by Mike Shelton
Bakari perked up at the mention of his name, his head already reeling from the traitorous talk of the two wizards. Kharlia looked at him more intently, and he realized that he was breathing hard and clenching his fists.
Onius continued, “Bakari, I might have underestimated. The merging of his mind with a creature could be dangerous for us. I hadn’t realized that all his knowledge was so accessible for him.”
Bakari couldn’t believe his ears. Him, dangerous? Onius was much more powerful than he was. Bakari didn’t understand what Onius was afraid of. It didn’t make any sense. This was the second time the Counselor wizard referred to him as being dangerous.
The two wizards then moved too far away for Bakari to hear anything more. He slumped down onto the floor, his back to a wall. Kharlia slid over next to him and took his hand in hers. Bakari didn’t know what to say. She would be in danger now because of him. He needed some time to think this through. And, he needed to leave before Onius found out that they had listened to this conversation between the two wizards.
“Celestar,” Kharlia said softly.
Bakari turned his head. “What?”
“We need to go to Celestar,” Kharlia repeated. “You were wondering what you should do. The best way to help the Chief Judge now is to go to Celestar and find out what is happening to the barrier.”
Bakari was amazed. “How did you know what I was thinking?”
Kharlia smiled back at him. “Bak, you are not a hard person to read. You carry your emotions on your face. And, I also heard the conversation. It’s too dangerous for you to stay here. I don’t know Onius well, but Mericus seems dangerous enough. You can’t go to the Citadel right now, and you can’t go back to Cassian. That’s where Mericus is going.”
“But I don’t even know where Celestar is, Kharlia. I’m a scholar, not a battle wizard or an adventurer. I’ve hardly even been outside the palace for the past two years. This trip is making me wish I had never left Cassian.”
Kharlia frowned at that, and Bakari realized what he had said. “I mean…” he stumbled over his words. “I am glad I met you, Kharlia. I really am. But I’m not cut out for these types of adventures.”
“But you are a wizard, Bakari, and the smartest person I know,” Kharlia said, holding his hand in hers as she praised him. “Together, we will find a way to get there.”
“We?” Bakari caught on to her line of thinking. “No, Kharlia. I can’t drag you into this. You could be in danger.”
Kharlia dropped Bakari’s hand. “There you go again, thinking you can make my choices for me.” She smiled to soften the words. “Like I told you before, this is a fight we must all be a part of. I want to help you.”
Bakari didn’t know what to say. He did enjoy being around Kharlia. Her presence made him stronger. But this task could be dangerous. He opened his mouth to argue with her.
But Kharlia spoke first. “And I want to be with you,” Kharlia said in a timid voice. “I like you, Bakari.”
Bakari hoped Kharlia didn’t notice his burning face. He had never had a girl tell him that before. Why would someone want to be with him, a boring scholar? He opened his mouth to speak, but Kharlia had a different idea and moved in closer. She kissed him hastily on the lips. Her lips, soft and warm, made Bakari forget what he was going to say.
“We need to find some provisions and then get out of town tonight,” Kharlia said. “I’m glad I brought my pack with me.” She motioned to the pack on the floor next to her. “But we need to find you a few things.”
“What about the Chief Judge and my friends?” Bakari asked. “I need to warn them. They need to know. We need to think this through more. I need more time.”
“I don’t think we have time to think this through more, Bak. We need to act now.”
Bakari slowly released a big breath. Then he adjusted his glasses, stood up, and walked back toward the back door. Putting his hand on the door knob, he turned it quietly.
“Let’s go, then.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Leaving River Bend was easier for Bakari and Kharlia than they thought it would be. Most of the guards had been assigned to watch the inn where the Chief Judge’s party was staying. And they’d all relaxed as soon as they had realized the Chief Judge did not mean to cause any problems.
Bakari snuck around the back side of the stables. Peering into the stalls, he found Adi. The stable hands had finished their work for the night and now sat outside in the warm evening air, playing a game with dice.
