by Tom Burton
A booming voice comes from the hooded figure, “What did you find?”
Luke stops abruptly and kneels down upon one knee. He raises his eyes just enough to see the hooded figure ahead and above him. “The West and the North are filled with villages. There are no soldiers in or near these villages. Without the Capital’s help, they are easy prey.”
The hooded figure turns around, his face is hidden in shadows. He steps to the front of the throne, and Luke’s eyes drop to the floor.
The figure’s voice rumbles through the great hall again, and Luke feels it in the stones beneath him, like thunder cracking overhead. “The humans may be weak on their own, but together they can be a force to be reckoned with. We must attack soon, before they realize what we have planned for them.” Luke then looks up at his master as he continues.
“Go to the Capital, Snow, with a larger flock. Find out what you can about them, and see how strong they really are. Do not allow any witnesses. We must remain in the dark for now.”
Luke stands up and bows. “It will be done, my Lord,” he says proudly.
The hooded figure remains still, and Luke feels himself being examined. Luke wills himself to remain stalwart. After a few moments that feel like hours, the hooded figure turns away to face the throne.
“My son, you have never faced such a test. It would be a great shame should you fail now, after coming so far.” The hooded figure says, tapping the throne as he does so.
“Fortunately for both of us, it won’t come to that,” Luke replies.
“We shall see,” the hooded figure retorts. He lifts his hand, and the door opens behind Luke. Recognizing that he is dismissed, Luke quickly leaves Redlock Hall.
The trio of young men walk for days, and the contents of their bags dwindle. After yet another ominous estimate from Daniel about how much more food they have, Sam says, “We’re not far now.”
“You keep saying that,” complains Daniel.
Sam ignores Daniel and asks, “What are we going to do when we get there?” Sam looks at Daniel and Aaron keenly, but his only response is a long sigh from them both.
Aaron eventually says, “Well, we need to find a library, and then we will search for any reference to the visions I have been having.”
Sam eagerly replies, “I know of a library in Dellmoor that just happens to be the biggest in the country, and happens to have thousands of books.” Aaron seems satisfied with this as they plod on toward the capital.
As three traipse up a hill, they see the top of a tower rising over the top of the rise. The first to see it, Aaron rushes up to the top of the hill, and the others follow quickly. The young men stop and their jaws drop open as they see a huge city spread out below them. They see several stone-paved roads wending across the valley below them, leading to high silver walls. They see many large buildings within the walls, and at the center of the city there is a large castle, with a high tower standing tall over the city.
“Dellmoor,” whispers Aaron.
Aaron, Daniel, and Sam run down the hill in excitement. As they approach the nearest road, marveling at the tightly joined flagstones that run straight and level toward the silver walls, they see that there are many other travelers on the road. Some of the wagons have armed guards, who eye the running youths suspiciously. Daniel is the first to notice this, and he settles the other two boys down before drawing too much attention. They climb onto the stone road leading into the city, walking calmly and trying to look like experienced travelers.
Soon the line of people, carts, and wagons comes to a standstill. Daniel looks ahead and sees that the guards at the gate are questioning each traveler. The young men notice guards standing watch atop the high stone walls. They try to remain patient as they slowly move forward. When they finally approach the large wooden gates, they are met by two guards, each holding a spear in one hand and a broad shield in the other.
“What is your purpose here?” One of guards demands. The three then stumble for an answer.
“Just for research purposes,” Aaron nervously replies.
The other guard points at Daniel and says, “You there, drop the bags. Lift your arms up in the air and set your feet apart.”
The trio follows the commands, and a third soldier, armed with a sword and a knife at his waist, steps forward and searches the three of them thoroughly. A fourth guard searches the bags, finding only food and water. Aaron, Sam, and Daniel look at each nervously, unaccustomed to such security. It all took barely a minute, and then the guards step back.
“On your way, boys,” says the first guard roughly.
The three slowly walk through the gates. When they are out of earshot, Daniel scoffs, “Boys, ha!” Then he quickly glances over his shoulder to make sure they didn’t hear him.
As the three enter the city, they see the streets are filled with people, and everyone is smiling either to themselves or at each other. They marvel at the unfamiliar clothing, and Sam says, “Everyone is dressed in fine clothing! Not one person in these streets is wearing rags.” When Aaron and Daniel turn to look at Sam, he laughs, “Well, only two people in this street.” Aaron and Daniel laugh and roll their eyes at him.
Daniel points out the men and women wearing jewelry around their wrists and necks, something else that is completely bewildering for Aaron and Daniel. Before long, they hear a man shouting on the corner of a street, and unlike everyone else they’ve seen, he has no jewelry and he is wearing tattered rags.
The man turns slowly as he shouts at no one and everyone. “The end is nigh, people! Can you not see? The smoke rises in the North! Soon that smoke will turn to fire, and that fire will spread all over our land! How can we choose to stay blind to this?” Aaron remains focused on the man, listening, whereas Sam and Daniel look away from the man, embarrassed. After a few moments, Sam nudges Aaron, nodding his head another direction as a signal to go somewhere else.
