The Enixar - The Sorcerer

by Mikkell Khan

  “Svenvard! Make yourself useful,” he snapped his fingers. The servant clicked his heels and dashed off somewhere. After a few second he returned with a leather bag and opened it under Tim's nose to show him the contents.

  The bag was full of gold.

  “This is what your daughter will earn per day. It will be a great help to you as well.”

  The lackey placed the bag’s strap over the stunned father’s shoulder.

  “Thank you, My Lord,” he mumbled as the lackey shoved him off back to his daughter.

  Tim explained to his daughter what happened, gave her a glimpse of the money and hugged her. Jessika shook her head profusely in disbelief and Tim held her close.

  “Don’t worry my child. Your sister will keep you safe,” He reassured her.

  They said their goodbyes and the redhead followed Svenvard with tears in her eyes.

  The lord leaned back comfortably and sighed with content.

  “That was the most expensive concubine I have hired yet.”

  “My Lord?”

  “I will make sure she pays her dues,” He chuckled a bit, “Even if money was an issue to me.”

  As Jessika made her way to the convey she stared at Gudrunn in disgust. Her eyes then caught Meriaus, the man she met so recently, proving himself one in the King’s service.

  She frowned and turned away in disappointment.

  Meriaus said nothing. To him, this was not the way ordinary innocent people should be treated. The Lord treated them as objects. That was one of the reasons he had strived so hard to get as close as possible to Gudrunn- this way, by being appointed certain tasks he could control to some extent how people were dealt with. As far as Gudrunn was concerned death count was nothing but a number. Nevertheless, he took comfort in knowing that Tenaria would look after Jessika at the castle and she would finally see her sister after so long.

  Gudrunn was headed for the monastery to get what he was after- officially, it was power over the location and its inhabitants; unofficially he was going to get his Dragonette egg. He had a great plan to start breeding the magnificent creatures. Gudrunn learned about the egg from a former silent monk who had left the monastery and to live out his life in opulence and decadence after spending almost all of it in humbleness and abstinence. The reason for this drastic change of lifestyle was the monk being denied position as the new Abbot and it being granted to Finn instead. The degenerate monk traveled around the kingdom, drinking until he blacked out and generally enjoying every sinful activity life had to offer. Eventually, he got to the Capital city which lay around Gudrunn’s palace. He spent quite a lot of time in the pubs where he would go on and on like most drunks do, to any willing listener. Lord Gudrunn, as any self-respecting tyrant would, had informants everywhere. It is always helpful to know as much as possible regardless of how much Celestial power you have at your fingertips. Old school methods like keeping informants at the lowest levels paid off without a doubt.

  The former monk was “invited” to the palace for an “audience” with the Lord and unsurprisingly he told everything there was to know about the egg. The monks kept it in the room tucked away in the innermost part of their sanctuary. The monastery was designed as concentric rectangles with an opening on alternating sides and had a sort of a design similar to that of a maze. The egg was hidden in the innermost room with the rest of the holiest artifacts to the silent monks.

  The failed monk told Gudrunn that a few hundred years ago one of the former Abbots was exploring the numerous caverns and caves scattered about the mountainous terrain where the monastery is located. He was looking for a space for meditative listening, a space where sound echoed, reflected and magnified. He stumbled upon the egg by pure accident and brought it back with him to the monastery. When the monk held it up in front of a flame they were shocked to see the Dragonette embryo curled up inside waiting for it’s time to come out. This spurred heated debates about the fate of the egg. Some people were convinced it should be destroyed because it was too dangerous, others were adamant it should be hatched and had a right to live. The debates were so heated and the matter so complex that as a consensus the egg was put in a state of stasis and preserved until a rational decision could be made. The monks kept the secret and cared for the egg in the center room for centuries.

  Unfortunately, at the same time as the distraught monk blabbed about this centuries-old secret, a megalomaniac dictator was looking for ways to spread and supplement his power and empire.

  The Lord and his entourage continued on their way to the monastery. They were traveling by horse pull or so was the easiest way to explain it. The “carriage” was another one of the Lord’s great contributions to civilization. The way it worked was by having the horses pull two metal strips placed parallel to each other on the ground the width of the carriage. They were lined with a special crystal which pushed away another crystal with which the bottom of the carriage was covered. This caused the whole thing to hover above the ground and made for a very smooth journey and easy traveling. Not that he needed to use such conventional methods of transportation- he could do countless other things including Astral Projection- which was a sort of way to be somewhere else in an instant yet staying where you are originally. However, what Astral Projection wasn’t good for was reminding people who is in charge and from whom the citizens benefited. It was good to go through the kingdom and give the people something to talk about.

  What was Paldek so concerned about? “You have more important things to worry about. Why do you care about such inconsequential things as your people's fear?” he had said to Gudrunn. But the Lord knew better than anyone what he was doing. He couldn’t worry about the intergalactic affairs if everything wasn’t under control back on the ground. And his triumph lay in the hands of his latest subjects.

  After a day of fast traveling through the kingdom with few short stops, the delegation arrived at the foot of the hill atop which the Silent Monks were awaiting their arrival.

