by Jordan Cramm
“One day you should travel to Elven lands if your journeys permit. The waters there pale this view in comparison.”
He looked at her a moment and noticed how the sunlight above glistened over her making her look as though she were a creature made of light herself. He smiled at her.
“Actually I intend to venture into Elven lands, and soon.”
She cocked her head sideways questioningly.
“So that's what all the supplies are for then?” she asked.
He nodded.
“I have a journey ahead. I am hoping that my best friend Ayvock could join me. I leave by week's end though, and he is in Akartha, due to become a Knight soon. His father would kill him if he follows my path here and beyond. So as it is, I am thinking I will be traveling alone. I just have to get the maps and other things in town this week. I really don't know where I am going, or even who to talk to once I get there.”
“Well maybe I can help. What exactly are you looking for?”
“Oh,” he replied, “I think what I seek is found in ancient texts. I won't really know though until I search.”
Now Katrina was intrigued and wanted to know more. She sat up now and then sat on her knees.
“Ancient texts?” she asked, “What exactly are you looking for? If you seek ancient texts, then maybe what you seek will be protected in libraries that probably will not be open to visits from people of another race.”
Wolflen nodded.
“I've considered it,” he said in a discouraged tone, “I will just have to prove my claims when I get there.”
Now Katrina was confused.
“What claims?”
Wolflen looked at her without speaking. He could see she wanted to know, but he was hesitant to say. His silence told her so, but she kept glaring at him until he spoke again.
“Maybe I should just show you.”
And instantly he summoned his War Mage manifest. When it appeared, he handed it to her. She examined it quickly.
“This is a trick,” she said while she chuckled, “nice one. How did you do that? Is there a Free Mage nearby doing this for you? Sheesh,” she continued as she examined the book further, “this looks authentic even.”
Wolflen nodded without saying a word. His strange calm told her he wasn't kidding. But she couldn't believe it either.
“This is a trick isn't it?” she asked desperately. “You aren't Elven,” she said and watched him nod no in agreement, “and...well you are young and....”
Wolflen grinned, and broke in, “and being Izenian and so young means I can't possibly be a War Mage. Plus, War Mages come along only when the Free Magic deems one is needed; when the balance of things is so far out of whack, and more importantly, when the whole of Fengysha is in danger. Yes, I know. I saw three Free Mages and they didn't believe it either. I was debating telling you even, but something about you...anyway, that's why I have to go to Elven lands. I have to know what this means, and what to do about it.”
She stood and walked to the edge of the water with a hand over her mouth. She still couldn't believe it. He watched her stand there in silence for a while, staring at the water before finally turning back toward him.
“I'm going with you,” she said at last, “you won't be able to read any ancient texts about War Mages without someone getting you access. Besides, you need someone who knows the wild—someone who can help you survive.”
He liked the idea of her being with him, but he didn't want to put her in danger either.
“Look Katrina,” he responded, “as much as the idea sounds wonderful, I don't want you in harm's way either. The Free Mages I saw in Akartha told me that if indeed I am a War Mage, then naturally I will have enemies; enemies I have never known, and enemies that Fengysha has not known in many long years. And you have an escort of guards here in Haven—an armed force of so many is more easily found than a lone traveler.”
She took a few steps back toward him.
“They aren't coming with us. I told you, I believe in destiny, and I think this is why I came to Haven. Besides, you wouldn't even know where to start looking for answers, even assuming that you could prove your case to the Elves you find. You won't likely get their help—no Izenian War Mage has ever existed before. Some Elves may take offense to that now.”
He stood up and looked at her a moment.
“What about you—how does it strike you?”
She looked away a moment and then looked back into his eyes.
“I think that the Free Magic has made its decision and chosen its warrior. If that book you hold in your hands is real, then Fengysha is in danger, and if that is true, then Elves, Izenians, Humans and others should not discriminate based on racial differences, but join as they once did.”
He looked at her a moment, nodding and taking a deep breath. Then a smile spread across her face and she asked him, “So, can you do any of the magic yet?”
He chuckled and explained the story of his magical outbursts in Akartha.
“So you see,” he said, “I had to leave. Otherwise who knows what I could have done to the home, or to them. That, plus I have to figure this out for myself without them mocking me. I didn't ask for this, it just happened. At first I thought I was to be a Free Mage, but then I examined the manifest more closely with the help of other Free Mages. And they confirmed what I now believe—that I was chosen to be a War Mage if I accept the call. Who wouldn't right? But I just can't say yes or no yet. I just...can't.”
Katrina put a soft hand on his face and looked him in the eyes to speak.
“It is a great responsibility—one you CAN refuse. If Fengysha's need is dire, and you say no, the Free Magic WILL choose another War Mage. In ancient times, there were often more than one at a given time anyway. If you have been chosen, then undoubtedly so has another. So do not feel pressured to decide one way or another. It is your choice.”
He looked at her with desire in his eyes for her.
“What would you do?” he asked desperately.
She stepped closer, so that only inches were between them. He felt his heart tremble, and she noticed that her other hand shook as she grabbed his hand. She started moving in for a kiss, and he was leaning in for it as well, when all the sudden a voice called out to her.
