The Hunt for the Three Roses

by Jason Hubbard

  Kane wandered down the forest in a daze, taking one deep breath after another as he went from one tree trunk to the next. He wished he still had his staff on him, but he didn’t—couldn’t—go back to claim it amid the ruined terrain. Besides, it looked as if the flames were spreading quickly across the meadow.

  God, the flames! If I had been any closer, I …

  He shook his head and turned back to Callie. “So, what now?” he asked in a soft, trembling voice.

  Callie looked down at her hands clasped in front of her. “Honestly, I didn’t plan this far ahead.”

  Kane nodded and took a steadying breath, realizing how silly the question had been. “There’s nothing for it, then. I’ll have to report to the generals what happened; they have to know that the … the Mage Corps is gone, and the golems aren’t coming. And you’ll have to go back to the camp.”

  She wiped tears off her face and looked at him. “What if I don’t want to go back?”

  His eyes lit up in understanding. “Of course. It’s your life, you can do what you want … but I’d rest easier knowing you were safe.”

  “I’d rather be free than stay with the maids.”

  “I know you do, but … I lost Patrick, and I lost the Mage Corps … I don’t want to lose you, too.”

  Callie appeared genuinely touched, offering a small smile in the morose atmosphere. The time felt appropriate to give her a hug, but Kane only pressed on through the forest, his nerves steadied somewhat.

  They came across an empty plain with the Bonsar River just up ahead. Kane surmised that the generals would be close to the siege, so he’ll have to go upriver and be quick about it before any battle plans went into effect. That meant that his time with Callie was growing short, and he had only a vague idea of what to say when it came time to part. He’ll need to think about it as he traveled along the bank with his rumbling stomach as a second companion.

  But it appeared there was a more immediate concern as two horsemen approached them from the left, no doubt attracted by the spreading smoke cloud. Kane and Callie noticed them too late for either of them to hide, so they stood their ground and waited to see who these newcomers were.

  To Kane’s horror, it was Master Cypher riding in front, wearing a short travel cloak atop a maple mare. Behind him was Jonas, looking uncomfortable while riding a chestnut mare with white legs. Both horses carried satchels and rolled-up bedding, prepared for a long ride.

  So, it’s true: Jonas is one of the Three Roses, and Master Cypher came to get him. And Callie thought the tattoo was just a coincidence!

  “Oh, shit,” Callie muttered. “Goddammit.”

  Kane harshly shushed her. “Let me do the talking.”

  Cypher halted his steed within speaking distance, but Jonas mistakenly passed them by. Jonas yelled at the horse and snapped the reins in a panic, making the animal reluctantly turn around with an irritated snort.

  “Kane, is that you?” Cypher called out, and he gestured to the smoke cloud. “What in the hell happened there?”

  “I-it was the Mage Corps, th-they …” He sighed and forced himself to stay calm and set his anxiety aside. When addressing someone like Master Cypher, it was best to sound confident. “We were making the golems, but something went wrong when one of them saw everyone as an enemy. It was put down … and then the explosion.”

  “So, it wasn’t an enemy attack? But why are you here, and who is she?”

  Kane couldn’t bring himself to speak. Those were the questions he was dreading, and he had no good excuse for them. He had thought of an answer earlier as he saw the horses approach, where he’d claim to be a messenger tasked with delivering the generals an apology for the mages’ delay, but that wouldn’t explain Callie’s presence. He looked to Jonas for inspiration, and he somehow found it within the man’s eyes, which looked both innocent and anxious.

  Jonas. Between him and Callie, he was perhaps the most responsible for saving Kane’s life … and perhaps he could do so again.

  “Well?” Cypher said in annoyance.

  Kane pointed and said, “It was Jonas … he told the lady here that I was going to die unless she did something to prevent it. She came and got me even though I didn’t want to go at first, and then I saw everything from afar. If not for Jonas, I wouldn’t be here now.”

