Phantom Campaign

by Eden Redd

  Dax’s eyed narrowed, “What class are you a part of?”

  Chandra simply stared when three figures emerged from the opposite side of the clearing. A man walked with a staff, a fox-like man and a female orc in blood red robe to either side of him. As they stepped closer, Dax’s suspicions seemed to ebb away.

  They seem like really nice people.

  Dax blinked at his own thought, a sliver of something feeling off and then the feeling simply faded away. Symon grinned as the three others made their way closer and stood with the elf in red and black.

  Chandra turned as she introduced her coterie members. “The man with the staff is Owyn. The kitun is Vizith and the orc is Luca.”

  The kitun stepped closer and bowed. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all.”

  Dax had to fight the temptation to hug the fox-like man. The sensation rippled with oddness, but the mage just wanted to be Vizith’s friend. The oddness seemed infectious as Isani and Ressa were smiling ear to ear. Symon couldn’t keep his gaze off the fox man as he was resisting a need to get closer.

  From behind, the rest of the coterie appeared. They stepped into the clearing, eyes and smiles widening as they approached. Dax beckoned them closer and made enthusiastic introductions. During the introductions is when Noss spoke up.

  “Why do I really want to be his friend?” the kobold asked and nodded to the kitun.

  Chandra looked down to the kobold with amused eyes. “It’s perfectly normal. Most people have the same reaction when they meet Vizith.”

  “It’s a curse,” the human looking man with fox ears and a long fluffy tail said as he bowed again with a smile.

  “It’s good to run into another coterie out here. How did you manage the first wave of Sukarr yesterday?” Symon asked.

  “A lot of running and fighting,” Chandra smiled.

  The air took on a sweet, warm feeling despite the heavy cold. Clive, Noss, Fern, Vance, and Zarra all stared at the kitun with warm smiles. Nuria was the only one looking down as the two groups talked.

  Owyn spoke up, “We lost many of our coterie due to the attack yesterday. Would you mind if we join your group? Safety in numbers.”

  “Absolutely,” Symon said without hesitation.

  All heads nodded except for Nuria.

  “Excellent,” Chandra beamed. “We should continue on as soon as we can. Never know if another patrol happens to come this way.”

  Dax nodded. Bliss ran through his spirit as he felt he had found long lost friends. Never had his heart felt so full. Positive energy swirled as he felt he could take on anything and win.

  The two groups merged, collected mana shards and set off. Entering the forest again, they moved as one large group. Luca and Chandra chatted while Vizith walked along silently. Owyn engaged with Symon, talking about the events of yesterday, the robed man asking the spellsword specific questions.

  Dax found himself staring at the fox man. Fern flew down and sat on Dax’s shoulder, also watching.

  “I can’t look away,” Fern whispered in Dax’s ear.

  The mage nodded. “I know. I feel the same. Is it the tail or the ears?”

  Fern giggled. “I think it’s the tail and the ears.”

  Dax glanced over to see Ressa and Isani talking quietly, giggling and pointing to the kitun.

  “I didn’t know there were any kitun at the academy?” Dax said and a vibration pulsed along his mind.

  I don’t remember seeing any kitun? Have I just been focused on my studies and my friends? Why does it feel like I’ve known him all my life?

  Thoughts stabbed at his reasoning, but soon they simply shifted away, replaced by simple happiness.

  It doesn’t matter. I just want him to be my friend.

  Dax smiled at the thought, happy that he had a new friend.

  Nuria walked along until she was next to Dax and Fern. “Dax,” she whispered.

  Dax looked over with an annoyed edge before looking back to the kitun.

  “Dax,” Nuria said a little louder.

  “Do you want something?” Dax snarled at the beautiful mage.

  Nuria’s eyes widened a little before she looked down. “You don’t see what is happening?”

  Fern hovered up and glared down on Nuria. “Why are you always being a bitch? Can’t we just travel without you always wanting Dax’s attention?”

  Nuria ignored Fern and walked close to Dax’s side. “We are in danger the longer we are with them. We have to separate.”

