Branded Mage
Author: D.W. Jackson
Date: 2013-02-21 05:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Fantasy; Magic; High Fantasy
Description: After thousands of years without magic, Thad a young man has reawakened the lost art. The only problem is that he is being held prisoner by the queen of Farlan a country where men are second class citizens. With rebellion and war knocking on the Queendom's door, Queen Serena must try and convince Thad to aid her or else her country will fall to the militant rule of the oppressive Ablaians.

This book is dedicated to a great soldier and a good man.

Spc. Dennis Gregory Jensen

Oct 9, 1989 – Aug 16, 2011

U.S. Army

Remember it is the soldier who gives us the freedom of speech not the writer.

Copyright © D.W. Jackson

Names, characters, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual event, organizations, or persons, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author.

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PROLOGUE

Caelan was a bear of a man with a multitude of scars crisscrossing his entire body. Trophies from the many battles he had survived. He had served in the Ablaian army since he was ten years old, and now the biggest battle of his life loomed ahead of him. With over thirty thousand troops at his back, he had been ordered to attack Southpass Fort. He had only been in one of the previous attacks on the fort in his life, and they had been beaten back mercilessly.

Farlan was not a warrior nation, but he had to admit they had a decently trained army. Even though none possessed the experience of the Ablaian soldiers, Southpass Fort was their only way into Farlan. The fort was extremely well built and has proven impossible to breach in the past, but this time would be different. After three years of sending in spies and agitators, the men of Farlan were starting to rebel against their own government, and recent reports led him to believe that approximately ten percent of the Farlan forces would run like cowards when they attacked. Add their newly developed ballista that was lighter and more easily moved and that was also in their favor.

Slipping away his spyglass, Caelan slowly crawled back from his hidden position. His bones creaked and popped as he rose to his feet. Even though he was only in his fortieth year of life, his body was already complaining from the harsh life he had led. Laying his hand lovingly across the head of his massive war hammer he thought about what his life would have been like if he had followed his father’s footsteps and became a simple blacksmith. His father did well for himself, and was one of the primary suppliers to the King’s army. That had been what allowed Caelan to buy his way into an officer position despite his non warrior heritage, but there was no excitement in that life.

Caelan has pushed his men to purchase his father’s wears when they were near the capital to help the man out, even though his own weapon was not of his design. He found his war hammer in his youth while fighting the desert tribes. One of the leaders had wielded it with a devastating effect. Caelan had taken it as a trophy after the man lay in a pool of his own blood. His father believed it was of dwarven make, an artifact from the time of the great empire. If that were true, it was a wondrous weapon indeed.

The brisk early morning air felt good on his skin. As he made his way back to the command tent, he was greeted by general Breeman. He was a pompous young twit who wore his light blond hair long and an outlandish gold breastplate with his family’s coat of arms delicately etched in it. Many of the men wore breastplates to protect themselves. Caelan could find no fault in it, though he wore no armor himself. He found it too binding. Breeman’s was so thin and heavy he could pierce it with little trouble and it limited the young man greatly. Unlike Caelan, Breeman didn’t earn his position but had it handed to him because he was nephew to the king. As much as it bothered Caelan, he had to listen to the pompous ass.

“Commander Caelan, out for another morning stroll through the snow I see. Is Southpass Fort still there, it hasn’t run off has it? I know how you do fret about that. I don’t see why you don’t have a scout just report to you that the Farlans still have no clue of their impending doom. I suppose that if you want to fret over what those useless whipped men are doing, that is your right.”

Caelan wanted nothing more than to rip the pretentious little bastard’s arrogant tongue from his mouth. “The main force is still being gathered. It will some time before we are ready to attack. If the Farlans happen to get wind of it and start preparing their defenses, we need to be aware of it. As I’ve explained to you, I much rather use my own eyes than listen to a report from a scout who might not know what he is looking for. Not to mention there are still enough unknown factors for my liking. For example, the report that Queen Serena has a mage at her command.”

Breeman let out a wispy chuckle. “Those are nothing more than exaggerations from spies who failed to do their jobs. If she had such a person at her command there would be more than rumors.”

CHAPTER I

Thad awoke to the rustle of keys in a far off door. His slight shifting made the chains holding him to the wall rattle. His heart pounded ever so slightly with the hope that it may be a visitor. His mind was still numb, as if he was seeing everything through a haze. It was still too early for it to be caused by his drugged food. When he had first realized his food was being drugged, he tried refusing to eat, but the guards had merely forced his mouth open and poured the drugged water down his throat.

He didn’t know how long he had been in his cell. There was no sun to judge the passing of time. He stayed in continued darkness until someone visited. He had even begun to savor the visits from that bitch of a queen who had thrown him in here after he had saved her life. Her visits were usually long enough for her to ask if he had reconsidered her proposal, but on occasion should would linger and ask him of his past.

On the rare occasions when the princess Maria was allowed to visit, she would beg him to take her mother’s offer. She cried for hours when he refused, but she always brought something sweet for him. She also forced the guards to keep him clean, something he was extremely thankful for. Maria would also bring news of his adopted charge Shariel, who while sad and upset at his imprisonment, had been allowed to continue on with her schooling. The last thing he had heard was that she had officially entered the new term at school and was doing exceedingly well.

Thinking of the red headed princess caused him to absentmindedly rub the tattoo on his forehead. It was two crescent moons facing each other, the princess’s personal mark. It showed the world that he was her slave, her property. The queen had decided to have it done after one fateful meeting when his temper had gotten the better of him and he had spat on her. He wasn’t able to use his magic at the moment, but even if he could, it was doubtful that he could do anything about it anyway. He was an external magic user and did not have the inborn ability to affect his own body with magic. Trying to do so could be dangerous for him.

The footsteps grew closer. It sounded like there was two pair, one much heavier than the other. They grew closer until they came to a stop near his door. He couldn’t tell if it was at his or possibly one of the neighboring cells. Just recently they had brought in a man for killing a local business owner. The man had cried during his first night, but after the initial shock of being sentenced to death, he became quite a talkative fellow. At first he had been good company, but just like all the rest, he had soon gone silent.

The familiar sound of the key turning in the door reverberated in his cell. The light from a torch quickly filled the room, blinding him momentarily. As his eyes adjusted to the bright flickering of the torch he noticed the princess standing there, along with the guard captain Bren. Bren was a giant of a man with arms the size of small trees. The permanent scowl plastered on his face only made him that much more intimidating. His feral eyes roamed in a way that seemed to be constantly searching for his next pray. As dangerous as the man was, Thad had discovered he was a nice man for the most part. He had even gone so far as to thank him for his assistance during the attack on the palace, even if it was after he had been thrown into the dungeon.

Princess Maria, who was only eleven, was already budding into womanhood and she was a beauty to behold. She always dressed as if she was going to a summer’s eve ball when she visited. Today she wore a silver form fitting dress that accentuated her fiery red hair that fell in a way that framed her face perfectly. Her green eyes looked sad and morose, wavering as if she was on the brink of tears. Even though she looked so sullen, her presence was a welcomed one. She was one of the few bright lights in his world of darkness.

Shortly after she entered the room, she called for a wash basin to be brought in. Mikel, the young and cruel jail master quickly brought it to her personally. Whenever the princess was around, the man was all smiles, but the second she left he would return to taunting Thad. Sometimes that man just used words, but usually his taunting was accompanied with the heel of his boot. As soon as the bowl was in her hands, she knelt down and began gently washing the dirt from his face and hands.

Nothing was said as she worked, but Thad couldn’t miss the tears that silently rolled down her cheek and onto her dress before disappearing into the fabric. Part of him wanted to blame her, to curse the day he had ever saved or befriended her. He knew; however, that he wouldn’t change it even if he could. She was innocent. She had kept his secret while he paraded around as Clair the merchant from Rane. He was well aware of the risks when he went to the party that night. He knew full well an attack on the royal family had been planned. He had even made preparations so that Shariel would not lack in his absence in case such an event should occur.

As Maria placed the rag back in the basin, she ran her slender fingers down his cheek and gave him a soft kiss, allowing his lips to linger for a moment. There was always a slight hesitancy in her movements. The pure innocence of her actions was cute, but he was unsure as to what he truly felt for her. Even though they were only a little over three years apart, she still seemed so young to him. Though, sometimes she acted far more mature than her age.

The deafening silence of the room was maddening. He wanted to talk to Maria, to hear her voice, but his throat was sore from coughing fits that had plagued him for the past few days. He knew the cold air, poor food, and Mikel’s beatings would kill him eventually. It may not be quickly, but it would be long before he gave into the queen’s demands. She may have branded him a slave, but he would never submit to being one. Not after having tasted true freedom.

“Mother is quite peeved at you for not giving in to her yet. She honestly just can’t fathom why you don’t want to be her slave. I love mother dearly, but sometimes the most obvious things escape her. I think it is because my grandmother died, leaving her the queen at such an early age. She never really had to live with someone else making all of her decisions for her.”

He could see the pleading look in her eyes. It wasn’t hard to understand what she was saying, and the feeling behind it. She loved her mother. She didn’t want Thad to hate her, but it was hard for him not to. He didn’t really blame the queen for her actions, but since she had him chained to the dungeon wall, he couldn’t really make himself like the woman either.

The queen had paid a high price for him at auction, and he was only able to escape by luck. He couldn’t really fault her for wanting to claim rights to him. He had pondered why so many times, but in the end, it annoyed him that he couldn’t bring himself to blame the woman. Not after his mother had sold him for a large amount of coin with the understanding that he would serve her for the entirety of his life.

He wanted to reassure Maria, so he reached forward to take her hand but was stopped by the chains that held him firmly to the wall. “Maria, I don’t hate your mother, but I won’t be her slave either. The Queendom has a lot of problems, but I would have supported her the best I could as a free man. Now all I can do is wait for my sanity to leave me or death to take me.” Maria flinched when she heard his raspy voice. Whether her reaction was from what he said or the sound of his voice, he didn’t know, and he was finding increasingly difficult to care. He fell into another coughing fit that dislodged a bright green substance that landed on her dress. He tried to apologize, but his words came out garbled as his head became light and his vision blurred.

He could hear the princess saying something, but the meanings behind the words were lost to him as he fought to stay awake. He felt the shackles being removed from his body and the princess caught his head as he fell forward, cradling him like a child in her arms. He was lifted into the air by a pair of strong arms. He opened his eyes to see Bren’s worried face as he bounded down the corridor. He fought to keep down what little he had in his stomach, but it was a short lived fight. The continuous bouncing of Bren’s steps was more than he could bear. He hoped he hadn’t gotten any on the princess, but any other thoughts were soon forgotten as he slipped into unconsciousness.

Thad awoke to find himself in a richly furnished room with dark stained wood walls with a raised multicolored tile ceiling. He attempted to sit up and get a better look at the room, but the movement was repaid with sharp pains in his head and chest. An older lady with auburn hair and a motherly smile gently pushed him back down into the soft mattress. “Young man it will not do for you to be moving around just yet. You have been sleeping for two days and it will be days more before you are anywhere near recovered from the beggar’s cough. Now be a good lad and drink this.” He didn’t know how she managed it but her voice was both kind and commanding at the same time. She pushed a cup filled with the most horrendous smelling and bitter sludge he had ever encountered. The woman made him drink two more cups of the revolting concoction before wiping off his face and chest with a warm rag and then she finally let him be and left the room.

His solitude was short lived as the queen and princess escorted by Bren and two other guards soon marched into the room. The princess he was always happy to see, even the sour faced Bren was welcome, but laying sick barely able to move the queen was the last person he wanted to see. The princess’s face looked worried and to his amazement the queen’s face was furrowed slightly giving off an air of concern.

Maria quickly came to his side and gently picked up his hand, while the queen paced back and forth chewing on her thumbnail. The whole thing was so outrageous that he would have laughed if he didn’t think it would cause him to go into a coughing fit accompanied with a fair dose of pain.

“Are you feeling better?” The princess asked, her voice was soft, barely above a whisper. It was as if she was afraid of the answer. The queen stopped her pacing and looked at him. The pained look on her face was even more evident than when she had first arrived, even Bren’s demeanor seemed to slightly shift as they waited for the answer.

Every second that he lay silent caused the queens frown to deepen. She looked as if she were arguing with herself, and Thad was thoroughly enjoying the show. One look at Maria’s face ended his fun. He hadn’t noticed before, but her eyes were slightly puffy as if she had been crying and the look she held for him now left little doubt about why she had been crying. As much as he was enjoying the slight agony the queen was in, he couldn’t let Maria suffer for his amusements.

Thad made his best attempt at a smile, and he seemed to do a fair job of it from Maria’s reaction. “I don’t feel up for running across the Queendom, but I do feel much better now.” He felt Maria squeeze his hand, as most of the worry drained from her face. The queen however continued to look agitated, meaning it wasn’t his health that had her in such a bothered state. From the way her eyes kept darting over to where he lay, it obviously had something to do with him. What could it be? It nagged at him for a few moments, but in the end he just didn’t have the extra energy to spend on trying to work out the mystery.

The princess began to chatter on about everything that had been happening over the past few weeks, while the queen began to chew on her thumbnail again. This went on for a few minutes with him commenting on something the princess would say from time to time so she wouldn’t think he was ignoring her. Something he had learned to save himself much grief, then one of the younger guards came in the room and whispered something in the queen’s ear that made her go ridged for a few brief moments.

“It seems our visit must be cut short,” the queen said quickly regaining her composure.

The princess gave his hand one last gentle squeeze before going to join her mother. Bren whispered something to the queen who gave him a tight faced nod then left the room, leaving him alone with the massive guard captain. As soon as everyone was gone Bren locked the door from the inside then grabbed a chair from the corner of the room and took a seat next to his bed.

“You know boy, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for you to just become the princess’s guard. One day she will be queen, and you could be her captain. From experience I can tell you it’s not a bad deal.” Bren studied him for a few seconds before shaking his head. “I figured as much. I was a lot like you when I was younger. I always dreamed of gaining my freedom, especially after I was set guarding the queen. She was only eight years old and had noticed me working in the horse stables at the palace. She demanded I be made her guard. At first I thought it was a great advancement until I learned that the only time I had to myself was in the privy, even my bed was placed in her room. I was a nineteen year old boy forced to babysit a spoiled rotten eight year old queen. Her mother had died earlier in the year and her only other family was her aunt who at the time was trying to instate herself within the palace. When the queen refused her, she responded with assassins. Between the threats on her life and the war with Abla she lost any semblance of childhood.”

Thad looked at the guard confused. It was an interesting story, but he couldn’t see the reason for it. He tried to ask Bren but the burly man just ignored his question and continued on.

“Around the age of sixteen she had blossomed into a fine young woman, and the country was doing great, but she had no true friends. At that time I was the only one who she would speak her mind to. Over the years I had not only gotten used to her little quirks, a part of me had grown to love her. When she was nineteen she had planned on marrying me but there was such an outcry from the ladies of the court that Serena ended up calling it off. Shortly after Maria was born, the assassination attempts started again. We learned that Serena’s Aunt had married the King of Abla and was once again after the throne, this time with a supporter. That’s when she changed. She became cold with everyone except Maria. She only saw everyone else as pawns. She only saw how they could best serve her, not as individuals. Now she is at a point where her country is in civil unrest and one of her most valuable assets has refused her. For the first time in her life she is at a loss as to what to do. At first she believed you would come around and join her willingly, but she is not so sure now. Maria has told her that if she gave you your freedom, you would willingly support her, but if she did that the ladies of her court would perceive that as a weakness and work to undermine her authority in an attempt to seize control. So, what is she to do? I don’t doubt that she will visit you soon. Most likely alone, I only ask that you listen to her and try and work with her, or at the very least not against her.”

Thad rubbed the sides of his temples as he tried to work through everything Bren had said. “I can understand what you mean about the ladies of the court, but why tell me the rest?”

For the first time he could recall Bren gave a slight smile. “I have always believed the more you understand someone’s situation, the easier it is to look at things from their perspective and are often more inclined to help. Now I must attend to the queen’s protection. I hope you will consider everything I have said.”

Alone again with only his thoughts, Thad mulled over everything Bren had said. He didn’t want to be a slave, but was he being selfish? To answer his question he was not being unreasonably selfish, but selfish all the same. He didn’t feel that he should have to give up all his freedom. Maybe the queen would be willing to come to an agreement. If he were to take on the mantle of a slave, he would do everything in his power to support the throne and provide free magical items to the queen and her household. He could do that, as long as he kept his freedom to continue his partnership with Monique, and the ability to travel as long as he was not needed for a Queendom specific task.

Shortly after nightfall Bren’s prediction came true. He was awakened by a gentle taping on his arm. The queen stood next to his bed wearing a light pink nightgown that hung loosely on her body giving out only barest hint of what lie underneath. Her touch was soft and in the pale moonlight that drifted through the small window of his room, her alabaster skin almost glowed. It reminded him of the tales of fairies he had enjoyed as a young boy. Sitting lightly on the edge of the bed folding her hands neatly in her lap she let out a barely audible sigh.

“For such a young man you have become a very large thorn in my side. Is working in the palace so deplorable that you would rather die?” She said cocking her head, frowning slightly.

“No it’s just that …. No matter how hard it was … I was free.” His words even sounded childish to himself but at fourteen maybe fifteen depending on how long he had been in the dungeon he figured he was entitled to a little childishness.

Something akin to sympathy appeared on her face. “I know it doesn’t seem fair and you would be right, but there are some benefits to be had. Under our protection you would have a much easier time when you traveled though the Queendom. Not even one of the peerages would dare harm or hinder you without fear of consequences. And I can honestly promise you would never want for anything.”

“Will I be allowed to travel, or will I be forced to spend my days trailing behind the princess?”

“Is that what you want, the freedom to travel within the Queendom?”

Thad rubbed his hands over his face letting out a grunt. “It’s not just that. I have a partnership with Monique and the Rose Trading Company. I want to pursue my magic no matter where that takes me. I don’t mind helping out the Queendom, but I just want the freedom to do what feels right.”

“What feels right?” The queen asked laying a comforting hand on his arm.

Thad shook his head slowly. “I don’t know. If I didn’t know the princess, I might have joined with the people who attacked the palace, but having dealt with the bloodthirsty earlier in the year I was sure it was just another Ablaian plot. I doubted we would be treated any better under their militant rule.”

The queen’s grip tightened on his arm and a small frown replaced her typical stoic demeanor. “Yes that is something that needs to be addressed before it turns into a full rebellion. As for your problem, as long as I reign I will allow you full freedom that would be allowed to any female born, with the exception that when called upon you must present yourself before the throne in a reasonable period of time. I would also request that when in the capital you take residence within the palace, and before you leave I ask that you advise us of the expected location and duration of your journey.”

Thad tried vainly to hide the smile from his face. She was offering much more than he had even considered. It wasn’t actually true freedom, but it was close. “I agree to your terms Your Majesty.”

“May we drop the Your Majesty and my queen, at least when alone? I have so few people who call me by name, and if it is possible I would like you to be one of them. It’s Serena by the way.” She didn’t wait for an answer but gingerly left the room leaving him in quite contemplation of the night’s events.

CHAPTER II

Thad walked through the early morning snow and throng of carpenters and stone masons looking for Millie, the builder who the queen had hired to build him a workshop in the southern corner of the palace grounds. She was a well-built lady with a body that spoke of hours of physical labor alongside her workers and slaves. She was a tad overbearing, demanding he call her, “my lady” and often commenting on how he was just a “mere male.” A few times she even threatened to take a lash to him for requesting changes in the architectural designs. Even with all that he couldn’t bring himself to hate her.

He found Millie studying the building designs while flipping through a small stack of parchment. She was chewing on one of the many beaded braids of brown hair that seemed to sprout from her head. He knew that meant she was in a sour mood and he should try and stay as far away from her as he could, but for some reason he found it enjoyable to pester her when she was in a foul mood.

“My Lady, how does this fine morning find you?” He tried to make his tone as light and cheerful as possible knowing it would grate on her nerves all the more.

“As if my day wasn’t bad enough, you might just want to scurry away before I bend you over my knee and beat my frustrations out on you. I told the queen that working in cold weather would be slow, but she still demands that we hurry! I’ll be damned if I’m going to build something that will fall down in the first stiff wind. Why don’t you go on about your magical nonsense, I could care less.”

Her words were clipped and harsh and her face even more so, as if daring him to contradict her. Thad liked to get under her skin, but he didn’t fancy the idea of being publicly whipped. He didn’t doubt for a second that she would carry through on her threat. Mage or not, she only saw him as a spoiled fifteen year old male.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

Millie let out a loud humph. “Unless you can change the season and make it warm enough that my men don’t freeze and the mortar cures right, I doubt it.”

The question intrigued him and he was soon lost to Millie’s mad ramblings as he made his way back to his room in the palace. Could he affect the temperature in a set space? Fire wouldn’t work it was too unpredictable and used up vast amounts of magic to keep it burning without proper fuel.

It wouldn’t be simple but if he could figure out how to transfer heat, he could make something like a shield that trapped heat in a confined space, but where would he get the heat from? He started thinking of everything that he knew of that could produce heat. He experimented with different ideas for a little while. Time flew by and he was dimly aware of people visiting his room. In his focused state, he barely registered anyone until the Princess rather rudely jabbed him in the ribs.

“Yes?” He asked his voice slightly pained from his tender ribs and a pounding headache that came to bear, an unwelcomed side effect from his extended use of magic.

“It’s time for dinner, and mother wants you to come. She has invited a few people who will be useful in dealing with the current civil upheaval. She wants your input as well.” She jumped off of his bed and raced toward the door with a mischievous grin on her face. “Oh, and Bren is looking for you. He is not happy that you missed your combat training today.”

Thad let out a loud groan. Ever since he had been allowed out of bed, Bren had started a rigorous training routine to, “get him back in shape.” Growing up in the academy he had always enjoyed combat training, but Bren seemed to enjoy taking all the pleasure out of it by continuing to beat him senseless. That coupled with the queens near insane attempts to make sure he had everything he needed kept him so busy he hadn’t even had the time to get word to Shariel of his release.

After washing his face and hands in a small basin one of the servants had graciously brought to his room, he dressed in one of the outfits the queen had sent him as “approved” attire for formal occasions. It was a dark green doublet with a slightly lighter green lace adorning the cuffs and neckline, as well as a pair of hose so tight that he feared one wrong move would expose his manhood.

As he entered the dining hall Thad noticed half a dozen women of varying ages idly chatting with the queen. Bren’s eyes cut to him as soon as he entered the room. Thad could tell the man was none too pleased with him at the moment. Thad didn’t understand how the Guard could convey so many feeling with only his eyes, while the rest of his body remained motionless as he stood behind the queen.

Noticing his presence the queen greeted him warmly. “Thaddeus, so glad you could join us.” The ladies gathered around the queen studied him intently. While most of the ladies faces showed interest, the youngest looking of the group, somewhere in her late teens or early twenties with mahogany brown hair, face showed nothing but utter disgust at his presence.

