Being in such a great mood Rocious sped through the city increasingly fast to screw with the people who saw him. By the time he stopped in the main courtyard, he was still laughing about the dazed looks. Looking around the courtyard, Rocious was surprised. The soldiers were sitting around casually. There was no heightened alert like he had expected. The ninth legion should have been organizing and preparing to defend the city. Riders should have gone out to call back the other legions, but it looked like nothing had been done. He did see Falcon and Dominick’s two boys exercising with Decimus, not surprising since Rocious was not there for Falcon’s lessons.
Something was not right; he had to talk to Dominick before he spoke to anyone else. So he went straight to the throne room, pushing past the line of people waiting for an audience with the king.
The doors to the throne room were shut when he got there. He debated if he should give Dominick another reason to have a shit fit about his court etiquette or wait patiently. He had already skipped to the front of the line, so he waited. When the doors finally opened he entered the throne room calmer than usual, until the herald opened his dumb mouth.
“Sir Francis Birch!” boomed the herald.
Rocious stared at the herald trying to hold onto his good mood, “First, the fuck forgets to announce me, now he announces someone else. Do you want me to burn my name into your forehead so you can remember it?” asked Rocious losing his good mood.
“Francis Birch was next in line. Either you changed your name or Mr. Birch is still waiting outside,” said Dominick.
“Francis Birch!” shouted Rocious.
A lean, tall middle-aged man poked his head around the doorframe. “He’s waiting outside,” said Rocious.
“Then welcome home Master Lockland, I will see you at dinner. Until then, Samuel has a package for you,” said Dominick motioning for the side door. “Mr. Birch, my apologies. Please come in,” said Dominick using his amulet to project.
Rocious was caught off guard. He was expecting Dominick to dismiss everyone else and start preparing for war, not to make dinner plans. When he left out the side entrance Samuel was waiting with a small box. Usually a blunt man himself, Samuel handed him the box and walked away. Rocious opened the box to find what looked like four small white stones on top of a folded piece of paper. Looking closer he realized they were his broken teeth. His magic had already caused them to grow back but the message was clear even without reading the note: ‘Good Luck Dom ’.
At dinner all Rocious heard were the nonstop questions about Colville. Falcon must have told them how Colville beat Decimus, Fafnir’s hero. And now the boys would not shut up about it. Rocious squeezed the bridge of his nose and had only one thought, what happened to my good day? After the meal he wasted no time grabbing a bottle of brandy and taking his spot on the balcony. The three boys stayed inside chattering about the winter.
“Rough trip?” asked Dominick coming to join him.
“Something like that,” said Rocious.
Dominick shoved Rocious, forcing him to turn and look him in the eye. Rocious stuck his chin out and stared back at him. Dominick looked away and Rocious took another swig of brandy. Mid swig Dominick grabbed Rocious with both arms pulling him into a bear hug.
“I wasn’t sure if you were coming back after getting the package from Eikard but I hoped,” said Dominick.
“Wasn’t sure if I’d make it,” answered Rocious.
Dominick let him go, fixed his shirt and put his hand out for the bottle of brandy.
“I’m glad you did, I don’t know what I would do without you,” said Dominick.
“I failed,” said Rocious.
“You made it back. Tell me what happened,” said Dominick handing the brandy back.
“I’m not sure, he brushed off everything I threw at him like it was nothing and kicked my ass in the process. I was lucky to escape,” said Rocious looking down.
Dominick waited for him to continue.
“I ran into the Severan Mountains, was lost for, I think, four days. May have lost my mind in the process,” said Rocious pausing again to take a drink.
“Anything else?” asked Dominick.
“He said it wasn’t him. I don’t know the guy, but why would he lie to me right before killing me?” asked Rocious.
“For someone else to hear maybe? His soldiers probably think him righteous. What would his own people think if he was responsible for sending a dragon to kill Count Reed’s people?” answered Dominick.
“I don’t know, Eikard and Reed both deal with men from the Laza. I thought they were close,” said Rocious.
“We’ve got another problem. He sent that message instead of sending an army,” said Dominick.
“So what does that mean?” asked Rocious.
“I’m not sure. If he’s going to keep your attempt on his life secret, I will keep his involvement with the dragon secret too. But I think he’s going to make an attempt to kill me or to kill someone close to me. I need to keep them safe, including you,” answered Dominick.
“What am I supposed to do?” asked Rocious.
“Move here, I don’t care about the staff,” answered Dominick.
“You have got to be fucking joking?” said Rocious.
“No,” said Dominick resolute.
“I’m not a wilting flower, and I don’t like hiding,” said Rocious.
“Just for a little while. Until he makes his attempt,” negotiated Dominick.
“Fine, but I’m still leaving in the winter. Don’t like the cold,” said Rocious.
“Fine, you’re probably safer there than anywhere,” said Dominick.
“Falcon isn’t going to take this well. He already feels like a prisoner here,” said Rocious.
“When you’re not with him I’ll have Decimus look after the boys,” said Dominick.
“He’s going to hate you for this,” warned Rocious.
