To Be Chosen (The Maestro Chronicles)

by John Buttrick

  The scout matched his horse’s pace with that of Sprinter. “We are being followed by sasquatches. I counted six,” he reported.

  Momma sasquatch and her baby had joined up with the part of the pack that was lagging behind, and evidently chose not to rejoin the beasts Daniel had sensed her with before she stopped to give birth. The six sasquatches never slowed, having kept up a good pace. Their thoughts and imperatives were probably similar to those of the four adults Daniel already had in his swirl.

  He had been on the point of sending Duncan Hawk to bring the scout forward, for safety sake. At least he did not have to worry about that anymore. “Good job Samson that was a timely report. Now we’ll have to do something about the sasquatches,” Daniel replied, and then turned to Jonah. “Keep the men moving. David and I are going to drop back and deal with the threat. Four spans ahead you will find an area large enough for us to make camp, stop there for the night.”

  Then the resistance came. “Why are you excluding me?” Silvia wanted to know, especially since she was the only one with a crossbow, although in miniature.

  “If you are excluding the only person among us with a crossbow, such as it is, that means blade to claw and you will need me,” Cale insisted.

  “I can take a squad and deal with the threat. You need not involve yourself,” Sergeant Keenan stated, concern written all over the big man’s face.

  “Keenan is right,” Zaccum added his opinion. “I have experience killing the beasts. Allow me to ride with his squad. There is no reason for you to place yourself in unnecessary danger.” Keenan was nodding his head vigorously at the suggestion.

  “You are the Chosen Vessel,” Jonah stated. “If you die in a minor skirmish, there is no one to take your place.”

  All good points, except Daniel did not need any of them to deal with the situation, and only chose David for appearances, he did not want to be seen as a lone hero taking on the beasts by himself. The Teki was shielded, in little danger of being hurt, and was one of the few who knew Daniel could summon potential.

  “Silvia, you have a baby to protect,” he told her, even though she and Sheila would be just as safe as David. It came back down to appearances. “Do you remember the night we met?”

  “Of course, you helped us fight off a band of yetis. What is your point?” Silvia answered.

  “He killed them with arrows,” David reminded her. “If you lend him your crossbow and some bolts, I probably won’t even get a chance to throw a knife.”

  “May I?” Daniel asked while extending his hand.

  Silvia handed the baby to David and then relinquished her crossbow and removed twenty bolts from her belt. She clearly did not think much of Daniel’s ability to shoot, giving him so many bolts to strike what she believed to be so few targets. “These will not be effective against sasquatches beyond fifty strides, so don’t even try shooting before then. I want all twenty back and clean, so don’t be leaving me a bloody mess,” she added after taking back Sheila.

  This is how she speaks to the Chosen Vessel, a Six-bolt Accomplished who could kill every living thing within a ten span radius with hardly more than a trickle of potential and a few moments of concentration. She knew him too well, that he would never do such a thing, and he laughed. He enjoyed the fact that she was not the least bit intimidated by him. Her attitude was a sharp contrast to the reaction of his parents and the residents of Bashierwood when they first learned of his ability to summon potential.

  “I would not dare bring back soiled bolts,” he told her and then placed the miniature bolts in his saddlebag. “Cale, Sergeants, Lord Jonah, if I miss a few, David will kill them. You saw how fast he and Silvia can kill a sasquatch.”

  They reluctantly agreed, not that they had a choice. Daniel was in command and had the final say. He and David turned their steeds and headed south.

  “Our commander is the Chosen Vessel. Those sasquatches don’t stand a chance,” Lonni Carper spoke in a voice he no doubt thought was only loud enough to be heard by the guardsman next to him.

  “He ain’t even sweatin,” Long-jawed Fentnor Thrush commented back to him.

  Daniel ignored the remarks and was not surprised in the least that every man knew he had confirmed the rumors of his being the Chosen Vessel. What surprised him was that they took his word for it. He would have laughed at anyone who made such a claim, before meeting Ruth.

