***===***
Late the following morning, the two men convince the innkeeper to check on Mashaun, only to find him already gone. The innkeeper is upset that he has taken the linen, but he is glad that he disappeared in the night. Magdalenia would leave him alone now once her men report to her. The two men fume as they look through the room, coming up empty-handed. Neither one wants to tell her that he has slipped away unnoticed after what she did to the captain that was guarding her clone. They spend the morning looking all over the city only to come up empty-handed and have to tell her what had happened, hoping for the best.
That morning, Kazimir is introduced to his trainer, and the twins are given some test their magic abilities. By noon, word reaches Pavvo that Mashaun has disappeared in the night and has taken all the linen with him. Pavvo sends one of his guards with a yellow marble for the innkeeper. The innkeeper always gives him a good price while his men are well cared for, and he wants to keep that relationship.
***===***
When Mai, Abigail, and Berg awake, they vaguely remember arriving at a stone building in the evening, but they are too tired to pay much attention to where they are. Downstairs they find Wilmer already having breakfast at a large table as he motions them to join him. He explains that the owner is a good friend, an elf named Sivish and they can trust him. Their eyes light up with both amazement and wonder. Berg had heard of them back home, but they are a myth.
He tells them that Mai needs to stay here for a while because the red mage will be looking for her and Mashaun because they shared a room. When Berg and Abigail ask about returning to the city, he tells them that they can return anytime they want. However, it would not take much to connect them to Mashaun. They didn’t even talk it over. They just look at each other briefly before telling him that they would stay with Mai.
Mai and Abigail dislike the decor of the inn, with numerous stuffed animals scattered along the walls in the attack mode with eyes that seem to follow them as they cross the room. Over the bar is a full shoulder mount of a unicorn with golden fur. On the left is a string instrument that looks like a lyre with gold inlay in the shape of a unicorn. On the right are two swords, a Bastard sword, and a Flamberg hanging in an X.
Around the room are full animal mounts including a couple of Bears, Mountain Cat, Moose, and a few strange looking creatures. Abigail sits facing the fire but can still feel the eyes so she takes her food upstairs, followed by Mai, who also is uncomfortable in the room.
The wooden tables and chairs are randomly scattered around the main room with an open area in front of the bar, which has a mural carved into the wood. Upon closer inspection, Berg can see that it is a story of a unicorn, a woman with a lyre, and a boy with a large wavy sword fighting a large group of some kind of humanoids. When he asks Wilmer about it, he recites the story of the unicorn over the bar and the founding of this place.
CHAPTER 10
Spirit weapons
Mashaun realizes how much he has come to depend on Dalistra, especially in the wilds. But he doesn’t have much choice since Mai took her when they left the inn for safety. It takes him less than an hour to get through the town outside the gate and into the farmlands. The river stays on the right of the road with farms on the left. The scenery doesn’t change much except for an occasional farmhouse or a fishing shack.
By mid-afternoon, the farms become sparse. The scenery changes to trees with leaves in a kaleidoscope of colors. During his long trip without Dalistra, he begins to wonder if maybe he trusts her too much. After all, he was one of the best on the school archery team. It is almost dark when a small-fortified manor house comes into view. A metal sign with an imprint of a unicorn inlaid with gold coins with three Chinese like characters written underneath. Mashaun assumes that it is the Golden Unicorn.
A tall stonewall with heavy doors protects a courtyard. Inside is a two-story inn, stables, and various other buildings built into the wall around an open area in the middle. By the stable, he sees one of Pavvo’s wagons. The inn is a modest cut-stone two-story building with shuttered windows that look onto the courtyard. The walls have circles about chest high with ladders up to a walkway at the top. The heavy inn doors open with ease, revealing a bar in front with a shoulder mount golden unicorn on the wall overlooking the main room. Looking around it reminds Mashaun of a hunting lodge with full mounts of bears, cougars, and wolves randomly spaced along the walls.
