Nia flew over to us as she cried, “You’re going to be gone for days? Why does this always happen to me?” She franticly flew over to Faeron. “I can go with him, right? Please say I can go with him!” He shook his head no.
“I’ll be fine, Nia, so don’t worry. Remember, even out of my armor, I’m not defenseless. I’ll be back before you know it, so please don’t worry.”
She sniffled and flew over to sit disconsolately on the rock, her arms crossed in a pout. Faeron came over to us. “I hate to have to do this, but there is also another rule.” He held up an actual stone knife and a small bundle of leather. “You can only take these with you…and only these. You can change on the other side of the rock.”
Great, going into a dark forest in a loin cloth; I always wanted to do that - not! I did as I was told and went behind the rock to change. Apparently, they don’t make these things for someone my size. As I walked out from behind the rock, Faeron shook his head but tried to hide his mirth. “I am so sorry, Alex.” I looked around to see Renalla blatantly staring at me and Maya nibbling on her finger.
“Well, daughter,” Renalla smiled, approvingly, “that is one hell of a body!”
“Mother!” Maya ground her teeth. “Stop eyeing my boyfriend! I have enough trouble keeping the twins at bay; I don’t need you trying to get in his pants, too.”
She smiled. “Not that hard, dear; he’s not wearing any pants!”
“Mother!”
“Just to add my comments, mmm-mmm,” said Winya.
I sighed, shook my head and said goodbye to everyone, especially the disgruntled pixie. I smiled as I watched the King and Queen begin walking home arm in arm like a couple of human teenagers, followed by their guards. Maya and Nia plopped down on a blanket and settled in to wait.
With a resigned breath, I started my trip into the forest. It was dark, and I mean like full-ink-bottle dark, but with my mage sight, it was almost bright as day for me. My pace was pretty good, but I will admit I would have liked some shoes or at least a foot wrap or something. Maya keeps me in shape training, but barefooted combat was something we just don’t do. So I really had to watch my step; but even so, there were a few instances where I was reduced to a simpering idiot hopping around on one foot. I just had to hope there wasn’t anyone following me, evaluating my trip and taking off points for tender-footedness.
Every so often, I would deliberately turn off my mage sight and pretend I was a normal human. Then the darkness would overwhelm me and I would stop dead in my tracks, confused. I also thought I heard whispers in the night air. “Go right…run…go left.” Of course, as soon as I activated the mage vision, all became clear again and the noises retreated to normal forest sounds.
I decided now would be a good time to check in on Rosa, and the first thing she said was, “I’ve been told to tell you that Dawn will happily be there in less than two hours if you promise not to change out of the loin cloth…No, make that less than an hour!”
“What, are you giving everyone there a running account? What is with everyone? It’s just a loin cloth!”
“That’s just it! It’s just a loin cloth! I’m sure if you did one loop around Sky Raven in that, every girl here would be all over you. It would make the pied piper legend look foolish!”
“Thanks, I think. So what’s going on over there?”
“Well, let’s see…I’ve been working on creating a new portal for Sky Raven, a new and improved version of the ones I made centuries ago. Much more versatile and with better safeguards. Oh, I finally found that thing you needed from the black room; let me just say I never want to do that again! As for everything else, things are going really well. We are already getting supplies delivered from Belrothe’s farmers, and they seem more than happy to trade with us. In fact, I do believe that dashing young cavalry commander stops by almost every day. I have heard he’s making quite a splash with the older healer girls. I’m pretty sure the road between the farms and Sky Raven is the most secure ever.”
“Speaking of the road, the earth wizards have completed most of the repairs to the citadel and they have started improving the road from here down to the main trade route. Nearly every morning we find a pile of fresh herbs and other ingredients left near the bridge; the healers absolutely love that. Your parents are helping out, too, teaching some of the classes. Imagine learning magic directly from the celestial beings who created it! We are so kicking the asses of any other mage school out there. By the way, the twins both say that they miss you two very much, but I think they are hoping that when you return, their training will be over and they can finally get away from the nebulia maidens!”
