by Guy Antibes
He opened the door to a veiled Ralinn.
“Aralinn,” he said.
“May I come in? I brought Parena with me as a chaperone as is dictated by the temple.”
Jack smiled weakly, and let the two sisters in and had them sit down.
“I wasn’t allowed to talk to anyone after my investiture,” Ralinn said. “The temple was in such disarray, I needed to spend all my time figuring out what to do. I am happy to say, Eldora’s spirit has returned. I am unhappy that everything didn’t turn out as I wanted.”
“I am still blessed somehow,” Jack said. He pulled out the little blue box. “River is inside. I can touch it, and it gives me power. I was totally depleted.”
“I know,” Ralinn said. “I was there.”
The memory of that last walk, following Corina through the tunnel burned into him. “I appreciate your being my friend for a while,” Jack said. He didn’t really know what to say or how to say it. The emotions that he felt were too raw.
“More than friends,” Ralinn said. “You saved me, and you saved my brother and his throne. He asked me to tell you that he would prefer that you didn’t spread the story of your contribution to his ascension.”
“Aren’t there many people who know it?”
Ralinn shook her head. “Most people think it was Eldora’s grace that caused the curse to be lifted from our city.”
“It was her, but I was her vessel. She used my power.”
Ralinn nodded. “But you aren’t a Tesorian.”
“Of course I’m not.”
Ralinn took Jack’s hand. “He wants the history to be recorded as Tesorians fighting off the enemies of our country, the Black Fingers and Kadellians.”
“That is the truth, but you don’t want to give three Corandians any credit for helping?”
“It isn’t like that.”
Jack took a deep breath. “It is exactly that. It was going to be like that all along, wasn’t it?”
“How can you say that?” Ralinn said.
“You had your fling before you assumed the robes. I was available. I was used by the Waterfords and by Eldora.” Jack’s face burned red. “You were going to tell me to keep our relationship a secret next, right?”
“I, uh,” Ralinn said. Her face turned as red as Jack’s.
Her wonderful beauty had turned brittle and hard to Jack. “I appreciate you telling me this in person.” Jack took a moment to calm down. “I wish Lark, you, and Tesoria the best.”
Ralinn rose from her seat with Parena and gave him a final forced smile before she left him.
Jack sat down and put his head in his hands. What was he supposed to think anyway? He was only eighteen. Marriage was out of the question. He felt so embarrassed. He was always the one to do the dumping in Raker Falls. He sighed and sighed.
There was another knock on the door. Helen entered.
“She visited you too?” the female mercenary said.
Jack nodded. Helen sat down, heavily, holding onto her side.
“He doesn’t want you to ever mention that he became close?” Jack said.
“And that her relationship with you never existed. But we know better.”
Jack smiled. “It was a fling and nothing more. Our help is to be erased for all time.” He looked into her eyes. He was sure the hurt and the anger that he felt was mirrored in her. “They didn’t have to do it that way,” he said.
“No. It wasn’t real. I think Lark paid attention to me so we would continue to protect them. I even took a wizard bolt for him, and Ralinn said that he would prefer that I never mentioned that I saved his life. There is no chance I will keep my mouth shut, but I won’t open it in Tesoria.”
“We will be written out of the Tesorian history books,” Jack said, “before they are even written. I suppose Jorey has left for Wilton?”
“He left just as Ralinn came. It was as if it was all planned.”
“Not all of it,” Jack said. “They didn’t know if we would have succeeded, but once we did it was over. Just servants, just like we were cast aside at Lady Maltwill’s meeting.”
Tanner walked in, since Helen had kept the door open. He sat next to her.
“He wasn’t right for you anyway,” Tanner said. He tensed up waiting for Helen to say something, but she kissed his cheek instead.
“You knew didn’t you?” Helen said.
Tanner nodded. “I think they were both attracted to you two, so I don’t think they calculated the relationship until they got closer to winning. When it dawned on them what roles they would have to play, everything changed.”
