by Aaron Thomas
Alexander strolled by, ignoring Kilen who was lying on the ground and mumbled to himself. Then he spoke, “I have never seen that before. Let us be off to the library, Mica.” He walked about ten paces before Mica whispered to him. He turned still looking at the ground and spoke, “Kilen, that is all for today. Please make a better effort next time.” They both turned and walked away without as much as checking to see if he was uninjured.
Slowly he stood and tried to brush the dirt from his clothes, but realized that it was not just on his clothes but in them. He would have to change into a fresh set. It would probably take him the better part of a week to remove the sand from his ears, nose, and other crevasses. He was glad that he was near his barracks and went inside to change. He slowly removed his clothes and poured sand out of most of them. He would wash himself down but he lacked the energy to summon an elemental or gather water for himself out of the air. He knew that it was going to be a painful night searching for his mother in the city. He decided that he should probably get to Leroy as soon as possible and maybe get a little extra to eat. He hoped that it would at least restore some of his strength.
Fresh shoes and clothing seemed to help a little, but he knew it would not help to break in another new pair of shoes while leaping from rooftop to rooftop. He put on his sand lined boots. Jace said new boots was half the reason he keeps knocking tiles loose. Jace met him at the barracks door and turned him around to go back into his room. “Get a pack and pack some things in it. Things that you will need on the road; a day of rations, half your gold, your bow for hunting, and if you have one, a map.” Kilen started packing, not understanding why he needed these things. Unless Jace had found out his mother had left town and intended to chase after her.
“What’s going on Jace?” He stood still for a moment, turning a little redder at being questioned.
“We are going to find your mother, like I promised. Now pack your things.”
“Did she leave town? Why do I need all this stuff? We should be able to catch her on foot even if she was riding fast. She won’t have magic to aid her.”
Jace tapped his foot for a moment trying to gather his words, “I need you to look like a newly arrived traveler. It will give us a reason to be looking for a woman in town. Now, when we are looking if I should find out that she left town I will tell you the name of the town in which she is traveling towards. You will drop everything and run to find her. You will not turn back until you find her. Do you hear me, Kilen? You will not return to Deuterium until you find your mother. Don’t stop even if you have to travel all the way to Humbridge to do so.” Kilen nodded his head and Jace moved to help him pack. Kilen struggled to put the pack on his shoulders after the day’s trials. Jace noticed and poked around on Kilen’s body. “They pushed you too far. You won’t be full strength for a few days. We will need to see Leroy before you…” He cleared his throat, “Before we leave to search.” He pulled Kilen out the door and seemed to aid him in heading towards the kitchen.
They crossed the field quickly and found Leroy about to leave with dinner for Kilen. They sat down and Jace checked over his weapons as Kilen ate. Two plates went down fast and Leroy was all out of his special food. He retrieved some of his dried meat and a couple tarts that he had made. Kilen washed it all down with a mug of water. Before he could bite into a tart Jace yanked him from the table. “Let us be gone, Kilen. We have much city to search and not enough light in the day.”
They quickly departed for the main gate which was unusual for Jace. Kilen thought he always left through the side gate. The guard at the gate stopped him from exiting, “Purpose for entering the city, Master Jace?”
“We have a mission to perform before midnight Lieutenant. One I was assured by the King shall be above all others. We should be back before midnight.” With the last bit the lieutenant nodded and motioned for them to pass. Kilen thought the exchange was odd, but trusted Jace’s judgment. When they were far enough out of earshot of the guards Jace turned to Kilen in a hushed voice. “Rough times within the city walls. Keep your eyes open and watch for anything. There have been random attacks in the city and we are unsure who is conducting them. If we see them we will run for the city walls in different directions. I will find you on the wall and we will resume our search from there.” Kilen nodded his head in understanding. He hefted his pack higher on his shoulders and followed Jace as he started a fast pace down the streets. A few shops into their search Jace found a good clue that he would find the woman searching the market in the evening. They immediately made their way to the market.
