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by J. R. Karlsson


  He stared at the dusty road as it travelled past his face, he was pinned in an odd position and no amount of struggling seemed to free him.

  He eventually heard footsteps approaching and the guards rattling on the near wall of the cage with their spears.

  'Hey, you. Either finish him off or let him go, nobody was going to bet on the runt against you.'

  The Hermit loosened his grip and Jimmy lashed out a kick at him, it didn't connect but it was enough to be forced onto the floor of the cage once again.

  'So the runt still wants to fight you?' the guard said, his peers chuckling at the thought. 'Why not finish him off then, quiet one? Otherwise he'll be snapping at your heels for the rest of our long trip.'

  Jimmy's heart pounded in his ears, he was about to find out where The Hermit's loyalties really lay, he found it odd that the guards didn't treat him quite like the other slaves.

  He didn't feel any easing of pressure this time, the grip he was held in seemed permanent. He thought he briefly saw Jakob's arm attempting to wrestle the man out of the hold but to no avail.

  His face was starting to hurt, being pressed up unrelentingly to the bars of the cage floor. He tried to shift position one last time but he would have had more luck trying to gnaw his way out of the cage with his bare teeth.

  He heard the door opening, it would seem the guards were planning on dealing with this matter personally. They were reserved with The Hermit and tended to avoid him but ultimately they couldn't let insubordination of any sort occur from a mere slave.

  A shuffling of bodies indicated that the men were herding the slaves up against the wall and the sound of boots heralded the arrival of the guard who was talking to them from the cage. Jimmy felt completely powerless, unable to witness the culmination of a plan he was beginning to regret.

  'Slave, take your hands off the runt or snap his neck, the choice is yours but make it quick.'

  Jimmy held his breath, waiting for a reaction that seemed to take an age in coming. The grip tightened slightly as if in warning, then finally relaxed.

  He found his feet and the guard gave him a look of disgust. 'Are you done biting off more than you can chew, little runt?'

  Jimmy nodded mutely, he now had three choices. Either attack the guard and hope that The Hermit would come to his aid, attack The Hermit again and see if he could provoke the guards into confronting him or make a run for the cage exit and hope that they didn't skewer him before The Hermit could mount a rescue. Assuming The Hermit would mount a rescue... The man may not have killed him in cold blood but that didn't necessarily mean he was on Jimmy's side.

  As he thought these things the guard briefly looked at his spear, then back at The Hermit before he raised his voice and negated Jimmy's options entirely. 'Anyone that kills the runt need not fight for the rest of the journey. I give you my honour as an Imperial guard, though that may not mean much to you dogs.'

  Satisfied that the matter would resolve itself, the guard marched out from the cage and watched events unfold. Jimmy's plan to antagonise The Hermit now seemed a very bad idea indeed.

  His heart skipped a beat, he found himself getting dizzy and realised he was still holding his breath. A tap on his shoulder brought him face to face with Jakob, whose features seemed a mixture of disgust and fear. 'What were you thinking?'

  Jimmy stayed silent, refusing to answer.

  'They're going to try and tear you limb from limb now so they don't have to fight again. Whoever gets rid of you will have guaranteed protection from the guards for the rest of our delightful trip.'

  Jimmy didn't have time to explain what he had been thinking, a number of men that had been eyeing him previously were flicking their gaze to and fro between himself and The Hermit, waiting to see what the strangely silent man would do.

  After nothing happened, all eyes lay upon The Hermit. In a way Jimmy had provoked the man into making a decision with regards to their safety. He was just hoping that his stupidity hadn't turned the man against them.

  Several men finally got tired of waiting and rose from their positions in the cage, they circled round where The Hermit was standing and surrounded the three of them.

  If The Hermit gave any indication that he was going to help, it wasn't forthcoming. Jimmy and Jakob both watched on helplessly as the circle started to tighten.