“Highness I must interrupt...” Jakarta said as he rushed closer.
Wolflen and Katrina stepped apart and turned, both agitated by Jakarta's presence.
“Your highness forgive me, but what would your father say? You may have snuck by my guard this morning once more, but he has bid me keep watch! What would you have me tell his majesty?”
Chapter 5: Igniting The Flame
Katrina exhaled a deep sigh. She turned her head toward Wolflen and could see the wanting in his eyes. She wondered though if it were simply his, or if she was seeing her own desire reflected in his eyes. She stepped back slowly and turned her head, glaring at Jakarta fiercely.
“I see Jakarta,” she began, “that you are breaking the rules. In the wild remember—even my father has forbidden you from following me into the wild.”
Jakarta spoke slowly in response, saying “Such is true your highness, conditional upon you entering the wild alone.”
She looked back at Wolflen and realized what Jakarta meant. Jakarta had followed her because she had left the city with Wolflen rather than alone, or with an Elven escort. Now she felt ashamed and disgusted.
“I assure you Jakarta, we are quite okay without your company to keep.”
“But your highness..”
Wolflen cut in suddenly, now agitated himself, “Look pal, why don't you get lost huh? She made it clear she doesn't want you here, and neither do I. So why don't you just leave before there's trouble.”
Jakarta was entirely surprised at this stranger's attitude toward him.
“Trouble you say?” Jakarta responded, “Is that a threat?”
“Leave Jakarta! Now!”
Katrina's exclamatory position drove Jakarta and hi
s guards away at once without further talk. Then she turned back to Wolflen and apologized for Jakarta's intrusion on their time. She said it was one of the many hassles of being a princess. He told her that he understood, but in truth he was quite frustrated over a missed kiss.
“Well, there's not much daylight left. I will gather some firewood. After that, you should try using your magic to start a fire.”
Wolflen shook his head hesitantly. He told her that he was scared to try using fire again, and that the last time he had done so, it was an accident and nearly burned his father in the process. Katrina argued though, telling him that he needed to learn to control the War Magic. She told him the fire was the most basic of spells within different guild magics and that it was likely the same for the War Magic. She suggested next, that he read his manifest more, and learn what to do in order to summon his spellbooks.
He sat on the ground next to the tree while she gathered some firewood and began forming it into a nice pile for a fire. He was reading his manifest, which mostly was a guidebook for living. Wolflen soon realized it was a guidebook of morals, ethics and advice for how to be rather than how to do the magic itself. It was not a lengthy book he noticed, and so in a short time he had learned how to summon his spellbook and had done so quickly. There were several spellbooks he could summon, but the one he needed now was the Elemental book, that taught the War Mage how to use, manipulate and control the elements. He opened it after flipping some pages; he found a section about fire.
As he scanned various pages, he learned that to do most of the spells within this spellbook, the main instruction was for him to focus his intent. No regents or tools were listed, but simply the instruction for him to focus his intent and thereby impose his will. Wolflen scratched his head. It couldn't be that easy could it? He told Katrina about what he was reading, and she asked if the instructions for the spell talked about any kind of spell price. He told her however that none was mentioned. She said she was jealous of that.
“Fire is easy to create as a Ranger. It doesn't drain a guild Mage hardly at all. Still, to have NO spell price—I am envious Wolflen.”
He smiled and looked up at her as she continued putting wood into the pile that she was collecting from the ground all around. He noticed that she did not cut any live wood, but only used what the trees dropped naturally as dead wood. He smiled, knowing that such a thing was the way of a Ranger. After a few moments, he felt that he was ready to try the magic at last. He told her to stand back, informing her that he wasn’t sure what would happen. Nothing did.
She stared at him a moment, wondering if the hesitation was planned. After a moment though, she could tell that it was not planned at all. He was straining. He pushed his hands forward, as if the gesture might make the difference. Nothing. Focus—fire. He made another gesture with his hands, and then another. He began speaking as well, saying things like “fire”, “flame on”, and even “burn”. It didn't matter what he said, nothing happened. Katrina did not say a word. Instead, she watched Wolflen collapse back to the ground, sitting cross legged with his head in his hands, his face buried in his chest. So, she returned to the chore of adding more wood to the pile.
With his head in his hands, Wolflen strained, and anger began to burn inside him. He was frustrated at the lack of skill to make fire, the simplest of spells even for the War Magic it seemed. And here he sat now, unable to do it.
“Burn damn you!” he said with rage in his voice, and at once the fire ignited.
The flame burst was bright, quick and hot. The wood exploded into flames at once, and so quickly that it nearly burned Katrina, who jumped back in instinctive reaction. The flame was taller than her. It was taller than the tree. The tree is on fire.
Wolflen jumped to his feet in surprise and saw the flames bursting out of control. He didn't know what to do at all now, but he knew the whole area was in danger of burning to ash if something wasn't done quickly. Luckily, Katrina was already a step ahead of his thought process. He watched her use magic to whirl water from the river in their direction, and she quickly had the fire out at once, though as a result they both got soaked, and their food in the basket was ruined and swept across the land once the water subsided. He looked at his hands a moment in disbelief. It had all happened so quickly, he could hardly believe he had created such a large fire, and it seemed, so simply.