  The delegation climbed up the stairs and took a short break for everyone to catch their breath when they reached the top. They were welcomed in the monastery with the sound of ceremonial gongs and the entire square-shaped courtyard was covered from wall to wall with a thick carpet of snow white petals from the Edelwise flower which grew in abundance on this mountain. The sight was beautiful and at first glance created the illusion that the courtyard was covered in snow. The delegation walked over the flower carpet and stopped at the entrance of the main building where the Abbot and the priests were lined up and waiting for them.

  “My Lord,” greeted him the Abbot and bowed down in front of the supreme ruler of the kingdom. “We are honoured to have you.”

  “Abbot Finn,” Gudrunn greeted him back. “I am very pleased that you decided to join our union.”

  “Yes, my Lord,” smiled the Abbot. “Please come into our humble sanctuary of peace. We have everything setup to perform the ceremony.”

  The Abbot made room while still bowing down for the Lord to enter and then followed him inside. The priests went in after them one by one in a line and the last monk closed the doors.

  They brought the ruler inside the Big Room where countless ceremonies had taken place over the past 2000 years but this was the first time one like this would happen.

  According to the Lord’s decision the local ruler, in this case, the Abbot would have to ceremoniously hand over the object symbolizing the government. In the monastery, it was a century old staff carved from an extinct animal's bones.

  The ceremony went as expected and the ancient staff sacred to the monks was handed over to Lord Gudrunn as a symbol of his power over the monastery.

  Once the show was over Gudrunn turned to the Abbot and said,

  “If you don’t mind I want to have a look around,” he turned to his second in command, “Search every room. Call me the moment you find it.”

  The atmosphere went south immediately. From a celebration, it turned into a raid in a blink of an
eye.

  “My lord?” asked the Abbot without any hesitation. “Maybe I can be of some assistance and direct you to whatever it is you are looking for?”

  “As a matter of fact yes- the Dragonette egg. Where are you keeping it? I would very much like to acquire it,” said the Lord calmly and looked around the room nonchalantly.

  “The ...Dragonette egg, my Lord? I have heard of such a thing only in children’s stories.”

  “I find that interesting considering brother Theus has seen it countless times in the monastery.”

  “I knew brother Theus’ falling was very severe but I had no idea he had lost his mind in the process. I am afraid he has fooled people with his fabrications.”

  “I am going to ask only one more time. Where is the egg?”

  “We do not possess such an object. I have no idea what you are talking about.” Finn innocently answered.

  “Don’t make this harder on yourself. I know you have it. One of your monks is running his mouth all over the kingdom bragging about it. Perhaps you should take a page or two from my book about controlling your subjects, Abbot.”

  “My Lord, whatever he has said, I assure you it is a lie.”

  “The thing is…” said Gudrunn and leaned in uncomfortably close to Finn, “I know the truth.”

  “Search the place for yourself, my Lord,” said the Abbot with a tranquil expression.

  The pair locked eyes. Without breaking this concentration Gudrunn ordered his chief of guards,

  “Voneg! Leave no stone unturned.”

  “Yes, my Lord! All right, Split up into teams and start searching from the outer parts towards the center!” Voneg who was basically a hired gorilla made up for what he lacked in intelligence with generous amounts of unnecessary cruelty and enjoyment of pointless violence.

  After the guards turned the whole monastery inside out over the next hour and demolished every last piece of furniture Voneg reported back to Gudrunn,

  "It is not here, my Lord," he explained while still out of breath from vigorously destroying.

  "Not possible."

  "I swear my life on it."

  “Take these old fools outside and line them up on the ground.”

  The guards pushed the thirteen men in the courtyard and on the ground. They were lined up next to one another on their knees facing towards the small bewildered crowd in the courtyard. Meriaus was nervously gripping his sword and anticipating the worst. He knew the temper his master had and how he dealt with people who he deemed uncooperative.

  Gudrunn took out his sword and walked up and down the line of monks examining each one carefully. He passed by the Abbot and then stopped at a random member of the monastery. Gudrunn touched the monk’s chin with the tip of his sword and raised his head up:

  “Where is it?” he asked the kneeling man.

  Noone answered the question. The Lord looked up and down the line of men kneeling on the ceremonial Edelwise petals. After a few seconds of silence when it became offensively apparent he wasn’t getting his egg he decided that an example was necessary.

  Gudrunn let go of the sword's handle but it didn’t fall, instead it hung in place, supported by an invisible force stood behind. The Lord walked behind the monk and stood with his hands behind his back.

  “Answer or die.”

  Noone spoke.

  The sword moved on its own, it hung in the air for a second and it swooped down towards the monk’s neck.

  It was a direct hit and as a result, the monk’s severed head fell on the ground, followed by the lifeless body.

  There was a collective gasp of horror amongst the people looking on at the gruesome scene.

  “Lord Gudrunn!” shouted Meriaus in shock before he could stop himself.

  Gudrunn turned and look at him. Meriaus held his tongue. Was he about to defy his master or was he going to obey his orders? The inner conflict was strong- Gudrunn was his leader but Finn was his friend and he had given him his word that this was the right decision.

