Wohie slid off the bench and crumbled to the ground. She put her face on her knees and wept. There was no reason to act strong. Not here. Not now. At this moment the borders of the entire world were no larger than the inner edges of her pained heart. This story was so full of loose ends and tangled briars, and she was tired of trying to cut through the weeds. She knew nothing at this moment other than she wanted to see her brother, Seth.
“Ascena, here Love, sit back,” said Mei’s voice. She held out a handkerchief. Wohie refused, so Mei sat beside her on the grass and said nothing. A few minutes later Lord Andrias approached and knelt in front of them.
“Where are my friends?!” Wohie demanded.
“They have been swept out of the city by the moat. My men are pursuing them. I will catch up soon and bring them back.”
“Why are you waiting?” Wohie snapped.
“Because I have a story to tell you before I go.” And so he began to tell her the tale of the First Baruvian War and of Lord Eleazar Guardian, one of the three original High Knights of King Neba. After he was finished he stood. “So, will you come with me? Will you help?” Andrias asked.
“Absolutely,” Wohie answered.
Twenty Two
Retreat
Normally Jabber would have been able to squeeze through a crack, but the wall around the City of Neba was flawless, so he was forced up and over. His flying had gotten much better, but still to go up for so long required such wing-work that by the time he reached the top he was spent. The young butterbug huffed and puffed and caught his breath while sitting on top of the great wall. Far below, the river came from beneath the city wall and sliced the war plains in half as it pushed south towards the Sudden Peaks. The farther from the city, the less intense the rapids.
Jabber caught his breath and dove from the wall. He followed the river until the magic of the city faded from it and the rapids turned smooth. This is where he found Will and Gatnom climbing out of the water.
“Hey! Hey! Mr. Will!” Jabber yelled.
Will, who was laying face up on a small sandbank, yelled back with out of breath words no one can spell.
“I’m so glad you’re okay. What happened?” Jabber asked. Will sat up. Gatnom was beside him, on his own sandbank. The look on his face matched the one from the valley. He was shaking his head staring back towards the city.
“Wohie was there, but Andrias saw us. We had to run,” Will answered.
Jabber landed on Will’s shoulder. Now all three were out of breath.
“Will,” said Gatnom. “Do you still have the goggles?”
Will felt in his bag and pulled out a pair of dripping binoculars, the ones he had accidentally taken from Tobby a month before.
“Look there,” said Gatnom, pointing back towards the main gate of the city. “What’s that coming our way?”
Will put the goggles to his eyes. Suddenly it was like he was standing at the gate. He jumped back as a group of guards came clanging out on horseback. “Oh snap, we’ve got to go. The guards are coming!”
“We have to try and make it to the foothills, it’s our only hope. If we can get into the forest at the base of the peaks then we might be able to hide.”
Will looked again. This time he felt like he was riding on a horse next to the guards. They were scanning the banks of the river, searching. “They’re coming fast, but I don’t think they’ve seen us yet.”
“Good, let’s stay near the river, in its banks. If we get on level ground they’ll be able to see us above the grass. Jabber, go find out how many there are and come tell us. Stay high so they don’t see you.”
“Yes sir!”
Gatnom and Will crouched slightly and began the trudge through the sandy banks. Every once in a while they peaked over the edge to see how far behind their pursuers were. They still had plenty of time before the horsemen would catch up. The river had carried them far away from the city in a blurry instant. One minute they were leaping out the window, the next they were miles outside the city wall’s coughing up water on a sandbar. They were at least half way through the plains that had taken all day to cross in the put-put cart. Here, the river was kicked back and relaxing, flowing smooth through its green banks. The strands of neon grass bumped against the sandbars and was at least a foot thick. Each green strand lazily laid on top of the ones next to it, tangled together as if they were fighting for space. It made the ground look soft enough to sleep on. The water from the river was unusually brown (for Baru anyway) because the farther it crept from the city the more dirt it picked up.
