by Eric Vall
With no time to lose, I rushed to Gawain’s side. He was still frozen in shock, unable to move.
“Gawain! What’s wrong?” I shook him, and he finally seemed to snap to it. As he did, tears streamed down his face. “Gawain?” I asked again, and he shook his head as he wiped them away.
There wasn’t any more time to ask questions, though. Penny had recovered, and she charged at us. Purple lightning shot across her fingertips as she wriggled her fingers and made a choking motion with them.
This time, however, Gawain had the presence of mind to sidestep, and as he did so, he sliced her hand clean off, the fires of his swords renewed. Again, she screamed, but she rebuilt the severed limb once more, only the second time didn’t take nearly as long. In an unholy fury, she irrationally attacked again, and it quickly turned into a repetitive cycle.
I recalled my speed slug, as there was no longer a need for it, and summoned an axe goblin instead so I could assist Gawain in cutting her down. They sliced her, cut her up, and she used the darkness to heal herself. Her skin, which had been alabaster white before, turned black, the color of ink, with each reformation. The darkness she rebuilt from hand entered her bloodstream, and the energy began to take hold of her body. Soon, she would be nothing but a black mass.
Penny thrashed against Gawain and me, and with blow after blow, she became more and more desperate to keep herself together, not realizing that each time she rebuilt, she was steadily losing a piece of herself.
Finally, in an all-out attack, she brought up her hands and gathered as much energy as she could. She tried to draw from her own body, and she coughed and spat.
It had finally occurred to her what she had done to herself.
“Foolish,” she muttered, but her voice was so different now I doubted there was much left of what had made her Penny to begin with. “How could you let this happen?”
Gawain and I stopped, and I recalled my axe goblin. Penny was no longer fighting us. Instead, it looked like she was waging a war against herself.
“How pathetic of me, to be reduced to this,” she sobbed suddenly, and I reached out for her. Gawain quickly grabbed me, though. He shook his head silently when I looked at him questioningly.
I turned my attention back to Penny as she dissolved.
“There is light in the darkness,” she whispered, and those were her last words. The darkness around us lifted, and I shielded my eyes from the sunlight that blazed above our heads. It was well past the beginning of the morning, nearly noon if I had to guess.
All that remained of Penny was a dark, sticky puddle. Not even a body, a corpse to send back to her family, if she even had one.
Rage filled me. All of this over a tablet that no one could read? My gaze shot to the band of thieves, who looked absolutely horror-stricken, and for good reason. From their point of view, it probably looked like Gawain and I had been the ones to do this to Penny. If that was what they thought, so be it, but I was going to send them away with a message.
“Wherever you found her, you go back and tell someone you did this to her,” I growled as I stepped closer to them. I was careful to avoid Penny’s remains, or in this case, lack thereof.
The thieves cowered as I approached.
“You tell them, or we will find you and you will be next,” I threatened, and the leader of the thieves nodded, completely dumbfounded.
“Get out of here, before I change my mind,” I seethed. I hated what happened. I didn’t know much about dark magic, but if that was anything similar to what Varleth had to deal with, I was worried for him and all banishers.
“Let’s go. That stupid piece of rock ain’t worth my life,” the big guy told his band simply, and they rode off. Where they were going, where they were headed, I’d never know, and I didn’t care.
As they left, Gawain joined my side. I glanced at him and saw the tear stains on his cheeks. I didn’t tell him, though. I’d save him the embarrassment and let them wash away naturally.
“What happened to you in there?” I asked. “I nearly died.”
Gawain frowned and shook his head. “I’m sorry. She had me trapped in my own mind. I couldn’t do anything.”
He hung his head and heaved a heavy sigh. Even Gawain Madox was capable of feeling the weight of loss.
“We should go, too. Our horses are likely waiting for us elsewhere,” Gawain told me, and I nodded slowly as I followed after him.
Tietra was only a few more hours from where we were.
Chapter 5
Holly and Eva weren’t as far away as we had first thought. After only a handful of minutes, we found them grazing along a hillside and basking in the light of the early afternoon sun. I breathed a sigh of relief I didn’t know I was holding. It would have been a real damper on our journey if we had lost our belongings and means of transport only a couple of hours into the mission.
We fetched our horses and got back in our saddles to climb the hill. Gawain came to a stop at the top and sat. His eyes focused on nothing in the distance, but they were intense. Was he able to see something I couldn’t? No, that was silly, right?
“Anything out there?” I asked in an attempt to keep the conversation light.
Gawain shook his head. “There are a great many things out here, but no, there is not one thing I’m looking at.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond, so I waited patiently for him to be ready. Whatever happened to him in the darkness had him shaken, I could tell. The least I could do was give him a moment to recover from whatever mental hell Penny had put him through.
I placed my fingers on my neck. It was tender to the touch, and I wondered if there would be bruising. It was likely. My chest still hurt as well, but that would subside. I was just glad to be alive.
Finally, Gawain turned to me. “What was the conversation you had with Sleet yesterday?”
“Nothing damning.” I smiled reassuringly. “Just recounting what happened in the rift, but Miriam Sharpay didn’t believe Varleth and me. She thinks we’re fabricating it to cover up something or make her look like a fool. Who knows?”
