by Aaron Thomas
“I’ve been told that a sword could increase a person’s status in the King’s military, and now I have one, even if it isn’t my size. It’s more like a large knife than a sword. Although I could melt it down and get a good price for the silver in it. You had better make it worth my while so, It will take thirty gold crowns to get this knife back. Ten crowns for the sword and ten crowns for the embarrassment you and your friends caused me in town today.” Kilen knew that Chit couldn’t even add to know how much money he actually asked for. Kilen counted out ten crowns into each hand.
“Here, thirty crowns. Now give me my sword.” Chit’s smiled with satisfaction as he saw the gold in Kilen’s hands, he took a step forward and stopped two paces away.
“Well I guess I forgot the sentimental value, I did like the look on your face when your mother gave it to me. I’ll want to remember that moment, so I’ll have to up the price to let’s say forty gold,” he smiled as spoke holding the sword in front of him turning it to see both sides.
“That’s all the gold I have Chit. I have twenty in my hands. You asked for thirty but I only have twenty so that’s what I offer you.” Kilen knew in his mind that Chit wouldn’t give the sword to him even if he did have the forty gold.
“You have to know I wasn’t going to give you the sword, but at least I can have the gold. You did embarrass me and ruin my day, so I figure you owe it to me. So give it over and I won’t have to take it from you, rich boy.” Kilen put the coin back into his coin purse and re-tied it to his damp leather belt.
Kilen summoned as much courage and determination to his voice that he could find. “Chit, today you will get no gold from me. I will take my father’s sword from you. If you make me.”
Before Kilen could react Chit had moved the three paces and punched Kilen in the stomach. He collapsed in the street, coughing and sucking for breath. The determination from the rings took over the gap in his control, he had to win this fight. Chit waited for him to get up, while taunting him the entire time. Kilen realized that he had stood in front of the punch. He could have moved or tightened his stomach, but didn’t. He had taken it full force. It wasn’t as if he was scared stiff, he had gotten use to the strength in the rings and become overconfident.
Kilen began to stand with Chit chuckling a couple of pace’s away. He thought he better use the power in the rings before Chit figured out the power he possessed. The rings and surprise were the only real advantages he had in this fight. Kilen did not have any need to squabble with people in town and he usually avoided Chit like the plague. Kilen leaped over to Chit and pushed him with both hands as hard as he could. Chit and Kilen both went flying in opposite directions. Kilen hit the ground hard and rolled across the cobble street to a stop in mouth of the alley across from the street. Chit had hit the tavern wall so hard he lay crumpled at the bottom. The wood panels were cracked from him hitting it with such force. He ran up to Chit and grabbed his sword unbuckling the sheath from the clasp on Chit’s chest, Kilen held his prize and looked at it as Chit had done. This is the first time he had felt the weight and grip of the sword. It felt comfortable, almost a part of him. Kilen kept looking at the silver wrapped sheath and the blade and didn’t notice Chit waking up. He had gotten what he had come for. Chit got up quickly and rammed his shoulder in to Kilen and threw him to the ground landing, on him with all his weight. Kilen heard something snap inside his chest and pain bloomed in his head, causing his sight to narrow and dim. He lay in the street with Chit standing over him, he tried not to pass out from the pain. Chit picked up the sword, and spat on him. Kilen could only lay and hold right side, hoping Chit didn’t use the sword on him. Despite the pain, Kilen could feel the determination grow in his chest, the ring’s power were helping to overwhelm the pain so that he could get the sword back again. The power grew and grew with every breath and sight of Chit holding it. Kilen knew that if he could buy himself a small amount of time he would be able to stand and overcome the pain.
