The most embarrassing was when three women brought their babies forward, begging him to bless them. He had no idea what to do and looked around in confusion. Turek, who had been standing close, whispered, “Touch them on their foreheads. You don’t have to say or do anything. Just touch them for a moment. That should be enough.”
Confused, Eril complied, and each of the women thanked him, crying in gratitude. It got even worse when two, obviously highborn, ladies prostrated themselves at his feet and wept how he had saved their families and how they were forever in his debt.
Again, having no idea what to do, he muttered, “I was only doing my best for Jull.”
This only caused them to weep more and cling to his feet. On the verge of panic, as he had no idea what else to do, so he touched each of them on the back of their heads, similar to what he’d done with the babies. This seemed to work, as they retreated soon thereafter.
This night, there were feasts and spontaneous parties all through the city. The king, or rather the prince, operating in the name of the king, hosted a large affair in the main hall of the palace. Once again, Eril was seated at the head table next to the prince.
Unlike the previous night, after the main meal was served, the tables were rearranged, and one by one, accounts of each of the three main battles were read by either The Marshall or one of his generals to the cheering crowd. When it came time to recount that day’s naval battle, the prince himself gave his own account of what he observed with additional commentary from The Marshall as well as the other commanders on the scene.
In every instance, Eril’s accomplishments and heroics were extolled. Up until this point, many people had not heard of the defeat and retreat of both the main Espilonian and Nitholian armies. Many times during the telling, proceedings had to pause while the crowd began chants of “Eril, Eril, Eril, Eril!”
While the telling had been going on, Eril went from acute embarrassment to slowly swelling with pride as he saw his accomplishments portrayed in such heroic terms. The feeling was heady, and the only thing that caused it to dim was his continual recollection of the near-disaster of the previous evening.
While his face began to ache from the huge smile, he couldn’t seem to remove, he was also continually scanning the crowd both close and far for any sign of assassins. Any time he looked at Turek, he saw that while he was wearing a rictus of a smile, he too was continually scanning for threats.
Finally, all the tales were told, and Prince Cavalar came forward and stood on the speaking podium and called for attention.
“My Ladies, and Lords,” he began, solemnly, but projecting his voice to fill the immense hall. “We have heard great deeds this day.” The crowd cheered in agreement. He held his hands out to quiet them and continued. “The last three days have seen the defeat of three great forces, forces that should have overcome our small kingdom. Never before has there been known even one such victory as has been worked by Master Eril and Master Turek, let alone three. Truly, I know of nothing to compare since the ancient conflicts of the Great War and the zdrell masters of old.
“We owe our lives and the lives of tens of thousands of our soldiers and countrymen to these wizards. There is nothing we mere mortals can do, which will truly express the level of debt we owe them. But we must do what little we can. My father, King Edvarrd, has asked that I present Master Turek and Master Eril the Jull medal of extraordinary honor.”
Six attendants approached, three each to Turek and Eril and hung large ornate, jewel-encrusted gold pendants on them. They were each suspended from three-inch-wide vermillion silk ribbons. Once they were in place, the attendants retreated.
The prince continued, “It has been over one hundred years since anyone has been accorded this honor. It signifies the greatest honor a king of Jull can bestow on any person. You are now both full citizens of Jull and all your descendants hereafter. If there is any boon you require, now or in the future, you have but to ask.”
The crowd cheered and Eril, along with Turek stood, smiling woodenly. The entire thing seemed unreal to Eril. He was certain it was some kind of dream, and would soon wake to find he had been grievously wounded in battle and this was his mind’s way of coping with his imminent demise. That felt infinitely more plausible to him than his current circumstance, but there it was.
Finally, as the cheering subsided and Eril and Turek went back to their places at the high table, the prince gave each of them bulging velvet bags. “I know wizards prefer payment in gems to gold, so I have prepared these for you,” he said quietly to Eril and Turek. He turned directly to Turek, “This is in addition to the agreed-upon sum for your defense of the city. Though this will stretch our gem reserves, it is nothing compared to what the loss would have cost us, so I consider it quite the bargain.”
Eril took a moment to loose the draw-string on the bag and gaze inside. The bag was filled with an assortment of gemstones of various sizes and colors. Having had no direct experience with this level of wealth before, Eril could only guess at the values of the gems, but he knew this was a king’s ransom by any measure. It made the funds he’d brought to buy the Ruins of Darlock seem tiny in comparison. This only increased Eril’s feeling that this entire scene could not be happening.
Eril closed the bag and stammered his thanks to prince Cavalar. He had to search around for some way of concealing the valuable bag beneath his clothes.
The idea that he was carrying this kind of wealth frightened him. He had been on guard the entire evening, and now was even more worried. The fact that everyone was treating him as some sort of demi-god and wanting to touch and thank him made the entire experience nerve-wracking as well as gratifying.
After another hour of being congratulated by hundreds of people, Eril decided he couldn’t take it anymore and fled back to his quarters. He took the jewels and put them under his pillow, locked his door, set his shield and fell into bed. He was certain that the pressures of the day would keep him awake all night, but in moments he was asleep.
