The Hidden Sun (Bariwon Chronicles Book 1)

by J. Lloyd Morgan

  She took him by the hand again. “I’m glad you did too. After I thought you were dead, my life changed. All I focused on was my work here. And now…”

  “Yes, I know. There are a lot of things to talk about,” Rayne said. “But the governor made it clear we needed to leave soon. Will you be able to attend the Mortentaun tomorrow?”

  Sunshine nodded and gave Rayne a smile he felt all the way down to his toes.

  ***

  “You appear to be quite taken with him,” Bertram said after Rayne left.

  “I am,” Sunshine said. “When I heard he was dead, I tried to forget all about him, but seeing him today brought all those feelings back.”

  Bertram gave her a fatherly smile. “And he seems quite taken with you, too. However…”

  Sunshine raised her eyebrows. “However what?”

  “You do understand that he is here competing to become a guardian, correct? While savants and guardians assigned to districts are allowed to marry at any time, royal guardians are forbidden to marry during their term of service. If Rayne does well enough in the Mortentaun, wouldn’t that pose a problem?”

  Sunshine didn’t say anything for a moment. Bertram could see her thinking, and her features revealed that she wasn’t happy with the conclusions she was drawing.

  “Yet,” Bertram said, trying to make his voice cheerful, “royal guardians only have to serve a minimum of two years before they can resign. Granted, many serve much longer than that.”

  Sunshine straightened up and looked at her mentor. “When I met Rayne, something between us just clicked. It’s hard for me to describe exactly what I mean by that. At the time, he wasn’t sure he wanted to be a guardian, but he is here and doing well, so I can’t help but think that something may have changed. If he wants to be a guardian, I’ll support him.” She sighed. “You must understand that when I thought he was dead, part of me felt dead as well. To see him alive—well, it has awakened something inside me. If he does become a royal guardian, I’d be willing to wait for him, as long as it takes.”

  Bertram looked at her searchingly. “I imagine you would.”

  “However, I haven’t forgotten my duty here. I’ll go fetch the rest of the hierarchy.”

  Bertram shook his head. “No, no. It’s getting too late for that now. Go ahead and retire for the evening. I want to look over the Tome some more. I’ll gather the hierarchy tomorrow.”

  Sunshine cocked her head to one side. “Are you sure this news can wait?”

  “This information has been lost for many years,” Bertram said, placing a hand on the Tome. “It can wait one more day.”

  ***

  The morning sun shone brightly, matching Sunshine’s mood. She had slept better than in recent memory and got up at the first light of dawn. She took some extra effort getting ready for the day’s activities, making sure her dress and hair were just so.

  When she met up with Alana for breakfast in the courtyard, she caught herself humming a little tune her father used to hum when he was in a particularly good humor. During breakfast, Sunshine told Alana she had run into Rayne the previous evening, and then she explained everything that had happened, including the embrace she and Rayne had shared. The two young women giggled together in excitement.

  After a satisfying meal, they made their way out of the castle, through the town, and to the field where the Mortentaun was being held. The area was already abuzz with activity. A couple of bards were spinning tales to the crowds that gathered around. Merchants had set up tents and were peddling their wares, with one inventive merchant hauling fruit in a large basket strapped to his back. Alana found this man especially intriguing and stopped him.

  “Ah, my lady,” the man said, glancing at the ring of nobility Alana wore. “How may I help you?”

  Alana reached for her coin purse. “Instead of people coming to you for business, you go to the people, I see. Very ingenious.”

  He nodded at the compliment. “May I get you something? I have fresh strawberries and also apples from last season.”

  “I’d love a few strawberries. May I get you something, Sunshine?” Alana asked.

  She peered into the basket. “An apple would be lovely, thank you.”

  Alana paid the man for the items and he went on his way.

  “Thank you for the apple,” Sunshine said, holding it closely.

  “You’re welcome.”

  They worked their way through the crowd toward the banner of Lewyol. The participants were still gathering, so when Alana and Sunshine found her family, Oakleaf and her father were still among them.