“Enough of that. When will you two be ready to ride out of here?” Jack asked. “Errands are done; we are mostly intact.”
“Mostly,” Helen said. “A few more days,” she said.
“No more veils?” Jack said.
“I agree with that,” Tanner smiled. “We can take Corina back to Yellowbird.”
~
Grand Wizard Jorey Balcon showed up at the Corandian embassy just before the foursome was to leave for Raker Falls via Yellowbird. He brought the possessions they had left behind in Wilton when they had to flee for their lives.
“I’m sorry about Lark and Ralinn. I talked to both of them about how they treated you three. I’m afraid they treated Helen and Jack rather abominably. I will make sure that any histories I write or discuss with others will include your roles in the rise to their positions.” Jorey turned to Helen. “King Larkin should have talked to you directly rather than send his sister. I have scolded him as much as I dare. Ralinn…” he shook his head, “treated you most foully, Jack. She was sincere, I believe, in her feelings toward you, but when all was said and done, she thought of the future, didn’t see you in it, and wanted to erase your part. You were the most responsible for saving Gameton and securing their part in Tesoria’s history. Eldora trusted you, not her. Never forget that,” Jorey said.
“I appreciate your coming from Wilton to see us off,” Tanner said.
Jack was nearly speechless, but he did manage to say, “It was Eldora who saved her country,” he said. “I was merely the vessel she used to do it.”
“Never forget she chose you. Have a good trip back. I communicated with Fasher. He thinks you did very well, although he might not say it,” Jorey said with a sly smile. “Farewell. If you find yourself in the southern part of Tesoria again, I will treat you like the heroes you are, even if two others choose to ignore you. You saved me as much as you saved them.”
A thought popped into Jack’s head. “What was the difference between the spell in the warded box that Fasher sent and the spell that eradicated the Black Finger Society in Gameton?”
Jorey raised his eyebrows. “A good, astute question from a budding sorcerer. The intensity, I imagine. It is a very, very potent spell and one very few of us can pull off. Fasher did as well as he could, as a mortal, but Eldora is on a different plane than the rest of us. Who knows how she does what she does? Don’t let anyone take the fish bone from you. Since your kiss marks are gone, it is the only evidence of the truth of what happened a few days ago.”
“I won’t,” Jack said, touching the box on the leather thong, nestled next to the Serpent’s Orb.
The grand wizard left them at the embassy. They had very little packing to do. Jack fingered the first veil that Ralinn had given him. He fingered the embroidery and left it along with a few other things in a pile in his room. The less he thought of the young woman, the better.
“I have to get a new helmet,” Jack said as Tanner, and he went into the market to pick up a few last minute supplies. “The old one served its purpose,” he said wistfully.
He found another he liked better, and Tanner approved, so he used it to put some of their supplies in on their way back to the embassy. No one paid them any attention as they strolled through the place. Ralinn and Lark would always have attendants wherever they went in the city. That definitely wasn’t the kind of life Jack wanted to live, so things probab
ly turned out for the better anyway. At least that was the excuse he thought of.
They rode out right after lunch. Tanner was armed with a newer map. All reports the ambassador had gotten indicated the insurgencies had calmed down. There were still Black Finger wizards outside of Gameton, but most of those had fled east to Kadellia or west to where there were still society members.
“It is good to get out of this city,” Corina said as she looked up at the massive gate to the city.
They left Gameton in better shape than when they entered, except for the wounds that both Corina and Helen sustained. Jorey had even helped those along with a little more wizardry healing before they left. Jack tried to keep from looking back, but he didn’t succeed. He stopped and gazed back at the castle and the temple, rising above the other rooftops. As much as he hated to admit it, Ralinn would always have a tiny corner in his heart.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
~
“I t is a lot faster when you travel in a straight line,” Helen said with a smile when they reached Yellowbird. They had stayed at inns each night and used the main road.
