Hope

by Sam Rook

  "Bullshit! You may have been his second, but I command the men!"

  Before a full-blown brawl erupted, Drewton and Mikael slipped out the door and left the scene. Nobody marked their passage, but they chose to take an indirect route back to Drewton’s barracks. Drewton wasn't sure who the mysterious "he" was, but he had a feeling he would find out eventually.

  "You were definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time."

  "You’re telling me." The bloodied knight hung by his wrists with the fine rope cutting into him. "What do you want anyway? I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t know anything about an orb." His tormentor backhanded him, making his head hit the wall.

  "I know you don’t know anything, but this is just too damn fun. You knights think you’re so high and mighty, but you bleed just like everyone else. Your wings only give me other appendages to cut off."

  As the tormentor grabbed his saw off of the table, the knight began to struggle against his bonds. The tormentor gestured to his comrade and the man cleared the shadows to stand next to the knight. "Turn him until his back is to me. I’ll give him a reason to scream even louder."

  "No, Goddamnit! I don’t know anything! Why are you doing this?" The knight writhed in an attempt to break free.

  "Isn’t it obvious? Pleasure, of course," the knight’s tormentor said with relish as he positioned the saw at the base of the knight's right wing. "I wonder if you can still fly with only one wing. By the way, I thought you knights only worshipped the Goddess. No matter."

  Before he could begin sawing, Drewton stuck a foot of blue steel through his throat while his friend from the shadows had a less elegant blade through his. A third man, hiding in the corner, fell to the teeth of Mikael’s dog. Drewton cringed at the thought of teeth ripping into his throat. Too close to dying at the hands of the Daemons for his taste.

  "I’ve never wanted to kill any man as much as him." Mikael said as he cleaned his sword, then patted the dog’s side.

  Drewton cleaned his own blade and nodded. It took all of Drewton’s willpower to just watch as his men got into position. They had received word that Vikten’s former squad had captured a knight. It wasn’t hard to track them to this warehouse on the east edge of town, but it was necessary to secure the area before taking them out. Vikten’s soldiers may have been stupid, but they were still skilled swordsmen.

  "Pevet, I need your skills over here. Hurry." Drewton called as he removed the knight's bonds and lowered him to the wooden floor.

  "I’m here, sir. Let me see him." Pevet placed his hands upon the knight’s forehead to Assess his condition. "Mel’int ent’bel’ak." Pevet had picked up the healing arts many cycles ago while he dated a healer. While the relationship hadn’t lasted, he had found he loved healing and increased his skills as best he could. Having a healer in Drewton’s squad was a lifesaver, literally. "There’s a lot of damage, Drewton. I don’t have the skill to fix him, but I think he’ll make it to the castle without bleeding to death."

  "Okay, we’ll have to carry him then, unless he can walk," Drewton said with a tired sigh. It had been a long day and he was a big knight. He hoped the knight would be able to at least partially walk to the castle. "Knight, can you make it back to the castle if we help to support your weight?" The knight just looked past him, constantly blinking as he tried to focus through the blood slowly running from his forehead. "Knight, you don’t need to be able to see, just walk. Can you walk?"

  "I think so. Help me up and I’ll try."

  Drewton and Mikael pulled him to his feet and steadied him as he swayed where he stood. "What’s your name, knight? We’d like to know who we’re rescuing," Drewton said as he looked around at his gathering men.

  "Hal. My name is Hal."

  The knight named Hal only made it halfway to the castle. He had collapsed and refused to rise. He left Drewton and Mikael no choice but to carry him the rest of the way. With Drewton’s squad around them, the knights at the castle gate were wary until Drewton moved toward the front and announced himself and whom he carried. The gate opened and the guard sent one of the other knights to fetch a healer.

  The Master Healer, Vetera, appeared a few minutes later and directed them and their charge into the nearest infirmary. Drewton’s men remained outside with their weapons in the hands of the knights to avoid any type of misunderstanding. Drewton and Mikael remained standing for over an hour in Hal’s room, then were rewarded for their vigilance when the master healer rose and left the room with a tired sigh.

