Stonecutter's Shadow: A young mage's fight through a fantasy kingdom full of treachery

by James Haddock

  “Weeel now,” I said smiling, “That's a fine tale, indeed. T'was a blustery December's morn, ya see.”

  “Wait,” Karl said, laughing.

  “T'is only late September lad,” Cookie said, smiling.

  “T'was a bluster late September morn,” I started again. “The seas were running high.” I stopped, thinking. “No, wait a minute...that was something else.” They laughed.

  “Anyway, he was a merchant who sold me some items, and seeing I had coin, sent his henchmen to rob me. It seems that he had done this before, and I was just another victim in a long line of victims. I turned the tables on him, and... well, he’s no longer in business. It seemed a waste to leave all that behind.” I finished, chuckling.

  “Are we leaving in the morning?”

  “Aye, early breakfast, then on our way,” Karl answered.

  I nodded, “then I'd better get some sleep.” I gathered my sleeping blankets and laid them out under my new wagon. once I had settled, I went into Shadow, and sat cross-legged. I lit a mage fire, as I wanted to examine the mage bracelets. I took them from my purse and looked at the glyphs, and runes. I couldn't read runes, yet, but the glyphs were simple. One had the glyph of a flaming sword, and a flying dagger. The other had a glyph of a bow with flaming arrow, and a flaming spear. I'd need to be out and alone to try these. I put them around my wrists. I probably wouldn't need them tonight, but I feel foolish getting killed because I was not wearing them. I extinguished my fire and rolled out of the Shadow back into my blankets.

  * * *

  We were up with the sun, ate, and hitched the wagon teams. They had assigned a man to drive my wagon, once the teams were hitched, I rode out with the other scouts. My plain horse made a good scout horse. He was calm, always quiet, fast and had plenty of stamina. I let the older scouts take the lead, it was their profession after all. I was young and still learning.

  We came upon a trail breaking off, and the lead looked at me and pointed to it. I nodded and followed it. As soon as I was in Shadow, I knew there was no one down this trail. I rode on a bit, then stopped. I looked around, and dismounted, thinking this would be as good a place as any. I concentrated, feeling the knife bracelet, and made a throwing motion at a tree. A mage dagger flew from my hand and sank to the hilt into the tree, sizzling before disappearing.

  I thought of the mage sword, I made a cutting motion at a tree. The mage sword never slowed down, cutting a slice from the tree trunk. I unslung my bow and grasped the bowstring as if there were an arrow notched. I thought of the flaming arrow bracelet and drew back my bowstring. A mage arrow appeared notched, and I sighted down it. I released, it streaked straight to the targeted tree, through it, blowing chunks of wood off the back.

  I slung my bow across my back. I made a swinging motion like I would with a spear, and a mage spear formed slicing through the area in front of me. I made a few more slices and jabs before letting it disappear. Satisfied, I mounted, and rode to rejoin the scouts. We found a good camp site for the night and killed two stags to add to the evening meal. Since Cookie didn't have to cook for everyone, he helped Karl and I in the evening. After we trained, “I want to show you something,” I said. He nodded and I stepped us into Shadow.

  “When the merchant and I were having our ‘discussion’, he almost killed me with this,” I said letting a mage dagger appear in my hand. Karl stepped closer looking at it. “These can be thrown at a target, then another is ready to throw. It can also to do this,” I said. Stepping farther from him, extending the mage sword. “If I had been standing closer to him, he would have cut me in half.” The sword disappeared, I took the bracelet off, and showed it to him.” See the glyphs, the dagger, and sword? You just think of which one you want, and it does the rest.” I snapped it around his wrist and stepped back. He tried both the dagger, and the sword, smiling.” Now you'll never be unarmed,” I said.

  “You don't want this for yourself?”

  “You need it more than I do since I can always go to Shadow, besides you're a better swordsman than I am. And I have this,” I mimed having a bow in my hand to show him an arrow. But when I made the motion of drawing a bow, both a bow and arrow appeared in my hands. Shocked I held the bow away from me looking at it.