“We have got to go faster,” Gatnom said after taking the goggles and looking for himself.
“This sand is hard to walk in,” Will answered.
“I know, but it will take them a few hours to get here by foot. We’ve got a good head start.”
Jabber landed on Will’s shoulder out of nowhere. “Mr. Will! Mr. Will!” the butterbug yelled.
Will started. “Jabber, you scared the begebees out of me! What is it?”
“Begebees? What’s that?”
“Forget it, whats up?”
“The spy just walked out of the gate. He’s coming this way, and he’s got Wohie with him!”
“What? She’s with Lord Andrias?” Gatnom asked.
“Yes sir. She walked out with him, then some guards came out and pointed towards the river.”
Will spun around just in time to see Andrias lift up with Wohie holding tightly onto his back. “It’s true Gat. They are coming towards us. It won’t take him long to get here. He’s flippin flying again!”
Here Gatnom was hit head-on with another of his many decisions. This time the response came faster. “He must be going to use her as a hostage against us. We need to run with every bit of magic we have and let him see us.”
“What?!”
“Perhaps we can regroup and try to fight him. That way it will be only him against us.”
“Are you sure?” Will asked.
“It’s our only choice. Did you see how fast he flew over the valley?” Will had. Gatnom was right.
“Besides the only chance we will have against Andrias is in the forest where we can hide. Maybe there I can distract him and you can grab Wohie.”
“Okay, let’s go then.” Will remembered how strong Andrias was. He didn’t want an open fight with such a big man.
“On three. One. Two. Three!” The two jumped out of the river banks and began running with magi speed toward the hills. The last five miles took less than ten minutes, but even with the push of magic the foothills were still a challenge to climb. When they finally reached the wood line they had to battle their way through the dense brush, flinging briars and bushes out of the way. Here, the trees huddled together tightly, and the ground hid underneath the waist high growth. Will felt like at any second Andrias would drop out of the sky. He was ready, nervous, but ready. Jabber kept hopping from Will’s shoulder to the tree tops checking to see where Andrias was.
“He’s still a ways off Mr. Will!”
“This is thick! We’re getting nowhere!” Will said.
“Just keep going; there’s a clearing just ahead. There we can—”
“What? We can what?” Will ran slap into the back of Gatnom, who had stopped and was staring straight ahead.
“Master Jared?”
“What?” asked Will. He pushed his way up beside Gatnom. In the clearing Master Jared and a small band of men sat on horses.
“Master Jared! Thank the King of All!” Gatnom said again, his eyes suddenly awakened with new hope. Master Jared said nothing. The man on the right of Jared took a step forward on his horse. He had dirty blond cropped short hair and wore the uniform of a captain.
“Where is Ascena?” the blonde man asked.
“Seth... I mean Captain Seth,” Gatnom answered. Will looked at the man on the horse. He could see the resemblance between he and Wohie in the eyes. He had a small scar on his cheek and wore a saber on his hip. Gatnom continued. “Wohie was ta
ken to the King’s castle by Lord Andrias. We went to find her, but they saw us, and now Andrias is coming after us. He’s bringing Wohie with him. If we work together we can rescue her, but I fear he may try to use your sister as a hostage.”
Seth turned and looked at Master Jared. He looked troubled. “Master, are they speaking of Lord Andrias Shielder, the original surviving Guardian of Baru?”
“Yes, the last one alive other than Lord Markus.” The other riders moved uneasy in their saddles.
“What should we do sir?”
“What do you mean what should we do? If he comes, we fight. What else? If we defeat him it will be a great victory for the Under-Kingdom.”
“But sir, last time we attacked one of the original guardians head on it was a disaster. We must again use the element of surprise.”
Jared turned and looked at Seth. “We will handle this so called High Protector of King Mel just as we handled the third Knight. When the time comes, you take your sister, but for now lead your men out of sight. At my signal you and your men flank him from the west.” Jared turned to Gatnom. “Mount the horse Gatnom and go with Seth. We will deal with your rebellion later.”