  "Thank you. I don’t know how you knew I was there, but I can’t say how relieved I was to hear that bastard stop talking and start gurgling." Hal's eyes looked haunted. "If there’s anything I can do to repay you—"

  "Killing that vermin is all the reward we need. Perhaps a mug of ale will ease our thoughts sometime," Drewton said with a grin. Word of the friendship between a knight, a Guardsman and a mercenary would start a few songs. Not bad for business.

  "I remember you," Hal said to Drewton. "You were in the market that day—the day the old woman sold that poisonous figurine to Kate."

  Drewton nodded. "Yes, I remember you as well although we haven’t formally met. My name is Drewton, a mercenary. This is Royal Guardsman Mikael. Now that you’re recovered, we must speak with Sir Lanclor about this incident. With your leave?"

  Hal nodded with exhaustion. "Be safe, Drewton. Mikael."

  "Be safe, Knight Hal," Drewton and Mikael said in unison.

  Chapter 42

  "Sir Lanclor, I’m worried. He’s been gone for some time." Lady Kathryn said in a concerned voice.

  Lanclor had to agree with her. "I’ll alert the guards at the gates to keep an eye out for him. He’ll probably show up eventually having eaten in town or maybe—," A knock sounded upon the open door and he saw Drewton and Mikael standing in the doorway with Mikael’s dog close behind.

  "Sir Lanclor? Lady Kathryn? I think you may want to hear about our interesting night," the mercenary said in a steady voice.

  "Drewton, Mikael, welcome. Please, come in. Close the door and share your news with us." He rose from his chair and motioned for them to enter.

  "Thank you, Sir Lanclor. We received a tip a short while ago about some odd activities going on in the Eastern district. It appears another mercenary’s old squad had taken it upon themselves to kidnap a knight."

  "Hal! Is he okay?" Lady Kathryn burst out, unable to contain herself after hours of worrying.

  "They tortured him, but we were able to reach him in time. We killed the squad and brought Hal to the castle. Master Vetera finished healing him a little while ago. He’s going to be fine, except for mental scarring for quite a while. Torture has a way of changing a man." Drewton spoke as if from experience.

  "Do you have any idea why they kidnapped him?" Lanclor asked, trying to figure out a motive, but without success.

  "No, sir, we have no idea. We know they’re desperate to fulfill their contracts. Maybe they were using him to get to you. There was one thing. They mentioned an orb, as if they believed Hal might know where it was, whatever it is."

  "An orb? That doesn’t make any sense." Why would they think Hal had the Orb?

  "I don’t know, Sir Lanclor. We couldn’t make much sense of it either." Drewton shook his head.

  "Did the men use magic at all?" Lady Kathryn asked in a calm voice.

  "No, but I believe a Death spell was used on their leader this morning. His men mentioned something about someone warning them not to talk." Mikael responded.

  "Where was Hal being held? Mikael, you should alert the Royal Guard about the incident," Sir Lanclor explained. "We’ll send them over to clean the place up and search for any clues about their employer. You should mention you both were responsible for the deaths of the mercenaries during a successful attempt to rescue a knight. Your squad won’t receive a bad reputation from this incident, Drewton."

  "Thank you, sir. I will not forget your assistance. The Royal Guard doesn’t always lo
ok upon us mercenaries with understanding." Drewton eyed Mikael with a smile.

  The dog inched forward between Mikael and Lady Kathryn.

  "I have a feeling that will change in the near future," Lanclor responded.

  "Oh my God." Kathryn's hand went to her chest.

  Lanclor rose with his hand upon the pommel of his sword. He saw her looking at the dog and was about to comfort her fears when the dog suddenly bounded toward her, knocking her off her feet. He rushed forward to wrestle the dog off her, but stopped when he heard her giggling.

  Kathryn wrapped her arms around the dog’s neck. He licked her neck and face with an excited whine while his tail wagged in circles. His rear legs teetered with the momentum of his tail.

  "All right, Dargo, enough. Sit!" Lady Kathryn croaked in English, pulling her face away from the onslaught. The dog’s rump immediately sank to the floor.

