by Jordan Cramm
“Kesper!?” Wolflen asked, taking a step back and putting his arm in front of Katrina, “But Kesper is a God!”
“Yes, as I said magic is involved here. Just not dark magic. Don’t be alarmed by this form, but I thought the Izenian figure would be the shape you would be most comfortable to see here.”
Kesper pulled back his hood after bringing his arms up together in perfect form. When Wolflen gazed upon him, Kesper did indeed look Izenian, with black, long hair that had a slight curl, and a few streaks of white coloring throughout.
“It can’t be…I mean Kesper is a God,” Wolflen said again as if he hadn’t been heard before.
Katrina was nodding her agreement with Wolflen’s statement, being slightly uneasy now.
“Tell me something,” the man went on, “after you left the restaurant in Elender and teleported to your camp, and then again to Peludeen, you were tempted to stay the night when Katrina mentioned the idea weren’t you?”
Wolflen jumped back and kept Katrina behind him, still unsure of what was happening.
“And then,” the man went on “you were bringing her home to meet your mother. You might want to rethink that decision by the way. But after, you intended to take her to Haven and stay at the Mammoth Lodge. Good plan—taking her down memory lane and everything. Although this night will likely be etched into your mind a good while, and not just because of the new engagement.”
“How can it be true?” Katrina asked, starting to accept that the man could not know such things if his claims to his identity were false.
Wolflen wondered the same thing.
“The question of how this is happening is not really relevant at the moment.” Kesper said firmly but calmly. “What does matter is the future.”
“So what do you want?” Wolflen asked.
“Me?” Kesper remarked with a laugh, “I want you to do what you are doing—I want you to be the War Mage that Fengysha needs. But I come to you now with information, and with gifts.”
“What information?” Wolflen asked.
“I’m afraid you won’t like it. Your mother no longer lives. Right now at your home here in Akartha, she is dead. The killer’s weapon is still there, along with a note. The note however is a lie, scribed by someone who works for your enemy; someone who wants to create chaos and confusion. Yet it is not his fault. He is under a powerful mind control spell placed upon him by Mortican himself.”
“Mother?” Wolflen asked quickly.
He tried another teleportation spell but nothing happened. Kesper sensed the attempt, along with the second attempt and then he spoke again.
“I blocked the teleportation Wolflen. You need to hear this. Afterwards, you are free to go where you want, but there is more.”
“More?” Wolflen asked with a raspy voice.
“Your mother’s killer is a man named Nambrin—an Izenian man himself. He still lurks within your neighborhood hoping that you will return home so that he may draw you into a trap. He is not armed, but he is in contact with Mortican by way of magical communication. Mortican too is close, but not so close. He rides his Dragon Madrigal, and waits for news of your return. So, if you return to your home now, you will be in for a fight, unless you are able to disappear again just as quickly as you arrive. If you choose to go there tonight you must teleport to the home interior, not use much light, and you must be silent. If you alert them to your presence, it will not take Mortican long to reach that destination, and most likely, alone you two would both fall from this world, short of your destinies.”
“If you can bring us here, why not deal with Mortican yourself?” Katrina blurted out.
“Because even I am bound by certain rules and restrictions. I can meddle only so much. I am however doing what I can. Wolflen, I have something I think you might find useful however. Come closer.”
Wolflen took a step forward and Kesper put his hand upon Wolflen’s armor, and the armor began to glow for a minute.
“What was that?” Wolflen asked.
“That was something that your guild Mages of different trades COULD do, but that requires quite a bit of magic energy. That was resistances granted to your armor. Now you can walk through fire, take a lightning bolt directly, be unharmed by a spell of freezing and though you never carry your helmet such as now, your helmet will block many forms of mental manipulation. Katrina, your turn…”
When Kesper was done, he told them that he imbued not their armor with the magic but they themselves, so that no matter what kind of armor they wore, or if they changed armor in their journeys, the same resistance attributes would apply. He told them that he knew the Elves had done such a thing for the armor they were wearing, but assured them that his spells were more powerful, and that his were not tied to the armor itself. Wolflen bowed his head in reverence and Katrina did the same.
“Now then, Princess Katrina, I have another gift for you. It is a bow and quiver set.”
Suddenly, the bow appeared first. It looked to be silver in color, like metallic. Kesper explained however that it was a special bow. He told her that it would allow her a longer range than the bow she normally used. As she held it and studied it a moment she was amazed at how light it felt in her hands. She pulled on the bowstring and noted its strength and flexibility.
“You will never have to restring it, and it will not break,” Kesper said, “and in addition, you will find that you are able to make it appear or disappear at will. I have made it so. Focus your thoughts and try to make it disappear.”
Katrina was taken back at what she was hearing, but thought to give it a try quickly. She focused her thoughts by simply creating the desire for it to disappear. To her surprise, it did at once. When it vanished, it startled her slightly and she looked back at Kesper. He told her to wish it back into existence, and it reappeared in her hand when she did.
“That is amazing,” Katrina said in awe, “I don’t even have to say an incantation.”