Corina led them to the burned-out hulk of her former home. She dismounted and stood to look at it, with hands on hips, not uttering a word or looking back at them. Eventually, she sighed.
“My time is finished here,” Corina said. “I still have this.” She showed them Eldora’s kiss. “I think I might end up going home. It is on the way to Underville in Corand.”
“Sure,” Helen said.
Jack looked at Tanner, but neither of them said anything.
They continued north, not moving particularly fast, and came to the crossroads that Corina had to take. She shook her head and didn’t say a word as she moved past it.
That night, when they sat down in the dining room of a very nice inn, Corina smiled at them.
“I don’t think I can go home right now. If you don’t mind, I’d like to travel with you and see Fasher after all these years.”
She didn’t look happy in the least. Melancholy was the word that came to Jack’s mind. All four of them seemed a bit that way, even Tanner. He tried to joke with anyone who could endure his prattling, but everyone seemed to be in their own cocoon.
When they reached Garran, close to the border before they entered Corand, Helen said out of the blue, “Looking forward to getting home, onion boy?”
Jack smiled. At least she was back. “I am, except for having to endure more of Penny Ephram’s taunting.”
Tanner grinned and rubbed his hair. “Are you going to let a girl get the best of you?”
“It has happened often enough,” Jack said, but he caught himself and didn’t mention Ralinn. “I always give her more than she gets from me.”
“What is this? You already had a girlfriend?” Corina said with a smile.
It was like the sun coming out from behind the clouds.
“No. Fasher’s niece, Penny Ephram. She is Fasher’s apprentice. I’m just the servant.”
“Helper,” Helen said. “You are a wizard’s helper.”
Jack shook his head. “Sort of. He treats me like a servant, but I’m okay with that. I got to travel to Lajia; Dorkansee, the capital of Corand; and Tesoria.”
“It is a rare servant who is sent on those kinds of errands,” Corina said.
Jack made a funny face acknowledging her comment, but he had a hard time believing it. Fasher sent him into certain danger this time. Jack could just as easily have died along the way. That was true for all four of them.
“I am the rare servant then. I’m kind of a wizard who doesn’t know many spells. I’ll just wait to learn more,” Jack said.
In the morning they mounted, and in the afternoon, they passed into Corand. Jack let out a whoop. All the trials he had faced seem to slough away. He couldn’t stop smiling as he passed the sword smith’s place and proceeded into Underville. Tanner and Helen started joking around and sniping at each other again. It left Corina, who seemed to get more anxious while Jack got less.
~
Raker Falls never looked better. The sky was blue. It was harvest season, so there were people busy all along the way, and Jack quite enjoyed the ride. They came into the village and rode passed Jack’s house. He had to report to Fasher before returning to his family.
Jack felt pretty good. He returned with an old girlfriend of Fasher’s and two new objects of power. The blue box had returned to its previous state, and the Serpent’s Orb was filled with magic, since it was in constant contact with Eldora’s box the entire way back from Gameton.
After racing past his friends, Jack reached the wizard’s house first. He ran up the steps and opened the door
“What are you doing here?” Penny said. He wouldn’t have been surprised if she had stuck her tongue out at him.
“Is that you, Jack?” Fasher said, opening the door to his office, standing in the doorway with his arms folded.
“It is. I have filled the orb with power, or I should say, my latest object of power has. My second warded box,” he said. “We brought a willing gift for you.” Jack couldn’t help but grin.
Fasher looked at him funny. “I didn’t ask for anything. You completed your errand. That is reward enough.” He glanced outside as Tanner, Helen, and Corina stopped.
“Jorey didn’t tell me,” Fasher said, staring out the window.
The man suddenly looked more nervous than Jack had ever seen him. The wizard ran outside.
Penny came to Jack’s side. “What did you do to him?” she said, poking him in the side with her finger.
