“Yes,” responded Kalina. “Just as if your ear were the ring. Does that help at all?”
“Certainly,” smiled Garth. “I can tell you that they are not right at the rocks where the waves are crashing. They are maybe eighty to one hundred feet away. They are also at least thirty feet away from the nearest trees. You can hear the wind blowing through the trees, but it is not close. I can also hear the occasional flutter of bats, more than one. My guess is that tall outcropping we passed a couple of hours before stopping. It’s likely to have nesting spots for bats and it is one of the few places with rocks right up to the sea. And they are in a clearing. It is just a guess, but I would think it enough to go on.”
Kalina laughed. “I wonder how you would look in earrings,” she giggled as she reached to retrieve her earring from Garth. “You may be right or wrong, but I do feel better having some idea of where they are even if it is wrong. Tomorrow I would like to camp a little closer to them if we can manage that.”
“I could track them down and keep them in sight if you like,” offered Garth.
“No,” Kalina responded, “we can not take the chance that they might see you. The last thing we want to do right now is spook them. They are so skeptical of strangers that we would lose them for sure. Especially that Tedi. I don’t think he even trusts himself. We need to let them get themselves in trouble so we can come to their aid. It is the only chance of drawing them close to us and even that is a slim chance.”
“I would be more tempted to just grab them and bend them to our will,” commented Garth. “I think we take too many chances letting them run free. They need to be reeled in and put under yoke.”
“You do have a brutal way of expressing your gentleness,” she chuckled. “Is that how you handle me? Have you got me sufficiently harnessed?”
Garth reached over and grabbed Kalina with his arm, drawing her nearer. A strong scent of jasmine caressed his nose as he hugged her. “You know,” he cooed, “this could be one of the last times we have alone for a long time.”
Kalina leaned back and kissed his lips. “While that is true,” she smiled, “you smell more like a mule than a man. Perhaps a trip to the stream will make you more desirable or do you prefer sleeping with the animals?”
“Am I still here?” he laughed as he headed for the stream. Kalina watched his muscular form as he walked away. So much of life had changed since she met Garth, but he was right. If everything went according to plan, they would not have much time alone together for a long time. Perhaps tomorrow the plan will start falling into place.
Chapter 6
Forgum
Niki Forloe watched the short, wiry boy approaching the shack with a self-assured saunter, his dark brown hair blowing gently in the breeze. His brown eyes darted left and right, not for fear of anyone sneaking up on him, but as if to assure himself that the rabble kept its distance. Niki laughed to herself. Fredrik Wason was the rabble as far as anyone else was concerned, but Fredrik always maintained the air of being superior. The buxom young girl hoped that His Highness managed to steal some food this time. Any less to eat and Niki would start losing her figure and that was unacceptable. If Fredrik couldn’t start taking care of her like the Princess she should be, she would find somebody who could. Niki waved her hand in the air and the door to the shack slid open smoothly allowing the young boy to enter. Fredrik glided in and placed a turkey on the table.
“A twelve pound tom,” Fredrik proudly exclaimed, “and already stuffed and cooked to perfection.”
“What about vegetables?” complained Niki. “Meat by itself is not good for the digestion. Honestly, Fredrik, you promised that we would be living like royalty and all you can do is pinch a turkey.”
Fredrik turned and frowned at the young redhead. Her curly hair was neatly combed, but the blue satin dress was obviously a poor fit. “You shouldn’t be using magic for such mundane things as opening doors,” he scolded. “One of these days somebody will detect you using magic and there will be the demon to pay for it. If you must use magic so often, why don’t you use it to make your dress fit better.”
“The nerve of you ordering me around,” she protested. “I’m not a bloody seamstress. I’m a princess and I demand to be treated as one. Look at this shack! Is this the type of palace that a princess belongs in? If I didn’t use my magic, I wouldn’t even have a dress to need altering.”