§ § §
The next day, Eril slept late and, for a change, no one tried to rouse him. It was nearly noon when he ventured into the workroom. He looked around, and at first thought it was empty, then he noticed Carge over in a dark corner of the room, sitting in a chair, slumped over a table, with a nearly empty bottle of wine next to him, with another two empties beside it.
Eril looked around, trying to figure where Turek might be and why Carge was so obviously drunk. He walked closer, and Carge slowly lifted his head and stared at him with barely open eyes.
“There he is,” Carge said, his words slurring slightly. “The savior of Jull. The hero of the day. Master Eril the great! Master of the skies. Destroyer of armies and navies. The greatest wizard to walk the land. All hail,” he said and slumped back on the table.
Eril really didn’t know how to take Carge’s bitter words. He decided that ignoring them might be best. “You’re drunk, Carge. Do you know where Master Turek is?”
“Oh, yes,” Carge said and burped loudly. “I indeed am drunk. There were any number of people who were happy to help me get drunk as we celebrated your great victory last night, and I was only happy to oblige, since I’m in no danger. After all, no one is out to assassinate me. I’m just the forgotten journeyman, not worth bothering with.” He slumped back down over the table.
Eril realized that Carge would be no help and turned to leave the room, but stopped when he heard that Carge was talking again. “It was supposed to be me. I was supposed to save the city along with Master Turek. I mean, if we survived. After what he heard of the attacking forces no one really expected, that, but I hoped. I came here to be a journeyman with the Great Master Turek, best battle mage in the world. I was going to be a great battle mage too. People would write songs and tell tales of me, but not now. Nope, not Car. . . now,” he said and slumped to the table unconscious. Eril wasn’t positive, but it looked like Carge might have been crying.
Master Turek was meeting with T
he Marshall when Eril found him. He had to endure more people profusely thanking him and shaking his hand. Thankfully, he hadn’t been asked to bless anyone this day. After Turek had finished his conference with The Marshall, he led Eril back up to the roof of their tower.
“I didn’t have time to thank you properly myself,” Turek said as they both looked out to the now peaceful countryside beyond the city walls. “There really was no way we could have defeated either of those armies without your assistance. I still can’t believe how you got the Espilonian generals to retreat, though I understand why. Usually, generals are more stupid than that.”
“I think when I sucked up that one general into the void when he started posturing, that seemed to change their minds.”
“Ah yes, generals are very brave when it comes to sacrificing other’s lives, but not so much when their own are threatened.” He chuckled.
“What do we do now?” Eril asked.
“Well, I still have much work to do here. Jull, after all, is my home. First time I’ve ever had to defend it. I’m always defending, or attacking, someone else’s. So, I have work. What will you do?”
Eril had thought there would be something more, something he was missing. “I don’t know. Is there any more reason I would be needed in Jull?”
“Well, the kingdom is safe, for the time being. Espilona and Nitholia won’t dream of attacking here any time soon, and we’re on good terms with our other neighbors. We’re on the opposite side of the continent from Grimor, so even if they choose to start a new Great War, we won’t be any sort of immediate target. So, in a word, I’d say your services are no longer required. And I’ve got nothing left I can teach you.”
Eril felt oddly let down. He had thought that the war here would likely last months and he’d prepared mentally for that eventuality. Now it was over, in less than three weeks. He knew he needed to get back to Argrave and the primary gate. There was that and so much more to do.
And there was Fil. He did want to get back to her. It just all seemed so sudden, he wasn’t ready for it.
“Doesn’t seem like it could be over, does it?” Turek said, echoing some of Eril’s thoughts.
“Yeah. I just thought, there’d be, I don’t know, more . . .”
“I understand. I’ve felt the same myself. When a battle goes much better than expected, it sometimes feels hollow. In your heart, you’ve steeled yourself for a hard-fought, desperate struggle, maybe even defeat, and then things turn out better than you would have dared hope, and it leaves you flummoxed.”
“That’s it exactly. Has that happened to you before?”
“Twice, and I guess this makes three times. It is a confusion, but a happy one.”
“So, what do you do?”
“Well,” Turek said, still looking out into the fields. “I’ve just learned to take my wins with grace and not expect them to repeat. I’ve had more than enough close-fought battles that I’ve no wish for more.”
“So, I can go?”
“Yes, I think you should. Don’t get me wrong, I’d be happy for you to stay as long as you like, but I don’t think you’ll be happy here. You won’t be able to go anywhere without people falling all over you. Also, there’re still assassins about. Everyone knows what you look like here and no one would take it amiss if someone is asking for your whereabouts. Unless you want to go about invisible and shielded, this is a very dangerous place for you right now.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. This whole hero thing isn’t nearly as nice as the stories make it out to be.”
“It never is.” He turned to Eril. “Get your stuff together, get some rest. We’ll have a private dinner with the prince and The Marshall tonight, and you can leave in the morning.”
