea what you’re talking about. Do you really think—”

“Exal most certainly isn’t safe,” the man said. His gaze locked with Biya’s. “And neither are you.”

“Words mean nothing,” Biya said, baring her teeth. Power welled within her as she dragged more of her soul forward, wrapping it around herself as she readied an attack. It wasn’t a technique that many mages in the kingdom knew. There were very few Rank 6 mages that could use their soul offensively — but one didn’t become the head of the Herron House without at least a few tricks up their sleeve. “I don’t fear your threats, intruder.”

She thrust her soul forward, driving it toward the ragged man’s heart chest like a spike.

It struck true — and shattered.

The man didn’t even blink. He didn’t even seem to notice that he’d been attacked.

Biya’s hair stood on end. A strong sense of unease ran its fingers along her arms as she found herself unable to pull her eyes away. Her gaze was affixed to the dark, swirling pools of ink within the man’s skull like a moon caught in orbit.

“I have a name, you know,” the man said, starting toward Biya. The only indication of emotion within his voice was a repressed tremor of fury that lined every word. “The least you could do when you try to kill my students is show some professional courtesy. Use it.”

Exal made no move to stop him. The Torrin Head looked just as affixed in place as Biya felt.

Biya’s tongue was dry. Her soul quailed and sputtered like a candle in the wind. Pressure bore down on her body from every direction. But it didn’t force her to the ground. She was denied even the ability to collapse. All Biya could do was stand frozen in place. But, as if to add insult to injury, she felt the force on her jaw relax.

She was being allowed to answer.

There’s no doubt about it. This is the demon. Nothing else would have Exal looking like this. Does he know soul manipulation? No. If he did, he would have countered my attack. He didn’t even seem to notice it… which means his soul must just be enormous. The demon just doesn’t know how to use it. That means I’m safe. He can’t hurt me.

“Spider,” Biya hissed. “Your threats hold no weight. I am no sniveling whelp like Exal. We cannot harm each other here. So why don’t you release me so we can bargain like proper mages?”

“Spider.” The man rolled the word over in his mouth like a piece of hard candy. “You know what’s interesting? You aren’t technically incorrect — but somehow, you were incorrect on all counts. Again.”

“What are you talking about?” Biya asked, refusing to let any of her fear show through in her features. She had ruled the Herron House for hundreds of years. She would not be cowed by some upstart demon that had broken free of his prison.

“Most people do know me as Spider,” the man allowed as he approached her. He came to a stop just a foot away from her and raised his hands, grabbing her face as he leaned in until their noses were just an inch away from each other. Something shimmered within that infinite darkness.

A winding path of gold, stretching into oblivion with no end in sight.

Biya’s mental defenses cracked as something drove into them like a tidal wave. Before she could even try to repair the damage, an immense wave of power poured into her like flood water.

Her breath froze in her throat.

The world around Biya fell away. Darkness swallowed everything All that remained was that endless golden path.

What is this? What’s happening?

“Approaching my students is the same as approaching me. I only see fit that you get what you were looking for. You came to Spider’s doorstep, so allow me to introduce you properly,” Spider whispered, his words growing more and more distant as even he faded from sight. “Starting from the beginning. Allow me to introduce you to Noah Vines.”

And then he was gone, and all that remained was the Line.