“But the news is not all good. From what we are hearing from our first test trips through the portal, Ocanse has fallen. It’s been completely overrun by the Duke’s forces, and waves of refugees are pouring into Elcanse and Anshea. More area of the map, sadly, turned to black. Sorry to end on a sour note, but I think you have reached your destination.”
“Good night, Rosa.”
I had indeed reached my goal. A few hundred feet in front of me was a small twig hut. Light from a fire could be seen through a tiny window and there was herbal-smelling smoke rising through the roof. I walked over and knocked on the door. “I believe someone is at the door, Master,” I heard from within.
“That’s odd this time of year. Kahr, be a good lad and deal with it will you?”
“Yes, Master.” The door opened to a rather surprised young dark elf. Scrawny didn’t begin to describe this kid, who I assumed was the Shaman’s apprentice. He was wearing a black robe, was heavily tattooed on his face and arms, and had animal bones and other fetishes woven into his waist length ponytail. “Master, it’s another trial, but this one’s human.”
“A human? Well, don’t just stand there, bring him in!” The young man stepped aside, revealing a small hut packed with all manner of things, most of which looked to be used with magic. There were also a lot of herbs and other exotic healing-related items like dried birds feet in bunches hanging from the ceiling. I’m not sure if Alera would have been fascinated or appalled at the sight. In the center was a fire pit with a pot of bubbling stew and an old dark elf tending it.
“Ah, it is a human…and a big one, too.” Well, I’m not really a human but I wasn’t about to tell him that. The old elf shuffled closer to the back wall and activated a couple of glow orbs, which started out pretty feeble but gained strength with time. Now I could see that he was dressed in a slightly more elaborate robe than his apprentice. The old elf had fewer tattoos and his hair was not as tamed as the other, either. As I saw his face, I could see the strong family resemblance to both Renalla and Maya, the same quirky turn of the mouth and sparkle in the eyes. He motioned for me to sit. As I was about to say something, he held up a single finger indicating I should wait.
The apprentice retreated to a far corner of the room and appeared to go into a meditative trance. The shaman smiled sheepishly and rummaged around in a large ornate basket that was positioned nearby. Finally, he withdrew a large piece of headgear - an animal skull actually; it made me think of a large ox or bison of some kind. The skull was adorned heavily with runes, bangles, and hand-painted pictograms of various animals. He placed it on his head and with a contented sigh, reached near the fire for a pipe that I hadn’t noticed sitting there before. Taking a theatrical long pull off the bowl, he blew the smoke into the air, which suddenly gave the entire interior a flickering, hazy, almost ghostly appearance.
Sitting down across from me, he laboriously crossed his legs. I saw a shadow of a smile cross his face as he absently batted at a loose bangle that was dangling from the skull in his line of sight. “So! Tell old shaman Mingt what I can do for you, young man?”
I didn’t really know what to say; I mean the apprentice seemed to know why I was there. “Um, I guess I’m here for the trial.”
The old man eyed me and snorted, “The trial, huh? Are you expecting me to have some test for you? Send you out to
procure a golden cockatrice feather? Bring me a flask of water from the well of the eternally endowed? Hmmm? Was the trial of the dark forest not hard enough for you, oh hefty human?”
“Uh, well no, I wouldn’t say that but it’s not that far of a walk or anything.”
“Not that far of a walk he says! You’re right, it’s not. But tell me, how many days did you spend in that forest on your short hike?”
I shrugged. “I’d say only about a half hour or so. It was only two miles and I was moving rather slow. If I ran, I could have made it in no time, but I didn’t get the feeling there was a time limit.”
His eyes were wide. “Truly? You had no troubles at all?”
“No, not really. There were some pointy rocks and sharp sticks, and a marmot that just wouldn’t get out of the way. I guess I don’t go barefoot much.”