  Mikael looked shocked. "How did you get him to do that? I've been trying to get him to do that since I got him."

  "His name's Dargo." Kathryn suddenly glared at Mikael. "He's my dog!"

  Lanclor knew that look and interceded before Mikael got hurt.

  "Relax you two. Lady Kathryn, I was there when Mikael found the dog in a cave over a cycle ago. Are you sure this is your 'Dargo?'"

  "Well, he's definitely bigger and doesn't seem like a complete coward, but yes, this is my dog...he was a present for my mother. I'd know him anywhere." Lanclor saw the sad look upon her face before she looked away, frowning.

  Mikael grimaced. "He has gained a lot of weight and very few people knew how much of a coward he was when I got him. I hate to say it, but given his response to Lady Kathryn I don't have a claim on him. Jenna will be devastated." Mikael ran his hands through his hair then rubbed the back of his neck.

  Kathryn rubbed his ears while Dargo leaned his head against her. "Who's Jenna?"

  "My daughter. She was actually the one who trained him and gave him the self-confidence to become a great guard dog. I've never seen anything like it. In less than a day, she had him sleeping next to her bed and growling at anyone who opened her door."

  "Oh." Kathryn's hand just rested upon Dargo's head, no longer rubbing his ears.

  "Well, Drewton and I will take our leave now. It was a pleasure to see you Lady Kathryn. Please take care of him." Mikael gestured to Dargo and started to leave the room.

  "Wait." Kathryn rose to her feet. "Take him home so Jenna can say goodbye."

  Mikael gave her a thankful smile and Kathryn nodded in understanding.

  Chapter 43

  A knock sounded upon Borith’s door. "Enter."

  "Sir, I’m sorry to disturb you, but we’ve had some unfortunate news about the mercenary company hired to take care of those knights."

  "Proceed."

  "It appears they took it upon themselves to kidnap another knight. The word is that they tortured him and were asking about an orb. They were discovered by another mercenary company loyal to the knights and have been eliminated."

  He stood abruptly, his chair crashing backwards to the floor. "What? The fools! Why would they take the wrong knight and why would they be asking about an orb?" He never mentioned anything about the Orb to them. "Something doesn’t add up here."

  "I agree, sir, so I took the liberty of finding out if they had another contract. I believe it was only a coincidence, sir. It appears someone on the Council hired the same mercenary company as you, but told them to find an orb no matter the cost. The fee was double the one you paid them to do the other contract, so that may be why they chose to fulfill the Councilor’s contract first.

  "The mercenary company loyal to the knights is rumored to have warned the three knights in question about the contract on their heads. Since they’ve been warned it will be difficult, if not impossible, to take them out in the near future."

  Could this day get any worse? "Good work on this. I don’t like what I’ve heard, but it’s something that I needed to know. Pull all of the contracts back. We’ll lay low for a few cycles, then try again. I’ve waited cycles for revenge; a few cycles longer is of no consequence."

  Chapter 44

  Lady Kathryn, please wake up. It’s Master healer Vetera. The words took some time to understand through the fog of her dream. Kathryn could feel the exhaustion in Master Vetera’s voice.

  Lak’oth ar’vat. Yes, Master Vetera, I’m awake. Her eyes felt gritty as she tried to rub the sleep from them.

  Lady Kathryn, I need your assistance in the infirmary. Daemons attacked two villages and the wounded are flooding into the castle. I’m still exhausted from healing that other village yesterday. I don’t have the power to help these people, but if I can tap into yours, then they may have a chance.

  She didn’t know he could tap into hers, but if she could help save lives, she was willing to let him try. I’ll be there soon, Master Vetera.

  Moving her legs over the side of the bed, she slid to the floor, almost stepping on Dargo. His head popped up with his ears at attention.

  "No, Dargo, go back to sleep. I'll be okay." He sighed and rested his head back upon the floor.

  After dressing in her training outfit, she flung open her balcony door and leapt over the railing. She shivered in the chill air and glided to the opposite side of the courtyard landing before the entrance to the south wing.