  When the last supply wagon was a hundred horse-lengths away, David cleared his throat. “You’ve never handled Silvia’s crossbow, is that why you want me along, in case you are not as proficient?” he asked, showing he also had doubts about Daniel’s ability to shoot the thing.

  Daniel was sensing the six sasquatches moving closer and summoned the potential for Mind Touch, but only held the energy. “I don’t intend to use it.”

  The Teki nodded his head. “You’re going to take them the Aakacarn way. I had a feeling this outing was going to leave me with nothing to do.”

  Daniel glanced at him. “Actually, I’ve been looking forward to this all morning.”

  “Looking forward,” David began to say and then paused. “You knew the sasquatches were following us.”

  Daniel nodded his head. “A total of sixteen and if I accomplish what I hope, they will be added to those in my swirl.”

  David blinked. “You referred to Sheila being in your swirl, exactly how big is your swirl?”

  “Look over at the river and tell me what you see?”

  David’s head swiveled to the right and his eyes widened. “I didn’t know gators and pythons would come this far north,” he stated and then shook his head as if trying to make sense of something strange. “Why are they all swimming in the same direction we’re traveling?”

  “Gators and pythons are not confined to the swamps, they can also be found in rivers and lakes, almost any body of water like the Tollus. But these particular ones have taken a liking to me and are caught up in my swirl. The birds, turtles, and frogs were really just experiments to see if I could link my mind to theirs. The gators, pythons, and water moccasins I linked to for safety reasons. They were all too near the horses and most of them were seeking prey,” Daniel explained.

  “Does this mean you control them?”

  “Yes. I can, but I am not doing so now. They are following me of their own volition,” Daniel admitted.

  David cocked his head sideways and the light of comprehension shined in his eyes. “When you talked about the sasquatches and Sheila just now, you said something about adding the new ones to those in your swirl. Does that mean she is not the only sasquatch in your swirl?”

  “Terroar is directly east of us. Gerowel, Croka, and Korilla are coming up behind the ten sasquatches trailing these six. They were all under a Serpent Guild compulsion to kill and eat anything that tries to leave the Ducalin estate,” Daniel chose to finally share the information with the Teki.

  “But now you control them,” David said with a trace of concern in his voice, perhaps wanting reassurance.

  “I suggested to them that humans are not food and we should be avoided, so the sasquatches are staying out of sight, yet seem to have a desire to be near me. For now it is fine, but I might have to make a few more suggestions in the future.”

  David burst out laughing, likely from relief rather than actually seeing anything humorous. “I can imagine you entering a town with a score of sasquatches following like lovesick puppies.”

  “Not to mention a few gators and pythons,” Daniel went along with the silly notion, but it was time to get serious. “The first six sasquatches will be in sight in a few moments.”

  David sobered immediately, in a blink of an eye, a pair of throwing blades appeared in his hands, and he was focused on the target area. “When should I start throwing?”

  “Kill anything that gets within fifty strides, if I haven’t linked to the sasquatch by then, it means the compulsion to kill is stronger than my suggestion.”

  David nodded his head and took a deep
breath. Daniel sensed the beasts come within ninety strides, raised both hands, and focused. Six hair-thin beams of topaz blue light shot from his fingers, straight to the foreheads of the onrushing sasquatches. Their thoughts, similar to those of Terroar, flowed into his mind, obey Serena, hunt, kill, and eat, being the foremost among them. He sent his own thoughts into the six males, “Humans are not food and should be avoided because they tasted bad and are extremely dangerous. Stop, you are free to go elsewhere.”

  They came within seventy-two strides before coming to an abrupt halt. Gurrumble was the largest, nearly ten and a third cubits tall. Rumble seemed to be a slightly smaller version of him and Daniel learned through the link that they were father and son. Turremble had slightly lighter fur than did the others. Quaker was missing one eye and Kerrash had only one thumb. Buraker had pitch black fur and was lanky rather than bulky. They all stared at Daniel as if he was the new alpha and none of them had any desire to go elsewhere.

  David visibly relaxed. “They stopped. The beasts are in your swirl,” he rightly concluded, even though he could not see the blue beams that struck the sasquatches, only the results.

