"Me," he confirms again. "Me, you, Inessa." Anders' voice is quiet. No one needs to overhear him and put any pieces of anything together.
"Similar spells of weakness, no traces." Which is not only terrifying, but insults his pride as a spirit healer. He's supposed to be able to fix things, not fall like a rag doll and worry everyone around him.
"So, magic." That's a little easier to deal with. He's not crazy, Anders isn't crazy, no one is crazy, there's a certain logic being followed here. A pattern, rather than random attacks. Math. Colin is good at math. And some spells that break other spells. "An enchantment. Enchantments can be broken if you find the source. If there's a pattern, then we can find the source."
He's still panting, as if he's ended a brisk walk, but he's not panicking anymore.
Anders releases one of his shoulders, moving to stand next to him again instead of in front.
"Enchantment with a source. That's a good start. If it's affecting Audra and Julius we'll have the origin of whatever's being used for that, if it's an enchantment. We can try to see if anyone here has been to Kinloch recently. I... I can ask Vandelin to look into it."
He presses his lips together. An investigation isn't really his forte, but he can at least brainstorm. "Another possibility is blood magic, but I've no idea how to find out if we've blood mages among us without possibly exposing innocent ones."
"I...hadn't realized blood magic could be precise." At all. At least from where he'd heard it, Uldred's rebellion had dealt wholesale death. An abomination factory. "It would probably be less restricted to us, anyway. Saying some blood mage does bear us a grudge, they'd almost certainly bear grudges outside Kinloch Hold as well. So let's start with what's obvious. Start with the others. I'll tell you what I find from Audra as soon as I talk with her, all right?"
He's seen precise targeting by blood mages... but they knew who they were targeting and it doesn't actually stand to reason that they'd go after Colin or Inessa. Him, there are plenty who hold grudges about. Not the other two.
Anders nods and pats Colin's shoulder. "I'll head home and then call Julius from there. It's secure and not at risk of overhearing."
He does as he said, and not too much later he's sending through the crystals to Colin. "I'd an inquiry about the lunch menu for the next couple of days, if you're not occupied?" It's a safe cover.
When Anders arrives, Colin is pacing the room. He looks up and smiles.
"Audra's fine. She didn't know what I was talking about when I described everything." It's a huge relief. Maybe they're not being targeted, maybe they are, but at least Audra isn't.
He feels a pang of guilt, because he's likely about to tear apart any confidence Colin has gained from Audra not being a part of it. Anders takes a seat.
"Julius isn't fine. He's experiencing the same symptoms, which means there are four of us and all from Kinloch Hold." And he can't cure it. What is he if he can't cure the diseases running around the city and even his magic has failed him once?
"So there's a connection to Kinloch hold, unless it's a coincidence. Audra hasn't been there in ages, she was transferred to Ostwick, but you've been gone for ages as well." A huff. "We need to meet, all four of us. Quick."
He blinks, a little surprised by the reaction before nodding. "I'd thought you wouldn't want to be revealed to Julius, but of course. That would be easier than me going between for everyone."
"What? No! Julius knows I'm here, I took his classes. He's been keeping it mum about me, same as you. He's about as malicious as a mountain goat with a good patch of grass, and at least as dexterous. And skinny. I'll get Inessa, you get him, we'll meet right here tomorrow for breakfast, all right?"
"Maybe I should have asked for a list of who knew when I agreed to keep it quiet," Anders says with slowly growing amusement. "I was fairly certain Gareth knew before your reveal due to what he was saying, but I couldn't be certain. Tomorrow, after breakfast, we'll have a little party that hopefully doesn't turn into a four-way fainting fit."
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"Similar spells of weakness, no traces." Which is not only terrifying, but insults his pride as a spirit healer. He's supposed to be able to fix things, not fall like a rag doll and worry everyone around him.
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He's still panting, as if he's ended a brisk walk, but he's not panicking anymore.
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"Enchantment with a source. That's a good start. If it's affecting Audra and Julius we'll have the origin of whatever's being used for that, if it's an enchantment. We can try to see if anyone here has been to Kinloch recently. I... I can ask Vandelin to look into it."
He presses his lips together. An investigation isn't really his forte, but he can at least brainstorm. "Another possibility is blood magic, but I've no idea how to find out if we've blood mages among us without possibly exposing innocent ones."
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Anders nods and pats Colin's shoulder. "I'll head home and then call Julius from there. It's secure and not at risk of overhearing."
He does as he said, and not too much later he's sending through the crystals to Colin. "I'd an inquiry about the lunch menu for the next couple of days, if you're not occupied?" It's a safe cover.
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When Anders arrives, Colin is pacing the room. He looks up and smiles.
"Audra's fine. She didn't know what I was talking about when I described everything." It's a huge relief. Maybe they're not being targeted, maybe they are, but at least Audra isn't.
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"Julius isn't fine. He's experiencing the same symptoms, which means there are four of us and all from Kinloch Hold." And he can't cure it. What is he if he can't cure the diseases running around the city and even his magic has failed him once?
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"What? No! Julius knows I'm here, I took his classes. He's been keeping it mum about me, same as you. He's about as malicious as a mountain goat with a good patch of grass, and at least as dexterous. And skinny. I'll get Inessa, you get him, we'll meet right here tomorrow for breakfast, all right?"
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"Maybe I should have asked for a list of who knew when I agreed to keep it quiet," Anders says with slowly growing amusement. "I was fairly certain Gareth knew before your reveal due to what he was saying, but I couldn't be certain. Tomorrow, after breakfast, we'll have a little party that hopefully doesn't turn into a four-way fainting fit."