Chaos Destiny

by Mussie Haile

  “Amazing how great I feel,” Eldana said, as she blew the dust from her robes. Hermon was laughing too, and it filled the whole hall with joy. “I haven’t felt so good in a long time!”

  “It’s mostly used on children’s birthdays to keep them in a good mood - no sudden squabbling and crying over presents! Sometimes it’s even used for funerals, but that’s only in some cultures,” Siem said. Hermon and Eldana were thrown into fits of laughter as though Siem had said the funniest thing. The tavern was still empty, only the bartender looked at them and smiled warmly. He probably belonged to the human species.

  “Greetings to you at the Tavern of the Wholesome Laughter,” he said. “My name is Techle; I am the bartender and the owner of this laughing parlor. Come in and enjoy a cold beer, and don’t worry about the laughter spell. It should wear off soon.”

  He didn’t need to say it twice. The three had all been hungry and thirsty because of the journey and the fight with the warriors. They ordered a mountain of food, from healthy to greasy to sweet, everything was on offer here. Hermon got a whole field of leaves for himself, while Eldana only had some mushrooms. Siem didn’t care; she wanted to have everything. Magic costs a lot of energy, so she was especially drained.

  They feasted, laughed about past humorous memories, and drank for hours. Although they knew it was due to the positivity spell, it was nice to feel such joy for once, and, before they went into their rooms, they spoke briefly with the owner of the tavern.

  “Thank you for a delicious meal. It was an honor,” said Eldana.

  “Always a pleasure,” replied Techle. “Just next time, please do not come to my tavern as fugitives. We are not fighters, you know. I am a simple tavern owner and probably won’t be able to protect you when the warriors show up, if they manage to get past the guardian mage. I can keep you hidden, but don’t ask me to fight.”

  Astonishment spread over their faces. “You know about us? How can this be? We haven’t told anyone!” Hermon looked outraged.

  “You don’t have to, my child. You are here in Klea’s walls. As you now know, this is a magical city. That means everyone knows everything. Outside, the city is protected by a strong protection spell, but there are none inside the walls. On the inside, we live in peace. There are no secrets here because there is no need for them. We are all-knowing in order to be all-helpful.”

  It was strange moving about with their hearts on their faces, but that was the city of Kleas, the city where minds were bared and those that were impure were sent away.

  Eldana replied first. “Thank you,” she said sincerely, but Techle shook his head.

  “Don’t thank me. Thank the city. We’ve lived safely for more than a thousand years!”

  Eldana lowered her head and took the man’s hand. “Thank you, my friend, you’ve helped us very much.” Techle did not say another word but merely nodded.

  When the innkeeper had left them, they went upstairs into their rooms. It was a pleasure for them to receive such hospitality. They all fell asleep calmly and with little worry. Techle had not promised too much. The spell gave them a feeling of security, even if only for a few hours.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Preparation for the Hunt

  Even though the fight had drained them all, what was left of the seven warriors was ready to be on the hunt again. It was just what they needed. The warriors had not left their homes for a while. The average citizen of the Middle Kingdom was responsible and respectable. None would dare use any forbidden battle magic spells. The only excitement that these seven had was the training of the next chosen one that would bring peace to Toas. In this case, Eldana. She had always brought excitement to their lives, now more than ever. A being of Balance and Chaos is born only every hundred years. The duty of the seven were passed down from generation to generation, some generations never had the honor to train a BC, so Eldana had been trained by each one of them with diligence. Seeing that vanish was painful.

  Eldana was much stronger than they thought, and it had been a long time since they had used battle magic. Sinto would help the others unlock the power that the warriors held within themselves. To defeat Eldana, they would need every ounce of power they could gather.

  Sinto spoke the word of power, as the warriors paired for training. “Ha ley na ne.”

  “The warrior of water, you will fight against the fire-breathing dragon,” Sinto said. His eyes roamed amongst the seven. They watched him, apprehensive.

  “Remember the art of fighting,” he said. “You are warriors, not only teachers. We need to remember our skills!”

  Sinto sensed that everyone was excited. A lot of energy was in the air, very unusual, much more than before. They were eager; ready. He wondered where this came from. It seemed as if new energy was forming from their hate of the would-be goddess Eldana. They felt betrayed. There was Adonay, the bald-headed warrior had let Eldana drink from his own bowl the very day she arrived. While Sinto had no emotion for Eldana at that time, Adonay was the one who had always given her a silent shoulder to cry on. Then there was white haired Berhun. He had admired Eldana from afar, but he was disappointed now with her actions. Their feeling of betrayal created something that many did not know, the desire to fight again, to win...and then also the desire to kill.

  Sinto knew what this meant. The warriors were on the way to becoming barbarians, barbarians who knew that there was no return. The hatred gave them strength and they needed it to continue to fight. Two warriors were fighting so loudly that they all heard it, and not just for fun, but for blood. Sinto came along and yelled,

  “What’s wrong with you? This is just training!”

  Both turned and the glow in their eyes was one he had not seen in a long time. It was the old warrior’s glow that shone in their eyes. But both stopped with some reluctance, and Sinto could see that they didn’t want to stop there.

