Free Legacy of the Darksword by Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman Page B

most of the people on Earth equate with the dark arts.
This is not the Technomancer. They laugh at such nonsense and even use
it for their own purposes—it deflects attention away from them.
    “Who would believe that the
businessman in the three-piece suit who is said to be a genius at playing the
stock market uses his magical ability to make himself invisible, sits in on
board meetings of various companies, and thus gains inside information? Who
would believe that the embezzler who left her firm in financial ruin was able
to mislead everyone because of the magical hold she had on their minds?”
    It sounded ludicrous, even to me,
and I had seen with my own eyes the silver-robed Technomancers invade our
house.
    King Garald grew bitter. “When I
first discovered that the Four Cults of Dark Magic still existed, I tried to
warn people in Earth government. Even my best friend did not believe me.” He
looked at James Boris, who smiled ruefully and shook his head. “I will not
waste time by relating what occurred that finally convinced him. It nearly cost
us both our lives, but—in the end—he believed. The General suggested that I was
wasting my time and energy attempting to fight the Technomancers in the open. I
must adopt their own strategy.”
    “Mosiah told you he had been one
of them,” said General Boris. “Did he tell you that he volunteered to become
one of them? To go undercover? To
risk his life ferreting out their dark secrets?”
    “ No,” said Saryon, and he looked
relieved. “No, he did not.”
    “Through him we found out much
about their organization; we discovered the true nature of this ‘chemical
factory’ which they operate and for which”—King Garald smiled wryly—”they even
receive lucrative government grants!”
    “You work with Smythe,” Saryon
said. “You do not denounce him.”
    “We have no choice,” said King
Garald, and his voice was grim and harsh. “He holds our people and the people
of Earth hostage.”
    “The Technomancers have
infiltrated every part of the military,” said General Boris. “They do not
commit sabotage. Oh, no. They are far too clever for that. They have made
themselves indispensable to us. Because of their power and their skill, we are
holding our own against the Hch’nyv. Should they withdraw their magical
assistance—worse yet, should they turn their magic against us—we would be lost.”
    “How do they do this?” Saryon was
perplexed.
    “I’ll give a very simple example.
We have a torpedo that has an electronic brain. We can program that brain to
aim the torpedo to hit its target. The enemy detects the torpedo, sends out an
electronic signal which scrambles its brain. But they can’t send out a signal
to scramble magic. A Technomancer, magically guiding that torpedo, will send it
unerringly to its target.
    “And if”—General Boris’s voice
dropped—”they were to magically alter that torpedo’s programming, cause it to
turn and strike a different target. Not an enemy target . . .” He
shrugged his massive shoulders.
    “From what they have told us,
they control nuclear armaments in the same way,” said King Garald. “From our
investigations, we have reason to believe that they are telling the truth.”
    “To put it another way, we dare
not call their bluff,” said the General bluntly.
    “I don’t see how the Darksword
could possibly aid you in any way against these people,” said Saryon, and I was
convinced then that I knew his decision.
    “Frankly, we don’t either,” said
King Garald.
    “Then why—”
    “Because they fear it,” said the
King. “We don’t know why. We don’t know what they’ve found out or how they found
out, but they have received a warning from their researchers, those called the D’karn-kair, that the Darksword could be both an asset to them and a danger.”
    Saryon shook his head.
    Garald regarded him silently, then said, “There is another reason.”
    “I thought as much,” said