The White Tower (The Aldoran Chronicles: Book 1)

by Michael Wisehart

  In a way, Kellen could understand the man’s sentiments. After apprehending poachers on the overlord’s property and turning them over to the city patrol for confinement, Kellen’s job was done. He had little say in the justice that was levied on the poachers afterward.

  The rest of the day went about the same. Kellen led them away from any potential targets while gleaning any vital information he could from Hatch about the White Tower and its aims. But after an entire day of direct and indirect questioning, the only item of value Kellen had managed to learn was how ignorant the Black Watch truly was to the inner machinations of their work and those who ultimately made the decisions. As long as they got their coin, they didn’t seem to care one way or another as to what else took place. They had been kept in the dark to prevent them from asking too many questions.

  Most of the guards had joined because of either a strong misguided belief in the corruption of magic—which over the last thousand years the people of Aldor had been brainwashed into accepting as truth—or because of a direct encounter with a wielder that had ended poorly, as was the case with the good captain. Hatch relayed the story of his brother’s death by a rogue wielder in one of the skirmishes between Elondria and Cylmar, and his subsequent joining of the Black Watch.

  “As long as there are wielders out there, our lands will never be safe,” Hatch said as they rode back through the barracks’ south gate. “So I will get up every morning as I did the last and do whatever I must to ensure our people’s protection.”

  Kellen almost felt sorry for the captain. It wasn’t so much the man as it was the false narrative he had been taught to believe that had the potential to destroy them all. But as Kellen already knew, ideology was a most difficult nut to crack, and many times left the one clinging to it ruined.

  Chapter 18 | Kellen

  THE NEXT COUPLE of days proved no more fruitful than the previous. Kellen would escort the Watch through the surrounding countryside while they scoured for wielders. But other than the occasional farm house or valley cottage, the majority of their time was spent navigating the forest and enjoying the scenery. Kellen had managed to lead them across a rather large swath of the encroaching forest without so much as a flicker of magic in sight.

  “I’m starting to believe this part of the world is so secluded that even the ven’ae won’t come here,” Hatch remarked as they rode back through the barracks’ gates empty handed once again. “I believe your services will no longer be required, Master Huntsman.” Hatch swung off his horse, something Kellen would have thought to be more difficult than it appeared, what with the captain’s long white cape hanging down across the back of his painted stallion. “We will be heading south tomorrow into Briston.”

  Kellen offered Hatch a polite bow. “I’m glad to have been of service, Captain, if there’s anything else you might—”

  Kellen didn’t have a chance to finish his sentence when a bell rang out from somewhere within the thick stone walls of the barracks main building. A white-clad figure burst from one of the far structures. Their hood was raised and face covered. The uncharacteristically small guard glanced in his direction, and then at the white riders who were now fully dismounted and standing on the porch. The robed individual sprinted for the north gate.

  “Who was that?” Hatch hollered as he ran in the direction of the building the cloaked figure had just exited. “That building holds the cells! Check on the prisoner! Hurry!” Two of his guards drew their swords and charged into the building. Kellen dismounted and headed in their direction. He glanced over his shoulder as the runner exited the north gate. Run, Saleena, run.

  “Everything alright, Captain?” Kellen asked with feigned concern as he watched two of Hatch’s men emerge from the building.

  “That was the prisoner, sir! Soren, Jaylen, and Heglith are lying unconscious on the floor, and her ropes look like they just fell off, sir. It must have been her magic.”

  “Leave them where they are,” Hatch bellowed, his eyes burning with anger. “The rest of you follow me!” Hatch turned around and called over his shoulder. “Huntsman, we might have need of your services. Bring your bow.”

  “Yes, sir!” Kellen ran back to his horse and retrieved his bow and quiver before rushing to catch up.

  Kellen reached the south gate in time to see Saleena darting down a back alley three or four streets up, heading east in the direction of River Street.