  “Amazing,” Karl said looking at it.

  “It is, it usually only gives me an arrow to fit my bow. I guess if I don't have my bow, it gives me one,” I said smiling. I also showed him the spear.

  “We'll need to practice with these.”

  “Some days you can ride scout with me, and we'll go off alone and practice. One last thing, our shields only work the direction we are facing, just like a real shield. That's how I killed the merchant, I got behind him and darted him in the back of his neck. It seemed to surprise him that it happened. So even though we are wearing shields,” I activated my shield and turned away. “We can be hurt from behind.”

  He was looking at his bracers, “good to know.” I made sure no one was around and stepped us out of Shadow. We joined Cookie at our fire for hot tea, and stories.

  * * *

  Our daily routine became the same, up early, breakfast, travel 10 miles and camp. Karl and I did train at least once a day, usually with Cookie. Cookie was an excellent knife fighter, far better than us is every other aspect of fighting. I put in extra time at night practicing my cape dancing with my fighting knives. I figured most of my fights would be in close quarters.

  The weather was turning colder, and we were getting more rain, which made everyone miserable. We camped a half day short of Split Rock, so we could scout the area. The company scouted the surrounding country, Karl and I scouted the keep, village, and cove.

  I put Karl and I in Shadow and we walked the horses to the keep. “I was hoping for better,” Karl said. “But I guess we work with what we have. What do you think?”

  I dismounted and touched the keep's wall, which was covered in ivy. I felt the stones. letting them speak to me. “The original foundation has sunk, and the walls have weakened, but it's not beyond repair. I've never tried anything like this, so I don't know how much I can do, or how long it will take.”

  We walked inside the keep walls and took the stairs up to the battlements. From there we could see the village and the cove. “I thought you said large boats don't come here.” I said, chin pointing toward the cove. There was a large boat, or perhaps a small ship, beached in the cove.

  “That's what I was told.”

  “Merchants, maybe?” I asked.

  “Maybe, but it's odd there's no one around it.”

  “Well, we're here to scout, so let’s go have a look. We'll ride the horses closer, then leave them in Shadow. From there we'll see what's going on.”

  We rode the horses down to the village, away from the cove. Leaving our horses, we stayed in Shadow and walked along the street looking into windows. No one was visible.

  “They’re probably at the tavern,” Karl said. We looked in the windows of the tavern and saw the townspeople were sitting on the floor on one side of the room with armed men guarding them. “Pirates.”

  The pirates were drinking, but not drunk. “I bet they have taken the village, planning to winter here,” I said. “Let's take the ship first, then deal with the ones inside.”

  Karl nodded, and we headed toward the small ship. We went up the Shadow, over the side, and found the first watchman. I thrust my blade up the back of his neck into his brain and pulled him into our Shadow. He was dead before he hit the deck. We found the next deck guard aft and I did the same to him.

  We searched below decks, finding a good amount of cargo, but no more crew. We went back to the tavern and went through a window Shadow. We stood by the wall, “how do you want to handle them?” I asked.

  Karl shrugged, “Kill them.”

  “Ok, I'll use my bow, you keep them off us with your daggers and sword.” He nodded. “He looks like the captain,” I said chin pointing at a table.

  “Yeah, kill those three first,” Kar
l said.

  I drew my mage bow, and the mage arrow formed. A mage dagger appeared in Karl’s hand. I stepped us from the Shadow, and the killing began. I loosed my arrow and drew a second as the first one went through the pirate captain. I fired the second and third arrows quickly, killing the other two at the captain’s table. Karl had killed as many with his mage daggers. The pirates were so stunned they had yet to move as we mowed them down.

  The fight was over almost before it started. “No one move!” I shouted. Keeping my mage bow drawn, looking for my next target — but there were none… all the pirates were dead.

  “Who's in charge here?” Karl asked.

  “I'm the headman of the village,” a man at the back said.