“Quite true,” Fredrik laughed, “but you didn’t have to leave the poor woman in the street naked, did you?”
Niki laughed too. “Probably not,” she admitted, “but it certainly made a convenient diversion. Nobody was watching us get away. Really, though, Fredrik, this place is not to my liking. I deserve better, much better.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more,” conceded Fredrik, “but is it my fault that Forgum has been overrun by rogue armies? Too many people knew us in Trekum and you got us run out of Caldar by tossing all of those guardsmen around like toy soldiers.”
“They were toy soldiers,” Niki insisted. “Besides, I refuse to put up with their insolent behavior. Just because I’m smaller than them, they think they can have their way with me. Well, they hadn’t reckoned with who I am. They’ll think twice at accosting a woman again.”
“I’m sure they will,” sighed Fredrik. Niki was Fredrik’s only friend, but there were times when he wondered why women had to be so pushy. She seemed to delight in impressing people with her magic, mindless of the possible repercussions if the wrong people knew of her ability. The only place for a magician today was in the Black Devils serving the Dark One and Fredrik had no desire to serve anyone. Anyone found with the ability was given a choice of joining the Black Devils or dying. The only exception might be to endear yourself to one of the great armies. They would welcome the skill and give some measure of protection against the Black Devils, but that option also entailed serving someone. Fredrik wished Niki wouldn’t live so dangerously.
“What are you thinking about?” quizzed Niki as she cut slabs of turkey to put on the two plates.
Fredrik snapped his head around and realized that his mind had been far away. “Oh, I was just thinking that maybe we should head for the next town north. Perhaps it will not be destroyed like this one. Cidal is a good-sized town and should present some better opportunities.”
“Is there a palace there?” Niki inquired. “You haven’t forgotten your promise to make me a queen have you?”
“I didn’t promise to make you a queen,” Fredrik reminded her. “I said I could see you in a palace someday.”
“It’s the same thing,” insisted Niki. “Let’s eat this while it’s hot, but next time try to remember some vegetables.”
“All right,” Fredrik agreed, “but in the morning we travel north again. Maybe Cidal does have a palace.” Niki actually brightened up at that statement and was eager to get to bed early so they could leave first thing in the morning.
The gray sky of morning came too soon for Fredrik, but he slid into his brown leather pants, tan woolen shirt, and brown leather vest. Quietly he stepped outside and strode down an alley that ran behind the businesses along the coastal highway. In a short time, he came to the stables behind one of the inns and spoke to the stable boy as he walked past.
“Can you believe it?” he asked. “After all these years, we finally have an Emperor again.”
The stable boy started running to catch up to him. “What do you mean, an Emperor?” he inquired. “You mean here in Forgum?”
Fredrik stopped and turned towards the boy. “Why, yes, haven’t you heard?” Fredrik asked in mocking shock. “He’s entering the town on the coastal road from the south at this very moment. Word is he’s looking for people to serve him in the new palace they are going to start building tomorrow. Forgum is going to be the capital. I’d like to stay and tell you more, but word is that only the first few to greet him will get the high-paying positions and I want to be one of them.”
“But you’re not much older than me,” p
rotested the stable boy.
“The new Emperor likes his people to be young,” Fredrik insisted. “Sorry, but I’ve got to be moving along.”
Fredrik snickered to himself as he watched the stable boy’s reaction. The boy was looking around frantically to see if anyone would notice if he left his post. Fredrik continued sauntering down the alley and caught a flash as the stable boy went running between buildings to the highway. The fact that he didn’t run down the alley past Fredrik indicated that he was willing to take the extra chance of getting caught by the innkeeper to beat Fredrik to the Emperor. Fredrik smiled as he turned around and entered the stables. He quickly threw saddles on the two closest horses and led them along the alley back to the shack.
Although he hadn’t awakened her before slipping out, Niki was already packed and ready to go. “We need to hurry,” Fredrik simply said.