“Correct,” Kesper replied, “and the same is so for this quiver…”
Kesper produced a quiver in the same way he had made the bow. She noted it was currently empty though, and it had no harness or way inlets for a baldric or belt to go through so that it might be hung on her back or placed on her hip. Kesper however anticipated her thoughts and began to explain.
“This quiver is special. Set it against your hip and it will stay there by way of magic. The same is true if you decide to place it on your back for that kind of draw. Also, you can throw or set it on the ground, and by way of magic it will stand upright so that you can draw from it as you stand in a fixed position and fire.”
Katrina smiled and looked at Wolflen. He seemed just as amazed as she was.
“Also,” Kesper went on, “the arrows will appear when you reach for the quiver. It will respond to your thoughts—to the desire for arrows. Like the bow you can also make the quiver disappear, and reappear as well. It is the Bow and Quiver of the Hidden Depths. That is the name of this set. It will aid you greatly in days to come. And like your sword, the arrows you have can flame to life if you wish them too. I should tell you however, that these arrows will only appear for you and no other. If another tries to summon them from your quiver, none will appear for them.”
“It is amazing,” Katrina said.
Kesper bowed his head slightly, and told Katrina to consider it an engagement present.
“And Wolflen, I have more for you as well. First of all, I have removed the restriction of your spellbook summoning so that you no longer need and incantation to make it so. Also, when you do summon it, you will also get a summoned pen that will never run dry of ink, so that you may write upon the pages for your purposes. Furthermore, as you have adopted lightning in your offensive attacks, and you are unique as the first Izenian War Mage, I am altering your Flameblades. No longer will they blaze fire, but from now on they will shimmer with a blue and white glow of electric lightning. Henceforth they shall be known as Izenian Shockblades. Your spell book will have
instructions as to how to craft future sets, though I would learn from the Elves and be extremely selective as to who you gift them to. In addition to this, I am altering your Shockblades further by giving you the ability to make them disappear and reappear at your will just as Katrina’s new bow does. You will also no longer need a harness to hold them. They will adhere to your armor or person wherever you wish to put them in the same way that Katrina’s new quiver will do for her. These things are heavy magic workings for which you will feel no fatigue drain, nor pay any balance debt for. Each of you use these things wisely. I know you will.”
Wolflen bowed his head and reverence and thanked Kesper. Kesper smiled in response before continuing to speak.
“These things will aid you both. Wolflen I am sorry for the loss of your mother. If you still plan to return home, remember what I told you. Stay to the home interior and be stealthy. If Nambrin discovers your return, Mortican will follow after. If Akartha learns that its Steward and War Mage has returned, the same will be the result. My advice would be not to linger there.”
“But if Mortican is here…then why not call him down now? I’ve been told that I will have to deal with him eventually anyway. Why not get it over with now?”
“Because you aren’t ready. The army of Akartha is absent now, on another continent remember? So when the Dragon Madrigal is turned loose, who will deal with it? How will you overcome Mortican with just the two of you? Wolflen you could probably overcome Nambrin, but Mortican and his Dragon…your city would be destroyed at the least. A worse thing still would be the two of you falling here and now from this world. Visit your mother if you must, but do not linger here in this city. It is not safe for you right now, and your presence puts the whole city at risk.”
“So I should what?...Stay away from my own city…my home?” Wolflen asked.
“If you value your life and the lives of everyone in this city yes. For now at least. But consider this Wolflen. Mortican is not in Molith right now. That means he is not yet working on his goal in Molith. You still have time to act accordingly there.”
“When will the Elven King Janureen arrive in Elender?” Wolflen blurted out.
“Two days from now after the breakfast meal. However, much of what you are hoping to discover in libraries of ancient Elven texts will not serve the purpose you hope it will.”
“What do you mean?” Wolflen asked.
“Wolflen you have your own spellbook. It grows over time and with your experiences. You will not find instructions on how to do things in other books, only records of some of the other things War Mages did in the past. They are not how-to manuals however. They can give ideas, but it is you that has to create and train the magic for yourself. You should know that by now.”
Suddenly the form of Kesper vanished, but left a lingering voice ringing in both of their ears a moment.
“Happy engagement both of you. I will look in on you from time to time, but will always be watching. Remember, be stealthy at the home tonight Wolflen. Akartha itself cannot afford Mortican attacking right now.”
The voice trailed off at the end, and Wolflen looked at Katrina and reached for her hand. He told her to close her eyes and she knew what that meant, so she did so. In a flash, they were where he took her. When she opened her eyes, she saw that they were in a dark room. Wolflen summoned one of his Shockblades and brought it to life with the electric flow, granting dim blue and white light, enough for them to see faintly in the dark. He moved around the room and then led Katrina through the hallway into another room. Quietly they walked, and at last he found his mother’s body, and the weapon still stuck in it. He crouched low over her body and shed a few tears and said his own quiet goodbye.
Katrina kept alert the entire time, making sure no one would surprise them. Then, after a few moments, Wolflen stood once more and reached for her hand in the dark. She clasped his and he made the Shockblade in his other hand vanish. Katrina closed her eyes once more and told Wolflen she was ready, and again he whisked them to another location quickly with his teleportation spell. When she opened her eyes once more, she recognized the place. It was his tent back outside the city of Elender, where Wolflen threw his would-be-gift of a blanket over a nearby chair.
