by B. T. Narro
“No, he’s the liar!” Rygen yelled. “He must’ve done other things to be banned from the army now. He shouldn’t be here.”
“She does know your full name…” the overseer said.
Marcus became irate as he gestured at Rygen. “She could’ve found out my name any number of ways! I didn’t touch her or anyone else.”
The overseer had a hard look down at Rygen. Why did he seem so bothered by her bringing this up? Couldn’t he see that this man would be a problem!
“He’s a liar,” she told him firmly, holding in her emotions as best she could. “He’s dangerous.”
The overseer glanced sideways at Marcus. “Normally we don’t question the history of a man, but now I need to know why you were removed from the army.”
Marcus let out his breath, then glared at Rygen as if wanting her to pay for this.
“For drinking, all right? I had been warned, but I drank too often. I’ve stopped since then.”
The overseer scolded the man with a finger. “Just don’t come here drunk, and don’t let me see you talking to or touching anyone.”
“I won’t.” Marcus turned around and walked back to the shovel he’d left on the ground. Rygen watched as he picked it up and glared back at her.
“Well?” the overseer asked, his annoyance obvious.
“He’s a liar,” she repeated.
“Just keep your distance from him, and I’ll keep my eyes on him.”
Would the overseer really, though? He didn’t put a lot of effort into making his statement sound genuine as he peered down at Rygen with malice. He seemed to want her to leave him alone.
“If that’s all you’ll do, then I’m transferring to Rhenol’s farm,” she said to test him.
She hoped to get some compassion from the overseer now that he finally saw how serious she was.
“Fine! You can’t do as much work as a man like Marcus can anyway. Get off my farm and don’t come back.”
Rygen felt as though he’d stabbed her in the heart. She put her hand over her chest and turned away in case she cried. She noticed Marcus staring, then looking away quickly. She was filled with rage. She stomped out of the farm, opening the gate and slamming it shut as hard as she could. She wanted to knock the whole fence down, but the wood smacking the barrier barely made a noise.
She didn’t walk far before her anger melted away and shame replaced it. She would have to work for Rhenol again. He would laugh at her, maybe even make her beg. The last overseer didn’t care about anyone, but that was a blessing most days. Rhenol enjoyed making people suffer, something Rygen would never understand.
She stopped by her shared home with Leo and Andar, thankful that at least she could complain to them later this evening. She missed her mother every day, but the pain was fading. A hope remained. She would one day have enough time to find the woman who had killed her mother. She didn’t know what she would do yet, but she had to locate Celia before she could figure that out.
Rygen pocketed Gartel’s recommendation letter that she’d kept and headed to Rhenol’s farm. It was eerie to walk down the same road that she’d taken every morning for years because she used to walk with Leo, not alone. She couldn’t remember a time in her life when Leo was not with her, except the one year she worked at the Bookbinding Guild. Even then, she would see Leo often as they read together at night.
Rhenol looked older than she remembered. His face was covered in wrinkles. His thin hair was gray. He was as ugly as he was mean, his features an insult to Rygen’s eyes. Or perhaps that was just his strong personality rubbing off on him.
He sat on a bench on the deck of his mansion, smoking his pipe. He didn’t bother to put it out as Rygen climbed up the few steps and held in a cough.
“Who are you, little girl?” he asked snidely.
“Rygen Nexi, sir. I worked for you for many years.”
“Rygen…ah. You left to work at the Bookbinding Guild! You bragged about it before sauntering off.”
She had not bragged. She was very polite, as she would be now.
“Unfortunately, I cannot continue my work there. I would be so grateful if you allowed me to work on your farm again.” She bowed.
He snickered. “What happened over at the fancy book guild?”
“Nothing, sir.” She handed over the letter Gartel had written. “The guild master wrote this for me when I had to leave. It explains that I was an excellent worker.” It also told anyone who read it that she was diligent and smart, and any employer would be lucky to have her. She let Rhenol read that.
“If that’s true,” Rhenol said with a shake of the scroll, “then why did you leave, hmm?”
“Because I don’t have enough money to live anywhere but in a farm house.” Anger slipped out in her tone. “My mother was murdered by a creature. A summoner in the army called it forth solely to see what kind of destruction it would unleash. Many others were killed as well. That’s why I’m here again.”
“Oh.”
She didn’t speak, for the only noise she could make by then would be a scream. She really was back here again, and she wouldn’t be leaving anytime soon.
“The army has caused all kinds of problems for me as well.” Rhenol handed her Gartel’s letter. “You can start work in the field.”
“Thank you.”
She turned to leave, smiling as she wondered if Rhenol perhaps wasn’t as bad as she thought.
“You’ll only be paid for a half day today,” he called after her. “And that’s only after I make sure you’ve done adequate work.”
She stiffened as she turned, gave a small bow, then hurried away from him.
Throughout the day, Rygen wanted nothing more than to go home. She felt like something was stuck in her chest and it would only come out once she returned and complained about everything to Leo and Andar.
