Epik tried to undo the Grand Sovereign’s spell on the knights, but he didn’t know enough magic, not yet. He was failing. And he didn’t want to see Ursa’s wraith disappear, too.
“Can you help me?” Epik called to Ursa. She was locked in a battle with Sir Lamorak. “Can you stop the other wraiths from attacking Dune All-En?”
“I can try,” her voice was an echo, barely there.
“All right then, get away.”
“It’ll never work,” the Grand Sovereign said with maniacal glee.
Ursa disappeared through the ceiling.
Quickly, Epik put the vanishing spell on Millie then himself, and they disappeared to the same protected space with Kavya.
“There are more just like her,” the Grand Sovereign shouted. “I’ll have more engines soon. More magic than you can ever believe! It's not over! Not by a long shot.”
The Grand Sovereign’s words echoed after them.
For the moment, Epik, Millie, and Kavya were safe.
They made their way outside the castle to Buster.
“Do you think,” Epik asked Kavya, “that we could find other children with magic inside them, here in the city and the outskirts?”
“There might be a few,” Kavya said.
“The only way to protect them is to take them with us.”
“Where are we going to go?” Millie asked.
“You’ll see,” Epik said, and they began to scour the city in search of any remnants of magic.
43
Attachments
A Shadow slunk across the king’s wall. It bounced and bounded in the flickering firelight.
The Shadow escaped through the open door when Brendan entered the room. The movement caught his eye, but then so did the cold stare of the king and that stare was a bit more pressing.
“You called, Sire?” Brendan said sheepishly.
“I’ve just received word that more troops have been sent from King’s Way. Among other things. It seems the negotiations didn’t go so well.”
“Then we shall be ready,” Brendan said with aplomb. “Sire,” he said, thinking. “Can I just ask outright what exactly it is you mean? And how exactly you got this new information? None of my scouts have seen anything.”
“Yes,” Epiman said, nodding, “You can ask—I believe you just did. Well done. I like boldness in an admiral.”
Brendan let that comment go.
“I have received word from Epik, from his Shadow just now. I’ve been communicating with it for several days. It was almost back to Epik when an army of wraiths, evil spirits with the ability to kill mortal men, were sent from King’s Way and the Shadow returned with that news.”
“I don’t understand,” Brendan said. “Is Epik okay? What about Todder and your daughter? And that, er, other girl?”
“They’re fine, well, fine-ish. Epik was able to flee the city. But Myra and Gerdy were taken. They’re still in King’s Way.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Brendan said.
“Oh, no need to be sorry,” Epiman said. “It’s my father who will be sorry. You’ll see. Having only a son, he’s not familiar with the term ‘daddy’s girl.’”
44
Fool's Quest
A wind crackled through the fallen leaves, a short gust whipped through his cloak and sent a chill up Epik’s spine. The ground was hard beneath him; the soft grass had disappeared with the cold weather, making each blade just that—a blade, crisp and sharp against the soles of Epik’s halfling feet. It had never gotten this cold in the Bog.
The sounds of the six of them, or rather that of the other five, snapping twigs and raking against leaves, would have sent birds scattering from the trees had there been any birds still in the trees this far north.
Epik sighed inwardly, remembering what he was and what he was capable of. He stopped briefly to cast another spell around them, making Kavya, and Millie, Buster, and the children they had found as quiet and light on their feet as a halfling.
No one had spoken in some time.
The aim had been to get away, to get as far from King’s Way as was possible.
They had waited for a long time for Gerdy to return. It was Kavya who realized that Gerdy wasn’t coming back.
“She must have gone back for Myra,” Kavya said sadly. “I thought I saw her in the castle.”
“But I told her to come here,” Epik had said. “I told her I would return.”
They had waited longer. Until Epik was sure that it was true.
Two days went by in the blink of an eye.
“Where are we going?” Millie kept asking. She was doing a better job than Epik of hiding the pain she felt. Millie knew firsthand what had happened to the other children.
It took only a short time to explain to the parents of the new pair, the twins, what Epik and Kavya were trying to do—to save them. Like the rest of the kingdom, the twins’ parents had seen the Grand Sovereign’s power on display in the Coliseum. Grasping the perilousness of it all, they had sent the twins with Epik and company.
Dougald and Galawyn were young and confused. They weren’t identical twins, being brother and sister, nevertheless, they were hard to distinguish, with strawberry blonde locks, squished noses, and ash gray skin. They had taken a liking to Millie at once. Wherever she led, they followed. Whatever questions she asked, they repeated.
“We have to go to World’s Eye,” Epik said finally. “There’re some people there that will help us.”
Kavya nodded, understanding. She had been there with Ashah.
“Who?” Millie asked.
“Yeah, who?” Doug and Gal repeated.
“Witches,” Epik said.
“The witches?” Millie sounded impressed.
