by Rex Foote
As she started to talk, Hark resumed tending to his weapon, already knowing where this conversation would go and confident that Esme knew his attention was on her and what she was saying.
“She told me that I had to become a mage and that I had to study, meaning that I will be cooped up in this damn city for years to come. I am not going to be able to leave for a long time, and all the while I am here, my parents will keep overfeeding me, and by the time I become a full mage, I will be the size of a house, and then I won’t be able to travel anywhere.”
Hark slowly looked up at this and raised a questioning eyebrow.
“So they plan to keep you from roaming the lands by overfeeding you?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know.”
She threw up her hands in exasperation and Hark laughed in a light, soft tone that calmed her.
“I know your parents don’t want you to travel, but I don’t think they are that desperate. What else did she say?”
“She told me that becoming a member of the Guild and serving my king was bigger than my dreams, and that I had a responsibility to become a mage no matter what I wanted.”
“So she thinks that because you can be a mage, that means you have to be a mage, and that to become a mage you have to spend the next four or so years of your life studying within this city’s walls?”
“That’s basically it.” She tilted her head skywards and closed her eyes. “What am I going to do, Hark?”
Hark put down his knife and regarded her, dressed as she was in her casual wear. Her hair spilled down to just above the curve of her breasts, and she looked genuinely peaceful with her closed eyes and slumped posture. After a while, he asked, “Why do you study?”
She opened her eyes and turned to face him, a puzzled look on her face. “Are you okay? Did you lose your memory? I am sure you know why I study.”
Rolling his eyes, he replied, “Yes, yes, I know why, but humour me; why do you study?”
“So that I can learn to become a mage and one day become a full member of the Guild,” she answered in a slow, confused tone.
Giving her an encouraging look, he said, “And why do you want to become a Guild mage?”
Laughing, she replied, “So that I can serve the king and the kingdom. And so that I don’t end up a homeless beggar.”
“And what if you didn’t want to do that? Not every human I know serves him, and many of them aren’t homeless.”
Her full attention was on him now, and she frowned in contemplation.
“What are you getting at?”
He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, “You are subjecting yourself to this study, these practice exercises, and this way of life all because you think you want to be a member of the Mages’ Guild; you think that the only path for a human mage is to join the Guild. But at the same time, you find the study to be almost fatally dull, you think the exercises are a waste of time, and you spend most days wanting to be out beyond Caladaria’s walls seeing places like Mymt Lagoon or other regions like the Heartward Isles. It seems to me that the only thing holding you back from going to those places is the idea that you have to become a Guild member, because that’s the only path for you, but what if it wasn’t? What if you decided to choose another path?”
She stared at him, eyes unblinking and an unreadable expression on her face. He returned the stare, looking at his friend and trying to get an idea of what she must be thinking. He didn’t have to wait long, as slowly a wide grin split her face and she suddenly lunged forward and embraced him. He was too startled to do much of anything, and so was even more unprepared when she pulled back and kissed him on the check.
“Thank you,” she gasped in excitement, before getting to her feet and hurrying off the way she had originally come.
Hark was still for a long while after she left, his mask of casual confidence firmly in place so that no one would see his inner turmoil. What had he just done? What had he set in motion? He had only meant to give his friend hope, to tell her that becoming a member of the Guild wasn’t the only thing she could ever aspire to, but that reaction and the expression on her face the moment before she got to her feet worried him. Standing up, he sheathed his knife and jogged off towards the roundhouse. Whatever Esme was about to do, Hark wasn’t about to let her do it alone.
***
Esme stopped a few doors down from her home to catch her breath. She had come here at a dead run after leaving Hark, and it would only arouse suspicion from anyone inside if she came through the front door panting and sweating. With her composure sufficiently regained, she walked over to her family’s home, opened the door, and walked inside.
“Hello,” she said as she entered. “Anyone here?”
After a few moments, she was satisfied that she was alone, which caused her to grin; this would be a lot easier now. She hurried up to her room, quickly located her backpack, and dumped the contents onto her bed. She then went around her room and gathered up three spare sets of clothes similar to what she was wearing now, as well as a blanket from her bed. She then hurried downstairs and paused in front of the door to her father’s office. She knew that he would have other things that someone traveling would need, like waterskins, a bedroll, maybe even some spare dried food and a walking staff; she only hesitated because stealing from her father felt wrong, no matter that she would put it to good use.
Eventually, the excitement at what she was about to do overcame her doubts and she went inside, quickly found a waterskin, a bedroll, and a spare cloak. She ensured that everything else was as she’d found it before closing the door and carrying on to the kitchen, where she stuffed as much preserved food and dried meat as she could into her now overstuffed backpack. Again, she ensured that anything she didn’t take was as she’d found it before hurrying back upstairs to her room. She then placed the pack, with the bedroll tied on top and the staff leaning against it, into her wardrobe. With this all done, she left the house and hurried off to the Guild. She could explain away the long absence and endure the mind-numbing study to come. If it all worked out, then it would be the last time she had to study anything.
