by MJ Schutte
Birth of a Wizard
MJ Schutte
Copyright 2012 by MJ Schutte
Smashwords Edition
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Dedicated to my three angels,
Tayla, Joshua and Lauryn.
Daddy loves you!
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank every person who has supported me in the creation of the second book of The Energy Chronicles.
There are a few people I would like to mention:
My editor, Willie du Toit, for the long hours he spent fixing my mistakes.
Anna Maria Butler, for the gorgeous cover.
Wanda Hart, for her tireless promotion of the series.
And lastly my wife, Tracy, who listens patiently to my ramblings.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 1
LILIAN LAY WITH her head on Brighton’s bare chest. She listened to his slow, steady heartbeat. She wondered if they would ever have a normal life.
Slowly Brighton woke up.
‘Good morning my love,’ Lilian said softly.
Brighton smiled at her and said, ‘This is how I want to wake up every morning for the rest of my life.’
Brighton’s hand softly stroked Lilian’s long blond curls.
‘Yes, me too,’ Lilian murmured.
‘We should get going,’ Brighton said, but made no attempt to get up.
‘Yes, I suppose we should,’ Lilian echoed. She did not move either.
‘What are we going to do now?’ she asked.
‘We are going to get the horse and go back to Fenton,’ Brighton answered with a frown.
Lilian giggled and said, ‘No, I mean after that. Do you want to go back to Four Mountains?’
They sat up.
‘I hadn’t really thought about that,’ he said.
Brighton looked around but could not see the horse. He used his sense to locate the animal.
‘Our horse has wandered off. I will go fetch him quickly,’ he said to Lilian as he got up.
Lilian lay back again and closed her eyes. She daydreamed for a while until she heard Brighton returning with the horse. Reluctantly she got up and started packing their things in the rucksack. It was actually only her things. When Brighton left Fenton in the middle of the night, he did not take anything with him.
‘Your horse, milady,’ Brighton said as he took a deep bow.
Lilian giggled, walked to him, and put her hands on his shoulders.
‘Help me up, please,’ she said to Brighton.
His big, powerful hands found her small hips and he easily lifted her onto the horse.
They travelled at a steady pace towards the pass that lead to the Mountain Kingdom. Lilian tried a few times to convince Brighton to have a turn on the horse but he refused.
‘I like walking,’ he answered every time.
Late in the afternoon on the second day of travelling, they stopped at a small stream. Lilian slid off the horse and retrieved their only water skin from the rucksack.
As she was filling it up, Brighton said, ‘Lily, you asked me yesterday what we are going to do now. I’ve thought about it and have an idea.’
Lilian didn’t answer, she knew Brighton would share his thoughts in his own time, but her heart started beating a little faster.
Please tell me you want to go back to Four Mountains and rebuild our house, she silently pleaded.
‘I think we should get the children and come back here. There are some good places here, near the pass, to set up a home. If we can get some horses, we can start breeding them. I thought it might be a good way of helping Queen Ashley to stimulate development. We could also teach everyone about trading with money and how to build wagons,’ Brighton said.
Lilian smiled. She did not think Brighton would want to go back to Four Mountains. He had promised his service to Queen Ashley and this would be his way of keeping that promise.
‘I think it’s a great idea, my love,’ she replied, hiding her disappointment.
Brighton pointed to the west.
‘Look, at the foot of the mountain there seems to be a large open field. We could build a house there. If we stay close to the pass we can trade with people from the Mountain Kingdom for horses, wagons, tools and many other things.’
‘That could work,’ Lilian mused as she looked to where Brighton was pointing.
Her disappointment faded a little. It was a beautiful setting for a home and it would certainly make trade with the Mountain Kingdom possible. Brighton smiled and scooped her up in his arms.
‘I know you want to go back to Four Mountains but it’s so far away. Maybe we can be happy here,’ he said.
‘I’ll be happy anywhere, as long as I have you and the twins with me,’ Lilian answered as she hugged him fiercely.
‘Adri will almost certainly want to live with us again and maybe we can build Brac a small cottage in the woods nearby,’ Brighton speculated.
‘Don’t be so sure. I think Adri might just want to stay with Brac this time,’ Lilian countered.
Brighton frowned as he put Lilian down.
‘They have finally admitted their feelings for each other,’ Lilian explained.
‘Ah, I see,’ Brighton smiled.
Lilian held out her arms again so he could help her onto the horse.
‘How do you mount the horse when I am not around?’ Brighton asked as he lifted her up.
‘I can mount by myself, I just like feeling your strong hands on my hips,’ Lilian purred.
Brighton blew her a little kiss as he took the reins and started towards the mountain.
Lilian jumped off the horse and ran to the house. It was already late afternoon. Adri was standing on the porch with little Thomas in her arms, Brac was holding Clarissa. As usual, Brac was feeding the twins sweet berries. As Lilian reached the porch, Adri held Thomas out to her.
‘Oh, I missed you so much,’ she said through her tears as she took Thomas from Adri and then turned to Brac.