There is a fire in the hearth built into one wall, which provides some light and warmth to the room. As he moves to the bar to ask about a room, he has the uneasy feeling that someone is watching. However, none of the patrons are paying any attention to him. The innkeeper is, lanky, with pointed ears and almond-shape eyes. His forest-green hair tied into a ponytail that hangs down just past his shoulders, which offsets by his lightly bronzed skin. Without saying a word, word, he points to a small table in a darkened corner and goes back to his work.
Two human girls scurry about the room, serving food, and drink to the patrons, moving in a smooth, rhythmic dance. In the corner, sit Berg and Wilmer, enjoying what looks like beef stew. He orders some from one of the serving girls and joins the two men. They greet him, wanting to know how he got out of the city. Mashaun asks about the girls, and they tell him that that they are uncomfortable the room, so they have spent the day in their room. Mashaun starts to go up to see them, but Berg tells him they will be down in a moment. Berg and Wilmer are curious about what happened in court as they swap stories over the hot stew and drink. Berg has the mead while Mashaun and Wilmer enjoy some brandy that Wilmer says is best in all the land.
Shortly Mai glides down the stairs, wearing a long peach silk off-the shoulder dress with yellow flowers and a black bustier that accentuates her figure, wearing just enough makeup to highlight her soft features. She is extremely overdressed for the inn as all eyes turn as she makes her way down the stairs and across the room to the three men. The room is abuzz with curiosity and questions as people move out of her way as they would for nobility. Even the serving girls’ attitude changes in Mai’s presence. The three men bow, and she curtsies before Mashaun as he offers her a chair.
Mashaun wants to hug her and kiss her but instead addresses her, “My lady, it is an honor to have you at our table tonight.” Mai loves the attention she is getting from everyone, especially from Mashaun. Wondering how she paid for such a fancy dress, Mashaun notices that two earrings are missing and realizes that she sold them for the dress. Whispered questions abound in the room, wondering who she is and where she is from.
Shortly Abigail appears at the top of the stairs, wearing a skintight coal black leather pantsuit with a pair of pink heels that click on the steps as she sashays down the stairs. The young men fall over one another in attempting to get to bottom of the stairs first, each clamoring for her attention and her company at their table. This is a new sensation for Abigail as she beams with joy at all the attention but is also a little nervous. She looks over at Berg, who nods, and Abigail knows that she can enjoy the evening. When she chooses a seat, many of the young men try to sit next to her and buy her ale, which she turns down for wine. Abigail has never had so much attention or alcohol before, and after just a few she feels the effects.
Berg keeps a watchful eye on Abigail, and it is obvious that the wine is affecting her when several of the young men offer to take her upstairs and put her to bed. She pulls away, but one they call Hauns leans over and whispers something to her, and she slaps him. He grabs her arm, turning to go upstairs as she struggles to get away.
Berg tells the table to wait, as he puts himself between Hauns and the stairs. He is a good foot taller than Berg with arms the size of Berg's leg. Berg’s hands are shaking, and there is a nervousness in his voice movements. Mashaun and Wilmer understand but are just a few steps behind him. Mashaun notices that all the animals seem to be looking at them. Hauns pushes Berg back into a table and tells him to "mind his own business old man.” The animals have all moved to a crouch as
if they are ready to attack. Berg says that Abigail is his daughter and reaches for her hand. Hauns snickers, grabbing Berg’s wrist, throwing him into another table. Everybody moves away as the cougar lands on the Hauns, pinning him facedown as the other animals circle the group. Berg cautiously reaches for Abigail’s hand and escorts her over to the group’s table. Mashaun looks around, seeing Hauns is nowhere around, and the animals are back in their usual places in their usual stance. Wilmer tells them that the animals keep the peace, and all the locals know better than to start a fight in here.
Mai takes Abigail to bed as the guys change the conversation to the travels ahead. They need to purchase some more food and equipment for their travels, especially warmer clothing, with the evenings getting cooler. Mashaun knows that in the mountains it would get downright cold and would probably snow. Berg and Mai have never experienced snow. Wilmer offers to get them the supplies that they need and would return in a few days. They thank and give him some money.