  Cries of the wounded filled the halls of the infirmary. She opened the door to chaos. Villagers were scattered around the large hall, overflowing the limited beds and lying upon the floor. To Kathryn’s left, three young children were screaming while their mother lay unmoving upon the floor, the front of her tunic black with blood. Kathryn stood in shock, not knowing what to do.

  "Lady Kathryn, thank the Goddess!" Master Vetera hurried over to her while wiping the sweat from his brow. He followed her eyes and saw the woman and her children. "She’s a good place to start as any. Come over here with me." He dragged her to the woman, shooing the children to the side so he could assess the woman’s condition. "Mel'int ent'bel'ak. She’s bad, but not beyond help. Now, just relax and let me channel your power. I can only do this if you allow it. Lak'oth lenk'enterun lak'oth."

  Kathryn felt a slight pressure in her head, but otherwise no different. Master Vetera laid his hands upon the woman and looked at Kathryn. "Now, imagine yourself opening a small channel of your power to me. We’ll try a little at a time. If at any point you find yourself worried about exhaustion, you simply have to close the channel. Understood?"

  "Yes, Master Vetera." Kathryn sighed, trying to imagine a small stream of her power going into Master Vetera. She quickened the flow and saw Master Vetera’s eyes widen in surprise.

  "Lady Kathryn, not so much. You’ve filled me up already." He smiled with delight and began healing the woman. The process was faster than Kathryn expected and they were soon moving on to another patient while the children helped their mother to sit up with squeals of delight.

  The next patient was a small child with a crushed chest. Master Vetera’s eyes were grave as he looked at Kathryn. "I’m not sure our combined power will be enough for this young one. Should we save our power for the dozens of others with minor wounds or use it for this little boy? Some questions are so hard to answer."

  Mel'int ent'bel'ak. Kathryn touched the small child and assessed his condition. His left lung collapsed and his right would surely follow. He had extensive internal bleeding, but she sensed his strong will to survive. "I think we should at least try. I will open my power to you and hold enough in reserve so I don’t exhaust myself."

  "Are you sure? Opening yourself like that may make you physically exhausted as well. It’s your choice. Decide now while he’s still breathing."

  "Yes, do it." Kathryn opened her mind and exposed all of her power to Master Vetera except for a sufficient reserve to prevent exhaustion.

  "Very well. Here goes." Master Vetera gasped as his eyes widened. "Lady Kathryn, there’s so much—"

  "I know." So much power and she didn't know
where it came from. She knew it was separate from Jakob’s knowledge. What was happening to her?

  She spent most of the night and the next morning working with Master Vetera, then spent the rest of the afternoon in bed. Her body’s weakness faded toward evening and she forced herself up to prepare for her knife training. Dargo’s tail thumped once, but he made no indication that he would accompany her. Pulling on his ears, she spoke some nonsense to him then bid him farewell.

  The torches flickered from the light drizzle as Kathryn circled Assessor Jakara, doing her best not to trip over her own feet. Her dagger extended, she awaited his thrust as he had taught her. Av’lor had proven a strange world indeed. The summers lasted cycles, as did the winters. Hal and she had the good fortune to arrive during the summer cycles. Rain fell during the night hours, so the sunny days were enough to make you think you were in paradise. She was sure that would change when winter was upon them—cycles of snow, sleet, and below-freezing temperatures.

  Assessor Jakara’s thrust was lightning-quick, but his mentoring paid off. She moved to the side, grabbing his wrist with her left hand as the dagger in her right hand came up to rest against his neck. "I believe you’re dead." She grinned under her helmet. Letting go of his wrist and lowering her dagger, she backed out of his range.

  "I didn’t think you were paying attention at all of our lessons, but now I see that it was just a clever ruse." The pride in his voice surprised her. It seemed as if Assessor Jakara was truly a changed man; a man far different from the angry and bitter one she had met during her initial entry into the Knighthood. She finally let herself accept that she liked this new version. He reminded her so much of her father that she couldn’t help but try to grasp onto any semblance of home. She probably filled the void his daughter left.

  "I have to admit my mind tends to wander during our lessons, but I get the basic idea."