“When this is all over Bingley and if I ever catch you anywhere near my home” Allen said and let the threat hang.
“You will never catch me there unless I am invited” Bingley said as he relaxed once the stone slid away from Allen.
“That is the colossus that beat me” Warston said. “Didn’t know about the hammer though.”
“I wonder if Allen would be better fighting with the regulars instead of us” Rebecca said. “It seems selfish to have this magic to ourselves when there are regular troops could use him more.”
“You are a spy first Rebecca” Warston said. “Me and you do not make these decisions. Even the king’s spymaster Bingley doesn’t make these decisions. I have asked around and I am not even sure Allen should be in the war. The Atropian queen is angry at him but I doubt she wants to put him in harms way.”
“I am going to fight” Allen said. “Mary doesn’t own me and she knows I will not listen until she is actually on the throne. I want to fight with the mage killers but I will back up the regular troops as well.”
“It seems weird to me that an Atropian would want to fight other Atropians” Rebecca said. “As a spy I cannot help but think this is some sort of ruse.”
“I am positive he wants nothing to do with the current leadership in Atropia” Bingley said. “He all but ran off an Atropian Governor’s men when I first came by with them and if my man on the inside is to be believed Mr. Smith killed a high ranking Atropian officer, beat up a battlemage and cowed everyone else representing Atropia.”
“You are resourceful” Allen said. “I think I should have someone teach Mary this skill of yours to be different people. You are not the drunk everyone thought you were, how did you know about Mary? What made you seek her out? From what I know now I doubt me picking you for her instructor was all my idea.”
“I met you by luck actually” Bingley replied. “I knew Governor Wiiloughsby was looking into training his men, giving them a bit better instruction than they had. I settled down in that small town and had people send word about the drunken sword master. I wanted him to find me and ended up finding you. You had decent money and a lot of crops so I figured you were some sort of wealthy landowner. I thought you would have had the Governor’s ear so I agreed to train whoever you wanted. I at first thought it was your guard or maybe a son. When I saw a beautiful young lady living alone in a place that size I wondered what I stumbled on to. I secretly looked into you but no one knew who you were. I then started asking around about blond haired women, golden haired women with big ice blue eyes. The Governor told me the royal family had features like that, even told me he was descended from one. By then though your sister had mastered everything, I had to teach quite easily. You wouldn’t let me stay on, I even tried to be your teacher for less money but once you learned enough you turned me loose and I needed I way inside of your home.”
“You are the murderer” Allen guessed.
“Yes and no” Bingley replied. “There was a deserter who killed many men who came looking for him. I of course killed him with an arrow through the back and buried him. I led the Governor through different towns where my people all said they saw someone heading your way and I of course filled in the rest. Once inside of your home I figured I could solve the mystery and did. The army was always going to head for you, we just needed to take out the Governor’s troops out first. We didn’t even want to stop through that city, we were coming for you and he was there which made everything perfect.”
“Why didn’t you try harder to burn my thorns?” Allen asked. “A group like that could have gotten through far faster than they did.”
“I don’t know, my job was done” Bingley replied. “But I can speculate that they wanted to make sure there was nowhere for you to run or hide before they brought the full force of the army upon you.”
“And now you just hide out here?” Allen asked.
“I am not hiding, I am just back where I belong” Bingley replied. “I have no need to go back to Atropia, I found the heir and now she is queen”.
“So she already married then?” Allen asked.
“She is” Bingley replied. “It was in some town and a lot of former nobles came out of hiding to attend. I only saw a bit of it, at the time I was posing as a servant but I did see your friend Governor Willoughsby. He looked well, a bit angry at the people guarding him but he was safe.”
“This is good news” Allen said. “It makes me want to even train harder so I can do my part to end this war.”
“Well the group you are with are young and stupid” Warston said. “They are still angry they did not have what it took to become mages. All of them were from your class and are being fed to the wolves. They are not great with weapons but know which is the pointy end of a sword, they all have crossbows because only one is decent with a bow. The only thing that has really been done is getting them used to moving around in armor. I am hoping they can at least defend themselves from attacks while you take out the enemy. All of this is a bit rushed but we really need more mage killers out there, their mages are a tough lot and they have been slowly turning the battle to the Atropians favor. Some believe the fighting is tougher because we are now in the inner parts of Atropia and the enemy is more dense. No matter who is right I have to start training and handing over mage killers quicker and quicker. It has gotten so bad that I have had to even change a few of the enemy into mage killers and send them back out.”
“Send them back out?” Allen asked.
“They probably believe they were just tortured” Warston replied. “I am sure they notice a cold emptiness where their magic used to be. When they are around mages they will feel better than they ever have, it is almost like a drug. It is addictive, the more you are around mages the stronger the pull is. We have had years to learn to get away from mages, the Atropians have not. They will constantly be in the company of mages and weaken their overall force.”
“And a mage killer has to start off as a mage” Allen said making a statement more than asking a question.