Chit looked up as a horse came around the corner, with Bowie and Kara atop it. Bowie yelled, “Chit STOP!!” Kilen heard a girl screaming his name and then a ball of fire just missed Chit. The fire started to climb up the side of the tavern. Charger lurched and threw Bowie and Kara to the ground. When Kara got up she had blazing red eye’s and flames climbed up her skirts, waist, chest, head and arms. Kilen began to climb to a crawling position, keeping his arm covering the broken rib. Kara raised a hand and three more fireballs shot from her hands. Chit was running before the first one had landed. Kara started burning from head to foot running after him. Before she got to the corner of the building, the man Kilen had seen come through the city gate before Chit rounded the corner in front of her. She raised her arm to let another fireball go, but before she could water streamed up from barrels on the side of the street and doused her. The flames were extinguished. From the water, raised up a man made of water. He approached the burning tavern and streams of water burst from his hands landing on the building with a hiss and steam. When Kilen looked back at what he now knew was a water wizard, he was kneeling by an unconscious Kara, touching her forehead.
“You,” he said pointing at Kilen, “come here now.” He did as he was told even though taking a step would send pain through him. There was no motivation to resist the pain except what the rings had already given him. “Do you know this young lady?”
“I do sir. She is my sister. Is she ok?” Kilen said as he knelt beside her still holding his side. The wizard reached over and touched Kilen’s arm, he felt a cold wave go through him and as the cold went away the pain slowly subsided. Kilen pulled his shirt out from his pants and pulled it up to see what looked like a old yellow bruise. The wizard had healed Kilen quickly. Kilen then searched the rest of this body and found that all his cuts and scrapes were gone from the trek. He turned to his sister and wondered if the wizard could heal him so quickly why hadn’t his sister woken up yet? Kilen touched her cheek with his hand. She felt hot. It was like she had a fever even though she was soaked to the skin in her clothes. Kilen looked and only her clothes seemed to be burned, and mostly just on the edges of her blue skirt. The ribbon had fallen from her hair. He picked it up and put it in his pocket.
“She is fine. Did she ever use fire before like this?” Kilen shook his head no, and the wizard nodded. Bowie came up with Charger, after finally getting the horse settled down. The wizard, Bowie, and Kilen picked up Kara and put her in Chargers saddle. “You two will take her to the Wandering Spring Inn, three streets from here. You will take your sister to the back door and ask for Mistress Reanna. Tell her that Master Parker wanted you be shown to his rooms. Ask her to bring up three meals, two bottles of wine, and a broth for your sick friend. You go to my rooms and rest, until I finish some business. While you’re there Erica will be looking in on you and your sister. Trust her she is a friend. Do you understand?” They nodded their heads in agreement. “Good, is that your sword?”
“It was my fathers. It’s mine now.” Kilen had almost forgotten about his whole purpose for being in Basham, after seeing his sister became a blazing inferno. He ran and picked up the sword and came back to the young wizard.
“Hand it to me for a second.” Kilen handed him the sword. He drew the sword enough to see the blade and wrapped his hand around it. He closed his eyes and when opened them again Kilen saw blue color fading from them, turning back to brown. “This sword is now imbued with water magic. We will discuss what that means when I return to the inn. If I don’t, you will do exactly as I say now. You will travel from town to town until you reach the Earth Realm King. If she starts to wake up you will place the flat of the blade against her forehead close your eyes and imagine a river flowing through her. She will go back to sleep, and it will keep her from going aflame again. Do you understand everything?” Kilen repeated all the instructions as he strapped the blade across his back. “We will discuss your responsibilities to your sister when I see you next. If I’m not back to the room by morning you will leave
for the Earth Realm without me. Now go, and make sure she doesn’t come fully awake or many people will die.”
The two boys nodded and made their way quickly down the street. The words for what had happened escaped Kilen and Bowie’s lips.
They easily found the Wandering Spring, and went in the back gate where a stable boy came out to take Charger. Bowie and Kilen each took one of Kara’s arms and held her up between them, walking her to the back door. The stable boy inquired of them which room they were staying and Bowie told him Master Parker’s. He nodded and started to unload Bowie’s saddle. They took Kara up the back steps of the inn, which lead into the kitchen. Bowie knocked loudly, and an old woman with fine dress on came to the door. She looked Kara up and down and spoke to Bowie. He still wore his fine red jacket and trousers with a red feather stuck in his hat. “You can’t bring a sick girl in here my lord. She will have to go around the front, But I’ll not be taking sick people into my inn. Take her to the herb woman.”