  “Ah, Shiny! How nice of you to come cheer me on,” Oakleaf said somewhat sarcastically. “But of course, I know the real reason. You found out Rayne is here and doing well.”

  “What?” Iolanthe gasped. “I thought—”

  “It appears we were given faulty information,” Alana interrupted. She pointed to the scoreboard. “Rayne is, in fact, number 17 from Lebu.”

  “I knew I spotted him!” Snapdragon said excitedly. “See, I told you.”

  Iolanthe smiled. “Very well, Snap. You were right. I’m sorry for doubting you.”

  Sunshine went to her older brother and gave him a hug he was clearly not expecting. “Leafy, I’ll be cheering for you too, you wooden head. It’s good to see you.”

  ***

  “It’s fairly straight forward,” Kelvin told Rayne as they walked toward the field. “The morning event will test your ability with a bow and arrow, while the afternoon event is designed around hand-to-hand combat.”

  Rayne craned his neck to one side and then to the other, trying to work out the kink he had awakened with this morning. He had slept well, even though falling asleep was a bit trying. He kept thinking of Sunshine, but would then chide himself for not staying focused on the Mortentaun. Sleep eventually did overtake him, and he had slept so soundly that when his grandmother woke him, he found he had slept with his neck in an awkward position.

  “Now, about the first event,” Kelvin continued. “You are shooting at a target that has three circles. The outer circle is blue, the middle is red, and the bull’s eye is yellow. Each of the sixteen participants will shoot in the opposite order of their points. This means you will go third to last—a good place to be.”

  Rayne nodded. “Got it.”

  They arrived at the field and could see the officiators setting up the target. Kelvin pointed to it. “After everyone shoots, the two that are the furthest from the bull’s eye will be eliminated. The target will then be moved back ten paces and the remaining participants will shoot again. Any questions?”

  “Just one.” Rayne straightened his tunic. “How do I look?”

  ***

  Oakleaf was the first to go, since he placed sixteenth overall the day before. Sunshine stood by her family and cheered as her brother went to the line and took aim. The crowd quieted in anticipation of the shot. Oakleaf let the arrow fly, and from Sunshine’s position, it appeared to hit in the inner yellow circle, just off center. Oakleaf raised his arms enthusiastically while the crowd applauded his excellent shot.

  Each participant took turns making the same shot, all of them hitting the target, most of them at least hitting inside the red circle. None had done better than Oakleaf when Rayne stepped to the line.

  When Rayne was introduced, Sunshine cheered just as hard as she had for her brother. She thought she saw him spare a glance in her direction before he took aim. The crowd quieted and Rayne took his shot. It hit the very center of the bull’s eye, inspiring the crowd to congratulate his good shot with extra applause. The second-to-last participant’s shot hit within the red circle, bringing the large man from Erd to take his turn.

  “He won every event in his division yesterday,” Snapdragon told his sister. “I hear that had never been done before. I can’t wait to see how he does here.”

  Sunshine sized up the man. Although he didn’t seem as tall as his fellow participants, he was definitely more muscular.
The man didn’t seem as comfortable with the bow as the rest, and Sunshine’s observation was validated when his shot went wide, not even hitting the target.

  ***

  “Well, that was a disappointment.” Councilor Abrecan frowned. “You said your nephew was better than that, Eadward.”

  Eadward’s red face betrayed the calm response he tried to give. “Ivor is strong and quick, and very good in combat, but he doesn’t see well at long distances. Don’t worry, Councilor, he will demonstrate his abilities later this afternoon.”

  Abrecan made a rude noise. “I would hope so. How many are left from Erd?”

  Caldre rose from his seat next to the councilor and took a closer look down at the field. “It appears eight of the remaining fourteen are from Erd. There is still a good chance that most of them will become royal guardians.”

  “Fine. Captain Sullivan tells me he’d prefer that his guardians come from Erd,” Abrecan said. “They seem to understand better how things are run. Caldre, perhaps you could find a way to make sure more men from Erd do well.”

