The Queen considered his request. “You are skeptical.”
Strongiron looked directly at his Queen. “I have my doubts, yes, my Queen. I have military reasons to travel there, but to be honest, I would like go to Paragatha and see for myself whether anyone in this most superstitious of cities still holds to the old ways, or at least would consider them. If this Windomere hails from there, surely some would believe in his God still. If not, then I suggest we redouble our efforts with steel, sail, and spellcraft, because I am unconvinced a fable will come to our rescue should it come to war.”
This is a man who I never doubt will tell me exactly what he thinks, how he feels, regardless of how he thinks I will receive it. He has proven so yet again tonight. He could have been so much more than a General…but no.
“Very well, Strongiron. I agree with your recommend-dation, if not the skepticism that undercuts it. Go to Paragatha and see if you can find a man—or woman—that clings to the old ways, and Niku will find the way to nurture and grow their faith. Perhaps you will find answers in Paragatha yourself, Strongiron.”
“Perhaps, my Queen. Perhaps”
Kari
Kari rubbed the sweat off her palms and tried to keep a smile plastered to her face as she sat calmly in front of Phillip the Elder with Rebecca in a chair close by.
“Miss Quinlan, I must know what you wash your hair with…it has the most luxurious scent of citrus and mint. I must know what you rinse it in.” Phillip said pleasantly as he stood up to fix some warm drinks. “It puts me in the mood for a new tea I’ve recently imported that I think you’ll just love. It’s a white leaf tea, delicately balanced with orange peel and cinnamon. Perfect on this frigid day.”
“Thank you, Elder. As to my hair…a lady must have some secrets, I’m sure you’d agree?” Kari said playfully.
“Too true, too true. But that is what we are here to discuss, is it not? Secrets, that is.” He turned to wink at the young woman. “So, tell me young Kari, what business do you have with our delightful Queen?” Phillip asked sweetly as he poured tea for Kari and Rebecca and sat back down. They had all agreed it would be better if Tarsh went home to study his spells…and to see if, by some miracle, Kyle and Magi had returned with Master Marik.
“Thank you, Elder,” Kari began. She glanced quickly at Rebecca, just a subtle shift of her eyes. “I have never seen our capitol. And I have some, uh, information, revealed during my Prophecy, that may be of interest to our Queen.”
“I see. Perhaps if you could enlighten me a little, I might be able—“
“Phillip, you know she can’t speak or write about her prophecy even if she wished to do so. I’ve seen mages try and fill up a scroll with their prophesies, only to unroll them upon our return and see the parchment blank. She cannot say—you know that.” Rebecca chided the Elder with an engaging smile.
“Hmmm, I see. But somehow she can impart this information to our Queen? Do the laws of prophecy operate differently in Rookwood than in our humble village of Brigg?” Phillip smiled pleasantly right back at Rebecca as he sipped his tea.
Rebecca cocked her head to one side, but didn’t say anything immediately. After an awkward moment, Phillip stood up to sit down on the couch next to Kari. “Come now. I understand your nervousness, but I assure you, we must trust one another if I am to be of any help to you. So, my dear…” He put a hand on Kari’s leg gently. “Perhaps you can share with me a little hint of what business you have with our lovely Queen? You may find my resources—sufficient.”
Loathsome cretin. Kari tried not to stiffen as she tolerated his hand. She looked over at Rebecca, who seemed to be nodding toward Phillip as if to say, you wanted to get to Rookwood…here’s your chance.
“I can share this much with you in confidence,” she replied sweetly, batting an eyelash before she conveniently found a reason to stand. “The Queen, or a member of her court perhaps, may be of help to me in a decision that I must make, and the path I choose may take me on a…on a quest. It will be an expensive quest, no doubt…one that requires sponsorship beyond even your considerable resources. The nature of that quest…I cannot say at this point.”
Phillip looked up at her from the couch. “Cannot say, or will not say?” He pressed the point.
The less this man knows, the better. I wonder if I will even be allowed to share much more?