The man was stunned. “That forest has broken the minds of many young men and women; and you, a human, walked right on through it? What are you?”
I shrugged. “Well, I guess me being an enchanter might have had an effect.”
“An enchanter? Ha! You might as well tell old Mingt that you were whelped by a six-headed goat as claim to be an enchanter! There’s only one in existence and you’re not her!” He scoffed, batting at another loose item on the skull hat.
I nodded. “Well, there’s actually two of us at Xarparion now; at least, there was before the attack.”
“You’re from Xarparion? What do you know of the events there?”
“I was there during the attack; my friends and I were able to get a few hundred people out. Sadly, two towers of students are still trapped there,” I said.
“What of the Headmaster? And the tower Primuses!” he questioned sharply.
“All dead. My master, Rosa, is now the Headmaster.”
He smiled fondly. “Rosa is the Headmaster? I remember her; she was a sweet girl and I regret my treatment of her.”
“You were at the school?”
He laughed. “I was a teacher, in fact.”
“He is being modest. This is Headmaster Mingt, Primus of the Fire Tower before he was kicked out.”
“Why was that?” I asked Rosa.
“The rest of the fire wizards thought his methods were too soft and that fire is exclusively a force of destruction, not of creation like he taught. He was a good man. Though I hated him at the time, I knew what he was trying to do for me and I thank him for the lessons he taught me.”
I nodded to myself. “You weren’t just a teacher, you were the Primus of the Fire Tower. You were also a kind man who believed that a fire wizard should be taught to create, as well as destroy. They drove you out because they feared what you might change.”
His jaw dropped. “How did you know that?”
“Rosa just told me. She forgives you, by the way, and is actually very thankful for your teachings.”
“She is? Wait a second, that must mean that you two have formed a bond then, correct?” I nodded as he paused and stroked his chin. “Interesting, very interesting.” Then he smiled and took off the skull hat and tossed it casually back in the basket. “Since you’re a colleague, I can dispense with the silly props for the misinformed,” he chuckled, waving his hand around, indicating all the contents of the hut. “There are certain expectations for a shaman, you understand.”
Getting more input from Rosa, I leaned forward. “She could really use your help if you are willing to give it. The Headmasters are all gone; the teachers are gone. The Fire Tower is down to only four troublemakers now. Our two towers are being led by our oldest students, leaving the Enchanters Hall as the most effective group left, and there are only seven of us.”
He nodded solemnly. “That’s unfortunate and I would help if I could, but I am just too old for this kind of thing. I am probably on borrowed time as it is. But I won’t send you off with nothing when my life’s work is in danger. I know a few people who retired early from the school; I’ll contact them and see if they can meet up with your group.”
“Thank you, sir; any help is welcome. But if you change your mind, we would be glad to have you. I have to say, you aren’t like any fire wizard I’ve ever met before.”
His face took on an amused expression. “If you mean that I’m not a mean-spirited, egotistical bully with poor anger control and a fireball in each hand, then I’ll take that as a compliment.” He sighed. “Son, fire is the most human-like of the elements. It lives, breathes, eats, and dies. Because of that, it’s also the easiest to use, and also to misuse. It’s learning the discipline of the mind that’s hard. Unfortunately, that’s where my successors failed their students. You tell Rosa I think she will make a good Headmaster.”
“I will, thank you, sir.”
He nodded. “Now, we better get you under way. So, you’re doing the trial to become a man, huh?” he said as he gathered a few things together that were within reach of where he was seated. “Any particular reason? I say this not because I don’t think you’re worthy, but it’s not often a human chooses to undertake the trial.”
“I hope to marry a remarkable dark elf girl.”
“Ah,” he said, smiling as he started grinding up herbs in a bowl, “of course, and who might this lucky lady be?”
“Maya, your granddaughter.”
He paused and stared at me for several seconds. “I am really hoping your name is Alex.”
