by Aaron Thomas
They both nodded as they followed him in his hurried pace.
Once inside Bowie offered his chair to John, and Auburn made herself at home sitting on the pallet that made up his bed. Bowie paced in the small tent nervously.
“John you have been a great help in the past. I have great need of you now. I need you to organize the hunting parties, meals, the night guards, and one other thing required for an army. I will require two of our archers each day to come to me for lessons in making arrows. Tomorrow I will only need one, as I will be instructing Auburn.”
“I will do what I can, Sergeant.” John stood to go but Bowie held up his hand and gestured to have him sit back down.
“I need you to run this army so I can be as efficient as I can with the king’s orders.”
He nodded in response.
“Auburn, I will need your fletchers working together to make the best arrows they can. Once I give you some instructions perhaps, you can improve the quality of the ones you make. I want to have at least one thousand arrows for the king before we leave this camp. We need to be out of here in two days before the rest of the army starts showing up. I will see that supplies are being maintained. I want to have any parts of the arrow that cannot be made on the road done and put into carts. I want the arrow assembly to continue while we are traveling. Fletchers will get the carts and our soldiers will carry as many arrow supplies as they can, along with the horses. I only want to stop when we run out of supplies and need to drop more off for the king.”
“I don’t think the soldiers will be doing much except for being pack mules for my fletchers. If that happens, there will be some trouble on the road. You may not mind working for a woman but some of your men might,” she said.
Bowie said, “John and I will deal with the men. I hope to put every man on horseback or in a cart by the time we reach the battlefield. If not, I want each man rotating between walking and riding.”
“How will we get the arrow shafts? It takes time to find those and if we are traveling, we may be passing valuable areas to find them.”
Bowie almost snapped at Auburn, “I told you, I would deal with the supplies. You focus on keeping your men making arrows.”
Auburn looked down, obviously hurt by his small outburst. He normally didn’t snap at anyone, and felt strange that he had done it. It was too late to take the words back so he continued on.
“Each day I will teach two archers to make Crescent arrows. These arrows and any Auburn makes will be given only to a Black Hat. I don’t want any Crescent arrows being given to the king until all of our quivers are full.”
They both nodded their heads at this.
“Auburn, go ahead and get your fletchers and get those carts divided up and start any construction you can before the light fails. I will have some arrow shafts made for morning. John, get the rest of the supplies organized and have them packed for the next few days. If any of the troops need boots or clothes, divide them as you see fit. Get men ready to hunt tomorrow and make sure no one stays up too late. Including yourself, John. You have pushed yourself hard the last couple of days. Make sure you get some rest.”
He felt strange ordering the others around. He had always done the jobs himself and often took orders from his father. Telling others what to do felt out of his character. They left in as hurried a pace as they had come, each with their own job.
Bowie made his way to Ria’s wagon. When he arrived he noticed a small light in the window. She was awake. He was glad he didn’t need to disrupt her sleep. He knocked gently on the door and removed his hat.
“Wizard Ria, it is me, Bowie.”
She opened the door looking considerably more rested than she had earlier. The small wagon was filled with small plants, each of which was now full with berries. She motioned him inside and he followed, trying to squeeze past all of the branches without disturbing any.
“Master Crescent, How is the apple tree working out?” She moved about her wagon collecting berries in a small bowl.
“The tree is wonderful. I had a scout grow it out a little to help it produce more fruit without you having to work so hard,” Bowie said, placing his hat in his lap as Ria held out the bowl of fruit to him. He took a couple and chewed some of the most exquisite fruit he had ever tasted. “I have to say that this tastes better.”
“Well, thank you. It takes a lot of growing to get the flavor just right. How can I help you this evening?”
“Wizard Ria, I have been able to acquire a good amount of supplies. We are going to start making arrows in the morning. I know you said you could help us with the arrow shafts. Will you be able to make some for the fletchers by morning?”