  Once the first words came out, the rest was much easier to say, and he was relieved to have the story over with. Cypher appeared as if he was looking at an utter fool, and Kane could imagine Callie looking the same. For a long, unnerving moment, the sorcerer merely stared, unsure how to respond. He then turned to Jonas and asked with some amusement, “Jonas, is this true?”

  Jonas smiled and nodded. “Yes, um … Cypher? I told her … I told her he was going to die. I saw metal men and flowers, and I’m so glad she saved him!”

  “Oh, really? Then why didn’t you warn the rest of them?”

  Jonas scrunched up his face in thought. “I, um … I didn’t know how. I don’t think they could be saved.”

  Kane couldn’t help but smile. He had been relying on Jonas to back him up, and Jonas didn’t disappoint. And if Cypher knew Jonas well enough, he should realize that the simpleminded man was nearly incapable of telling fibs.

  Cypher appeared somewhat mollified, yet Kane feared what he would do next. Would his former master threaten him? Strike him down? Report him to the generals?

  “I brought two horses, but I think that was a mistake,” Cypher said. “He can barely control his. I’d appreciate it if you rode for him. The lady can come, too, if she wants.”

  Kane was stunned. If Cypher meant what he thought he meant …

  “Yes, Kane, I’m saying you’ll be deserting. You have to make up your mind quickly before anyone else comes; otherwise, I’m leaving you.”

  “But where are you going?”

  “We’ll talk on the way. Decide now.”

  Kane remained undecisive until Callie touched his shoulder and said, “I think we should go with him … for now.”

  Her confidence must have rubbed off on him, for he immediately agreed. What other choice was there? Going back to the generals meant becoming the only working mage in the entire army, and they might pressure him to pull off impossible tasks. If he had to desert, at least he would have Master Cypher for protection.

  Upon Cypher’s direction, Kane saddled up in front of Jonas to take the reins while Callie went behind Cypher. The horse’s back was awfully cluttered, and the animal was under noticeable strain with two people aboard, but the small party managed to take their first steps on a new journey reasonably well. They headed east along the Bonsar River, and Cypher said they’ll soon cross the water and stay on a road called Herald’s Path.

  On the way, Kane’s nerves had calmed down considerably, but he felt depressed and lost. He looked back at the smoke cloud which a bard might call a vile blossom among a field of beauty, and he silently prayed for the souls of the departed. God, it was as if one explosion wasn’t enough! The first one took down the original Shieldbearers, and now another had to take the rest of the corps. It made him think that the world would be a better place if magic simply disappeared without a trace. It was much too dangerous for people to depend on, especially in war when all they wanted to do was tear each other apart.

  He occasionally glanced at Callie, who rested her head with an ear on Cypher’s back. She was clearly uncomfortable, having to wrap her arms around a man who had once nearly killed her after her thwarted regicide attempt. It was a wonder she had agreed to go with him in the first place, much less share a saddle with him. She must have been so desperate to get away from the army host, she would use nearly any means to do it.

  As for Kane, he felt guilty for abandoning his duty, but he believed it was for the best. He was doing this not just for his old master, but for Jonas, too, who needed to get out of the war as swiftly as possible
. Still, he wasn’t sure where they were destined for since they were heading east while Consaria’s capital was to the west.

  Nearly three hours after they set out, they happened upon a tributary where Cypher said they would take a break. They left the horses to drink and graze on the tall grass, and Cypher suggested that his young companions clean themselves up while he filled their waterskins. Kane, Callie and Jonas took turns behind a tree to relieve themselves then waded in the stream to splash water on their arms and faces. Kane was dismayed by his reflection, for his eyes appeared hollow and his skin was still dry and pink from the blast. The water was a little soothing, but it also made his pores sting.

  When they returned to Cypher, he gave them a meal of salted pork, assorted nuts, and drinking water. Jonas happily thanked the sorcerer, but Kane and Callie didn’t say a word, being too uncomfortable around their unlikely travel partner.

  Cypher gave them a moment to eat, then announced, “I’m taking Jonas to Asturia. We may run into border patrol, but I hope my status can get us through. I still have ties to several Lonsaran houses, many of which still owe me favors.”

