Earth Magic

by Kenneth Price

  Pallas stretched. Looking around an unfamiliar room, he sat up. The red-headed boy was in a long narrow room which was lined with well-made bunks. He tried to remember what had happened and where he was. The room was filled with men getting ready for the day. They were soldiers, and they looked as if they had been up for some time. The only beds that were not already made were Pallas' and Colin's. Colin was lying in the cot next to Pallas'. Still asleep, Colin was snoring loud enough to compete with the morning bells of ‘Prime". After a brief moment, Pallas began to remember things, and he began to recognize where he was, this was the barracks of the city guard. The idea that he was hiding here in the barracks was somehow ironic.

  Slowly, the memories of the night before came back. Pallas wished they had not. He had killed a man, and Elwin and Aidan were both dead. Neither Pallas, Colin, nor Ned had been able to save them. Before they could reach the temples dungeons, a combination of soldiers, priests, and hobgoblins, as well as a raging fire, had forced them back. Elwin and Aidan could not have survived that fire. It had been the single worst night in Pallas' young life. "We should have listened to father, and stayed home," he told himself. Trying not to think too much, he started looking for his clothes. Unable to find them, Pallas gave up, laying laid back down, "Oh, Elwin," he sighed. "It was not supposed to be like this!" He whipped the tears from his eyes.

  "Stop it!" he demanded of himself. "Leina still needs you. Elwin, if you can hear me, I promise you I will find her. Colin and I will not give up. I promise!"

  "You two again?"

  Pallas once more opened his eyes. He stared up at a tall guardsman. It took Pallas a moment to recognize the man. Then it came to him. It was the sergeant that he and Colin had seen the day before. He had saved them from being killed by the man who called himself Patch. The sergeant had also told them to get out of town, or they would be arrested.

  Pallas moaned.

  "I guess I am not going to arrest you after all," he said, smiling down at Pallas.

  From the cot next to Pallas, Colin stopped snoring. Mumbling something about there being too much noise for him to sleep, he sat up in his cot. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked up at the sergeant. "You!" Colin looked as if he had not slept at all, and Pallas realized he probably looked about the same. Ned, the warrior barkeep, was right, the world was a cruel place.

  Wrapping his blanket around himself to stay warm, Pallas sat back up. "Sergeant, you're a Renegade, aren't you?"

  The sergeant nodded, "Yes. And my name's Lud. You may call me that from now on. After all, we are now comrades of a sort." He waved towards the men in the room. "And all the guards in this particular barracks are Renegades."

  "And Ned is ..."

  "Our leader," finished the sergeant. "It was Kayno who organized us."

  "Kayno?" questioned Colin.

  "That is Ned's true name. Being an innkeeper is Kayno's cover, though I think he would prefer being an innkeeper to the Renegade leader."

  "Kayno?" repeated Colin. "I think I recognize that name."

  Pallas changed the subject. "Did you ever catch that fellow? What was his name?"

  "Patch?" answered Colin. He doubted that he would ever forget him.

  Lud shook his head. "No... that one is as slippery as an eel dipped in hot butter."

  Dressed now as a captain in the king's army, Ned suddenly appeared. He walked into the room, nodding greetings to the men he passed. Now dressed in a dark blue surcoat with the coat of arms of a single red rose, Ned had once more transformed himself. The innkeeper, who last night was a warrior, was now an officer in the service of the King of Cluain. A long red cape that matched the rose on his chest was draped over his back. In his arms, he carried two more uniforms of a Cluain man-at-arms. "Put these on. We are leaving soon,"

  Colin looked surprised, "Ned ... I mean Kayno,... I thought we were going to stay here until it was safer. That's what you said last night."

  Kayno frowned at his name. "Things have changed."

  "Good." Colin grabbed the clothes that Kayno offered him. "I need to get out of here." He glanced at Pallas and corrected himself. "We need to get out of here." Colin started to dress. "After you left us here last night, Pallas and I talked. We are going on ahead. Elwin gave his life for his sister, and we will see this to the end."