  In the short distance, Symon and Owyn were talking loud enough for everyone to hear.

  “Yes, my best friend was the one to come up with card magic. It really changed everything,” Symon stated.

  “It’s such an honor to meet all of you,” Owyn grinned.

  Vizith backed up, walking on Dax’s other side and smiling at the mage. Fern fluttered down and sat on Dax’s shoulder, her eyes filled with stars as she stared at the kitun.

  “You have become an inspiration to many,” Vizith said simply.

  “I just wanted to help the world,” Dax grinned. “I can show you some of my cards.”

  Vizith smiled. “That would be amazing. I have wanted to learn card magic, but our class cannot partake in it just yet.”

  “Which class are you part of?” Nuria asked with an edge.

  “The best one,” Vizith said with a demure smile.

  Dax and Fern nodded, accepting the answer without question.

  Vizith’s smile could melt stone as he kept his gaze on Dax. “Could I see one or two of your cards? It would be a dream come true.”

  The mage’s hand slipped into his robe and pulled out three cards. Before he could turn them over, Nuria grabbed the mage’s wrist.

  “Dax, I don’t think that is a good idea.”

  The mage’s brow hardened as he yanked his arm away. “It’s my technique! I can show it to others when I want. Not like when you stole it from me and sent it out into the world!”

  Nuria’s eyes widened as his words cut at her heart.

  Fern looked down in confusion.

  Dax turned the cards over and showed them to Vizith. “The key is to draw smaller symbols and have the right card thickness. It needs to contain the mystical energies or they could explode.”

  Vizith nodded, drinking every word.

  Clive stepped to Nuria’s side, his elbow giving her nudge. Nuria looked up to Clive as she smiled.

  “They are friends. We should be friendly,” the large mage stated simply.

  Nuria nodded as her hand slipped into her own robe pocket.

  Vizith looked to Dax with bright eyes. “This is fascinating. May I have a card, a keepsake of this moment?”

  Dax nodded. “Sure!”

  The mage was about to hand it over when Nuria pulled one of her cards from her robe pocket.

  “Forgive me,” Nuria whispered before she spoke the trigger word.

  Air swirled around the beautiful mage. Vizith’s kind demeanor shifted to something cruel as the air whipped around at high velocity and exploded outwards. Bodies closest to Nuria were thrown ten feet in all directions. Fern crashed into the ground as Dax landed on his stomach. Clive was knocked away, his back striking a tree and his body sliding down.

  Vizith was thrown into the air, but the kitun righted himself and landed on his feet, his hard gaze on Nuria.

  Confusion colored eyes as the rest of Symon’s coterie who were left standing looked to Nuria and the newcomers. The air took on a hint of jagged edges as the newcomers turned and faced the group with foul intent in their eyes.

  Mystical energies blazed along cards now in Nuria’s hands. She faced the newcomers, cold fury bleeding from her eyes.

  “You won’t hurt my friends…” the beautiful mage managed before a dagger spun through the air and stabbed into her shoulder.

  Nuria stumbled back, looking to Chandra as the elf drew another dagger, a wicked smile on her lips.

  Dax lifted his head and turned to see the dagger in Nuria
as she took another step back.

  “Everyone, run!” Nuria shouted as weakness drained all power from her.

  The group didn’t run. Fern sat up and rubbed her head while Dax was slowly getting to his feet. Symon looked to Nuria with disappointed eyes. The rest stared blankly at the lone mage.

  “We… have to… run,” Nuria said as the world grew slowly out of focus.

  “Sleep well,” Chandra grinned.

  Darkness touched the edges of Nuria’s eyes as she struggled to stand. Her thighs trembled before she sank down. The mage looked to the dagger in her, blood trailing down. A numbness had spread from the wound and she couldn’t keep her eyes open.

  With a frustrated sigh, the beautiful mage fell over, passing out before she hit the ground.

  ***

  Light touched the darkness. Eyelids slowly peeled back. A camp fire blazed softly, the sky black as pitch. Figures moved around the fire, tents set up just beyond them. The crackle of the fire blended with the soft murmurs of conversations.

