by Hana Steven
“Yep, if Gale doesn’t smack that guy good I want to do it myself.”
“Don’t be too mad if there’s nothing left,” Gale says. “No one talks like that about my sister.”
“Now, now,” Bozo says, “Let’s not do anything you’ll regret.”
“Oh,” I call out. “You’ve already done that.”
Gale darts forward as I turn and run toward our rear. Casting my Kitsune spell, I begin flinging a variant of the Vine Snare Beth and I made; this one we call a Parasite Snare because it uses the captives’ own mana to maintain itself.
As the bandits at the rear fall to my snares, I angle more to the side until I have circled around and am now running along the line of bandits. Some get blasted out of my way with a windblast before getting caught by one of my Snares, while others try to free their companions only to get caught up in the snare as well.
As I near the front where Bozo is, I look to my left and see Erik struggling with the bandits on his side. I throw a few Snares into the mass of bandits forming around him, allowing him to break free of their circle and continue along the line. Following the ring of bandits toward where Bozo was, I see a mass of vines and bodies; at the front is a very unsettled looking Bozo.
“You insulted my sister,” I hear Gale declare. “Now, I think I know what you had planned, so how about I let you get a feel of what I think of that?”
There is a surge of mana from Gale and the vines pull Bozo into their mass.
I come to a stop beside her and ask, “What are you doing to him?”
“Teaching him a lesson,” she replies. “He won’t be seriously hurt, but it should make him think twice before trying that again.”
Panting, Erik comes to a stop beside us, hands on his knees. “What…What are you two made of?” he asks between gasps.
“Magic, cuteness, and the ability to kick butt,” Gale responds, causing me to giggle.
“Whatever,” Erik says.
“My, my,” booms a man’s voice from behind the mass of vines before us. “I really didn’t think that fool would lose to such a small group of travelers, let alone just a couple of kids.”
The three of us turn in the direction of the voice in time to see the mass of vine and bodies be swept aside by some unseen force. Standing only twenty feet or so in front of us is a man wearing fancy looking clothes with lots of jewelry. I get a glimpse of white gloved hands before they disappear behind his shimmering purple cloak. He is looking at the three of us as if we are mere pests in his way.
“Let me make you girls a better offer,” he states. “Come with me and we can conquer the cities and live like royalty.”
“No, thanks,” I declare. “I’m happy where I am.”
“Yeah,” Gale agrees.
“Too bad,” the man declares. “I can’t let you go now that you’ve seen me, but I can at least let you know the name of the man that will end you.”
He folds his right hand over his chest while fanning his cloak out behind him with his left as he bows. “I am the sorcerer Sauron, the greatest magic user alive.”
“I doubt that,” Gale scoffs.
“For that, little brat,” Sauron replies angrily, “You shall be the first to die.”
I feel mana build in him and throw up my strongest shield between him and us. Not a moment later, whatever spell he cast collides with my shield, shattering it. My shield falls apart, but it did its job and his spell is no more. Realizing that he is serious about killing us, I throw as many Parasite Snares at him as I can. Beside me, Gale throws her own spells as well.
Our spells hit home, wrapping our opponent in so many vines that we can’t even make him out anymore. Suddenly the vines are blasted to pieces, fragments scattering everywhere and sending Erik flying back. Standing in the middle of the mess is Sauron, an angry look now dominant in his features.
“That,” he says, “was a mistake.”
He raises his hand and Gale throws up a shield just in time to intercept another attack. Not holding back anymore, I cast a Windblast at the sorcerer just as Gale’s spell shatters.
I put a lot of power into that spell, but I feel like it won’t be enough. As soon as my first spell leaves my hand I launch another, then pull my staff out of its loop.
Gale growls angrily as Sauron waves a hand, dispelling the dust that my spells have launched into the air; he doesn’t appear to even have a scratch from the same spell that took a chunk out of a tree.
Leveling my staff, I ready another volley. I know I promised not to, but if he can survive a blast of that strength without a scratch, then I don’t have much choice.
The sorcerer steps forward and I launch my spell through my staff. Sauron is sent flying back as the ground beneath him explodes into a rain of debris. I watch closely, hoping that this time he will stay down. My hopes are shattered, however, when Sauron steps out of the dust, his clothing ripped and torn, but otherwise showing no signs of harm.
I hear a scared whine from Gale as my body grows cold. Still clutching my staff, I fall to the ground, my legs no longer able to support me.
Chapter 6
Difference in Power
I tremble in fright as a man that just survived an attack that should be deadly walks my way, murder plain as day in his eyes.
“You ripped my clothes,” he growls. “I’m going to make you pay for that.”
He readies another attack and launches it at my head. I watch as the blast, as if in slow motion, streaks toward my head. Before it can hit me, however, a shimmering red dome appears around Gale, Erik, and myself, stopping the spell dead in its tracks.
“I was going to let the girls take care of you,” Dad declares from behind me, “but it seems they have lost heart.”
“If you prefer to have them watch you die first, then so be it,” Sauron says.
“I thought the title was just a way to scare your enemies,” Poseidon calls out from behind us. “But it sounds like you actually think you are that strong.”