Kilen assumed his normal spot, laying face down on the tile roof while observing the comings and goings of the market. Today Jace didn’t whittle, but instead seemed to watch all directions at once. Kilen assumed he was watching for any sign of the trouble. Kilen stretched his arms and fingers while watching. The food seemed to be having an effect on his energy already. He dropped the contents of one of Leroy’s tea bags into his water skin and took a drink.
Two black-cloaked figures walked to the center of the market and then to the mouth of an alley way. Kilen nearly fell off the roof when he saw them. One was about the same size as his mother. He scrambled back up the rooftop to meet Jace. He seemed to be staring right into the hoods of the two figures. Without looking away he spoke in a whisper, “Kilen, you must listen to me now. You’re mother is here. You have to go to her and get her out of the city. You need to escape the realms of King Atmos.” Kilen started to ask why but was cut off by an upheld hand. “The king has ordered your death because you are threat to his kingdom. He says it’s because you are gaining in strength too fast not to have been trained to take him down. Most of the veterans think that it is because you now have two marks on your blade and could one day take the Water Realm from him. Go to your mother and get out of the realm. I will follow you when I can. Before you go you will answer one question true. Tell me now, is your father alive?”
“I…I don’t know,” Kilen couldn’t find the words to say anything else.
“Very well. We will find him later. Go to her and get out of town,” Jace scanned the roof tops as Kilen did as he was told. He slid down the tile roof into the alley way and started to cross the market. Before he reached the center it had dawned on him that Jace was sacrificing himself to help Kilen escape death. Jace was defying the king by helping him escape.
Kilen approached the cloaked figures and saw his mother’s face smiling back at him. In the other hooded cloak was a frustrated Izabel. “Hurry let us be out of the open,” she waved them on further into the alley. Kilen noticed smoke rising from a couple of streets over and then an excited Jace with swords drawn waving them on. “Jace will hold them off. We need to get underground,” Izabel started to walk down the alley with Sahera, but Kilen stood his ground, watching the man defying a king to save his life.
Soon arrows whizzed in from three directions and Jace knocked them away with a gust of wind. Kilen jumped to the rooftop to get a better view of what was happening. Four archers and two swordsmen were leaping from rooftop to rooftop trying to close the distance with Jace. Vines latched on to the attackers at Jace’s command. Some fell into alleys below as the vines stopped them in mid jump. Kilen thought, ‘this is what a real weapon bearer is’, as he watched Jace fight on. In his mind Max and Joahna screamed at him to move and run with Izabel and Sahera, echoing their commands in the alley below. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t leave Jace behind. Kilen strung his bow and knocked an arrow. The first shot bounced off a rooftop and attracted the attention of one of the archers. Kilen leaped closer and was able to get into range to use his magic. He froze the string on archers bow and watched it snap when he pulled it back to return an arrow. With magic strength he jumped into the archer, throwing him into the next roof over. It didn’t withstand the impact as the man broke through the roof, crashing into the building below. Jace heard the crash and turned to look at what had happened.
A man that had been thrown to the street be
low leapt to the roof behind Jace with arrow knocked and at the ready. Kilen tried to warn Jace but it was too late. Jace turned to receive an arrow into the chest. He slumped onto the roof top, clutching the shaft sticking from his chest. Joahna screamed in his head, SUMMON ME!! Without delay Kilen focused on his water skin and Joahna, the elemental, burst forth. The ice hawk grew in size as it flew through the air. The attackers panicked and started firing arrows at Joahna with no response. Kilen made his way to Jace while the attackers were busy fighting an immortal bird.
He gurgled when he spoke, “Run.” Jace’s eyes fell back into his head as Kilen held him, but his heart still beat on. Kilen lacked the skills and the strength to heal such a deep wound but he probed the water in his body to see what he could do. He felt the void that was the arrow’s tip. It was barbed and would cause more damage coming out than going in, and it was stuck in Jace’s lung. Kilen felt alone, and then he knew what he had to do.