She made a small smile as she poured herself a cup of tea. She didn’t answer as she poured him one as well. They took a couple sips of tea and Bowie watched as a vine from one of the plants seemed to move of its own accord, away from a shelf. Ria reached up and retrieved a small pouch from the cubby that was revealed.
“I can make some now, if you would assist me and make me a promise,” she said.
“What is it I will be promising?”
“You will be promising not to reveal a wizard secret.”
“If it will help you in assisting me and my men to survive, I will carry it to my deathbed,” Bowie said.
She laughed at his comment.
“In this pouch, I have accumulated a number of imbuements. I made them all. I do not like the kind of person the magic makes me into so I only keep enough to perform small tasks. In the last few days I have carried one imbuement with me to help restore my strength. If you will follow me out and do as I say, I think I can give you what you need.”
Bowie left the wagon and offered a hand to the wizard to help her out. She accepted and Bowie put his hat back on as he walked beside her.
“When we are away from the others, I will throw some seeds out and have them to grow into the arrow shafts you need. I don’t want others to know that I possess this type of power in my wagon.”
“I agree. There is always one or another that is jealous of those in power.”
She reached out to put a hand on his arm and he held it to let her steady herself. He was taking a liking to the woman as a nephew would an aunt. She had a friendly smile.
“When we get there, I will need you to pour a couple imbuements at a time into my hand until I become strong enough to grow what you need. Then I will let you take one to assist getting me back to the wagon. Make sure I keep them in my hand when I fall asleep, Master Crescent.”
“I will do my best.”
She stopped to look at him still holding out his arm.
“I trust you. Please, do not let me down.”
He nodded and looked back into eyes that showed a majestic wisdom. Soon, the two were far enough away that they could hear no voices from the camp. She reached into a pocket and pulled out a handful of seeds. She started picking out individual seeds and tossing them into the surrounding grass. The process took a while and Bowie patiently waited for her to finish.
When she did, she wiped her hands clean and handed Bowie the pouch with imbuements. He pulled the knot out of the string that closed it and looked inside. He saw a bag full of metal beads much like the one he wore underneath his arm guard. Only these displayed a small tree symbol. She had accumulated close to twenty. He could build a city beyond his wildest imagination with what the bag contained. He tried to wipe the astonishment from his face and carefully poured one or two at a time into her frail looking hand. When it contained eight beads she told him to stop.
“Now tell me, what does the perfect arrow shaft look like?” she said as she closed her eyes and listened attentively.
“The perfect arrow shaft would be a bit longer than a tall man’s arm length. It would contain no knots or places where branches grew. It would be straight and slightly flexible.”
She lowered her head and Bowie watched as small plants grew out of the ground wherever she had thrown a seed. Each one grew
to the size of a small bush with no leaves. A small pod opened at the end of each branch dropping new seeds to the ground. Where each new seed landed another plant grew.
The plants soon surrounded him and the wizard, leaving only a small path to walk out of. Hundreds upon hundreds of shafts grew before Bowie’s eyes. Each one was as perfect as the one before it. He knew it would take days, maybe even weeks, to find a handful of shafts of this quality and he had hundreds. The aging wizard lifted her head and faced Bowie.
“It will be easier tomorrow. Please help me to my wagon.”
Bowie lifted the light wizard off the ground. He was almost sure he could have done it without the earth imbuement. He walked through the camp, carrying the wizard. Some of his troops stopped to watch and a couple offered to help, everyone seemed concerned. One recruit even stopped to open the door to her wagon.
He started to climb the stairs and she whispered, “Your hat, Sergeant.”
Bowie backed down the stairs and looked at the recruit. “Take off my hat.”
The recruit stayed outside the wagon as Bowie laid Ria in bed and covered her with the blanket.
“I will put someone outside your wagon to watch over you though the night,” he said as he moved to place the pouch containing the rest of the imbuements into the cubby that was now covered with vines.
