The Queen's Champion

by Whiskey Flowers

  Jonathan watched Red and Gerald get into opposite positions and laughed. The plan they had come up with took a lot of stones to pull off. Even if everything went perfectly, it was still a toss up. Jonathan thought Red could have possibly beaten him with the plan they had come up with, Jonathan only cared about fighting and failed to see that there were other ways to attack and defend that had nothing to do with traditional methods. Red was hoping to attack Gerald’s mind and so far Jonathan thought he did great. Jonathan waited for an amused Mage Alissa to start the match. The first year instructor just stood next to her friends, Mages Tabitha and Lehman and waited for Red and Gerald to signal they were ready.

  “Your friend is an idiot and you are going to get him killed,” Monica said as she came walking up with Cara. “He cannot cast shatter, does he even know that?”

  “And what makes you think he can't?” Jonathan asked. “He has been here for as long as you have.”

  “Because no one here really used that spell before Cara came,” Monica said annoyed. “And I have tried to learn it and see if there was anyway to cast a variation of it. Cara has tried helping me out but it is impossible. No mage that does not have the ability to dual cast can use shatter. Tell him Cara.”

  “I-” Cara said hesitantly. She knew Jonathan had reason to hate her and that as the dragonslayer and someone who had fought out of her trap that she could do little to stop him.

  “Just say it,” Monica said. “This commoner likes to pretend to be scary but he was crying like the smallest of children over a woman he was too stupid to know he would never be able to have.”

  “Just like you and Russell?” Jonathan said with a smile.

  “Your friend cannot cast shatter,” Cara said. “Unless you came up with a unique variation.”

  “Red knows he cannot cast shatter,” Jonathan said.

  “Then why has that idiot been going on about his new spell this or his new spell that,” Monica said.

  “Because Gerald thinks he can cast it,” Jonathan said as Mage Alissa gave the signal to begin.

  Red went into the intricate hand movements required for weak mages to cast a strong version of shatter. Jonathan laughed as Gerald slowly walked over towards Red, unafraid by the spell. Red and Jonathan both worked out that Gerald would rightfully guess that shatter didn't affect people, only mage shields. Gerald walked over without a care in the world until the biggest mage bolt Red could cast slammed right into his face. Jonathan held his breath as Gerald hit the ground, the plan he had worked out with Red had few contingencies and most of them depended on this moment. Last year Red would have been able to have a physical weapon as a back up, Quevin Wilson the old Tower Mage had immediately forbid mundane weapons anywhere in the Tower as a result. Red saw his chance and ran over to the downed Gerald and was about to punch him in the face until he was hit by a wind spell from Farrah.

  “You have already won!” Farrah snapped as Red picked himself up off the ground.

  “You tricked him,” Cara said excitedly. “That is brilliant. Your friend went through the hand and arm motions for shatter while putting all of his concentration into a mage bolt. Gerald never knew what hit him!”

  “Y-you both cheated!” Monica said as she looked over at Farrah.

  “They just paid attention to the environment,” Cara said. “It is what I am good at. What would you had done if Gerald decided to attack first? I have fought him a few times and know he is faster than I am. He normally uses his speed to quickly nullify an opponent before taking his time.”

  “We would have quit,” Jonathan said truthfully. “But all of you are so predictable it is shocking.”

  “All of us?” Cara asked no longer scared to speak to Jonathan.

  “All of you nobles,” Jonathan replied. “You will never be able to admit that there are commoners just as good or better than yourselves and that the main thing separating you is that you were born lucky.”

  “Of course commoners would think that we are same,” Monica said.

  “In magic,” Jonathan began. “Whether or not you can beat me is irrelevant. You have to admit that I at least belong in the discussion. You may not like me or think I do not belong as second or third in the Big Four but you have to admit I do belong in the Big Four.”

  “Even if you have a point,” Monica began. “You are just lucky you have this magic as a commoner.”