When evening finally came and she was paid for her work, she dutifully went to the market to look for something she could purchase with her measly five coppers. She was finally smiling when she made it home that night. She was a little later than usual, but that was fine. It meant she wouldn’t have to wait for Leo, and Andar should’ve been home for a while. He might’ve even started preparing something delicious as he sometimes did.
Her heart stopped when she found the kitchen to be empty. “Leo, Andar?” she called. Were they all right? What could’ve happened?
She lit the lamp on the table and saw a small note. Dread overcame her. They had told her they would see about joining the army today. They couldn’t have joined without telling her, could they?
She read the note.
“Rygen,
Andar and I visited the recruitment officer and showed him what we could do. We only wanted to find what would happen IF we joined. He told us that after mages pass the initial test in their city, they are taken to the capital for the final test. Each carriage leaves each city once every six months, and it’s leaving Jatn TODAY. Andar and I wanted to stay, but Andar convinced me that six months is too long to wait. I really hope you understand, Rygen! I feel terrible for leaving this way, but I promise I will return as soon as I can. We are to leave for the capital now. I’m so sorry.”
She stopped. They had really left without seeing her?
She hoped she had misunderstood. She read the last part carefully.
“We hid something for you in case a thief looked around. We want you to have it. Look where no one else would look, where a gem fell that started all this. I’m so sorry we can’t be there with you, Rygen. I wish you would’ve come with us, but I understand you not wanting to join. I just hope you understand me as well. I can’t abandon my brother.
Please tell Miqu where we went, and go to her if you ever need any help.
Goodbye for now, Rygen. I will miss you.”
She searched the small house for whatever it was they had left her. Surprisingly, she shed no tears and wasn’t sure why. Were they really gone? What would she do now?
She looked everywhere and soon ca
me to believe it wasn’t in the house. Then she realized where it was. She brought her lamp outside and walked across the stretch of dirt between her old home and her shared home with the Quims. After a while of searching she came to a patch of dirt that looked as if it had been dug up and then reburied. She dug through it and found a pouch. Inside were four gold coins.
Their father had left them eight gold coins, so they were giving Rygen half. This was more than she could hope to accumulate in her lifetime, most likely. She clutched the pouch tightly as she ran back inside.
She had no idea where to hide it so that no one would take it from her. Andar had kept the coins on him at all times, but she didn’t trust herself to keep them from being pickpocketed. But if she stored them here, someone could come in and steal them.
Her eyes filled with tears. She ran and leapt onto her bed and wept into her pillow. She really was completely alone now.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Two people were already in the carriage when Leo and Andar found it on the northern outskirts of Jatn. It was a little old thing, sitting beside the road. A single horse at its front bent his long neck down to rip up and chew on the sparse grass around it. Carriage wasn’t the word Leo wanted to use for it. There were two narrow benches at each of its short ends. They faced each other without much room in between.
“It’s just a wagon,” Leo complained to his brother. “Not a carriage.”
“We’ll be in the capital soon enough.”
Leo waited for his brother to figure out where they would sit. A boy and a girl were already in the wagon. They had sat across from each other, choosing opposite corners. They didn’t look at one another, so they didn’t seem to be friends.
“How old are they?” Leo asked in a whisper. His brother was always better with ages. The boy looked older, or maybe that was just because he was much bigger than the girl.
“I think the boy is about eighteen, and she’s probably sixteen.”
There was no driver at the front of the cart yet. Leo and Andar each had a bag stuffed with all the clothes and food they could fit. Neither of them knew how long the ride to the capital would take, but the recruitment officer did say it was a long trip.
Leo worried about what Rygen would feel when she read his note, but he had made his decision. Andar had told him not to feel guilty because it was the right thing to do. Leo tried to take his brother’s advice, but he hadn’t figured out how.
“What are you poor boys staring at?” asked the older boy.
Leo suddenly was ashamed of his frayed shirt and pants. He expected Andar to say something mean back to the older boy, but he just turned Leo away and said, “Ignore him.”
But Leo glanced back for a closer look at the boy’s clothes, curious if he was as rich as his lofty tone implied. He did not wear a cape or a fancy hat, but his coat had silver buttons. His black shoes were shiny and looked sturdy, might’ve even been new. He certainly had coin. So did the girl. She had on a dress that looked expensive. It was not a single shade of brown but decorative across its front, with some sort of floral design, then solid brown again at its sides. It had no sleeves, but she had on some sort of close-fitting black undergarment that came all the way down to her wrists. Although she was shorter than the boy, he was probably the height of a grown man, so she was still taller than Leo.
“Are you trying to steal from us?” called the boy. “Get out of here!”
They continued to ignore him. He began speaking to the girl.
“The poor are all thieves when they have the chance to be. Should I make them leave?”
She shrugged, nervously looking away from the boy again.
“You don’t care that they plan to steal from us or perhaps from the man who’s going to take us to the capital? You realize he won’t take us if we let it happen!”
“We’re not stealing anything!” Leo yelled, unable to stop himself. “We’re going to the capital, too.”
“Right,” the boy said sarcastically. “Oh good, the driver is here.”