Kari made an exaggerated sigh. “Elder, forgive me if I am cautious. I don’t always know whom to trust. But if you will keep this to the three of us, I will tell you that my quest is in pursuit of wisdom. I seek council from the Queen and her scholars about my Cl—” The words stuck in her throat. She tried a different tact. “About some ancient ar—” Again, the words caught in her throat and she could say nothing else. A little relieved, she shrugged her shoulders. “Apparently that is the extent of what I can say.” She took a sip of her tea. This truly is delicious…I can only imagine what it cost to import.
She looked over at Rebecca, whose face was expressionless.
Phillip’s expression, however, was curious. He finally said, “Dear oh dear. Such a constraint they put on you young mages. I must ask, what if you get in front of the Queen and the same thing happens? I can only imagine how disappointed you would be to travel all that way only to play a guessing game in front of our Queen. No, that won’t do.” He tried to sound serious, but everything he said came across patronizing. What does he want from me?
Kari finally had an idea.
“Elder, what do you know about Dymetra?”
Phillip Xavier Trenton sat back. “The myth? Not much. A fable that isn’t even shared with children any longer. Something about a singular deity that our ancestors worshipped long ago. I don’t know. Why do you ask?”
Kari smiled. “That is what I intend to discuss with the Queen and her scholars.” She plowed ahead, turning to look Phillip in his widening eyes. “As our leader, I was hoping you might help Rebecca and I travel by sea toward the Rookwood. The overland route will be difficult this time of year, and I fear my search for information cannot wait until spring.” She rose and began to pace, partly out of actual nervousness, and partly as an act. Better than sitting next to him.
“Thank you, Miss Quinlan, for sharing that. How clever of you. It does sound like such an interesting opportunity. A quest…an ancient God…your path forward—I think I begin to see your unstated dilemma. Alas, traveling by ship is expensive, my dear.” Phillip watched Kari as he noisily continued to sip his tea. “To sail around the continent this time of year would be—well it would be quite expensive indeed, I’m afraid.” He sipped loudly again.
Rebecca looked at Phillip now as she gently put her hand on his leg. He immediately turned to the Lady Ranger. “I think, Phillip, that you may be looking at this the wrong way. Perhaps if you considered this more of an investment, you might begin to see how this could benefit Brigg and the Realm, our Kingdom. And you, of course.”
“You have my attention, Ranger.” Phillip smiled at Rebecca and put his hand over hers. “Go on.”
“Let us speak plainly. I believe that Magi is still of some interest to you, correct?” She smiled slyly at him. “Strictly out of welfare for the boy, of course.”
“Of course.” Phillip smiled back.
Rebecca turned to the young illusionist. “If I may, Kari.” Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to the Elder. “I know she cannot say, but let us assume that our young student wouldn’t be travelling to see our Queen if her choices and this quest didn’t have more to do with Magi than she can illuminate. I’d bet my bow on that. Might it be viewed favorably by our Queen that you secured safe passage for Kari, Tarsh, and I? Might it not be likely that, with a thankful word from us, that the Queen may summon you to the Rookwood herself to thank you?” The Lady Ranger took her turn batting eyelashes at the Elder.
An enthusiastic grin began to spread across his face, and even his eyes began to twinkle slightly. One could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he cons
idered Rebecca’s blatant quid pro quo. “Well. Now that is a splendid plan, but I think I have one better. If we do this, than I shall accompany you both and present you to our lovely Queen personally. Of course, we would have to leave your young friend Tarsh here, but alas, each additional traveler adds to the cost. Better to make sure that our Queen knows how committed I am to ensuring you reached her safely. We live in such a Dark World, I couldn’t bear the thought of anything happening to you—my investment—along the way…”
He looked back at Rebecca and gave her hand a hearty squeeze. “I assume there are no objections to me joining you in place of young Tarsh on that long voyage in such close quarters on a merchant ship? You never can be too careful around sailors, you know. Do we have an understanding?”
Filthy cockroach. Kari looked at Rebecca, who nodded ever so slightly. “Your gold, your escort. We are agreed.”