  “Then my daughters and sons will feel just as lucky,” Jonathan replied. “They will be even stronger mages than I am.”

  “Your children will not be commoners idiot,” Monica said.

  “Oh yes they will,” Jonathan replied. “After all of this with Farrah, I am never going to even look at another noble. I am sure Red agrees with me.”

  “What?” Monica said. “That would be irresponsible, you are required to help birth the next generation.”

  “I can do that with a commoner,” Jonathan said.

  “So you would bypass a girl based on her birth?” Cara said. “You sound just like us petty nobles you pretend to hate.”

  “Then call me petty,” Jonathan said as he turned around and gave Red a big hug.

  “Worked like a charm,” Red said laughing. “It won't work again but it was enough to beat him. I won't ever give him a rematch either, I want him to take that lost with him.”

  “Your plan was too risky,” Cara said. “Everything had to fall into play for you to be successful.”

  “You are just angry I closed his girlish mouth,” Red bragged. “Me, one of the weakest commoners here in magical energy just went against one of the best and won. Now look at us all here. All four of us were dumped and dumped horribly. At least I don't feel bad being in this crowd.”

  “I just heard that neither you nor Thunder plan on marrying in your new station,” Monica said. “You should look for women in this order, noble mage, noble, commoner, commoner mage. Your only real choice is to marry a noble. Commoner mages get into trouble later on if they are not stopped early on.”

  “And what is your order?” Red asked. “Stallion, mule, hog, then commoner?”

  “I am not averse to marrying a commoner,” Cara said. “I just see no reason to since I could almost have my pick. A landed noble may be out of the picture but no one else is. Wealthy nobles would divorce their wives to have me. It is all part of being a female with magic.”

  “Well someone is full of herself despite being dumped,” Red said.

  “I am telling you the truth,” Cara said. “I am a noble but without magic I am no one important. Prince Xalen or Lord Golad shouldn't even know who I am. I had plenty of mundane girlfriends I used to be close with until my parents became serious about my magic. We all come from the same amount of money but they are below my station. Any man who would date them would take me instead.”

  “Well maybe you both should pick up Gerald,” Red laughed. “He just got the pit beat out of him and if both of you are so desirable then just seeing you will put a smile on his face.”

  CHAPTER 14

  “This is for me?” Jonathan said as Mage Tabitha handed him a sealed envelope in class.

  “I am sure of it,” Mage Tabitha replied. “After everything that has happened this year nothing can surprise me.”

  “But there is no writing on this?” Jonathan said as he turned the letter over.

  “The man who handed this to me wore purple,” Mage Tabitha said. “The color only worn by the royal family or those in direct service to the royal family like yourself.”

  “This could be for Xalen,” Jonathan said.

  “His Highness has a small home right across from the Tower,” Mage Tabitha said. “If it was for him then he would have received it there.”

  “Just open the damn thing,” Red said.

  Jonathan tore open the envelope and noticed how well made it was. The paper used on it was high quality, Jonathan thought it felt more like some type of cloth instead of paper. The script written on it was flowy and elegant. The message was not very
long and it went straight to the point.

  Jonathan,

  You are needed Jonathan. There is trouble near the border. A man believed to be a mage has come in and has been abusing citizens. Our normal mage teams are ineffective. Most mages in the Kingdom refuse to venture anywhere the border. No freelancers want the job either. You are to travel to Jubilee and speak with the Lord Mayor. She will give you more direction when you get there. Your new carriage is waiting at the stables. As the Queen’s Champion, you are expected to handle unique problems that present when others lack courage.

  - Erlanger Telfarin Archmage of Kirby

  Jonathan finished reading the note as his heart thumped loudly in his chest. This was from the Archmage and he was requesting Jonathan’s help as Champion of the Kingdom. From the message Jonathan received, it sounded like a mage had decided to become a criminal in the borderlands. Jonathan knew most of the time a mage hunting team would be dispatched, they consisted primarily of noble mages since nobles were generally stronger than commoners were. In cases where nobles were not available then a bounty would be posted and any mage or anyone else could take advantage of it. Jonathan’s parents Joshua and Sara had captured a few mages this way and made a decent amount of coin. The dragon attack had changed everything though, Jonathan couldn't blame the normal mage hunting teams.