Chapter 12
No Goodbye
When winter arrived and Falcon returned to Spring Forge he felt like he was escaping from prison. For the past nine months he had been constantly busy. Between fighting with Decimus, learning magic with Rocious, and studying math and history, he had no free time. The only time he really had to himself was the hour before falling asleep.
Not much had changed at the forge, but Falcon felt like he was exploring it for the first time. Last time he was here the innocence of youth still clung to him, but now he saw the world with a harsh clarity. Last year, Spring Forge was like a breath of fresh air. This year, it was more like taking a deep breath on a muggy day. Even so, it felt good to be working in the forge again. Once he learned what they could do, he had developed a passion for runes and the forge was the best place to explore that passion.
More than his purview on life had changed over the past nine months. He was getting stronger and faster every day; even his mind felt like it was sharpening. He could easily activate basic runes although they made him feel tired. Rocious told him the next lesson started when he was able to activate all of them, and even then he would continue to practice. Decimus was a dedicated teacher and an excellent fighter, but like swordsmanship, his abilities came from his natural strength advantage and an unrivaled work ethic. Decimus was great at preparing recruits for a fight, but Falcon wanted more than that. He wanted to be like Colville: untouchable even when he was outnumbered and unarmed. Colville never seemed scared; he fought with a calm clarity that showed how sure he was in his own ability.
The day Falcon arrived at Spring Forge Colville agreed to teach him. But since then Colville had kept him working and cleaning so there was no time for anything else. He thought if all of his chores were finished early, Colville would be forced to teach him. He woke early and cleaned the fort before Flow started cooking, then he got a head start working the Forge. By midday he was exhausted, but there was nothing left for him to do. When he finished engraving the last piece of armor, he found Colville.
“I’m finished with everythin
g,” said Falcon.
“Good, we need to clean out the carts and start loading them,” said Colville.
“I did it this morning,” said Falcon.
“Then dust the displays in the showroom,” said Colville.
“I finished everything. I was hoping you would close the forge to teach me,” said Falcon.
“You still have a lot to learn from Decimus. Why look for another teacher?” asked Colville.
“When Master Lockland taught me runes, you said there was a difference between learning and understanding. I learn a lot from Decimus, but I feel like there’s more,” answered Falcon.
Colville put down his tools and looked at Falcon for a long minute, “Alright, let’s see what Decimus taught you.”
Colville led Falcon to the flat area they used for exercise and practice. Colville took a seat and watched Falcon run through the series of strikes and movements Decimus taught him over the past year. It took Falcon almost an hour to show everything he had learned. He was covered in sweat and his voice was hoarse from shouting by the end.
When Falcon finished Colville motioned him over to one of the springs for some water, “You’ve got an excellent memory, but there’s more to the martial arts than remembering.”
“Thank you, sir,” said Falcon taking the water.
“Why did Decimus start teaching you?” asked Colville.
“I asked him to,” said Falcon.
Colville knocked the water out of his hand, “Don’t lie to me boy, not unless you want this to be the last lesson.”
Falcon looked down, “I was attacked by some older boys. Decimus helped set my arm and started teaching me.”
“You didn’t attack them or provoke them?” asked Colville.
“They said I was a freeloader, because I’m from Reed. They said I had to pay to use the street,” said Falcon.
“So now you want revenge?” asked Colville.
“I don’t want to be afraid of them,” answered Falcon.
“Eh. Decimus has you shout when you strike or block. Did he explain why?” asked Colville.
“To focus intent,” answered Falcon.
“It’s more than that but close enough. When you fight, what is your intent?” asked Colville.
Falcon took a few seconds to think about the question before he answered. Colville made it clear not to lie, but Falcon was not sure if a guess would seem like a lie.
“I’m not sure, it isn’t always the same,” said Falcon.
“Good, explain,” said Colville.
“Umm, I don’t know,” said Falcon.
“Show me again what Decimus taught you. But this time I want you to think about the intention behind every movement,” instructed Colville.
Falcon had another drink of water before he began again. He closed his eyes, forming an image in his mind. When he began the first form, he imagined Hal, Fenir and Ruark were attacking him. By the end he was tired, but he was so full of rage and adrenaline that he felt like he could smash Hal’s imaginary face all night.
“Why do you want to fight?” asked Colville.
“So I won’t be afraid— ” Colville smacked Falcon spinning his head and knocking him to the ground.
“I told you not to lie to me. Again,” said Colville calmly.
Falcon got up and ran through the forms again using Hal’s face as fuel.
“Why do you want to fight?” asked Colville.
This time Falcon did not answer right away and Colville smacked him again.
“Again,” said Colville loudly this time.
Falcon ran through the forms a third time as Colville watched. By the time he finished the sun was setting and his arms felt like jelly. His legs felt like they might buckle any minute.
“Why do you want to fight?” asked Colville.
Falcon did not answer right away but Colville waited for him to catch his breath.
“I want to kill Hal. No, I want to do worse than kill him. I want to shove garbage in his fucking mouth and beat him until he’s a cripple. I want to set him on fire and watch him beg for me to piss out the flames,” said Falcon.