Phillip nodded. “Excellent! Splendid—it would do me well to have a bit of adventuring. When shall we leave?”
Kyle
Paragatha was one of the largest cities on Elvidor. It served as somewhat of a gateway along the Lightning Road—a well-travelled, albeit jagged trading route that meandered its way north from the edge of Lake Calm to the forests of Spookwood. Elves, Dwarves, Men, and even some of the lower races could all be found in this cosmopolitan city. Being so close to Rookwood, one also saw many knights bearing the Queen’s colors. It was the largest city Magi had ever seen—easily twice the size of Gaust.
A line of massive stone columns on each side of the road marked the city’s main entrance. That, and the perfectly polished knights. A sentry stood next to each of the front two columns. Atop each column was a statue of god or goddess; apparently the Paragathians made sure all their bases were covered.
There were stone gods, water gods, fire gods, wind gods. There were fertility gods, harvest gods, healing gods. Gods for war, gods for sport, gods for leisure. Metalworking gods, brewing gods, service gods. Gods for love, gods for wine. Dwarven gods, Elvish gods. All manner of gods were worshipped. They even had a column at the very back that stood statueless, marked “the undiscovered God.”
There were even two crumbling columns facing one another that mentioned “ancient” gods, one with a statue of a man, the other with a woman. The names could no longer be read as the façade was falling apart.
Kyle walked slowly, swiveling his head back and forth to take in the splendor. “Those columns must be twenty feet tall!” Kyle said, nodding politely to the knight on his left as he passed.
The knight said nothing, of course. Neither did Magi.
The two men walked between dozens of these cylinders on their way to the city proper. There were so many people, for a minute Kyle felt like he was back in Elf’s Bane Pass. The streets were actually made of brick—not hard-packed dirt, but actual brick. The shops were more than tents in an open-air bazaar like what was back in his home village of Fostler. There was so much more wealth east of the mountains. Now this is where I want to live, he thought in amazement.
“Magi, I know you’ve got a lot on your mind, but I was wondering if you had a plan on how to find your father?” Kyle asked, aware that he was simply following the other man at this point. “Master Marik might know where he used to live; they were close after all.”
He turned around to ask his Master and realized suddenly that he was gone. “Master?” he called.
Magi stopped and looked at Kyle from under his cowl. “He is not our Master any longer. I saw him toying with the idea of putting us to sleep awhile back. He slipped away hours ago.”
Kyle was stunned, trying to focus on these words. “He left us?”
For the first time in weeks, Magi smiled at his best friend and put a hand on his shoulder. “He has left. I don’t know where or why, but he clearly wanted to speak with my father before I could. I’ve grown to mistrust our Master on this trip. I can’t explain everything I’m feeling, but when I saw him think about casting a spell on us behind our back, I knew my instincts were right. And—he must know that I saw him. I listened for his footfalls and kept one eye on him even while we walked forward. He slipped into the woods two hours ago. When he did not tell us to wait or rejoin us, I figure he teleported somewhere. There are other True Mages to finish your apprenticeship with, Kyle.” His smile fading, he patted Kyle’s shoulder one time and continued walking.
I can’t believe this is happening. This seems a lifetime removed from our village in Brigg…
“Where are we going?” Kyle asked, somewhat timidly.
Magi stopped walking again and pulled back his cowl, despite the cold air. Kyle looked at his friend’s face as if seeing it for the first time. His reddish-brown hair spilled down to his shoulders, and his stubble had grown into a full beard that only lacked for a bit of oil. He had hawkish, hazel eyes, but the brown wasn’t bright brown and the green wasn’t bright green. They were a muddy, grayish hazel.
Magi looked back at Kyle, narrowed his eyes, and he gave him a rueful smile. Cocking his head slightly, he said, “We are going to the place Sindar and Lionel would have taken us when they needed information. You’d better grow up fast, Kyle.” He left the city square and started walking down one of the side streets.
Shaking his head, Kyle followed. This is madness. I am so tired of Magi making this up as he goes. I’m tired of his attitude, tired of following him around, and I can’t believe Marik is gone. He’s obviously going to catch up with us.