  71

  Ella

  She awoke to a strange sensation, it was like she was being observed, but the feeling was intensified and permeated her immediate surroundings rather than a specific point.

  'You can feel it too, can't you?' the voice said.

  Startled, she turned and found El-Vador lying beside her and staring directly into her eyes. She fought down the feeling of unease, he had been the utmost gentleman thus far aside from his initial abduction.

  'It feels like there are eyes watching every corner of the room.'

  He gave her a crooked smile. 'Yes, taking in the entirety of the room without settling on us specifically. An odd sensation, is it not?'

  She had certainly received her fair share of odd sensations over the last day or so.

  'What's causing it?' she asked.

  'Sadly I'm at a complete loss to provide you that information. Though I doubt the fact that we can detect it is in the designs of the person attempting the spying.'

  He deftly rose from the bed in a single fluid motion and vanished from sight.

  She lay there for a time, awaiting his inevitable return. She considered dashing out the room and into the unknown beyond to escape her captor but given his capabilities she doubted she'd get very far. She also had no idea what lay beyond that archway, having spent the entirety of her time in Levanin confined to this room.

  She heard a bell ringing in the distance, it was a strange sound unlike any she had heard before. Deep and sonorous, it lingered in the air like an alien presence. Then again everything about her captivity seemed strange and oddly intriguing to her.

  Had she not wanted an escape from the soul-crushing reality that she'd been trapped in so long? Initially there had been Jakob's actions that had sent her on an unknown path to an indeterminable future. Now this El-Vador had taken possession of her and provided her with exactly the opportunities she desired.

  The gentlest of footfalls indicated his return, bearing a platter full of strange-looking fruits and a selection of cheeses and bread.

  He offered her it wordlessly and she hesitantly picked an orange from the midst of the more exotic selections, running her fingers across the skin as if expecting it to vanish at the touch.

  El-Vador seemed to sense this. 'It's quite real, I assure you. Go ahead and taste it, I'm not going to bring you all this way simply to poison you.'

  She hadn't considered the prospect of being poisoned, it said much of him that he had, what other thoughts were racing through his mind?

  The orange was juicy and sweet, better than any she had ever tasted.

  'Where did you get this?' she asked, noticing his smile at her appreciation of it.

  'As it has probably occurred to you, I am capable of travelling great distances in a short space of time. The majority of these fruits are freshly picked from the Anduvilian forests that have lain untouched by the hands of man for centuries.'

  She found that she didn't have anything to say to that.

  'The bread and cheeses are less foreign fair and are locally produced here in lower Levanin. A much less impressive feat of exploration yet a tasty one all the same.'

  Quietly she listened to him, pretending to focus entirely upon the platter as if it were her last meal. Then again there was no guarantee that it wasn't, he didn't mean her harm now but what if she said the wrong thing?

  'You don't trust me. I know.'

  She nodded at him, lying to him now would be pointless. 'I don't know you. Even if you were the character from the book, I don't know the person you have become since then.'

  'A wise precaution. After all, I could be anyone I pleased, given the
amount of time and resources at my disposal. Why should you trust in my current incarnation? It may well be entirely catered to your sensibilities rather than an open reflection of my soul.'

  Ella paused, wondering why he was sabotaging himself. 'You don't know me, what makes you think you can cater yourself to me? Can you read my mind?'

  El-Vador laughed, apparently the implication had entertained him. 'No. I can read most minds, yours I cannot. That's one of the reasons you intrigue me.'

  If what he was saying was true, then he wasn't as entirely in control she had initially thought. Certainly he could force her into doing anything he pleased, but if he wanted to win her over he'd have to do so without knowing her every thought.

  'So how do you plan to make me trust you?'

  He shook his head sadly. 'I will not force you into doing anything. I simply ask you to open your eyes to me and see for yourself who you'd choose to be putting your trust in.'