  “This way!” Hatch motioned, charging down an adjacent lane. “We’ll head her off!” Kellen offered a silent prayer for Saleena to reach the dockworks in time. He followed the captain and his men down another side street, parallel to the route Saleena had just taken. They followed the avenue till it ended at an intersecting alley, which they took left and then cut back right again down the first adjoining street. The passageway angled them back to the main thoroughfare leading toward the shopping district.

  Kellen, with his long legs, caught up with the captain as they tore out of the side alley and onto River Street, just a few shops down from Me’Zard’s Chandlery. He glanced to the left, catching a glimpse of Saleena sprinting down the opposite side of the street and into a dark alley at the corner of Orlyn’s Apothecary. Kellen followed the captain as he cut across the street, dodging horses and small carriages as they ran toward the alley’s entrance. Shoppers hurriedly scattered to make room for the white-robed figures with their swords drawn.

  “Father!” Kellen stopped at the sound of his name and turned. Ty was coming out of Reloria’s Sweet Shop a few doors down with a small bag of something in one hand.

  His youngest son started in his direction.

  “No! Go home, Ty!”

  With his bow still firmly gripped in one hand, Kellen turned back around and ran. He spared one more glance over his shoulder. Ty was still moving in his direction. “Go home!”

  Kellen didn’t have time to wait around and see if his son would obey or not, but knowing Ty, Kellen said a quick prayer of intercession just in case. Ty was a good boy, but his curiosity sometimes got the better of him. He hoped this wasn’t one of those times.

  The quiver of arrows bounced against his back as he ran to catch up. He followed the men down another small cobbled lane which was masked in darkness by the three-story buildings rising to either side, keeping the early evening sun from shining through.

  Hatch picked up speed at the sight of Saleena ahead. Kellen could see she was struggling to maintain her pace. Her arms and legs flailed around in the large white trousers and tunic. He was afraid she was going to lose balance at any moment and go tumbling. Miraculously, the young woman managed to keep to her feet, as wobbly as they were.

  He suddenly had a sense of déjà vu. This wasn’t the first time he’d been involved in trying to rescue Saleena from the clutches of the Black Watch. The last time Kellen had managed to spirit her away, she had disregarded his warning and managed to get herself re-caught. He had thought she’d been taken to the White Tower already. He was happy to be wrong, even happier at another chance to try to save the young woman’s life. Hopefully, this time, things would work out differently.

  Kellen watched as Saleena burst from the head of the alley and on to Lynden. Pausing to catch her breath, she glanced back over her shoulder. Run, you silly woman, run! She had just managed to turn when a lantern hanging from one of the walls in the alley exploded. The flames ignited a stack of crates which had been spread conveniently across the roadway. It completely barred their passage.

  Hatch shouted in anger as he came to an abrupt halt, his men stumbling into him as he pulled back from the blaze. Kellen held his hand in front of his face to buffer the heat.

  “It’s the Dark One’s own fire!” one of the men bellowed. “She’s going to roast us alive!”

  “Pull yourselves together, you spineless dogs!” Hatch roared. “Or I’ll give you something to really fear!”

  Kellen could barely see Saleena through the smoke as she crossed Lynden and headed east on Bullmar.

&nbs
p; “She’s making for the river!” Hatch spun around and pointed to his left. “Down there!” The running started once again, back the way they had come. This time the captain took them left down another narrow street where they dodged half-empty boxes and barrels of litter as they cut across to a parallel road. Eventually, they made it back around to Lynden. Passing by the blaze of rubble in the next alley up, they crossed the road and continued after Saleena.

  Bullmar ended at the edge of Veldon’s dockworks. In the distance, Kellen could see Saleena making her way down the wagon trail toward the three wooden piers below. “Hurry, we can’t let her reach the water!” Hatch bellowed, motioning for his men to follow.