  It was probably well known now that Kevin Wilson had tried to stand before a dragon and lost. Not only that, the mages with Kevin were slaughtered. What chance did a regular mage have against a beast like that if the former Archmage was almost killed? No mage hunting team wanted to go anywhere near the border, if a dragon decided to come by then they would be as good as dead. The supposed criminal mage knew this and was taking advantage of it, Jonathan was only guessing but thought the mage was conducting attacks similar to the dragon.

  If Jonathan was the criminal he would attack primarily at dark. He could fly into a town and demand money or anything else he wanted. If the town refused then he could torch it and fly away under the cover of night. A daring mage could conduct attacks in the day just to throw the towns off. That mage could just fly away and if any riders tried to follow then the mage could attack and use his altitude as the ultimate form of defense while raining down mage bolts, fireballs, icicles or any other nastiness. Jonathan would have to catch this person, the message didn't state whether it was supposed to be alive or dead.

  “Is it secret?” Mage Tabitha asked.

  “I am not sure,” Jonathan replied. “I don't think so. It is from the Archmage.”

  “The Archmage?” Mage Tabitha replied. “It must be important for the Archmage to contact a student.”

  “He contacted me in my status as Champion,” Jonathan said. “There is trouble, a mage has gone rogue and is causing trouble.”

  “Because that is what commoners do,” Xalen said. “That is the reason why commoners shouldn't have such power.”

  “They are sending a commoner to deal with it,” Jonathan said. “Someone with stones since others are too scared.”

  “Nonsense,” Russell spoke. “There are many people who make their living putting down rogue commoners.”

  “This mage is operating near the Downey border,” Jonathan said.

  Jonathan heard a gasp and then silence followed by soft whispers. The importance of the situation was not lost on the second years, they had lost classmates to the dragons of Downey. Xalen himself shut up and gave Jonathan a look of pity, the prince had almost seen his family killed by a dragon. Jonathan took a deep breath and was about to walk away when he heard the sound of someone moving their chair back so they could stand up.

  “Pit,” Red said. “If I die you better lie and say I was your best friend and that my dangly bits was as long and thick as a baby’s leg and that you worshipped the ground I walked on. When are we supposed to leave.”

  “You can't leave Red,” Jonathan replied. “You are still in training.”

  “Training can kiss my pale freckled ass,” Red said. “No way I am going to let you run off and fight some damn dragon somewhere. At least if you kick you know you had one person willing to go to the pit with you.”

  “This is insane,” Farrah said. “You have your fancy little title but you will die out there. Champion or not you are going to be looking for a real mage that doesn't play fair. This isn't Quevin Wilson in a controlled environment, this is someone who could be in league with the dragons.”

  “That is why I am going with him,” Red said. “We can catch up whatever we miss during the next break.”

  Jonathan left class and quickly got his things together. As he and Red were leaving they quickly got a plan together. Jonathan would go in all his finery and identify himself as a mage. Red would be his manservant, someone who could blend into the background and provide support when needed. Jonathan thought it took him less than a mark to gather his and Red’s equipment and walk to the stables. Jonathan smiled when he saw his new carriage, it wasn't as opulent as what the Archmage had but it was nicely decorated and it came with a driver. Jonathan and Red climbed inside and traveled again for the border. The trip there was mostly in silence, Jonathan was scared to death and could see that his friend was as well. But Red had made the trip and Jonathan was happy to have some company. It took a few days for them to reach Jubilee, the Lord Mayor was shocked that he was now Champion and relayed everything she knew about the Bandit Mage, the name the locals called him.

