by B. T. Narro
“That’s fine, I think we understand,” Byron interrupted.
Ray seemed relieved that he didn’t have to keep on going, but his relief only lasted a moment as he looked up at Byron with worry in his eyes. “Can you help us? We don’t have the means to provide them with what they’re asking for. Drayer is a farming town, but the winter has been dry. We’re mostly surviving on what we stored before winter, but they took most of it yesterday. Many of us will starve if this goes on.”
The interrogator from earlier listened to everything with his arms folded. He said, “How do we know this isn’t a trap?”
I believed Ray, but just in case I was wrong, I wasn’t going to reveal my quickly forming plan in front of the teen. I would wait until he was finished.
“It is the truth, I swear. We thought about going to the other towns and recruiting men to stand up against Davon’s bunch, but no one would be willing to help us because he has the king’s support. Our only hope is with you, the enemies of the king.”
“How did you know about our fort here?” Byron asked.
“Everyone in Drayer knows. Someone heard you chopping down trees a while ago, and word got around. We have a couple sorcerers who don’t mind taking a stroll through the forest when they want to work on their skills. It was probably one of them, if I had to guess. I never asked.”
That sounded good enough for me to trust him.
“Thank you for bringing this to us,” I said to the young man. “Allow us some time.”
He looked at Byron, who seemed a little surprised by my initiative before nodding in agreement. “A moment, Ray.”
He walked off to give us some time. Byron took a moment to gather a couple other men I had not met. He quickly informed them of the situation. When he was done, I had a question that needed asking before I got to my plan.
“Is it a shock to you, sir, that this town knows of the existence of our fort?”
“No, we expected it,” Byron answered. “Our purpose isn’t to surprise but to eliminate our enemy’s options.”
“I would like to tell you what I would like to do about this, if you don’t mind, sir.”
“I think I already know,” he said with a fatherly wrinkle of concern across his forehead. “Am I right to assume that you are eager to fly there and scope out this town?”
“I am,” I admitted.
I noticed the four other men looking at me curiously. The interrogator asked me, “How fast can you get there and back?”
“In less than an hour, but that’s if I go alone. I’m not planning on doing that.”
“Why are we talking about helping them at all?” The interrogator looked at Byron. “We gain nothing by throwing away the life of our healer. He’s much too valuable to defend these people.”
“I’m inclined to agree, Jon,” Byron told me. “I empathize for the people of Drayer, but I’m not going to allow you to endanger yourself or anyone else if this doesn’t benefit us.”
“The king told us that this war might be won not by battle but by attacking supply chains,” I argued. “Isn’t that true?”
“Yes, but stopping them from stealing food from one town isn’t going to make a difference,” Byron replied.
“It’s a start.” I couldn’t imagine letting all these innocent people fend for themselves, even if their town did reside in Rohaer.
Ray called to us, “I forgot to tell you something.”
Byron gestured for Ray to join us.
The young man walked over and said, “The officer, Davon, he melted our swords when we tried to defend our women. We’ve been hearing legends about a powerful metal mage. I think he’s it. Wouldn’t all of you like to get rid of him? He could take out the armor and weapons from all of your troops come battle.”
Byron asked, “How far away was he when he melted them?”
“We can’t take his answer as reliable,” the interrogator interrupted.
“I would not lie!” Ray said. “He wasn’t very far when he melted our swords. I’d say five yards. It was still far enough for none of us to get close enough, and that’s all that matters.”
“Did anyone try to put an arrow through him?” Byron asked.
“One man, but no one else did after that. Not after what Davon did to him once they caught him.” It didn’t seem like Ray wanted to speak about it, and I certainly didn’t want to hear it. I had already made up my mind, anyway.
“How many were there?” I asked.
“Just ten. All were dteria mages, some with bows and others with swords and shields. All had on thick armor.”
I had another important question, “How many will they bring tomorrow?”
“He didn’t say.”
Byron excused Ray again so we could finalize a decision.
This time I was adamant. “This is a chance to take out someone who could be detrimental to us. I’m going, and I’m going to take one of my friends with me. He has a sword like this one.” I pulled out my blade of Valaer steel. “Not even the strongest metal mage in Lycast could melt it. I doubt this Davon could, either. We’ll kill him tomorrow morning, and then I’ll report back to you, sir,” I told Byron.
“I’ll give you permission to go, but you’re not fighting. You’ll wait until the metal mage is headed there tomorrow. See how many are coming before they enter the town. Then you will come here and notify me, and I can send bows and arrows for the people of Drayer to defend themselves if it seems like they may be able to take out this officer. He is probably stationed somewhere nearby with a small army, most likely in a camp that has been set up far ahead of King Garlin’s larger group. I’m sure they’ve branched out and imposed their will on many more towns than Drayer.”
“I could find out where they’re located and how many there are.”
“That is too much of a risk with Valinox watching out for you. Besides, we don’t have the means to do much right now except kill that metal mage. We can deal with whatever happens after. However, if you have even the smallest sense that Valinox might be nearby or this is all some elaborate setup, you will get out of there. We cannot lose you over this.”