“I don’t think I’m strong,” Sauron says. “I am strong.”
“Not if a couple of little girls who have only been learning magic for a couple of weeks can drive you so close to your limits,” Dad says. “They may not have the experience to notice that your mana has run thin, but I do.”
Dad steps in front of me and slowly walks toward the sorcerer.
“Your feints won’t work on me,” Sauron says as fire erupts in his palms. “Now, die,” he says calmly, thrusting his hands forward and sending a torrent of fire straight at us.
I watch from behind as the fire washes over my father and then circles back on itself, as if drawn by a magnet.
Sauron starts laughing maniacally as the inferno roars around Dad.
“If you were even a fraction as powerful as you think you are,” Dad’s voice rings out, “then you would know there were quite a few powerful people around when magic was still new. And we have had all these years to hone our skills.”
Sauron’s laughter falters as Dad speaks. When the flames around Dad divide and compress into two of his gleaming red swords, I can see a look of confusion, shock, and fear plastered to Sauron’s face.
“Impossible,” he sputters. “My inferno can melt steel. There’s no way you should have survived!”
“If he was anyone else,” Poseidon says, “that might hold true. But attacking him with fire is like trying to drown a fish in water.”
Dad darts forward, absorbing another fire attack before spinning around and landing a kick on the sorcerer’s chest, knocking him to the ground. As he finishes the spin, Dad plunges his blades down into the ground on either side of the man’s neck, creating an “X” so that if Sauron moves he will come into contact with the sharp edges of the twin swords.
Dad leaves his blades pinning the man down and walks back to us, “You girls okay?”
I nod.
“I’m okay,” Gale replies.
“I’m fine,” Erik moans from behind. “Thanks for asking.�
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“He took that blast,” I state, looking at the sorcerer.
“The tree exploded,” Gale says. “But he barely had a scratch after being hit by it.”
“He probably has some form of shield just like you used to stop his attack,” Dad says, resting a hand on my shoulder. “He might have looked unharmed, but he wouldn’t have survived another attack. He was bluffing at the end; that torrent of fire used up the rest of his mana.”
“You girls did magnificently,” Poseidon says. “But remember, just because someone appears to survive a strong attack unscathed doesn’t mean they really did.”
“And you shouldn’t lose heart,” Dad adds. “The moment you give up is when you are guaranteed to lose.”
Picking my staff up from the ground where I dropped it, Dad puts a hand under my arm and lifts me up. “C’mon, let’s get going,” he says. “It will do you girls some good to get moving again.”
Gale and I follow Dad past the restrained sorcerer and out of Ashford, Poseidon and Erik close behind.
Both of us are in a daze as we walk. I am vaguely aware of stopping for lunch, but it’s not until we stop for dinner that I feel like I am back to my normal self.
“We won’t be staying the night here,” Dad informs. “We will get some food then push on to Kingston. It will probably be near dark when we get there, but I think a real bed should be enough motivation.”
“We can stay at an inn?” I ask.
“What’s an inn?” Gale questions me.
“It’s a place where you can pay to use a room for the night,” I explain. “They have beds and showers, though they don’t have running hot water.”
Dad chuckles at our exchange then answers my question, “Yes, we can stay at an inn.”
Dad and Poseidon make dinner, letting us kids rest, and then we continue on our way.
The sun is barely above the horizon behind us when we finally reach Kingston. The first buildings that come into sight appear to be old gas stations and other travel-oriented businesses. Houses can be seen down side roads while further into town we can see lamps being lit.
As we approach a couple of patrolling enforcers, Dad calls out, “Excuse me.”
The enforcers look our way before moving over to us.
“What can we help you with, sir?” one of them asks.
“We’re looking for the Adventurer Shop; could you point us in the right direction?” Dad requests.
“Of course,” the second man replies. “Keep heading down this road. Hang a right just before the Craft Cubby. The Adventurer Shop is just a block down on your right.”
“Thank you,” Dad tells them. “If you could also have an enforcer sent there, I am certain what we have to say will be of importance to the enforcers as well.”
The two enforcers share a look then the first says, “We will have someone dispatched there as soon as we can.”
“Thank you,” Poseidon says with a slight bow.
The enforcers nod their heads then continue on their way.
Following the men’s instructions, we make our way to the Adventurer shop. This one is set up in an old brick building with large windows on either side of the door and a “Martin’s Videos” sign poorly covered up by a banner that reads “Adventurer Shop.”
Entering the shop, we are greeted by an older woman with brown hair that is just starting to turn gray and gray eyes that seem to pierce right through me. She is wearing simple brown pants and a plain white shirt. An arrow, with only one of its feathers in place, is positioned in a stand on the counter before her.
“Why don’t you go turn in your quest,” Dad prompts. “We can turn in the bandit one afterward.”
“Okay,” I answer before heading up to the counter and pulling the box and request form out of my bag. Looking to the woman, I set both on the counter and say, “I have a delivery from Parston.”
The woman takes the box and gives it a look over before saying, “Looks okay to me.” She signs the request and puts it and the box behind the counter. I hear her opening a drawer before she hands me a small stack of paper bills, “That’s seventy-five Klen for delivery.”