The driver was a portly man in his forties who already was short of hair and breath. “Over here, all,” he announced. “Have your forms out.”
The rich boy hopped off the carriage and hurried over. “Those two are trying to sneak on.”
“Form,” he responded, holding out his hand.
The boy handed it over. The driver took a look, then nodded. “Wait in the carriage.”
“What about them?” He pointed at Andar and Leo. “They could be dangerous thieves.”
The fat man glowered at Andar specifically. “I can only take mages to the capital for their final test. I’m sorry lads.”
“We are mages,” Andar said.
“Let’s see your papers then,” the driver said dubiously.
“I would, but I was taught to let ladies go first, sir,” Andar scowled at the older boy.
The girl smiled shyly as everyone turned to her. She handed her form to the driver.
“Good. Onto the carriage, now.” He turned to Andar. “Your form.”
Andar handed it over. The boy read over the driver’s shoulder.
“Looks right,” said the driver, though he sounded confused.
“It must be fake,” claimed the older boy.
“Who did you get this from?” the driver asked Andar.
“The recruitment officer…”
“Of course,” Leo could almost hear his brother add.
“All right, onto the carriage.”
“It must be fake!” repeated the boy.
“If something’s amiss, they’ll sort it out in the capital. It’s only my job to bring mages there.”
Leo realized then that this man had no uniform on. He probably wasn’t part of the army but was just paid by them for this task. Andar had told Leo that there were many workers paid by the army, especially those responsible for feeding the soldiers. More coin spent by the king. Just how rich is he exactly?
Leo held out his form as the driver turned away.
“What’s this?” asked the driver.
“My form, sir.”
“I figured you were just here to see your brother off.”
Andar called from the carriage, “My bother passed the test as well.”
“Now that certainly cannot be!” yelled the older boy.
“I told you to get on the carriage, young sir,” said the driver. “Please wait there for me to settle this.”
Shocked, the boy finally turned and headed to the wagon. Leo didn’t like how the driver kept calling it a carriage. That made it sound much bigger and fancier than it was.
“Do you have skill with Artistry or summoning?” asked the portly man, his voice soft.
“Artistry.” Leo kept his voice low as well. No one on the carriage could hear them. He didn’t know why the driver preferred this, but it made Leo more comfortable anyway.
The driver looked at the form again. “This says you’re only ten years old, Leo Litxer.”
“I am.”
The driver squinted as if curious.
Leo asked, “Would you like me to link something?”
His eyes widened. “You can already link, even?”
Leo didn’t want to make this man fall, for it looked like it could take a while before he managed to get up, so he linked the man’s hands together instead with a quick weave of Artistry.
“There,” Leo said. “Move one hand.”
The driver moved his right hand to the side. His left followed. He shifted it up and down, then drew a small circle in the air. The left mimicked its movements.
“Remarkable,” he said. “I’ve never heard of such a young mage.”
Leo smiled with pride. He waved his hand and broke the link. “It’s broken now.”
The man moved his hands independently of each other.
“Just remarkable,” he repeated. “Off to the carriage with you.”
Leo hopped over, but his joy dissolved when the rich boy started complaining again.
“You’re actually letting him on?”
“He has as much right to be here as you,” the driver retorted.
Leo was glad to see that Andar had taken a free bench and the rich boy had chosen to sit next to the girl. That meant Leo could sit next to his brother. Unfortunately, it also meant that he would be sitting across from the snobbish boy.
Leo would not look down, holding his head up with pride. He wished the boy would ask for proof that Leo was a mage.
Instead the boy shook his head and looked off to the side. The driver took his seat on the wagon and steered the horse onto the road to begin their journey. The boy and the girl sat at the rear. They faced Andar and Leo, who faced the opposite way, riding backward. Leo enjoyed the sensation. He had never been on a horse or a wagon that he could remember. It was fun to go backward. Behind him was the driver. There was a plank of wood separating them, but it didn’t reach higher than Leo’s neck. He turned around to look at the horse as it walked. The animal was large and strong, its black tail flopping around. Leo smiled with excitement. His brother grinned down at him.
The boy’s silence didn’t last long. He yelled past Leo and Andar, “Driver, don’t you know that no one as young as that little boy can be a mage of any kind! Besides, they have to pay for lessons. Didn’t you see their clothes? They are obviously too poor!”
The driver turned around and yelled in Leo’s ear, but it was worth it. “I’m not discussing this further. They are to be taken to the capital along with you and the girl.”
The boy scoffed. He asked the girl, “Can you believe this?”
Her mouth scrunched as she glanced at Leo. “It is a bit strange,” she said softly, as if hoping they wouldn’t hear.
“A bit? It’s an insult is what it is.”
“Why?” she asked.
“Because my parents spent a lot of coin for a summoner to train me, and I spent a lot of hours working at it. Didn’t you?”
She nodded.
“And yet they go with us as if they’re equals. They’re not. I don’t know what they did to get here, but I’m sure it wasn’t legal.”
Unlike the girl, the boy didn’t seem to mind if he was overheard.