He yelled out so that Joahna would hear him, “I need to get to Twilix!” With what energy he had left he picked up Jace and moved as fast as he could from rooftop to rooftop towards the castle walls. Joahna soaring in the sky attacked with blasts of ice and slicked roof tops to keep the attackers away. Once on top of the castle walls he leapt down into the training grounds and made his way to the first guard he could find. “Where is Twilix? He needs Twilix,” he pleaded.
“In the king’s courtyard,” the guard said in a rush. Kilen knew exactly where it was, but didn’t remember how to get there from inside the castle’s twists and turns. He looked up and jumped from window to window until he was on the highest peaks of the castle walls. When he found it, he jumped without regard to how he landed, then soon realized he had let the earth magic take control. He was determined to save Jace’s life.
Joahna flew underneath him and saved him from falling the entire way. The elemental hawk soared in a downward spiral until Kilen could leap off to the balconies surrounding the courtyard. Kilen examined Jace once again and noticed that the arrow’s tip had moved farther into his chest. He needed to hurry.
With one last leap Kilen landed in the trampled grass of the court yard. The moment his feet landed Joahna must have left his elemental because a concussion hit his brain and Kilen blacked out. When his eyes opened again Twilix was frantic and yelling at Captain Lorusk who was tugging at Kilen’s sword in his sheath. The Captain slapped Twilix away then ripped the chainger from Kilen’s neck and freed his father’s blade from the sheath. Kilen wasn’t ready for the magic to be ripped from his body. He had used too much during the day. He succumbed to darkness.
King Atmos continued to read over reports with Brandon as they arrived at the great hall. The Fire Realm’s King Rekkan had assembled a small army and was headed for the borders of the Earth Realm. Specifically, he was headed for the Towers of Maltchet, the Earth Realm’s first defense against attack. Wind bearers had been flying day and night to report movement, army size, and weapon reports. Rekkan’s army grew in size every day it was marching. Atmos knew by the time he reached the last of the Fire Realm’s towns his force would be quite formidable.
The doors at the far end of the great hall swung open. Captain Lorusk and Champion Chit entered carrying an unconscious Kilen. He hung limply while they carried him. His feet drug on the ground while they walked. Lorusk carried Kilen’s sword and rings on a chain in his other hand. The king smiled at the sight of the men, but wondered where Jace was. He probably didn’t want to spend any more time with the boy after having to kill him. With Kilen out of the way the king could now spend time with the threatening Fire Realms forces.
They stopped at the king’s feet and dropped Kilen to the ground, who landed with a thud. “Where is Jace?”
Captain Lorusk saluted before answering, “Jace is dead at his hands my lord. He dropped into the courtyard with your scout dead in his arms. I stripped him of his sword and rings.”
The King rounded the table to look Kilen over, “Did he fight you?”
“My lord, he was exhausted of his energy. I pulled his armor from him and he went unconscious without magic to keep him alive. Twilix interfered and she gave him energy enough to keep him alive.”
“Good work. Take him to the dungeon. He will be executed in the morning for his treachery. I’ll say that this has worked out better than it should have.” They picked up Kilen and started to carry him away when the great hall doors swung open again.
Twilix rushed through the doors. Her cheeks were flushed as though she had been running. Her brow was sweaty and her hair was sticking to her face. Even though her features looked frazzled she looked agitated. A few seconds later Mary, Calvin, Brent, and Alexander entered the doors looking slightly rushed. Obviously Twilix had brought them all to the great hall to observe the king’s orders.
Atmos took a step towards the group of wizards entering the room and spoke in a commanding voice. “I summoned no council meeting. I need no assistance here.”
It was Calvin that spoke back to the king,” If it involves a weapon bearer then it is a wizard matter and we need to be included in the dealings.”