***
Despite her best efforts, by the time she got home, her parents were already there. They were in the kitchen talking, and they greeted her as she came in. Returning their greetings with a forced, cheery tone, she made her way up to her room, closed the door, and sat down on her bed heavily. She had aimed to get home before them and sneak off unnoticed, but now she had to think of a way to deal with them. Not leaving was not an option; Hark had convinced her that she could leave, and this had been her dream for almost as long as she could remember. Thinking through her options, she came to the conclusion that she could only leave after dinner, as this would mean that her departure would remain undetected for the longest time possible; that wouldn’t be too bad, as this would be the last time she had dinner with her parents for a long time. That thought brought an unwelcome stab of icy fear that momentarily filled her with doubt. Was she doing the right thing leaving like this? Did she really think she had any chance of lasting out there? These doubts didn’t last long against her growing excitement about leaving the city and seeing the rest of the kingdom. Her mind made up, she stood and went downstairs for dinner—one last time.
***
It was getting close to moon’s peak before her parents retired to their room, finally giving her the chance to leave. The dinner had been pleasant, and she had hidden her intentions well, or at least she thought she did, but as she shouldered her pack, it occurred to her that her parents could be onto her and might be waiting at the bottom of the stairs. She dismissed this thought with a shake of her head, opened the door, and went downstairs. She had just reached the bottom landing when she felt something brush up against her left calf, and she looked down to see the vague furry form of Tufty, the house cat. The animal looked up at her with its bright feline eyes and purred. Grinding her teeth in annoyance, she reached down to pat it as she considered what to do n
ext, knowing that if she tried to leave now, the cat would most likely meow loudly as she tried to leave in protest of not receiving enough attention or whatever it was that cats meowed about. She’d just thought that it would be nice if the cat would just fall asleep when a thought struck her that almost made her laugh in relief. Grinning, she Drew upon her internal energy reserves and focused on an image of the cat falling asleep. She felt that mental click that meant she had successfully Shaped the spell and sighed in relief as she felt the energy leave her, to be accompanied a few seconds later by the sensation of a soft, warm body falling onto her foot. She gently removed the cat from her foot, opened the door, and left her home behind her.
***
The night air was cool on her skin, and she drew her cloak tighter about her shoulders. The streets of Caladaria were mostly empty at this time of night, and the few people she did meet were mostly watchmen who ignored her. As she neared the north gate, she tried to quell her nerves and act normal, or at least look it. She knew that any suspicious behaviour would alert the gate guards and possibly see her detained and questioned. Thankfully, the chill night air and late hour had driven the guards indoors, and she was able to pass out onto Caladaria’s northward-facing slope. She paused there at the head of the track that led down the gentle slope and breathed deeply. Despite all the yearning, all her dislike of what her life had been, she was still nervous, as walking down this road meant abandoning everything comfortable and safe in her life along with the parts she didn’t like. Steeling herself, she gripped her staff in her hand and set off, determined to put as much distance between her and city as she could.
***
She had gone about a mile from the base of the northward-facing slope and was nearing a small copse of trees when she heard a high-pitched whistle. She froze, utterly uncertain about what to do; the note sounded again and she turned, judging it to have come from the copse. Curiosity won out, and she cautiously made her way towards the trees. The pale silver light of the full moon only illuminated the front faces of the trees; Esme couldn’t see past the foremost tree trunks, and so she was surprised when someone stepped out of the darkness. She dropped her staff and froze, the urge to flee building when the figure began to laugh softly.
Recognizing that laugh, she asked, “Hark?”
“Who else?” he replied in an amused tone.
“But, how?”
“It wasn’t that hard. I was the one who gave you this idea, after all, and I am not that dense.”
By now he had come out of the darkness and was bathed in the light of the moon. Esme could see that he was wearing simple traveling clothes and had his bow and knife on him, as well as a bag of supplies slung over one shoulder. Grinning, he shook his head.
“Esme, what were you thinking? You don’t know the first thing about traveling, let alone surviving outdoors.”
Huffing slightly, she replied. “I would have managed. I packed food, clothes, water, and even a bedroll. I would have been fine.”
He gave her a sceptical look and said, in a carefully neutral tone, “I am sure you would have. But just to be certain, I think I will join you.”
“And what if I don’t want you to?”
“Then I guess you will have to ignore me the whole way.”
She thought about this. He had clearly made his mind up to come with her, and nothing she could say or do would convince him to leave. And besides, it wouldn’t be that bad. Hark was her oldest friend, and an Elreni, who were renowned for their woodcraft and hunting abilities.
“Alright, you can come.”
“Thank you. Now come with me, I have a good spot to camp.”
As he set off back towards the copse, she asked, “Is this far enough from the city? I mean, I didn’t exactly tell my parents that I would be leaving. I just did.”
“Don’t worry,” he said over his shoulder “This spot is far enough from the road that no one will stumble upon us, and besides, we will be up and on the move before your parents are even awake.”