It was true. I had to start thinking in bigger terms than wanting to defend the innocent people of a small farming village. As much as it pained me to allow this injustice to continue, I wasn’t going to risk my life over it.
“I agree,” I said. “Now I should get going if I’m going to grab my friend. He’s quite a ways north.”
“Why do you need him?”
“He’s the only one I trust to help me deal with the unexpected.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I flew north quickly, as there wasn’t much time. I didn’t have to search the road for long before I found my peers on horseback, led by Leon and Jennava. The sun was beginning to set by then, most of the day lost to my earlier travels. I landed in front of them, visibly startling all of them including their horses.
“Hey, I, oh shit, sorry!”
Hadley’s horse darted off into the forest while a few others went down the road. Knowing she was probably the least skilled rider of our group, I took off through the air after her and her animal. I landed in front of the horse. The mare knew me. I had ridden her several times. I was sure she was just startled from my sudden appearance but would calm soon.
“It’s just me,” I told the mare as Hadley pulled on the reins.
The horse reared up. Hadley fell off and struck the ground with an “oof.”
“Are you all right?” I asked as I helped her up.
“Fine, can you get my horse?”
I flew after the animal and landed in front. It reared up again. I took the reins.
“It’s all right,” I said as. “Easy, there.”
I could see her recognizing me and slowing her movements. I brought her back to Hadley. She had dusted herself off by then.
“Do you need healing?” I asked.
“That depends on what kind, handsome.”
I matched her grin.
“It’s good to see you,” she said as we came close and put our hands on each other. She kissed me but then pulled back. “Hold on, is something wrong?”
“Jon, what the hell is going on?” Leon was yelling from the road a little ways back.
“Nothing’s wrong,” I told Hadley quietly, “but time is against me. I’ll explain everything to you with the others.” I gave her hand a quick squeeze before I took off to rejoin them on the road, knowing she would bring her horse back to us soon enough.
I started attaching the flying harness to my body as I spoke. “I need Michael to come with me.”
“What’s the matter?” he asked.
“They have a metal mage, one who seems to be even stronger than Charlie.”
“Who does, Rohaer?” Michael asked.
“Yes, he’s an officer in their army. He led a group of men to a town not far from the fort, which is more of a palisade I would say, but that’s not important right now. He’s probably going to return to that town tomorrow morning.”
“Slow down.” Leon said. “What town?”
“Drayer, it’s a farming town in Rohaer. The metal mage—his name is Davon—and his men raped and killed and took much of the food Drayer had stored for the winter. That was this morning. One young man made the five-mile trek through the forest to our fort to beg us for help. The metal mage melted the swords of the men who tried to stand up for the others. He’s most likely coming back tomorrow morning, like I said, which means he can only be stopped with sorcery and Valaer steel. It’s probably our only chance to kill him so we don’t have to face him at the defile, where he is likely to disable all the armor and weapons of our front line.”
“And you want me to go?” Michael asked dubiously.
“I need someone to help me meet with these people tonight and formulate a plan. I might’ve asked Leon, but I don’t feel right taking him away from the rest of you in case there’s an ambush. Reuben’s another choice, but his sorcery isn’t suited for this kind of encounter.”
“What about Remi?” Michael asked.
“Yeah,” Remi said.
“See, she wants to go, unlike me.”
“I have a plan that’s better suited for you, but if you’re too much of a coward…”
“Hey, wait a minute.”
We argued back and forth for a while as they tried to get more information out of me about my plan. Eventually, I realized that it would be faster if I told them everything, because I wasn’t going to convince them to help otherwise. Only then did my peers stop voicing complaints and realize that Michael really was the best for this. He would leave his horse behind, but I was certain my peers would be able to get the extra animal to the fort without much issue. That’s when I finally noticed that Kataleya wasn’t here. I had forgotten she would split off to join with the Yorns and the Chespars. She was probably with her brother now, as well as Trevor Chespar. She should be safe, no matter what they had planned. It was Michael and I who would be at risk.
Michael was a lot heavier than Charlie. Getting him into the harness involved a lot of jokes and uncomfortable proximity, and after a few laughs from the others, I soon took off with him in tow.
We soared, the wind whipping our clothes. “Good god, Jon, do you have to go so fast?”
“We don’t have many hours of daylight left.”
“This is all happening too quickly.”
“I know, but there’s nothing I can do about that.”
“You could’ve let this metal mage have one more day of food grabbing and…uh.”
“Raping and killing?”
“All right, I see what you mean.”
We should be able to return to the fort, collect the swords we needed, and land in Drayer before Ray returned there. It might make things difficult to arrive before Ray, but we didn’t have the luxury of time. I had been given a little direction from Ray before leaving, but I didn’t know these parts very well. It was easy to get lost. We might even land in a different village without realizing it. It was best to go as quickly as we could.