  “We are sorry, Sinto,” said one with apparent difficulty. “It was just nice to get back to doing what we were meant to do. It makes me feel stronger and more powerful than anything else.”

  Sinto knew where the energy came from. Tabeli stood there and laughed joyfully.

  “Finally, fire.” He sighed and looked at the two again. “As long as you don’t kill each other, go on, Sinto should be happy with that?”

  He looked at Sinto with a smile and knew that he had to help him. Sinto belonged to a time when honor was worth a lot. In those times, everything was different, people didn’t fight each other like barbarians. Even the enemies had respect for each other. This young generation of warriors had never experienced this. It was difficult for them to understand what it meant to fight. Some had never fought before. Their senses were overwhelmed by the power.

  While the warriors trained, Tabeli and Sinto went to check on other preparations for the hunt. They came upon two other warriors that were readying their weapons. One of them took a stone and spoke softly the words of magic. The stone started to glow and changed color from green, to red, to blue. The warrior threw the stone into a bush, there it imploded and took everything within a radius of three meters with it. Sinto made a bewildered face.

  “Interesting new way to use magic,” he said. “But is it enough to stop a berserker?”

  Tabeli and the warrior looked at each other, puzzled. Tabeli decided to answer for them both. “Not yet, but soon,” and added with a slightly sceptical undertone, “Don’t you believe it?”

  Sinto looked at him with tired eyes. “Oh Tabeli, we both know that we have been out of proper fighting for far too long to stand against the only son of the Berserker King, so it won’t be easy.”

  The two warriors who had been working on the weapons looked at each other, insecure. Sinto noticed their glances and said, “As long as we have two fearless warriors like these, we’ll be fine.” He laughed and slapped one of them on the shoulder. Tabeli noticed the tension and grabbed Sinto by the arm
to lead him away.

  “More men,” he said in a strained tone.

  “For the king,” the answer came back promptly. Sinto’s look revealed that he was incredibly grateful for the rescue. Tabeli only shook his head. He returned Sinto’s gaze with one that said - be quiet!

  So they went on through the night and inspected the warriors. The flames of duty burned within them. Even though they had mixed feelings about Eldana, they knew that their duty had to be fulfilled. Weapons were forged and artifacts were fitted with magic. They were ready. The preparations for the Great Hunt were nearly complete. In the morning, they would set off. The only one who could not sleep that night was Sinto. As much as he was happy for his men, he thought about Eldana and how much he missed the little young lady who was so unable to take care of herself. He had been with her every step of the way, refusing to let weakness creep into her body. She was a being of Balance and Chaos, and he had made sure she knew that weakness was unacceptable. Maybe he was a bit too hard on her, but it was because he cared for her. She was like his daughter and now, sadly, he knew that he had to kill her too soon.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The Middle Kingdom

  Eldana had gotten up early. After they left the town of Kleas, there was no other big city nearby to hide in. Eldana decided to walk back into the center of danger. They wandered the forest and through the night back into the Middle Kingdom.

  Hermon was absolutely baffled by this. “You just left the Middle Kingdom, Eldana!” He tried to find logic in it. “Why would you want to go back here? After just doing all that running away and fighting, you’re just going to walk right back into the center of danger? That makes no sense.”

  “Let me explain it to you.” Eldana sat on the ground with her legs crossed and a flower she just found. She played with it while she explained.

  “If you try to change something, you need to go where you can change something.” She looked at him “The warriors would never believe that we would come back to the Middle Kingdom, they are hunting us now. But to change something, we need to do it where it hurts.”

  Hermon bit his lip, before his protest was heard. “All right, if you know how to end this and think this is the only way, let’s go back.”

  Eldana nodded. “I do.” Siem just smiled but did not add anything.

  During the day, they hiked. At night, they hid in the forest. They took turns keeping watch. Hermon was still asleep. Eldana was to replace Siem.

  “You’re up already?” Siem asked Eldana.

  “I couldn’t sleep any more. I feel the warriors are getting closer. I can feel their aura. Not quite the same as in the clearing but stronger than in Kleas...Maybe we should have made a bigger round trying to avoid them.”

  Siem looked in the direction they came from. “I don’t think they have left yet.”

  Siem looked back at Eldana and started to worry. “I feel your strength as well, stronger every day but far from what it needs to be. I would carry you to the end of the world if I had to, but you will need your full power to beat them all.”

  Eldana looked baffled. “I think I did a pretty good job the last time. Don’t you think?” Her serious tone could not be overheard.

  “Yeah, you did. But if Hermon and I hadn’t been there, how long could you have kept that shield up? Would you have defeated all seven? I’m going to assume that wouldn’t have been the case.”

  Siem had led many before, but she was used to leading armies of mages, not such a small group like this. She realized that perhaps her words had been discouraging, so she added, “You are one of the strongest warriors I know. No one has ever been able to fight the seven warriors of the Middle Kingdom for even a minute, let alone surprise them all together.” Eldana took the compliment and nodded eagerly. “But when you meet these warriors in the future, you must be stronger, better.”

