“Sir, everything ok?” Cass asked as soon as he descended the stairs.
“Should there be anything amiss?” Bren asked, eyeing his friend closely.
“Dammit!” Cass said, stomping his foot. “I hoped that we could hold off you learning about the rumors until after the mages finished repairing the roofs,” Cass admitted.
“How could you tell?” Bren asked, more intrigued than angry at his friend.
“Your face,” Cass replied, shrugging his shoulders. “You look like you just took a big drink of Lillian’s green tea, and I know you haven’t been drinking. The only reason left for you to have such a sour expression is that you learned something that left a bad taste in your mouth.”
“Well, you don’t have much to worry about,” Bren said, kicking the ground. “Until I can figure out a way to dispute the rumors without further damaging the tower’s reputation, there is little that I can do.”
“What have you done with Bren?” Cass asked, stepping back and looking at him as if he had grown a second head.
“What are you blabbering about?” Bren asked, trying to hold back a smile.
“I thought that you would march off with Flynn and the army behind you to bring the tower to the ground when you learned about what was happening. Why such the lackluster attitude?”
“I won’t lie,” Bren said, clenching his fist. “I am angry about them using Sae-Thae as their scapegoat, but there is little I can do about it without causing further harm. I don’t plan to simply let it go the way they want, but right now I don’t have much choice…Unless I want to risk another war. I need to do what’s best for the people, and sometimes that isn’t easy.”
“That’s the reason I would rather be a soldier taking orders, than a king giving them,” Cass said, patting Bren consolingly on the back. “Why don’t we head over to Crusher’s? He always has the best tasting brew in the town.”
“I hate to think about drinking more of that rancid tea in the morning, but right now a drink sounds too good to pass up,” Bren admitted.
Bren spent the entire walk to Crusher’s shop listening to the people around him. As Lillian had said, he could hear the whispers about Sae-Thae, though most of the time the words were too soft for him to hear what exactly being said. Between trying to listen to the whispers and watching Avalanche as she bounded about, the walk seemed incredibly short.
They found Crusher working in his outside forge. Bren watched as the dwarf pulled a long thin strip of metal about four foot long from the fire and laid it on the anvil. Each strike that hit the metal didn’t cause a flurry of sparks as Bren had expected, but instead only a few tiny flakes of metal bounced into the air.
Time passed by quickly as Bren watched the dwarf at work. It was amazingly mesmerizing, watching the hammer strike the metal over and over. When Crusher lifted up the sword for the fifth time and looked at it, a smile crept over his face and he stuck the glowing metal in a tall thin vat of liquid. When he pulled the sword out, flames licked at the metal, but it had lost its red hue. After a few hardy shakes, the flames extinguished and Crusher laid the blade on a large stone table.
“If you’re here about the sword then ya are way too soon. That’s the blade right there and I still got plenty left to do before it ready fer use.”
Bren laughed and gave the dwarf a warm smile that seemed to calm his gruff demeanor. “We came to see how much ale we can put away between the seven of us.”
“Aye, then what are we waiting around in the cold fer?” Crusher asked, limping toward the door. “I just got in a nice batch of dwarven spirits that will cause a wee toddler ta grow hair on its chest.”
“I think we are going to regret this decision,” Bren said with a worried look, getting a laugh from Cass as well as his other guards.
“Regret is for the morning,” Cass said, following the dwarf inside the house. “The night before is for doing things that need to be regretted. Otherwise, what fun is life?”
The next morning, Bren could only remember faint whispers of the previous night. He vaguely remembered stumbling back to the palace, and Lillian giving him a stern lecture. He also vaguely remembered kissing the young elf on the check and making her golden skin turn an odd shade of red. He knew that she would make him regret it later in the day, but right now all that mattered was that he find some way to get the world around him to quit spinning.
***********************
Thad couldn’t help but laugh as he watched his son stumble about. Having been in that same situation before, thanks to Crusher, Thad had some sympathy. He also knew that in the future, Bren would look back on these days and find them comforting.
“It would seem that your son has not forgotten about you,” Humanius offered, sitting down beside the mage.
“It would seem not, but I doubt that he will have the time to find the entrance to the veil anytime soon. With my luck, he will be an old man before he even catches a real glimpse of its location,” Thad replied without a hint of displeasure in his voice.
“You don’t sound disappointed?”
“Why should I be?” Thad asked, smiling. “My son has become a far better man than I. He might still have a few rough edges, but those will smooth in time. What right do I have to demand that he spend the entirely of his life devoted to returning me to the world of men. I would be happy, should he forget about me completely and simply enjoy his life.”
“I wish the same, but I doubt that he will forget about you. Things always have a way of coming back to one’s father,” Humanius said with a knowing look.
CHAPTER V
The rumors continued to spread, but to Bren’s amazement, it didn’t seem to have much of a negative effect on Sae-Thae. Most of the residents took the news as expected, making Bren wonder just what the vathari had done to earn such a menacing reputation. Even though the rumors didn’t seem to cause many problems and solved more than a few, the decision to let them go unchallenged still twisted in his stomach.