That night in the privacy of a room, they discuss their plans. Mai tells Mashaun that his bow hates her. He looks at her as if she were crazy. Abigail, in a half-awake stupor, asks, “How can the bow not like her?” Mai tells them that she tried to string it earlier in the day to practice, and she couldn’t get it strung. In addition, she just has a feeling the bow does not like her. Berg starts to ask how.
Mai interrupts by asking, “Why did the bow glow red when entering the city?”
“The city is protected by the two stone pillars that light up all magic items when it passes between them. He was a stranger with magic, so they needed to question him, that’s all,” Wilmer interjects before anyone has a chance to say a word, knowing what the colors really mean. They actually understand what Wilmer tells them.
“Fine, but that didn’t answer the question. Your sword turned green, Pavvo’s robe, blue, and his bow, red, what do the colors mean?” she asks rather insistently, also sparking Berg’s interest.
“Green is minor magic, blue is defensive magic, and red is major magic,” Wilmer tells her. She nods and lets the conversation change to something else. Berg thinks that there is more to the story but also chooses to drop it.
That night, Mashaun restrings Dalistra so he can talk with her but soon discovers that it is a mistake.
“HOW DARE YOU LET THAT WENCH TOUCH ME!” Dalistra shouts at him.
“BESIDES HAVING THE TOUCH OF A TROLL AND THE MIND OF A SPITTED PIG, SHE HAS NO BUSINESS BEING ON THIS TRIP AND SHOULD HAVE STAYED IN THE CITY WHERE SHE COULD HAVE WORKED IN A BROTHEL,” she continues.
“SHE IS NEVER TO TOUCH ME AGAIN!” she finishes.
“SHUT UP!” Mashaun shouts back, to Dalistra’s surprise. Mai looks it him, asking if he said something. He shakes his head, saying no.
“I could have left you there, and you would probably belong to someone else, like Magdalenia, do you want that?” Mashaun asks. Dalistra becomes silent.
“OK. Then just put it behind and move on,” he says as he leans her in the corner and goes to bed. He can tell that she is still mad and wonders if he should even use her before she calms down.
The next morning, Wilmer heads back to the city with the wagon. Berg and Abigail decide to travel with Wilmer and help get the supplies before continuing into the mountains. Abigail’s head is pounding, and the bumpy road makes it worst. But, she is glad to be away from the inn and all the dead animals. Mashaun and Mai spend the morning exploring around the inn and the courtyard. In one corner, Mai shows him the archery range, which is about hundred feet, and a small arena for handheld-weapon practice complete with an animated opponent.
When Mashaun asks Sivish about them, he finds out that they are for anybody to use, for a small fee. Mashaun thinks about it for a quick second. What else is he going to do while waiting for the others to return? He pays the fee for a day. He spends several hours practicing his swordsmanship, with the opponent that is always slightly better, before returning to his room for Dalistra. As Mashaun passes through the common room
Sivish is at the bar, cleaning, and calls him over.
He is the first to pay any real serious attention to Dalistra, noticing that the bow curved more than normal bows do. Most of the bows are straight, but a few of the more expensive bows have a slight recurve to them, but Dalistra had more than a quarter circle curve. Sivish asks if he could look at his bow for a minute.
Dalistra is exceptionally quiet around Sivish. It is obvious that Sivish knows about bows, and after a short time, he hands it back to Mashaun. Sivish follows Mashaun to the archery range to watch him shoot. Mashaun tells Dalistra not to help him. Since he started using her, he knows when she is helping. Mashaun places his first set arrow around the center of the target.
Sivish inquires as to where did he get such an exquisite bow? Without turning, Mashaun tells him that he really doesn’t remember; only that it is somewhere south of here. Sivish tells him that he knows exactly where he found Dalistra in a factual voice. Mashaun stops and slowly turns around to look at Sivish with questioning eyes before asking him, how does he know her name? Dalistra also wonders but is a little nervous at the same time. Sivish just smiles and asks Mashaun to join him inside as he turns and heads back inside with Mashaun right behind him. Dalistra warns him to be discreet he already knows more than he should.