With Kharlia on the lookout, Bakari bridled and saddled his horse in silence. Then, grabbing a sack of oats and a brush he had found in the stall, Bakari motioned for Kharlia to mount the horse. He led them in a slow walk out the back door of the stable and into the dark summer night.
Following a loose trail, he kept a steady pace through a nearby pasture. A gate on its far side let them out into the Dunn Forest and closer to the banks of the river. Once they were clear of the town, he mounted the horse as well, and they began a slow trot, keeping the sounds of the Dunn River on their right-hand side.
Bakari didn’t like riding at night. There were too many things unseen and a much better chance for the horse to stumble on unsure footing. But he knew they needed to get as far away as possible. They rode on in a slight strip of tall grass next to a small trail, trying to hide their passing as much as possible. Kharlia wrapped her arms around him from behind, and he recognized the scent of lilac — How did she manage that?
For the next two days, they rode as far as they could each day, resting at night under the trees along the bank of the river. Bakari suspected that they were far enough from River Bend now that they wouldn’t be found.
On the evening of the third day, Kharlia led Bakari to a small copse of trees next to the river bank, where Adi could drink and they could get some much needed rest. Giving the horse a few handfuls of oats to replenish her energy, Bakari sat down and laid his head back against a tree. Then Kharlia walked back from getting a drink in the river.
Bakari watched her approach. She was slender and shorter than he, but not by much. Her face still held a hint of youth, but her walk held a confidence that was not usual in a fourteen-year-old. Before they had left River Rend, she’d changed into leather pants, which were more suitable for riding. He began to wonder about everything she kept in her pack.
“Kharlia, what happened to your family? Won’t someone miss you if you are gone too long?”
Kharlia came over to Bakari and sat down next to him, the side of her leg touching his. “My mother and I left our town up north five years ago and settled outside of Cassian in Forest Way—the town you found me in. She was smart and had a way with medicines and herbs, but last year, she came down with something we couldn’t cure.” She stopped for a moment to compose herself.
Bakari felt rather than saw her eyes fill with tears. “I’m sorry,” he said.
“I tried everything I knew. And, although we prolonged her life as much as possible, she never got well again. Eventually, she passed on.”
“That must have been hard,” Bakari said.
“The townspeople accepted us well enough, but I was the only dark-skinned person in the town, once my mother had passed. They still came to me for remedies and help, and I tried to do my best, but things began to get uncomfortable, being there all by myself. So I traveled around the countryside more and more, finding and helping those in need who weren’t able to travel to town.”
Bakari marveled at her resilience after her mother had died. “Kharlia, that is one of the nicest things I have ever heard. You must really care about people.” Bakari turned his head to look at her.
Kharlia smiled back softly. “I just want to help others. I feel a drive, a need to heal and to comfort.”
“You’re a rare person indeed, Kharlia.”
She blushed at this compliment and lowered her head.
“What about your father?” Bakari asked, venturing further into Kharlia’s life. He wanted t
o know all about her.
Kharlia shook her head. “I don’t know much about him. My mother never spoke about him, except to tell me he had died in an accident up closer to the barrier. I never pushed her on this subject. Her pain was too deep. I think he might not have been of our same heritage, but I don’t know for sure.”
Bakari felt bad for dredging up something painful from her past.
“What about your family, Bak?” Kharlia said after a moment of silence.
“I was raised by wizards.”
“Sounds exciting!” Kharlia’s eyes grew bigger. “What stories you must have.”
Bakari laughed. “I was kind of a loner. I didn’t stay around people much. Books are what drew my attention—and learning. I’m not so much for adventure.”
“I understand that. I love books.” She closed her eyes for a moment, as if remembering things. “I love their feel and the scent of the paper.” Her brown eyes opened back up and held a deep sparkle. “My mother taught me to read early on, and I used that skill to try and learn more things about herbs and healing.”