“Never mind your hands,” she said rather smoothly after wiping some water from her dress, “the magic doesn't come from your hands. Some Mages are bound to that restriction. War Mages are not. You just saw only a preview of the terror you can unleash if you master yourself and the War Magic.”
Wolflen looked back at her after wiping some water from his arm.
“Gee,” he responded, “a terror huh? When you put it that way, sure I want to be a War Mage.”
His sarcasm was not lost on her.
“Look, extreme situations happen in war. And unless the side of good is prepared to use extreme measures, how will it ever be victorious?”
She has a point.
“Really,” she continued, “you should be practicing more often. Try again—only this time, meditate on a smaller fire.”
Wolflen stared at her with a look that suggested he believed it was not so simple. I never meant for a huge flame before. She wrung out the bottom edges of her dress before straightening herself once more.
“Go on,” she reiterated, “try again.”
But everything's soaked now. Uggh, whatever, I will try. He whipped his head toward the water soaked logs, this time keeping his hands comfortable at his sides. He focused intently in the fire, seeing a picture of it in his mind until sparks fluttered on the logs and a moment later; flame. The wet wood crackled as the flame came to life, and after a moment, Wolflen heard Katrina clapping in response to the new and most importantly—controlled fire. It was just the right size now, burning the logs Katrina had gathered earlier. He looked at her and she bowed her head slightly.
She stepped toward him in silence, put a hand on his shoulder and simply said, “Nicely done War Mage.”
He liked the approval he was receiving but wasn't sure he was yet comfortable with the title of War Mage. He smiled sheepishly though and thanked her anyway. Then they both discussed their food situation, noting that the food they had come with was now soaked and therefore useless now. She told him that without her bow or any hunting gear, she would not be able to kill anything of use either. He asked her if she would rather return to town then, or if she wanted to stay and sit next to the fire. She told him they could stay awhile, and so they did.
The fire was warm and kept them close together and talking as the day grew darker, until at last they realized the sun was down completely. Wolflen told her not to worry though and explained that he knew his way back to Haven. When they were ready to begin their trek back, Wolflen stood. As so planned, they would be back in Haven around the first chime of the new day. But as Wolflen stood, he saw something—something in the distance that seemed to be staring back at him. The flames of the fire rose higher a moment and then fell away again. That's when Katrina stood and saw it too.
“No way a Dire wolf got that close in silence and undetected...”
Katrina stood in awe and slight hesitant fear. She knew what a Dire wolf could do to its prey. She only hoped she and Wolflen were not that prey now as she continued speaking slowly.
“Look Wolflen, be absolutely still and do not look it in the eyes,” she was saying with a trembled whisper, “if it thinks you are challenging it, we have a fight on our hands. So I hope you can cast fire again. I am going to try a spell to...”
Wolflen put his hand up toward Katrina but stepped forward as he spoke, his eyes fixed on those of the Dire wolf, despite Katrina's warning otherwise.
“What are you doing?” Katrina whispered.
“Her name is Sespa,” Wolflen replied, “and she wants us to know that she means us no harm. She says she has traveled across the plains in search of me�
�the War Mage. Don't ask how I know this Katrina—I just do. It's like I can hear her in my head. I am going to step closer.”
Katrina couldn't believe what she was seeing, but she couldn't argue with Wolflen's statements either. The Dire wolf Sespa let Wolflen approach and even let him pet her on the head, sniffing and snorting playfully as he did.
“See,” Wolflen continued, “it is okay. She says not to worry.”
Katrina still stood in awe.
“So,” she asked, “can you talk back to it?”
Wolflen wasn't sure himself, but he simply tried speaking in his thoughts to Sespa. He told the wolf that he and Katrina were out on a walk that evening, and that he was the War Mage she sought. He told her that due to a fire spell gone wrong; the evening meal was soaked after Katrina's water manipulation spell had waterlogged everything in the area. The wolf Sespa nodded her head playfully and sniffed. Then she turned around and darted off into the distance.
Wolflen watched the Dire wolf Sespa turn. She was as big as an Izenian horse, or at least would be fully grown, but much more graceful, and more of a predator; more of a survivor. Wolflen watched her for a moment and then turned back to Katrina, who stood puzzled, clearly waiting for answers.
“I told her,” Wolflen began, “that our food was ruined. She has gone to fetch us some food.”
Katrina stepped forward and swallowed hard in shock and amazement.
“You know,” Katrina began, “it has been said that War Mages once rode to battle on the backs of various beasts...creatures that somehow bonded with them to which they could speak telepathically.”
Katrina spoke the words as they had once been given to her as a little child. Wolflen smiled though and cut her off.
“I know,” he said, “she told me.”
Katrina cocked her head sideways and grinned.
“Well, it seems you have a new friend Lord Wolflen, War Mage of Akartha and the Izenian people.”
He wasn't sure he liked the sound of that. “Look I know we were going to call it a night and everything, but if she brings food we could...I mean we...I...well it's a nice night I mean.”
