by Sam Rook
"Did you hear all of that?" she asked aloud with eager curiosity.
"Yes, I did, and no, you weren’t shouting. If you don’t mind, I’d like you to speak to some of the instructors about your findings. I’m sure they would be fascinated to see what other spells you’ve re-discovered. You need to keep up with your training. Your wing color is nothing to be ashamed of, although it’s a unique color. People will stare, but they’ll not think less of you." Quite the opposite, they’d think she was a Soulbearer.
"Yes, Sir. I’ll resume my training tomorrow. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me." She looked thoughtful, but he had no doubt she would indeed return to her training.
"I look forward to learning more about the spells you’ve ‘corrected’ from the library. Be safe, Lady Kathryn." He gave her a quick nod and left the room.
As he was walking down the hall to return to his workroom, he realized that he had spoken to Lady Kathryn as he would have spoken to a Lady Instructor, an equal. He had even nodded to her as a sign of respect. He must be getting old if he so quickly forgot that Lady Kathryn was a mere first-cycle knight. Lanclor would have to notify Lord Alextor about her color change. There was no doubt in his mind that she was a Soulbearer. The question was, whom would she Bear?
Chapter 19
Kathryn returned to her studies about three weeks ago. The other knights, surprised with her change of color, were only curious about how long it took to happen. She saw a few jealous looks that she contributed to those who would give anything to have the extra attention.
It took her those three weeks to build the courage to speak to Sir Lanclor privately about one of her Sights. It had occurred twice around Sir Lanclor and she knew he had noticed her fearful look both times. The first time was when she had grasped the hilt of her sword. The second was that memorable day about a month ago when he nearly killed her in the practice ring.
Sir Lanclor taught the most advanced weaponry courses, so sometimes took over for Hook to gauge the readiness of the newer knights to move to the next level. As a treat for all of the beginner-knights for that day, they had the opportunity to drill with him one-on-one without the protective spells around their blades. Sir Lanclor was confident enough in his ability, and their lack of ability, not to fear their blades. In return, his blade was free of protective spells, but he had the experience to direct his sword only where he wished. This presented them with the true excitement of battle with the thrill of danger.
Hal showed great promise with his sword technique and eventually graduated to the more advanced courses after that day. Hal drew his sword and faced off against Sir Lanclor, something he said he always feared, but now seemed to relish, and lasted for over three minutes before receiving a hit from Sir Lanclor. Every other knight who had gone before him received a hit after the first twenty seconds.
Her bout started well enough. She had managed to last about fifteen seconds before her Final Battle Sight occurred. This time, instead of seeing the knights at a distance, she was among them. She recognized most of them, or seemed to in the Sight. She could see the runes of Sir Lanclor's sword. Mounted upon his black charger, he led a group of knights against innumerable Daemons. He had just beheaded a Daemon when another one threw the spear that killed his beloved horse.
His horse fell onto its side, trapping his leg underneath its dead weight. As he struggled to free his leg and defend himself from the Daemons at the same time, several Daemons saw his dilemma and attacked all at once. She could see the surprise and pain in his eyes as three spears impaled him. His screams ripped across the battlefield to join those of the remainder of the knights. The Daemons’ cries of victory roared over the valley.
The Sight had taken but a few moments. She couldn’t look upon Sir Lanclor at that time without absolute terror—terror that she had seen his death and the death of perhaps all of the knights. Her sword froze in her hand and he nearly skewered her with his sword where he expected her upraised blade. He awkwardly twisted his wrist, which looked painful, and avoided any injury to her.
"You fool! I could have killed you! Why in the world did you freeze like that when with your basic training you should have seen that move coming?" Sir Lanclor roared. The other knights stared at her.
She backed away from him, terror still in her eyes. His eyes went from anger to puzzlement. Sheathing her sword, she left the practice field. She couldn’t bring herself to tell Hal about the details, so just said she had a Sight when he asked her about it later that day.
She thought Hal must have explained to the other knights that she had a Sight as she was fighting Sir Lanclor and was terrified that it had occurred in the midst of battle. Kathryn had avoided Sir Lanclor after that and hadn’t seen him until he came to speak to her about her color change. The other knights were reluctant to drill will her, afraid that she might have another Sight and cause them to injure her.
With her reminiscing, she had reached Sir Lanclor’s door without realizing it. She gathered her wits and knocked upon his workroom door.
"Enter," he replied through the door. She entered to find him sitting at his desk doing paperwork and closed the door behind her. "What can I do for you, Lady Kathryn?"
Chapter 20
"I’d like to tell you about one of my Sights, Sir." Lady Kathryn said, standing at attention in front of his desk. Lanclor couldn’t keep his eyes from wandering to her white wings. It looked like her armor had lightened almost to match her wing color compared to their meeting three weeks ago. She wore no sword as was customary when visiting the Knight-Commander.
He realized his silence made her nervous. "Please take a seat, Lady Kathryn, and tell me about it." He gestured to the comfortable leather chair off to the side in front of his desk.