  The pirates had roughed him up, he was speaking through a bleeding mouth. “Are there any more pirates in the village?”

  “Not that I know of sir. They brought us all in here and said they were taking over the village for the winter. If we cooperated, we'd live, or they would take us as slaves. I don't know how many are on the ship.”

  “Keep your people in here, headman, while we go take care of the ship,” Karl said, leading me outside. “We now own a ship,” he said, smiling.

  Chapter 11

  We went back aboard. “So, what now, Captain?” I asked, chuckling.

  “Well, you stay on our ship, I'll go explain things to the headman. Then we'll bring the company in.”

  I nodded, “I'll stand guard.”

  He went back to the tavern. I remembered our horses were in Shadow, so I ran and got our horses, left his outside the tavern, then went back to the ship. Karl waved as he came out of the tavern, mounting his horse and riding back toward the company. The villagers exited the tavern, bringing the dead with them.

  An older man came to the ship looking at her. “May I come aboard?”

  “Come on up.” I answered.

  He came aboard looking around. “You would think that someone who depended on a ship to live would take better care of her.”

  I nodded. “I was told ships couldn't come into the cove.”

  “They can, you just have to do it at the right time of the tide and follow the right course to stay off the rocks.”

  “So, these men knew of the cove's dangers?”

  “They had to, otherwise they would never have come in.”

  “So, someone in their crew had been here before, or someone warned them of the dangers.” I said.

  “Makes you wonder which, doesn't it?”

  “It does,” I said nodding, “it does indeed.”

  “What will your captain do with her?”

  “I'm not sure… find a captain and crew I'd guess.” we walked the length of the ship.

  “She's seaworthy at least. She needs some cleaning and some fixin'. Thank you for letting me look.” he said and left. I figured he'd be back.

  I felt through the Shadows of the ship, sensing nothing but what we'd seen… no magic and no gold. These were down and out pirates hoping not to starve this winter. Well, now they wouldn't.

  I decided to doze in Shadow, where it was warm, I wasn't worried about anyone sneaking onboard, knowing that the Shadows would warn me if anyone approached.

  It was some time before the first of the company showed up. They set a guard at the ship and at the keep. The rest of the company arrived in the early morning hours and stopped at the keep. Once the sun was up, they set up the rest of the camp. I rode up to the keep and helped where I could.

  Cookie handed me meat and bread, “I can't let you two out of my sight, can I?”

  I poured a cup of hot tea, “It was his idea,” I answered, smiling.

  “Yeah, he said the same thing,” he said, chuckling.

  Once finished eating, I went to the keep, and looked around some more. I went down to where the stone of the keep met the natural rock. I sat down and concentrated, feeling the living rock and finished stone. I let my senses stretch to every corner of the keep and to every crevice of the rock. I don't know how long I sat there, thinking about how to raise the foundation, and to refresh the fitted stone.

  Trying something was better than sitting here doing nothing. I concentrated on the bedrock and tried to raise it. Nothing happened. I saw bedrock in my mind raising up to support the foundation, strengthening it.

  At a loss, I finally ‘asked’ the bedrock to rise. After a few seconds I felt something change, my amulet was tingling, and becoming warm. I waited, then felt the bedrock begin to rise. I held the thought in mind of what I wanted. The bedrock continued to rise, until it rested where I had asked.

  I thanked the rock and opened my eyes. I must have been sitting here for quite a while because the sun was well up, and I was starving. I was also tired, feeling like I had been working in the quarry all morning. I walked back to our wagons ate and rested.

  Karl sat down at the fire, getting a cup of tea, “Make any progress?”

  “Some, I fixed the foundation, I'll do some more after I've rested.”

  “If you can fix the walls first, that will at least give us some protection.”

  I nodded, “There was a man looking at the ship while I waited for your return last night. I got the feeling he'd be back to see you.”

  “Maybe he was interested in working on it or knows someone who is.”

  “I got the idea he was looking to captain it.”

  “We need one of those too. Speaking of that, I think Cookie and I will go inventory the cargo — we may need some of it.”