Clarissa was already holding out her little arms to her mother. Lilian took her too and hugged the children tightly. Brac walked toward Brighton where he was busy tying up the horse.
‘Welcome back, my friend,’ the hunter greeted.
‘Thank you, it’s good to see you again,’ Brighton greeted back.
As they walked towards the porch, Nicky came out of the house holding a tray.
‘Would anyone like some juice?’ she asked.
Lilian had no choice but to put the twins down, they were wriggling far too wildly in her arms. She, Adri and Brac each took a cup and sat down on the chairs. Brighton took his cup and sat on the floor next to the children. They immediately started crawling all over his legs, reaching for his cup. Carefully he let Clarissa take a sip and then it was Thomas’s turn.
‘So, are you going to tell us where you went?’ Brac asked
impatiently.
‘I went to go see Graham,’ Brighton responded.
When it was clear that he wasn’t going to say much more, Brac rolled his eyes and said, ‘Well, tell us how it went!’
‘We had a slight argument, that’s all,’ Brighton replied.
‘Will he be leaving us alone now?’ Brac pressed.
‘Yes,’ Brighton answered.
Again, it became clear that Brighton was not going to elaborate so Lilian spoke.
‘Brighton killed Graham. His wife, Queen Ashley is now in charge,’ she explained.
‘Will Queen Ashley leave us alone?’ Adri asked.
‘Yes, Brighton swore allegiance to her. Technically, he is now in her army,’ Lilian replied.
Brac and Adri’s mouths hung open.
‘It’s a long story, we’ll tell you later,’ Lilian quickly added.
Brac opened his mouth but saw the look on Lilian’s face and quickly decided rather to keep quiet.
‘What is the plan now?’ Adri asked.
‘Brighton and I are going back to the Dark Land to build a house just on the other side of the mountain. We want to breed horses, teach people how to build wagons, about money and maybe even establish some trade with the Mountain Kingdom,’ Lilian answered.
‘That sounds like a good plan. Can we join you?’ Adri asked.
‘Of course, we would love it if you and Brac would come with us!’ Lilian exclaimed.
Adri shot a questioning look at Brac.
‘Yes, I would like that too,’ he replied.
‘Where is Peter?’ Brighton asked Nicky.
‘He has gone to town but should be back shortly,’ she replied.
The rest of the afternoon was spent with small talk until Peter returned, leading three beautiful horses.
‘Hello, everyone,’ he greeted cheerfully.
Brighton and Brac got up and offered to help Peter with the horses. The three men walked around the house to the stables.
‘When did you get back?’ Peter enquired.
‘Earlier this afternoon,’ Brighton replied.
‘Did you go back to the Dark Land?’ Peter pressed.
Brighton nodded.
‘Didn’t the guards at the pass try to stop you?’ Peter asked.
‘Lilian and I hid in the woods and waited. When the guards were not paying attention we slipped past,’ Brighton replied.
Brac knew the young man well enough to know this was not the full story. He made a mental note to ask about it later.
‘These are magnificent animals, Peter,’ Brighton commented.
‘Yes, I was lucky. I paid only half of what they are worth,’ Peter replied with a smile.
‘Where did you buy them?’ Brighton asked.
‘From a travelling horse trader. These come all the way from Erostan,’ Peter replied.
‘Is this a good thing?’ Brac asked.
‘Yes, the horses from Erostan are far superior to the ones we breed locally. Some say they are even better than the horses that the Northern Tribes breed, although I doubt that,’ Peter beamed.
‘Why did he sell the horses at half their worth?’ Brac asked.
‘He was on his way back to Erostan and these were the last three horses left. Elves don’t like being away from their home for too long,’ Peter explained.
‘Elves?’ Brac and Brighton asked in unison.
Peter looked from one to the other.
‘Yes, elves. Don’t you know what an elf is?’ he asked in disbelief.
Both men shook their heads.
‘Elves are the original inhabitants of Erostan. They live in a secluded forest far to the west. A desert separates the forest and the rest of Erostan. The forest is actually where the kingdom of Erostan got its name from. In Elf language, it’s called Erostagnos Livia Farasnei. Loosely translated this means Erostan Life Force,’ Peter explained.
‘And why do you call the people who live in Erostan, elves?’ Brac asked.
‘Not everyone who lives in Erostan is an elf. Only the original inhabitants of Erostagnos Livia Farasnei are elves. To be honest, they don’t like being called elves but it’s become common practice over the years. The word elf comes from the first letter of each word Erostagnos Livia Farasnei.
‘There are some subtle differences between us and the elves. They are very tall, have slightly pointed ears and always wear their hair long, even the men. They are also extremely gifted archers, easily the best in the three kingdoms.’ Peter continued the explanation.
‘How tall are they and why don’t they cut their hair?’ Brighton asked.
The situation rather fascinated Brighton.