“Wolflen I am so sorry. Why didn’t you take the note or even the body? Surely we could have brought her with us so your dad could mourn her passing as well.”
“No. Had anything been disturbed it would have been a sign someone had been there. Mortican will pay for this. I am going to find my father and give him the news. Sespa is back just outside now. Would you ride with me?”
“Of course.”
Chapter 5: The Mourning After
“Dad when this is over, you don’t…you don’t need to go home.”
“What are you talking about son?” Shamus asked as he struggled to make some tea in his own tent.
Upon Wolflen and Katrina’s arrival, Shamus had done his best to honor the Elven tea custom for the sake of Katrina. She had insisted it was not necessary, but he insisted it was, and was bringing the water to a boil over one of the braziers in his tent.
“Dad would you stop please?” Wolflen asked with urgency in his voice.
“What? You and the Princess may be on familiar terms, but the least I can do is offer the respect of courtesy and make some tea before we talk.”
“Dad stop!” Wolflen barked out at last, catching his dad off guard.
Shamus looked at Katrina who was shaking her head no with no expression on her face. Then he looked back to Wolflen and saw his eyes watering.
“All right,” Shamus said at last, “what is it son?”
“It’s mom. Dad she’s dead.”
“What?!” Shamus blurted out.
He stepped closer to his son in a hurry now and grabbed him with both hands around the front edges of his breastplate armor.
“What are you talking about? Speak up son!”
“She’s dead. I saw for myself.”
“What in the blazes are you talking about? Your mother is at home in Akartha. You are here. Speak sense boy!”
“We teleported there…Katrina and I. I wanted her to meet mother and thought we could visit briefly before returning. She was murdered dad, and a note was left upon her body. It claimed credit for the Katuk clan, but the note was a lie. It was all a trap to get me out in the open.”
“What are you talking about? That’s impossible!”
“It’s true,” Katrina interjected, “I saw it too. Before we got there, our Lord Kesper stopped us and summoned us to one of the Akartha temples. He warned us that our desire to go to your home would be something unpleasant. He warned us to be stealthy, and said that Mortican was not far with his Dragon Madrigal. Had Kesper not intervened, we would have walked right into the trap and likely been killed ourselves.”
Shamus’ mouth was hanging open in a moment of silence as he looked back at his son. His hands were starting to shake, and the expression on his face was one of desperation now. He felt like it was a bad dream he couldn’t wake from; a nightmare sent to plague him. He waited for his son to say something other than what he had already heard. Wolflen simply nodded yes to what Katrina had said.
“It’s my fault,” Wolflen said in a raspy tone, “they killed her to get to me.”
“Oh my boy…no…” Shamus replied.
Shamus hugged his son and put a hand on the back of his head, and Wolflen leaned his head on his dad’s shoulder and for a moment they cried together. This left Katrina in an awkward spot, not knowing if she should stay or go, or remain silent or what. After a moment, Wolflen lifted his head and looked back at his father.
“Son, tell me every detail of what happened tonight. Don’t leave anything out…”
Wolflen told his father everything about the events of the night, leaving out only the detail of the engagement. For some reason, it felt wrong to bring it up now, and besides, it was hard enough for him to separate the good and bad events of the night without mak
ing his father try to do the same. When Wolflen finished explaining, Shamus told his son that no one was to blame but Mortican. He agreed also that Wolflen had done the right thing by not disturbing the body, or trying to take vengeance alone. Wolflen simply nodded.
“Son,” Shamus went on, “with this news, I would like to request leave for Izendune. I would like very much to speak to our King. I am asking only for me—one ship.”
Wolflen nodded.
“And Princess Trueshot…” Shamus continued, “she would have loved you.”
Katrina bowed her head and said that she was sorry about what had happened. Shamus nodded quietly and then turned.
“Forgive me about the tea Princess. I’m afraid this night I am not well. Son, I will be leaving in the morning. Now if you both will excuse me I have some preparations to make.”
Wolflen and Katrina quietly left the tent. Outside, Sespa trotted to them, and it was clear that she knew something was wrong. Using her telepathic connection with Wolflen, she asked him about it, and he told her in the same fashion what was going on. At once, Sespa let out a great bellow of a howl, and Wolflen pet her in silence before pulling himself and then Katrina to her back.
“Your dad is right you know,” Katrina said quietly, “It isn’t your fault.”
Wolflen turned his head slightly to hear her words in his ear. Then he took a deep breath, still not sure if he agreed, but he thanked her just the same. Then they turned and Sespa began a light trot back toward their tent.
When they entered the tent once more, they did so passing Flint, who was also curious as to what was going on. Wolflen didn’t say a word, but just pushed by and entered the tent. Katrina on the other hand lingered a moment to explain what had happened. Flint was stunned by the news.
When Katrina entered the tent herself, she found Wolflen sitting behind his main table at a wooden chair. She studied him as she walked closer, setting her giant fur robe on another chair along the way. Then she lifted one of her legs and sat atop the edge of the table opposite him. She knew he was hurting, even if he couldn’t express his feelings on the matter well.