“Keep it for now. I am trusting you, Bowie.” She rolled over and started to breath heavily.
Bowie knew she was asleep. A wool scarf hung over the side rail of the bed. He pulled it free and gently tied Ria’s hand closed over the imbuements which kept her alive. She did not stir other than the breathing of deep sleep.
Bowie slipped out of the wagon and closed the door. He listened to John barking orders to the troop and followed the sound of his voice. He walked through the ever growing sea of tents to seek out two men to stand guard over the resting wizard.
Chapter 7 - Ageing
The wizards healed Kilen and helped him to his feet. They lead him through a tunnel in the rock wall he had tried to climb. He followed the gray haired wizards out of the tunnel and into a small village. The village looked like any other. Small houses lined dirt paths, smoke came from chimneys, and chickens wandered the yards. The air even smelled like it had at home; with a conglomeration of scents like fresh baked bread, pies, and sweet rolls.
One of the wizards wearing a green robe stopped to speak to Kilen, “Welcome to Idleton. It is the town of the Elder Wizards. You are welcome to explore the town and get to know our wizards and weapon bearers”
The other wizards had already walked down the path and gone their separate ways. The wizard in the green robe started to walk away also, leaving Kilen to stand at the edge of the town.
“Wait! I am supposed to negotiate your coming to battle for the Earth King.” Kilen said to the line of wizards. Most walked on and paid no attention to Kilen’s request.
The wizard in green turned and gave a half smile “Oh, the Elder Wizard’s Council is already in discussion. We knew why you were coming just after you left Deuterium. They will come to a decision and you will be let known the results. Until then, enjoy your stay. Perhaps you can go to our sword ring and work on your skills with the blade. I’ve heard you lack the finesse of a true weapon bearer.”
“How did you know why I was coming?”
The old wizard laughed at his questions before walking away down the path.
“Wizard secrets are ours to keep and to give as we see fit. Expect to not get the answer of every question you seek. Good day, Kilen.”
They left him standing on the dirt path surrounded by stone walls and small houses. He knew no one, but it seemed everyone knew him. He walked down the street that seemed to lead towards the center of town. A large column of smoke rose from a building and Kilen approached it to find a blacksmith’s shop.
This shop was being worked by four wizards. All the men were dressed in traditional blacksmith clothes. One of the wizards provided a stream of fire from his hand and another added to it with wind. The earth wizard handled the hammer and steel as they made an object Kilen didn’t recognize. The object was a ring of metal. Too large for a bracelet and too small for a wheel, it wasn’t even large enough to hold a barrel. The object hissed as the water wizard cooled the ring back to a black metal.
The water wizard waved Kilen into the room saying,“Take off the armor and we will get it fixed up. You should not be representing your wizard in those. Even if Alexander is impulsive, disrespectful, and arrogant you shouldn’t be seen like this.”
Kilen removed his armor and placed it near the furnace. He was impressed with how much each of the wizards knew about him. They knew more about his wizard than he did. They continued to work on the circle slowly and with a delicate hand. He watched for a while still not sure what it was they were making. He gave up trying to guess at what it was and made his way further into town.
In this town there were no bakeries, tailors, butchers, or even an inn. The town was just filled with houses and the comings and goings of their residents. Wizards came and went about their day as if Kilen had lived there his whole life. They passed him and offered him friendly greetings. He offered a friendly response back until he passed an open dirt area with middle aged men sitting around, laughing and telling war stories.
He stopped to listen to the men when one approached him. “Kilen, is it? You don’t look like a powerful weapon bearer.”
Some of the men laughed, Kilen tried his best to ignore them. “I never said I was powerful. Whom ever you heard it from must have had their story wrong,” Kilen responded.