  Nuria blinked before she tried to move. Something pressed around her arms and chest. When she looked down, she saw that a rope was tied around her, her back to a small tree. The wound to her shoulder held a dull ache, but there was no pain. The wound felt sealed and even the fabric of her robe was stitched together.

  Glancing up, she saw the newcomers going through packs, her friends nowhere to be seen.

  “You’re awake,” a soothing voice touched Nuria’s ears.

  The mage looked up as Chandra stepped closer and knelt down. The elf’s gaze was unnerving as she seemed to barely blink.

  “It was a nice try, but we were always in control,” Chandra smiled.

  “Where…” Nuria began.

  The elf put up a hand, “They are fine. They are all sleeping in their tents. You agreed to take the first watch.”

  Chandra glanced at the rope, “We will untie you when we leave.”

  Nuria’s gaze took on a cool, calm edge. “It’s clear you’re not part of Kinarth Academy.”

  Chandra rolled back and sat, her ankles crossed and hands on her knees. “Very perceptive. Clive was right about you. You are special, but not how you think.”

  “What is this about? Why did you ambush us?” Nuria asked as her mind worked.

  “Ambush? Not at all. We came to see you. Meeting Dax was just the icing on the cake.”

  Nuria was silent.

  The elf continued, “You’re different then how you used to be. It’s almost uncanny. You seem purely human, but something else beats under your skin. Clive has known for some time that you have changed, but the brute isn’t smart enough to understand what that change was. For a mage, he’s not overly bright.”

  Chandra eyed the beautiful mage, licking her lips as she continued to talk. “You don’t belong with them.”

  Nuria’s brow pointed in disdain.

  The elf continued, “I can understand following Dax, he’s cute, but otherwise, you’re wasting your time with them. You weren’t affected by Vizith so you have abilities that would be useful, for the right cause.”

  “Like a cabal to destroy Kinarth Academy?” Nuria nearly spat.

  Chandra’s calm demeanor shifted to mild annoyance. “Kinarth Academy is a façade to bring order to a scared world. We know better. We know what we want.”

  “What do you want?”

  Chandra’s smile returned, “We want you.”

  “You snuck onto Star Fall just to interrupt our exam so you can try and recruit me?”

  Chandra giggled. “We already recruited Nuria. We want to recruit you.”

  Nuria kept her face blank as her heart thudded in her chest.

  Chandra leaned closer, drinking in Nuria’s scent and looking the mage directly in the eyes.

  “You killed Nuria’s parents and dumped them in the lake. Such a sloppy way of disposing bodies. If we didn’t clean it up, the magistrates would have already taken you in.”

  Nuria’s eyes widened a hair.

  Chandra nodded. “Nuria was already part of us. We watched you at home. We watched you in the academy. You’re intelligent and have great survival instincts, but our world confuses you at times. Any reasonable intelligent creature would attempt an escape plan. I’m sure you have one right now, ready to disappear from everything just so you can live another day.

  “What if you didn’t have to run? What if you were welcomed with open arms?”

  Nuria looked away.

  Chandra leaned in closer, her lips inches from Nuria’s lips. “You don’t have to hide. We know everything there is to know. We understand that this is a lot to take in and that is why we shall make an arrangement so you may have time to consider our proposal.

  “Continue with the exam. Make your way to the Lighthouse. Once inside, there will be a moment where everyone will be distracted. At that moment, I’ll hold out my hand so you can either take it or leave it.”

  Nuria looked to the elf, her heart beginning to ache.

  “You can feel it, can’t you? You remember?” Chandra whispered with a sultry edge.

  A distant memory floated into Nuria’s mind’s eye. The image grew clearer. A room with an open bay window, sunlight pouring in. Chandra lying in bed and Nuria slipping into bed with her. Hands caressed bodies, gasps and moans rising up like a cloud of sweet bliss. White sheets half covered naked bodies as hours of ecstasy spoiled hearts.

  “I brought Nuria to our side because she understood the truth. We offer the same to you.”