“That old bat of a woman is bananas,” Gawain scoffed.
“Yeah, Sleet seems to think so, too.” I laughed a little. “She threatened to take his job yesterday morning.”
It was Gawain’s turn to laugh. “Please. An ogre would be a better candidate to run the Academy than her.”
“So, what’s your family’s stance on her?” I questioned. I knew General Kenefick feigned niceness toward Sharpay, much like Sleet did, but Nia said her experience with her as a child had been a positive one.
“Depends on who you ask in my family,” Gawain answered with a nonchalant shrug. “Not everyone shares the same politics.”
He turned Holly’s reins and began to trot down the hillside. Again, I followed.
“What about you?” I pressed.
Gawain sighed. “I cannot deny that during her time on the council she has done a great deal of good for the mage community. However, I cannot speak for how she treats others on a personal level.”
I made a face in confusion. The answer seemed rehearsed, as though he used it to get out of speaking ill about her many times in the past. Something told me he had more of an opinion than he let on but chose to keep it to himself to avoid any possible backlash. Despite my curiosity, I decided to drop it for now.
Much of the rest of our journey to Tietra was spent in a relatively comfortable silence. Every so often we would stop and take in our surroundings. Who knew there was so much greenery out here? I thought we were supposed to be going to a desert, but lush meadows filled with wildflowers and beautiful landscapes were all around us. It was as though this place was straight out of a fairy tale or a dream.
I rummaged for the map that was in my mission file and spread it out in my lap. I scanned the terrain and finally landed on Tietra. There wasn’t really anything around it which was odd. Everything was at least a half a day’s ride away, and that didn’t seem too bad, but ev
erything else beyond that seemed to be upwards of two or three days.
I took a closer look. This grassland encompassed all of Tietra and was called Dalliance Steppe. I couldn’t help but smile. It was such a pleasant name. Beyond the steppe were a handful of outlying villages, all of which appeared to be as small as Tietra with the exception of Westerian. That looked to be a bit larger on the map. Likely it was a smaller hub town. The desert, Ortych Sands, lied beyond that.
By the time dusk settled in the sky, we had reached the edge of Tietra. The village was cute, quaint, and, much like its surroundings, picturesque. My eyes filled with wonder as I noted the small houses with round doors and tiled roofs. Stone bridges crossed over a little stream that ran through the center, and there was a small fountain in what looked to be a garden property.
“It’s gorgeous,” I breathed.
Gawain, however, didn’t seem as taken as I was.
“Let’s just find the inn and get something to eat,” he grumbled.
My stomach growled at the mention of food, and I smiled sheepishly. I guessed we hadn’t eaten all day. With all of the excitement, I hadn’t given it any thought.
We walked Holly and Eva through the village. The townspeople were friendly and waved to us as we strolled by. One thing I noticed was they all wore some type of cloak. I knew it was required of us as students of the Academy to wear a cloak of color, which indicated the type of magic we specialized in, but I had never considered it something all mages wore. Maelor and Cyra didn’t, and I assumed the only reason people like General Kenefick and Sleet did was that they were influential people of power in the mage community.
The inn was one of the larger buildings in the village, with two small windows in the front that held flowers and a decorated stone archway over the door. We parked our horses outside and tied them to a lamppost before we entered.
The door was as heavy as I expected it to be, and it took a decent amount of my strength to hoist it open. Once it was though, I was taken in by the inside. Mismatched iron lanterns hung from the ceiling of a large dining area with a handful of tables. Doors made of the same heavy wood lined the walls on the left and right, and there were a small set of stairs that sat next to a desk in the back. The walls had sconces between the rooms, and tiny, decorative plants hung from them.
Immediately, a middle-aged man greeted us, maybe about the age of Nia’s father. His hair was long, curly, and pulled back in a bun. A scar ran across his nose, and his eyes were a warm, chocolate brown.
“Welcome, travelers,” he greeted with a heartfelt smile. “Welcome to Tietra.”
Gawain nodded, and I waved politely as we walked up to his cherry wood desk.
“How much for a room?” I asked. “We need nothing special, though perhaps a hot bath and some food would be great.”
“Well, we can certainly provide.” The man chuckled. “It’s sixty coins for the night, all things included.”
“We’ll take it,” I told him without confirming with Gawain, but when I looked behind me at him, he didn’t look like he was going to complain. Honestly, he probably just wanted to eat and take a nap. Couldn’t blame him there. It’d been a long day.
“I need a name,” the man said as I gave him the coins.
“Of course.” I laughed a little. “Name’s Gryff. This is Gawain. We’re from the Varle Academy.”
The man’s eyes lit up a little. “I can tell by your cloaks. A summoner and an elementalist, right?”
My eyes widened, and it was then I noticed he wore a cloak as well. His was also red, but it was tattered and worn. It’d seen better days, that was for sure.
“That’s right,” I confirmed. “How did you know?”
The man laughed. “We’re all mages here, friend. Tietra can only be seen by magic folk.”