She sat and took a deep breath. "I’ve had a reoccurring Sight since the day of the Assessment. I believe you remember when I first grasped the hilt of my sword. I think you may also have noticed my expression before I retreated to the group of candidates." He nodded in confirmation. "Well, I had that same Sight, though from a different prospective, during our bout a month ago."
Now he understood what had happened. She had the Sight while they were drilling and probably panicked that it had happened in the midst of battle. "I understand. You had a Sight, and then you were terrified that it had happened while you were drilling. Maybe I can ask Hook—"
"No, Sir, you don’t understand. I wasn’t terrified that it had happened while I was drilling. I was terrified because...you...the Daemons...the content of the dream, Sir. I can’t explain it. I’ll have to show you for you fully to understand it. With your permission, I could show you what I saw using that spell Sir Garrent uses to show the battles in the History training." He nodded his assent.
"The first version is the one I saw when I first grasped the hilt." She began to recount her first Sight, using the History spell to show him her Sight as she explained her interpretation at the time. Thousands of Daemons poured out of the portal. Some took to the sky while the others stayed on the ground, heading for the outnumbered group of knights.
"As you can see, we wouldn’t have a chance. With that many Daemons, we would only last a matter of hours. I’m not sure why, but I know if the Knighthood falls, the Daemons will get to Earth, and they have no defense against them." The Daemons were overwhelming the knights and Lanclor saw the death of his men. "When their guns and missiles wouldn’t work, they’d try nuclear weapons and destroy everything they were trying to protect."
Seeing the defeat of the knights was almost unbearable. He could understand now why she was terrified that first day. She proceeded to show him the Sight she had during their bout. He was speechless as he watched his own death. While unafraid of his own death, the death of the rest of the knights scared the hell out of him.
He placed his head in his hands and tried to think of some way to prevent this from occurring. Surely, there was a way to prevent it. Why else would the Goddess send the Sights? He finally realized the
burden placed upon Lady Kathryn’s shoulders. He wondered how she could continue, knowing their possible fate. If he were in her shoes, he would be in the library day and night to try to find a way home. Even if she could find a way back to Earth, it would only be a matter of time before the Daemons crossed over behind her, using their magic and the Portal.
Suddenly, he knew she wasn’t going to the library to find a way home. She was going to the library, digging through the Lost Spell books to try to find a way to prevent the Sight from occurring. That realization brought a new respect and hope.
"You wouldn’t have received the Sight without a reason. There must be a way we can prevent these events. I think we should focus on the other knights in the Sight and try to identify them. If I don’t recognize some of them, perhaps this event won’t happen for some time. That will give us a period to work together with the instructors and Soulbearers to find a solution. Show me the second Sight again, but try to focus on the knights around me."
They viewed the Sight several times and documented who was present at the battle. He didn’t recognize four of the knights. This meant it wouldn’t occur for at least three cycles, the amount of time required before a new knight would reach the training level to see battle with the Daemons at the ground level. In those three cycles, they would have to train the knights to fight against large numbers of Daemons on the ground.
In the past, Daemons fought the majority of the time in flight, so they’d focused on in-flight battles instead of mounted ones. He also didn’t recognize the rocky landscape. It was within a large valley in a mountainous region. The valley consisted of red rocky hills dotted with dense patches of spindly trees and bushes. A wide river wound its way through the left end of the valley, the water red from the rocks beneath. He would have to ask around and find out if anyone recognized the valley.
Lady Kathryn left his workroom a few hours later with no ill effects from the History spell. He’d have to remember to tell Garrent about her magical stamina. Garrent normally took an hour-long nap after all of his history courses because the spell was so exhausting. The fact that Lady Kathryn performed the History spell several times in addition to the Communication spell—she had successfully taught him the spell, so they practiced as much as possible—impressed him. She was patient throughout the documenting and had never complained. He thought he might have found just the knight to befriend that mare.
Chapter 21
As she landed on her back for the tenth time, Kathryn began to dislike Hal.
"Why, Lady Kathryn, you seem to have fallen down again. May I help you up?" he said as he offered his hand with a huge grin.
"I only keep falling down because you already know how to defend yourself. You act like having a black belt in karate isn’t a factor in these exercises." She glared as he continued to grin.
"These exercises are nothing like karate, but I’m sure my karate experience plays a big role in why I kick your ass every time we’re paired up. Don’t take it personally, Kate. You kick my ass when we pair up for anything magic-related."
That was true. No matter the knight, she managed to defeat all of her classmates when it came to magic. She had not yet challenged any of the higher ranked knights or instructors. That wasn’t the coward’s way out, but her instinct for survival. They had some friends among the other knights, but the majority only saw Hal and her as outsiders who had no right to join the order in the first place. Her white wings only made things worse.
If she went anywhere without some type of wing-covering cloak, people stared at her and whispered behind their hands. With that and her gray eyes, she would never fit in here. Hal, still with dark gray wings and brown eyes, could pass for a native here if it wasn’t for his rosy outlook on life. He had to be one of the most optimistic people she'd ever met. Given that almost all of the people on this world were pessimistic, he stuck out in a crowd if he uttered a single positive sentence.