  Eldana understood the point. There was still much training ahead of her. At that moment, Hermon awoke and yawned heartily. Just as he did so, a morning toot escaped him that made him stop immediately. Siem and Eldana laughed themselves to the ground.

  “All right, enough laughing, let’s move on,” said Hermon, looking at Siem expectantly and with the hope that this would be forgotten in a second. She gathered her things, still giggling to herself over the farting Hermon. He took the whole basket on his back and set off. The women followed him.

  “How long do you think it will take us to reach the city in the Middle Kingdom?” she asked.

  “I don’t know, but we have at least one more day. We should be there soon.”

  After another day of wandering further through the forest, they saw the first villages close to the Middle Kingdom. They were sparse and scattered at first. For Hermon it was normal, but not for Eldana, who had always been kept isolated from other people by Sinto. Nevertheless, she was doing well. She knew that attacks from the warriors in the Middle Kingdom should not happen so easily here. Siem was angry that she was constantly woken from her sleep in the basket on Hermon’s back by the loud noises surrounding her. “Silence!” she screamed from inside before snuggling back into the soft straw. Eldana and Hermon laughed at this desperate attempt to finally have peace.

  It was by chance they had become such tight friends, especially as they were all brought up so differently. Siem had come in contact with Eldana and Hermon fighting at a stream when she went to fetch some water as a child. Sinto would use any possibility to make Eldana train, he would instruct her to carry two buckets of water with magic floating above her shoulders and not set them down until she had climbed back all the way to the camp. Hermon was just there to drink and was disturbing the training. They fought over who could take water first and Sinto was enjoying it, thinking this could lead to another training moment. Siem, who was just working to become a sorcerer, passed by to cultivate her skills to control water. She saw them fight, separated them quickly and made them reconcile. Amazingly, they had listened to her. Siem was as different from them as she could be, with her pointed ears and delicate features. She was very beautiful. Every evening, Eldana would go to the stream with her buckets and she would see Siem training there. She knew how to use her bow and would entertain Eldana by shooting at animals in the nearby wood. Soon, Hermon joined them. Many times, Eldana came back late from the stream, and always got shouted at by Sinto because of it.

  “Siem, we are here,” Eldana said, smiling as she looked over the magnificent structure of the gate. Two dragons were carved into the emblem on the wooden bridge. Both had a crown pointing to the center where the King resided in his castle. There were guardian magicians here as well, not just one, but three of them at each tower within the wall They could feel the powerful magic in the air. A capital as great as this could not skimp on protection. This ensured they’d be safe from armies, but the common man could still sneak in. With a city as big as this, there were always people coming and going, as whomever paid the right price got in. There was another mechanism to protect the city though, the magic mirrors, which reflected the innermost thoughts of the people that passed by. Those with nefarious intentions were removed from the city. There were placed at the beginning of the entrance.

  Siem, tired and dishevelled, peeked out of her basket. She had only been able to sleep a few hours that night. They had been travelling for two days now.

  “Finally, Hermon let me go-” Before she could finish the sentence Hermon had thrown the basket on the ground. “Thanks,” Siem said angrily. But she didn’t add anything more, aware that her mood was not the best. Eldana only looked at her sympathetically. She had spent several nights in this basket and knew the feeling.

  “What do we do now? Hermon asked.

  “We go in,” Eldana replied curtly and took the first steps towards the gate.

  “Woah, woah, wait a minute, I think your energy is great, but let’s go over the plan again. I think I forgot it.” Hermon looked at them
both.

  “Tell us what you remember.” Both looked at him questioningly.

  “So...we are going in...to convince the King to stop persecuting you. Then we must find the most powerful mage, Lord Taboon, to help us change the system. We also need allies, so we need to talk to the Guild of Free Warriors. And we must do this quietly without drawing attention to ourselves, so the warriors of the Middle Kingdom don’t find us and lynch us on the spot.”

  “Forgotten something?” Siem asked and smiled sweetly.

  “What?” Hermon spoke.

  “How do we make sure we’re not discovered?”

  Hermon raised his finger. “Ahh exactly... We are a family. I am the papa, you are the mama, and Eldana is our child. Right?” Hermon wasn’t sure, so he looked around for confirmation but neither of them was giving anything away. Both just stared at him. Then after what felt like an eternity, Siem said, “I think it was right, what do you think Eldana?”

  Eldana tried to suppress her laughter but couldn’t. “I think so too.” Both laughed out loud.

  They entered the gate to the city and went through without any problems. They paid the toll and split up. Hermon went to the Free Warriors Guild, Siem to the magicians, and Eldana to the King.

  “Be back outside the gate in three hours. No detours. No long discussions. Find out what we need to know and come back,” Siem instructed.

  All three had transformed themselves with change spells, which were a pretty common spell in the Middle Kingdom. People often used them to appear more beautiful in the hopes of enticing suitors. There were even posters plastered all throughout the city. ‘A better you today, these words are all you have to say!’ they said. No one would think it odd to see.