I looked at Gawain, who seemed completely nonplussed by the information. On the other hand, I was in shock. My jaw hung open as I looked between him and the innkeeper.
“I don’t know why that surprises you.” Gawain rolled his eyes. “It says it right in the mission files.”
I made a face. That was the last time I was going to be caught off guard by something in the mission file. I would read it tonight. I turned my attention back to the man at the desk.
“I didn’t know that.”
He laughed and handed me two long, golden keys. “Can’t let just anyone wander in here with all of the history this place holds.”
I nodded. That was fair.
“I’m Knick, by the way,” he introduced and held out his hand. “If you need anything, let me know.”
I took it with a sheepish smile. “Maybe some food? We haven’t eaten since before we left the Academy this morning.”
Knick chuckled at that then dropped my hand. “No worries. I have some meat and soup in the kitchen. I’ll have my brother bring some out to you in a little bit. In the meantime, why don’t you get settled? You guys look like you’ve had quite a day.”
“You could say that,” I replied with a chuckle and turned to Gawain. His eyes held dark circles beneath them, and he looked pale.
“Hey.” I poked his shoulder and drew him out of whatever state he was in. “You okay?”
Gawain blinked as though he were confused by the question, then straightened his posture. He still looked tired, drained. A good night of rest would definitely do him some good.
“Of course I am,” he answered after a moment.
I admired his tenacity, but he was a shit liar.
“Your room is the third one here.” Knick pointed out our door which had a carving of some kind of circular glyph on it. They all did, in fact, though the exact glyphs were all different. I wondered if they meant something.
“What should we do with our horses?” I asked. I didn’t think it polite nor safe to leave them tied up to a lamppost all night.
“I’ll take them around back to the stable. Saves you the trouble and allows you to get a little more rest.” Knick came around the desk, and I was shocked to see he was actually pretty tall.
“Thanks again,” I told him graciously, and Gawain and I waved to him. Then I used one of the old keys given to me to unlock our door.
As soon as the door was opened, Gawain and I both made a beeline for the beds. I didn’t even take the opportunity to take in the decorations. All I cared about was that I could finally get a decent night of sleep.
I hadn’t planned to sleep as soon as we’d gotten here, but my body knew what it needed, and apparently, I had needed the sleep.
When I awoke, dawn hadn’t quite broken the surface of the horizon. There were still some stars that lingered in the night sky, and a cool breeze came through the cracked window. Gawain must have opened it at some point.
I turned to the other bed, where he was passed out. It was funny. Looking at him like this, completely defenseless and vulnerable, he didn’t seem at all the rich, snooty type. No, instead he looked docile, even kind. It was a stark difference from his normal day-to-day expression.
With a languid stretch, I rolled over and climbed out of bed to find a note had been slipped under the door. Curious, I picked up the parchment and read the scrawl by the moonlight.
Took the liberty of bringing you your things. If you’re still hungry when you wake up, you can let my brother know. He runs the place at night.
-Knick
I smiled as I read the note and rubbed some of the sleep from my eyes. Knick seemed like a genuine guy. These days, I felt that was rare to come by, though I hated to think like that. I liked to believe there was good in everyone. Well, everyone but Miriam Sharpay, but I was sure even she had her reasons for being as wretched and foul as she was.
I put the note aside and slipped out of the room. Sure enough, mine and Gawain’s belongings were placed outside of the door. I dragged them into the room and then closed the door. As Knick predicted, I was definitely hungry.
“You’re up early, traveler,” someone said to me. I looked up to see Knick at one
of the tables with a small mug of what I assumed to be either coffee or tea.
“Yeah, looks like I was more tired than I thought,” I laughed sheepishly.
“My brother told me as much,” he replied.
I cocked my head to the side. “Your brother?”
As I stepped closer, I realized the man at the table did indeed look like Knick. In fact, they were almost identical, but there were a few subtle differences my sleepy eyes hadn’t caught before.
For one, this man had shorter hair and a patch of chin fuzz under his lip. He wore a slightly nicer cloak, though that wasn’t saying too much, as his was also in pretty rough shape. However, as opposed to the red color Knick wore, this man’s was white, or at least it used to be. It looked greyer more than anything, but that was likely from how old it was.
“Aye. Name’s Temairus, but call me Tem,” he told me, and I nodded as I took a seat across from him.
“All right, Tem.” I smiled a little. “I’m Gryff.”
“The summoner,” Tem commented with a lopsided smirk. “Knick told me about you and your partner. Said you traveled here from Varle.”
“That’s right,” I hummed. “We’re here to speak to the elder of the library.”
Tem’s face lit up. “Is that so?”
“Yes, sir,” I confirmed.
“I’ll tell you what, Gryff. Let me get you something to eat, and then we can chat some more,” Tem offered as he stood.
I found myself smiling at the kindness in his eyes, and I nodded again. “Sure, sounds good.”
Tem cast a warm glance at me and then disappeared through a door behind the desk I presumed to be for the kitchen. I took the opportunity to slip back into my room to grab the mission file from my bag. I didn’t want to sound any more ignorant about things than I already was. This was my first mission! I wanted to make a good impression, in case I ever needed to come back here.