  The lord walked over to the next monk in line kneeling on the ground who was mouthing a prayer silently.

  “Where is the egg?” asked the Lord again and once more no one answer. The sword took another swing. A second severed head rolled through the courtyard painting the white petals in a dark crimson colour.

  Meriaus started towards his Lord, but stopped himself before he did something that would earn him a spot in the line of kneeling men.

  “I am not wasting any more steel on you. I know all of you are informed about the location of the egg, but you have obviously chosen to stay silent. That is very unfortunate. Abbot, have you no mercy for your own men? Obligating them to die? Shameful. Voneg!”

  “Yes, my Lord.”

  “Position one of your skilled swordsmen behind each of these men,” ordered the Lord and took the spot behind the Abbot himself. “Draw your swords,” he continued calmly.

  Everyone in the crowd tensed up even more. Some of the people turned away unable to bear the sight of this massacre. The monks had become a symbol for selfless acts. To people in the kingdom, they had earned their status and respect over the two thousand years of dedication to altruism.

  An old woman in the crowd who had come to bring some gifts to the monks as she did in her youth. Over time her visits became less frequent. Today, it just so happened to fall on the same day as Gudrunn’s. She broke the intense silence,

  “My Lord, please! Leave them alone. They have done so much for others and asked for so little for themselves!”

  “Be quiet old one!” shouted Gudrunn. “Unless you want to join these fools.”

  “Grandma, please…” Jessika in her shocked state managed to let out the plea, but her grandmother continued.

  “But, my Lord, please hear me out! When I was young and I was sick the Abbot of this monesta…”

  But she couldn’t finish her story. Gudrunn snapped his fingers and at that exact moment, the old woman burst in bright green flames. She started screeching in agony and rolling around on the ground. Some of the onlookers dashed off on instinct and fetched buckets of water from the well in the yard. They dosed her flaming body rolling on the ground but the eerie green flames weren’t going out. Her screams were terrifying.

  “Grandma no!” Jessika pushed down a guard and ran towards her burning relative.

  She suddenly felt an invisible force lift her into the air and began choking her.

  Gudrunn stopped her in her tracks as she desperately tried to escape the grasp. It was too powerful.

  Meriaus rushed in, he could not let another innocent die so mericlessly,

  “My lord. Reconsider,” He looked at Gudrunn straight in his eyes as the two stared down each other. “This is her grandmother, she would be upset at her torment.”

  Gudrunn stared and continued to listen, testing the mettle of Meriaus as he made his statement. Meriaus looked down to the burning old woman.

  “End it now. They know your power. There is no reason for this,” he continued to plead.

  Suddenly, Jessika dropped to the floor and her grandmother drew her last breath. The flames disappeared leaving a scorched body.

  “Be very careful testing your limits with me, Meriaus,” Gudrunn stated, still staring infuriated at his advisor. “You may think you are in good company on my side but show any more defiance and you will see how easily all good faith can disappear.”

  Meriaus looked to the ground and bowed to this King, “Yes, my Lord. Thank you,” He knew he used up any goodwill he had in this scenario.

  But an innocent was saved, for now.

  Jessika was crying over the remains of her grandmother when a guard came and dragged her back to the entourage. She was promptly placed in chains to avoid any further surprises. It didn’t stop the tears from flowing as she sobbed uncontrollably.

  Every person in the crowd felt an icy chill run down their spines. No one dared to even breathe the wrong way much less make a sound.

  “Now. Unless any
one else wants to tell me their story I would like to get back to my service as Supreme Lord of this kingdom. No one? Excellent. Men! Get in to position,” He gave his order. The ruler raised his hand and his sword hung in the air by itself about ten inches away from the Abbot’s neck. Each of the ten guards stood behind a monk and held their blades in the same position.

  “Ready... Now!”

  Ten extremely sharp swords cut through the distance between their starting position and the tender flesh of the monk’s necks. But only nine heads hit the ground with a thud slightly softened by the carpet of flowers. Abbot Finn had been spared- the Lord had stopped his blade just a few millimetres from the skin. Abbot Finn had not flinched which seemed to aggravate Lord Gudrunn a little.

  “I will leave you alive. That will be worse than death because you will carry the guilt for your colleagues’ demise.”

  The Abbot didn’t look up, he didn't say anything. He just stayed there with his head down and eyes closed.

  The Lord pointed at the lifeless bodies of the monks and they burst into green flames as had Jessika’s grandmother. He turned to look at the monastery's roof and it combusted as well. Soon the entire courtyard was engulfed in green flames. There was nothing to be done as those who witnessed it knew nothing could put them out.

  People were piling at the monastery courtyard exit to escape the magical flames.

  Voneg and his men used force to push everyone aside roughly and make room for Lord Gudrunn to exit the monastery grounds calmly without looking back. Everyone else followed him out of danger's way and started climbing down and away from the burning mountaintop spewing dark grey clouds of smoke into the crisp air.

  Jessika was dragged away with the guards. She stared at the place she knew as comfort and love since childhood, now burning into oblivion. Her face reflected the sign of a person who lost all hope in the world.