  It didn't quell her sudden sense of doubt. She pressed on, hoping that her thirst for knowledge didn't cause her to say something regrettable. 'How do I know that we are not simply in an illusion? Can you convince me of that?'

  He set the platter down on the bed and closed his eyes as if in meditation.

  A brief tearing sound was emitted from the air in front of him and a figure was thrown through.

  'Father?'

  Harvester picked himself up from the marble floor and eyed Ella with suspicion and fright. 'Ella? Where are we? Who did this?'

  As if on cue, El-Vador spoke. 'Mr. Harvester I have taken custody of your daughter from the murderers who stole her away from you. I assure you that she is in good health and currently she resides in the capital, Levanin.'

  There was something so utterly genuine and compelling in the tone that Ella had never heard from him before.

  'So you're telling me that my sweet Ella is safe thanks to your efforts?' Harvester said, looking at the man with an odd mixture of respect and relief.

  El-Vador smiled at him and Ella couldn't help but smile at Harvester's giddy grin. How long had it been since she last saw him smile like that?

  'Your daughter is safe and in time she will return to visit you, she is under my protection now and I will not let any ill deed befall her.'

  Her father finally turned back to her. 'Is what he says true then? Are you safe from harm now?'

  Ella couldn't help but wonder why this deeply suspicious man wasn't angered by his sudden appearance in the capital.

  'I am safe, father,' she found herself saying, and believing it. 'You don't have to worry about me any more.'

  'I must confess Mr. Harvester,' El-Vador continued. 'I did not bring you here simply to assure you of your daughter's well being. I require you to tell her something about her that only you would know.'

  Again the man didn't seem put out by this request at all, if anything he seemed mellow and relaxed, Ella started to get suspicious.

  'I remember when you were young, you always used to run around the barns pretending to be the hero from the book I gave you. Your favourite chapter was always number twenty four.'

  He was right, and it was something only he could have known. She still wasn't entirely convinced, but this did much to sway her.

  'Mr. Harvester I thank you for your time and patience in this matter. You will now be returned to your previous location with a minimum of fuss.' There was a ripping sound in the air and her father was gone.

  'Well?' El-Vador asked into the silence that followed. 'Could an illusion demonstrate the knowledge that your father supplied of his own volition?'

  'No,' Ella conceded. 'It's possible that you can actually read my mind and have been lying to me this entire time. You could then be using my own thoughts to construct illusions.'

  El-Vador nodded, as if he had been expecting this. 'You are sensible to not commit yourself fully so soon. If I am reading your mind and supplying illusions from it there is no way I can convince you, illusion or otherwise, that what I am doing is real.'

  She frowned at him. 'Why go through all of this then if you knew already that it wasn't going to convince me?'

  'I did not know for certain that it wouldn't convince you, I'm glad that it didn't. Having said that it does ease my conscience to know that your father can rest assured that you are safe. This display wasn't entirely for your benefit alone. Believing this isn't an illusion is a conclusion you must come to of your own accord, I can only hope that over time you may realise that.'

  He moved closer to her then and she didn't back away.

  'I have one more thing to show you.'

  He pressed his head against her and the world turned white.

  72

  Jakob

  He had considered Jimmy a reckless and impulsive youth when they had first met. The boy had certainly lived up to expectations with his latest stunt.

  They stood pressed up against the cage doors behind The Hermit, the guards watching them from either side of the cage, presumably to see who would dispatch of Jimmy and earn his reward.

  After being burdened with the company of the irritating boy this far, Jakob was tempted to leave him to his fate. He knew that he couldn't abandon him in good conscience, and his head seemed rather insistent that Jimmy must stay alive in order to defeat The Six.

  Why was he not imbued with power then to leap to Jimmy's aid? His vision remained the same and he felt no different than before, was this some way of communicating not to interfere? Jakob didn't want to try fighting his way through the whole cage anyway.

  The stranger cast his gaze about the ring of men then extended a hand toward them, with his palm facing forward, as if commanding them mutely to stop.