Adi wandered back over to them and hung her head down low. The night air was cooler by the river and made for a comfortable evening. Bakari listened to the peaceful chirpings of frogs, crickets, and other nocturnal creatures and rubbed his eyes. “I don’t know how good of a traveling companion I will be.” Bakari stretched out his arms and yawned. “I’m not one for the out of doors, but I’m glad you are here with me.”
“I will teach you all I know, Bakari. I’ve gotten used to traveling and living off the land.”
“Can you teach me more in the morning?” Bakari’s eyes started to close.
The two young teens both closed their eyes and used the tree to keep themselves sitting up. Kharlia’s right hand and Bakari’s left filled the space between them. Resting against each other, they each took comfort in the small touch. Bakari fell into a deep sleep for the next few hours, dreaming of little and letting his body rest.
All of a sudden, Adi neighed loudly. Bakari opened his eyes abruptly and tried to make sense of what he saw: two men trying to lead Adi away.
Leaping into action, Bakari began to yell and chase after the two men. One continued leading the horse away at a fast pace, while the other turned and brought out a dagger in front of him.
Bakari slowed as the man approached. He was in his mid-thirties, Bakari could see in the moonlight, with dirty, long hair and missing a few teeth. “Don’t be stupid, boy.”
Bakari tried to stay brave. He wasn’t used to this type of activity. Alli would be more at home in this situation. She probably would have already taken the man down. “That’s my horse.”
“Not anymore,” the man said. “Stay where you are, and no one gets hurt.”
Bakari was a scholar wizard, but a wizard nonetheless, and had been trained in all the disciplines of magic to some degree. Bringing his hand up in front of him, he tried to push out against the dagger the man held, but nothing happened. He shook off the remaining sluggishness in his brain and used his mind to think of what to do. Then, with renewed strength, he pushed again, and the blade flew out of the bandit’s hand.
The man’s eyes widened, and a look of fear crossed his face momentarily. Without warning, he rushed Bakari. Not prepared for the sudden action, Bakari was thrown to the ground. As the man brought up his fist to hit him in the face, Kharlia appeared behind him. She swung her bag in front of herself and knocked the man off of Bakari.
Rolling on the ground and coming up in a crouch, the man pulled another dagger from his boot and lunged toward Kharlia. She backed away but tripped on a tree root and fell down, tangled up in her bag. The man jumped toward her and grabbed her leg.
Bakari didn’t know what to do; he was plain scared and wanted nothing more than to be back in the city, sitting in the library. A sound to his side alerted Bakari that the other man had now circled back around to help his fellow bandit. He came through the trees at a run and jumped toward Bakari. But Bakari stepped aside at the last minute, and the man missed.
Kharlia was still struggling with the other man on the hard ground.
“Bak!” she screamed and pointed toward the abandoned dagger on the ground.
Bakari leapt toward the dagger, bringing it up in his hands. The second man regained his feet and pulled his own knife out.
Bakari was tiring physically, which always affected his powers. Then he saw Adi through the trees, took a deep breath, and reached out to the mind of his horse. The connection came easier this time. He didn’t take firm control, only made his gentle thoughts known to his horse.
Time slowed as he reached into his horse’s mind. He felt a source of comfort there, a mind he had known for the last few years, and her will came easier to him than the vulture’s had. The bandits seemed to stop moving, and Kharlia still lay on the ground next to the first bandit. Bakari sensed everything his horse could: the smell of the earth, the panic of being taken by the men, and adoration for Bakari himself.
The horse was much stronger than the men, so Bakari directed his thoughts to her. The horse jumped into action and sprinted with her powerful legs, running into the man standing in front of Bakari, knocking him down.
Kharlia continued fighting with the other man, rolling across the ground. Bakari directed Adi there next. The horse kicked the man with her hind legs, splitting open the side of his head and knocking him away from Kharlia.