The campsite that Hark had picked wasn’t too far from the copse, and on the other side of a small rise that blocked the view from the road; she was impressed with the spot, and doubted that she would have picked anything as good on her first night if she had been alone. A couple minutes later, she was rolling out her bedroll when Hark came over to her pack, opened it, and started to go through it. She finished getting her bedroll set up and then watched as Hark withdrew every item, examined it, and placed it on the ground.
When he was done, he said, “Well, I am impressed; everything you have here will keep for a long time without going off. And the extra clothes and blanket were a good idea.”
She gave a self-satisfied smile at his praise and he carried on.
“However, we can’t live off preserved fruit and dried meat. I am going to have to go hunting and set some snares.”
“But it was a good start,” she replied.
“Yes,” he said, smiling at her, “it was a very good start.”
Grinning to herself, she settled down on her bedroll and drew the blanket over her. As she did this, Hark lay against the slope of the rise and said, “I will take the first watch; I will wake you to take second.”
“Watch? Why?”
“It’s not exactly safe out here, and it pays to be careful.”
She nodded her understanding, and he carried on.
“Besides, dawn watch is the best one to take.”
“What do you mean?”
“You will see,” he said, giving her a wink.
Sighing, she drew the blanket about herself and closed her eyes, a light breeze causing the grass to rustle softly as she did so. Not long after, Esme was fast asleep.
Chapter Four
29th Day of Axnera. The Season of Dawn. Year 250
When Hark woke Esme, she was at first confused; it was still quite dark, as well as being cold, and she was fairly sure that her room had a roof and walls. Then she remembered the events of the past evening, and she groaned softly to herself as sensation from her cold, stiff body flooded her senses. Apparently, sleeping outdoors didn’t agree with her.
“Good morning,” came Hark’s voice, soft and low.
She stretched underneath the blanket as she asked, “What time is it?”
“Four hours after moon’s peak.”
“What?” she replied sharply. “We aren’t leaving now, are we?”
Hark chuckled softly, then replied, “No, I just need a few hours of sleep and I will be fine. This is your watch; wake me if anything happens.”
The moon was low in the night sky but still casting its light across the land, and she could see him, lying on the ground without a bedroll, just some sort of leaf-covered sheet to cover him, and looking perfectly at home. She stood up, stretched again, gathered her blanket, and walked to the spot where Hark had been sitting earlier in the night. Sitting down, she drew her knees up to her chest, hugged them, and wrapped her blanket around herself as she began her first watch.
***
To her great annoyance, Esme found that being on watch was less pleasant than sleeping outdoors. With sleeping, you didn’t notice the chill seeping through the seat of your trousers and freezing your backside, or how stiff your limbs became from the cold and inactivity. No, she reflected, stretching her legs yet again to try and get the stiffness out of her joints, with sleeping you just wake up to it. Being on watch means you have to experience it as it’s happening. She was so focused on her discomfort that she didn’t notice the sky changing; in fact, it was only when the sky had turned a faint blue that she stopped focusing on herself and started to notice the changing landscape. What was before shrouded in darkness and only faintly illuminated was now clearly visible—a vast plain of green, sparkling wet with dew in the predawn light. Far off directly ahead, she could just make out the jagged, majestic forms of the Western Border Mountains, whose peaks were now only just crowned with orange dawn light.
“It’s even better o
ver that rise.”
Esme looked down to see Hark shrugging off his cover and stretching his arms. Getting his meaning, she asked, “But won’t someone see me from up there?”
Hark looked towards the far-off western horizon, studying it for a few moments before replying.
“It’s the hour of dawn; no one will be on that road. Go take a look, you won’t regret it.”
Climbing stiffly to her feet, Esme began to walk up the rise. As she walked, she could see clouds overhead, their bellies the colour of forge fire as they slowly drifted across the sky. Reaching the top, she paused to take in what lay before her; from her vantage point she could see the landscape become uneven and rocky further eastward, and she could see a river snaking its way between the small hills and valleys, parts of it illuminated in the dawn light and other areas still cast in shade. The sun was a orb of golden light hanging low over the eastern horizon. Where its light fell, the ground, trees, and river were bathed in a warm orange glow which contrasted with the darker areas yet to be reached. Far closer and to the south sat the low, squat form of the extinct volcano that Caladaria was built on, clearly visible on the surrounding plains. She could just see the highest towers of the Mages’ Guild and the king’s palace over the natural crater wall, appearing as if they were ablaze in the dawn’s light. She sighed contentedly. This was why she had decided to leave. How could anyone be expected to go back to a dusty old tower room and look at books all day when this lay just outside the city walls?
***
She returned to camp to see that Hark had gotten a fire going and was brewing something in a small metal pot suspended over it. He turned to see her come down, and something in her face caused him to grin.
“I knew you would like it,” he said as he dipped a small bowl into the pot and then handed it to her. “Here, it’s rabbit and herb stew.”