“It is.”
“Good.” He continued mixing ingredients in the bowl. “Then you better be good to her and prove to my son-in-law that you are worthy of her.” I nodded firmly. “Now, close your eyes and hold still. I am going to put paint on you and you mustn’t look at it until I am done or the spell won’t work.” He closed his eyes and held up two brushes loaded with paint. I clamped my own eyes shut and even refrained from using my mage sight.
I felt the brushes contact the skin on my chest before they started to move. It felt strange for a bit but I soon got used to it, and the smell the paint was giving off was oddly relaxing; it reminded me of Rosa’s workshop. After another few minutes, he stopped and put down the brushes.
“You may open your eyes now…well, this is odd.” He pointed to the painting on the left side of my chest. “This one is supposed to represent your spirit guardian, but I’ve never seen that image before.”
I looked down at my chest; the painting was upside down from my point of view. “It’s a Vahka, a Steppe Guardian!”
“If you say so, it looks like a horse to me. My point is, no one has ever had that before. Their spirits tend to be an animal of the forest, not the plains. And this other one…I don’t even know what that is, but I have seen it come up once before.”
“On whom?”
“Why, on Maya, oddly enough. Do you know what it is?”
“It’s the crest of the Nova,” I replied absently, turning over the revelation about my dark elf in my mind.
“The Nova? Why is their crest on your chest; and more importantly, why is it on Maya’s?”
“Because they’re my parents, and Maya and I are the Child of Darkness and Child of Light from the ancient prophecy.”
He was speechless with shock at first, but that was quickly replaced with puzzlement before he nodded in agreement. “To say you are lying would be saying that my magic is as well. If you are really Prince of the Nova, then I hope that my granddaughter is truly worthy of you.”
“More than I ever deserve. By the way, if it’s not a secret, what is Maya’s spirit guardian?”
He grinned. “I’m surprised you don’t already know; but then, if you two have kept your relationship proper as you should have, the guardian might not have manifested itself fully yet. Her guardian is a Jag’uri Puma, the fastest, stealthiest, and most dangerous cat in the jungle. They mate for life and are extremely territorial. You, young man, are in for an interesting life with her.” He turned and found a small pot with several small tied cloth bags resting inside and brought it back to the fire.
“Before you g
o, let me take a look at your immediate future - no charge,” he chuckled, throwing some herbs into the fire and watching them char. “The young people of the tribe often ask for one of these before a first date. Ah…to be young again.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, sir, why all this?” I motioned broadly to the hut and its contents. “You are obviously a powerful wizard.” The old elf stroked his chin and nodded. “You are wondering why I am living in this dirty hut instead of in a fine castle somewhere, sitting on a huge pile of gold and surrounded by concubines.” I tipped my head to the affirmative.
“Life is not about power and gold, Alex. It’s about the love and friendships you find along the way, but I expect you already know that.” He cast more ingredients into the fire and breathed in the smoke. “Almost ready.”
His eyes became opaque and I recognized the effect as something similar to the mage sight that I use. He rocked back and forth for a few seconds. Suddenly, his back snapped to rigidity, his face became panicked, and he uttered a cry of soul-rending dismay as tears began to stream down his face.
“Renalla! So much blood! The King and Queen are down!”
I leaped to my feet and ran out the door, leaving it flapping in the night air. The dirt thundered under my feet as I reached out to Winya. I could sense that they were still at the rock confidently waiting for me to return.
“Winya, tell Maya her parents are under attack! Make sure Nia goes with her; I will be there in a few minutes!”
…………………………………………….
Maya
Alex’s warning through Winya hit hard, my parents! I grabbed Nia from the rock where she had been napping and started running. Of course, I had to be wearing another infernal dress and decorative shoes instead of my armor. Kicking off the shoes and leaving them behind as I ran, gained me a little time. Nia was really confused.
Return To Sky Raven (Book 2) Page 29