Eventually, Aaron, Sam, and Daniel reach the gates of the royal castle. The walls are nearly as tall as the outer walls, and the stone is nearly as thick. The gates are very small compared to the outer gates, however, just tall enough for the carriages that the boys saw as they wandered the streets. Sunlight glints from the surface of the gates, which seem to be covered in gold. As they approach the golden gates, two guards step forward, spears held ready behind their shields. The guard on the left shouts, “Lift your arms up in the air and spread your legs!” One of the guards sets his spear and shield aside to search the boys roughly. He then upends their bags, sorting through the food sacks, water skins, and other belongings with the toe of his boot.
As the first guard does this, the other guard says, “What is your purpose here?”
The three then just look at each other, and then Aaron replies sternly, “We told another pair of guards before, we’re here for research purposes.”
The guard performing the search throws the bags down on the ground and steps right up to Aaron’s face. The guard glares at Aaron and snarls, “You’d best leave now, or you won’t have eyes to research with.”
Intimidated, Aaron stares at him. Aaron shakes his head to snap out of his shock, then nods fearfully and stoops to gather up the things from his bag. Sam and Daniel immediately follow suit, packing their up things. Once they have put everything back in their bags, the three young men walk quickly away from the central keep.
In the forest outside the capital, Luke Snow crouches at the edge of the deep shadows, where the sunlight fades into perpetual twilight. He has a smaller force of orcs on this stealth mission. They are nearly invisible as they rest in the dim light of the forest.
The orc next to him whispers, “What do you see, my lord?”
Luke replies, “The military structure is much more regimented here than anywhere else. Their defenses will prove to be challenging. We can assume that the people will flock to the capital once they see us coming.”
Luke silences the orc with a slashing motion of his hand as he sees a group of five soldiers walk past his position on a patrol along the forest line.
After a moment that allows the patrol to move out of earshot, the orc asks, “Hungry for blood?” Luke does not respond. Instead, he quietly stands up, raises his fist in a signal to the orcs to hold their positions, and then steps to the edge of the forest. Luke leans casually against one of the trees, and conjures a simple one-note whistle. The patrol group turns swiftly at the unnatural sound, alert for danger. Luke produces another, slightly higher whistle, and the patrol group slowly walks toward the forest line, peering into the shadows. As soon as the last of the soldiers steps within the treeline, Luke teleports next to one of the soldiers and swiftly slits his throat. Before the first soldier falls to the ground, Luke teleports behind another soldier and stabs him in the back. He does the same for the remaining soldiers, the last man only having time to show terror on his face before he is cut down by Luke’s deadly blade. Luke then stands over patrol, watching their blood seep into the ground. Luke gives another hand signal, and several orcs slowly approach.
“Bury them, deeper in the woods. We can’t raise questions.” As Luke walks away from the carnage, he says, “And be quick. We must return to Redlock.”
Back near the city center, Aaron, Sam, and Daniel continue to walk along the busy streets. While Sam is still smiling in awe at everything he is seeing, Aaron and Daniel are more somber.
Aaron turns to Sam and says, “Sam, can you go the library now, while Daniel and I continue searching for anything that might help us?”
Sam nods. “Sure! What am I searching for?”
Aaron thinks for a moment. “Anything to do with explicit visions when someone is asleep, and look for beings capable of magic.” Sam nods again and sets off to find the library.
As they watch Sam eagerly walk down a cross street, Daniel says, “I’m beginning to like him.”
Aaron agrees, “He’s a good man, that’s for sure.”
Eventually the streets lead the young men back toward the area near the gates. Aaron sees the same grubby man dressed in rags at the corner of the street, still shouting.
“The end is nigh, people! Can you not see? The smoke rises in the North, and soon that smoke will turn to fire, and that fire will spread all over the country, and there is nothing any of us can do!”
Thinking of his fiery dreams, and more than a little curious, Aaron approaches the grimy man. Daniel remains where he is, glancing about nervously.
Aaron stops several feet away from the man and asks, “So what’s in the North?”
The man whips around to look at Aaron, a fearful look in his eyes. “A dark ghost from the past, alive for all these years! He’s amassed a large army, and he will soon sweep across the country with fire and death.” The man’s voice trembles in awe and terror and he fidgets under Aaron’s gaze.
Aaron tries to hold the man in place with his eyes. “How do you know this?”
The man steps uncomfortably close to Aaron, all appearance of fear vanishing. Aaron leans away from the man, both in surprise and in revulsion at the man’s stench. “Villages in the north are warning everyone, but their words fall on deaf ears. The people are ignorant to danger; they are willing to stay in denial to make themselves feel safe. That’s why I’m here, but I fear my journey is a wasted one.” Aaron steps back from the man, but he continues talking. “The people of the western villages have abandoned Dellmoor. As the wolves hunt in the night, deer in groups are harder to kill. But sadly, the deer are scattered in the woods.” The man’s voice trails off, and his eyes regain some of the wildness.
Aaron scowls and says firmly, “The people of Dellmoor abandoned us in the West! The soldiers who were supposed to protect us simply followed the bags of coins. The soldiers have no pride anymore.” Aaron turns on his heel and walks back to Daniel.