“A little reunion. Fasher’s old girlfriend.”
“Uncle Fasher had a girlfriend?” Penny looked stunned as she looked on while the wizard helped Corina from the saddle.
It was apparent that the wizard was deeply touched to see the woman after so many years. They hugged each other, but it was tentative. The pair disengaged and laughed—awkwardly—but they laughed.
“That is so touching,” Penny said.
Jack looked over and noticed tears welling in Penny’s eyes. “He deserves something good for doing what he did.”
Penny screwed up her face. “What did he do that was so good, and why don’t I know about it?”
“Fasher set everything into motion that saved Tesoria from falling into the hands of the Black Finger Society.”
The girl frowned. “He was here the whole time.”
“They don’t call me his helper for nothing,” Jack said.
Epilogue
~
E verything turned black. Jack looked at a familiar scene unfolding before his eyes. He pinched himself but didn’t feel a thing.
“This is a dream,” he said out loud.
A blue mist coalesced in front of him revealing Eldora, the goddess. Her face shone with radiant light.
“It is good to talk to you, again, Jack Winder. We have a few things to discuss before I am through with you.”
“You already know everything, don’t you?” Jack said. It was only a dream so he could be flippant to a goddess.
“Not quite everything. I vividly remember all things that have happened in the past, but even gods can’t anticipate all the antics of their mortal charges, even yours, Jack Winder.” She smiled, and it filled Jack with a wonderful feeling.
“Stop it. I don’t deserve to feel this good.”
Eldora frowned. “Probably not, but I can do worse. Do you want worse?”
Jack sighed. “I’ve already had worse.”
“Aralinn? Consider that an arrow, luckily dodged, my Jack. She would have kept you from a lot of adventures. I wouldn’t have permitted it anyway. She has her little tasks to perform as my servant in Tesoria.” Eldora’s eyes flashed. “You, on the other hand, are much more interesting.”
Jack sighed. “Are you going to start sending me on errands now?”
She smiled again, but it didn’t fill him with joy like the last one did. He wished the goddess would make up her mind.
&nbs
p; “Who said I didn’t just send you on one?”
“Well, Fasher sent me on my first errand.”
“Fasher Tempest will send you on all of them. The Serpents Orb? That is an object of power from Alderach. You have one from the three gods that look over the three countries you have visited. There might be more,” Eldora said, “if you survive.
“More?”
The goddess nodded. “Prepare yourself. I enjoy seeing you work things out for yourself and do good works along the way.”
“I nearly died from my good works,” Jack said.
“And if you do, three of us will fight to see in whose heaven you will end up.”
“You know Takia and Alderach?”
She laughed. It was like a thousand tinkling bells. “Of course, I do. Takia was very impressed. Alderach, he is elsewhere at present, so don’t worry about him.”
“I’m not so important that you need to visit me,” he said, becoming uncomfortable the way his dream was going. He was getting weary about Eldora’s compliments and telling him he was important.
“I see you aren’t in the mood.” She laughed again. “Remember, I am watching over you, but know that I cannot intervene directly in human affairs.”
Jack touched the blue box at this neck. “This isn’t intervention?”
Eldora made a little pout with her lips. “An indirect intervention, Jack Winder. I charmed the fish bones eons ago, and the pool was enchanted not much before that. If you went to the sanctuary again and did the same thing, the same effect would occur. Any wizards not supporting the rightful heirs to the throne of Tesoria would have perished.”
“But the charmed gates?”
“That will fade away in a few of your years,” Eldora said. “Don’t worry about that. Just do what Fasher Tempest has you do. I know that it won’t be easy, but please try. I will go now and send you the sweetest of dreams.”
~
Jack yawned. He sat up in his bed and stretched, wondering how Corina was doing with the Ephrams. She really did know Penny’s mother from long ago, but that was Fasher’s problem. Jack had to get back to being Fasher’s personal servant. He yawned again and gawked.