by Blink, Bob
People were already peering over the edge from the special viewing areas. One spot was particularly well situated to seeing the last stage of the event and the drop the contestant would have to face if they missed the jump.
“This belt actually works?” Ash’urn asked, eyeing the rocky floor of the valley far below.
“Very well actually,” Mitty said with a grin. “More than one contestant has missed and fallen to the floor below. They have a couple of Casters at the bottom to bring them back up.”
“It’s actually quite safe,” said Lady Alani. “Even knowing that, it’s still extremely frightening to step out there and look at the drop.”
“You’ve done this?” Ash’urn asked surprised.
“I’ve made the attempt,” she admitted. “I elected to disqualify myself after the first two walkways. My legs were shaking so badly there was no way I could make the jump at the end.”
“There’s just the one belt?” Rigo asked.
“That’s the official position,” Mitty said, her tone openly reflecting her doubt. “I’m certain there are others and they simply pretend that it’s the one and only belt. Think about it. It’s made of leather, and is several hundred years old. How many hundreds of people have worn it? Even with magic delaying its aging, it would have to get damaged over time. I believe they have a number and simply display one and make people believe it’s the same one.”
“That’s actually part of the fear,” Lady Alani added. “In addition to the stories, often debunked but never out of one’s mind, especially as you step out over the rim, of the tale of the woman who died, is the fear that this year they are using a new belt, untested, and it could just possibly fail.”
“But people fall, and aren’t hurt?” Ash’urn asked.
“Every year a number fall. If you are a contestant, you hope that someone ahead of you falls. That way you see that the belt works.”
“There are some here that are probably hoping that it doesn’t,” Mitty said scornfully. “Think of the stories they could tell if that happened?”
By the time a half dozen of the women had made their attempt, three electing to quit before the end, and one having to be “rescued” unwilling to go either forward or back, Rigo had become bored. While it was obviously frightening and important to those here, it had little impact on him. From what Mitty had openly suggested, sometimes he wondered if she pushed the limits of what she should say too far, the selection of who would succeed Queen Rosul, was already decided in the Guild’s mind.
Instead, they went and purchased something to eat. As usual, Mitty had to pay, something that always felt wrong to Rigo, but it wouldn’t have been unusual here even if he hadn’t been a penniless prisoner. The wrapped selection came with a heating glyph scrawled crudely on the outside. Without thinking, Mitty uttered the triggering phrase, and her selection warmed immediately to the touch. Rigo tried, but the bands prevented even this simple display of magic, and he had to have her do it for him. From humbling armies, he was reduced to having his date, if that’s what Mitty was, perform the simple task any citizen of Sedfair could do almost from the age they could speak.
“What about the Baldari attacks?” he asked her, no longer interested in the events surrounding the “Leap” ceremony.
“The Queen has moved more forces to the south, which leaves the border somewhat less protected against a possible attack by the Chulls. She also persuaded the Guild to send additional Casters, but things have remained quiet.”
“I don’t understand how the Baldari know where to attack,” Rigo said. “From what we have been told they don’t speak the language, they don’t have any ability with magic, yet they seem to know about an important facility well away from the Wastelands. They stand out too much to be able to sneak through the countryside that far inland to spy. So how do they know?”
Mitty’s eyes appraised him. He saw right to the heart of the matter. That very question was one that had been pondered in a number of meetings she had been in with the Queen and some of her advisors. If they knew, they might be able to predict better where the Baldari would attack.
Mitty wished she could speak openly and privately with this man from another land. He intrigued her. More than even that, she suddenly realized. After a number of weeks she had come to know him better than anyone else in Sedfair. He had a good heart. She was certain of it. The stories of what his friend had done, and how he’d restrained his companion from taking any action against those who had kept them bound when there might have been a chance of escape, had only supported her belief. He was also attractive. Mitty didn’t know if she found him to be that way because he was different, or because she knew he came from a place where the men were usually more dominant. Then again, he might actually be one of her countrymen. If it were true that he originally came from Sedfair, then what did it all mean? She wished he could tell her the whole of that story. She also knew he found her attractive. Perhaps if the Queen’s plans worked out there would be a chance to see if there was something there. She thought she was attractive enough to interest him. At least she sensed an interest, but then he hadn’t had a chance to freely meet others here. She wished she were gifted like Lyes. Would one with his power even be interested in one without the gift?
Suddenly she realized that her mind was wandering, and that Rigo was watching her and waiting for an answer. What had he asked?
“No one has been able to figure that out,” she answered lamely after belatedly recalling his question, her face reddening slightly. He’d noticed what had happened. Had he guessed what she was thinking?
Moments later Ash’urn and Alani appeared, saving her from further confusion. She wasn’t one to be easily caught off guard. How had this happened?
“I think we’ve seen enough,” Ash’urn said. “Are you ready to return to the Castle?”