The king’s face grew red with frustration that his own advisor would talk back to him. “He is a traitor to this realm not to you. It is a matter for the King of the Realm. I am that king. Now depart.”
Calvin stroked his beard and spoke back with wisdom and authority, “How is this man a traitor my king? Did he admit it to you himself? Did you witness his treachery?”
The captain drew his sword and pointed it at the First Wizard’s throat. “Watch the way you speak to your king, wizard!” Calvin’s eyes narrowed as he eyes moved along the sword to the captains arms then his eyes. He stared in silence into the captain’s eyes when a small pebble dropped from the ceiling and made a distinct sound as it hit the captain’s helmet.
“As an advisor to the king I would give you some advice. Do not point your sword at me unless you want to be as flat as the blade you hold.” The captain’s eyes shifted between the gray bearded wizard and the rest of the council standing behind him. Atmos pushed in between them and lowered the captain’s sword.
“Wait over there, captain. I will consider what my advisor has to say.” The captain re-sheathed his sword and moved as the King commanded. Chit, with dark circles under his eyes followed like a trained puppy. He always stood a pace behind and to the left of the captain. “I have the captain and the trainee here as a witness to his treachery.” Calvin looked back at Twilix who was turning redder in the face as she was not named a witness. The king drew his attention to her and spoke, “Wizard Twilix, I believe this to be a matter for my advisor and council. I’m afraid that I am going to have to ask you to leave.”
Twilix shouted, “I HAVE TO LEAVE BUT YOUR CAPTAIN CAN STAY?!” She didn’t intend for her question to be answered and she should have been punished by the wizard council for interceding but she didn’t care. Captain Lorusk had almost killed Kilen only moments before by ripping the magic from his body. The event was fresh in her mind.
Mary smiled wryly, “I think that she had better stay, my king. I have had a pretty bad day and if this meeting is as unimportant as you say, well…if it turns badly, you had better keep her around. Unless you want your beard singed off.” Mary winked at the captain, daring him to come after her. After a second she added, “Of course with the way you are talking to your council it wouldn’t surprise me if she did nothing to stop me.” Mary arched one eyebrow and waited for the king to respond.
“Very well, it doesn’t matter whether she goes or stays. I’m sure my chatty council would probably tell her as soon as the meeting was over anyway. Kilen is to be executed at first light tomorrow. There is enough evidence to see that he is guilty of this treasonous act.”
Calvin stepped in again, “You must have a trial in which you stand as judge. That is what the wizard law states.”
The king ground his teeth, “The traitor is under my command and he will be tried as such. Besides, he is not a
weapon bearer yet and that means he does not fall under the wizard law needing a trial by your standards.” Brandon nodded to the King to tell him that he had it right.
Calvin answered back coolly, “The blade was made by me. That means I am responsible for its owner until such owner dies in battle. Only at that point will the wizard lose responsibility for what he has created. The sword in Kilen’s care was created by me, and passed from father to son, making Kilen my responsibility. He IS under wizard law my king, and he deserves a proper trial.”
Alexander, chiming up in the back, “That is absolutely correct. The law also states that if the realm’s king denies the trial that the employed wizard’s and council may depart the land with any and all weapon and armor bearers in their care to protect the magic from such king.” The wind wizard chuckled as if he had said a joke. He muttered something under his breath when no one else laughed.
Frustrated, the king gave in to the wizards, “Fine, we will have your trial. It will only delay what is coming to him. You have two days to gather your witnesses, and his execution will follow the day after.”
Brent stepped forward, “Two weeks is the customary length of time stated in the wizard laws, my king.” Atmos looked at Brandon who still stood at the reports table, reluctantly giving a nod verifying his brother’s words.
Frustrated, Atmos growled a response, “Two weeks time to present him before the council. Captain, move him to the dungeons and let us be on with this day.” Twilix ran to help Kilen as they lifted him from the floor. “No! You all will stay away from him. I am finished with your games and wizard rules. He is my prisoner and will be kept as such. You all will stay away from him.”