"Lady Kathryn, I would like to speak with you." Sir Lanclor said as he came up behind them. She nodded to him, brushed herself off, and excused herself from Hal’s victory celebration of his hand-to-hand fighting prowess.
Sir Lanclor gestured for her to walk beside him. "I’ve heard that you had a large dog back home. You're also patient when you're teaching others. I have an animal I’d like you to look at. I’ll be blunt, or more blunt than usual. You’re the only female knight who isn’t afraid of large animals. I’ll think of some reward if you’re able to tame this mare." They had stopped in the knight barn in front of a stall containing a large white mare. The mare glanced at Sir Lanclor with an aggressive look. "She only seems to trust women. She’s all yours." He turned to walk away.
"Hey, wait a minute, Sir. I don’t know much about horses. How am I supposed to do this?"
"I have no idea. You’ll have to think of something that nobody else has tried. I’d recommend wearing your armor." She heard him chuckle as he walked away.
The mare eyed Kathryn as she approached her. She removed her helmet to get a better look. The mare seemed startled at first, but seemed to relax when she saw that Kathryn was a female. Kathryn extended her hand and placed it upon the mare's forehead. When she saw that the horse wasn’t going to hurt her, she began gently to stroke her nose.
That feels nice. Now do my neck.
Kathryn began to stroke her neck before she fully realized what had just happened. The mare had spoken to her somehow. It was similar to the Communication spell, but she didn’t sense the use of magic.
Kathryn tried using the Communication spell upon the mare. Can you understand me?
The mare seemed startled at first, but then seemed to relax. Of course I can, human. There’s no need to shout. You humans are such loud creatures. Always making noise and trying to get attention. You think you can ride us anytime you want, your own personal slaves. You may be able to enslave my poor dumb cousins, but I’ll never yield to you if I don’t feel like doing something. Brush my mane now.
Kathryn realized that the white mare was intelligent, but arrogant. The mare expected Kathryn immediately to respond to her command, which if she wasn’t aware of the telepathy, she would have done subconsciously. The mare complained about her enslavement, but expected Kathryn to respond to her orders as if she was her slave. She wasn’t sure if the horse was a hypocrite or just ignorant. The bond between a human and a horse wasn’t slavery, but a relationship built upon mutual need, or so she heard on television. The horse provided their transportation while they provided the horse with food, shelter and grooming. Perhaps someone abused the mare, so she believed only what her experience had shown her.
I don’t choose to brush your mane. I’m not your slave either, so I will also not yield to you if I don’t want to do something. Horses are not the slaves of humans, but their friends. You allow us to ride you and we take care of your needs. It’s a relationship based upon mutual respect.
Mutual respect, oh please. The mare snorted with contempt. I have no respect whatsoever for humans. I tolerate the females, but that’s only because they’re lighter and I have to get some exercise or I’ll die of boredom. I’ve tired of your company. You may go now. She turned her back toward Kathryn and began to munch on her grain.
Kathryn scowled at the mare. Nobody treated her like that, let alone a four-legged animal. You, horse, are arrogant and ignorant. You base all of your knowledge upon what you’ve experienced. You never consider what knowledge others possess that may be beyond yours. You’re selfish and un-useful since you refuse to cooperate with anyone and expect everyone to do everything you want. Kathryn turned and walked out of the barn while the mare remained silent.
Chapter 22
"I don’t know what to do, Lanclor. I know he has the ability, but I can’t seem to teach him how to perform these spells. Given, they’re complicated spells, but they’re well within his skill level. He’s amazing when it comes to ice or wind spells, but when it comes to fire spells..." Garrent held out his hands in defeat.
"I don’t know, Garrent. You know this has happened quite often and we’ve never been able to find the answer to the problem."
Garrent nodded and walked over to stare out the window.
His door stood open, so Lady Kathryn tapped on the open door to announce her presence.
"Sir Lanclor, I’d like to speak to you about... Sorry, Sir, I didn’t realize you were busy. I’ll come back at another time."
Saluting, she began to turn away and he flashed a quick glance to Garrent. "You’re not intruding, Lady Kathryn. Sir Garrent and I were talking about some magical issues. What did you want to speak to me about?"
She nodded to Garrent and seemed to relax as he returned her nod. "The white mare, Sir. I was wondering why you didn’t tell me she was telepathic."
"Telepathic? I didn’t know she was. That explains a lot of things." He couldn’t believe it. That meant she was probably descended from the Old Herd. For only two gold crowns! "I guess that means you should be able to talk her into letting other people ride her. Maybe you could help us out with something we were discussing. We’ve found that some knights seem to be better at one type of spell than another type. Have you ever heard of this while reading in the library?"
She seemed surprised at the question, but not as surprised as Garrent. Lady Kathryn looked down as if in thought, then responded. "I believe it’s all in how they ‘think’ the spell, Sir Lanclor. For a while, I wasn’t ‘thinking’ my water spells quite right. I was doing so well with my fire spells and I found I couldn’t seem to master my level 6 water spell for over two months."