“It will still be awhile until the meal is ready, and the princess should be down shortly. Why don’t you join us while we wait?” The queen’s voice was kind and gentle but it held a strong commanding undertone.

At the queen’s command, he found an empty seat next to a motherly looking woman with light brown hair with just a hint of silver streaks running through it. The lady gave him a gentle smile. Her light green eyes sparkled, making her seem years younger suddenly. Looking around, he noticed that all eyes, both friendly and not, were on him. Embarrassed from the attention he was receiving, he ducked his head blushing furiously.

“This is the mighty mage you’ve been telling us about Serena? He is just a baby; I bet he can still count his hairs on one hand.” The younger lady who had been eyeing him fiercely said. Her tone was harsh and mocking.

“Yes he does look quite young, and I see it as a reason to expect great things. I am not one to count worthiness on age or gender. If I did, then you would fall in the same category. It wasn’t that long ago I remember you tailing behind your mother crying about your lost doll.” The motherly lady next to him said in a jokingly manner.

The room soon erupted in what could only be described as polite chaos as the ladies tore into each other with thinly veiled insults and heavy handed sarcasm. This went on for a few minutes until the queen interceded.

“Now that were all introduced, let’s get down to business. What are we to do about the current unrest of out male population?”

The ladies popped in with a range of solutions, but few of them actually addressed the problem as he saw it. It wasn’t just their rights, but the overall attitude of the females toward them that had caused the situation. Thad stayed quiet, listening to the women talk and argue about what would be best for the Queendom.

“Thaddeus, you’re being awfully quiet. What would you do to address the current situation?” The queen’s voice was light but carried well. Silencing the ladies and drawing their attention back to him.

“I don’t really know. It wouldn’t hurt to pass a few laws protect their basic rights, but you would have to do more. I understand the reason for property to be passed down through the female line, but not allowing men to buy property is one of the larger problems. The idea works for the upper class, but when you get to the common person all you’re doing is caging them into perpetual slavery, marked or not.”

The lady next to him patted his arm reassuringly. “He’s got a point Serena, without the ability to even buy or own property, their forced to rent at high prices. Many of the best craftsmen have to work for little or nothing because they cannot own a business. While I believe the peerage should remain with the female line, I don’t believe it works as well with the peasants.”

“What about our slaves? You don’t expect us to give them all up do you? There are plenty of laws in place to ensure they are well taken care of.” A sandy-haired woman with a hawk like nose said, sounding affronted by the idea.

This started a whole new round of verbal combat. At some point during the discussion the princess made her way into the room wearing a white dress that seemed to float around her, almost like a cloud. Thad was glad for the distraction and smiled warmly at the princess as she took a seat next to her mother.

Shortly before the food arrived, the ladies and the queen outlined an agreement they could all support. A royal decree would be given that would give men back the right to purchase property, but would have to declare an inheritor or it would revert to the property of the Queendom. Slavery would continue, but with the added condition that a slave could buy their freedom if they paid double the amount of their purchase.

The decision seemed like too large of a step to Thad. While he wanted his fellow men to have the rights they deserved, he was afraid that going too far to fast could be disastrous. He wasn’t sure what would happen, but he hoped it all went well.

When the meal arrived, the conversation turned polite, and the barbs and verbal attacks disappeared. To say he was confused was an understatement. He couldn’t understand how the women could seem like the best of friends and the bitterest enemies at the same time.

The meal continued without too much fanfare. Alysia, the older lady who had championed him earlier, turned out to be the Duchess of Calisaren. When he learned who she was he inquired on Eloen, the young captain of her army that he had met in Avael. Remembering his last meeting with the captain made Thad’s cheeks to burn a brilliant shade of red.

“Oh yes, Eloen is my niece, and one of my best officers. She has spoken very highly of your skills on the battlefield. I am very grateful for your help at the battle of Avael. From what I have learned, the town would have been razed if you had not interceded when you did.”

Unused to such praise Thad ducked his head to hide his blushing face. Alysia moved the conversation along and they began talking of his interests and hobbies, which were few. While academic study was not her strongest area of expertise, she did give him an excellent idea. She suggested he seek out the dean of the Royal School. Who she claimed was one of the foremost scholars in all of Kurt.

After the meal, the princess kindly pulled him from the room as the ladies started another series of verbal wars. She led him to her favorite spot, a small balcony that overlooked the palace garden. Since his release, they had spent almost every night on the balcony talking under the moonlight. He always enjoyed the relaxing and beautiful sight of the garden in the pale moonlight.

The queen employed dozens of slaves just to tend the small garden. To make sure the rare and difficult to cultivate Moon Lilies stayed healthy. They filled the garden, and while during the day they looked like a simple white lily, they shimmered and cast a faint glow that lit up surrounding area in the moonlight. Adding to the enchantment, fireflies were drawn to the flowers, and seemed to dance in the air around them.

Their late night talks were never serious, but usually fancy of what would be or could be. Tonight she had brought a simple deck of Honeth cards. He knew it was a bit childish to play games when he should be working, but the princess seemed to enjoy what little time she had to just act her age.

He had to admit, he even enjoyed the time he spent with her. She never expected him to perform magic for her, or be a master scholar as many of the nobles did. She oohed and awed when he performed some new bit of magic he had learned, but mainly she just let him be him without the fear of ridicule.

Back in his room after being thoroughly beaten in four straight games of Honeth, Thad kicked back on his bed, silently vowing to himself to learn how to play the game better. He didn’t mind losing, but the little princess loved to goad him about it. The worst part was that she was so cute when doing it that he couldn’t even force himself to get mad at her.

Clearing his mind of the day’s events, he concentrated back on the problem of heating. There were plenty of things that gave off heat, but without knowing how the heat was created or traveled, there was no way to reproduce the effect through magic. Slightly annoyed at his own incompetence, he decided tomorrow would be a good time to visit the Royal School and Shariel.

CHAPTER III

The Royal School was a large group of buildings on the edge of the capital. The school had been built shortly after the creation of Farlan. Just after the collapse of the great empire. It had originally been built outside of the city, but over the decades the capital had expanded and formed around the school.

Ever since coming to the capital, Thad had enjoyed looking at the school. Over the years many buildings had been added, but none were ever torn down, so one could easy see the changes in architectural design throughout its history.

The walk up to the main building was long and winded through a large garden that was tended by some of the students. It was beautiful and he could easily see the care that had been put into it. Every so often he would see one of the students weeding, their hands covered in dirt. He wasn’t sure why but seeing a noble doing such work made him smile.

Shortly after entering the building, he found an older man with only the smallest ring of white hair around his head sitting behind a solid looking desk. The gentleman looked Thad over and gave a disapproving glair when his eyes reached his brand. Feeling uncomfortable under the man’s stare, Thad unconsciously reached up and touched the tattoo on his forehead.

“What do you want?” The man asked, his voice dripping with distaste.

Thad was shocked by the man’s attitude and his confidence melted away. “I……um” his voice frayed and cracked then nothing came.

Thad’s nervousness seemed to fuel the man’s ire. As he stood, his face turning a dark red. “Listen boy, I have more to do than sit here and listen to the whimpering of some brain dead slave.” The man said pointing back toward the main entrance.

For a brief second Thad almost obeyed the man’s silent command, his body turning slightly back toward the way he had come. But the wheels in his mind began to turn again as the initial shock of the man’s callous demeanor disappeared. Mustering up his courage, he squared his shoulders and tried his best to copy Bren’s stern expression.

“Sir I am here on the authority of the princess of Farlan in order to meet with the dean of this facility.” He tried to make his voice stern, but it still sounded week to his ears.

Raising from his chair the man let out a loud, “humph….” He then motioned for Thad to follow him. The old man walked slow. Thad was sure it was on purpose and not just because of his advanced age. He was led down two long corridors and three flights of stairs before he finally found himself standing in front of an ornamentally carved door.

Thad knocked lightly then waited with his hands held behind his back. No noise could be heard from inside so Thad knocked again, this time adding a bit more strength to it. With still no reply, Thad reared back his hand to give the door a hard knock. Just as his hand began to descend the door swung open. Having put too much strength into the blow Thad stumbled forward as he tried to pull it back.

An elderly woman, easily in her late nineties, looked up at him through squinted eyes. She looked more than aged as she stood hunched over leaning heavily on a dark wooden cane. Her hair hung around her shoulders like a silvery waterfall.

“Yes, can I help you young man?” she said, her voice soft and barely above a whisper.

“I hope so. Lady Alysia said you were the best person to discuss my problems with.”

“Ah! Little Alysia? Well do come in.” she said turning around.

Thad followed her to the corner of the office, where two large heavy cushioned chairs sat in front of a large fireplace. The room was more plain than he had expected. His mind having pictured the room littered with objects of great value and rarity.

“What brings you to visit an old crone like me?” She asked pouring him a cup of water from a glass pitcher.

Thad took the cup graciously. “This is kind of hard to explain. I work with magic, and I am working on a project that involves heat. The problem is, I have no understanding as to how it is made or transferred.”

For the briefest of moments the old woman’s eyes sparkled. “So, you are the mage that has all my professors in an uproar. Meredith has been bugging me endlessly to petition the queen for an audience with you.” She said lightly chuckling.

“As for your problem, there are many books I could recommend you to read, and I shall do so later, but for now I would enjoy a nice friendly chat.”

Laura as she preferred to be called was full of information. She had traveled extensively in her earlier years with a band of adventurers trying to unearth lost relics of the Empire. Sometimes it took her awhile to remember all the details, but Thad didn’t mind the long pauses. He was so enthralled in one of Laura’s stories where she had been exploring an underground cavern; he nearly wet himself when a loud rap sounded at the door.

“Would you get that for me dear? Moving around at my age is more work than it’s worth most of the time.”

Thad gladly obeyed hopping up from his chair and rushing to the door like an impatient child hurrying to get back to playing. The door swung open to reveal a lithe woman, easily in her early thirties with deep-set brown eyes that reminded him of bronze coins. She had thick, straight, red hair that was cut short and her clothes were utilitarian, with a completely gray color scheme.

Not even taking note of his presences she walked past him and straight to where the dean sat. “Have you contacted the queen yet? It is most imperative that I meet with the mage. Think of everything we could learn. It might even be possible to teach others, and revive the lost art of magic.”

“Meredith I was wondering when you would be about. I guess it was too much to hope you would leave an old woman to her own amusements.” Laura said with a hint of annoyance. “I guess I shouldn’t hog our guest all to myself. Thad, I am sure the lovely professor here will drag you off, so I will have the books you need delivered to the palace by days end.”

“Laura, what are you talking about?” She examined him closely, as if noticing his presence for the first time. The intensity of her eyes made him more than a little uncomfortable. “Oh! You’re from the palace. Did you bring word back involving my query on the young mage?”

“I believe I am the mage in question, unless another one has surfaced that I haven’t heard about.” Thad said with much more confidence than he felt.

“Not what I expected, but dreams and reality are seldom the same.” She said as she grabbed him by the arm and led him from the room. To say she gently urged him along would have been kind. She moved with haste and her grip was like an iron trap, making him feel as if a team of horses were dragging him.

By time they reached their destination his arm was tingling from stinted blood flow. When she let go to open the door to her office he quickly massaged his throbbing arm. Inside the room the floor was covered with piles of books, parchments, scrolls, and papers. The whole placed looked like something out of his imagination. Not even the walls were spared as they were covered with large amounts of papers, with only a hint of the brown background showing through.

Meredith made her way to the back of the room and began clearing off one of the chairs in front of her desk. It was a slightly funny sight, as she didn’t know where she should stack them. After a few minutes of moving the books, he finally had a place to sit. That was only a minor success, as he could only see the top of her head over the mountain of books that covered her desk. Instead of moving the books off the desk she merely slid everything apart leaving a narrow path. It was like looking at her though a partly opened door.

“Shall we start?”

“Start what?” Thad asked confused.

Meredith’s brows furrowed as she taped her fingers on the desk. “At the beginning of your story, I want to know everything. Where you were born, what you did when you were younger, everything.”

“What does my childhood have to do with magic?” He could understand her wanting to know about magic. It was a lost art, a scholar’s dream.

She let out an exasperated sigh. “When you study something, you don’t just study one section of it. You study all of it. In this case you. How are we to know if your unique upbringing affected your ability to do magic unless we know what it is? Now for the first interview keep the information brief. If I need further information to clarify I will notify you.”

Thad started by telling her of his time in at the slave academy. How he had trained endlessly in both military and academia studies. When he got to the point in his story where he found the book of magic in the broken down tower in the woods she began stopping him every few seconds with questions.

Thad wasn’t sure how long he sat in the cluttered mess she called an office, but by time he finished his legs were hurting from sitting in the uncomfortable chair. Thinking the torture was over he stood, stretched, and began to turn around when Meredith raised a hand to stop him.

“So do you think it is possible to train others to use magic?”

Her question caught him by surprise. He had never thought of teaching anyone else how to perform magic. Thinking about it, he couldn’t see a reason why others couldn’t learn to use magic as long as they had the skill. “I believe so.”

“Would you be willing to test some of our students, and maybe faculty to see if they could be taught?” Unlike her other questions this one brimmed with excitement.

While teaching others sounded like a good idea, he didn’t want to start by only allowing the privileged class the opportunity to learn. “I want to pass along the knowledge, but I want it to be available to everyone equally. I will discuss the possibility of starting a magic school with the queen.”

“Not exactly what I wanted to hear. It will take years to set up a proper school. What if something happens to you? All knowledge of magic would once again vanish from Kurt.” Meredith said pleadingly.

Though he didn’t want to admit it, she had a point. “What if I have a copy of the book I found set aside so that if something happens to me, you will receive it?”

Meredith tapped her fingers on the desk in a rhythmic pattern with a blank look on her face. After a few moments her fingers stopped and she ran her thin fingers through her hair. “Very well, I guess it is the best I can expect at the moment.”

After they hammered out the details on how and when the book would be delivered, Meredith was kind enough to lead him through the maze of corridors back to the front door. When they parted she gave him a warm hug, lingering just slightly longer than what he thought was comfortable.

The sun was already sitting low on the horizon. He had spent much longer then he had intended at the school. The temptation to return to the palace, where he hoped the books the dean had promised waited on him, was great. The only thing that stopped him was Shariel.

Making his way to his house by the market, a smile crept on his face. This was his first visit to town in a long time, and the familiar sights and sounds were like music to his ears. Stopping by a local bakery he picked up a few of Shariel’s favorite blueberry tarts.

The magical lights of the house had already been turned on. Approaching slowly he could hear talking and laughing even from outside the house. At first he had worried how Shariel would handle taking care of herself, but the princess had promised that she was well taken care of in his absence.

The door was unlocked so he opened it as carefully as possible, wanting to surprise her. Creeping through the house he followed the voices to the small dining room where he found Shariel talking and eating with two teenage. She had a large smile on her face and her dimples were showing brightly as she laughed.

As he stepped through the door frame, the two teen girls noticed him and their expressions dropped. Shariel still laughing turned to see what the other girls were staring at and let out a high-pitched squeal that threatened to rupture his ear drums.

She ran over and gave him a tight hug as the other two girls giggled. “Thad!” she shouted as she gave him another quick hug, then remembering her friends she blushed slightly. “This is my brother, the one I told you about.”

After the excitement settled down, he joined the three girls for their evening meal. While he ate, Shariel filled him in on everything that he had missed including her birthday. She was doing good in school and many of her friends and even a few of the teachers checked up on her regularly to make sure she was doing ok. A few had even offered to open up their homes to her.

“That is one of the reasons I’m here. I have talked to the queen and she has given permission for you to take residence in the palace if you want.”

Shariel’s face lit up for a brief moment, and then quickly took on a serious tone. Pulling a strand of her light blond hair she began chewing on it. “If I did that, it would be a lot harder for me to spend time with my friends. This is kind of our base, but we don’t do anything bad. You’re not mad are you?”

Thad tried to hold back a laugh as Shariel raced through the reasons she wanted to stay. “Shariel if you want to stay here, that’s fine with me. I just wanted to give you the option. I would like it if you visited me from time to time though, and when I find a chance I’ll come over to see how you are doing. How does that sound?”

“That sounds perfect.” Shariel said, her face taking on a dreamlike quality.

He spent the rest of the evening talking with the girls. The girls each taking turns telling stories that involved some silly prank or antic by one of the others. Whenever Shariel was mentioned in one of the stories she would blush furiously, but the lighthearted tone of the evening kept him laughing and smiling late into the night.

Shortly after the two teen girls left, Thad and Shariel agreed it was also time for Shariel to make her way up to her own room, leaving Thad sitting by the fire alone. Though it had only been a little over half a year since he had left, it felt like half a lifetime since he had been there.

It had been a long bumpy road to where he was now. One that nearly got him killed a few times due to his own stupidity. Looking back, not everything had worked out how he had wanted, but he wasn’t sure he would change anything. He reached up and rubbed the tattoo. Well, maybe a few things.

Instead of trudging through the snow in the cold night air, Thad decided to spend a night in his old room. Inside he found the magical sending box that he had made as well as his magical tome two things he had nearly forgotten about.

The sending box was one of his prize accomplishments. It allowed him to send small letters to another specially designated one of the same make, which was currently in the possession of the princess. He had also made bigger version of the same thing for sending goods across long distances, but they were all behind the house in a small shed.

The magical tome was another of his favorite possessions. The tome allowed him to copy and store books in it, so that he could carry a variable library in one small package. He had intended to make more, but had never gotten around to it. Other projects kept coming up and taking his attention away.

Taking one last look around his room Thad extinguished the magical light, plunging the room into total darkness. With a light sigh, Thad let himself drift off into a peaceful sleep.

CHAPTER IV

Thad woke early the next morning, well before the sun graced the sky. He wanted to get to his old sewer lair before too many people began crowding the streets. Winding his way through the squatter’s district, he found the hidden entrance to the lower networks of the city.

The sewers had been built back when the old empire was strong, and mages were common. The whole infrastructure still held magical residue, emitting from almost every stone. Even the moss that grew on the walls and ceiling was of magical origin. It was a very complex system. One that Thad had no idea how to begin to duplicate. He had studied the moss extensively, trying to figure out how the mages had manipulated its growth into what they had desired.

He found his little room, where his papers and items were stored. He found his staff learned against the wall and quickly picked it up in his hands. It had taken him a lot of effort and making it had nearly killed him. The staff was made of marblewood and had a large diamond set in its top as well as many cat eye gems throughout the rest of the staff, allowing it to amplify his magic.

With his staff, notes, and diagrams of other projects he had worked on in hand, he made his way back through the sewer. It was a bittersweet moment. The sewer, while not the most inviting place, had offered him sanctuary when he needed it. Now he was moving on to a new chapter in his life. He was moving on, where he could practice magic openly.

After checking to make sure no one was around, he slipped from the hidden door leading to the sewer. Thad allowed his mind to wander, not paying as much attention as he should have. He ran into a group of ragged men. The squatter’s district was the main living area for males, and most of them worked for small wages, usually living off what scraps the females were willing to toss them. Many of them resorted to preying on anyone they could to survive. Thad couldn’t really blame them, but he was also not willing to become one of their victims.

Noticing him, the men began circling around him. “Look what we got here. One of the hoity-toity slaves from the palace.” Someone said behind him. “Poor little lamb got lost in the big bad woods, and it looks like he’s found the wolves.”

Thad moved his hand for his sword, and cursed when his fingers only touched cloth. He had let himself get comfortable in the palace and had stopped carrying it with him. Cursing his own carelessness he spread his feet and prepared to fight.

“There is no reason for this to turn ugly. Just turn around and leave me be and no one needs to get hurt.” Thad said keeping his tone low and deadly.

Without a response they all moved in for him. Thad waited until the nearest thug was so close he could smell his rancid breath then let loose his spell. A giant wall of fire sprung up around him, moving outward. The sounds of screams and smell of burning flesh soon filled the air as the thugs rolled around on the ground trying to put out the flames that had taken hold of their clothes and hair.

Two of the men had hung back from the charge and were unscathed from his magical assault. Both men appeared to hold no fear. Their eyes looked as if they were promising Thad a slow and painful death. The closest one ran at him full force while the other, who carried a deadly looking sword, maneuvered to get in Thad’s blind spot.

The first man barreled heavily into Thad’s shield in, what he guessed was an attempt to knock him to the ground, but the thug could find no hold on his shield. Thad slammed his staff down hard into the man’s head, shattering it like a cheap clay jar, splattering his shield with red and pink gore.

The other man attacked as soon Thad’s staff descended. His body, conditioned from years of training, reached to the slight movement and he pivoted on his right foot moving the majority of his body outside the reach of the blade. The thugs attack still scored a small cut on Thad’s left side. It was not deep, but the fact the sword was able to get passed his shield was the bigger concern. Keeping his guard up, Thad reached out to the weapon with his magic, testing it. A small blue gem flared to life confirming Thad’s suspicions. The weapon was magic in nature, but with his current knowledge and skill, he was unable to judge what qualities it held.

The two men circled one another, neither wanting to close with the other. Getting tired of the foreplay, Thad stretched out his hand and let loose a massive lightning bolt. The bright flash temporally blinded Thad, but he could hear a high-pitched hum coming from the direction of his opponent. As his eyes regained focus, he could see the thug, his sword held out defensively in front of him. The swords blade had gone a bright white and was shaking slightly. It appeared to be causing the noise that filled his ears.

The thugs face had also turned pale white, but it seemed to be more out of fear than a reaction to the swords absorption of his spell. He was starting to get an understanding of how the magical weapon worked. If he was right, direct magic would be ineffective. Another spell popped into his mind, one that so far he had only used to help the masons who worked on his new workshop.

Slamming the end of his staff hand into the ground, Thad send a massive amount of magical energy surging to the man in front of him. He had never tried the spell on such a level before and his head quickly began to ache and his vision began to blur. Knowing the price of failure, Thad held on by sheer will until his spell took effect. The ground below the man turned to a semi-solid state, and the man slowly sank down screaming as he tried to escape.

Releasing the spell, the ground quickly became solid again, slightly sloping toward the man held fast in the middle of the alley. He was encased from the knees down. The man uselessly struck at his stone prison with his sword. Consumed with his own predicament the man paid little heed of Thad as he walked over and took the sword from the man’s limp grasp.

The man pleaded with Thad to let him go. He was visibly shaking. He had killed before, and even in self-defense it left him feeling hollow. He had even killed men who were unable to move, but this was the first time he had to listen to a man plead for his life. The screams of the dying men would haunt him for some time.

He could easily walk away and leave the man there to die a slow death, but the result would be the same. The only true difference in the two would be the amount of suffering the man would have to endure. His mind made up Thad took a deep breath to steady his nerves then turned and with one deft stroke removed the man’s head from his body.

His shield down Thad was sprayed with more blood then he thought the human body could hold. His emotional, and magical reserves depleted he dropped to knees. The lifeless head of the man he had killed stared at him, condemning him for his coldblooded murder.