  There was no laughter at such a stupid suggestion, there was no bravado or mockery, simply a brief pause from a number of the men as they eyed the man in front of them. Jakob had to admit, The Hermit was a very tall man, and though his cloak should have made him a primary target for those who desired to keep warm later, nobody had approached him for some inexplicable reason. Even the guards had given him a wide berth.

  Some of the men seemed to be questioning the virtue of attacking this man without knowing what he was capable of. They paused and started looking around at their temporary allies. Was one of these individuals going to make a grab for Jimmy while the rest attempted to incapacitate the stranger?

  As if sensing this uncertainty, one of the men leapt forward and balled his hand up into a fist, swinging it down at The Hermit's shoulder as a makeshift club.

  It was the same as before with Jimmy, Jakob simply couldn't see what The Hermit had done. He certainly heard it. A snapping noise and a howl of pain as the man went down to the cage floor clutching his wrist. The Hermit toed him away as if in disgust, causing several of the other men to wave their hands in dismissal and stalk their way back to the corners of the cage. That still left a few others who remained unconvinced at the display, these few were bolstered by the guards who wanted blood.

  'Now!' screeched one of them and they leapt at him simultaneously. Jakob flinched but it turned out that none of them went after either him or Jimmy, their sights were set firmly on incapacitating their protector.

  The Hermit went under in a milling pile of bodies, Jakob had intended to try and catch what the man would do next but his vision was obscured by the flying fists. He felt a strange urge to help the man but sense dictated that there was little he could do in such close quarters but get himself hurt.

  He saw a body exit the pile at high speed, rattling against the cage wall and coughing up no small amount of blood as he clutched at his ribs frantically. A louder popping sound came from another body and a scream was cut short. Everything went very quiet as the cloaked figure shoved the lifeless bodies off him. He looked briefly at Jimmy and Jakob, presumably checking that they were okay, then approached the slave he had thrown into the wall.

  A stream of gurgling curses issued from the man as he looked up and caught sight of who was approaching.


  The Hermit looked down at the man and he spat blood at his face in a final gesture of defiance. Was that pity Jakob saw in the cloaked figure's eyes? The crunching sound as his hand snaked out and stole the life from the man certainly didn't seem like an act of mercy.

  He took a look at the guards now, they backed away from the cage and eyed the door warily. The leader that had bribed the men into attacking Jimmy had fallen silent, as if waiting for the man to tear the cage open with his bare hands and kill the guards as well.

  If The Hermit showed any signs of doing that Jakob couldn't see them. He felt very foolish for talking to the man in such an insolent fashion before.

  The man settled himself onto the floor in an unperturbed manner, as if the entire eyes of the cage weren't upon him. Jakob watched Jimmy wander over to The Hermit, expecting him to thank the man for saving his life. He did nothing of the sort.

  'Is that all you're going to do?' Jimmy shouted at him.

  The Hermit ignored him. Jakob looked on, aghast. Had the boy lost his mind?

  'You could tear that cage door off its hinges and crush the guards beyond it, instead you decide to sit down and remain a captive. What is wrong with you?'

  The lack of response or even acknowledgement seemed to exacerbate Jimmy even further, it was some kind of desperate fury brought about by fear and captivity. Jakob started to move toward the boy before his remonstrations made this dangerous man question his allegiances.

  'Jimmy,' he called out, hoping to divert his attention.

  He grabbed him by the arm but Jimmy shook him off, the men from the other side of the cage looked on in fear and confusion.

  'You saw what he was capable of Jakob, yet now he sits and does nothing while we all rot away in this cage.'

  Jakob slapped him hard, sending him reeling. Jimmy looked back at him, stricken.

  'You owe this man your life after your act of unmitigated idiocy. He has his reasons for not opening the cage even though he might not be able to tell us why.' He gestured at the pile of bodies then. 'How are you planning to force him into doing otherwise?'

 

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