  “It was as I suspected,” Jonathan said. “He is taking advantage of the pain the dragons left behind.”

  “It is more than that,” the Lord Mayor Mia said. “Many mages came here hoping to kill a dragon, back when most of you thought they were just big animals. You killed or chased the dragons away and they were angry they made the trip for nothing. Some stayed to hear the stories about money being stolen or our young women taken and ravished. Some paid too much attention to that part and how the dragon riders were able to attack and disappear. It used to be three of them, they worked as a team and did just like the dragon riders did, down to where they left our girls.”

  “Left the girls?” Jonathan asked.

  “When the dragon riders were done with them, they left the women near Lux,” the Lord Mayor said. “Lux wasn't far from where the dragon riders hid out at. We were shown the way and snuck up on the mages during the night, we were able to kill two of them but lost seventy three men doing so. Their underground cave was well defended and once our men got inside it was hard to get out.”

  “How do you know any of them survived?” Jonathan asked. “Seventy three men is a hard battle for the best of mages if caught unaware.”

  “Because he has stopped ravishing and stealing,” The Lord Mayor said. “Right now he is intent on causing as much destruction as possible. Before the trio didn't dare show their faces in Jubilee, only the smaller towns near the borderlands were affected. That man had to have known that the only city near him that could send that many men were us. Now he touches down and torches inns, taverns and the homes of the influential. The only reason I have not been targeted is because I have guards posted all day, everyday. Many others have not been so lucky.”

  “So it is personal with this man,” Jonathan said.

  “It is personal with us,” the Lord Mayor said. “While they did not kill anyone to start off with they traumatized people’s daughters and took money that some of their poorer targets really needed.”

  “I have faith in what I can do,” Jonathan said. “But I don't know how I would be able to catch a man like this. I can fight, before I can do that though I would have to be able to see him.”

  “I have thought about that,” the Lord Mayor replied. “We have tried, out here we try not to depend on the crown for everything. We got others involved as a last ditch effort.”

  “And have you come up with anything?” Jonathan asked.

  “Well I can tell you that you are on the right path,” the Lord Mayor said. “You have another mage posing as a servant. No nee
d to lie, I recognize him from the dragon attack.”

  “Well that is just what we need,” Red said. “If folks know who I am then what is to stop them from just coming after me.”

  “Them?” the Lord Mayor asked. “It is just one person.”

  “No offense to you Milady,” Red began. “But I was an actual criminal before, nothing as big as what this guy is doing. I am almost positive he has an inside man. I am willing to bet the dragons probably did too.”

  “Then how did we sneak up on them?” the Lord Mayor asked.

  “They had no way to warn them,” Red replied. “It makes sense. If you both believe that no one here would ally themselves for a little extra coin then you are mad. It is easy money, just tell whoever where the fight is or the traps are with no danger to yourself. I am amazed that the dragons were not able to get a mage on their side. That would be a hard group to combat.”

  “You make everything sound so bleak,” the Lord Mayor said.

  “It is bleak if this idiot knows what he is doing,” Red said. “Does anyone have a good description of him?”

  “Not really but he is a mage,” the Lord Mayor said.

  “If you never seen me and Jonathan before Milady,” Red began. “Could you tell we were mages?”

  “Well the Queen’s Champion has on his robes just like almost every other mage I have met except yourself,” The Lord Mayor replied.

  “If I was this knobber I would wear the dustiest clothes I could find and I would just fit in as a traveller,” Red said. “In fact, I would come here and look for work just so I can blend in a bit. I could go to other towns to do my pillaging there and then pretend to be one of the lads. It is like a twisted version of those bard tales where some bloke is actually some crazy strong crimefighter. That way he may not even need a partner but I am willing to bet he has one.”

  “What about the women that were taken, can they describe him?” Jonathan asked.

  “Not really,” the Lord Mayor said. “A man of average height and size with plain brown hair. Only one person has really seen him, one of his victims. That description could be almost anyone in Jubilee.”