Forcing himself to his feet, Thad stumbled back toward the security of the palace. The guards at the palace gate knew him well, and rushed to his aid when he came into their view. Through the pounding of his head and the tearing of his soul, he could hear them call for help. One of them gently lifted him from his feet as if he were no more than a babe.

He felt as someone tried to remove the sword and staff from his hands, but he refused to let the go. He held on to them stubbornly until the weariness of the day’s events took their toile, and he slipped into unconsciousness.

He woke his head still thrumming as the evening sun peeked through his window, assaulting his tender eyes. His body had been cleaned of the blood, and his clothes had been changed. He now wore a thick wool night gown. Trying to not think too hard about who had bathed and clothed him, he got unsteadily to his feet. With his stomach complaining from lack of food, he decided it was prudent to make his way to the kitchen and see if he could snag something to eat.

Though it was late in the afternoon, the palace halls were still swarmed with people. He hadn’t taken the time to change out of his night clothes. As he passed a group of giggling female servants, he lowered his head, his face burning bright red.

He found the cooks in the kitchen, doing preparations for the morning meal. They were more than happy to use the leftovers to make him a bowl of quickly thrown together stew. Wanting to avoid any more loss to his already shattered dignity, he took the less used back corridors of the palace to his room.

As he passed by one of the smaller meeting rooms, he heard raised voices though he couldn’t quite pick up what they were saying. From the tone and pitch it sounded like the queen and princess as well as a few others were arguing. Creeping softly, he moved closer to the door. The words were still muffled and he could only pick out a few from time to time. Knowing he shouldn’t, but too intrigued to stop himself, he placed his ear to the door.

“Mother he still doesn’t trust you.” The princess said in a much more commanding tone then he was used to.

“I know dear, but there is little I can do about that. He has every right to hate me after everything I’ve done. Honestly, I can’t understand why he agreed to take on the mantle of the slave even in title if not practice. He’s a good boy, if a bit naïve. I’m sure if we explain the situation he will be willing to help.” The queen said, her voice retaining the quiet dignity he always associated with her.

“Yes he does have a cute naivety to him, but in my short time with him, I found him quick to defend those in trouble. It is an admirable trait for one so young.” A familiar female voice said, though he couldn’t place who it belonged too.

“I don’t want to hear your advice, trollop.” The princess said so venomously Thad had a mental image of her biting the unknown woman.

“Ah! The little princess is growing up so fast. Maybe your young mage will pay attention to you more once you look more like a woman.” The unknown woman replied mockingly.

“Will you two stop it? Maria we do not treat our guests in such a manner, and Eloen, you are more than old enough to know better.” The queen said trying to sound serious, but Thad could detect a hint of laughter in her voice.

The room quieted down as the two ladies apologized to each other. Neither of them sounded sincere to Thad, but the queen didn’t push the issue. The thought of the dainty little princess facing off against the tomboyish Eloen almost made Thad double over laughing. Only his desire to remain unnoticed helped him hold his tongue.

“This is the worst possible time for an invasion. With the current social upheaval, we can’t pull many soldiers from their normal duties, and the soldiers that are currently stationed at Southpass won’t be enough if the information on the size of the Ablaian army is correct. Thad could turn the tide not only with his magic, but his presence should bolster our soldier’s moral and weaken the enemies.”

The rest of the conversation faded from Thad’s ears. Silently, he made his way back to his room. His thoughts fixated on what the queen had said. Abla was planning an attack, and they wanted him to help defend the Queendom. The princess was right. While he tried his best to be nice to the queen, he didn’t trust her. It was hard to forget the long months of neglect while chained to a wall.

The main question in his mind was, should he help protect the Queendom? The royal decree that had gone out only a few days prior, had been met with mixed results. To his surprise a majority of the common people welcomed the change, with the exception of female business owners who saw a threat to their current monopoly.

It was still too early to see if the decree would calm down the current civil strife that had been plaguing the countryside. He didn’t like the idea of killing, but he had grown fond of many people and he knew that if Abla invaded, their safety as well as many others would be in jeopardy. With his magic, he could make a large difference.

His mind warred with itself as he sat on his bed, nibbling from his plate. The Queendom had done little for him, but it was also the only home he knew. When he escaped his slavery he could have went to another country, but he didn’t. He wasn’t even sure why he stayed. He could have gone anywhere. He was glad he had stayed though. Being the quiet type, he never got along with any of the boys at the academy.

He never thought he really needed friends, but since his escape, he had met many people who had helped him, for no other reason than to be kind. He had people he cared about now. Not many, but that made them even more valuable. Maria, Bren, Shariel, Monique, Joan, and her family; if they were in trouble he would gladly fight for them. They might not be the whole Queendom, but they were part of it.

His mind heavy, he closed his eyes hoping sleep would bring him some peace. After a few minutes of tossing around, he decided it was futile to sleep when he had woken up not long ago. Pacing back and forth in his room, he noticed a large brown package on his dresser. Ripping the paper, he found a large stack of books. For a moment he stared at them, confused until he remembered that the dean had promised to send over just that. In the day’s events, he had complexly forgotten about his project for the masons.

Unable to sleep and his mind frantic for a distraction, Thad grabbed the first book in the pile and jumped onto his bed. The book talked about heat stored deep below the ground. It was an interesting read and held many examples of different phenomena where massive amounts of heat had been seen released from the earth. The idea was neat but depending on how low the heat resided would decide if it was useful or not. If he had to go more than twenty feet it would be impossible.

He read until late into the night, until his eyelids grew so heavy he could no longer keep awake. All the books had had great ideas on how heat worked, but none of them were practical for use with magic as far as he could tell. Maybe after some sleep and the different ideas had a chance to set in, he would figure it out.

The next day, shortly after breakfast, he was summoned to the audience chamber. Even though he expected it his stomach still tied itself in knots as he waited outside the large elaborate doors. He was somewhat glad he had overheard the conversation the night before. If he had been simply been bombarded with the choice, he wasn’t sure what he would have said. Even after a night of stressed thinking, he still wasn’t sure if he had made the right decision.

Walking into the room, he noticed the familiar faces staring at him with apprehension. He could even see a thin line of worry marring the queen’s usual impassive face. As he reached the throne, he went to his knees touching his head to the flagstone. “Your Majesty.”

The queen silently raised her hand signaling him to rise. “Thaddeus, I have requested your presence for an important reason. We have learned that the Kingdom of Abla is planning an attack as soon as the pass clears against Southpass. It takes great time to mobilize the individual armies available to the Queendom, and time is something we don’t have. We ask that you travel to Southpass and render whatever aid you can.”

All eyes were trained on him waiting for his response. He already knew his answer, but the simple pleasure he gained from making the queen wait, was too tempting to pass up. After what he figured was suitable amount of time he cleared his throat.

“It would be my pleasure.” The words were simple and clear and shocked more than a few people, including the queen.

Eloen walked over and grabbed him in a tight headlock. “I knew you would come around without much fuss.”

He wasn’t sure if he should be happy, or annoyed at the current situation. She was chocking him slightly, but his face was in a rather nice position. The internal debate ended shortly when something grabbed his right arm, jerking so hard he thought it would come out of socket. He would have gladly followed the princess, but Eloen stubbornly refused to let go of her hold on his neck. So the battle presumed, with both ladies trying to see what would break first, him or the others grip.

The queen was able to stop the two girls before they did any permanent damage. As he sat on the floor gasping for breath, he noticed that both the queen’s and Bren’s eyes were puffy and red. He knew they had enjoyed a good laugh at his expense. He wanted to get mad, but his body hurt too much for the reaction to take hold.

Bren helped Thad to his feet. Thad quickly backed away from the two girls, who were staring each other down like two Billy goats that were about to see whose head was stronger. The whole thing would have been funny, if he was sure they weren’t going to use him in another tug-of-war match.

“The attack shouldn’t happen for some time, but I would like you to leave for Southpass as soon as you are able. If there is a rapid warming spree, the pass will clear and honestly we stand little chance of holding it without your help. Eloen and the soldiers she brought with her have agreed to escort you safely to your destination.” The queen spoke with authority her face back to its usual stone-like quality.

Thad could see the princess was anything but happy with the arrangement. She was his best friend and he cherished her deeply, but sometimes she was overly possessive. He found it both charming and annoying to have someone treat you like their personal possession.

“I should be able to leave in the morning. I will have to get word to Shariel of my leaving, as well as gather some material for the trip. Will that be good enough?”

The queen merely nodded her head and dismissed him to begin his preparations. The thought of going to war scared him, but it also excited him. He wasn’t sure why there was such a mix of emotions and for a brief second wondered if all soldiers felt the same.

CHAPTER V

He was met outside the city gates by Eloen, who was accompanied by nine other soldiers. The young lady cut a beautiful and commanding figure with her chestnut colored hair that was cropped short and her narrow brown eyes looked like twin drops of chocolate. Her dark leather outfit fit tight against her body, showing off luscious curves, and hints of soft cream-colored skin.

Though she smiled sweetly at him, her eyes looked him over intensely, making him more than a little uncomfortable. His last meeting with Eloen had been less than formal and while she had turned a blind eye to let him escape, he wasn’t sure if he should trust her.

As he reined the horse the queen had given him next to Eloen, he reached down and rubbed the horse’s neck. He hadn’t named it yet but he was already fond of the animal. It wasn’t very tall only about four foot, but she was a lovely bay with a small but rather heavy head, with small ears, and large eyes. She had a long thin neck and her soft flowing mane seem to dance in the morning breeze.

“Are we ready?” He asked keeping his tone jovial.

Eloen nodded and spurred her horse forward. Thad and the rest of the men followed along, quietly falling into position. Eloen rode at the tip and four men rode on each other’s flanks, and the last man followed at the rear. He thought it was a little silly, how many people would know to look for them, but he doubted that would be their main concern.

The ride was quiet and peaceful. Thad was thankful for that. It had been a very busy and emotionally draining night. As soon as they were out of sight, the princess had acted like a two year old throwing a tantrum, going so far as threating to have him whipped if he so much as looked in Eloen’s direction. Then, he had said his goodbyes to Shariel, who had cried for hours until she finally fell asleep. He had figured she would take it much better than she had. She had taken his incarceration very well. Thinking about it, started to make sense. She hadn’t seen him or the effects the dungeon had on him, but the sight of him riding in from the woods with an arrow in his back was still fresh on her mind.

He had spent what little time remained of the night preparing for the trip. His staff, rune necklace, and magical sword were must have items. One of his magical tomes for reading, a few changes of clothing, his sleeping mat, and some enchanting supplies were the next things to go into his pack. After that it got hard to decide what he would need and what he would leave behind. When everything was said and done, he had only left himself a few measly hours of sleep before he had to leave.

He had been excited the night before, but now the enthusiasm was wearing off and his lack of sleep was making his eyes heavy. Not wanting to fall asleep in the saddle, he scanned the countryside for anything that could keep his mind occupied. The area surrounding the capital was mostly farmland, but it was late in winter and a light frosting of snow still covered the ground.

Whether she noticed the occasional jerking in his saddle as he jolted awake, or to alleviate her boredom, about halfway through the day Eloen dropped back and rode next to him. When she did, the other soldiers of their party readjusted their position flawlessly so one couldn’t even tell she had moved.

“So Thad, what really made you decided to join us?” Unlike her normal flirty attitude her face remained deadpan, and her voice serious. It made Thad second guess himself for a brief moment.

“It seemed like the right thing to do.” He answered simply, not haveing a better one and for the most part it was true. He wasn’t being completely altruistic, he did have many new spells he wanted to try out and using them on an invading army seemed like a good idea.

Eloen let out something between a laugh and a giggle as she looked at him like he was a simpleton. “I should have known. While I’m glad to have you on our side, there is something I want you to think about. Life isn’t black and white, and even the colors of gray intertwined are so convoluted most the time that the wisest don’t know how to tell them apart. I promise you the other side believes it is just as right as we do. Better to think on it now, and make your resolve. We can’t afford for your naivety to wear off in the middle of a battle.”

Thad thought about what she had said as they continued down the road and talked. She asked about the princess, and tried to twist every other word he said into her own sordid meaning, but no matter what she said, his mind kept wondering back to what she had said about his naivety.

He had been tutored and trained by high quality warriors and scholars, but had little real world experience. Most of his ideas were still of stories he had heard or read. They talked little of how much blood a human body would lose when cut, though he knew first hand it was much more than he could have believed. They always talked about the thrill of battle and the fire in their veins when they met sword to sword with their enemy. Was it really like that, or would it be like his first time wielding a sword against another human? Leaving him week in the knees and wanting to shake like a newborn babe, just happy to have survived.

Why had he decided to come along? He had kept telling himself that it was because he wanted to protect those dear to him, but was that the truth? He wasn’t sure. He had always just followed along with what was around him. Seldom questioning why he was doing it. From his earliest memories, he had done what he was asked without complaint. The mothers at the academy were good about that, never ordering something to be done, just asking. Maybe he had fallen into such a routine that he just did what seemed easiest to keep everyone else happy.

Looking into himself he didn’t like what he saw. He had never done anything bad, but he had seldom made any real choices. While Eloen continued her harassment of his friendship with the princess, he made a vow to start looking more carefully into his decisions and why he was making them. It was bad enough to lie to others, but he didn’t want to continue to lie to himself.

His mind made up, and an invisible burden lifted from his shoulders, he stared to engage Eloen in her conversation more. He was even able to return a few of her barbs with some of his own, getting a wry smile from the woman. The group never stopped for a mid-day meal; instead, Thad was forced to eat dried meat and cheese from the saddle. Eloen had allowed him to drink from her canteen, at the cost of teasing him for being unprepared.

They rode until the sun sat low on the horizon and Eloen called for them to make camp. Five of the soldiers quickly formed a perimeter while the other four prepared the camp. Eloen directed him to his assigned sleeping position, which was right next to hers in the center of the camp. Thad wanted to complain, but knew that it was done for his own safety. Also, if he voiced any concern, Eloen would use it as an opportunity to tease him about his innocence.

He offered to take one of the watch shifts, but was laughed at by Eloen. “What would be the point of letting the person we had been assigned to protect do guard duty? Don’t worry; there are enough of us that everyone will have plenty of time to get a good sleep.”

Sitting down in front of the fire, he watched as Eloen made supper for the group. He had never thought of Eloen as the womanly type. She was beautiful, but it was easy to see she was more into swinging a sword than dancing at a ball. As he watched her cook and whistle a bawdry tune, he couldn’t help but smile.

Noticing him staring, Eloen turned to him and put her hand firmly on her hips and gave him a sultry smile. “What?”

“I was just wondering if I should look for something eatable. Maybe some pinecones or tree bark.”

Out of her normal character, she stuck her tongue out. “Believe it or not, but I can cook very well, and I promise you it’s better than the swill any of these bucket heads can whip up.”

The stew was much better than he thought it would be. It was some sort of meat in a pepper stew, spicy but overall very tasty. While he ate, Eloen sat next to him teasing him about his lack of trust in her cooking.

It was still early after the meal had finished, so the group settled around the fire and swapped stories. While most of them were in their early twenties, they had still led interesting lives. All of them were free men who grew up on Lady Alysia’s estate. They had joined her army while still in their early teens.

Aldan, a tall muscular man with a white scar running down the right side of his face, told of his first fight with a group of jackals. Jackals were a humanoid race that looked like a mix between a man and a large hairless dog.

“I and my four buddies were sent out to investigate the attacks on farms in the eastern duchy. When we got there, all the locals could tell us is that they heard strange howling in the night, and the next morning large amount of animals would be found torn apart, half-eaten. We set up an ambush near where the attacks had been.” Aldan leaned forward dropping his voice to a deep bass. “Then, they appeared. I tell you, the things were all seven feet tall with dark pink skin. Their jaws were short, more like snouts filled with sharp teeth. Their legs bent weirdly from their torso, and their arms were almost long enough to touch the ground. Their hands, if you could call them that, were absurdly large with thick distorted fingers that ended in long sharp claws.”

Alden got up from his seat and began walking around the fire trying to imitate a jackal. “They went for the sheep that we had tied up for bait, tearing them apart in a matter of seconds. There were six of them all together, and soon we were fighting for our lives. We were young and unprepared for what happened. One of the creatures jumped on me, its claws digging deep gouges in my skin. I was lucky enough to be able to bring my sword to bear, after a few quick cuts the beast lay writhing on the ground dying. Before I could help them, two of my friends had already died and the other two were fighting hard.”

Jumping back and forth, holding an imaginary sword, Alden acted out his story for their entertainment. “Three of the creatures were down, and we were on even ground, but they had speed and reach on their side. Their claws and teeth cut as easily as our swords. We had trained together for years, and were able to work as a group. After what felt like hours of fighting, we downed the remaining creatures. We survived, but none of us left that little knoll unscathed.”

After Alden finished his story they went around the fire, each telling a story. None of them were quite as entertaining as Alden had been, but each of them were interesting to Thad. When it got around to him, everyone leaned in close as if waiting for some miraculous story.

Thad, blushing a little, bowed his head low so no one could see his face. “I don’t have any stories like that.”

Eloen let out a loud laugh, slapping him so hard in the back that he lost his breath for a moment. “I don’t believe that. Why don’t you tell the full story of how you ended up in that bandit camp earlier in the year? I never was able to get the full truth of that event.”

Seeing that he wasn’t going to get out of his turn, he decided that Eloen’s suggestion was as good as any. “I was secretly living in the sewers below the capital when I heard of a band of marauding x-slaves who were terrorizing the countryside. At first I wasn’t sure if I wanted to join them or fight them, but I was determined to find out what they were truly like. When I got to Shiel, I met many different people who had been vandalized by the group, and I heard horrific stories of their slaughter of helpless farmers and travelers. I learned that they had been attacking along the road to Avael, so I headed to the small logging town. Shortly after arriving, I learned that the bandits had been seen recently in the area, so I set out that night to find them. I set up a small camp and went in search of any tracks leading into the forest.”

Thad got up and tried to get into his own story the way Alden had done. “When I returned to my camp, I found three men sitting at my fire. The men gave me a choice to either join them and go back to their camp or die. Before I could even agree to their demands, one of the men, a rat faced fellow, attacked me. He was quick and moved like an assassin, but his knives had too short of a reach and his attacks were easy to read. He fell quickly to my blade.”

Moving along, he pantomimed the action. “The other two men stayed calm during the short battle and allowed me to follow them to the main camp. When we got there, I settled down for the night. The next day was pretty boring, but that night their leader gave a speech indicating a planned attack on Avael. There were also two Ablaian spies with the man pledging to support their rebellion. After he was done speaking, he and the spies headed back to his tent. I followed and moved around to the back of the tent. I cut a slit in the tent and snuck through. I listed for a bit, learning that all the Ablaian’s really wanted was to weaken the army defending Southpass so they could attack. At that moment, I stunned all three and cut their throats. After that, I made my way back to my horse. I knew if I just left, they would still attack the town in the morning. So, I decided to do what I could while they were all bunched together. I called down fireballs on top of their tents, setting them ablaze. I jumped on the back of my horse and made for the forest. Before I made it out of the clearing, I took an arrow in the back. I was lucky enough to make it back to the town to warn them of the armies impending attack.”

As he finished his story, the soldiers each hollered then began barraging him with questions. At first he was a little worried about all the questions, but the men’s jovial attitude soon had him enjoying the breakdown of the details of his engagement.

Eloen gave him another hard slap on the back. “Not only did our little mage save the town, but the warning he brought about the spies had the queen put watchers on the Ablaian’s. Thanks to that we learned of the attack.”

Eloen’s statement got him another round of slaps on the back from the other soldiers. After that, a few more stories were told as well as few more risqué jokes. It was one of the most enjoyable evenings he could recall spending, and was sad when it ended and everyone headed to their bedrolls for the night.

The next day, he was woken early by Eloen who kicked him softly in his side until he grudgingly opened his eyes. “Time to get a move on magic boy, I want to reach Shiel by midday.”

After a quick meal of hard biscuits and some gray tasteless mush, they got back on the road. Thad’s backside ached slight as his horse moved at a quick rate. He had taken horse riding lessons back at the academy, but in the past year he had only ridden a horse once and that was at a much slower pace. He knew after a few days his muscles would get used to the riding, but until then he would have to suffer through it.

Thad was grateful his horse had an easy gate that allowed for a gentle ride. Eloen also slowed down the pace slightly, most likely because she saw his pained expressions. He thought it was funny, she acted like a ruff tomboy with a bawdy attitude, but was more caring then she let on. Even with the slowed pace, they still reached Shiel shortly after the sun peeked in the sky.

The town was much like he remembered it, though since it had been less than a year since his last visited, he didn’t really expect much to change. He looked down the street where he had met Shariel’s mother, and purchased the girl from her. His mind drifting to the woman, he spurned his horse to move up next to Eloen.

“Would it be possible for me to look up someone?” Thad asked quietly.

“We’re not in a huge hurry, so it should be possible. Who do you want to see?”

“You remember Shariel? Her mother lives around here, and I just wanted to get her news that her daughter is doing well.”

Eloen gave him a forlorn smile. “Yes, she was a charming little girl. I didn’t see her around the palace. I’m glad she is doing well.” Before he moved off she grabbed his arm. “If you have to leave town, take at least two of us with you.”

Thad nodded his head and dismounted his horse. He still needed to give it a name, but he was sure something would come to him. Thad headed straight inside the Weeping Serpent Inn that he had stayed at, his last time through Shiel. It didn’t take him to find the nice innkeeper who had been such a help last time.

“Hello, I’m looking for a woman by the name of Anna. She sold a young girl by the name of Shariel to a young woman some time back, and I come with news of how her daughter is faring.”

The innkeeper eyed him for a moment before deciding he wasn’t trouble and gave him a warm smile. “Yes, she lives in a small house down by the tanners. It’s the one with the light green trim around the windows.” Thad thanked her for the information and slipped her a couple of coppers.

It didn’t take long after asking around to find the Anna’s house. The house wasn’t very big, but was in nice shape with a small garden adding to its simple charm. He hesitantly walked up to the front door and knocked on it lightly.

A woman opened the door. He wasn’t sure if it was Anna, as the last time he had saw her she was covered in filth. The woman did bear a resemblance to Shariel with the same light blonde hair and freckles. Her face seemed a little ragged and tired, but her clothes were whole and she was clean, so she seemed to be doing much better than their last meeting.

“Hello I’m looking for a Miss Anna.”

The lady gave him a slight smile causing the freckles on her nose to wrinkle up slightly, the same way her daughters did when she was slightly amused. “That would be me. Can I help you?”

Thad took a deep calming breath. “I come from the capital with news of your daughter Shariel.”

Anna’s face lit up brightly. “Please come in.” She said, grabbing his arm and pulling him inside the house. She led him to a small living room with a few small lightly cushioned chairs.

“So how is my little girl?” Anna asked as he sat down.

Thad folded his hands in his lap. “Shariel is currently attending the Royal School, and is doing quite well. The queen herself has taken an interest in her and is making sure she is well taken care of. I was just sent to make sure any worries you might have had would be laid to rest.”