“That sounds good. I think I’ll stay up here on the roof for a while more.”
“I’ll send someone up to fetch you for dinner. Enjoy your time, Eril. You’ve earned it,” Turek said and turned and left the roof. Eril stared out for a bit and then remembered he hadn’t reported in to Master Silurian the night before, so he dug out his communicator and called.
Chapter 72
The next morning Eril got all his things together and left from the top of the tower. He did not go with fanfare, in fact, the only people who saw him leave were Turek and The Marshall who had come specifically to see him off. Eril was well aware of the path he needed to follow to get back to the ruins and the primary gate. After talking to master Silurian the previous evening, he once again felt the urgency of his mission to get back to the gate and to get it fully functional as soon as possible.
With his recharged shield amulet, he was able to fly even faster than he had on the way down. The urgency drove him so that he made significantly more progress the first day than he would have otherwise. He stayed the night at a different inn and once again used the guise of a journeyman smith on his way north. The people in the tavern were talking about the strange events that were just now being heard of, the battle being waged in Jull.
Eril didn’t want to attract any attention since he was technically in enemy territory, so he went to bed early and arose even earlier and began his next day of flying, where he went faster still than he had before. He worked on using the shield to shape the way he cut through the air. His efforts were not entirely successful, but he did manage to make things somewhat quieter so he could fly even faster.
He would have made it back to the village of Chilzen where the gate was located by early afternoon if he hadn’t had to divert around a huge thunderstorm that he could not fly over or under without great difficulty.
As it was, he arrived at Took’s inn just as it was getting dark. When he came through the door, he was greeted by several of the regulars and Took and his wife were both overjoyed to see him.
Once again, Fil wasn’t there when he arrived. She was out on a hunting trip in the woods and wasn’t expected to return until the next day. Marta was all over him, asking him questions trying to find out about what had happened with his various battles. Eril discovered there had been no news received through normal channels on anything regarding the conflict in Jull. Eril decided he would not reveal what had happened or his part in it at this point, but would wait until the news filtered up through normal traffic.
Eril spent the night in one of the rooms at Took’s inn and relished the experience of not being considered a hero or someone of supernatural strength and power.
§ § §
The next morning Eril woke to Fil pounding on his door, demanding to see him. She had just arrived, and her parents had told her where he was. She was still dirty from her trek through the woods but was beaming from ear to ear on seeing Eril.
“Eril, it’s just so good to see you,” she said. “It has been so long, well, no actually it hasn’t been nearly as long as you made it sound like it would be. How did everything turn out?”
“Yeah, it did end up being quite a bit quicker than I was expecting. And well, things turned out much better than I had hoped.” Eril said blushing.
“So, you won, didn’t you? I can’t imagine you didn’t.”
“Yeah, we won. I learned some prodidgous new things, and I was able to be a real help in winning the battles.”
“Now, tell me all about it,” she said anxiously. “I want to hear everything.”
“Well, I’m not sure I really should be talking about it. Since the news hasn’t gotten here yet, if people heard, it would raise more questions than we really want.”
“You can tell me. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Not even your father? Not even Marta?”
“Well, I’m not sure I can leave off telling them.”
“Yeah, that’s the problem I was thinking of. I really like your father, but he’s not very good at keeping secrets, even important ones.”
“OK, so you can’t talk about the battles, but was it hard? I mean it is war, and I’ve heard war is really difficult to handle.”
Eril looked off into the distance, th
e images of battles and death moving unbidden before his eyes. “Yeah, it was very hard. I never thought it could be that horrible. I’ve seen death before, but nothing like this. Hundreds, no thousands of people died. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to get over it.”
Fil put comforting hands on his shoulders, not quite a hug but a definite show of sympathy. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Eril, but I’m sure it was best for the people in Jull. You probably saved thousands of lives.”
“Yeah, that’s what I keep telling myself. That’s the only thing that makes it so that I can sleep at night.”
Eril stared off into the distance. Fil too stared out the window, unsure what to say. Finally, she brightened and said, “Well we don’t have to talk anymore about that. Now, what are you going to do today?”
“I need to get some breakfast and then head down to the gate and see what progress has been made on repairing equipment down there. We must get the water wheel running again so that the gate can resume full operation.”
“I think you’ll be really surprised at how much they’ve been able to do,” she said. “I keep being amazed at how fast Kason and the people working with him have been able to change things. It’s weird how there are different people every time I look. I guess they must be going through the gate to come and go.”
“Well, that’s good news. Give me a few minutes to get dressed and get some breakfast, and we can go down there together.”
§ § §
It took longer than Eril had initially anticipated getting down to the cavern. He realized as soon as he started to dress that he’d failed to bathe the previous day and really needed a good wash. After that, Took insisted on feeding him more food than he imagined was possible, all while filling him in on all the gossip of the village. Filora must have said something to him because he made a point of not asking anything about Eril’s time in Jull.
The Journeyman for Zdrell Page 43