  Pallas thought that Colin looked like he was about to cry, but with an iron will the young Ceredigion lord would not let the tears come.

  "No one's trying to stop you." Kayno looked at Lud, "You did not tell them?"

  Lud shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't had the chance."

  "Well, I guess I can tell them," Kayno said addressing Lud. "Why don't you go change. I would like you to be my second in command. That is if you don't mind be promoted from a city guardsman to a Cluain officer."

  "Sure, I'll come along. Getting out of this city will be a nice change. But where am I going? And do I get a pay raise."

  Ned, or Kayno, laughed softly, "Sorry, no pay raises for Renegades and we are heading for the Tent City of Caiplich."

  "Caiplich?" Pallas spoke up surprised by the change in plans. "You're going to help us? How are you going to get us out of the city?"

  Kayno smiled. "A unit of the king's men is scheduled to begin a patrol along the road to Caiplich. We will be that patrol."

  "Well," said Lud. "I guess I had better change. Raise or no raise, I never thought I'd be a king's man. Do you have one of those uniforms for me?"

  "I took the liberty to drop one off in your room."

  "What’s going on?" Pallas asked as he watched Lud leave. "What was Lud supposed to tell us?" He had a spark of hope, but he dared not believe what his heart was telling him.

  "It is why I changed my plans and why I'm going to help you reach Caiplich." Kayno stood above the two boys, his eyes shifting from Colin to Pallas and back again. "Elwin and your friend Aidan the Elf, are alive."

  Pallas jumped out of bed and nearly jumped out of his skin. Without thinking, he hugged Kayno. Embarrassing himself and Kayno, he stepped back, "Sorry." His blushing face turning to a bright red.

  Kayno laughed. "Don't worry about it. I acted almost the same way when I heard."

  "How do you know?" asked Colin, smiling from ear to ear. "How do you know that they are alive? Have you seen them? Where are they?”

  "I have not seen them, but they are alive. They were in the temple dungeon last night, but somehow they escaped."

  "Where are they now?" Colin asked again as he finished dressing and sat down on the edge of his unmade bed to put his leather military boots on, but then he was quickly back on his feet. He was jittery and looked as if he were ready to run out of the room.

  "I don't know for sure, but my guess is that they are headed for Caiplich. That is what I would do."

  Kayno sat on the edge of the cot and put his hands on his knees. "Sit back and I'll tell you what I know."

  "To start off with, I am sure that they are alive because the Severed Head is looking all over the city for them. They would not be doing that if they were dead or if they still had them.”

  “So they must have escaped," stated Pallas. “They must be hiding in the city.”

  "Then we have to find them," stated Colin. "We can't leave now!"

  "Just hang on," continued Kayno. "I told you that they are headed for Caiplich. At least I think so. As I said that is what I would be doing. Anyway, it seems the prince has made himself into somewhat of a hero. He is being talked about all over the city. The story is that Elwin and a group of Renegades attacked the temple. I guess that we are the Renegades."

  "But that isn't what happened," said Pallas. "You're a Renegade, but we aren't, and Elwin was certainly not with us. He was a prisoner."

  Kayno smiled, "You're close enough to a Renegade now. But there is more. Elwin apparently killed a priest, as well as the High Priestess Mor."

  "Elwin?" both Pallas and Colin said at the same time.

  "I know," agreed Kayno. "It is hard to
believe. A skinny boy like him. But that is what they are saying. And some witnesses are saying they saw the prince bring down the temple." He shook his head. "These are strange days. Who would have thought the boy had it in him. Your prince has the Strigiol and the Black guardsmen running around like scared rats. They figure anyone who could destroy the temple and kill a High Priestess is a dangerous man. I would find it hard to argue with them."

  "How?" asked Pallas. "How could he have done all that? Maybe it's just a rumor. Like us being Renegades."

  "Maybe, but it does not matter. The Severed Head is searching door to door, and they would not do that if he were still a prisoner, or if he were dead. So he must be alive."

  "But that doesn't explain how you know that he is on his way to Caiplich," Colin pointed out.