“The Royal School, how nice. She was always a bright child. I’m sure she will do well. I must thank you for delivering this news to me. I have told myself almost every night that I was sure she was safe, but knowing for sure will make my nights much more restful.”

After being forced to drink some water downed tea, Thad excused himself from the house. He left Anna with a small sum of gold as a present from “Clair,” the woman who had Purchased Shariel from her.

Back at the inn, he found Eloen and the soldiers sitting around a large table eating and drinking. “Pull up a chair and join us Thad.” Eloen said as he approached.

As soon as he sat down, the waiter was over at the table to take his order. Following the lead of his companions he ordered the house special as well as a cup of wine. He thought that they would move on trying to make as much ground as they could, but Eloen had different plans and didn’t want to pass up a chance to sleep in a real bed.

After eating and a second glass of wine, Thad went to the room he would be sharing with Alden and another of the soldiers. Taking Eloen’s advice, he went straight to bed and enjoyed what comfort he could while he could.

CHAPTER VI

They followed the southwest road, the fastest route to Southpass. After a quick detour to the duchess’s estate, they would make the rest of the trip without a stop until they reached Tremon. Tremon was the closest town to Southpass and was a major trading center.

They were already five days outside of Shiel, and as long as they continued to make good time, they should make the Calisaren estates sometime the day after next. Eloen had went on and on about the beauty of the estate until he was eager himself to see it. He was looking forward to seeing the ocean view that Eloen talked about. He had seen large ponds, but the idea of seeing an endless body of water seemed exciting to him.

Over the past few days of travel, he had grown more comfortable around his companions. He had learned that they had been under Eloen’s command for over two years. She had handpicked them when she had attained the rank of captain from a group of promising young soldiers. While each man was talented, they also shared Eloen’s unique sense of bawdry humor.

As they set up camp, Darryl a thin skeleton of a man with thick bushy eyebrows helped him unsaddle his horse. He was a nice chap, and as Thad learned from the few evening sparing matches they had, was ungodly fast with his dual blades.

“Want to try your luck again tonight? I think we got enough time before the sun sets to get in a round or two.” Darryl said with a light chuckle. Darryl had beaten Thad mercilessly on their last fight. For such a sickly looking person to beat him so soundly hurt Thad’s pride more than a little.

“Sure this time I got a trick or two that might land you on your back this time.” Thad said, placing his saddle on the ground to use as a pillow during the night, a trick Alden had taught him.

“Remember, no magic. I know you use it in a real fight, but I don’t want to get roasted because you got a little overzealous.” Darryl said mockingly.

Thad gritted his teeth and tossed his horse blanket over a tree limb to dry and grabbed a large stiff brush that Eloen had gotten for him when they were in Shiel. “As soon as I finish giving Apple a good brush down, I’ll knock you down a peg or two.”

Apple was very content with munching on her namesake. She loved apples, and a few days before had raided his sack throwing, all his gear all over the camp to get to the apples he had picked off a tree earlier in the day. He was so frustrated with the horse he had called her an apple headed fool the rest of the day, and the name had been adopted by the rest of the group.

It didn’t take long for him to finish caring for Apple and have her contently nuzzling him, searching his pockets for more treats. Laughing, he patted her on the neck then grabbed his practice blade and made his way toward the area where the rest were gathering.

The first bout was Alden with his sword and shield against Ballard and his broadsword. While Alden was sleek with a well-defined body he wasn’t massive like Ballard who was as tall as Alden, but nearly twice as wide with massive arms that looked like mini trees.

Thad watched as Alden danced in, scoring a slight blow on Ballard’s arm leaving a thin light blue mark indicating a shallow cut. He watched the match quite proud, not of Alden’s sword work, but his newest enchantment.

Eloen had made a comment that it was hard to tell when someone was hit during a heated match, so Thad had come up with the idea of a magic residue imprint left by the swords strike. If it was shallow, it would only be a thin line, but a full force connection would cause the whole area to glow brightly.

Thad continued to watch Alden dance in an out of Ballard’s reach, trying to score a critical hit while dodging Ballard’s powerful yet controlled attacks. Alden was able to score a number of hits and even a nice hit to Ballard’s side, but was finally taken down by a massive cross attack that caught his squarely in the ribs sending him flying a good four feet.

Eloen helped Alden to his feet, laughing as everyone else congratulated Ballard on his win. After making sure Alden was alright, Eloen stepped to the center of the open area and announced the next pair. It would have been simple for her just to announce the names but she had a flair for picking out new and unusual nicknames for everyone.

“Next up we have Darryl the dancing dullard and Thaddeus the maddening mage.” Chuckling a bit at the new names, Thad stepped toward the makeshift sparing circle to meet Darryl.

At the beginning of the battle, Thad concentrated on his defense trying to find Darryl’s rhythm. The man was a good fighter and the flow of his blades was smooth, but he still wasn’t skilled enough to make both blades move independently. There was always a small lag between when his right and left sword made an attack, albeit, one so small it was hardly noticeable.

Picking up the rhythm, Thad increased the speed of his blows hoping to get Darryl to make a mistake. The main thing to remember was patience when fighting someone who was skilled. Rush the fight or make unnecessary risky moves and you would lose. Taking your time and waiting for an opening was the key to winning.

As Thad increased his speed, Darryl adjusted, moving his blades even faster until the dull thud of wood on wood echoed with every heartbeat. Thad was tiring quickly, but he didn’t let up. Seeing that Darryl’s face didn’t hold the same calm demeanor as it had in their last bout.

His patience paid off when he noticed a small opening. Parrying Darryl’s double thrust, he quickly stepped to the side, slapping the two swords to the side and kicked hard into Darryl’s side spinning the little man and throwing him hard to the ground.

When Darryl rolled onto his back, he was greeted by the poised point of Thad’s practice blade. For the briefest of moments Darryl’s jaw clenched and Thad though he was upset, but then the wiry little man let out a loud barking laugh. After helping his opponent to his feet, Thad went over to his companions to get his congratulatory pats on the back.

After everyone was sufficiently warn down and sweating horribly, they all made their way down to a small stream off the road. Eloen didn’t wait for everyone to finish, but undressed and jumped in the water along with the rest of them. The first time she had done so caused Thad to nearly run from the water, but he had gotten used to her brazen attitude if not the sight of her bare body.

Thad had fallen into a comfortable routine over the past few days, and was enjoying the company of the others. Unlike at the academy, everyone seemed to work together instead of competing against each other.

As he had every night since they left Shiel, Thad pulled the sword he had gotten off the man in the capital out to inspect it. After a lot of testing, he learned the sword would absorb any direct effect spell cast towards it. The sword could also cut through any magical shield he could put up as easily as if cutting through air. It was obvious this weapon was made for the sole purpose of killing mages, but he wasn’t sure how it worked or how to reproduce it. Not that he wanted to, it would be stupid to make a number of weapons that were only effective in killing him.

The sword had to have been made by a mage. It had a red gem for a core, and he figured the blade or the hilt was the body. The sword seemed simple in almost every facet, but whenever he sent his magic towards the gem to find out how the enchantment was formed, his power was just sucked away. The first time it had happened he almost forgot to close the conduit and the sword had nearly sucked him dry leaving him with a bad headache and a good lesson.

For a brief moment, he thought of destroying the weapon, but couldn’t go through with it. It was a testament to the magic of a lost age and while he did not yet understand how it worked, he may be able to unlock its secrets one day.

Sliding the sword back in the scabbard strapped to his side, he headed to the fire to join the others. He started to make his way to where Alden was sitting in the hopes of getting him to sing a few more of his crasser song, when Eloen waved for him to join her.

“I see your finally coming out of your shell. Who would have thought the little mage was also handy with a sword?” Eloen said tousling his hair.

“Magic is nice and all, but it’s hard to perform up close.”

“I’ve wanted to ask, what’s up between you and the little princess?” Eloen asked in a slightly teasing tone.

The question surprised Thad a little. Eloen had ribbed him a few times about the princess, but had never asked anything about their relationship. Looking down at the ground he started pushing a small rock around with the toe of his boot.

“She’s my friend.” The words sounded a little weak even to him, but he didn’t know what else to say.

Eloen let out a light giggle. “Just a friend, are you sure she knows that? She seems to have quite the crush on you.”

“I don’t know. There is too much going on right now for me to really think of the future. Right now I consider her a good friend. Who knows what that will mean in the future? She is still young. She might find someone more to her liking in the future.”

“That’s a very practical and dull way to look at things.” Eloen replied shaking her head.

Eloen continued to tease him about the princess and what she called his overbearing innocence. He wasn’t sure what to think of the woman sometimes. Some days, she acted like they were the best of friends and others as if they were strangers. The rowdy woman was a mystery, but Thad still enjoyed his time with her. She was always open and carefree with what was on her mind. He wished he could share half of her spunky outlook on life.

The night ended after their traditional round of stories. He still wasn’t allowed to take a turn at the watch, but the others no longer treated him like an outsider. The first two days they had double checked his horse and packs before and after the days ride. It had annoyed him more than a little, but when they learned that he wasn’t a completely useless burden, they stopped talking at him and started talking to him.

The next morning, Thad woke early to the smell of Eloen’s cooking. At first he thought that the group would take turns on who was cooking, but Eloen seemed to enjoy the duty and was more than adequate at the task.

The morning air was getting colder the farther they moved south. A light dusting of snow had covered the trees giving their leafless braches a light glow as the sun crested the horizon. While it was quite a lovely sight, it also meant that his horse blanket was stiff. Taking the lead of the others he placed his blanket next to the low burning fire as he ate.

The wind picked up a bit as they rode and Thad drew his cloak tight around him in an effort to stave off the biting sting of the cold air. Alden spurred his horse and moved up to ride next to him.

“We should have warned you, this time of year the air off the ocean keeps the air cold. We normally wear a thick set of wool underneath out clothing. When we get to the duchess’s estate I’ll see about having her seamstress whip you up a pair. I promise you you’re going to want them when we reach Southpass. Even during the heat of the summer the morning air keeps its bite.”

“That sounds great Alden.” Thad said pulling his cloak even tighter around his shoulders as another gust of wind swept over him.

“Hey, I was wondering if you could do me a favor?”

Thad cocked an eyebrow. “Sure.”

Alden scratched the back of his head, his face looking slightly embarrassed. “When we were at the palace, I heard of some of the swords and shields you made for the queens guard, and I was wondering if you could do that to mine. All the guys have been thinking about asking you, but it’s a little awkward. We also wondered if you could make something for the captain. We are always traveling and you noticed she cooks for all of us. Well, we were wondering if you could make her a pack that could hold more supplies without weighing down her horse. We can’t pay you all at once, but we could send you a little out of each pay.”

Thad thought for a moment, the swords and shields wouldn’t be too hard, he had already done hundreds of them. The bag would be harder. He wasn’t even sure how to make one, but it was a good idea with lots of uses.

“I don’t see a problem with it. We are all in this together, and I can only see a benefit to me with all of you better equipped. If you don’t mind, I could also strengthen your battle harnesses. The pack will take me awhile to figure out, but as soon as I do I’ll make it. As for the pay, don’t worry about it. I’ll just consider it my duty to the Queendom.”

“Thanks bro, I’ll let the other guys know. When do you want our gear? I know you will have to have them to perform the magic on them. We all have extra equipment, but you know how it is. We don’t want to be without them for too long.” Alden said as the worry that had darkened his face was replaced by a large beaming smile.

“I can do about two sets a night as long as it’s only one battle harness. I should have all the supplies I need in my saddle bags. So you will only be without them for the few hours it takes me to enchant each one.”

“Ok bro, sounds good to me. I better get back to my post before the captain makes me pull guard duty all night.”

Thad watched as Alden headed back to his spot at the rear of the formation. He thought it was pretty kind that they wanted to get Eloen a gift, even if it was one of a practical nature. He could try and expand the inside by connecting it with a sub-dimension like he did with the sending box. That would make it larger, but would also make it hard to be able to retrieve the items inside. He could have a seamstress make a bag with many inside layers, like a book. Each page would contain its own separate space. The actual location would be in a sub-dimension, but each section would only be the size of a regular bag. He couldn’t think of a reason it wouldn’t work, but most times he didn’t find out the problem until he tried it.

That night he was able to get three weapons done, including that of Captain Eloen who he had personally approached for the honor of enchanting her gear. She had readily agreed with a slightly disturbing gleam in her eye. He had decided to do the battle harnesses when they reached the estates of the duchess, when the chance of attack was the lowest.

The work was bland and boring. He longed to work on something new, but he didn’t have many resources at his command. The little he did have he needed to save in the chance they were needed at Southpass. He didn’t push himself to the point where his head hurt, knowing that at the moment it was more important for him to be awake and alert during their traveling than making magical weapons. The men had done without them for their whole lives a few more days wouldn’t hurt them.

He did run into a small problem when attaching the cat eye gems to the weapons. The weapons he had the blacksmith make were designed with the gems in mind and had compensated for the change in the weight and balance of the swords, these did not. After a few tries, he added a second enchantment making the weapons magically balanced far beyond what even the expert craftsman could hope to accomplish.

Before everyone retired from their campfire vigil, Thad presented Eloen her improved sword. She put the sword through a couple of routine exercises. “It’s perfect. It seems lighter and the balance is right on. I feel like I could swing it all day without getting tired.”

“It will also stay as sharp as a razor without ever needing to be sharpened.” Thad said proudly.

Eloen put her blade away and almost danced over to him and gave him a soft kiss on his cheek. “Keep showering me with such gifts and I’ll have to give you a better reward.”

Thad blushed deeply as the others hooted and hollered at her comment. His heart pounding furiously as he made his way back to his bed roll, hoping that he could settle down enough to get some sleep.

CHAPTER VII

It was easy to tell when they started entering the lands surrounding the duchess’s estate. More and more farms started appearing and people began to gather around them waving to Eloen and her soldiers. Many people even called out to them by name. He didn’t know why, but it made him feel better toward Eloen that she was so well loved by the common people.

After they had passed the fifth or sixth farm a large group of kids surrounded them hollering out for Ballard. The large man slid from his mount way too nimbly for a man of his considerable size.

“Ballard, can you come play with us today?” a sandy-haired boy yelled out.

Ballard picked up a small girl who looked no more than seven years old who had come up and grabbed hold of his leg. “I’m sorry kids, today I’m on business. We got a mage to deliver to the duchess if she’s home.”

“A real mage, like in the stories?” the little girl in Ballard’s arms asked her eyes wide.

“He sure is Kylee, and I bet a cute little lady like you could even get him to cast a spell or two if you asked nicely.”

Slipping from Ballard’s arms, Kylee ran over to where Thad sat upon his horse, her face beaming brightly. “Mr. Mage would you pleeeeaaassseee do some magic?” The little girl pleaded.

Looking down at the little girls face, he couldn’t find it in himself to say no. Not wanting to give the kids a poor show he raised his hands high in the air and started muttering nonsense words as he began to concentrate. Illusionary butterflies looking like flying rainbows started popping into existence around the children. At first their stunned awe held them into place but not for long, as they began to chase after the nonexistent creatures.

Seeing the kids running and laughing brought a smile to Thad’s face. Looking around, he could see the gratitude in not only Ballard’s face, but in the rest of his companions as well.  For the conclusion he brought all the butterflies together and then with a burst of light, a unicorn appeared standing tall and proud. The unicorn looked everyone over then dashed off into the distance.

The kids jumped up and down around his horse laughing and begging for more. Luckily he was saved by Ballard, who informed the kids that they needed to reach the estate as soon as possible. The kids looked down until Thad promised to stop by and show off more tricks next time he was in the area.

As they continued along the road, Eloen reined her horse up next to his. “That was a very nice thing you did.”

“Did you see that girls face? I don’t think a demon could have refused her request.” Thad replied laughing lightly.

Eloen gave him a gentle smile. “It was still a nice thing to do. The kids go to the school my aunt made for the local farm families. A few of them are orphans just like Ballard was. That’s why he spends so much time at the school when we are home. I think if he could, he would adopt half of them, but right now that’s not a possibility. Maybe if the queen can get some of her changes to become more accepted, one day he might be able to.”

Thad covertly looked over to where Ballard rode at the front. He had a large smile, and his face was a bit on the dreamy side. He could understand some of the feelings of growing up without parents though in his case he had the mothers of the academy to look after him, and they had always treated him kindly.

It didn’t take long for the duchess’s manor to come into view. It was only about half the size of the royal palace, but it had shining alabaster walls. Instead of a wall it had a large green hedge circling the entire building making it very inviting from the outside.

The main door led them to a large main hall that was richly decorated. The whole place was lit up by three large crystal chandeliers that hung from the ceiling. They were greeted by an older gentleman who bowed politely to Eloen.

“Is her ladyship in?” Eloen asked the man in a demanding tone.

“Yes lady Eloen, your aunt arrived home two days ago. If I recall correctly she should be up in her study working her loom.”

Without another word Eloen walked up a double set of stairs followed closely behind by Thad and the rest of the group. After heading down a few hallways, Eloen led them to a moderately sized room filled with books and an assortment of odd objects.

Lady Alysia sat in front of a large loom making what appeared to be a blanket. Setting aside a wooden piece wrapped in a brightly dyed yarn, Alysia turned to them smiling sadly.

“I guess you heard the news auntie.”

“Yes, and if young Thaddeus is with you, that means you’ve taken on the duty of protecting him while he’s at Southpass.”

“We have. He could be the turning point in the battle, but that will come to nothing if he takes a knife in the back.” Eloen replied defensively.

Alysia stood from her seat and used her hands to smooth the wrinkles in her light blue satin dress. “I’m just worried for you. I don’t plan to have to wear this mantle my whole life. I hope one day you will be ready to take over as duchess and stop gallivanting all over the Queendom looking for a little excitement.”

Though neither woman raised their voice, it was easy to see there was tension between the two. When he had spoken to the duchess at the queen’s party, she had seemed proud of her niece, but now it looked as if she disapproved of her choice to be a soldier.

Alysia walked away from her niece and greeted each of the soldiers under her niece’s command, then made her way in front of him. “Master Mage, it hasn’t been that long since we shared a meal and a good conversation, but I would greatly appreciate it if you would join me for a walk around the gardens. I’m not as young as I used to be, but a nice walk with a handsome young man is always welcome.”

Not seeing a polite way out of the request, or even a reason to decline, Thad offered his arm to the duchess. “It would be my pleasure to escort such a rare beauty.”

“If you continue to flatter me, my niece will have to pry you away from me.” Alysia said laughing lightly behind her hand.

The walk to the gardens was not far though he was surprised to see so much green with the cold weather. “How do you keep such a lovely garden with weather such as this?”

“Oh luckily I have some of the best gardeners in the Queendom. These are year round flowers. There aren’t as many varieties of them, and some of them are very hard to cultivate, but I do so enjoy my evening strolls.”

The duchess led him to a long stone bench.  “Now that were away from the crowd, tell me what you think of my niece.”

“She is a little base at times, but over all she is enjoyable to be around.”

Alysia let out a garish laugh. “You have a way with words, ‘a little base,’ is the understatement of a lifetime. I love the girl to death and she is smart as they come, but she refuses to act like a lady. I swear she would have been happier being born a male even if it meant a lower position in the world.” She said wiping a tear from her eye. “But that isn’t what I was talking about. I think you two would make a good pair, and you’re of age.”

She left the rest of her statement left unsaid, but Thad understood her meaning. He was fifteen and of age to marry even though the system was seldom used it still existed in the upper societal levels.

“I……..” Thad tried to get the words past his throat, but it was like trying to force a flower to talk.

“Oh my! You are the innocent one aren’t you? I don’t want to pressure you child, I just wanted you to think about the offer.” Alysia said in a calming voice. “I think it would be a smart match. Maybe you could get her to settle down a bit.”

“Well, I think that we have had quite a long enough of a walk. Shall we head back?” Alysia said standing up from the hard bench.

The walk back was eerily quiet, though the duchess kept giving him looks and giggling slightly. He wasn’t sure what it was about, but it made him feel more than slightly uncomfortable. As soon as they entered the manor, he was whisked away, by the older gentleman who had greeted them when they arrived, to the room he would be staying in.

In his room, he found a large stack of battle harnesses and weapons laid out in front of his bed. It was still only slightly after midday so he had plenty of time, and Eloen had said they had planned to stay for a few days, so a little work wouldn’t be too bad. As he picked up one of the battle harnesses he remembered Alden’s request for a magical bag.

It took him awhile to find where the seamstress lived. He was surprised that the duchess kept a seamstress around full time, but as much as the peerage enjoyed changing their clothes, he shouldn’t have been.

The seamstress was much younger than he would have imagined, she couldn’t have been past her early twenties. She had deep-set brown eyes that were like twin acorns. Her luxurious, straight, obsidian hair hung down her back like a flowing stream. She had a graceful build and her skin was ruddy. Though for a seamstress, she wore a plain gray dress accented with little flowers around the midsection.

“Hello miss, I was wondering if you could make something for me?” Thad said nervously.

“And here I thought you were here to ravish me.” She said her tone dry and lifeless. “I don’t have all day. What do you want?”

Thad explained what he wanted done. The seamstress asked a lot of questions. He tried to get her to understand what he was going to try, but in the end he just had to beg her to make the item. After an hour or so she finally agreed to have it to ready for him by morning.

Back in his room he grabbed up a handful of cat eye gems and placed them next to him on the bed. Pulling the first battle harness into his lap, he began to work. He wasn’t sure how long he had sat there, but after the fourth one Eloen knocked on his door then entered his room before he had a chance to get off his bed. She was stunning, wearing her hair done up behind her and wearing a dark blue dress that seemed to glimmer as she moved.

“Instead of locking yourself in your room all night, why don’t you come down and join us for dinner. Auntie is getting quite vexed with you. She has sent poor Edward up these stairs four times to make sure you would be joining us.”

“Sorry, I tend to lose track of time when I’m working. Give me a minute and I’ll be right down.” Thad said getting off the bed and stretching his stiff muscles.

“After taking the trouble of coming all the way up here to get you, I’m not leaving until you come down with me.”

“But I need to change.” Seeing no reacting from his words, he moved over to the closet where someone had placed a garment for him to wear. It was completely black with a low v-cut. It showed off more of his chest than he was comfortable with. Thad changed quickly, trying his best to keep himself covered from Eloen’s prying eyes.

Eloen must have found the whole thing funny because she continued to laugh as he struggled to get into the tight clothes. After a fierce battle, he was finally ready and offered his arm to Eloen who still laughing, bowed extravagantly and accepted his offered arm.

Thad had expected to see the other soldiers at the table, but was slightly disappointed when they walked into the dining room. The duchess sat at the head of the table and open seats had been saved on either side of her. He presumed for him and Eloen. There were also five other women who were all noticeably related, though Thad just wasn’t sure exactly how.

The duchess stood and held her arm outstretched to the chair on her left. “I am glad my niece was able to convince you to join us Master Mage.”