  Daniel gave him a reassuring nod. The Teki’s last sentence came out sounding like a question. “Kerrash and Quaker are a little confused and adjusting to the idea that humans aren’t food. Gurrumble and Turremble are intrigued, while Buraker and Rumble think I am small for an alpha but they accept my authority none-the-less. Get ready, the rest of them will be here soon.”

  David tensed slightly, yet clearly more confident, and still on the alert. “You named them already?”

  “Those are the names they introduced themselves by, who am I to change them?” Daniel replied. Sheila was different. He named her because she did not have one.

  “Um, they’ve done nothing but grunt, somehow I missed the introductions,” David replied, clearly confused.

  The statement jolted Daniel back to his escort. The thoughts of the sasquatches were flowing at him. He had been relaying their thoughts to Terroar and the other adults in his swirl.

  Gurrumble turned and bellowed a command, “Come,” Daniel’s brain translated. A series of growls and grunts followed. “Daniel is Alpha,” the sasquatch proclaimed in a series of roars.

  “Is he angry?’ David asked in a soft voice, clearly unable to understand the male.

  “The link allows me to understand their thoughts and no, Gurrumble is not angry, he’s rallying the troops to our cause,” Daniel replied.

  David’s lips quirked into a smile, “I think you mean your cause. I doubt they would be loyal to anyone else.”

  The sasquatches were looking at the gators, pythons, water moccasins, frogs, turtles, and birds, all of which were remaining close by. They recognized each other as being part of a larger whole, this was not speculation. Daniel knew their primitive thoughts.

  Gerowel, the alpha female and mate of Gurrumble, along with Croka, and Korilla, were moving up behind the ten, nine with one having a baby on her back, who were now rushing to obey the alpha male. As soon as the ten came into range, Daniel linked with them, bringing all of the remaining sasquatches, nine of which were female, into his swirl. Shereeka, with a white stripe beginning above her brow and extending over and down to just above her tailbone, was the new mom and her baby was Choaker, a male fathered by Terroar.

  “All one big happy family,” Daniel announced.

  “If you say so,” David replied while putting away his blades, demonstrating a mountain-sized trust in the man he chose to follow.

  “So,” Daniel joked, and it felt good. He missed having Tim around to lighten the mood and hoped their paths would cross again soon.

  David chuckled at the quip and then raised an eyebrow. “Are we finished here?’

  “We are,” Daniel affirmed and Sprinter, knowing his thoughts, turned north.

  David rode beside him and occasionally glanced back to see the sasquatches, but the pack was staying out of sight. They were free to do as they will, with only a few suggestions about humans not being food and the need to avoid them, yet they followed.

  Daniel focused on one of the smaller gators, Cleo, suggesting that the female swim up river and see if other humans were moving beside the water. She accepted the name and suggestion, and then dived down, tail propelling her forward, swam beyond the guardsmen, and was soon making good speed up the Tollus. Gators did not name themselves, but he decided the animals in his swirl should all have one, if only to help him keep them straight in his mind. Sending the reptile was the best way to locate the Aakacarns without casting a spell and possibly letting them know they were being pursued by a spell caster. He might even get a glance at Serena through the gator’s eyes and finally put a face to the name.

  He and David caught up with the supply wagons and rode with Russ Monner until they reached the designated campsite. Silvia inspected her crossbow and bolts.

  “Not a spot,” she said and then placed the bolts back into her belt and hung the handheld device on the clip. “Are the beasts dead? We heard a lot of bellowing, most of which seemed to cut off abruptly.”

  Daniel hesitated to answer. Cale, Jonah, Zaccum, and Keenan were standing right beside him while Corporal Duwin organized the camp set up.

  “Too bad Jared isn’t here. He would have loved to document the strength of your swirl,” David seemed compelled to share without being asked. He turned to the others, eyes wide in excitement, a Teki storyteller in full measure. “Six stinking beasts came screaming at us and fell right into his trap. Just as I began to think we were safe, ten more ran at us, and I didn’t even get to throw a single blade before Sir Daniel dealt with them as well. Believe me when I tell you, none of the shaggy monsters will trouble us again.”