The snows had already started falling, though right now it was so light that the thin blanket of white only lasted a day before it melted under the heat of the sun. To pass the time, Bren took the chance to catch up on his paperwork. Within only three days of hard work, he had most of the papers sorted and signed. Oddly, most of them were expense reports and communications from other kingdoms giving out the normal greetings to a new ruler. Most of the letters were very light and short, meaning that they didn’t know how much power he held within the Kingdom and were probably testing the waters to see if he, or the tower held the real power.
It was a tricky situation to be sure. If he declared that he had absolute power, it could cause more trouble with the tower. On the other hand, if he didn’t exert his authority, then the tower would surely take it from him. It would be slow at first, but like a dam with a hole, it would increase with time. Before he knew it, his position would be no more than an empty title. The situation made answering the letters from the other monarchs tricky and meant that he had to spend a lot of time choosing the correct wording for each response.
It was during one of his long sessions of penning a letter that a heavy knock came at his door. It was still early in the day so he didn’t think that it would be Cass, as the man knew that he was busy with important responses. If it was Lillian, she would have simply let herself in no matter how many times he begged her to knock.
As he stood from his chair, small tendrils of pain rushed up his legs. He looked at the offending chair and made a mental note to get something a bit more comfortable when he found the time.
As he turned the handle to his door, it burst open and Bren had to jump back to keep from being hit by the door. “Bren, it’s horrible!” Faye said, running into his room, her face flustered and her breathing shallow as if she had ran all the way from the tower.
“What’s terrible?” Bren asked, as he tried to make sense of the situation.
“The mages are all saying that Master Sae-Thae started the war wi
th you,” Faye said in an excited high pitched voice. “Everyone is saying that Sae-Thae is the one who authorized everything and made sure that you were kept in the dark. That is why you didn’t find out about everything until he had left and they didn’t try to arrest you until after Sae-Thae had returned.” When Bren didn’t respond to what Faye had said, she stomped her foot and gave him a scathing glare. “What are you going to do about this?”
“Honestly, I don’t know what I can do,” Bren admitted.
“But they are making master Sae-Thae out to be the bad guy when he did everything in his power to curb the council’s ambitions.”
“I know, they have been spreading the same kind of rumors in the non-human district,” Bren replied, his brow furrowed in thought.
“And you haven’t done anything about it!” Faye exclaimed. “I thought that master Sae-Thae was your friend.”
“He is, but there is little I can do without causing more problems,” Bren said apologetically. “But, I think it is time to talk to master Sae-Thae himself. Maybe he will have an idea about what to do in this situation.”
Faye didn’t seem to be happy with his reply, but she didn’t respond, she simply kept glaring at him as he left his room and headed down the stairs to the main hall where Cass and the others waited. Everyone was gathered around the long table talking and enjoying the relaxed atmosphere that tended to come with winter. All the other seasons were busy times of the year with everything from planting, harvesting and preparing for the cold that herald the end of the year. It was almost as if winter had been created for people to recover from the trials of the previous months, though it could also be deadly for those who had not prepared for it.
“I don’t like that look on your face,” Cass said with a worried frown.
“Don’t worry, I don’t plan to cause any trouble today. I just need to visit the tower,” Bren replied, heading for the front door of the palace.
“If you’re not planning on causing trouble, why are you headed to the tower?”
“To talk to Sae-Thae,” Bren answered, not slowing down, forcing the rest to hurry and grab their gear to keep up with him.
Unlike the last visit to the tower, no one stopped them, but Bren still had his guard wait for him in the lower levels of the tower. The lack of harassment might have been a sign that attitudes were changing toward him among the mages of the tower, but it might also have been a test to see how he would react. Bren had no doubt that he was being watched carefully.
“I don’t see any of the tower guards,” Cass said, his eyes darting about.
“I would guess that the council has been notified of our pending arrival, and have most of the guards guarding the masters in case we decided to do anything rash,” Bren suggested.
“I don’t like it,” Cass said, his fingers nervously tapping on the hilt of his sword. “I much prefer when enemies are within sight, and not having to fear them hiding around every corner.”
“I don’t think you should consider the tower guards enemies,” Faye said hesitantly.
“I consider anyone with a sword, and anyone I don’t know, an enemy my lord,” Cass replied in a dismissive tone.
“That is the price of bearing responsibility. People you don’t know will consider you a threat and move to eliminate you,” Bren told Faye with a weak smile.
“Sounds lonely to me,” Faye replied with a downcast look.
When they reached the top floor of the tower, they found that guards were posted two at every door. Every eye watched them closely as they walked down the hall. Bren’s heart jumped nervously in his chest as they approached Sae-Thae’s study, where four guards were posted.
“Sir, may I ask to the reason for your visit?” One of the guards asked, stepping between Bren and Sae-Thae’s door.
“I am here to see the head master,” Bren said confidently.