“I can stay and fight.”
”You have caused enough trouble with your pride. Mount up! Now!”
Gatnom lowered his head. “Come Will, let’s go,” he said as he took a step towards the pack of horses.
Master Jared’s horse stomped, snarled, and reared up on two back legs. “Not him,” Jared said coldly.
“Sir?”
“I said, not him. He is not coming.”
“Master, he must. We can’t leave him here.”
“Mount up Gatnom, you need not be involved in this,” said Jared.
“Involved? Involved in what?” Gatnom asked. He took a step back, even with Will.
“Mount Up!” screamed Jared. “Since this boy has come you have been nothing but trouble. Your loyalties have been wavering unknowingly. He is not who you think he is.”
“My loyalties are to King Markus and the Under-Kingdom. That has not changed, Master.”
Jared paused the conversation for a moment, then turned to Seth. “Captain, go ahead and lead your men out of sight. I’ll take care of this.”
“Yes, Master,” replied Seth, and he and his men rode off into the woods.
Once they were gone Jared turned back to Gatnom. “If your loyalties remain true to Lord Markus then I’m afraid you have befriended the enemy.” Jared looked at Will. “As soon as Lord Markus saw that letter he knew things had been complicated. I did not see it at first. It was a sly attempt.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Will.
“Stop your theatrics. I don’t know how Mel figured out how to bring you here, but your trick is over.”
“Will is not the enemy,“ said Gatnom.
Jared’s stare snapped back to Gatnom from beneath the dark hair hanging in his eyes. “You don’t know what you are talking about.”
“If he was, why would Andrias attack him? Why were his parent’s killed by King Mel?”
“Can you verify any of those claims? Did you see him fight back? Did you see his parents die?”
Gatnom thought for a moment. He pulled his hat tight onto his head. “No Master, I can not, but I know that Will—”
“You know nothing!” Jared screamed. “You have been deceived. I know for a fact his parents were not murdered by King Mel.”
“What? How do you know that?“ Will stepped towards Jared. Gatnom put out his arm and stopped him. “What do you know about my parents?”
“What is your full name, Will?” asked Jared as he slid from the saddle.
“I’ve told you already, my name is William Wesley!”
“What were your parents’s names?”
“Helen and Eli!” Will screamed. “Tell me what you know about them!”
“Calm down Will,” said Gatnom.
“No! If he knows something he needs to tell me.”
“Do you really not know? How sad! What a shame! We really could have used you, but it is too late now.”
“What do you mean, Master?” asked Gatnom.
Jared looked down at Gatnom, a smirk growing on his face. “Your friend’s real name is not William Wesley. His name is William Guardian, son of Eleazar and Helen Guardian, High Knights of King Mel!”
Gatnom snapped his head towards Will who looked just as confused as before.
“What?!” Will said in a high voice. “This is crazy!”
“This can not be,” said Gatnom. “Eleazar was an evil knight, long disappeared before Will was born.”
“Oh, but he lived somewhere, and that somewhere was called Earth. But, he came to Baru often. I bet your father traveled a lot, didn’t he Will? And that pendent around your neck? I bet your mother kept it closer than any other possession. It was her carrier!”
Gatnom looked at Will, who was trying to put this all together in his head — his Dad’s traveling, his mom’s pendent, no family, the diary, the letter.
“Your parents were the biggest threat to the Under-Kingdom, the most trusted knights of King Neba. They are the reason we have ravished this entire world. It took us almost fifteen years to find them!” Jared took a step closer to Will. “Now tell me, where is the book?”
“What book?” Will asked.
Jared lifted his left hand towards Will. “The book, the one entrusted to your father to protect!”
Gatnom stepped in between Will and Jared. “Wait, wait. Something is missing. This doesn’t make sense.”
“Move boy. Don’t be foolish. Get out of the way.”
“Why are you doing this? Please, wait a moment.”
“Move!”