Thad bowed low. “It is my pleasure Your Grace.”

As he moved to take the seat the duchess had indicated, a woman who looked like a younger duchess, but with quite a few more pounds sneered at him. “Sister, you would let a male sit at your left hand ahead of your own flesh and blood.”

“Mother!” Eloen said embarrassed.

“Eloen don’t tell me you think this man has the right to eat in the same room with us, let alone at the same table.” One of the younger girls said in disgust.

Eloen turned to Thad, her face flush with anger. “Thad I apologize for my family. Would it be possible to turn them into frogs or at least take away their ability to talk.”

Alysia held her hand over her face, trying to muffle the laugh that escaped her lips. The other four ladies looked in shock and Eloen’s mother looked livid.

Having been treated with contempt and open disdain many times in his life over his gender, Thad wasn’t really upset, but he thought a little fun wouldn’t be taken amiss by the duchess. Raising his hands over his head, Thad began to chant and the looks of the women at the table turned to that of sheer fear. Sparks of energy arched through his fingers and a gust of wind blew through the room.

“Nope doesn’t look like I can turn them into frogs. I believe the best I could do is possibly cook them with a little mage fire, but that seems a little harsh, doesn’t it?”  Thad said lowering his hands and taking his seat next to the duchess.

Eloen doubled over laughing so hard that tears streamed freely down her face. Alysia join in her nieces laugh though in a much more dignified manner. The other ladies at the table sat nervously, their eyes squarely pinned on him. He wasn’t sure if it was in fear or anger, but it didn’t really matter to him.

The meal was eaten in relaxed silence. The youngest of the group looking slightly younger than the princess, sat next to him. She had Eloen’s chestnut hair, but her eyes were a pale blue and she continued to stare at him. Unlike the other ladies, hers showed no contempt. It was odd how she sometimes missed her mouth, as if she were unable to tear her eyes away from him.

Finally her curiosity must have gotten the better of her fear. Setting down her fork, she turned to him and tugged hard on the sleeve of his jerkin. “Make something for me.” While her eyes were pleading, her voice held a child’s commanding tone.

Everyone’s eyes centered on him, even the duchess and Eloen’s as if unsure what he would do. He knew the meal had started off ruff and didn’t want to leave the youngster with any more reason to hate men. He looked around for something to work with.

Emptying the last bit of food off of one of the silver trays, he held it up. “Do you mind?”

The duchess shook her head in silence and continued to watch eagerly, to see what he would do. Focusing his mind he sent his power into the silver, forcing it to bend and mold at his will. The metal started to flow around his hand like a waterfall of silver.  He was forcing the silver to mend and mold much faster than normal, causing beads of sweat to gather on his forehead. When he was finished he handed a perfectly formed silver rose to the little girl, who in turn, squealed in delight.

After the meal was finished, Eloen was nice enough to help him escape from the table by asking him to escort her on a walk. Willing to take any excuse to leave, he gladly offered his arm to her. She quickly dragged him away, once again causing Alysia to laugh.

Once outside the dining room, she continued to drag him up the stairs to the east wing of the manor. Pulling him through the door, to what he assumed was her room, she jumped up with her arms around his neck forcing him to spin in a few dizzying circles.

“Thad, that was perfect. Did you see the look on my mother’s face? I think she might have wet herself when your fingers started sparking. Then to top it off, you were nice to little Sophia, making her that rose. You should have been a thespian with those skills.” She continued to rattle on, laughing so hard at time tears ran down her face.

“I wasn’t really mad, but it seemed wrong not to do or say anything back, and the little girl’s eyes stayed on me the whole meal. I was just hoping to give her something new to stare at for a while.” Thad said blushing.

They sat and talked late into the night and for the first time it was a real talk. She didn’t mention fighting, or barb him about the princess once during the night. He learned that while she wasn’t the oldest of her sisters, Alysia had chosen her to be the designated heir, which caused much irritation to her sisters.

Eloen asked him many questions. She seemed overly eager to hear about his time in the slave academy. He told her of the rigorous training and scoring system. How they were pitted against each other for the best positions in their classes.

“You had friends right?” she asked after he told her about the day he was sold to the queen.

Thad shook his head silently. “No. While it wasn’t forbidden, it was frowned upon to spend any amount of time with an individual or group. The competition for the admiration of the mothers is the main driving force behind the students. In a real sense, they were all we really had to rely on.

He wasn’t sure why, but Eloen pulled him close hugging him to her bosom. He didn’t feel sad, but a single tear rolled down his face.

CHAPTER VIII

The seamstress kept her word. Shortly after breakfast, the pack along with two sets of wool underclothes was delivered to his room by a young page. The pack was made exactly how he wanted. It had fifteen different sections on the top each sewn to each other and clipped together with metal snaps. At the bottom of each section was a metal section about the size of a dagger blade.

While the sections were only deep enough for him to stick his arm up to the elbow, they would each hold the same amount as a normal pack while taking up much less room and weighing far less.

He still had a lot of other enchantments to do on the others gear, but if he understood what Eloen was saying, he had two more days before the troops from the Duchess would be ready. He had been a little worried about reaching Southpass before the battle started, but she had assured him the snow that blocked the pass wouldn’t melt overnight.

Sitting on his bed with the pack in front of him, he pulled out one of his gems and set it in the bottom of the first section, forcing the metal to flow around it to hold it in place. Concentrating, he built a flexible sub-dimensional lining around the interior of the bag. The bag itself was only about two food long, and a foot wide. However, if his enchantments worked, it would be able to hold three times as much as a bag its size should.

It took him hours to figure out how to make the bag and lining link. After a few trial and errors, he found that if he made a seam of metal running up the side of each section, it worked to hold the sub-dimensional lining in place. After the first section was done, he wanted to test it to be sure that when the section was closed, the weight would disappear. Picking up the unfinished battle harnesses, he filled the bag to the brim, making it bulge at the sides. When he finally forced the clasp to close, the sides of the bag returned to their normal size and he could pick up the pack as if it was empty. Opening the bag again, everything returned. Smiling happily at his success, he unloaded the battle harnesses and began to work on the next sections.

His midday meal was brought up to him by Eloen. She bugged him, wanting him to explain his new project. Not wanting to give away the surprise, he acted as if he had been working on the battle harnesses and weapons all morning. He could tell she didn’t completely buy his ruse, but she didn’t continue pestering him about it either.

Each section he worked on seemed easier and easier to form, but his head also had started to pound around the ninth one. Knowing he needed a break and dinner was not far off, he sat his project aside and headed down to the servants baths to relax.

Eloen had warned him about using the main baths, as they were used by the females.  While the duchess wouldn’t mind, there was a large chance that someone might walk in on him. Not wanting to cause himself any undue embarrassment, he decided to take her advice and stick to the servant’s baths. While there were still female servants and slaves, they were few and far between. They had their own quarters, so the chance of injury to his pride was much less.

The bath was empty and the water cold enough to store produce, but he still enjoyed a relaxing soak.  Fresh and clean, with a slight bounce in his step, he went back to his room where he was greeted by Eloen. “Come to escort me to dinner again?” He asked jovially.

“I think you have that backwards. I’ve come to get you to escort me to dinner. Shall we go?” She said bowing and waving her hand dramatically at the door.

The dinner and seating arrangements seemed to be the same, but the looks on the women’s faces seemed to have drastically changed. There were no barbs or harsh looks thrown his way. As he sat down, he noticed Sophia the young girl from the day before still carried the silver rose he had made for her.

“She hasn’t let go of the thing since you handed it to her.” Eloen’s mother said. Her voice wasn’t kind, but it didn’t hold the same bite it had the day before.

The food hadn’t been brought in yet, so it was expected to carry on polite conversation, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. The young girl’s eyes were still fixed on him, as if anticipating him to do something wondrous. Even though his head hurt, he figured it wouldn’t kill him to give her a small show. He admitted to himself, it wasn’t merely for her benefit. He thoroughly enjoyed the attention he got when he performed magic. No one saw him as a mere male when he did magic, they didn’t always show it, but he could see it in their eyes.

Holding his hand out to Sophia she gasped in surprise as a miniature horse galloped around his open palm. He laid his hand on the table, and the little horse jumped on its flat surface skidding a little. After whipping its small head around, the little horse galloped at full speed up and down the table. The show was rewarded by applause from everyone at the table.

Sophie clapped loudly as the horse cantered around her plate. “Can I please hold it Sir Mage?”

“Sure Sophie, just put your hand on the table palm up.”

As Sophie put her hand down, Thad concentrated harder to give the horse a physical weight and made it soft to the touch. In essence, it was still an illusion, but the magic creating it was forced into a more solid state.

Sophie laughed as the horse nuzzled her thumb as she held it up for everyone to see. She laughed for a long while, petting the horse and trying to get it to jump over her finger. Her face fell suddenly when the tiny horse disappeared with a slight pop.

“Where did it go?” Sophie cried turning to Thad who had slumped in his chair, face drenched in sweat.

“Thad!” Eloen yelled rushing over to his side.

Thad opened his eyes and straightened himself in his chair. Though the horse had been small, he had held it for almost a quarter of an hour and made it feel solid which increased the burden dramatically. Normally that wouldn’t have been a problem, but he had already exhausted his magical reservoir working on the magical pack.

“I’m ok. I just overworked myself a little today.” Thad said weakly.

Thad felt a little tug on his arm. Looking down, he saw the worried expression of Sophie staring up at him. “Do you need anything?”

It was heartwarming to see the little girl hold such compassion in her eyes. “I just need a little water and rest, and I’ll be as good as new.”

Without another word the little girl jumped up from her seat and dashed out of the room. Eloen continued to fret over him, but Alysia found enough humor in the situation to let out a soft giggle.

Sophie returned shortly, carrying a cup of water as if she was afraid it was filled with acid. She gently handed him the cup her face full of apprehension as he took a deep drink.

“Thank you Sophie I feel much better now.” His voice was still weak, but Sophie’s face beamed happily as she sat back down in her seat holding the rose tightly to her chest.

When the food came, Thad ate slowly even though he was ravenous. It wasn’t to be polite, he was afraid that in his current state his stomach would not be able to hold down the food if he ate too quickly. Every now and then, Eloen would give him a worried glace but other than that, no one paid much attention to him.

As soon as the meal was finished, he excused himself from the table. Eloen excused herself as well and quickly followed behind him. She didn’t have to rush much to catch up to him.  Without a word Eloen grabbed his arm and helped steady him as he made his way up the stairs. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was grateful for her aid.

After Eloen got him to his room, she refused to allow him to change into his night clothes, so he kicked off his boots and crawled into the bed still clothed. As soon as his head touched the soft pillows, he fell fast asleep.

The next morning, he awoke to the feel of something soft draped across his chest. Opening his eyes he rubbed his eyes until his vision cleared. Looking down he noticed a cream colored arm hanging over his chest. He lifted up the covers slightly, and he was relieved to find himself and Eloen still clothed.

Trying not to wake her, he gently lifted up her arm and slipped out of the covers. His head no longer throbbed and the long night of sleep had removed the fatigue that had been weighing him down over the past few days.

“Running away already lover?” Eloen said sleepily.

“My stomach is begging for food, so I thought I would see if I could steal anything from the kitchen.” Thad replied softly.

“Sounds good, bring me something while you’re at it.” Eloen said lying her head back down.

Laughing, he shut the door quietly. Eloen was always the first up when they were on the road, but at home she barely moved before the sun was fully up. It didn’t take long for him to make his way to the kitchen and the cooks were more than happy to fill him a plate heaping with cold meat and fruits.

It was a hard walk back to his room laden down with the large platter of food that was brimming over with food. It was an even greater challenge to open the door without spilling any of it on the expensive soft carpet.

Inside the room, Eloen was sleeping soundly. Every so often she would let out an almost inaudible snore. Setting the plate down on the desk in the corner of the room, he walked over and gently shook her arm. Her eyes fluttered open, giving him an irritated look.

“Food’s here.”  He said, trying to hold back a laugh.

“You were supposed to take longer, go back and try again.” She said wiping at her eyes with her hands.

Thad found it oddly cute, how Eloen stumbled toward the desk. She grabbed one of the padded chairs, dragging it behind her before taking a seat at the edge of the desk. Eloen brushed her disheveled hair from her face lazily as she picked up a piece of melon.

“What do you plan to do today?” Eloen asked him, giving him a concerned look.

“Not much. I still have some enchanting to finish, but I promise I won’t push myself as I much as I did yesterday.”

“You better not, or I’ll have you tied to a pole while Ballard takes after you with a stick.” Eloen said her voice stern and far from joking.

As soon as Eloen left the room, he pulled the magical pack from beneath his bed and took stock of where he was at. He had finished nine of the fifteen sections the night before, so he should be able to get the others done today without stressing himself. After situating himself into a comfortable sitting position on his bed, he began to work.

He finished the last section to the pack shortly before the sun reached its apex. Staring out his window he stretched his stiff muscles and let the warmth of the sun wash over him. He still had many battle harnesses and a few weapons to do, but the day was slightly warm and calling to him.

Outside, he found a dirt path leading to the west and decided it was as good a direction as any. The path went up and down a few hill, but the strain on his muscles felt good after two days of sitting idly working on his magic. His only regret was not thinking to grab something to eat when he noticed the sun had already moved past its midday point.

All thoughts fled from his mind as the path came to an end at the top of a high cliff overlooking the largest body of water he had ever seen. It was simply breathtaking, as if the sky had met the ground. Looking over to his left he saw a small path leading down from the cliff to the beach below.

Unable to control himself, he rushed down the path in more of a run than walk, almost tripping a few times. Reaching the beach, he quickly stripped off his clothes and dived into the churning water.

He quickly stood up out of the water with his eyes burning, spitting up the salty water that had rushed into his mouth. He had wished that someone had told him of the amount of pure salt that was in the water, but the relaxing motion of the water felt good against his skin. The cold water met his warm skin, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

He knew it wasn’t the brightest idea to swim in ice cold water, but he didn’t know when he would get the chance to do so again. So he threw caution to the wind and dived back into the water.

He had to force his eyes open until the stinging sensation abated.  He could see a multitude of exotically colored fish swimming underneath the water. Popping back up to the surface, he found that he had gone much farther from the shore than he had intended and his muscles, unused to the stain, were growing tried. Not wanting to tempt fate too much, he dove once again swimming as hard as he could back toward the direction of the sandy beach.

It took him much longer to reach the shore than he figured. For a while every time he made any distance, the ocean seemed to try and pull him back toward its depths. Once again on dry ground, he laid on his back catching his breath, smiling to himself. The cold air was making him shiver, but that mattered little to him. He could never remember having so much fun before.

The sun was two thirds of the way down before he could see the Manor again. He was tired and his muscles were screaming as he made his way wearily up the stairs to his room. Before he could make it to the top of the stairs, he was met with a very unhappy Eloen.

“Just where the hell have you been? I was about to send everyone out to look for you.” She said her voice wavering between anger and relief.

“I took a walk and found myself at the beach. I couldn’t help myself, so I took a little swim.” Thad said embarrassed, looking down at the ground as if his mother was scolding him.

Eloen looked him over. After noticing his slightly blue colored skin and matted hair, she started to laugh. “At this time of year, are you out of your mind? Go get in the main baths, I’ll go with you and make sure you’re not disturbed.” She looked at him still laughing, until she noticed he wasn’t moving. “Now, we need to get you warmed up before you catch a chill.”

Following behind him, Eloen giggled the whole way. Once they reached the door to the large baths, Eloen stuck her head inside and waved him inside. He was happy she stayed outside the room while he bathed.

The water was warm and felt good against his skin. His fingers and toes had tuned a slight red and burned slightly as the water washed over them. The soaps that lined the huge bath all smelled like flowers or spices. He chose the one that smelled faintly of lilacs and began scrubbing himself, trying to remove the dried salt from his body.

After he finished, he pulled himself from the water and found some towels on a small wooden shelf that was filled with more scents and perfumes. It was then that he learned of his problem. He hadn’t brought a fresh set of clothes.

Poking his head out the door he found Eloen standing outside the door waiting patiently. “Can you get me some clothes?”

“Just grab one of the robes in the armoire in the corner.” She said as she tried to peek around the door, making Thad blush deeply.

It didn’t take long for him to find the armoire Eloen had mentioned. Inside he found an assortment of robes in all sizes. The only problem was, they were all pink and decorated with purple flowers. Sighing deeply he grabbed one and draped it around his shoulders making sure it was secured thoroughly before he stepped out of the bathing room.

He quickly made his way to his room, trying to dodge Eloen as she tried to grab the thick piece of cloth that held his robe around his waist. When he arrived at his door, he almost jumped in the door, closing it before Eloen could follow.

“You’re no fun. Better hurry up, auntie will be expecting you at dinner soon.” Eloen said through the door, her words laced with laughter.

“Could you please make an excuse for me and ask that it be sent to my room. I’m exhausted and would like to hit the sack early tonight.” Thad replied, still breathing hard.

“Ok, but don’t be surprised if she sends me back up here to drag you down there by your ear.”

Thad fell onto the bed wanting nothing but sleep, but knew he had to get a little more work done before succumbing to the call of his comfortable bed. Pulling one of the swords from its place against the wall he began. The work had become almost second nature to him.

CHAPTER IX

Thad, escorted by Eloen met with the rest of their group outside of the manor.  Aside from their normal traveling group of ten guards including Eloen, another two hundred had been added. He knew the duchess had only been able to gather a small portion of her forces, but he had expected a few more.

“With the current trouble within the Queendom, auntie can’t afford to send a large portion of her troops. It’s the same with the rest as well. That is why your presence is so needed. In the past, thousands had marched from each of the ten duchies to aid in the defense of Southpass. Now only a small fraction of that can be spared.” Eloen whispered in his ear, her warm breath tickling his ear sending a shiver down his spine.

The duchess and little Sophie showed up to see them off. Alysia gave Thad a warm hug, then Sophie waved him down and latched her arms around his neck refusing to let go. She laughed as he spun her around a few times before Eloen helped detach her. She wasn’t very happy about being forced to let go, but perked up when Thad promised to bring her a gift next time he visited.

As they rode past, the farm people lined the street waving goodbye and shouting encouraging remarks. The whole thing had a very warm feeling. The kids who had met them when they arrived showed up, waving fiercely among the crowd trying to get noticed. Thad didn’t try to hide the smile that spread across his face. He had never seen such a show of love and support before, even if very little of it was meant for him.

The first day back on the road was slow. Only a few of the new troops had horses and those seemed to be the captains. He wasn’t sure why Eloen’s small band had horses, but he was sure it was not the norm.

Many of the soldiers made their way to where he rode and talked to him. He wasn’t sure if he was a novelty, or if they were so bored they were just trying to find anything to get their mind off the endless march forward. They told him of their homes and families. A few even asked him about his use of magic, though none of them asked him to display any and for that he was truly grateful. The last few days of overworking himself had taken its toll.

Unlike the previous days on the road, they marched well past sunset before making camp. The only reason he could think of for this was because of the extra troops, they weren’t as weary of attack and wanted to make up time for the slowed pace.

As soon as they stopped for the night, the army went into action. They methodically set up camp, placing him right in the middle near a large fire. Sentries and watch groups were selected before the first bedroll touched the ground.

After brushing down Apple, he set up his sleeping area using a small lean-to one of the soldiers had given him to help keep off the worst of the weather. With everything ready for the night, he set off to find Eloen and her group.

It didn’t take long to find them, as Eloen was sitting at a small fire cooking a score of small rabbits on a split. He called over to Alden who causally walked over to him to see what he wanted.

“I got the pack finished as well as everyone’s swords. I wasn’t able to get even a quarter of the battle harnesses done, but I will continue to work on them.” Thad said barely above a whisper.

“Great, do you have them with you?” Alden asked looking around conspiringly.

Thad pulled the pack from his back and opened it up. Alden took him to where they had staked their horses and helped him unload the gear from the magical pack. As soon as they were finished, they headed back to the rest of the group. Alden went around telling them what he had been able to do.

Eloen was absorbed in her cooking and never noticed the group huddling together. The hard part of the task, as far as Thad was concerned was finish. Now they just had to figure out how to give the pack to her.

After a long discussion, they decided it would be best if Thad handed her the gift with everyone around him. That way he could explain how it worked. He wasn’t so sure of the plan and he feared that if he handed it to her, she would think it was primarily from him and not the group as a whole. When the food was done and Eloen had removed it from the fire, they advanced. Noticing them moving as a group, she raised her left eyebrow at them questioningly.

“What’s all this about?” Eloen said, her tone slightly amused.

Thad pulled the pack out from behind his back and held it out to her as if he were holding a live snake. “It’s a gift from to you, from everyone.” He replied his voice shaky and unsure.

“A new pack, it’s a little smaller than I normally carry but I’m sure I can find a use for it.”

Thad opened one of the sections for her and stuck his arm inside down to the shoulder. “It’s magical. Each section can hold a large amount, and the weight disappears when it’s closed. It will also keep food fresher as time doesn’t pass the same way inside the bag.”

“Oh!” Eloen said, taking the bag. She eagerly began filling it with things from around the camp. “Marvelous! I could carry my whole house in here, and it wouldn’t weigh more than a couple of clothes!” She looked around, her face beaming then went on to give everyone a friendly hug. “Thanks everyone.”

Thad was happy to accept Eloen’s invitation to dinner, as the rest of the small army was eating some kind of murky grey stew with odd chunks of meat in it. Their usual fireside stories were replaced with displays of skills, as the warriors tried out their improved weapons.

Darryl showed off a bit more than the rest, thoroughly enjoying his newly designed swords. During their conversations, Darryl had always complained that the weight of the swords tired him too quickly, but if they were made any lighter the steel would be too brittle. Thad had spent a little extra time trying out a new enchantment that would not really reduce the weight, but help momentum so less force was needed to swing the weapon. It had worked wonderfully, so he had added the same enchantment to his elongated sword. He had wanted to add it to the magic devouring sword, but to no avail, as any magical force applied to it was diverted and absorbed.

As the soldiers went through different routines, pushing his enchantments to their limits by trying to see what all they could cut though, Eloen moved over to sit beside him. “You know every soldier here is going to want one of those swords and magically strengthened battle harnesses. I saw Ballard shoot an arrow at his with a crossbow and it barely marred the thing. It’s quite impressive, but I don’t think anyone will be happy if you work yourself to death before we reach Southpass.”

“I know I push myself a little too far sometimes, but I’m getting better at telling when to stop.” Thad said looking thoroughly abashed. “I just want everyone to have the best chance to survive as possible.”

Eloen placed a gentle hand on his back. “Don’t think me harsh for saying this, but we have thousands of soldiers at, or headed to Southpass, but only one mage. They are my best friends I have known them for years, but right now the best chance we all have at surviving is if you make it to Southpass to help hold off the Ablaian invasion.”