  Kellen slowed so as not to outrun Hatch. The captain’s breath was coming in large gulps, attributed to his having spent most of his time in the saddle, no doubt. After the incident with the alley fire, the captain was clearly on his guard. He slowed his pace as they approached the open loading bay in front of the piers.

  “Careful,” Hatch cautioned, raising an arm to warn the men behind him. “They say an animal is most fierce when cornered.” Hatch cast a wary look at Kellen. “Have your bow ready, Huntsman, in case we need it.”

  Kellen threaded a shaft onto the string.

  Saleena was standing on the far end of the pier, watching to see what they were going to do as they approached the front end of the docks. She kept looking to the water, as if judging whether or not to leap in. Don’t do it.

  The men cautiously stepped onto the wood-slatted platform and scanned the surrounding water as they edged their way forward. “Stop!” Hatch brought them to a halt with a wave of his hand. “What’s that noise?” He was looking out over the water. The others followed his gaze across the wide expanse of the East River and watched as waves began surging toward the piers. A heavy gust of cold wind hit the men and they nearly lost their balance, scrambling for something to hold onto. The force of it pushed them backwards, practically knocking them off their feet.

  Kellen held his hands in front of his eyes to shield himself from the torrential wind. He watched as Saleena stood there with her arms stretched out in front of her. Her mouth was moving, but they couldn’t hear anything over the gusts of wind. A hand grabbed hold of his shoulder. “She’s conjuring a whirlwind!” Hatch shouted. “Shoot her before she destroys us all!”

  “I’m only here as a guide!” Kellen hollered above the noise of the storm. “No one said anything about shooting unarmed women!”

  “Are you blind? She’s a wielder, and she’s going to kill us all! Now shoot her! That’s an order!”

  “Father! Don’t!” Behind them, Ty came running out of the storm like a specter, causing more than a few of the guards to jump in fear, nearly swinging their swords at him out of a sheer panic. Kellen could feel the blood rising to his head. Of all the times to pick to disobey, this was the worst. Ty’s insatiable need to always know what was going on was about to get them both killed.

  Ty moved between Kellen and the pier. “You can’t kill her!” His eyes were steady and hard, his blonde hair whipping across his face.

  Hatch didn’t hesitate. He reached over and grabbed Ty by the scruff of his tunic. Whipping out a knife, he placed the blade against Ty’s neck, drawing blood.

  “You shoot her, Huntsman, or I kill the boy!” Hatch hollered over the prevailing wind. His eyes were seething with anger and desperation.

  Kellen could have been blind and still have seen there was no subterfuge behind Hatch’s threat, it was as open and unveiled as it could have possibly been. The Black Watch captain was going to kill Ty if Kellen didn’t do something and quick. Kellen turned back around; his arrow nocked, and glanced in Saleena’s direction. Her arms were still waving. Drawing back his pull, he hesitated.

  “Father, no!”

  “Shut your mouth, boy!” Hatch took a couple of steps forward, giving Kellen a clear view of his son’s face with the dagger pressed against his neck. Ty had tears rolling down his cheeks. He kept shaking his head back and forth, urging Kellen not to do it.

  By then, the water was covering the majority of the pier. “I said shoot her or I slit your boy’s throat right here and toss his rotting corpse into the river!”

  Kellen looked back down the dock at his target. “Creator forgive me,” he said as he released the string.

  “No!” he heard Ty yell as the arrow flew from his bow.

  Everything went deathly still.

  The wind and the waves evaporated into thin air as if nothing had ever happened. On the end of the dock, Kellen and the others watched as Saleena, with a look of both shock and horror on her face, glanced down at the large shaft protruding from her upper chest. Her body went limp and her eyes closed as she fell backwards into the chilly waters below.

  Kellen was the first to reach the end of the pier. He watched as her body was pulled beneath the rolling water. A few bubbles made their way to the surface, and then there was nothing.

  “The Arch Chancellor isn’t going to be happy with us losing such a powerful wielder,” Hatch grunted as he took a deep breath.