“Stop sir. Don’t—”
“If you do not move I will kill you. Move!”
“NO!” Gatnom screamed back. This time the voice was not the same as he faked when trying to be intimidating. It was true, raw, strong. His sudden change took even Jared by surprise.
Jared’s brow lowered. “There are high hopes for you Gatnom. Lord Markus will not be pleased if I return with neither of you.” Gatnom said nothing nor did he perform his usual bow of the head when talking to an elder.
Suddenly something dawned on Will. He stepped side to side with Gatnom, his eyes already hinting a glow of red. “How do you know about Earth?” he asked through clenched teeth.
Jared looked surprised at the question, but only for a moment. “Oh I know lots about Earth,” he said. “I recently returned actually. But I’m afraid it was my last trip there for a while. My job there is completed.”
“Your job? What job?” Jared’s smirk made Will want to choke him.
“My job? My job was to search down and kill the enemies of Baru, starting with your parents!”
That’s when the fight began.
Jared and Will spoke fire words at the same time. A very unstable, yet fierce ball of red flame started forming in Will’s hands, but before it was fully made Jared released one of his own. Gatnom pushed Will out of the way just in time.
“Stop!” Gatnom shouted as he turned to Jared, but Jared did not hear; his eyes were wild. With everything the elder magi had, he conjured a fireball so hot it was transparent. Gatnom looked to Will, who was so focused on speaking a spell of his own that he wouldn’t know what hit him. There was nothing else to be done. It was not suppose to be this way, but there was no other choice. There was no time to throw a defense spell. There was no time to warn.
Gatnom lunged in front of Will and took the full force of the clear fire, a direct hit into his own chest.
The next thing Will knew he was back at the tree line, blown back by the explosion. Gatnom lay motionless beside him. His face and shirt was charred, and his chest was bare and black and burned. Will’s eyes erupted. The light red glow flashed to rage.
“Pur kaio!” he roared, thrusting both hands straight out. From Will’s fingers spun a tornado of blue flame, swirling in horizontal vengeance dir
ectly at a surprised Master Jared.
Jared yelled, and a bubble of water enveloped him. When the firestorm smashed into the water shield the water itself turned orange and black and red. Will screamed with all the hate he felt inside. He pushed the fire without knowing how. He pushed with more than he had, emptying the reservoir of rage he had stored up over the last few months. Parts of Jared’s shield began to evaporate, and from inside you could hear Jared grunting to hold on. Will felt his knees buckle. He felt lightheaded. The day seemed not as bright. The magic was taking his strength, but he made himself push a second more - exhausting the last tiny drop of anger from his empty soul. Then he crumbled to the ground as the fire ceased.
The shield Jared held slowly faded back to clear and dissipated. Jared stood from behind it covered in soot, but unharmed. He glared at Will with wide eyes. Will pushed his legs with his hands, trying to stand, but they felt asleep, numb like the rest of him from the neck down. He was seeing sparkles in the air, and at first he could not make out the words Jared spoke as he approached.
“...know that you are lying now! Look what you have made me do! Where did you learn those words? Tell me!”
Will grabbed at his throat. It felt like fingers were tightening around it. He gasped for breath.
“Not so easy, is it?” Jared said from fifteen feet away. Will forced his eyes up. Jared was standing with his hands out like he was choking an invisible person. Every time he twitched his fingers Will felt the finger’s movement on his throat. “I said, where did you learn those words?! Where is the book?!”
Will couldn’t answer even if he had known the answer. He could barely breathe. With a jerk his feet left the ground, and he was suddenly hanging by nothing, suspended by magic. He hung there, barely struggling, with no energy left to fight.
“You know it was I who crashed into your parent’s car. It was I who drove away laughing. Until this all came to light I had forgotten about the boy in the red jacket standing too close to road. If I had only swerved it could have saved us a lot of trouble, but we didn’t know about the second son until you came here. Bad move, William.”
The Winter Letter Page 20