He felt something soft and light brush against his cheek. “I do appreciate everything you have done. Just…… don’t overdue it.” Eloen said placing both her hands firmly on either side of his head pulling him into a deep kiss. His faced blushed deeply as he could hear the other soldiers whistling and shouting our remarks toward him and Eloen.

Pulling back to catch his breath, Eloen gave him an enticing smile and a seductive wink. “Can’t do that with your little princess, now can you?”

“I………” Thad’s words stuck in his mouth, as if his jaw had been sewn shut. He had gotten so used to Eloen’s flirtatious nature and had completely forgotten their first meeting where she had stolen his first kiss.

Ruffling his hair and leaving him there still stuttering, Eloen walked over to where Alden and Ballard sat chatting. Her hips swaying in a hypnotic fashion as she walked away.

“Our little captain has taken quite the liking to you.”

Thad jumped, startled by the unexpected voice. Turning around he found Darryl standing behind him with a large grin plastered on his face.

“She’s just teasing me. I think she would flirt with a rock if it could blush.” Thad said defensively.

Darryl let out a long deep laugh. “I don’t know if you’re that innocent, or that dense. Yea the captain likes to flirt, she loves the attention, but in the four years she’s been our captain, I haven’t seen her give anyone more than a peck on the cheek. Though, I don’t know why I’m telling you this. The rest of us have been taking bets as to how long it will take you to figure it out. As smart as you seemed I thought you would get it before we reached the duchess’s estate, but I guess brains don’t mean you understand everything.”

Thad felt more than a little insulted at what Darryl was saying, but couldn’t come up with a suitable retort. They had all known Eloen far longer than he had, but he couldn’t tell if Darryl was trying to pull a fast one on him or not. He had seen the soldiers pull jokes on each other daily and had even found himself the target of a few.

“I think she’s just having a bit of fun at my expense. She’s almost ten years older than me and I’m nothing special.”

Darryl doubled over laughing, his eyes watering slightly. A few times Thad was sure she might fall into the fire. “Ah! What it was like, to be that young. I don’t doubt she’s enjoying teasing you a bit more because of your nature, but that don’t mean it’s all a joke kiddo. Even if you say there is nothing special about you, you have to realize that for the lie it is. You’re the only mage to have existed for the past thousand years. If I could do half the things you could, I would be spending a lot more time with the ladies and less with theses oafs.”

Thad thought about what Darryl was saying. He was a mage, but he didn’t think that made him any more attractive to females. He knew the princess had a crush on him, but he was sure she would grow out of it as she aged. Monique had been a little upset when she had caught him and Eloen before, but he figured it was just sisterly concern. Was he wrong?

Darryl slapped him heavily on the back, still laughing. “I’ll leave you to your thoughts. Don’t strain yourself.”

In the academy there were very few females’ slaves and the ones that were there, were kept isolated from the boys. Sure there had been the mothers who had taught them, but that was hardly the same as being around women that were his age.

Trying to figure out the women in his life caused him more headaches than his magic ever had. Setting the problem aside, he just hoped as he grew older he would understand them better.

Wanting to escape his current dilemma, he headed back to his own bedroll and picked up one of the battle harnesses and began to work. Magic was one thing that never changed on him. Once he figured out something, it stayed the same. It didn’t suddenly decided to change how it wanted to work.

The battle harnesses were simple pieces of metal covered in leather that were useful in stopping sword blows. Even without a gem he could triple their strength and durability, but with a gem he could make them almost indestructible. Of course, that was only useful against preventing the cut. Whoever was in the armor would still feel the blow, he hadn’t been able to figure that out yet

Suddenly a thought hit him; he had used a momentum aiding enchantment with Darryl’s sword to make them easier to swing. He hadn’t tested it, but in theory that should also add more force to the blows. If he could reverse the spell, it should be able to use an objects own momentum against it. It would be a low magic cost since most of the power would be coming from the object and not the spell.

Looking down at his pile of cat eye gems that he had brought with him, Thad let out a heavy sigh. His stack had grown much smaller. Almost a third of the gems had already been used. If he remembered right, they came from the western section of mines, down by Tremon. So he hoped when they reached the large trading town, he would be able to get more.

Before putting a spell on anything for personal use, he needed to test it first. He couldn’t just run to town and pick something up so he had to make do with what he had. Searching through his pack, he found his extra set of boots. It wasn’t perfect, but he could always buy a new pair.

The first attempt went horribly wrong. While the boot would stop and push back when it reached the ground, it also did the same in both directions. Thad was glad he hadn’t tried to run with the boot on. Most likely his leg would have been ripped from his body and flung a great distance.

He tried again with the other boot. He added in a direction condition to the spell so it only faced away from the boots sole, not in three hundred and sixty degrees. It worked perfectly or close enough to perfect for him. If he swung his hand at it hard at a few inches his hand would suddenly stop and be pushed backward. The more force he put into the swing the harder the force that pushed back. When he threw it at and immovable object, such as the ground, the resulting negative force would cause the boot to move back, but at only at half the strength of the initial force. It wouldn’t stop anything moving slowly and he planned to add in a few other protective measures so if two of the battle harnesses met they wouldn’t act violently against each other’s enchantments. It would take a bit more tinkering, but he was sure he was onto something.

He worked late into the night, using anything he could to help fine tune his new enchantment until it was ready to start being used on the equipment. He was in a working daze and he could feel his head starting to throb lightly. He figured there was still had an hour or two left in him before his headaches became a problem.

He was testing his fourth try when a sharp ringing enveloped his ears. “I thought I told you to take it easy? Do I have to set a guard on you to make sure you don’t work?” Eloen’s voice was harsh and the look on her face clearly showed she was not pleased with him at the moment.

Trying to calm her wrath, he held up a small metal piece, only slightly bigger than his head. “Try and hit it with a rock.”

Her face still showing her ire, Eloen picked up a small rocked and chunked it at him. Acting quickly he moved the plate intercepting the rock. As soon as the rock reached the plate’s momentum field, it reversed direction and flew back toward Eloen hitting her in the stomach.

“Very cleaver mage boy, but I meant what I said. Next time I catch you up past bunk time, I’ll have Ballard baby sit you until we reach Southpass.” Eloen said giving him a scathing glare.

The look in her eyes left Thad no doubt that she meant what she had said. Nodding his head in acknowledgement, he quickly packed away everything in his travel sack and jumped under the covers of his bed roll.

He tried to think of anything else he might need to add to his new design, but he was much more tired than he had thought and had a hard time keeping focus. Before he knew it, his eyelids had dropped over his eyes and he was sleeping peacefully.

CHAPTER X

The past few days they had continued to move at a snail’s pace. If they had been traveling alone, they would have already reached Tremon. At this point, they were still two days away. It wasn’t that he was ready to get to Southpass, but he was tired of spending all day every day in his saddle.

Eloen had watched him closely over the past few days, making sure he was in his bed well before the fires were extinguished. Even with the decreased time he had to work, he had been able to finish the new battle harnesses for Eloen’s group.

As Eloen had predicted the other soldiers had started to slowly come around asking for similar enhancements of their equipment. While he didn’t want to seem cold or callous, he did make them pay a small amount for the work. It wasn’t near what he charged the queen, but would still cover the cost of his own supplies with a bit to spare. In all honesty, the work was often tedious and repetitive, but it gave him something to occupy his time while on the road. As long as he didn’t go too deep, he found he could enchant from Apple’s saddle.

The first few times he had tried to enchant from the back of Apple, he had nearly fallen from his saddle, only staying up thanks to Ballard’s quick acting of grabbing him as he slipped. Like anything else, it took some trial and error, but he finally learned just how far he could go before it became dangerous. Eloen wasn’t overly pleased with his new habit, often mentioning that if they were attacked his reaction time would be too slow to respond properly. She had a point so to appease her he always wore his shield while he worked. Every three days he had to take a break and let the rings completely recharge. While Eloen didn’t completely like the situation, she couldn’t find a convincing argument against it.

Of all the monotonous work, he was also asked for a few unique items. Some of them were easy to figure out, but others posed quite a challenge. One of the men wanted him to make him enchanted arrows that would fly farther and faster than a normal arrow.

Thad’s first thought was to enchant the bow but he could never figure out how the enchantment would actually apply to the arrow. It was enough to place a core in the bow for the spell, but how the spell actually functioned was what gave him the trouble.

He then tried to make the arrows themselves enchanted, but the only way he could find to make it work was to make the arrowhead itself the core and for that to work it would have to be made out of crystal or a gem. He explained the trouble to the solider, who wasn’t daunted, but promised that he would procure some crystals so he could have some made. The idea still intrigued Thad so when he had spare time, he would draw up designs for the magical arrows on parchment that Duchess Alysia had given him.

“You’re still working too hard. You know Eloen is staring daggers at you right now.” Darryl said reining his horse next to him.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw that he was telling the truth. Eloen’s eyes were completely focused on him and she didn’t look pleased. “I’m not working that hard, it’s more to keep my mind busy so I don’t go crazy with boredom.” Thad replied dejectedly.

Darryl flashed him his usual light hearted smile. “From what I heard, she’s been a little worried about you ever since you almost passed out at dinner, but that’s just hearsay. You might want to talk to Ballard. They have known each other since childhood. I’m sure he would know what you can do, or not do to make the Captain happy.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“See that you do, she’s been a pain to deal with ever since you two had that little lovers quarrel.” Darryl said mockingly.

Before Thad could come up with a response, Darryl turned his horse around and galloped back over to where the rest of the group rode. Thad felt exasperated, everyone had been continually teasing him about his and Eloen’s relationship. He didn’t think it would bother him so much, but he just wasn’t sure where they actually stood, or if he wanted to pursue a relationship with her.

She was beautiful; there was no doubt about that. He enjoyed the time he spent with her for the most part. She made him laugh and her live the day attitude mixed with the devotion she showed to her duty was admirable, but he didn’t feel like she was looking far into the future. In truth, he didn’t understand himself well enough to know where he was going until he was there.  He just didn’t feel secure enough to court any woman.

His mind was pulled back into the present when a dark haired soldier jogged up next to him. Thad couldn’t remember his name even though he had talked the young man a couple of time over the past few days. He was only a few years older than Thad, no older than eighteen at most.

“Master Torin, what are you working on today?” The young man asked, his voice brimming with excitement.

The young man had shown a very keen interest in magic and had asked countless questions on its use. Thad figured the soldier had hopes of learning the practice himself even though he had said nothing of the sort himself. Thad had thought about trying to teach him, but with the little time they had alone he knew it would have to be put off until they reached Southpass.

“I was just finishing up a magical lantern for the watches. Captain Marcus asked if I could make a few that would allow the men to see in specific areas without having to light up the whole place.” Thad replied offhandedly.

“Can I see it?”

“I don’t see why not.” Thad said, handing the enchanted lantern over to the young soldier. “Just touch the spot there on the side to turn it on and off.” Thad said pointing to a small design of a flame he had carved on the side of the lantern.

The soldier turned it on and off numerous times, marveling at how the light only focused in one direction. It had taken a little thought, but using a copper coin, he made it so the light shined outward from one of its sides so that it would meet Captain Marcus’s request.

“Wow! It’s amazing, how did you get it to do that?” The soldier said handing the lantern back to Thad.

Reaching down, Thad went to take the lantern from the soldiers hand when it fell from his grasp. The lantern seemed to move in slow motion as it tumbled to the ground, followed by the young soldier who had a fletching sticking from his back.

Thad looked around, noticing another half dozen soldier falling to the ground as a cry of alarm went through the ranks. Suddenly he was pulled from his horse and surrounded by a group of soldiers. He didn’t recognize any of the people around him, but they all seemed intent on shielding him from any harm. He tried his best to force his way through them so he could aid the fight, but they refused to budge.

Suddenly Captain Harmon was beside him. The man held firmly onto his arm pulling Thad behind him. “Master Torin, stay behind me.”

Harmon was a nice middle aged soldier who kept his scalp shaved bald. He was slightly shorter than Thad, around five foot eight, but he was build was extremely muscular to the point many of the soldiers called him Harmon the dwarf.

“Captain I can assure you I have plenty of protection. We should join in the battle to make sure as many as possible survive this engagement.” Thad said, trying once again to force his way past the bear of a man.

“The duchess’s orders were quite clear. Our main objective is to make sure nothing happens to you until you are safely delivered to the Southpass Fort Master Torin.” Harmon said while he easily held Thad behind him with one of his massive hands.

“I have a magical shield. Nothing they have can touch me.” Thad pleaded as he heard the dying cries of men rising into the air. He couldn’t see over the group of men surrounding him, but the sound of battle had sprung up all around him. He wanted to help, he wanted to make sure Eloen and the others were safe.

“Sorry lad, the duchess’s orders didn’t say we were only to protect you when you couldn’t protect yourself. So do us all a favor, keep your head down and listen to my orders.”

Each sound of steel on steel beat at his heart and his fear began to mount. His heart beat sounded like a loud thrumming in his ears. Looking down, he noticed that his hands were shaking. His mind raced, every breath coming out hard and fast as time seemed to slow down around him.

Soon the men surrounding him were forced away to engage their attackers. The groups of men he could see were all mismatched and gave him the same feeling as the ones who he had fought the previous year in Avael.

It looked like they were slightly outnumbered three to two, but the duchess’s superiorly trained forces were still winning the day. Thad, still being held behind Harmon, looked around frantically to see any sign of Eloen and his friends. He eventually caught the barest glimpse of Ballard as he cleaved a man clean in two with his magically enchanted broadsword.

He wanted to go to his friend’s aid, but he didn’t want to put the Captain in danger by distracting him. He decided that he would help where he could. Pointing his stunning ring, he started freezing any enemy he could find. He thought about using fire, but everyone was so entwined there was too large of a chance of friendly fire.

Seeing two men unchallenged, three enemies charged at him and Harmon. The first two were quickly stopped by Harmon’s superb swordsmanship, but even as skilled as Harmon was, he couldn’t hold all three. Thad pulled his sword from its scabbard and met with the last attacker. The thug came with a sloppy overhead attack that Thad was easily able to swat aside. As the man stumbled past him Thad quickly speared him. The point of his sword easy cut though the man’s thin armor and burst through the man’s chest.

Kicking hard, Thad shoved the lifeless body off his sword and watched it tumble to the ground. Harmon had already killed one of his attackers and had the other on the defensive. The other man was skilled and his movements left little doubt that he had some sort of training, but he was still no match for Harmon who almost effortlessly worked the man until he found an opening. Harmon made a clean cut across the man’s chest, nearly severing the man down the middle.

Harmon wasted no time in making his way back to Thad’s side. “Nice work boy.” The burly man said before taking up a vigilant position again.

Thad stayed by Harmon’s side, using his magic wherever it seemed most needed. His ring quickly ran out of power and Thad was forced to use his own. With his staff in hand there seemed to be little drain so he decided to push it as far as he could go. Focusing his mind he formed illusionary arrows, but added substance to them much the same way he had done on the horse for Sophia’s amusement.

Letting lose his magic arrows, they sailed through the air guided by his magic and each found their mark, taking down a handful of combatants. Harmon nodded to him and guarded him as they moved though the makeshift battlefield, slaying anyone who was foolish enough to come within their range.

Noticing the devastation Thad was causing, many of the attackers turned their attention towards him. It was a foolish move on their part, as the rest of the army moved in on them from the rear. Thad struck them down with magical arrows from the front and the few unlucky enough to get near him were quickly dispatched by Harmon.

With their advantage in numbers gone, the untrained and disorganized thugs started to fall apart. Many surrendered while others fled. The fighting died down and all that was left was to dispose of the bodies of the dead both friend and foe.

Looking around at the large number of dead littering the ground, Thad hoped that none of them were of the few people he had grown to know. The memory of the death of the unnamed soldier that had been one of the first to die already tugged at his memory. If he had only taken more time to get to know the young man or had made sure he had one of the magical battle harnesses, he might still be alive. If he had spent more time on his enchantments, maybe even less of the men being buried would be those of the soldiers.

“Thad!” Eloen screamed as she ran up to him, grabbing his arm. “It’s Darryl, we need your help.”

Almost in a daze, he allowed Eloen to drag him to where Darryl lay on the ground. He had taken a bad blow to the leg and was bleeding badly. His face had already lost a great deal of color and his eyes were only half open staring blankly into the sky.

“Can you help him?” Eloen said, her voice expressing far more concern than her face.

Thad knelt down next to Darryl. The injured soldier turned his head slightly, giving him a crooked smile. “I don’t know.”

Closing his eyes he focused his attention much the same way he did when he was examining the magical properties of an item he created. He didn’t really see, but could feel the things around him in a much more profound manner. His eyes were limited to what he could see on the outside, but his magical senses could detect things down to their smallest parts. The only downside was, it took tremendous focus and mental fatigue always followed quickly if overused.

He could see Darryl’s blood in his body as a bright glowing golden color. He could see that some type of tube carried the golden fluid through the body. He wasn’t sure how the tubes worked, but he figured if he could fix the big tube that had been cut Darryl might live.

Thad placed his hands on Darryl’s leg and poured magic into his body as he envisioned the wound knitting itself back together. Remembering back to the time he had accelerated the growth of a small apple tree back at Joan’s farm, he altered his influence on the magic.

Speeding up Darryl’s own healing abilities was a delicate thing. He had to form the magic into extremely small sections, allowing the skin and muscles to grow around it. To Thad, the whole process took forever and was a massive strain, even though to someone watching from the outside would simply see the wound disappearing in mere moments.

Opening his eyes, Thad wavered for a moment before falling on his side blood running slowly from his nose, eyes, and ears. His head hurt as if someone had went at it with a mallet. He could feel as someone cradling his head. He forced his eyes to focus, and Eloen’s worried face came into view.

Her eyes were brimmed with tears, and her lips were moving franticly though he couldn’t hear her voice. He felt the wetness on his cheek as one of her tears dropped down and hit lightly on his face.

Turning his head slightly, he could see a small amount of color had returned to Darryl’s skin. He wasn’t moving, but Thad didn’t have the energy left to check to see if he had lived. All he could do was pray to the gods that his friend still drew breath.

He turned his attention back to Eloen. He could see her face had grown even more frantic. He tried to speak, but if any words escaped his mouth, they were lost to his ears. He lifted his arm slowly and placed his hand gently on Eloen’s face. He gently stoked her cheek with his thumb and tried to smile.

Eloen grabbed his hand, taking it in her own and squeezed it tightly, giving him a somewhat apprehensive smile. He wanted to reassure her that he would be fine, but another spike of pain shot through his head making him wince. He knew he had pushed himself way past his own limits. He slightly feared he might have brought around his own death.

The last thought in his mind as he slipped into unconsciousness was that he owed Eloen an apology for not keeping his promise not to overwork himself. He was sure she would be furious with him when he next opened his eyes.

CHAPTER XI

Thad’s head hurt as he opened his eyes. He found himself laying down on something soft. He knew from past experiences that it was probably not a good idea to try and sit up, so he turned his head slightly, trying to take in his surroundings. It looked like a tent, but it was hard to tell if the walls were moving from the wind or if his eyes were playing tricks on him.

He tried to call out to see if anyone was around, but his voice came out more as a harsh whisper that hurt as it past his lips. He tried to call again, but all his effort accomplished was sending him in to a coughing fit.

Luckily someone heard his movements and two young soldiers rushed into the tent to his side. They both looked haggard, as if they had been working on very little sleep. He tried to talk to them, but his voice was wheezy and undecipherable.

“Master Torin you’re awake.  Greg, go fetch Captain Eloen. She wanted to be notified as soon as he woke.”

One of the soldiers ran for the door, while the other nervously paced the room. Thad pantomimed drinking from a glass and was happy when the soldier quickly handed him a canteen from his waist pouch.

Thad drank heavily from the offered canteen. The water was a balm to his dry throat. Every swallow hurt slightly and more than once he coughed as the water stuck in his throat. The soldier looked at him worriedly as Thad wiped off the water that had spilled from the corners of his mouth.

“Do you need anything else Master Torin?” The soldier asked, taking his canteen back.

“Something to eat would be welcomed.” Thad said hoarsely.

“As soon as George returns I will see to that straight away sir.”

Thad pushed himself up slightly, but as he expected, his head started to spin. Thankfully the soldier in the room grabbed his arm and helped steady him. He helped him rearranged his pillows so he could sit up fully without fear of falling. His head hurt slightly more sitting up, but lying on your back gets old really quick, and it makes conversing with someone somewhat awkward.

Eloen burst into the tent a short time later. She rushed over to his makeshift bed.  Her face was laced with worry and she looked as if she hadn’t slept in days. He gave her his best attempt at a charming smile, hoping to extinguish a small portion of her anger.

“You may return to your assigned post.” She said dismissing the remaining soldier offhandedly.

Thad watched as the soldier ducked through the tent flap, disappearing and leaving him alone with the infuriating woman. Looking back to Eloen he expected the berating and insults to roll from her lips like water from a broken basin, but instead she dropped to her knees sobbing loudly. She tried to speak, but it came out garbled and undecipherable. After a short time she composed herself and the torrent of tears quelled into a thin trickle.

“I’m so sorry. I was just afraid to lose another friend. I……. didn’t know it would take so much out of you.” She choked out, staring down at the floor.

At first her words left Thad feeling confused. Slowly it donned on him that she was blaming herself for his current condition. While she had been the one to take him to Darryl, she hadn’t forced his hand. Darryl was one of the few people he counted among his friends, and he was more than willing to do anything in his power to keep him alive.

He was at a loss of what to say. He knew that she wasn’t in the mindset to listen to reason. He might not be the smoothest person when it came to dealing with the fairer sex, but he wasn’t that far gone.

“How is Darryl?” He asked, sincerely worried about his friend.

Eloen lifted her head from the matt dabbing at her eyes with the corners of her tunic sleeve. “He came around last night. He’s still weak and running a bit of a fever. We’re afraid he might have caught a chill, but with any luck he will pull through.”

“That’s a relief to hear. It was the first time I ever tried anything like that, and to be honest I hope I don’t have to do it again anytime soon.” Thad said joyfully.

Eloen refused to smile, but at least she had stopped crying. Thad wasn’t sure why, but whenever he heard a female cry his stomach knotted up and it made him feel as if he were evil, even if he wasn’t directly involved.

“How long have I been asleep?” Thad asked, trying to change the subject.

“A little under a day, it’s not quite midday yet. It’s been a busy night as well. Many of the renegades that escaped have been popping up and taking shots at us from the tree line. So we have had to send some of our better protected soldiers into the woods to keep an eye out for them. So far, that seems to be working. We also sent one of the scouts back to the estate to alert the duchess of what has occurred. I’m hoping auntie will send some replacements. Luckily we only lost about a third of our number. It could have been much worse.”

“So what has everyone been up to since I’ve been lying comfortably in this bed?” Thad said, finally drawing a sad smile from Eloen.

“We have been trying to dig graves for our fallen in the cold ground. It hasn’t been easy since we only have a few spades and the ground is still partially frozen. We also have to build a pyre for the dead enemies. Right now, we have men searching for any dead wood that can be used. Ballard and the rest have been taking shifts trying to give Callen a decent burial.” She said, her voice breaking slightly at the mention of Callen.