  Caldre thought for a moment. “It’s probably too late for me to do anything for the morning competition, but I think I can come up with something for the afternoon event. If I may have your leave?”

  “Of course,” Abrecan said, waving away the magistrate.

  ***

  Rayne squinted at the target that had been moved eighty paces away from the shooting line. Fortunately, there wasn’t a morning breeze to speak of, which meant Rayne didn’t have to compensate for wind.

  He had hit the center, or very near the center, in every shot he had taken so far. Now that there were only four participants left, Rayne found himself focusing more on the task at hand, and less on his surroundings. It wasn’t easy because one of the four remaining participants was Oakleaf, and that was a constant reminder that Sunshine was looking on intently. The other two men were from Erd, both large and not particularly friendly.

  Oakleaf went first again. As the crowd silenced around him, he took aim. Just when he was about to release the bowstring, one of the men from Erd coughed loudly. It was enough to have an effect on Oakleaf’s shot, and for the first time during the competition, he missed the yellow bull’s eye and hit the red.

  Visibly upset, Oakleaf turned to face his opponent and was about to say something when Rayne stepped in. “That was a good shot, Oakleaf. You nearly hit the bull’s eye from this distance. Any of us would be hard-pressed to do that well.”

  Oakleaf sent Rayne a questioning look, but Rayne glanced quickly at the other two men and hoped Oakleaf understood. One of the men appeared a bit nervous now, licking his lips and fidgeting with his bow. The other man, the one who had coughed, still waited confidently.

  The nervous participant took his place, took in a deep breath, and tried to steady his quivering hands. His shot went wide, hitting the outer blue ring.

  When the next man from Erd stepped up, the officiator at the line said to Oakleaf and Rayne, “I don’t want to hear any noise out of you two.”

  The man from Erd looked at Rayne and Oakleaf and gave them a smirk. He turned back to the target and took his aim. Just before he was about to let go, a burst of wind came whipping across the field—enough to cause the man’s shot to go even wider than that of his fellow participant from Erd.

  “No fair! The wind blew that off course!” the contestant shouted, waving his arms in disgust. “I demand another shot!”

  The officiator looked nervously at the grandstand where King Daimh and Councilor Abrecan were sitting. “I’m sorry, but interference from the elements does not constitute reason for a second shot.”

  With the wind still blowing fairly hard, the man threw his bow to the ground and said, “Fine! No one will be able to get off a good shot in this wind.”

  Rayne took to the line and aimed carefully. He felt the wind on his face, adjusted slightly, and let his arrow fly. The crowd erupted when it hit the bull’s eye dead center.

  ***

  “Good luck, Oakleaf,” Rayne said, slapping the young man from Lewyol on the back.

  Oakleaf fitted the arrow in his bow. “Thanks. You too, Rayne.”

  The target had been moved back another ten paces, and fortunately the wind had died down to a light breeze. The crowd was on its feet now as the last two men prepared for their final shots. Oakleaf set himself, took his time to aim, and then fired. It was by far his best shot of the day, hitting what appeared to be the center of the bull’s eye.

  Rayne was the first to shake Oakleaf’s hand in congratulations. The crowd was still cheering when Rayne set up for his turn. After selecting an arrow from the quiver provided, Rayne took a deep breath and brought up his bow. His mind went back to a practice with his father when he had been faced with a similar shot. His father had gone before him and made a nearly impossible shot to beat. At the time, Rayne had said, “There isn’t even a point for me to take the shot. There is no way I can beat you, Father.” Rinan had said something Rayne had never forgotten. “There will be times when it appears you cannot win, but those are the most important times to try your best. Never give up, even in the face of a seemingly impossible situation. It is often the effort that makes all the difference.”

  Rayne smiled at the memory and released the bowstring. His arrow flew true, but hit just to the right of Oakleaf’s shot, giving Sunshine’s brother the victory.