*****
When we finally found the town, there weren’t many people in sight. The red sun, barely visible on the horizon, colored the sky crimson. I was careful not to lift us too high because I didn’t want anyone in Drayer to see what I could do, just in case this was a trap. That meant Michael and I had to walk into the town from the surrounding forest. Even Ray didn’t know the extent of my abilities.
Drayer was a large town, possibly bigger than the capital in Newhaven, but that was because of the farms. There had to be fewer people here. Straw seemed to be in abundance, covering thatch roofs of nearly every home except the small mansion of the lord of the manor on the northern side of town. Each home had its own fence, a few neighbors close enough to share a side.
There were a few connecting roads between the homes, with a village church enclosed by a stone wall and an apple tree in its field. A river ran underneath a small bridge around the edge of the city, passing by the mill where a waterwheel turned. Smoke billowed out of the chimney of the blacksmith’s quarters nearby.
We didn’t see a single person until we took the road uphill and got a closer view of the lord’s manor. What looked to be a hundred people were gathered in the courtyard through the open gate.
Michael and I walked there briskly. There was just one man with a sword visible. He stood near the person I assumed to be the lord of Drayer, an older gentleman with his back to the closed door of his mansion, his wife standing beside him. A boy, perhaps twelve, stood on the other side of his father, their layered and bright robes marking their rank above everyone else.
I recognized Ray at the head of the group of townspeople, as he stood between them and the lord. He seemed to be saying something to the lord but stopped when he realized that everyone was turning to face us.
“Look,” he announced. “Lycast has already sent two capable sorcerers to help us. I told you they would.”
Ray ran through the crowd to get to us. His forehead glistened with sweat.
“I just told them of the plan,” he said mostly to me. “I think you should say something to convince them.”
Most of the crowd was turned my way, but they turned back to face their lord when the older man addressed us.
“I’m in charge of this city,” he intoned. “I did not allow you, sorcerers of our enemies, to come here, and I certainly didn’t allow you, Ray, to invite these sorcerers—”
“You are only in charge of the city because you kiss the ass of the noble who put you here!” Ray interrupted. It shocked me, and clearly Michael as well as he let out a sound of “uh oh.” But it didn’t seem to surprise the rest of the townspeople. Perhaps they were used to Ray speaking like this.
Ray continued, addressing the crowd this time, “After Rohaer’s soldiers came here, Hamel said it’s best to let them come back without opposition! Is that still what you believe, Hamel?”
“We have to support the army,” the lord explained.
“Even when they kill and rape and will cause us to starve?” Ray asked incredulously.
“They only killed because some people tried to stop them,” Hamel replied.
“And what they did to our girls? Our daughters and sisters? Our mothers?”
“I will speak to them and try to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”
“You are nothing but a stooge!” Ray yelled. “You are useless to the people you are supposed to watch over.”
“You can’t talk to my father that way!” screamed the lord’s son. “You are just a farmer, and he is lord!”
Hamel put his hand on his son’s shoulder and said something. Although the boy had balled fists, he stepped back and didn’t look like he would speak again.
Michael whispered to me, “I don’t know about this, Jon.”
I was having my doubts as well. I had expected everyone in the city to rally behind Ray’s cause, but I was starting to get the idea that he had left for our
fort on his own. He seemed to have a bit of a temper, or was that just because his father was recently killed? Either way, he was clearly unstable.
The lord calmly explained, “The king will always send more, no matter how many stand in his way. His soldiers will take what food the army needs, and it is their right to kill anyone who tries to interfere. If you go against the orders, you are breaking the law. There is nothing I can do about that right now. I advise you not to interfere.”
“Is it their right to rape and rob the personal valuables from our rooms?” Ray replied.
“I said I would speak to them about that.”
“And I say you can’t do shit even if you wanted to! We are done listening to you. The only way to stop them is by doing something ourselves. Isn’t that right?” he asked the crowd.
Murmurs of agreement sprang out but were quickly silenced by the lord. “You will listen to me, Ray, or I will have the army take you. Then they will do what they want with you!”
I could hear Ray’s breathing as a tense moment passed in near silence.
He drew his knife and darted through the crowd too fast for me to figure out what I should do. The lord ran to his guard, but the guard just stepped out of Ray’s path.
Over the screams of the crowd, Ray drove his dagger into the leg of the lord. Michael and I watched, frozen in horror, as Ray yanked out the dagger, blood glistening on the blade. Thankfully he did not drive it into the chest of the lord but stepped away as the older man fell with a gasp and clutched his leg.
The lord shot a look of betrayal at his guard as Ray, too, watched the armored man fail to draw his sword and observe with folded arms below a scowl at the lord.
“Even your own guardsman knows you are wrong!” Ray accused.
“That’s right, I do,” said the guard. “I can’t stomach it any longer. I don’t understand how any man can choose not to act after he saw what our own soldiers did to our people. Let me be the first to volunteer. I will never again choose my sworn duties over what I know to be right.”