  Nuria’s heart beat like a drum. The displaced memories crashed into her, feelings alien and natural at the same time. The dark serpent of doubt reared up and clouded her thoughts, her heart pulling to the beautiful elf just inches away. Love glowed and Nuria could not separate her old life and this new one.

  Chandra’s hand slipped into her boot and pulled out a serrated dagger. Nuria glanced down as the dagger was brought closer to the ropes. The dagger flashed and the ropes went slack.

  “Vizith has spent the last few hours fogging your friend’s minds. It may take a few days, but they will regain their memories of today. You should give your decision before then.”

  Chandra stood up, dagger still in hand and her gaze down on Nuria.

  Luca stepped closer. The orc woman stood to Chandra’s side and looked down at Nuria with hard eyes.

  “What’s to stop her from waking her friends and coming after us?” Luca said darkly.

  “She won’t. She will stay right here and wait for her friends to wake. She will act like nothing happened.”

  Chandra’s smile grew wider. “Luca, I do believe Counselor Skullcut and Professor Frost are waiting at the Lighthouse. Wouldn’t it be strange if they received a note, telling them that a void spawn has infiltrated the academy? I’m sure if they saw the name of the void spawn, they would investigate immediately.”

  Nuria lowered her head, eyes lost to inner thoughts.

  “Let’s start moving. We have much we must prepare for,” Chandra smiled.

  ***

  Dax woke to a throbbing headache. The mage sat up in his tent and looked down to Fern sleeping at his side. A small light glowed outside and the mage crawled to the tent flap and opened it.

  A small fire was slowly dying, Nuria sat at the edge of the firepit, poking the embers with a stick. The beautiful mage didn’t look up, her face a blank mask.

  Dax crawled out of the tent and stood up. The headache echoed along his thoughts, fuzzy images painting his mind. Rubbing his temple, he stepped closer and sat by the fire, opposite of Nuria.

  “Why is there still a fire? I thought we wouldn’t have one at night?” Dax asked.

  “It was much too cold for me to be out here by myself so I threw some wood on it to keep it going a little while longer,” Nuria said plainly.

  Dax rubbed his temple as he sat, a chill seeping in. “It is cold tonight,” the mage trailed off.

  “Can’t sleep?” Nuria asked.

  “I feel like I’ve
been sleeping for days.”

  “It’s close to sun up so I suppose you had enough rest,” Nuria didn’t look up, still poking at the embers.

  “Are you okay?” Dax asked, trying to ignore his own headache.

  Nuria stopped poking the embers, staring into the small flames for a long moment.

  “I had some time to think tonight. The more I think about this exam and the academy, I think, what’s the point? Why do all of this so we can march to our deaths for some kingdom? Why put ourselves in danger trying to find lost artifacts from the war?”

  Dax nodded as he sat. “I sometimes think about that, but the more you think about it, the more it unravels. Why do anything if one day you’re going to die?”

  Nuria looked up and stared at the mage.

  Dax sighed as he leaned back onto his hands. “I was just becoming a man when my mother began losing her mind. It was subtle at first, forgetting simple things. It grew worse with each season. She started to get angry for no reason and would get lost when she went to buy food. I had to hunt her down, keep an eye on her, provide for us and study for the academy application. It was difficult, but we only had each other.”

  Dax looked up to the dark sky. “I sometimes think about people who have nobody. The war destroyed our world and I was born into that destruction. I did what I had to do to survive, but at least I had my mother. When she could no longer remember me, a piece of me died.

  “When I was accepted to the academy, I knew I couldn’t leave her on her own. I made arrangements with the Sisters of Vala to care for her. It broke my heart to say goodbye and she waved to me, not knowing who I was.”

  Nuria lowered her gaze to the small flames.

  “I sometimes think that if Ikkudran was like how it was before the war, the priests and clerics would have found a way to cure her. Then my thoughts moved on, wondering how different our world would be if we were like before the war. How many families would still be together? How far would we have come as a society?

  “I knew it would take a long time for it to get better. It was then when I knew I wanted to be part of that change. I wanted to be like Sebastian Kinarth, saving the world and bringing peace back. I want to help heal others and in some small way, heal myself.”