  “While you are down there, see if there is a merchant house where we can sell the cargo we don't need,” I said.

  “Good idea, I like the way you think. We can have the ship make supply runs for us.”

  He and Cookie left for the ship. I went back into the keep, where I had sat talking to the rock… well, I hadn't really talked to it, but that's the only way I know to describe it. I sat down, getting comfortable, then touched the rock, letting my senses reach out like I do when I Shadow Meld. Maybe this was like Stone Melding. If there was such a thing. I started feeling through the living rock and stone like I did with shadows. My amulet began to warm, as my senses moved along.

  I was able to feel the whole keep, finding where the stone had weakened, concentrating on the walls first. Every place the walls were weak, I asked the rock, or mortar to strengthen. As before, my amulet tingled and became warmer. The repair started slowly at first, but begun moved faster. By the end of the day, I was exhausted, and hungry enough to eat a whole stag, but a third of the walls were restored. I left the Ivy in place since I didn't want to advertise my progress.

  I ate enough for two people and went straight to sleep. At breakfast, I ate like a starving man. “Don't push yourself too hard,” Cookie warned. “That hunk of rock ain't going nowhere. We've got time.”

  Karl was nodding, “rest this morning, start slowly again this afternoon.” I nodded, went back to my sleeping mats and was out.

  * * *

  I felt better when I woke and ate. I went back to the keep and continued my work, but with less intensity. I improved the treasury vault, adding a stone door. We moved all the plunder from the wagon Shadow to the treasury.

  It took me the rest of the week to restore the walls, once the work was complete the ivy that covered the walls let go and fell to the ground. It was like an unveiling of my work.

  I took a day off to rest — in the meantime the mercenaries had cut timber to make a gate since the old one was beyond repair. I went down to the cove, sat on the rocks, and enjoyed the sun. As I sat there, I let my mine drift, watching clouds, listening to the surf.

  Without conscious thought my senses flowed down through the rocks that ran back to the keep, and out into the cove. I felt the flow of the ocean as the water moved over the rocks, and the coral. I could feel the sea life, as the waves moved to-and-fro. I now understood why not many ships tried to land here, as there was only a narrow space through which a ship could safely pass.

  I didn't
really plan it; I just asked the rocks to sink further into the floor of the cove. It wasn't like forcing the rock to sink, it was more like working with them to lower themselves. I didn't feel any exertion — we just moved down together. Now the cove was completely open, and anyone could land here.

  But what about during a storm? I reached farther offshore and raised rocks to form a breakwater. Now the cove was protected, and the water on the land side of the reef was calm. The strange thing was I was still rested, calm, and refreshed.

  I noticed some fishermen gathering on the shore pointing to the new breakwater. Some took to their boats to see what had changed in their cove. I felt Karl approaching me, I stayed seated. “You playing with rocks again?” he asked, smiling.

  “A little. I lowered the jagged rocks so ships could land here without fear of tearing their bottoms out.”

  “In that case, I'll tell the villagers what we've done for them to make their lives easier.”

  I laughed, as he walked toward the crowd. It was funny watching him making arm gestures, as he told how he had single handedly saved the day. Well, occasionally, he'd point toward me. Probably telling them how I wiped the sweat from his brow as he labored. I closed my eyes, and relaxed.

  * * *

  Using what I had learned working with the rock in the cove, I restored the rest of the keep’s buildings in two days, and we were able to occupy them. We’d still have to hire carpenters to finish the woodwork.

  Karl decided it was time to reveal his identity. We talked to Captain Rollings first, “When I hired you, I led you to believe I was an illegitimate son of some royal.” The captain nodded.

  “That was only half true, I am the son of a royal, just not illegitimate. My name is Prince Aric Redmoore.” I watched the captain's reaction closely. He looked past Aric at me, I nodded.

  We waited whiled the captain considered the implications. “How bad is it that the crown prince must hide his identity to move across county to the last place anyone would look?”