“I’m Ray, this is where all the weapon bearer’s come to chat and train. The wizards all live a life of solidarity here. We are bound by oath to follow our wizards and protect them until we die. Most of us thought that would be a short life of adventure, but we wound up here. Forever forced to relive the glory days of battle by sitting around a sword ring.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Ray. I was told to find this place. They told me I may be able to practice the sword while I wait for the Elder Wizard Council to decide if they will be going to battle. Perhaps if they go to battle you will get to relive the glory days for real.”
The men all laughed at Kilen’s response. “Boy, you will probably have a beard as long as Chasten’s there, before they decide whether or not they are going,” one of the men said.
Another called out, “You will probably be a blademaster as well.” They all laughed and waved Kilen to join them.
Ray walked around the short wall with him, “There are some things about being a weapon bearer that your wizard was supposed to teach you. It is up to him to teach you to be a true weapon bearer and it is up to previous weapon bearers to teach you the blade. I heard you were trained by a Kapal?”
“I was being trained by a Kapal, his name is Gortus.”
That brought all of them to stop laughing and, he hoped, brought him a bit of respect.
“Being trained by the Kapal king’s son is a great honor. I heard he was destined to bring peace to his race. It was prophesied at his birth.” Ray patted Kilen on the back and leaned against the wall.
The man that was pointed out to be Chasten smiled a big smile, “Enough talk, lets see what the kid can do.”
The men all roared in agreement and one tossed Kilen a wooden practice blade. Chasten and Kilen moved to the center of the grounds and Chasten began his assault. Chasten moved just as fast and graceful as Gortus but with different attacks. Kilen defended as well as he could. He took a couple strikes to the arms but they were glancing blows. Before long the grizzled weapon bearer was winded and the bout finished. The men clapped and patted Chasten on the back. Ray approached Kilen as the others chatted with Chasten.
“He’s the most out of shape,” Ray said. “You did well, but it was as if you were afraid to attack him. On the next opponent don’t be afraid to show him how good you are.”
Ray patted him on the shoulder. Kilen thought if he was
the most out of shape weapon bearer here, he was in for some exhausting training.
The next time they stopped to rest, Kilen realized he had forgotten why he was there in the first place. Most of the time he was being attacked by wooden practice swords. The sun was now setting and he had used every part of the day practicing the blade with the other men.
Ray motioned to follow him to a small stone house that Kilen assumed was his. The house was meagerly furnished with only a table, small hearth, and a couple of beds. Wooden chairs sat on either side of the table and Ray sat down in one. He started pulling off his boots and pulling his shirt out from his pants.
“You did well today,” Ray said. “I had expected far less from your abilities with the sword. When the wizards all say you lack skills, it makes one wonder. Gortus has trained you well in the short time he’s had you.”
“I learned a great deal from him. More than in just the sword I think. Although he didn’t teach me how to attack,” Kilen said as Ray started to scrub his face in the wash stand.
“Yes, I heard all about your first days of training.” He stopped washing himself long enough to look at Kilen. “What kind of training is dragging yourself on the ground?”
Kilen cleared his throat, “I think it was supposed to help me endure pain. Teach me just how far I can push myself.”
Ray let out a chuckle and removed his stockings to begin washing his feet.
“Well, if it was supposed to teach you that, I won’t be teaching you endurance. Although from what the wizards told me of your attempt to get into the town, you lasted much longer than some. I can’t believe you made it all the way to the rock wall. Chasten only made it to the ice swamp and most of us ventured here with our wizard. If you had come with Alexander I’m sure they would have had to find another way to keep you out.” He paused in deep thought, “I wonder what they would do if someone made it to the top of the rock wall.”
“You mean I did well? Was it some sort of test?” Kilen asked.
“It’s not a test for you so much as it’s a test for them. The four trials you face coming into this town are a test of their defenses. It lets them know how much about their magic the world has begun to learn. The trials test their ability to keep the most powerful of wizards and weapon bearers out. This is more than a place where wizards come to escape the world’s problems. It is a place where wizards are free to practice their skills. To hone their magic and try to discover the abilities lost in the time of the Dark Army.”