Rigo nodded and looked toward Mitty for confirmation. She nodded agreement and held out her hand so Rigo could steady her as she stepped off of the rock where they had been sitting. As her feet reached the uneven ground, she stumbled slightly, crashing briefly into Rigo. He steadied her, checked to see that she was alright, feeling disappointed when she regained her balance and stood upright, breaking their brief contact. Then the foursome headed back down the trail to the waiting carriages, followed by their watchers. In the background there was a huge gasp by the crowd. Rigo wondered if one of the contestants had slipped.
* * * *
“What does the note say?” Lorl asked later when the three of them were alone in the cottage. Rigo had been anxious to get back and see what Mitty had passed him when she’d faked that stumble up on the mountain. He’d felt her deftly slipping something into his pocket. He’d wondered when she’d stumbled how someone so sure of her footing could slip simply climbing off a rock.
He held the note in his hand. There were no names on the note, and it was written simply with only the main points outlined. He knew that was because Mitty was aware his ability with the written language here was limited. He summarized the points.
“The notes says that Carif has chosen the next Queen. It will be someone she can control.” Mitty had made this clear in other ways during their limited conversations on the subject.
“Carif will regain complete control over us once Queen Rosul is replaced. That means our situation will no longer be protected.” He looked at his two friends. “We all know what that means.”
“How long do we have?” Lorl asked.
“Less than three weeks,” Ash’urn replied. “The candidates will be listed by the end of this week, and two weeks after the posting, the formal transition ceremony is scheduled. I believed the Guild has actually accelerated the usual schedule.”
“Curse Risos!” Lorl said. “I shouldn’t have listened to you when they removed my bands. We might have been freed.”
“We might have been dead,” Rigo countered. “Anyway, Mitty says the Queen is planning to help us escape. She will have her people overcome our gua
rds and will hide us away somewhere.”
“Can she do that?” Lorl asked.
“She must think so. Certainly, the Guild will suspect her, but if they have no proof, they will be hesitant to accuse one so popular.”
“Where can she hide us?” Ash’urn asked.
“I don’t know, but the Queen clearly has her secrets. She appears willing to risk whatever she has been doing to help us. Perhaps she hopes we can aid her in some way.”
Rigo looked at his friends. “What do you think?”
“I can’t see where we have any choice,” Ash’urn said softly, smoothing his beard as he considered the surprising news.
“I certainly don’t want to be turned back over to that witch,” Lorl said emphatically. “We know the Queen has our interests at heart.”
“So we are agreed,” Rigo said. “We will have to be alert in the coming days and be ready to help in whatever small way we can. The note doesn’t say when. It’ll probably depend on when an opportunity presents itself.”
He took the note over to the fireplace and dropped it into the flames, watching as it burned to ash. Once again, they were looking into the unknown, but with luck, they might soon have access to their magic. If the Queen wished their help, she would have to give them access to their powers.
Chapter 57
Rosul paced around her private quarters while she fretted about her decision to free the three outsiders. The note she’d had Mitty transfer was a grave risk all by itself. It would alert anyone who read it to what she intended. Mitty, of everyone she knew, would have the best chance of passing it unseen, but if she made a mistake, then who knew what repercussions would result. Certainly, the implications would be bad for Mitty as well as herself, and Carif would use it to denounce her to the kingdom. Even if the note were passed successfully, the very act of freeing the prisoners would take precise timing, and a great deal of luck. So much could go wrong! She would be glad when the young woman returned and indicated the transfer had gone unnoticed.
She had guards she could trust. The actions by the one named Lorl hadn’t hurt the situation either. Two of the men on her private staff had brothers serving in Fernwah, and one had been saved by the outsider’s healing. Many also shared her dislike of the Guild and Carif. She had selectively advanced those with such feelings into positions around her over the years. Lyes would be able to help get the prisoners out of the area. He could make a Doorway that was untraceable. He could also see to the removal of the bands. Only magic could do that. She hated to put the young man at risk, but the potential gains couldn’t be denied.
She hadn’t decided whether to have the three outsiders moved to the island. That might be taking too great a risk. She still couldn’t be entirely certain of their motives, so it was probably best to isolate them from the rest of her people until she had positive proof they were what she believed. She had decided to transfer them to Captain Abend’s ship far offshore. There was an agreed location for the ship to wait and she had sent the Captain a note where to head the previous evening. He would wait there for up to two weeks. Nearby was a suitable location for making a Doorway for transferring people. If they hadn’t acted by then, it would be too late or something would have gone horribly wrong.
She hated being indecisive. It wasn’t like her. If only matters weren’t being forced by her being replaced. The outsiders offered an opportunity that she couldn’t have hoped for. Clearly their magic was unique and powerful. That they could heal, and heal so completely was proof of that. Sedfair’s own use of magic for healing was primitive in comparison. What other powers could they call upon, if they were released? More importantly, could they somehow pass such knowledge and ability to her own people, those who had exhibited the spark of inherent magic.