  The Teki’s words turned out to be helpful. They seemed to answer Silvia, who gave a satisfied nod, and the tale was told with no mention of the linking. He would probably fill her in on the details later, which was fine with Daniel. The entire reason for bringing David along for appearances was now dashed to pieces, but it did not really matter, and Daniel was getting used to things not working out the way he wanted. The sasquatches were in his swirl and that was well enough for him.

  “Did you hear that? Sir Daniel has dispatched sixteen sasquatches.” Sergeant Keenan announced in a voice that carried across the camp.

  The men cheered and whistled, even Jonah. When the noise eventually died down they went back to work, rubbing down the horses, even Sprinter, whose shield had been temporarily removed, while Russ Monner started the cook fires. Watches were set and everyone settled in. Dinner consisted of ham, beans, and bread rolls. After eating, Daniel took up his guitarn and began to play. Silvia and David danced while Sheila slept peacefully inside Daniel’s tent. Guardsmen joined in the dancing and about a mark later, Daniel ended the concert and then inspected the camp. He also revitalized the horses, as he had done each evening after leaving Ducanton.

  He invited David and Silvia to his tent for a brief meeting. A lantern on an upside down box provided the light. They sat on fold-up wood-framed-chairs covered by cloth. Daniel gave a quick account of the links made to the various animals, along with their names, and Shereeka in particular. “She is nursing Choaker and is willing to take on another babe. Like you said, Sheila needs to be with her own kind.”

  Silvia glanced at the sleeping sasquatch. “I’m glad you recognize the wisdom of my words. When am I to hand her over?”

  Daniel had intended to deliver Sheila to her foster mother. “It would be better if I take her.”

  Silvia was shaking her head in an instant. “No, the guards will be suspicious if you go out with the babe. Nobody would think twice about my taking her with me.”

  David leaned forward in his chair. “They are going to see the little one is gone, I don’t know why this has to be a secret.”

  Daniel shifted his gaze back and forth between the pair of Teki. “I just don’t want trouble in the camp when Shereeka arrives, better for us all if
she comes and goes unseen.”

  Silvia smiled, employing her dimples. “Tonight we will introduce Sheila to her new mother and tomorrow I will proclaim to the men that she being adopted by the sasquatch is a peripheral affect of your swirl.”

  Which was better, for everyone to know that he could summon potential, or for everyone to attribute any strange occurrences to his being the Chosen Vessel? With all of the Teki troops proclaiming his new designation, it would not be long before most people knew at least some folks considered him to be the Chosen Vessel, and presently only a few individuals knew he could summon potential, so Daniel decided to go along with Silvia’s idea. His decision had nothing to do with her dimples. “I’m picturing you in my mind and sending your image to Shereeka. This way she will recognize you and allow herself to be seen. I am also going to place a shield on you.”

  “Just so long as you remember to take it off before she comes to bed,” David told him, dryly.

  Really, forget once and they never get over it, not that Daniel could blame the newlyweds. “I could make you sleep the whole night,” he joked.

  “Don’t you dare,” Silvia spoke up with laughter in her voice.

  Daniel picked up Sheila, whose eyes opened wide. She reached out, took hold of his finger, and squeezed.

  “She will be better off,” Silvia apparently felt the need to reassure him.

  So he had a soft spot in his heart for the furry little creature, but that didn’t mean he could not do what was best for her. Daniel nodded and handed the baby into the arms of the Teki Seer. “Head southeast, half a span into the woods, and you will find a willow. Shereeka will be sitting in the branches.”

  Silvia exited the tent and was out of sight, but well within scanning range. Daniel closed his eyes and followed along in his mind. He was aware of every person and creature up to five spans out. All of the members of his swirl were within his radius except Cleo, who was still swimming up river to locate the Aakacarns. He focused his thoughts on Shereeka, singling her out to the point where he could see through her eyes, while not taking control of her. He was there as an observer only, but could exert his influence if it proved to be necessary.