Time resumed its normal pace once again, and Bakari felt light-headed and sick to his stomach. He pulled his mind back out from his horse’s mind and leaned over, with his hands on his knees. A blackness crept over his vision, making everything blurry. He tried to breathe deeply, but it was too much. He glanced up briefly to see that Kharlia was all right, but then he began to faint.
He looked back up and made eye contact with Kharlia but couldn’t bring himself to say anything. Blackness continued to engulf him until he fell into a crumpled heap on the ground.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Chief Judge Daymian Khouri rode next to Roland. The boy’s mentor, Onius, was farther in front, holding a conversation with Mericus and Gorn. After riding for three days, they were now only a day out from reaching the Citadel.
Daymian turned to Roland and quietly said, “Roland, you are Bakari’s closest friend. Are you sure you don’t know where he ran off to?”
Roland took a deep breath. “Chief Judge Khouri, as I told you numerous times these last three days, the last time I saw Bakari, he was sitting in the corner of the inn with that new girl of his. Maybe she talked him into sneaking off.”
“Roland!” Daymian reprimanded. “This is a serious matter. He’s a scholar wizard with great knowledge. He was researching something for me. If he fell into the wrong hands, it could be dangerous for us all.”
“You mean dangerous for you, as Chief Judge?” Roland questioned. “Is that what this is all about?” He waved his hands around the group. “Our being taken to the Citadel like prisoners. Is it the fight between you and the King-men you are worried about?”
“It’s not just my fight, young man; and have some respect for the law.”
Roland sat silently for a moment, then spoke with a serious demeanor. “I have served you well as an apprentice, haven’t I?”
“There have been no problems,” the Chief Judge agreed. “Onius has been a good mentor for you; though, I hear some trepidation in your voice.”
“I try to do my best, and I am sorry if I sounded angry a moment ago, but this is all so frustrating to me. Things are changing rapidly around here. I am as powerful as many wizards, yet they still treat me as an apprentice. I healed you twice.” Roland gave a quick glance around himself to see if anyone else listened. “Even Onius cannot do that. Why am I not a full wizard?”
“Hmmm.” Daymian took a few minutes to think. “Roland, have you noticed anything different with Onius lately, since we left Cassian?” He purposely did not answer Roland’s question. He had left it for the Citadel to
deal with, and he didn’t want to get in the middle of that.
Roland looked as if he was hiding something. “What do you mean?” he answered Daymian with his own question.
The Chief Judge gave Roland a stern look. “Roland, you are my counselor apprentice. It is your duty to me to tell me anything you know that could affect the peace of this kingdom—even if it has to do with counselor, Onius.”
Roland glanced around again. The party was riding spaced out on the road, and no one was around to overhear them. “When I healed you in the forest, Sir, Onius and Gorn were talking. They said something about all of us—Alli, Bak, and myself—being dangerous. I think they are afraid of the power we have.”
“Or afraid of what it will do to their standing. This stinks of Citadel politics.”
“Sir?”
The Chief Judge sighed. “I’m sure you will learn someday, Roland, that the Citadel is as much involved in the politics of this land as are its rightful leaders—maybe even more so. Their hands are in everything.”
Onius still traveled between Gorn and Mericus, their heads bent together, conversing. The Chief Judge hoped Onius didn’t have anything to do with Bakari’s disappearance and that his aloof attitude was only from the stress of the situation.
“Roland, thank you,” the Chief Judge said to calm the young wizard’s fears. “I am sure Bakari is all right. He must have Kharlia with him also, as we haven’t seen her either.”
“The sly dog.” Roland smiled. “Who would have thought it would be Bakari who ran away with a girl?”
“Indeed,” the Chief Judge said. “I would have thought it would be you.”
Roland’s eyes twinkled as he seemed to regain his normal mood. “Me? It would be hard for me to decide which girl to run away with. They are all so beautiful.”
Daymian laughed. “Watch out at the Citadel; the girls there aren’t as timid as those in Cassian.”