The two go into the back where Sivish has a table for the employees. There are three barmaids there getting ready for the evening. He asks them to leave, and they do, quickly. He offers Mashaun a chair and serves up a couple of mugs of his homemade elfin ale that he gets from a locked cabinet at the back of the room. They both sit on opposite sides of a round table as Mashaun hangs Dalistra over the back of the chair so that he can lean against her to receive her thoughts as they talk. Both men wonder what the other knows and how much they should divulge and where to start.
Mashaun speaks first, asking Sivish, “How do you know Dalistra’s name, and how long have you known?”
“I suspected when Mai first arrived but wasn’t sure until I held her this morning,” Sivish replies.
There is a short pause. The two men take a drink.
“Does Magdalenia know that you have the bow?” Sivish asks him.
“I don’t think so. Why?” he asks.
“Dalistra is a young spirit weapon, in other words, she was a young woman when put into the weapon. She is also one of the last spirits placed into an item, and the spell has been banned for that reason for several thousand years,” Sivish states plainly.
Mashaun looks at him, puzzled, and gets the same sense from Dalistra. However, she has a vague idea why Magdalenia is looking for her.
“It was the forcing of the spirit of a young princess into an item that brought the races together, realizing it could happen to one of their loved ones,” he continues.
Mashaun thinks, Princess!?
She tells him, “Yes, you didn’t know?” That explains it, Mashaun thinks.
“Quiet, you two,” Sivish tells them. Mashaun looks at him, surprised that he could hear them.
Sivish continues, “The Thesila council of mages ruled that any person caught using the spell would be put to death publicly as a deterrent to anyone using the spell for any reason.” Mashaun looks puzzled.
Sivish continues, “The elves used the spell to preserve the spirits of some of the young who were gravely ill or injured early in their life. However, it was always by their choice. The elves knew how powerful the magic was and kept the secret for eons until the war between the elves and the humans. Somehow, humans managed to get the spell and learned how to use it. Soon afterward, the war ended, but the knowledge had already gotten out. Even though casting the spell is taxing on the caster’s mind and body, some still used the spell. Elves live a lot longer, so it does not affect us as much as humans. As the elves feared, many human mages lost their lives trying to cast the spell, but that didn’t stop the most powerful mages from using the spell for their own nefarious reasons.” Mashaun tries to figure out
what all this had to do with Dalistra as he remains quiet, sipping on the elfin ale.
“Eventually, casting the spell became a business, mages would charge large sums of money to cast the spell, and that is where Dalistra comes in. Mikolas Tenskie, one of Magdalenia’s ancestors, fell in love with Dalistra.”
“What? Mikolas is one of Magdalenia’s ancestors. I’ll kill her,” Dalistra says furiously.
“However, she was already betrothed to another, Prince Karemon of Thesila,” Sivish continues.
Mashaun asks, “Is there is any relationship to their last name and the city?” Sivish tells him, “Yes.”
“Now let me continue, Mikolas was drunk with power and decides that he would put her spirit in a special bow so that he could always keep her near. Spirit weapons have a mind of their own and often will seek vengeance if forced into an item.” Mashaun thought that is how she can help hit targets but, for the first time, wondered if she could force him to miss. Dalistra remains silent, realizing that her secret was about to be revealed, and she can’t stop it.
“One day when Mikolas was out hunting with his sons, they were attacked, and he was killed. According to the story, he shot a dozen arrows and missed every one, which was unusual, for he was the best shot in the land. Each family member that used Dalistra would eventually befall a similar fate. The Tenskie family believed that Dalistra had cursed them and sought to destroy her. Are you following me so far?” he asks Mashaun, who just nods affirmatively.
“Prince Karemon became King Karemon and ordered his guards to bring Dalistra to him and that all copies of the spell be destroyed. Shortly after, the council at Thesila agreed. Before Mikolas’s family could destroy Dalistra to break the curse, King Karemon got Dalistra back and decided that he would hide her. King Karemon gave all of Tenskie’s lands to Dalistra’s father and banished Mikolas. King Karemon died many years later, never revealing her whereabouts.
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