“Master Parker told us to be discreet and bring her around the back. We were told to take her to his rooms and have dinner brought up.” Bowie said acting the part of a lord. “Three regular meals, one bowl of the soup you have cooking, and two bottles of wine will suffice,” He said before she could argue. “Thank you Milady. If you would show us to the room?”
“Erica, come here and show these gentlemen to Master Parker’s rooms.”
“It’s Master Crescent, Milady. I think I shall be down later for a drink. Is there entertainment tonight?” A dark haired girl, shaking her head no, came away from a cooking pot and took Kara’s arm from Bowie. They went up a back staircase used by the inn’s workers to attend to the needs of the guests, to the first door at the top of the stairs. They entered the room. It was possession free except for the inn’s bed, a rocking chair, and washstand with mirror.
“I’ll have another pallet brought up and some linen to dry the girl if you shall want sir,” Erica said. Kilen nodded to the girl and she backed out of the room. He lowered Kara into the chair and sat on the floor next to the unlit fireplace. He looked down at his chest trying to remember what had taken place since he left his world behind. He remembered and regretted yelling at his mother. His sister turning to flame. Fighting Chit in the alley, and being badly hurt. Short pieces of memory remained of the journey to Basham. The moon, pier, and the festivals market. He didn’t really understand why he had been in the water, but he remembered fighting the current. He tried to put the pieces of his memory together while watching his sister breathe in and out so peacefully.
The chambermaid, Erica, returned with linens and a bowl of soup, she was followed by the stable boy with two trays of food covered with a cloth. Kilen took one plate before the stable boy could leave the room. Erica began to use the linens to pat Kara dry. She did as much as she could for the wet clothes. The stable boy returned with pieces of the pallet while Kilen ate from the tray and Erica laid linens down. They both moved Kara with extreme care and covered her with more linens. They gathered all the excess cloth and started to leave the room. Kilen looked down to find that he had eaten both plates of food. “Shall I bring another plate for Master Parker, sir?” His stomach growled back at her as a sort of an answer.
“You’d better make it another two plates,” he answered. She nodded and left him alone with Kara, sleeping peacefully. He didn’t know what had happened to Kara or how she had caught on fire. HIS mind came up with ten different reasons for the fires or for her fever, but it all came back to one. Kilen’s sister was a fire wizard. He knew that he didn’t cause it, but he couldn’t help but feel guilty for leaving her the way he did. Kilen began to regret ever putting on the rings to catch Chit. He looked down at the rings and pulled the chain up and over his head, then put the rings and chain in his vest pocket.
The world reeled and spun as pure exhaustion hit Kilen like a hammer, striking all the energy out of him. He slid down the wall and lay on the floor struggling to breath. He tried but couldn’t lift his hands, or move his feet. Kilen’s body was totally spent in keeping his heart beating and his lungs moving in and out. These things always came naturally to people, but he was fighting to make every beat and every breath. Erica came back into the room followed by the stable boy carrying more food. She knelt beside Kilen seeing his struggle and put a hand to his face. “Can you move?”she asked. “Speak if you can answer me!” She rolled him onto his back as if he was an infant unable to care for themselves. Laying flat on his back made the struggle to breathe easier. She spoke to the stable boy, “were his eyes green before?”
No, Kilen wanted to say but couldn’t, his eyes had always been a golden brown in color. The stable boy shook his head yes. She moved all over the room and did not find what she was looking for. “Hurry, go get Lord Crescent and bring him back here quickly. He’s dying from magic,” she commanded as she moved about the room. She opened Kilen’s pack and took out his sewing kit and discarded it back into his bag. She then patted his pockets and found nothing. She opened Kilen’s coin purse and found only money. Bowie came into the room with the stable boy leading him. Kilen’s possessions littered the ground and gold coins lay in his lap.