  "A water gate was found opened late last night, and a guard saw two men escaping through it. Since the Guardsman was one of my men, he did not sound the alarm. So if my guess is right, the two were the prince and the Elf. And if that is the case and from what you have told me, Elwin will be heading for Caiplich. We will either find him along the road or meet up with him once we get to the Aleach Tent City."

  "But won't the Severed Head figure out he has escaped?" asked Pallas.

  "Not for a while," explained Kayno. "As I said, the guard that spotted them was one of my men. He closed the gate and told no one but me. With any luck, it will be days before the dark cult figures it out that Prince Elwin is no longer in the city, and they shouldn’t know where his going. That gives us a good head start."

  "And if you're wrong, and Elwin is still in the city?" asked Colin.

  "The Renegades are already in the streets looking. It is the best we can do, Colin. And if he is discovered by the Temple or by us, the Renegades will send a fast horse and rider to let us know."

  --

  Mounted upon a gray stallion, Pallas held the reins tight. He was having trouble keeping the restless horse still. The horse snickered and pawed the ground. "Come on, Willow, try to behave."

  Colin fell into line beside Pallas. "Willow?"

  "Lord Rodan told me that one should always have a name for his horse."

  "But why 'Willow'?"

  "Because of his mane." Pallas fluffed up the horse's long, thick mane. "It reminds me of the branches of a willow tree."

  Thirty soldiers of King Lyon's army maneuvered their mounts into two columns of fifteen men each. At the head of the columns, Kayno and Lud watched as the men fell into order.

  "Do you think this is going to work?" asked Pallas. "Even in these helmets, we still look too young to be king's men."

  Colin looked at the soldiers in front of him and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. But we will find out soon enough."

  Once things had calmed down, Kayno raised his hand and signaled for the men to move out. A trumpet sang out, giving the order to move out. The columns slowly marched through the city streets. People moved out of their way, with curious eyes watching them pass, yet no one cheered as they once would have done. King Lyon had surrendered to Strigiol and without even a fight. Now the King was held up in his castle, and he rarely made any appearances. The people of Cluain blamed the king and his army for the loss of their independence. They were now a conquered people, who had surrendered their freedom without their king lifting a finger. The looks they gave the patrol were a mixture of anger and shame.

  "It seems that the king's men are little loved," noted Colin.

  The soldier in front of him turned his head. "And for good reason. The king let Strigiol take Cluain without a fight. We just stood aside and watched. Your Prince Elwin is already more of a king than ours ever was." The soldier sounded as embarrassed and angry as the crowds of onlookers. And yet there was a note of pride in his voice when he spoke of Elwin, who was now being referred to as the Outlaw Prince of Kambrya. In this Cluain city, Elwin was becoming a folk hero.

  Like Kayno had said, the city guards did not try to stop them. As the patrol approached the city's east gate, the drawbridge was lowered. Standing on either side of the gate were two city guardsmen. They snapped to attention and saluted Kayno. Kayno gave each a simple nod as his road past.

  Are they Renegades? Wondered Pallas. Trying to hide his face, he kept his head low. Pallas sighed in relief as the last man rode past the gates and the drawbridge was raised back up. Once more the trumpet sounded, and the patrol picked up their pace to a canter. They quickly left the city behind them.

  Pallas looked over his shoulder at the receding city. A thick column of smoke rose above the skyline. The smoldering ashes of the temple would take weeks, if not longer to die out.

  Smiling, Pallas turned back. "We made it!"

  The road to Caiplich was one of the busiest roads in all of Kambrya and as such was a large wide road and yet it showed signs of decay and neglect.

  "They have let the road go to ruin," complained the soldier in front of Colin. "If it is not taken care of soon, next year you won't be able to get a wagon down it."

  "Maybe that is what King Jerran wants,” commented the soldier next to him. "If you ask me, the king is trying to discourage people from using the roads. He intends to stop all traffic going to free lands like Aleach and Mythra."

  "Huh!" grunted the other soldier.

  Pallas turned to Colin. "Do you think that Elwin and Aidan came this way?"