  “Asturia?” Kane said. “Not St. Mannington?”

  “No,” Cypher said, frowning. “It’ll take us the better part of a month to get there if we make good time. I expect you two to pull your weight. I’ll do the hunting while you make the fires and forage for food. If you see something we can eat, tell me and I’ll decide whether we should get it or not.”

  “Understood, sir, but I thought—no, I assumed—you were taking Jonas to King Hugo. Isn’t that your duty?”

  Cypher gave him a dark look and pointed at him. “My business is my own, Kane. I have my secrets … as you do yours, I’m sure.” He glanced at Callie as he spoke the last part.

  He knows! Kane thought. He recognizes Callie as the assassin that night! Dammit, I was so sure he hadn’t made the connection, but he has. So why hasn’t he done anything about it? Does he want to let that incident remain in the past? Could he truly be that forgiving?

  Callie appeared to be thinking the same thing, but she soon tried to hide it. “I would like to go to Asturia,” she said matter-of-factly. “What about you, Kane?”

  “Uh, yes … I have nothing against it,” he said, noting to himself that Asturia was where he and Callie had been heading to before being conscripted.

  Cypher made a satisfied nod. “If you wish to make a new start of things, I suggest you think of new names for yourselves. You’ll be far from home, but you don’t want to leave a trail of people who can recall your real names. Come to think of it, young lady, what is your name?”

  Kane was surprised when Callie gave her real name; she must have found little point in hiding it.

  “Well, Callie, if you don’t want to be friends with me, that’s fine, but as long as we don’t go at each other’s throats, we should do very well together. Now please, everyone, finish up and we’ll move on.”

  Jonas looked up from his pork strip. “What do you mean, ‘go at each other’s throats?’ Why would you do that?”

  Cypher gave a mischievous wink. “Secrets, Jonas, remember? Secrets.”

  “I don’t like secrets,” Jonas muttered crankily.

  “Neither do I,” Cypher said somberly, “but some keep the world from falling apart.”

  Kane couldn’t help but peer at his old master in suspicion, thinking he would gladly pay any amount to know what was going on in that shrewd mind of his.

  As they ventured through the evening, the land grew rocky where the trees were smaller and the hills more barren. They stopped in a lightly forested area where Kane and Callie were tasked with building a fire while Cypher went off to hunt. The young companions found a decent log near a boulder but mostly had to rely on branches from bushes and thin trees. With the wood set up, Kane set it ablaze with a flame jetting from his palms. He felt that his magic reservoir was less than half full, which a small flame hardly depleted.

  As they waited for Cypher, they ate blueberries they had picked that day while making small talk with Jonas. Like a child, Jonas was known to complain about being bored, but tonight he was unusually patient. When asked about Cypher, he gave little information, only saying that the sorcerer claimed Jonas had to come with him.

  “We’re going to Asturia,” Kane said. “Do you know where that is?”

  “It’s where the other king is,” Jonas said in a small voice.

  “That’s right, King Paulson. If you ever met him, what would you say to him?”

  Jonas looked into the fire, appearing pensive, but he said nothing. Kane thought to ask again but let the matter drop.

  Cypher eventually returned with two hares and a fox. In addition, he had made some ointment from the plump leaves of a plant he had picked earlier to help Kane’s sensitive skin.

  “Thank you, sir,” Kane said after dabbing some on his cheek. “I don’t know how to repay you.”

  “We’re in this together, Kane,” Cypher said. “We should look out for each other. For now, you three can help by skinning our dinner.” He gave each companion an animal and a dinner knife, but Jonas raised a fuss about it so Cypher did one of the hares himself. Minutes later, the prey were roasting over the fire on a spit, making every mouth water as juices ran down the browning meat.

  “If I remember correctly, there should be a trading station in three days’ time,” Cypher said. “We can trade in your soldier outfits for something else to wear, but after we remove the Consarian markings. Kane, your cape is too distinctive, so I’m afraid we’ll have to burn it this morning and get new blankets later.”