Niki needed no explanation and mounted one of the horses. Fredrik mounted the other horse and they headed out of town to the north. “How much of a lead do you suppose we have?” Niki calmly inquired as she inspected her face in a small round mirror that she had acquired in Trekum and greatly treasured.
“The boy won’t be too eager to admit he was so stupid,” Fredrik commented dryly. “Still, we will have an hour at the most, much less if the owners of the horses decide to leave. If we hear anything coming, we’ll cut into the woods and watch them pass. We can determine if they’re looking for us before we need to take a different path to get to Cidal.”
Fredrik looked admiringly at the dark green leather outfit that Niki wore today. Unlike the dress she wore last night, the leathers fit her exceedingly well. Of course, they should fit well considering the price he paid in Trekum. Fredrik had enjoyed life in Trekum, gambling with groups of guards and mercenaries who had too much pay to know what to do with. They had always considered Fredrik to have too much luck, but they enjoyed his company and they always liked it when he brought Niki along. Fredrik enjoyed the lifestyle of the old capital city, even if there were occasional times when someone got an overheated temper during a game. It had been one of those occasions that had forced them to leave Trekum. The guard had accused Fredrik of cheating again and Fredrik had laughed at him as he always did. The guard drew a dagger and was threatening Fredrik. All of this had happened before and Fredrik always dealt with it using words, but Niki had been along at that game and she did not realize that the threat was just the guard’s frustration at losing. She reacted instinctively and forced the guard’s dagger into his own stomach. The rest of the guards had leaped to their feet in anger and magic was the only way that Fredrik and Niki could survive long enough to get out of the city.
Then there was the incident in Caldar. Niki again had used magic to attack guards that she thought were getting overly friendly. Niki always seemed to resort to magic before trying any other way of handling things. It was a habit that Fredrik had to break her of if they were going to survive.
Fredrik’s thoughts were disrupted by the sounds of galloping horses coming from behind. “No illusions,” Fredrik warned as he and Niki turned quickly into the woods. They had no sooner secured cover, when a dozen Dark Riders appeared around a bend in the road and went thundering past. The pair sat silently for several long minutes listening as the sound of the galloping horses faded away.
“They certainly weren’t after a horse thief,” Niki whispered.
“No, they weren’t,” agreed Fredrik. “I’m glad I mentioned no illusions. Niki, I’ve been thinking about the dangers of using magic too quickly. It is surely going to get us killed. I think this incident helps to illustrate how easily we could slip up. We were expecting someone after us because of the horses, so we had time to hide, but we cannot always expect to be lucky. We have to start being more careful.”
“Careful?” snorted Niki. “Do you mean like being careful when the guard in Trekum was going to gut you? Magic is a skill just like wielding a sword. It is only being smart to use it when you are endangered.”
“But sometimes using it can endanger you,” Fredrik insisted. “I only ask that you think of some other way before you resort to magic. Detection can mean death.”
Niki sniffed and turned her horse towards the road. Fredrik clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, but he followed her and soon the pair were back on their way to Cidal. They rode on in silence for several hours, encountering no other traffic on the road. Eventually, they decided to stop early for the night and worked their way down to the coast where they found a quiet clearing close to beach. Niki jumped off her horse and announced that she was going for a swim. Fredrik quickly grabbed the reins of her horse and sighed.
Fredrik went about taking care of the horses and setting up the campsite before he decided to check out the beach. Niki was frolicking naked in the surf, but what caught Fredrik’s attention was the beautiful, wide beach. There was a point sticking out directly to his right, but on his left was a sweeping wide, white sand and shell strip stretching northward for miles. The lines of shells stretching along the beach culminated in a large mound of shells near the point. The beach in Trekum was much narrower and people walking on them constantly crushed any shells there.
Fredrik walked down to the point and saw another long, uninhabited stretch of beach with palm trees leaning over it as if trying to reach the sea. He started poking the piles of shells and marveled at all the different types. For a long time all of his problems were nonexistent as he examined shell after shell, until Niki's screams rang through the air.