“I am sorry your majesty, but I cannot allow you to see the head master at this time,” The guard replied, looking at Bren’s sword nervously.
“Just tell the head master that we are here to see him. I am sure that he won’t refuse us admittance,” Bren said, his voice sounding slightly agitated.
“As you wish your majesty,” The guard said unconvinced, before disappearing through the master’s door.
When the guard returned, he had an annoyed look on his face, but didn’t say anything. He just simply held the door open for Bren, Cass, and Faye.
“I thought you would have come to visit days ago,” Sae-Thae said as soon as they entered his room. “Don’t tell me it has taken you this long to hear the rumors going around.”
“I heard them over a fortnight ago, but couldn’t think of a good way to combat them so I left them alone. Faye here on the other hand, demanded I do something. So, I have come to discuss the matter with you,” Bren replied with a bored sounding voice.
“I see,” Sae-Thae said with a deep laugh. “Looks like Isophena won the bet then. I was sure that you would rush here as soon as you learned of what was happening, and she bet that you would wait it out until you were forced to take action.”
“Are you disappointed?” Bren asked, slightly embarrassed.
“Not at all. In fact, I am quite impressed. It would have ruined all my hard work had you rushed off the second you heard the rumors. I thought about sending you a letter, but I thought it would be more fun to watch your reaction.”
“Your hard work?” Bren asked bewildered.
“Ah, you see, the rumors were my idea,” Sae-Thae admitted.
“But they will end up making you resign from your position as head master,” Bren said, his voice betraying his surprise.
“That was my main bargaining chip with Turneal and his cronies,” Sae-Thae said with a smile. “I had a long talk with Turneal and we came to an agreement. For a mage, he is a very shortsighted man, so he was easy to lead around. He forgot that the head master has the right to choose his successor. I will lose my position in time, but not as soon as you would expect, and Turneal will not be replacing me.”
“I see,” Bren replied, taking a seat across from Sae-Thae. It was a brilliant plan, one that would not only solve the trouble between him and the tower, but also the common people and the tower. It was a small price to pay, but Bren still didn’t like the taste it left in his mouth.
“I still think it would be better to replace the masters with ones that would be more receptacle, than move around them,” Phena said from the corner of the room.
“I agree when Phena,” Faye said angrily. “It’s not fair that Master Sae-Thae has to take the blame for the entire tower.”
“It’s nice to think that everything will work out for the best, but in most cases, that just never happens,” Bren said. “If we removed the council members we don’t like by force, it would breed resentment within the younger mages of the tower. What we need to do now is to slowly change the views of the younger mages, and to do that we need to show a working relationship between the tower and the palace. Sadly, for that to happen, someone needs to take the blame for the past transgression, and given the Vathari’s reputation, Sae-Thae is the best choice.”
“Correct,” Sae-Thae said proudly. “Right now, it is the best choice we have. I can still hold my position for a few years. I will catch a lot of resentment from the city and younger mages, but that will help solidify Bren’s position as king.”
“I still don’t like it,” Faye said loudly.
“Not many people like what has to be done when it comes down to it,” Sae-Thae said in a refreshing tone. “The ability to do what is best for everyone is what makes a good leader. Sometimes you have to set aside your own feeling and do what is best for the people, and not what is best for you.”
Bren turned his head to keep from having to look at Faye in the eyes. He could tell she was disappointed, but Sae-Thae was right. This was the best course of action. If he could think of anything else that would solve so many problems without bloodshed, he would take it, but nothing ca
me to mind.
“What is your next move Sae-Thae?” Bren asked, hoping to change the direction of the conversation.
“Next, I plan to use the time I am being kept out of the public eye to continue my search for the location of the veil. It is the perfect opportunity for me to distance myself from Isophena and the other students so that none of them are hurt by the backlash of my so called exile. I would also suggest that you don’t visit me for a good while, otherwise it will cast shadows on the rumors and might shift them to people thinking that you and I were in league to take over the tower.”
“I see,” Bren replied. “Then how will we talk, should I or you learn something that might be valuable to the other?”
“That is where master Sae-Thae expects me to come in,” Phena said, her voice ringing with annoyance. “While I will be keeping out of sight, I will still be visiting with master Sae-Thae in secret. Right now, we are spreading around the rumor that I am your half-sister so that it won’t be odd that I visit you in town. While the diction of family doesn’t matter much to the Vathari, in your world it is a very important bound so it will help hide the truth. Over the next year, I am supposed to make it look like we are the best of friends.”
“I see,” Bren said, his face lighting up. “If it looks like we are on good terms, then when Sae-Thae announces you as the next head master, the other council members won’t have any place to complain and they won’t be able to shift blame on you easily because of our known bound. It is a very well thought out plan.”
“Except, I won’t let you run ram shod over the tower,” Phena said angrily.
“I wouldn’t expect you too,” Bren replied. “I only expect you to keep the guilds actions within the bounds of the tower and not try to infringe on my people.”
Silver Mage (Book 2) Page 4