“Hey, what are you doing there? Leave his money alone!” Bowie shouted at her. “What did you do to him?” He pulled her shoulder throwing her into the bed on the opposite wall. He stood with a wide stance ready to protect his friends.
She quickly stood and looked him in the eyes. “He’s dying of magic. He needs something magic or he’ll probably die.” Bowie held his ground. “We came in and found him like that. He won’t move and he’s barely breathing.”
Bowie turned, patted Kilen’s chest, and found a small lump in his pocket. He reached into Kilen’s vest, and jumped as his fingers touched the rings. He then reached in again and pulled them out slowly and put them into Kilen’s hand. The strength and energy flooded back into Kilen as it had before. He laid on the floor breathing heavily catching his breath. Erica stood in the middle of the room, hands on her chest, looking down on Kilen. Bowie’s eyes were wide with surprise and confusion.
After a couple minutes of the room quiet and each gathering their wit’s, Kilen said, “thank you,” to no one in particular.
“You have got to be the dumbest armor bearer I have ever seen!” Erica snapped at him. “Do you not know how to use your earth magic? You act as if you only got those rings yesterday.” He waved her off without answering, still struggling to breath. It gave him time to think about what he had become. The sword was now imbued with water magic, it made him a weapon bearer. All of the Hero’s in ages past were weapon or armor bearers, and now he was one of them. Erica straightened herself and looked between them seeing that she wasn’t getting an answer. “You had better not take those off until you are sure you’ve rested enough to breathe on your own,” she said in a quieter tone, as if instructing. Then she left the room, watching Kilen the whole way out to make sure he listened to her.
“I don’t know how you even walk with those things on. I felt like I would crush you if I made the wrong move. How come you didn’t tell me you had those? We could have hunted for days with those on.”
“I got them just before I left Humbridge. I would have told you but I was in a hurry to catch Chit.” Kilen, picked up his belongings that had been tossed around the room.
“Ahh, well why were you chasing Chit? Trying to get back at him since you have all that power in ya?” Bowie said begging for a juicy answer.
“My mom gave Chit my father’s sword. When I saw that, I was a bit overcome with the rings power and ran after him to get it back. I’m sorry Bowie. I would have told you but I didn’t know of their power until after that wizard gave them back. After that I didn’t spare any time in trying to catch up to Chit.”
Bowie fingered the brim of his hat, “Ah, it’s ok. Daniel was taking most of the women anyway. This is a lot more exciting than the normal Springfest.” He waited a bit before speaking again, “What do you suppose the wiz
ard wants with us?”
“I think he wants only that I help undo the mess I caused. Kara has never done that before. She did it when she saw me fighting Chit. This whole situation is my fault.”
Bowie didn’t know what to say so he changed the subject. “Have you looked at the sword? Right now you’re a weapon bearer, just like in the legends!”
“No, he said not to touch it unless Kara started to wake up.”
As if on cue, Erica brought another two trays of food in. He ate the entire second tray and Bowie ate one as well. Erica sat on a stool in the corner watching Kilen eat. Kilen was not sure how long they had sat and talked when the wizard entered the room. He crossed the room ignoring everyone inside and touched Kara’s head, and nodded in satisfaction. He turned on Bowie and Kilen, “Okay then, what are your names, where are you from, what are you using for earth magic? Most of all where did you acquire earth magic imbuements without the King’s permission?” Erica slipped out of the room seeing his tone.
Kilen started by telling about his father and he started his life’s journey. How he had gotten to Basham, the parts that he could remember. Bowie was in awe of how the parts of the story where Kilen had swam most of the way to Basham. Bowie filled in his portion of the story. When they finished, the wizard stood and paced in the small room. “I think I understand. Bowie you will go to sleep now and rest until morning. Kilen, Kara, and I will start a journey to the Earth Realm in the morning. They have no choice but to come with me. You on the other hand will have to decide whether or not you want to join us,” he commanded as if he knew his word would be followed without complaint. “Kilen you will pick up the sword. Don’t touch the hilt mind you, just the sheath and follow me. I’ll begin your proper magic training tonight.”