“Yes” Warston replied. “I will not say anymore on how it is done though and I would appreciate you not asking. You are on our side for now but mage killers need to stay exclusive to this country no matter who our allies are. I have it on good authority you will be staying in Atropia once this entire thing is over.”
“You are correct” Allen replied. “And my statement was only curiosity. I was wondering why not make every prisoner of war you come across a mage killer and send them back across. The Atropian army is not the fighting force they used to be, with no mage support they would easily crumble. Unless there is some way to tell mage killers apart from the general public.”
“Mages can use mage sight and discover mage killers do not look right” Rebecca said. “Regardless we need to start your training. You said you are decent with a blade?”
“I am” Allen replied.
“Well then this part of your training should be easy” Rebecca replied. “I want you and Warston to spar, no magic involved. You don’t have to beat him, just prove to us you are knowledgeable with the weapon.”
Allen nodded and Rebecca handed him a wooden blade, Allen twirled it around to test its weight and was satisfied he knew the limitations of the weapon. Warston smiled at him and nodded as Allen went on the attack. Warston was bigger and a lot stronger than Allen, Allen knew this from the first couple of strikes but changed up his stance. Allen was stronger than Mary but never really had a chance to use his strength because Mary dodged his blows until she got on the inside where she let her speed and length work. Warston had length on Allen but Allen wasn’t sure if he had the speed. Allen threw wild strikes but always followed them up with a kick, punch or even a headbutt. Allen caught Warston running in a few times with a roundhouse kick and a straight right punch and gained Warston’s respect. Allen sensed Warston liked the close combat and backed away as quickly as possible, throwing himself on his back and rolling backwards and did a headstand to
get back to his feet. Warston was about to do some maneuver but paused when Allen suddenly threw himself backwards.
“I have seen enough” Warston said and put his sword away.
“You were very worried about my weapon but ignored everything else” Allen said.
“I doubt you could seriously hurt me with your blows” Warston replied. “You put enough of your weight into each blow to keep me honest and you changed your style almost instantly. I was trying to time you, your fighting style is different than what I am used to and just when I thought I had you, you rolled and flipped out of the way. I do not think many of the mage killers in the kingdom could best you man to man. If they had mage power with them then maybe, of course you would have your magic so that strength would be nothing.”
“Without it though I can see you would have beaten me eventually” Allen replied. “I could make it interesting and keep you on your toes but I am bound to make a mistake. I don’t have Mary’s length to use against you, I think she could beat you.”
“I think she would take the first couple of matches” Bingley said from the side of the sparring area. “Warston would not respect her as an opponent until it was all over with, even then he might think it was just luck until he had a string of losses.”
“I think I have already said it once but I would like to meet this queen of yours” Warston said. “Once this is all over I would appreciate it if you could make the acquaintance.”
“I will try” Allen replied. “Now tell me about my new team, how the leadership works and how we are going to function.”
“You think you should be the leader?” Rebecca asked.
“I do not care either way” Allen replied. “If I receive an order that places Mary in harm I would not follow it no matter who gave it. If I was given a stupid order I would follow it provided the person who gave it was also in harms way and if I was given a chance to risk my life to save theirs then I would not. Other then that I have no hard feelings about following orders. You made it seem though I was going to be with a bunch of teens.”
“You are” Warston replied. “And you are going to be their leader. Four boys and a young lady, each overcome with silent anger they were not chosen then not trained properly. All five though want to kill mages, the girl is the archer amongst the group. Neither of them have any real size on them, one is taller and broader than you are but he is softer. He just started working out and does not have the strength you have. Like most mage killers, I doubt even half of your people will stay in shape once they leave here.”
~
“This is stupid, I am not following your orders anymore” Jasper said looking at Allen. “I should be in charge.”
“I think he should be in charge too” Valerie said.
“Did you just call me stupid?” Allen said as he got into the boy’s face. Jasper was two inches taller than he was and maybe fifteen pounds heavier. During the week they had trained Allen had showed them some of his magic and what they could do to get closer to their targets. Now though they were on the road to join up with a small company who was tasked with holding a city, the mage killers that were there were almost all wiped out. Only two of the five remained and Allen and his group was supposed to take over. Allen wanted to hurry to get into Atropia and then to the town of Macom to do their duty. The first part of the trip went smoothly, they had carriage rides until they got to the border but now they were on foot. Allen knew trouble was brewing, Jasper Manigault was a minor noble who was used to getting his way because of his family’s power and his size. Valerie was from a poor family who picked grain for a living and was surprised she had any magical talent, before then her prospects of getting out of poverty was low. Now though she was Jasper’s plaything and had eyes on marrying the man so she would side with him. Barry West came from an average mage family and was upset when he was brought to be a mage killer and was scared of war. He was happy to have someone who wanted to be in charge that he thought could back everything up. He hated the bullying Jasper did and would side with Allen. The last two mage killers though would side with Jasper, Timothy Gulidry and Dean Ned were his henchmen throughout whatever training they went through prior to going to the School for Battle Magic and liked the power they received from picking on lesser mages. Neither of them could bully or do much of anything while learning battle magic since most of the mages there were at least as powerful as they were.