I take the money and say, “Thank you.”
“Don’t spend it all in one place,” the woman says with a smile.
I nod and head back to Dad.
When I return Poseidon asks, “So how should we do this? If we turn it in separately, the second group probably won’t get anything.”
“Why don’t we turn it in together?” Dad asks. “I don’t mind splitting the reward with you two. We mostly took the quest because it was on our way and because Sylphy wanted to stop the bandits.”
Poseidon looks to Erik who shrugs. “Fine by me,” he says. “The girls did most of the work anyway.”
“Okay, then,” Poseidon agrees. “Should we wait for the enforcer?”
“Let’s just turn it in,” Dad replies. “If they don’t show up before we leave we can ask her about a good inn, then they'll know where to find us.”
Poseidon nods and the five of us move back to the counter.
Dad and Poseidon set the forms for the bandit quest on the counter and Dad says, “We’re here to turn in the quest for confirming the bandits in Ashford.”
“The enforcers will be glad to hear that,” the clerk says. “I take it there weren’t any?”
“There are quite a few, actually,” Poseidon corrects. “The kids here took care of them, though.”
The clerk looks from Poseidon to Gale, Erik, and me and back again before asking, “You’re kidding, right?”
“I took out their leader,” Dad answers. “A man calling himself Sauron. But otherwise these three handled them on their own.”
The woman just stares at him for a moment then says, “If you say so. To receive your reward you’ll have to come back later.”
She opens her mouth to say more, but the door opens and a man bulging with muscles and wearing an enforcer uniform enters the shop. His black hair is cut short except for a ponytail at the back that trails down behind his back. He glances around then asks, “Which of you requested an enforcer to be dispatched here?”
“That was me,” Dad says, raising a hand.
“I hope you have a good reason,” the man says with a frown. “We have more important things to do than run errands for travelers.”
“I imagine it’s because they turned in the Ashford bandits quest,” the clerk says.
“Really?” the enforcer questions. “We had given up on the quest being completed and were preparing to raid the town ourselves.”
“You won’t need a raiding unit,” Poseidon says. “But you will want a good number of officers to go and collect them.”
“So, you just verified their existence,” the enforcer says. “We still need to go and capture them.”
“We already caught them,” Gale corrects. “You just need to go and get them.”
“There must not be too many of them,” the enforcer guesses, “if you managed to subdue them while protecting these three.”
“Actually,” the clerk jumps in, “they claim the kids took out the bandits.”
“There are several dozen caught in the girls’ spells, and the leader is pinned down by my blades,” Dad specifies. “That man is quite dangerous; he called himself Sauron.”
“Sauron,” the enforcer repeats. “That name sounds familiar, and not from The Lord of the Rings.”
Dad hands the man a small tube of water and instructs, “Pour this over my blades and they will dissolve. As for the vines holding the rest of the bandits, a little fire will undo the spell.”
The enforcer takes the tube, a look of disbelief on his face. “Meet me back here the day after tomorrow at dawn,” he says. “I will have returned by then with confirmation of your claims.”
“Very well,” Dad says. “Could one of you direct us to a good inn?” he asks, looking between the enforcer and the clerk.
“There’s a Knights Inn a few blocks north of her
e,” the clerk supplies. “It has remained open and in good condition.”
“Thank you,” Poseidon tells her. Then she and Dad usher us out of the store.
Heading north, we quickly find the suggested inn. We enter through the front door and get rooms: one for Poseidon and Erik, and one for Dad, Gale, and I. Once in our room, I claim the bed farthest from the door and deposit my bag.
“Why don’t you girls get a shower,” Dad suggests, pointing to the door at the back of the room.
Excited, Gale barely waits long enough for me to grab a change of clothes before pulling me into the bathroom, “Come on, we can shower together!”
I let her have her way, happy to spend some time with my new sister. We both strip down and quickly scrub ourselves off in the cold water before filling the tub, using magic to heat up the water, and relaxing for a bit.
“This is nice,” Gale sighs, settling down in the water.
“A hot shower is better,” I inform her.
“Can’t wait for that either,” she comments. “But it’s quite uncomfortable to have wet fur.”
“But you still have fur,” I say, concerned.
“Yeah, but much less,” she argues. “Besides, I have wanted to do this for a while. Susan wouldn’t let me in the shower at the farm.”
“Well,” I begin, “I can help you get dry when we’re done, if you want.”
“Thanks,” she says before slipping lower into the water at my feet.
Following her example I let myself slide further into the water, as well.
Once we are good and pruney, we get out and I make good on my promise and help Gale dry her fur. Nice and dry, I turn to get dressed while Gale simply drops her spell.
We make our way back into the main room and find Dad sitting in a chair with his book.
Hearing us approach, he puts his book down and looks our way, “Feel better?”
Gale nods and I say, “Yeah, that was really nice.”
“Good,” he says. “Then I’ll get one myself. You two make yourselves comfortable.” He exchanges his book for some clothes and heads into the bathroom himself.
I put my old clothes back in my bag and join Gale on the bed.