Fredrik jumped to his feet and looked around the shell pile. Niki was standing waist deep in the water and using magic to deflect a rain of arrows heading towards her. Across the white strand of beach near the tree line were four men with bows sending arrows at Niki as fast as they could load. Niki was too busy deflecting arrows to cast any other spell at the men. Fredrik stood tall with his hands outstretched and felt the power begin to well up. The power filling him had an intoxicating effect and he had to focus his mind back on the men. He had already soaked in enough power to obliterate them several times over. Without further thought, he flicked his wrists and the sky crackled open and a huge streak of lightning arced down and struck in the middle of the four men.
Niki stopped screaming and came out of the water and Fredrik ran to her. Together they stared at the massive crater that marked the spot where the men had stood. There was nothing left of the men. Where they had stood was a glowing depression with walls of heated glass. The palm trees on either side of the hole were scorched black and the fronds were burning brightly and dropping to the ground. Several coconuts hissed and burst apart, throwing chunks of coconut meat flying.
“Get dressed,” Fredrik ordered. “We need to get out of here now! The force I used was too much by far and it could probably be felt for miles around. I don’t want to be anywhere near here when someone decides to investigate.”
Niki got dressed while Fredrik swept up the campsite and hastily packed it away. When Niki mounted, Fredrik handed her the reins for two of the horses the men had ridden. He took the other two and they headed north by way of a trail through the woods.
After they had ridden for a while, Niki broke the silence. “You killed them, Fredrik. You didn’t try to stun them or freeze them; you just killed them. I didn’t know you had such power.”
“I didn’t know, either,” admitted Fredrik. “I’ve never used magic that powerful before. I only planned to stun them, but I couldn’t stop drawing power. I was so angry that I just grabbed for the power and it . . . it felt good. Sort of like warmth flowing into your body on a cold winter night. I had to work at it to stop drawing the power and start using it. I was more surprised than you with what happened.”
They were quiet for a while with only the sounds of lapping waves off to their right and the birds flitting around overhead, chirping and cawing. “I didn’t mean to kill them,” Fredrik continued, “but I couldn’t let them hurt you. “Besides, there is no undoing it now. I do think
that we need to practice our magic more, though, and we cannot do that in a city. Without practice we will not have the proper control we need to measure our responses to threats. I think we have probably gone far enough away from the crater to safely camp for the night.”
Niki just nodded and started looking for a clearing. Fairly soon, she found a suitable one and dismounted. This time she helped Fredrik set up the campsite and take care of the horses. They dined on some of the leftover turkey and sat quietly across the campfire from each other. “What did you mean before when you talked about drawing the power?” she asked. “Drawing it from where?”
Fredrik got up, walked around the fire and sat next to her. “When I was younger and realized that I had a special gift, I used to use it for pranks. I didn’t know much about what I had or how to use it, so most of the time the prank ended up being on me. One day I heard some men talking about the magicians of the Black Devils, so I followed them. They had a house on the edge of Trekum that they used for a meeting place and a spot for them to practice. For months, I used to go to the house before light came and climb up on the roof. I would watch them all day and listen to their meetings until well after dark. That is where I learned most about magic.”
“It’s probably where you gained your dislike for the Black Devils, too,” guessed Niki.
“Yes, that too,” admitted Fredrik. “They all talked boldly about how great they were when no one was around, but as soon as somebody important showed up, they were all down on their faces in fear, bowing and scraping. There didn’t seem to be any purpose in belonging to the Black Devils except to learn and I was getting that anyway. The only thing they seemed to do in an organized fashion was to send out teams to punish selected people or go in teams on the Great Hunt.”
“What is the Great Hunt?” interrupted Niki.
Sapphire of the Fairies, Book 1 of Sword of Heavens Page 7