Callen was one of her men, though Thad had not talked to him much. He kept mostly to himself, but always had an interesting tale for the fireside at night. He knew that Eloen had handpicked all of her soldiers and that any death among them must hit her hard. She always seemed so strong and hard, but she treated everyone like she was their big sister even though she was the same age or sometimes younger than the others.

“I didn’t know about Callen. What happened?” Thad asked, placing a reassuring hand on Eloen’s shoulder.

“When the battle first engaged, everyone formed up as trained. Anyone with a bow fired arrows toward the areas where the enemy was shooting from. Our group and any others on horses, with the exception of the other captains, were to ride through any oncoming attackers to help disperse them. When they rushed us, we began our assault. On the third pass, one of them latched onto Callen’s leg and pulled him from his horse. He lost his weapon in the fall and when we found him, they had cut his throat. We figure they gave up trying to get through the armor you gave him. Honestly the armor you gave us has saved our lives more than once.”

“I’m sorry to hear about Callen, but I’m glad to hear that I helped keep some people safe. I just wish I could have helped more. If I had only done a few more a day, more people would be alive.” Thad said sullenly.

Eloen’s face contorted with anger. “Don’t you dare do that!”

“Do what?” Thad asked confused.

“Don’t you dare blame yourself for every death. You’re not a god. If you put all that weight on your own shoulders, sooner or later you’re going to break. What you should be focusing on is the lives you helped save, like mine. Did you know, one of the arrows was aimed at me, but because of your armor it stopped a few inches from my chest and flew off harmlessly? I love the innocent part of you, but you can’t blame yourself like this. All it will do is pull you down.”

Thad was shocked at how she responded to his words. She had a point, it wasn’t entirely his fault. A large portion of it belonged to the people who had attacked them. As well as to the current governmental situation, but hopefully the queen’s new laws would help in that regard.

As he thought about what Eloen had said, it hit him. She had said she loved him. Well the innocent part of him, but what did that really mean. Looking at her face, still contorted with anger and a touch of sadness, he wasn’t sure she even realized what she had said herself.

“What did you say about the innocent part of me?” He said, knowing full well what she had said, if not what she had truly meant. He hoped the change in subject might sway her anger, even if just a little.

For the first time he could recall, Eloen blushed. The normal brusque demeanor of a soldier was replaced by that of a shy twenty year old girl. The look was somewhat fetching on her. What Thad first thought would be a good laugh had turned out completely different than he expected. Eloen was acting coyly and every second she didn’t answer, his heart beat a bit faster.

“I………. well I………..” Eloen mumbled. Her face was turning from a light red to so bright, Thad was sure she could glow in the dark.

Instead of saying anything, she leaned down and gave him a kiss. Not the rough quick kiss that she had the past two times, but a lingering kiss that made his breath stick in his chest. He tried his best to return the kiss, but he feared he had done very poorly.

Eloen pulled back, giving him a chance to breath. Smiling at him she ran her fingers through his shoulder length blond hair. “Now, I just have to find a way to get you away from that little princess.” She said sighing wistfully.

Placing her hand on his neck she pulled him into another long kiss. Her lips were like fine velvet as they caressed his. His body tingled and his heart jumped around in his chest far faster than it had during the battle, leaving him slightly light headed. When she pulled back he fell forward slightly. He only stayed upright thanks to her hand that quickly caught him across the chest.

Thad was at a loss of what to say. What had first been a ruse to still her anger had turned into something completely different. Was he supposed to respond to her? He wasn’t sure what his feelings were, but he knew he enjoyed her company more than he did many others.

Before he could decide on a course of action, the soldier who he had asked for food returned with a bowl of some type of soup. At his entrance Eloen jumped away from him, her face back to its normal ruff exterior.

“I’ll take care of that.” Eloen said, gently taking the soup from the soldier who gave him a sly wink. Eloen noticing the gesture raised her eyebrow. The soldier quickly vacated the tent with a smirk still decorating his face.

“Schooch,” Eloen said, flicking her hand at him.

Trying his best to obey her command her slid his body slightly, giving her enough room on the bed to sit down. There were chairs in the room, and he wasn’t sure why she didn’t sit in one of those. Surely, it had to be more comfortable than trying to squeeze awkwardly onto his bed.

When she started trying to feed him, he tried to protest but soon gave up as it didn’t look like she would back down from the task. It was both weird and oddly nice to have someone feed him in such a manner, but it was also highly embarrassing. Thad was just glad none of the others were there to see it.

His belly full, he grew tired and had to fight to keep his eyes open, but it was a losing battle. In his dreams he found himself in a large open, richly decorated room. The princess was there, but she looked much older and had filled out well. Next to the princess was Monique who looked as radiant and happy as she had been when he had last seen her. Eloen was there as well, but she stood apart from the other two. Instead of her normal battle leathers, she wore a gown that shimmered like an emerald.

“Dear, would you like to take a walk with me?” Maria said her, voice much more mature sounding then he remembered.

“Thaddeus won’t you come to dinner with me?” Monique said, her voice sultry and inviting.

“Wouldn’t you rather spend some time with me, lover boy?” Eloen said, as she walked over and ran her fingers around his ear.

Thad was at a loss of what to do. They were all three his friends and he enjoyed each of their company, but he couldn’t decide one over the others. Monique was one of his first real friends and had even given him his name. The princess had kept his secret and given him much needed companionship when he was alone in the capital. Eloen, well it was hard to define what made her special to him, but something about her set his heart racing.

“Well?” All three ladies said in unison.

“I don’t know.” Thad said, his voice meek and unassuming.

“Of course you do. You are my property and you will go with me.” Maria said as the softness in her voice replaced with the queens normal stony demeanor.

“No, he will come with me. We are already family. Come on Thaddeus, let’s go back to Rane where we can live like merchant kings.” Monique said as she pushed the princess back.

“No the little mage is mine. Isn’t that right Thad?” Eloen said grabbing his face hard in both hands and kissing him.

“Let him go.” Monique said fiercely and was quickly echoed by Maria, “You harlot.”

“This isn’t our first kiss, and my little lover here quite enjoys entertaining me. Don’t you sweetling?” Eloen said, laughing at the other two ladies.

“Um…….. Well I…….. It wasn’t……” Thad tried to think of anything to say, but it was as if someone had sewn his tongue to the roof of his mouth.  Great, even in his dreams he was an idiot when dealing with women.

Maria and Monique both rushed Eloen. Thad was thrown to the ground as the three women rolled on the ground fighting. At first it was Maria and Monique against Eloen but it soon turned into a three way fight. It was a tangled mess with biting, hair pulling, and punches. It looked as if Eloen was fairing the best, but that didn’t surprise Thad. She had the most training in hand to hand combat.

Thad tried to break them up and soon got caught up in the melee. At first he continued to try and break them apart as they hit at him and each other, but soon it changed. All three began biting and kicking only him. Thad tried to use magic to put up a shield, but his magic would not heed his command and without it he was soon beat bloody.

As he lay on the ground in immense pain, the three ladies stood over him with looks of contempt and hate in their eyes. Thad tried to stand, but every time he made an attempt one of the girls would kick him again, sending him crashing back to the ground.

“What, you think you’re too good for any of us?” Maria said, her voice dripping venom.

“You are supposed to be my family. I gave you my name. How could you do this to me?” Monique asked with a tear streaked face.

“I told you I loved you, I kissed you and you kissed me back. Now you think you can toss me aside for someone else? Were you just playing with me?” Eloen said, now holding a sword that’s tip was uncomfortably close to his throat.

“Chose now or so help me I’ll end you.” Eloen demanded as she pushed on the tip of the sword into his throat, making a shallow cut.

“I can’t! Thad yelled tears flowing from his eyes freely.

“The lets end this charade.” Eloen said, drawing her arm back and swinging the blade strait down at his head.

CHAPTER XII

Thad woke in a cold sweat, his heart racing. His head felt much better, but his body was still quite weak. As his eyes focused, he saw that Eloen had sat in a chair next to his bed. Her head was resting gently on his mattress and her hand was only a few inches from his own.

His dream still unnerved him. Right now he knew that both the princess and Eloen had feelings for him, but he wasn’t sure what his own feelings were. Thad wasn’t sure why Monique was in the dream; she had never done anything that would lead him to believe she had any romantic notions about him. Then again it was just a dream, even if a realistic one.

Not wanting to lay in bed any longer, Thad sat up quietly. He didn’t get light headed, which was a good sign. Standing up, his legs felt a little weak, but they held his weight with only a little shaking.

“Going somewhere?” Eloen asked sleepily.

“I just wanted to get a bit of fresh air.” Thad said softly, silently hoping she would go back to sleep. That hope was quickly squashed as Eloen stood up and grabbed her cloak from the back of the chair and wrapped it around her shoulders.

As if she could read his mind, Eloen stuck her tongue out at him. “You didn’t think I would let you go wondering around alone in your condition did you?”

Thad let out a dramatic sigh. “One can only hope. Shall we?” Thad replied holding out his arm to Eloen.

She took his arm, but she didn’t lightly put her hand on it as was customary. Instead, she linked it with her own. Thad had to admit, he was grateful since his footsteps and balance were still a little unsteady.

Outside, the sun had already set and from the position of the moon it looked like it wasn’t that long until sunrise. It was still quite early, but the makeshift camp was already busy. All the dead bodies had been moved off the road and placed in a large pile on the wood line. Thad could see where they had cleared a fair sized area for the graves of the fallen soldiers, as well as the beginning of the pyre.

“Where is Darryl at?”

Eloen didn’t answer him, but steered him toward a large tent in the middle of the camp. The strong scent of herbs and alcohol hit Thad as he ungracefully stumbled through the tent flap. Inside the tent, a little over a dozen beds held wounded soldiers. Some of which were far worse off than others. The sight struck a heavy cord within Thad, who once again began to silently berate himself for his own ability to protect them.

“Don’t make me beat you.” Eloen said a slight snarl in her voice.

Thad had no clue how she could tell what he was thinking about, but didn’t find it prudent to ask. Doing his best to drive the self-loathing from his mind, Thad looked around the room to see if he recognized any of the soldiers who lay abed. He noticed that Darryl was in one of the cots close to the middle of the room. His face was slightly flushed, but he looked healthy otherwise.

“We shouldn’t wake him. Let’s go back outside and enjoy the rest of our walk.” Thad said glad his friend looked ok.

“No, he sleeps most the day and he has been asking for you whenever he is awake. Last I heard, Captain Morris had to threaten to tie him to the cot, and put him in one of his wife’s pink nightgowns before he agreed to stay in his bed.” Eloen said, laughing slightly at her own story.

Thad had to admit, seeing the lithe little man in a pink nightgown would be a sight to see. Though Thad was sure he would have to pluck his eyes out with a sharp stick if he ever did see such a sight.

The two quietly made their way through the maze of cots until they reached Darryl’s. With a slight tug on the man’s arm his eyes shot wide open and he bolted into a sitting position. The action startled Thad more than a little.

“Thad, is that you?” Darryl said squinting in the dim torchlight.

“Yea, it’s me. Heard you were still lounging around and milking your injury for all its worth, so I thought I would come see for myself.”

“Milking it my ass. Captain Morris won’t let me so much as go to the latrine until my fever goes down. From what I’ve heard, you have been sleeping the day away in your own little private tent, and from what Jensen told me, our little captain there has been hand feeding you.” Darryl said giving him a slight wink.

Thad blushed deeply, getting a chuckle from Darryl. His laugh was short lived and costly when Eloen slapped him in the back of the head.

“Don’t you know captain you’re supposed to be gentle with the sick?” Darryl said jokingly.

“That was gentle. If you would have been up to it I would have beaten you with a cane pole until you needed to be in a sick bed.” Eloen replied her voice far from joking.

While Eloen and Darryl traded barbs, Thad concentrated on Darryl’s body. His head throbbed lightly so he pushed it a little farther. He could see the problem Darryl’s body looked as if it was attacking something that was glowing a bright red in his leg. Thad wasn’t sure what it was, but he could tell it was what was keeping him sick. It took a lot less effort to help Darryl’s body fight its foe than it did to allow him to heal his leg, and Thad only felt the briefest moment of lightheadedness when he finished.

“Well I’m sure your fever can’t last too much longer. If it does we will just have to get Captain Morris to get you that pink nightgown.” Thad said getting a groan from Darryl.

“I don’t think he was joking about that. He swore that if I didn’t obey orders, as soon as I was up and around, that would be my new uniform. Whether Captain Eloen agreed or not.” Darryl said, his head shaking slightly and his shoulders coming up as if he was cold.

“Oh, I wouldn’t have minded a bit. It would be nice to have someone to do my hair and nails with.” Eloen said mockingly.

The three chatted until the sun peeked over the horizon and the others began to stir. Captain Morris was the first one in the field hospital and he was none too happy to see there had been late night visitors.

“How in the blazes do you expect him to get any better if you won’t let him get some decent rest?” Morris said frowning.

Captain Morris wasn’t what Thad had in mind when he pictured a soldier. He was thin, even to the point Darryl looked heavy next to him. His face was sunken in and his arms were so small Thad could easily touch his thumb and index finger with room to spare if he grabbed it. His skin was also a pale white as if the man hid from the sun. It made Thad think of the stories he had heard about creatures of the night that feasted on the blood of its victims. He knew that wasn’t the case with Captain Morris. He had seen the man riding in the sun many times, but the sight of him still unnerved him a little.

The Captain placed the back of his hand to Darryl’s forehead and stood there silently for an agonizing amount of time. “Looks like your fevers gone, so I’ll allow you to get up, but you still need to take it easy for a few days and make sure to drink plenty of water. If I catch you out sparring or trying to run a marathon I’ll stick you right back in bed. Am I understood?”

“Yes sir.” Darryl replied crisply.

The three companions walked out of the tent arm in arm laughing and joking merrily. After they were outside Thad promised himself that once his strength was a bit more stable he would return to see what aid he could give the other injured soldiers. Eloen was right about one thing, if he pushed himself too far he was of no use, but if worked in moderation without stressing his body too much, he would heal faster and be better prepared in the future.

They headed for the mess area, or rather, the large fire with a few soldiers cooking whatever was available for breakfast. This morning it looked some apples, hard biscuits, and meat. Thad never asked what kind of meat it was. Some things were better left unknown. As long as it tasted edible, he was ok with it. If he found out it was some dirty animal, even if he was starving, it would be hard to choke down.

The rest of their group joined them shortly after and they found a suitable place on the ground to dine. Everyone gave him and Darryl a hearty welcome back from their internment. Over the past few days, Thad had missed the company. He had been riding alone except for when a soldier would come and visit him. His thoughts drifted back to the soldier who had died right in front of him.

“Hey, there was a younger soldier who died in the battle. He had been spending a lot of the time on the march talking with me……… but I can’t remember his name.” Thad said downheartedly.

“You’re talking about Fergusson. He was always talking about you to the other guys. He was a good kid. It’s sad that he didn’t make it past his first engagement.” Ballard said, placing his fist in the center of his chest in a salute to one of their fallen comrades.

Fergusson, Thad repeated to himself committing the name to memory. He didn’t want to forget the cheerful young man. He would be a lesson for him to never forget that at any time those around him might be taken. It wasn’t a pleasant thought, but it was something he wanted to keep in mind.

After their meal, it was time to get to work. Luckily Thad and Darryl were spared the worst, thanks to their recent infirmaries. Normally Thad wasn’t one to shy away from labor, but when the task was the burning and burying of bodies, he would gladly take a reprieve. He still helped where he could, even though that mostly consisted of carrying water to those who were doing the heavy lifting.

His strength was returning and by midday he was feeling almost up to his regular self. He still wasn’t ready for any major working of magic, but he didn’t wobble as much and his head had quit hurting altogether. Everyone was busy and the midday meal was cold meat and cheese with partially stale bread. It wasn’t a feast fit for a queen, but it was enough to fill his belly.

They worked quickly, but it continued late into the day. At the current rate, they would be able to leave within a few days. Thad had asked why they didn’t just dump the enemies in the woods for the animals. Ballard had explained by saying. “If we just leave the bodies for the wolves, other less desirable creatures will be sure to follow such a bounty. Luckily it’s still a bit cold and the bodies haven’t started to bloat and smell yet, or we would already be fighting off unwanted guests.”

Even though he had done very little work compared to the others by the time the sun had started its decent he was exhausted. As the sun lowered and the light grew dim, the soldiers moved back to the safety of the camp. There was still work to be done, but it was of a more mundane nature. Eloen and her squad joined Thad for the evening meal where they returned to the past routine of storytelling.

Every other time Thad had sat around the fire, they had told stories of their great or funny exploits, but this time was slightly different. They told stories of those that had died in battle. It was a bit morose and left Thad feeling sad, but everyone else seemed to enjoy the tales over some watered down ale.

Most of the stories involved Callen as he was the one everyone knew best, but a few featured some of the other soldiers who had given their lives for their friends. That had been something Darryl had told him once while they had been idly chatting. “Everyone’s reasons for joining the army are different, and not everyone is going to agree with why were fighting or who were fighting with. What truly holds an army together is the comradely between its soldiers. You might not be willing to fight because one Duchess insulted another, but you would be more than willing to fight to protect your friend who fights such a battle.”

At first, he really didn’t understand what Darryl had meant, but now looking around at his friends he was starting to. He had seldom fought for personal reasons. It was usually in self-defense or to help those who were not in a position to help themselves. He had agreed to fight against Abla to protect those he held dear, but now looking around at the campfire at the nine soldiers he had come to know, who laughed together even though they had lost a friend and were soon to face another battle and possibly death, gave Thad all the motivation he needed.

“What’s got you so serious?” Eloen asked startling him.

“I was just thinking about things.”

“Don’t think too much. Life is like a good fight. If you think too hard then your movements become choppy and delayed. The best thing to do is relax and let the flow of the battle carry you.” She said slapping him hard on the back.

Figuring that Eloen was at least partially right, Thad let himself relax a little and enjoy the stories. The sun hadn’t long set before Thad’s energy reserves began to run dry. It had been a trying past few days and he still needed rest before his body was up for too much excitement. Slipping away silently, Thad made his way back to the tent he had been sleeping in.

He had thought that he would be back on the ground with his bed roll, but Eloen had made it quite clear that he was to stay in the tent and be guarded for the rest of the journey. Thad knew that he could do a good amount of damage from afar, but no more than a catapult, and a catapult didn’t tire. It just didn’t make sense for him to be treated like he was any better than the others. He didn’t like feeling as if he were being set apart and isolated from everyone. He was starting to feel a lot like he had at the slave academy.

The next morning, Thad was feeling as good as new. After a quick jog to loosen his stiff muscles, he headed back to the medical tent to see what he could do for those who were injured. Captain Morris was already at work before he arrived and greeted him with a sickly smile.

“What can I do for you Master Torin?”

“Well captain, I was thinking of seeing if I can be of any help. I haven’t had much experience in healing the human body by magical means before, but the more I think about it the more use it seems it could be.” Thad replied confidently.

The captain ran his fingers through his thinning hair sighing. “Yes, you might be on to something there. I heard about what you did for Sargent Darryl. That was quite a bit of handiwork there. If I can be of any help just ask, I’m not a trained medical professional but I’m the closest we have to a battlefield doctor at the moment.”

The news surprised Thad more than a little. He was sure by the way Morris carried himself that he had been sufficiently trained. Then again, as a male he might have only received the most rudimentary courses instead of any extended training. “Yes, I would like to know who is in the most danger.”

“That’s an easy one. That would be Peters over here.” Morris said as he walked to one of the bunks in the center of the tent. “He took an arrow to the back. During the battle, the arrow broke, leaving the arrowhead lodged inside. I tried to remove it, but without proper tools all it would accomplish is a quicker death for the man, and at this point I’m considering it.”

Thad bent over the older man, who only had the barest stubble growing from what must have once been a shaved scalp. Closing his eyes, Thad allowed his magic sight to inspect the man’s body. The arrowhead was easy to find. It was a black splotch surrounded by bright red in an otherwise harmonious pulsation of colors.

The bright red area had spread far, and even coursed though the little tubs that carried the blood. That was still only minor, he had been able to deal with Darryl’s fever easily and though there was much more of the angry color, he didn’t think it posed a large issue. No the problem was the arrowhead he would have to get out.

Focusing on the black area, he pulled on it while he coaxed the muscles to push at it. It took a large effort, but slowly it started to move back toward the entrance wound. A little over half way out, Thad had to take a quick breather and wipe the sweat from his brow. While he waited for his body to recover from the strain of his magic, he unwrapped the area where the arrow had entered the man’s body. The wound had already healed, and a puss filled scab covered the skin over it. Pulling his dagger out, Thad made a quick cut, reopening the wound causing a torrent of puss and blood to flow from the man’s back.

Slipping back into his mage sight, Thad continued to work the arrowhead back out. The strain was more than he thought, but he was still far from his limit. Within a matter of moments, Thad heard the welcome sound of metal striking the hard ground at his feet. He still wasn’t done yet. The angry red color was still persistent so he changed his focus and slowly began to combat the deadly red glow. It was a little harder than it had been with Darryl’s due to the sheer amount of it, but it still didn’t take Thad long to repair the damage the arrow had caused.

With his work done, Thad fell heavily into a chair that sat nearby. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a stump that had a few thin branches tied together and affixed to it for back support. He figured the small army had learned to make do with what they had. It was an admirable and inspiring trait.

Peters’ fever quickly disappeared and he opened his eyes. Thad was quite happy with his work and Captain Morris seemed impressed. Morris asked Thad why he hadn’t knitted the wound back together the way he had for Sargent Darryl. Thad explained that accelerating the growth of tissue would have taken much more effort, and he didn’t see it necessary when his body could do that on its own given time.

“How did you get the fever to go away?” Morris asked as he double checked Peters to make sure it was gone.

“Well yesterday when we were visiting Darryl, I checked his body and found an angry red pulse where he had been injured. When I removed it, his fever went away. I did the same thing with Peters, but there was much more of the red pulse than Darryl had.” Thad said in way of an explanation.

“He must have had an inner infection. That’s a very handy gift you have there. Most people don’t die of their wounds. They die of infections caused by their wounds. If you can cure those, it could save a lot of lives. We usually treat them with salves or poultices, but if we don’t know where they’re at, it’s impossible to treat them. The infections can become extremely deadly if they reach the blood stream.” Morris rambled on, more to himself than to anyone else.

It made sense to Thad, he had learned of infections and why it was important to properly treat your wounds at the academy. He had even tried a few of the medical courses, but it was far from his best subject. Thad was intelligent, but there was just too much information to process. Medical science relied more on memory than reasoning, and reasoning is what he exceled at.

Before night fall, Thad had half of the wounded warriors back on their feet, and promised Captain Morris that after a good night’s rest he would return to help the less severely injured troops.