  One of the guards stepped forward to take a look. “At least she can’t do any more damage.”

  Hatch watched the water lap against the pier’s footings. “True,” he said before releasing Ty back to Kellen. “An excellent shot, Huntsman, my compliments.” Kellen and Ty watched as the captain and his men made their way back down the pier, their boots shuffling on the loose boards as they went.

  “I can’t believe you killed her.”

  Kellen took a moment to steady himself as he leaned against one of the pier’s braces. His heart pounded from what he had just been forced to do. Apart from the maelstrom of nerves rolling around inside, he wasn’t sure he knew how to respond to his son’s obvious disappointment in him. “I’m sorry, Ty. I didn’t have a choice. They would have killed you if I hadn’t.” He watched as Ty stood there staring at the empty space on the dock where Saleena had been standing just moments earlier. He tried putting his arm around his son, but Ty shrugged it off.

  Kellen took a deep breath. “I believe it’s time I introduced you to some people.”

  Ty lifted his head. “Who?”

  Chapter 19 | Ty

  THE SUN HAD FINISHED its long journey for the day.

  An array of deep orange, purple, and gold waned from the sky, being replaced by a dusky charcoal which in turn would soon be exchanged for a blanket of soft starlight.

  Ty took a deep breath to steady his nerves. He tried focusing on the zigzag of the cobble in front of him, studying each stone as he passed. His mind kept replaying the moment Saleena had been struck by his father’s arrow, the look on her face as she saw it protruding from her chest. She had locked eyes with Ty for a brief moment just before slipping back over the side of the pier and into the icy waters of the East River. Would he ever forget that look?

  “Who was she?”

  “What?” His father had been silent the entire walk back from the docks to the East Inn.

  “Who was the woman you . . .” Ty didn’t finish the statement.

  His father stopped, taking a moment to study the nearly vacant streets. It was an uncommon sight, especially at closing time. Ty assumed it had something to do with the armed-banned of Black Watch running through the center of the pavilion earlier, or possibly the alley fire. Either way, it was clear his father was being overly cautious as to who could be listening in before answering Ty’s question.

  “She was someone I had rescued from the Black Watch a few weeks back on one of my poaching runs. I hid her while I led the guards off in another direction. When I went back for her, she was gone.”

  “Why were they hunting her? What could she do?”

  “The sad thing was she couldn’t do anything. She wasn’t even a wielder.”

  “What? Then why were they after her?”

  “Because someone claimed she was. They saw her use some new kind of treatment to heal a child. It was a technique the other
physickers had never used before. And nowadays all it takes is for someone to be suspected of being one of the ven’ae to make it so.” His father snorted in disgust. “The White Tower has everyone so scared of the idea of magic that one can hardly sneeze around here without worrying they’re going to be turned in for associating with hobgoblins or some such nonsense. It’s like we’ve lost the ability to reason or trust. The White Tower has managed to turn us all against each other.”

  They continued down the left side of River Street. A few of the shop owners were closing their doors as the last of their customers made their way home. Ty had left his horse tied in front of Reloria’s Sweet Shop. They were only a couple storefronts down when his father stopped and headed across the street.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Leave Waddle. We’ll come back for him later.”

  Waiting for a covered carriage to pass, Ty followed his father across Easthaven’s main thoroughfare. This late in the day, there were very few carriages and carts. The only traffic was a single wagon making its way in the direction of the East Bridge. The next street over, they headed south before slipping down a side street that ran adjacent to the tannery.

  “Where are we going?”

  “I’m taking you to meet the council.”

  Ty’s breath caught in his throat. His pulse raced with excitement. He was going to meet the council. Ever since first hearing about their existence, he had wanted nothing more. He wondered if maybe they would have some answers as to what was happening to him, but then he changed his mind. He still hadn’t found the right time to tell his family yet, and he wanted them to be the first to know.