Kyle reached up and put his hand on Magi’s shoulder. “Hey, can we talk about this? We need to plan this out a bit. Marik had the money pouch, remember? How are we going to pay for a room, and for how long, and which inn should we start at? There must be a hundred alehouses in this place, each seedier than the next. For the last time, what is your plan?”
Magi didn’t say anything for a few seconds that seemed to stretch beyond awkward. Finally, he sighed. “So many questions. You may not like all the answers. The path I’m following is my own, and my plans I shall keep to myself. As I said before we left—I am resolute in pursuing one thing: the truth. Stay, help, or go, Kyle, the choice is yours. But I am tired of this conversation.”
Kyle felt like his face had been slapped. “You don’t trust me? After everything we’ve done together? What is wrong with you?”
Magi felt an unnatural anger begin to well up inside him. “I don’t trust anyone, Kyle. A man I had considered my father has seemingly betrayed me, and the father I never knew apparently lives.” His voice started to rise. “I don’t know who he is, I don’t know what my real bloodline is, I don’t know why my father never sought me—but then again, maybe he did. I don’t know why Marik wanted to reach this city and meet him before me, I don’t know why he would put us to sleep to do so. I don’t know why he left, where he’s going, and I don’t know when or if he’ll return. I don’t know anything. I don’t know who I am. And I don’t know who you really are. So no—I don’t trust you, Kyle. If you were in my cloak, you would be a fool to trust anyone either.”
Magi knocked Kyle’s hand off his shoulder with ease. “Perhaps you are following me for Marik,” he said, advancing menacingly. He shoved Kyle hard, causing his normally athletic friend to trip over his cloak.
You selfish, ungrateful, spoiled, sonofabitch. Just because everything comes easy for you… Kyle was angry—and he had never felt more alone in his life. He stared up at Magi, playing so many scenes of their life together over in his mind: Gaust, Lionel, Sindar, the Tournament, Fostler, and on and on. What has happened to you? He also thought of Tarsh and Nugget—I wish they were here. But most of all he thought of his sister, Kari. I wish you were here most of all.
Lying in the street, gazing up at Magi towering over him, he recalled the prophetic image of him falling away from his best friend, and the Ol’ Shakoor’s words: climb if you wish. Finally getting his emotions under control, he said, “Okay, Magi. This is me growing up.” Kyle rose to his feet and began backing away, slowly, one step at
a time, staring intently at Magi, no longer recognizing his former best friend.
I will find my own path up the Staircase.
CHAPTER 17: SEEK, AND YE SHALL FIND
Kari
The Great Whirlpool drifted throughout the waters where the Sea of Love and the Sea of Hate comingled. The passage around the maelstrom was the worst this time of year. A destroyer of many a ship, the Whirlpool served as a gateway of sorts, both East-West and North-South. Seasoned captains had ways of navigating it—typically they avoided it altogether.
Markus was indeed a seasoned captain, and his ship, the Queen’s Arrow, was renowned for her speed. He would not risk her anywhere close to the heart of the maelstrom. He made a course that skirted the edges of the continent.
“M’lady—we’ll see you ’round Elvidor. Hug the shoreline, we will. Markus knows all the shallows—you’ll see.” He grinned to show an accordion of teeth. He would have been an attractive man but for the hard sea living. A sun-leathered face was wrinkled beyond his years, but he had lively eyes. Many a barkeep has fallen for your eyes over the years, I imagine.
Kari walked the deck and looked out over the Sea of Sorrows. With fair winds, they flew across the water, and were already through the Straits of Holstine. Rather than deal with the Elves, they decided to keep sailing to the Eastern edge and make port at Rookwood—Phillip seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of gold to keep Markus happy.
The three weeks at sea with Rebecca and Phillip could not end soon enough, as far as Kari was concerned. Rebecca insisted on being the one to deal with the Elder’s unwelcome advances. “I’ve met many men like Phillip—let me handle him.”
In Pursuit Of Wisdom (Book 1) Page 38