“You better get out of my face” Jasper said.
“Or what?” Allen replied as he shoved the boy hard enough to make him stumble and almost fall.
Allen saw the anger on his face and got into his stance, Jasper’s face met Allen’s fist as the boy recklessly charged. Allen stepped to the side as the boy fell forward on the ground stunned. Valerie stepped back and put her hands up, Barry just folded his arms but had a smug look on his face. Allen saw Barry’s eyes go wide and turned to see both Timothy and Dean had their crossbows out.
“I’ll give you one second to put them away or I am going to kill you” Allen said coldly.
A wall shot up in front of Allen as he saw Timothy twitch, a crossbow bolt rang off of the wall and dropped to the ground as Allen wrapped the ground beneath him around his armor. The wall dropped and Allen charged, Dean dropped his unfired crossbow immediately as Allen closed the distance between him and Timothy.
“I’m sorry!” Timothy said cowering as Allen stood over him. “It was an accident, I just wanted to scare you into leaving him alone!”
“You would risk your life because you wanted to stay in an inn instead of camping on the side of the road?” Allen asked as he could see the boy was really frightened.
“I don’t want to go fight, none of us do” Timothy said as he still was crouched down with his arms covering his face.
“You are all scared” Allen said as he let the earth drop from around him. “I am not going to thrust you into anything stupid and I will try my best to protect you. I know it is scary, you are all young and war awaits you. You have my word I am not going to place us in danger, but what you are doing is stupid. None of you are old enough to have the wisdom you need, the longer we hang around here, the more likely the two remaining mage killers get killed. Once that happens the rogue mage that has been spotted can really do a lot of damage, many more men will die because we were scared to do what is right. If you follow me I will lead you, if you do your own thing, I will not. A death sentence awaits you if you return home for desertion, if you do not want to listen to me then fine. Just know I will not be responsible for your welfare and I will go out of my way to ensure none of my protection applies to you.
If you are in trouble know that I will not lift a finger to help you if it places me in danger. If you need help know I am not the person to turn to. I am going through that town up ahead, if any of you want to stay at the inn then do so. Know that I will no longer be your leader and you will expected to fend for yourself in all things. You still have to reach Macom and you can't dawdle either or that would be dereliction of duty. Help Jasper up, we have a long way to travel and I’ll judge by your presence or absence what you want to do.”
Allen was not surprised when Jasper decided he would stay in the inn. Allen did not know if it was because his feelings were hurt or if he thought he could do a better job leading. Allen was also not surprised when Timothy and Dean stayed in town with him. What did surprise Allen was that Barry had also stayed in the town, Allen thought Barry hated Jasper and was most likely bullied by him at one time but stayed anyway. Allen’s other surprise was that the girl Valerie came with him, Jasper had called her all kinds of names as she kept going through the town but she did not waiver. It was only after the sun went down and he decided to stop that he started talking to her.
“Why did you stay with me?” Allen said as he using his magic to make the clearing he found even flatter and moved away the odd stones or plantlife. “I thought you and Jasper were an item.”
“We are” Valerie said meekly. “Or we were.
I like Jasper, well maybe not as much as I let on. But I don’t want to die and I don’t think Jasper is my best chance for survival. I have known him for four and a half years now, he can be intimidating but he is not a leader. At least not one I think can fight the Atropians.”
“And how do you know I can?” Allen asked.
“I don’t” Valerie admitted. “But the other instructors talked about you like you were something special and you look ready to fight at any time. Following Jasper is certain death, at least you are unknown.”
“That makes sense” Allen said as a compressed dirt shelter rose out of the ground complete with roof and a hearth with chimney. “This thing is not the most stable thing in the world but it is bigger than it looks and it won't collapse on you while you are sleeping. It is bigger inside than it looks, I used the dirt inside of it for the walls and roof. It is only one room though, I think we should be within arms reach of one another. If you have to answer a call of nature wake me up so I can let you out.”
“Are we going to keep a watch out here?” Valerie asked.
“No reason to” Allen replied. “As soon as I gather enough firewood I am going to light a fire and cover the entrance. Around this place I will place a high dirt wall, someone would have to knock it down to get to us and if they do we would already be long gone.”
When morning came Allen was already up and got rid of his quick shelter while Valerie was still sleeping. When the cool morning air hit her face she began stirring as Allen was already packed up and ready to go. Allen watched her get up and felt a little bad for the girl, horses did not like mage killers and even the tamest mount could not stand to be ridden by them, it was one of the reasons they had to walk. The group was given little money on purpose to ensure they hurried to reach to their destination, so far Allen hadn’t used much of it and neither did Valerie. The heavy armor she was wearing had to be difficult for her, Allen thought the first time he reached a sizable town that he would do some work to buy either a wagon or a carriage. Horses could stand pulling a mage killer, just not being ridden by one. With five other people buying a small wagon, pull cart or carriage wouldn’t be feasible, with the two of them though it would be. Allen didn’t have to wait long before he came to a town he thought was big
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