“I think so.”
“What are you talking about?” Kavya asked. “Who are the witches?”
“I thought you were from World’s Eye?” Epik asked.
“No,” she reminded him. “I just lived there a short while. I’m from across the sea.”
“Right,” Epik said. “Well, there are old stories about a coven of witches outside World’s Eye. I didn’t have time to say anything before, but I’ve read about them.”
“My mom was always going on about them,” Millie said. “You think we can find them?”
“I think so,” Epik said. “Well, with Kavya’s help I think we can. It’s how we found you two.” Epik pointed to the twins.
Later, Epik searched the world, binding his powers with Kavya’s, and the world responded in its own time, pointing them west.
He looked back one last time at the castle on the distant horizon, shrouded in dark clouds of magic from the arena. The Grand Sovereign didn’t bother to send those clouds away.
His wraiths and his armies were already on their way to Dune All-En.
There was no time to waste. Epik had to learn how to wield his magic properly.
“What are you looking for back there?” Kavya asked.
“Nothing,” Epik said. But he wondered about Kavya’s sister. Was the old man capable of piecing Catarina’s mind together again?
Her yellow eyes would be like a ghost in the coming days. They would plague Epik’s dreams. Each night as he stood watch at the campfire, he would see them glowing in the distance. Figments, not truly there. He could blink them away.
Until they were figments no longer.
45
Epilogue: In the Next Epik Fantasy
Captain Todder’s feet pounded on the dusty road. He felt them, aching, and blistered. They hadn’t stopped moving in days.
He tried to look down at them, but his head was unresponsive, not under his control.
Todder racked his brain. What was happening? Why wasn’t his body responding? And why were there thousands of soldiers marching behind him?
Wisps of gray smoke darted to and fro in the air around him. And that reminded him of his gran—of strange times when he thought that smoke had materialized in her cabin, and she would send him
away for a while. Only later a child come out of the house and play with him in the yard for a while before heading off toward Dune All-En.
Todder had made fast friends with several, he knew by their eyes, and he had smiled at them when he passed them in the city some years later. Now, Todder wondered what that was all about.
How had children come up to his gran’s cabin like that? And she had never ate a one of them—though she threatened.
Todder’s eyes followed the gray wisps. And that was when he realized he had control of his eyes.
Across the realm, the wind didn’t whip through Brendan’s hair, it was too thick for that, but the wind did brush against his cheeks and billowed his parka. While the fall winds hadn’t yet turned to winter squalls the air above the city was already cold and wet.
Brendan stepped carefully across the planked deck. The ship lurched underneath him as Peter spun the wheel a quarter turn to the left. The boy was suited for flying—another young man with a promotion. Brendan would have to fill several more of the captains’ spots before the week was over.
Captain, Brendan thought, the weight of the word had scared him at first.
But now.
“If we’re going to have an air force,” King Epiman had said, “then we’re going to need air admirals. Yes, I believe you’re due another promotion.”
Admiral, and at his age; it seemed silly.
Rusty and Anhog were steadily producing more airships. Brendan would have to find them crews.
Below, the city passed in a tapestry of color. The soldiers camped outside looked up in awe and wonder, not yet knowing this was something to fear. “King’s Way is northwest,” Brendan pointed. The ship lurched again, sailing on the wind, banking to the heading Brendan’s finger had shown.
The horizon was darkening.
The End
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Of course, Epik’s story will continue in Sight Beyond Epik Sight.
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Footnotes
1. Well… perhaps one other. See: New York City, USA, Earth.
2. “Baby, ooh…” - “Jeopardy” by Greg Kihn Band, Kihnspiracy, 1983, Beserkley Records
3. Unless they added a drummer named Tommy.
4. Survey says, “Only one king wins.”
5. For more of Coe’s story see The Vanishing Castle, the second installment in The Great Ranger trilogy.
6. Toes are a fragile thing.
7. Most mail carriers relied on delivering packages to the wrong person, who they hoped would help it find the right owner. Modern-day mail carriers carry on this proud tradition to this very day.
8. Metaphorically speaking. No one was asking Epik or Frodo over to help move a couch.
9. Or should that be butt…
10. Or perhaps the Cinderella.
11. Katniss, we need more berries.
12. Yeah… So do I.
Also by William Tyler Davis
Hero in a Halfling: Epik Fantasy Book 1
The Great Ranger: The Complete Trilogy
Acknowledgments
I have so many people to thank this time around. To my beta readers: Jason, Jenn, Mom - I can’t thank you enough. To Jenn especially, thank you for allowing me the time to do this writing thing. To my editor, Ellen, thanks for helping me see this vision to the end. As always J Caleb Clark, Jake, does an amazing job getting me the best cover imaginable.
Knowing is Halfling the Battle: An Arthurian Fantasy Romp (Epik Fantasy Book 2) Page 21