  The crowd exploded in reaction to such a fine display of marksmanship and cheered heartily as Oakleaf and Rayne walked off the field together, waving to the crowd.

  CHAPTER 19

  Magistrate Aldous arched an eyebrow at Bertram. “I don’t think it would be possible to gather the rest of the hierarchy today. Most of them are still at the Mortentaun.”

  Bertram sighed. “Yes, of course. I can see that it would be difficult. But what I’ve discovered—”

  “Is something we’ll all be interested in, I’m sure Bertram,” Aldous said, giving the younger man a warm smile. “But you need to learn that there is more to life than books and studying. Come, join us. You may find that you will actually enjoy the experience.”

  Bertram shook his head, more dramatically than he intended. “I don’t think so. I have duties here.”

  Aldous stood. “Nonsense. I’m the head of the Hierarchy of Magistrates, and I’m relieving you of any duties you feel obligated to do for the rest of the day.”

  The sound of cheers caused both men to look out the window of Bertram’s room.

  “You see?” Aldous said. “That is the sound of happy people.”

  Bertram folded his arms. “It’s not that I think I wouldn’t enjoy it. It’s just that I’d rather not be around certain individuals.”

  “Like who?”

  Bertram absently started chewing on one of his fingernails. “I feel uncomfortable around the royalty. And then there is Magistrate Caldre…”

  Aldous sighed. “Caldre is just overly ambitious. Don’t worry about him. As for the royalty, they hold no power over us, nor we over them. We are both bound to follow the Tome of Laws.”

  “When I say something in court that Councilor Abrecan doesn’t like, he looks as if he wants to do me physical harm.”

  “Nonsense,” Aldous replied. “You’re letting your imagination run away with you. You’ve never backed down from stating what you thought was right—that’s one reason you were chosen to be on the hierarchy.”

  Bertram bowed his head. “Yes, that’s true. I don’t know what comes over me sometimes.”

  “Well, don’t give it another thought. We’ll convene the hierarchy first thing tomorrow. In the meantime, it sounds like the morning event is coming to a close, and I don’t want to miss any more of the Mortentaun. Will you join me?”

  Bertram took an involuntary step back. “Perhaps, when I’m done here.”

  “All right, but don’t take too long. There are wondrous things to see and do there.”

  With that, Aldous left the room, but left the door open.


  When Bertram felt Aldous was far enough away, he closed the door, selected a book from his collection, and sat down on his bed with his back toward the window.

  ***

  Rayne sat next to Sunshine in the courtyard, holding her hand under the table. During the mid-day break between events, Alana had once again invited Sunshine’s family to join her at the castle for lunch. Sunshine asked if she could invite Rayne and his grandparents, and Alana easily agreed.

  Rayne was amazed how well his grandparents got along with Sunshine’s parents. It was as if they were old friends meeting up after years apart. Across from Rayne sat Oakleaf, sporting on his tunic the marksmanship pin he had won that morning. During the last event, Rayne and Oakleaf seemed to have developed a bond of friendship, almost an “us against all of them” approach to the rest of the participants.

  “It was quite the exciting event this morning,” Alana said to Rayne and Oakleaf. “Both of you should be quite proud.”

  “Thank you, my lady,” they said in unison.

  “Yeah, I thought for sure Rayne was going to win,” Snapdragon said. “Who’d have thought Leafy would save his best shot for last?”

  “Now, Snap, you’re going to make Rayne feel bad.” Iolanthe scooped an extra helping of spinach onto his plate.

  Rayne wiped his mouth with a napkin before he spoke. “Actually, I’m not upset. It was a really good event, and Oakleaf won fair and square. Since I didn’t win, I’m glad Oakleaf was the victor.”

  “But what happens if you two get paired against each other in the hand-to-hand combat event this afternoon?” Snapdragon asked. “Are you going to take it easy on him, Oakleaf?”

  Garth reached over to Snapdragon’s plate, picked up a large forkful of spinach, and shoved it in his youngest son’s mouth. “Obviously, Snap needs something to fill the void he calls a mouth.”