  Kane nodded, hoping he’ll be able to pass off as a native Lonsaran citizen if he needed to at the border. “Is there anything about Lonsaran culture I should know?”

  “Well, you know that Lonsaran lords are called ‘dukes’ and ‘counts,’ yes? Your accent shouldn’t be a problem, but you should pick up on others’ terms and euphemisms to help blend in. If you have any Consarian coins, you may as well throw them away or give them to me. With the war going on, no merchant will honor a currency exchange.”

  “So we’ll have to sell the clothes off our backs to get any spending money?” Callie asked.

  Cypher shook his head, smirking. “Leave that to me, I’ll think of something. And Kane, I’ve been meaning to ask: Did you see anyone else retreat from the golem ritual before the explosion?”

  Kane thought hard on it even though it had happened just that afternoon. “No, I saw no one run away, and I didn’t hear anyone mention any runaways. Do you think the explosion was intentional?”

  “It’s possible, or it could be someone made a grave mistake. The Corps didn’t get much practice beforehand, did they?”

  “We practiced making automatons the day before—that was all.”

  “Oh, those fools … I told them making automatons wouldn’t be enough, but they didn’t listen.”

  “The commanders suspected someone of being a spy?”

  “Yes. In my opinion, they didn’t do enough to flush out any spies; instead, they risked having a spy work on the golems.”

  “So if there really was a spy, he might have sacrificed himself in making his golem volatile?”

  “Yes, but we’ll never know for sure.”

  Kane nodded, though he felt sick at heart. He suddenly wanted to know the truth, needed to know what had sealed the fate of the Mage Corps. Could they be avenged, or was it a simple mistake that might not have been prevented?

  “Is Jonas one of the Three Roses?” Callie asked, alarming Kane by her boldness.

  Cypher paused to think of a good response. “He has a beautiful tattoo of a rose, doesn’t he?”

  “Yes, very lovely … so, is he?”

  Cypher put on a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “He’s someone who should be protected. Let’s just leave it at that.”
r />   “Let’s not. Are you using him as a political pawn?”

  “Absolutely not,” Cypher said, managing to keep his cool. “I want to protect him, as I’m sure you do. That’s why I’m not giving him to King Hugo.”

  “Because he can see the future?”

  “Hmm … I didn’t know that about him before you told me.”

  “Are you sure of that?”

  “Very.”

  “Then is he a relative of Hugo’s or Paulson’s? A nephew or a cousin?”

  This got a chuckle out of Cypher. “He is none of those things. The only thing you can be sure of is that Jonas will be safe in Asturia. Now, it looks like the food’s ready.”

  Callie didn’t look happy, and Kane couldn’t blame her. They had both searched for the nature of the Three Roses for a time, and here was someone in front of them who had the answers—and he wasn’t telling. Kane himself wouldn’t have risked asking, but he admired Callie for being able to do it without raising Cypher’s ire.

  They ate in silence, enjoying the rich-tasting meat with the occasional blueberry. Cypher had very little though he complemented his food with the contents of a small potion vial. When they were finished, Callie said, “I have an adoptive father; he used to tell the most amazing stories. Some are too ridiculous to be true, like the time he felled a giant with a pickaxe and the time he flew over a mountain with mechanical wings—you know, things to make children giggle. But there was one story I liked that sounded very plausible. He said he met a lady who wore a jewel that he recognized as part of a complete set in a rich man’s house. She must have swiped it when she was a guest there …”

  Kane listened to the tale with an enrapt ear, wondering whether her “adoptive father” was Landis, the man who had rescued her after her real parents were murdered, or Giacomo, her former clan leader. Whoever it was, Callie made an exciting tale of the man romancing the lady to steal her jewel, only to have her rat him out to the rich man. The two would meet years later when he would court her again, only this time he ratted her out to the local guards while she stole back the magic pendant she had originally given him. Kane and Cypher laughed while Jonas only questioned why the two lovebirds had to be so mean to each other.