‘For a human you are very tall but as an elf you would have been seen as short. The tallest elves are probably head and shoulders taller than you are. They are not built like you though. They all have slender bodies. Elves with the longest hair are the most respected members of their communities. If an elf commits a crime, a length of their hair is cut off in accordance with the severity of the crime. They have very strict rules and sometimes, strange ideas of what a crime is. For instance, if an elf hunter does not kill an animal with one shot, his hair will be cut to half its length. This is considered a serious crime. If an elf kills another person in a fair fight, his hair will not be touched, but if the opponent yields and the elf carries on attacking, he will lose roughly a quarter of his hair,’ Peter said.
‘I’m a hunter, and respect animals as much as anyone, but that hardly seems fair.’ Brac commented.
‘It’s actually not as unfair as you think. An animal has no choice when it is being hunted. Wounding it and then having to track it down to kill it makes it suffer. A person, on the other hand, does have a choice. If he does not want to fight, he can yield. In a case like that, the elf who yielded will lose most of his hair. There is no greater shame than yielding,’ Peter said.
‘It makes sense,’ Brighton said pensively.
‘There are other things you should know about elves. Most of the females are exquisitely beautiful. If a male elf even thinks that you are looking at a female elf he will most likely challenge you to a duel right there. They are extremely protective over their women. The reason for this is that they do not mix with other races at all. They believe they are better than we are and the Northern tribes and it would weaken the elf race as a whole if they were allowed to have children with outsiders. If an elf woman is found to be pregnant with a non-elf’s baby, she is put to death immediately. If a baby is born and it is a hudeti, the baby is killed in front of the mother and then the mother is killed,’ Peter said slowly.
‘Hudeti?’ Brighton asked.
‘There is no translation for this either but it means something like “less than perfect” or “half an elf”,’ Peter answered.
‘What about when a male elf and female non-elf have a child? Is anything done to the father?,’ Brac asked.
‘According to the elves, this does not happen. They claim that an elf will never look at another woman because elf females are so beautiful. We have heard rumours that it does happen and that the babies and mothers are taken to a prison camp where the babies are raised and then forced to work in the mines. As soon as the children are old enough to work, the mothers are killed. Nobody knows whether this is the truth. Every time a rumour like this starts spreading, Lady Jaclyn squashes it very quickly,’ Peter said.
‘Who is Lady Jaclyn?’ came from Brac.
Peter laughed and said, ‘There is certainly a lot you need to learn about this side of the boundary! Let’s go inside and see whether Nicky has prepared supper and then I’ll tell you about Our Divine Lady Jaclyn.’
Brac and Brighton followed Peter into the house where they found the women busy preparing supper. Brighton relayed to Adri and Lilian what they had just learned about Erostan and the elves.
‘While we wait for supper, let me tell you about Lady Jaclyn,’ Peter said.
‘Her full title is Our Divine Lady Jaclyn. She is the spiritual lea
der of all three kingdoms. Some say she is a god or an angel that was sent from the spirit world to guide us. She travels the three kingdoms to perform healings, settle disputes, advise our leaders and sometimes she attends the annual Warrior Trials. She is one of only two humans that have ever been in the elf forest. When she is not travelling, she lives in the forest with the elves. A group of twenty five elves act as an honour guard for her when she travels.’
‘Why do people believe she is a god?’ Lilian asked.
‘There has been a lot of debate around that for the past twenty five years. The story is that when she was born, a bright light was shining all around her. The midwives who were present at the birth claim that the light was actually coming from the baby.’ Peter answered.
Lilian stiffened and shot Brighton a sideways glance. Only the two of them knew the story behind his birth. Although it looked like he was not very interested, Lilian knew him well enough to know he was burning with curiosity.
‘It sounds like a bedtime story to me,’ Brac commented dryly.
‘I also thought that at first,’ Peter continued, ‘but you can’t ignore the fact that her birth was foretold by an old witch. This prediction has also been the subject of heated debate.’
‘A witch?’ Brighton asked carefully.
‘Yes, an old woman who has lived for almost three thousand years,’ Peter answered.
He was expecting some reaction from the group but instead there was only silence.
Since nobody said anything he continued, ‘There is a small group that opposes Lady Jaclyn and claims that the prophecy is nothing but a lie. The strongest of all their arguments is that the prophecy foretold two angels would be born, a boy and a girl, and yet only Lady Jaclyn is with us today.’
This time Brighton could not keep quiet.
‘You said that the debates have been going on for twenty five years. Is this when Lady Jaclyn was born?’ he asked.
‘Yes. Before her birth, only a small group of scholars and priests took the prophecy seriously. Most people thought it was the ramblings of an insane woman. After her birth, the debates heated up but she still did not have many followers. It’s only been in recent years that almost everybody started believing that she is a god sent from the spiritual world. Roughly, ten years ago, when she started travelling the three kingdoms, rumours of her magical powers started surfacing. One story we heard was about a group of travelling merchants who were under attack from a band of robbers. Lady Jaclyn and her entourage came upon this and with a single wave of her hand more than thirty robbers dropped stone dead. She then proceeded to heal all the wounds of the unfortunate travellers. These merchants claim that at least five of them would have died from their wounds but she saved them.’