“Did he tell you anything useful?” Daniel asks.
Aaron sighs in frustration and says, “Nothing useful.”
Daniel suggests, “Well, we’ve been walking around for a while, so let’s go find Sam. He may have found something.” Aaron shrugs and nods, and the two walk toward the library.
As Aaron and Daniel walk back to the center of the city, they see the library towering over them. When they step into the square surrounding the impressive building, they are surprised to find streams of people walking in and out of the library.
“Evidently popular,” Daniel jokes as they merge with the line of citizens entering the library. The young men are awed by the rows and rows of books stretching in all directions in the cavernous space. They both jump in surprise when Sam suddenly appears next to them, carrying a large book.
Aaron anxiously asks, “Did you find anything?”
“Not specifically about your dreams, but I did find something interesting,” Sam says slowly.
“Well, what have you found?”
Sam holds up the book, showing Aaron and Daniel the front cover. “Guardians of Neroman,” Aaron reads aloud. Sam is shocked by the lack of recognition in Aaron’s voice and the look of confusion on Daniel’s face.
Sam asks, shock evident in his voice, “Have you not heard of this story?”
Aaron pauses to think for a moment. “Vaguely, bits here and there, maybe.”
Sam sarcastically drops his jaw. Opening the book, he says, “It’s a terrific story!”
Aaron and Daniel lean against the shelves as Sam retells the story from memory, glancing at the pages as he speaks.
“A long time ago, three wizards ruled Neroman with a gentle yet firm rule. They were Azdus, Mutaro, and Goras. All three worked together well, and the land was prosperous. However, Mutaro sensed a divide between the orcs and rest of the Kingdom, and he approached this to Azdus and Goras, who rejected this notion entirely. Angered by this, Mutaro used the orcs to wage war against the humans, and secretly enhanced his magical skills, hoping to become powerful enough that he can defeat Azdus and Goras. He eventually learned how to strip the other two wizards of their magic, but before he masters the spell, Azdus and Goras learn of Mutaro’s deception and the three go into an all-out war. The people of Neroman had to choose sides, either fighting alongside Azdus and Goras or following Mutaro. The kingdom split in two, and war raged all over the land. Thousands of lives were lost, and not just humans—the likes of eagles, centaurs, werewolves, giants, even dragons—were annihilated. Azdus and Goras managed to defeat Mutaro, but not before Mutaro stripped them of their magic. Mutaro was gravely injured by the spell because he had to use if before he mastered it. He retreated to the North. Having lost their powers, Azdus and Goras disappeared, and with Mutaro going into hiding in the North, there was no clear victor between the two parts of Neroman. None of the three wizards were ever seen again.”
Aaron and Daniel remained silent during Sam’s story, but their interest grew. When Sam finished with the tale, Aaron asked, “So, are the wizards still alive?”
Sam shrugs. “Unlikely, since the story says one day they were fighting, and the next they weren’t.”
Daniel asks, “Why couldn’t Mutaro kill the other two?”
Sam shrugs again. “I assume that, because he didn’t master the spell, he couldn’t use it to its full power.” An uneasy silence falls over the three of them, the only sound that of pages turning as flicks through the book.
“Ok, let’s have another walk around the city, then we’ll head home…seems like no one knows what’s happening here.” Aaron suggests, Sam looks at the book longinly, Daniel notices Sam do this,
Daniel asks, “Are you not going to buy it?”
Sam looks at Daniel dissapointingly, “This rare of a book? It’s not for sale.” Daniel then smiles and subtly grabs the book and puts it under his shirt. Sam looks on shocked, and the three walk out of the library casually.
The three you
ng men step outside into the afternoon sunlight. They sit on the marble steps that lead up to the library’s great doors. Sam continues to read the book, marveling at the handiwork. Daniel’s gaze roves over the square and over the city sprawled out around him, admiring the different cultures. Aaron stares at the marble step beneath him, seemingly lost in thought.
Daniel breaks the silence. “Well, I’ve enjoyed this, meeting the lovely guards, learning about our history, even saving a few lives. This is a definitely a story to tell the kids in years to come.” Daniel’s smile fades when there is no response from the other two.
Noting Aaron’s concentration, Daniel asks, “Are you alright?”
Ignoring Daniel’s question, Aaron turns to Sam. “Did you say that Mutaro escaped to the North?”
Sam looks up at Aaron and nods. “That’s right, after he was hurt, he was never seen since.”
Aaron then looks toward Daniel. “Remember what the mad man on the street corner said? ‘A dark ghost from the past, alive for all these years, amassing a large army.’ Well what if—” Before Aaron finishes his sentence, his eyes grow so wide that his eyebrows disappear behind the hair hanging over his forehead. He leaps from the marble steps and runs off. Sam and Daniel look at each other in confusion before chasing after him.
Aaron sprints along the streets of Dellmoor, dodging people when he can, and pushing through knots of market goers when he can’t. Daniel and Sam apologize as they runs by the people Aaron knocked to the ground.
As Aaron races into the plaza in front of the royal castle gates, he sees the same guards are still on duty. The guards immediately put their weapons at the ready.