Ultimately, two things drove her decision. Freeing the prisoners was the right thing to do. The three men had not come with intentions of doing harm to Sedfair, yet they had been imprisoned for weeks. She viewed herself as a just leader, and this clearly was not just. In addition, Carif and the Guild were not good for Sedfair. The elite Casters were trying to take over the land to use it for their own wishes and betterment. Long had Rosul seen that the welfare of the public was secondary in Carif’s mind. That meant as Queen she was obligated to act. As her last official action, she would resist the power grab by the Saltique. It was impossible to think of bringing the manipulating woman down, but if Rosul could deny the woman something she sought, and at the same time build a rebel force to oppose the Guild, she would have accomplished a great deal.
She worried that a war between the people and the Guild was ill advised at this time given the drain caused by the Baldari and the Chulls, but if this opportunity were passed, there would unlikely to be another. Carif would put someone in place this time she knew she could control. Rosul was already certain who it would be.
The Queen checked the clock. It was still too early for Mitty to have returned. She would have to be patient.
Chapter 58
Fen was feeling quite melancholy. He had now been at the University for a number of weeks and finally, more of his classmates were starting to arrive. There was even another male student who had selected the room across from his own among the sea of females who now roamed the hallways. That should have raised his spirits. He also should have been feeling happy now that the term was about to begin. Finally he would be starting to learn those things that he’d dreamed of for so long. Unfortunately, he was too attuned to subtleties of this place now, thanks in part to the warnings of Lyes, that caused him to view everything with a critical eye.
Lyes was part of the matter that now had him depressed. He hadn’t seen the upper classman for a number of weeks. He had disappeared without a word to Fen, and no one had seen him, nor could they say what might have happened to him. He was able to learn that Lyes was in some kind of trouble. He was being sought by the Specialists who formed the Committee of Eight under the Saltique.
While Fen couldn’t discover where Lyes had gone, he was certain his new friend had revealed their private discussions after he had promised not to. Of course, he had told the Queen. That was different, wasn’t it? Fen couldn’t realistically expect him to be bound to their agreement if it was the Queen who asked him. The Queen, after all, had a right to know everything that happened in Sedfair. Fen would have expected her to already know all about the strangers even without Lyes having passed along what Fen had revealed. It was quite obvious that the Saltique had not seen it that way. Lyes had been right that the politics were more complicated than Fen understood. He thought the Guild served the Queen. When confronted, Fen had told the Saltique that he had spoken to only one person, and that had been before being cautioned to remain silent. He admitted to having been fearful of being sent away if he revealed what he had done.
After that second meeting he’d spent several days expecting someone to come and tell him his admission to the University had been reconsidered, and he was being sent home to Slipi. What would he tell everyone when he returned home in disgrace? That, happily, had not happened. But, instead, in the last few days he’d started to pick up on rumors. The Guild was openly very anxious to locate Lyes. Fen couldn’t imagine what the upper classman had done, but obviously he was no longer welcome at the University. Fen feared it might be a result of what he had revealed. Might he have destroyed another’s career by his loose words? Even more disconcerting were the rumors starting to spread within the student body. He’d overheard an upper classman first, but just yesterday morning his new friend across the hall had asked him what he had heard. The word being circulated was that with the selection of the new Queen, the current policy of allowing men into the University would be withdrawn. All would be turned away. Fen knew that Queen Rosul had long been the champion who pushed the change that had allowed men in the first place. Therefore it wasn’t beyond reason that the rules might change once she was replaced. From what Fen had seen of the Saltique, he could believe she would pursue such a policy
.
Fen had pondered what he should do if that were to happen. Finally, he had decided to take certain precautions. If they wouldn’t allow him to learn here in a guided manner, he would do what he could to learn on his own. To that end, he selected a large number of his newly acquired books and made arrangements to ship them home. Since some were texts that weren’t supposed to leave the University except in the hands of a graduate, he hadn’t told anyone what he planned. He had purchased the texts before the incoming class arrived, so no one had paid much attention to what he had. Yesterday he had gone to the castle and located the shipping service that someone had recommended and told them he had several boxes of clothes and other items he wished sent to his home in Slipi. As a student of the Guild, he did have his identification after all, he was able to get a much better rate than anyone in town offered. Now, both his backpacks filled to bursting, he was heading back to the castle to pack them up and see how much of his gold it would take to ship the books to his family. He would need them if he were to truly learn on his own.
The weight of his future prospects heavy on his shoulders, Fen started across the University, taking the exit path from the outer walking circle that would take him down the inner walled court toward the castle. Rumor had it that the outsiders were living in one of the grand cottages a bit farther up the path. Fen didn’t know. He didn’t come this way often, and hadn’t seen anyone except some guards around one of the structures when he’d passed coming and going from the castle the previous afternoon. Perhaps that was where they were? He was almost directly opposite the house which was still guarded today, which caused him to be looking that way hoping to see if the strangers were really there, when he noticed two individuals wearing clashing patterned clothing step out of nowhere onto the grass. Even as he watched more of them suddenly appeared. Somehow Fen knew these were not Guild Casters stepping out of a Doorway, but more of the outsiders. Something was about to happen!