“Sit. Drink,” said Colville.
Colville watched Falcon as he drank and caught his breath. Falcon was not sure if Colville was angry with him and wondered if he would refuse to teach him. From what he knew about Colville he seemed to be a very compassionate man. He was far from the type of person who would teach him to kill Hal.
“It’s not right what those boys did to you,” said Colville.
“I hate them,” said Falcon.
“Last year you were a kind boy with a simple and admirable motivation. You wanted to learn empathy and find a way to take your people home,” said Colville.
“I still want that. I practice empathy every day,” said Falcon.
“But in the past year, how much time and energy have you put into fighting that you could have used learning magic?” asked Colville.
Falcon did not answer, he looked into the dirt because he knew Colville was right. He did the math quickly in his head: two hours a day for about ten months. He had spent a full month’s worth of time learning to fight.
“This hate is distracting you from what matters. I will teach you to fight, but not for revenge. I will teach you so you can get your home back, and trust me, if you want it you will have to fight,” said Colville.
“Thank you,” said Falcon.
Colville touched Falcon’s chin to look at him, “If you want to be the best, remember what you’re fighting for,” said Colville.
Falcon nodded and thought of something, “Yes, sir. Can I ask you something?” asked Falcon.
“Sure. But be quick, we’re late for dinner,” said Colville.
“Decimus said you gave up the sword. Why?” asked Falcon.
“I imagine it was the same reason your father never let you learn swordsmanship,” said Colville.
“He said when men fight with their fists they can become friends, but when they draw blades they are enemies. He told me I should make friends, not take lives,” said Falcon.
“I suppose I was just tired of making enemies,” said Colville.
Colville trained Falcon for the rest of the winter, mostly refining what Decimus had taught him. Colville made him move painfully slow while he explained the importance of each movement and every breath. But the biggest difference was that Colville had him remain completely silent. He said it would help him focus on breathing and keep calm in a fight. When springtime arrived he willingly continued the practice without Colville’s supervision.
The only problem was time. There was simply not enough time for the highly physical training with Decimus, practicing empathy with Rocious, continuing Colville’s training and going to his lessons with Fafnir and Drake. The compromise he settled on was to exercise with Decimus three days. The rest of the time he practiced alone. Even with the compromise he was constantly late and having trouble staying awake during his lessons.
“You get it yet?” asked Rocious.
Falcon startled awake, “Huh, What?”
He must have fallen asleep again instead of controlling the flow of magic. He was supposed to be activating a series of energy runes but he had fallen asleep before attempting it. It was the last series of runes before his next lesson. Rocious was uncharacteristically tolerant when he fell asleep. In fact, since Falcon was attacked Rocious had become increasingly supportive.
“You had your nap, now it’s time to focus,” said Rocious.
“Yes, sir,” said Falcon.
Falcon rubbed his eyes and tapped into his sense of touch to feel the flow of magic around him, then picked up his engraved dagger. Instantly a jet of bluish energy shot from the dagger, knocking Falcon over the top of his chair. Falcon lay on the floor a moment and looked at Rocious surprised.
“What happened?” asked Falcon.
“You activated the runes,” answered Rocious stating the obvious.
“But I barely did anything,” said Fal
con.
“Yup. Everyone is tuned to one of the eight types of magic, even if they are not attuned. We call this an affinity. Mine is fire, yours is clearly energy,” said Rocious.
“So now I can stop practicing with the runes,” said Falcon.
“No, but you won’t need them for your next lesson. All we need is this,” said Rocious showing Falcon a plain dagger.
“What am I supposed to do with it?” asked Falcon.
“You won’t do anything with it, I will. Watch carefully, I won’t repeat this,” said Rocious. He rolled up his sleeves then laid a towel on the table in front of Falcon. Rocious placed his left hand on top of the towel and stabbed the dagger through his hand sticking the blade into the wood table. Then pulled his hand free of the dagger splitting it completely down the middle. Falcon was disgusted when Rocious showed him his mangled hand. As he watched, the bones slowly moved back into place, the tendons and muscles knit back together and the skin sealed again. In about twenty seconds Rocious’s hand looked like nothing had happened.
“Before you can use external magic, you need to learn internal magic. That means healing. Most attuned will spend years healing the sick and injured. I have found that method wastes time and teaches very little. Lucky for you, I came up with a more effective way,” said Rocious.
Falcon scratched the back of his neck, “Okay?”
“You will need to call more magic, take a few moments and do as I taught you,” said Rocious.
Falcon closed his eyes and thought back to Paul’s death, as the memory solidified in his mind he felt magic fill him from farther and farther away. With a few breaths he had it under control.
“Very good, you will need to do that every day before our lessons,” said Rocious.
Rocious put his hand out to help Falcon stand, “Stand over here.”
Rocious put his hand on Falcon’s shoulder and moved him a little then he stabbed the dagger into his stomach. Falcon swatted at Rocious arm and fell to the floor clutching his stomach to stop the blood gushing out of his wound.
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