  Colin looked down at the road. "It is hard to tell. If they did, there is no sign that I can see, but I am not a scout."

  A few short miles beyond the gates of Aonach, the road entered a woodland. The city and ocean vanished from view. Here and there, the woods were broken by a few farmhouses. Farmers had cleared away the trees to make room for their fields. However, as the day wore on the farms grew fewer and farther apart, and the woods grew thicker. By noon, they had passed the last farmhouse, and the dark shadows of the forest closed in on the roadside, and the smell of pine was thick. Hours slipped past before Kayno, at last, called for a stop and made camp in a small clearing next to the road.

  The days and nights that followed soon became routine. The company would rise with the sun, and after a quick breakfast, the men would saddle their horses and ride on. Every few days they would come across a village, and the company would stop while Kayno and Lud checked in at the manor house to resupply. To Pallas' chagrin, they never stayed in the villages any longer than what was absolutely necessary, and he never got to visit any of the taverns that they passed. Preferring to avoid the townspeople, Kayno always had the company camp in the countryside away from any possible spies. By mid-afternoon, the company usually stopped for the night. Progress toward Caiplich was slow, and for the most part, the road was quiet; too quiet. The once busy road now saw few travelers, most people, including merchants, were not willing to venture far from home. And so far, they had not seen nor heard anything of Elwin and Aidan. The weeks passed, and they still had not found Aidan and Elwin. Fearing that they had passed them up, Colin wanted to stop, but Kayno said no. Shaking his big head, the ex-innkeeper assured Colin that the prince had to be traveling this way. "It is true we may now be ahead of them. More likely they left the road for the shelter of the trees but don't worry. Elwin and his friend will be able to keep up. Even on foot, they should not be too far behind. We have been going very slowly. If my guess is correct, we won't be in Caiplich more than a week before they show up." Kayno smiled. "How about a little sword practice. It will keep your mind off your friends."

  "How much further to Caiplich?" asked Pallas.

  Sitting on a log next to Pallas, Lud stretched out his feet. "Not too much longer. A few days, maybe a week."

  "What is Aleach like?"

  Lud shrugged. "How should I know? I have only been to Caiplich, and Caiplich is not really a part of the great plains. The Aleach do not like us Kambryan folk on their land."

  "But Aleach is part of Kambrya isn't it?"

  "If you mean does it lie within the Dragon Mountains, then yes, then I guess it is.


  However, that is where their ties to Kambrya end. The Aleach are a different race than us Kambryians. They speak a different language and have a different religion and culture. As far as I know, no Kambryan has ever ruled in Aleach. Not even the old High Kings."

  Camp had been set, and the sun was still well above the horizon. It was the time that the soldiers relaxed. Not far away, Lud and Pallas watched Kayno and Colin, who were sparring once more. Seeing Colin's potential as a swordsman, Kayno decided to start training him, and every evening the two entertained the men with their practicing.

  Feigning one way, Kayno dipped his sword in the opposite direction, and then with a quick burst of speed, brought it straight up. With the tip of his practice sword, he gently touched Colin on the chin. "You're dead."

  In all their sparring, Colin had yet to make a kill, however in the last few nights he had scored once or twice. The audience of soldiers cheered enthusiastically every time Colin showed improvement.

  "The sword master, never taught us that one," said Colin, feeling his chin.

  "Lord Comyn is a good man, and talented, but there are many things he does not know, and he tends to teach according to the rules of the courtly world and not of the real world. In true combat, rules don't matter. All the same, do not worry, Colin, you have a natural talent and amazing balance and speed. You are learning faster than you think."

  So intent on learning, Colin did not notice that Kayno had called the Ceredigion Swordmaster by his name, but Pallas had. "He knows Lord Comyn, the Ceredigion Swordmaster?"

  Lud frowned at Pallas. "What does it matter?"

  "It is just strange that he should know Lord Comyn,” Pallas replied with a shrug. "Lord Comyn is not well known outside of Ceredigion."

  "Stop prying," warned Lud, "a man's past is his own business."

  --