Helping the injured soldiers had been a taxing job, and more than once he had been so frustrated trying to figure out the best way to proceed, that he had to take a walk and clear his head. Though no matter how the day had gone, now that it was over, he was happy. Very few people understood what the soldiers did for them. Thad included himself in that number. Even though he had been trained to fight, he had never give much thought to what being a soldier would truly entail. Long cold nights on the road, the time spent away from families, and poor food.

He had never seen any of the soldiers complain about their lot in life, and from what he learned, most of them were volunteers. Yes, a good percentage of the army was slaves, about a third overall, but even they seemed to enjoy the life of a soldier. It was much less taxing than the life of a farmer, and the peerage were known for rewarding good slave soldiers with their freedom. Thad figured it was one of the reasons very few of the soldiers had supported the rebellion. Around the other soldiers they weren’t viewed as a slave, but as a fellow brother in arms.

There were also females in the army, though there were very few. In their group of almost two hundred, only three females were present. Thad hadn’t talked to any of them except Eloen, but from what he gathered, they joined for the sake of adventure. Not lack of coin. From what he could tell, the women in the army didn’t treat the men as subordinates; in fact, Eloen was the only female captain. Rank was still the ruling factor; it was not a matter of sex. If only the rest of the Queendom would run the same way, they wouldn’t be half the problems they now faced.

Laying back on his bed, Thad tried to flush all thoughts of the coming battle from his mind. It wasn’t easy, but after a short time they were replaced by thoughts of what he would like to do. It had been a long time since he had just sat down and planed out his next experiment. One plan in particular, from the year before, sprang up in his thought. He wanted to build a device that would enhance his spells, but at a greater level and without having to be carried on his person. He had finally dismissed the thought last time due to cost, but with the queen behind him, it might be possible. As he worked through the details of his project, Thad drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

CHAPTER XIII

Riding next to Captain Harmon Thad was once again placed in the middle of the formation. He had been working on enchantments for the soldiers’ equipment, but as the day came to a close, he decided to retire to bed. It wasn’t that it was hard or dangerous, but he did not want to be unable to defend himself due to overexertion. At first he feared some of the soldiers would take it amiss but none of them seemed to care if he worked himself to death or not. They only offered their thanks and promises to pay when they were able. He had also begun making equipment for the slaves after one young man had asked if he could trade services for the work. It hadn’t crossed Thad’s mind before that the slaves did not receive payment and could not even afford the pittance he was selling his work for. He decided that for every three he sold, he would give a set to one of the slaves. This cut into his profit, but it made Thad feel so good that he didn’t mind the loss of a few silvers.

“So do you have any ideas to help with defending of Southpass?” Harmon asked trying to start a conversation. Eloen had assigned the poor man to be his watcher and now was forced to tag alongside him wherever he went.

Thad like the man, but he never talked about anything other than military strategy. Thad had thoroughly studied the subject in the academy, but it was about as entertaining as watching leaves fall.

“I have a few ideas, but I won’t really know for sure until I see what I have to work with. I could always cast lightning and fire down on them, but I will tire fast. I would rather set up enchantments that will allow for the best overall defense with the smallest amount of effort.”

Thad replied as his eyes scanned the horizon for any sign that Tremon was close. He knew that they should arrive at the major trade town today, but no one had stated exactly what time of day they should expect to arrive.

Thad was fairly excited about entering the second largest city in Farlan. It was supposed to be a bustling city that centered on trade. No merchant could get to Abla without passing through its gates so people from many kingdoms had set up trading centers there.

“Good ideas, not to mention you don’t know what the enemy will bring against us. So far the gap to the pass is too small for a full size catapult or ballista. It would be possible for them to build one by bringing the materials through the pass first and assembling them on the other side, however, they tried that before but it didn’t work out too well for them. How would you take care of that?” Harmon asked his voice slightly excited as if he were eagerly awaiting what grand idea Thad would come up with.

“I don’t know. It would depend on what materials I had on hand to work with and other factors as well. How far away and how it was constructed would need to be taken into account. As I said before, I do not know what I will be able to do until I see what I have to work with, but I can promise you I will do my upmost to make sure we prevail.”  Thad said hoping it would end the conversation that he and Harmon had had four or five times already over the past few days.

The air between the two filled with a tense silence. Darryl having finished making his normal circuit around the group pulled up next to him. This had become his routine, giving the friends a change to talk.

“So you ready to head into the pits of hell?” Darryl asked, a large smile spreading across his face.

“I don’t think I have to worry about that just yet were still quite a few days from reaching Southpass.”

“Oh, no one’s told you about Tremon have they. It’s the most anti-male city in the Queendom. It’s even worse than the capital. Last time I was there I got arrested for walking too loudly.”

“How the heck do you walk too loudly?” Thad asked trying to hold in a laugh.

“Well you would just have to understand the town. Abla is a country ruled by men and the women are treated ten times worse than they treat us over here. With Tremon being one of the few, if not the only city Ablaians ever enter. The women have grown a bit heavy-handed just to annoy the Ablaians. The city is about sixty percent female so it a good place to look for a wealthy wife, just don’t expect her to treat you better than a doorstop outside of the bedroom.” Darryl said giving him a sly wink.

“And I bet the queen wouldn’t be very happy if I sat anyone on fire or destroyed the town would she? I better make sure I don’t get into any trouble lest I set the fury of all womankind against me.” Thad said dramatically as if he were a thespian in a play gaining him a chuckle from both his friend and Captain Harmon.

Darryl grabbed Thad by the shoulder and pulled him close. “Don’t worry, I Think Captain Eloen will keep you well under heel once we reach the city. I doubt she will even let you step outside of her room…….. I mean your room.”

Thad tried to dispute what Darryl had said, but as he blushed and stuttered it didn’t sound very convincing to himself, let alone anyone else.  Darryl soon darted off, back to the rest of his group. It would be at least an hour before he made his next circuit around the formation, another half hour after that before he finished it. For now Thad was reduced to talking to Captain Harmon or sitting in silence. He opted for silence.

Shortly after midday Thad got his first view of the impressive wall that surrounded Tremon. He had been told it stood ten foot high and was over two foot thick. For the distance it didn’t look nearly as impressive as the others had told him but he knew as they drew close he would be able to see it in its enormity. In the capital, even though it was surrounded by an eight foot tall wall, one could still see buildings reaching over the wall from a distance. This was not the case with Tremon. Nothing seemed to peek above its mighty walls. The peaceful silence was broken as Harmon began telling the history of the city as they grew ever nearer. Unlike the constant talk of battle preparations this was at least interesting.

“The wall was put up five hundred years ago to keep merchants from being able to leave the city without reporting their trades to the proper channels. Now when a merchant leaves or enters they are inspected and cleared in order to cut down on illegalities. It has worked quite well and the largest portion of the Queendom’s income now comes from taxes collected in Tremon. Especially the taxes collected from the Ablaians.” Harmon continued telling that everything from how the taxes were collected to who paid how much. It was interesting to learn that some countries paid a higher tax than others but it wasn’t something Thad really cared about knowing.

When the bricks of the city wall were clearly visible Eloen and her men moved up into a protective circle around Thad, while Captain Harmon returned to the front of the formation where the majority of his troops were located. He didn’t know why they had changed their positions but it was much nicer to have people around him he had more in common with. At least he wouldn’t have to listen to any more boring lectures over the benefit of having crossbows when in a defending position.

The walls of the city were like large paintings made with different colored bricks depicting the history of Farlan. The closer they got to the gates the more elaborate the murals became. One even depicted the crown of Farlan being passed down in the royal line. It had Queen Serena but the young princess had not been added yet. Thad figured she wouldn’t be added until she was crowned the next queen.

The gates to the city were massive. They were easily big enough for two large wagons to fit through side by side with plenty of room to walk in-between. Three guards stood watch outside the gate along with one elderly looking woman with a stack of parchments. Captain Harmon rode up ahead to greet the fidgety woman who scowled deeply at him.

When they approached the gates Thad could see that the woman was clearly ignoring Harmon as she scanned their group. Then with her papers in hand she marched over to where Eloen sat astride her horse.

“Where are you from, what is your purpose for visiting Tremon, how long will you be staying, and do you or any of your men plan to buy anything for commercial sale?” The woman rattled off as if she had given the same speech numerous times.

“We are from Calisaren on our way to Southpass we will only be within the city walls for the day.” Eloen said casually as if the woman was boring her.

The older woman scribbled a few things on one of the pieces of parchment then gave Eloen a harsh look. “Very well you and your Men may enter, but warn them we will not allow any disruption from their kind.”

Eloen spurred her horse forward and through the gates soon followed by everyone else including a very displeased Captain Harmon. It was almost comical at the sheer amount of disdain the woman openly showed toward them as if they had personally stolen the clothes from her back. If the rest of the women in Tremon treated men with half the disdain as that woman had, this place was far worse than the capital.

Even though he had been warned about the anti-man feelings of the city Thad still had an urge to run around and explore the city. The streets were wide and well paved with flagstone. He figured it was for the great numbers of wagons that must travel through during the busier times of the year. As they passed the enormous market district Thad’s eyes were drawn to the many different shops that were outlandishly decorated. It was as if they had thrown caution to the wind and each one had tried its best to outshine the others.

They passed half a dozen inns all of which looked nice enough to house the royal family until they stopped at a fairly decent looking inn called Merchants Rest. Eloen as well as the other females dismounted while the rest of the group began to continue on. Thad started to follow with the other men but was stopped when Eloen grabbed the reins of his steed.

“Because of the…rules of the city… men can’t stay at this inn. The rest of the troops will be moving into the designated areas for men. Seeing as how you are the Princess’s slave the proprietor here won’t be able to say much. Besides, I would much rather have you stay in better accommodations than those afforded the men around here.” Eloen said, the last  part coming out as an almost feral growl.

“I don’t think I should be the only male in the group allowed to sleep in comfort.” Thad said, not enjoying the extra attention.

“Listen I know it’s not fair, I agree with you on that but, there’s little I can do about how they treat men around here. I don’t even think the queen’s decree has even started to sink in to the people here. Hopefully in time things will change but my orders were clear. You are to be treated the same as any noblewoman and protected at all costs. The queen and my aunt both made that abundantly clear. So like it or not you are going to be staying here in the room right next to mine.” Eloen said with far more fire in her voice than he was used to hearing.

Thad didn’t say anything. He just quietly followed Eloen into the inn. Inside the place was opulent with large cushioned chairs to sit around richly stained hardwood tables. It far outstripped anything he had ever seen in an inn before though admittedly he had only frequented a few. The smell wafting in from the kitchen made Thad’s stomach grumble drawing a slight giggle for the ladies with him.

Eloen turned giving him an exaggerated wink. “Don’t worry I’ll make sure you get to eat before we put you to bed.”

Eloen’s comment earned a few more giggles from the other two ladies making Thad blush deeply. One of the other two soldiers, a tall blond with a large bust who wore her battle leathers a little tighter than was common, leaned over and whispered something in Eloen’s ear getting a good long laugh from the woman. Thad wasn’t sure what she had said but from the look on her face it wasn’t anything good. The three women eyed him as if they were wolves looking at a lamb that had wondered away from its flock.

When they reached the front desk a Tall middle aged woman with her auburn hair pulled back in a tight bun greeted them. “Welcome to Merchants Rest. While we are more than willing to offer you a room ladies your man will have to take lodgings in the male quarters. I would suggest the Broken Wagon they are one of the more decent ones available.”

“That won’t be possible I’m on orders from Queen Serena to see that he is treated as nobility and I doubt that would include lodgings in the male quarter. Unless you want to explain why you turned away her prize slave to sleep in filth, I would suggest you find him a room adjacent to mine.” Eloen said her voice stern and unyielding.

The lady behind the desk stared at her as if she was asking her to spin gold from the sky. She took a quick glance at Thad her face turning into a sneer. “I am deeply sorry miss but the laws of the city clearly prohibit me for offering lodgings to men. If you would like that to change I would suggest you make an appointment with the magistrate.”

“Thad, be a dear and burn this place to the ground. We will find lodgings elsewhere.” Although Eloen kept her voice calm with very little inflection of her tone the look on her face told Thad that she was deadly serious.

Thad just stood there shocked that she would seriously ask such a thing from him. She was usually a little excitable but this seemed a bit extreme. Noticing his hesitance Eloen grabbed him by the collar bringing him close to her face. “Burn it to the ground. If they won’t obey a lawful order of the queen, then they don’t deserve to operate a business within her domain.”

The look on her face left little room to argue so Thad focused on a small area at the far corner of the common room hoping the fire would spread slowly allowing people to evacuate the inn without injury. With only the slightest thought one of the cushioned chairs burst into flames billowing thick black smoke throughout the room.

The woman behind the counter screamed for someone to put out the fire and half a dozen people from the kitchen ran out carrying buckets of water. Not really in the frame of mine to burn everyone alive Thad didn’t add anymore flames to the fire and let them put it out.

The smell of burnt hair and wood hung heavily over the room as Eloen turned back to the woman giving her a menacing smile. “Well looks like you’re lucky our young mage isn’t inclined to violence, but I suggest you change your mind about the rooms. If not, I don’t care if he helps or not this place will be coming down.”

The lady looked for a few moments as if she was still deciding but finally let out a heavy sigh. “He can stay but I will not give him his own room. I hate to think what he will do without proper supervision. Either take it or I’ll call the guards now and you can see how much you can get done in the city dungeon.”

Eloen stared down the woman then turned toward Thad. “Looks like were roomies tonight lover boy.” She said her face changing from anger to joy so fast it unnerved Thad more than just a little. In the recesses of his mind he wondered if all women were as mentally unstable.

Up in the room he shared with Eloen, he was happy to find two beds. At first he had feared that he would be forced to sleep next to the woman all night. It wouldn’t have been the first time, but last time he didn’t even know about it until the next morning when he woke. If he was forced to try and sleep next to her knowingly he didn’t think he would get much rest.

After depositing their belongings in their rooms, Thad and the three women went back to the common room to get something to eat. They found a table on the opposite side of the room from where that had sat the chair on fire. It had already been cleaned but a small charred spot remained on the floor where the chair had sat.

The waitress appeared at the table before the four even had a chance to get completely situated. “What can I get for you?” She asked her voice pleasant and unassuming.

“Yes, we would like a bottle of wine to start with and four orders of your house special.” Eloen said never looking up at the waitress.

Thad remained silent as the three women talked about everything from the weather, the current clothing trends, and what they thought of different men that were traveling with them. The last subject caused him to blush more than once as his name was mentioned often. He was sure they were doing it just to get a response from him, and as much as he would like to be able to ignore their comments, he wasn’t in complete control of his face.

It didn’t take long for the waitress to return with a large bottle of wine and four glasses as well as four large bowls of thick stew with large chunks of meat and vegetables. The stew was rich and tasted great though it sat heavily on his empty stomach. The wine was made from some kind of berry. It was sweet, more of a treat then a drink. Before Thad knew what he was doing he was on his third glass.

His bladder full, Thad stood to make his way to the latrine when the room started to spin. He tried to catch himself as his legs buckled, but all he accomplished was knocking the blond soldier from her chair and landing on top of her.

CHAPTER XIV

The next morning, Thad woke to his head screaming far worse than it ever had when he had overused his magic. Afraid of what he would find Thad opened his eyes slowly. He was relieved to find that he was asleep in his own bed and that Eloen was still snoring soundly in hers. He was in a state of undress but his clothes were haphazardly thrown on the floor giving him hope that he had disrobed himself.

Thad slipped out of his bed quietly his stomach vehemently protesting his every move and dressed quickly. He knew he must have smelled like a winery but the inn offered no bathing facilities for men, and he wasn’t about to walk into the women’s baths. He would have to settle with a bird bath out of a basin of cold water. Thad opened the door, trying to keeping it from creaking.

His efforts paid off and he was able to escape from the room without waking Eloen. The hallway was empty and Thad figured it must be much earlier in the day than he first thought. The main room had only a handful of people scattered around at tables eating a delicious smelling breakfast. The aroma reaching his nose was tantalizing and any thought of eating made his stomach flip-flop.

The auburn haired lady that had greeted them the evening before was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a much younger lady stood behind the counter. She was slightly taller than him with long light black hair that almost looked pale gray in the dim light. She wore a smile on her young face that looked as natural as leaves on a tree. Upon seeing him approach the counter her face didn’t contort into disdain as it had on most the women he had come across in Tremon, but held its enchanting smile.

“What can I do for you today?” She said in a high pitched bubbly voice that sent spirals of pain coursing through his head. Thad tried to smile though his discomfort but was unable to keep the charade up for long. The young lady looked at him with true concern in her face. “Are you ok sir?”

“Yes I’m fine thank you, a little too much to drink last night. I was wondering if I could get a basin of water to take back to my room so I could get washed up before I get back on the road." Thad said holding his head in an attempt to keep the room from spinning.

The young lady looked at him for a moment her face echoing her confusion then a slightly baleful grin replaced her smile. “Oh! So you’re the man that gave my mother such a fright last night. Well good for you, I keep telling her that she shouldn’t teat people in such a manner male or not. As for the basin if you want I could have a bath brought to your room along with some hot water.”

“That would be wonderful. I’m in the second to last room on the left. I better head back before I dirty your floor. Thank you.” Thad said trying to return her smile and faring poorly at it.

After hitting the latrine, Thad made his way back to the room. A score of slaves were already passing him in the hall carrying steaming buckets of water to his room. Eloen was still in bed but was holding her cover over her head moaning lightly.

Once everyone had vacated the room Eloen slipped the covers from her face. Her hair was a mess and her face was an off shade of green. “Are you trying to punish me for something? Having a horde of people burst into the room making more noise than I would hear on a battlefield?”

Thad couldn’t help but laugh at the way she kept bringing her hand up to her head and swaying slightly as she tried to sit up in the bed. She returned his laugh with a hastily thrown pillow that landed far from its mark only earning a few more laughs from Thad. It was funny, but the whole thing also made his head throb as if a small man was inside trying to break out with a large hammer.

Though he was worried about the consequences of undressing in front of Eloen, the nauseating smell coming from his own body was enough to make up his mind. After a few brief moments of indecision he shimmied out of his clothing and settled down into the bath. The water was hotter than he normally liked, but it was far better than washing out of a basin of freezing water in the brisk morning air.

Closing his eyes Thad let the water envelop him. He felt the water rise and heard as Eloen joined him in the bath. Cursing silently to himself he squeezed his eyes tight and fought the growing urge to open them.

Opening one of his eyes, he quickly scanned the small table that had been set up next to the bath for the soap. He couldn’t find it, but the slight whistling coming from in front of him told him where it had gone. He turned to Eloen, happy to see that she had emerged deep enough that only her face showed above the water. In her hand she held the small bar of lye soap her face showing her enjoyment of the current situation.

After a little teasing she handed over the soap and Thad quickly washed himself. After weeks on the road with no chance to clean himself properly Thad had to scrub hard to get the dirt that matted his hair and clung to every crease of his body. Once finished he handed the soap back to Eloen and looked around for his chance to escape.

Thad soon gave up on escaping without being seen and let out an audible sigh. “Would you please close your eyes for a second?”

Eloen let out a low giggle raking her eyes over him with a very amused look on her face. “Getting a little shy now? Here I was thinking that after last night some of your prudishness would have worn off.”

The playful tone of her words let him know in no uncertain terms that he would get no privacy. Then as if slapped hard he remembered that he could still use magic. He wasn’t sure how magic would help him escape. He doubted that Eloen would fall for his disappearing trick. As he looked around the room for a clue of what to do he noticed the steam that was steadily rising from the hot water.

It was simple really, he felt like an idiot for not thinking of it before. Non-tangible illusions were easy and caused very little strain even in his weekend state he should be able to pull it off with little effort. Focusing he went to work and slowly the room began to fill with a dense fog. Once he could no longer see Eloen through his magically created cover, he sprang from the tub and rushed to his clothing hitting his toe against one of the tables.

When the fog cleared Thad was still hastily pulling his tunic over his head. He could hear Eloen laughing. She was probably enjoying the spectacle of him hoping around in a hurry to save his shattered dignity. Once dressed Thad grabbed his belongings and ran for the door to a gale of laughter from his female companion. Not even taking the time to look back Thad left the room shutting the door hard behind him.

In the main dining hall, Thad found his other two female companions sitting at a table. He wasn’t sure if they would mind his company, but figured it was worth the risk. “Good morning Bonnie.” Thad said, giving the lanky blond a nervous smile. “It is nice to see you again Alice.” He said, bowing to the short brunet who was well muscled even compared to the men.

“I see our drunken mage has sobered up. I must say, you gave quite the show last night. Though I would suggest next time you pick something other than frogs floating around the room. How about next time you try some birds. They are much more pleasing to the eye.” Bonnie said giving him a quirky smile.

Thad sunk down in his chair covering his face with his hands. Had he really done that, he tried to remember but the night before was hazy with only a few clear moments. He knew he had danced with Alice at some point in the night as well as a few other women who he had never met before, but as to his antics with his magic nothing came to mind.

Eloen joined them a short time later wearing her normal battle leathers with her hair pulled up into a tight ponytail. As they ate the three girls talked about any and everything that they thought would bring a blush to his face and succeeded more often than not.

After the meal, the four made their way down the cobblestone sidewalk that ran in front of all the buildings. The condition of the road as well as the buildings slowly started to degrade. They finally stopped in front of one of the better looking buildings. It had a gray slat roof that only had a few holes. The walls were made of dreary light brown bricks that were chipped in many areas, but it looked like it would still hold off the cold for the most part. As bad as it was it was still much better than the buildings next to it. One had rooms that were all but nonexistent, and its north wall had a massive hole in it. The other ones roof seemed to be in decent repair but its walls had holes dotting the entire building. In some parts it only looked as if the boards that had been placed to stave off the cold were holding it up.

The rest of their group slowly began to amble out of the building most of them looking as if they had spent their night on the hard ground instead of a soft bed. He was quickly greeted by his friends as well as his keeper, Captain Harmon who situated himself right next to the young mage. No one said much as they formed up and marched out of the town but Thad could almost hear a collective sigh of relief from everyone as they passed the threshold of the gates leading out of town.

Thad was slightly anxious. It was only a two day ride through the narrow canyon that led to Southpass Fort. In the spring one could make the trip in little under a day but with the snow still blanketing the canyon floor traveling was slow and often tedious.

The farther they went into the canyon the faster the temperature dropped. He was suddenly very happy for the pair of woolen underclothes he had gotten back in the duchy, even though they still offered little help against the biting wind that arbitrarily tore through the canyon. Even with his cloak wrapped tightly around his body, his face and hands were still exposed and were quickly turning red. Looking around he noticed that the others had brought thick gloves as well as hooded cloaks lined in fur to keep them from the cold. Cursing his own lack of foresight Thad tried to use his magic as a buffer against the cold.

At first Thad had tried to build a wall around him. Much like a shield but to stop the wind, while it worked it also made it impossible to breath after a few moments. His second attempt he tried to block out just the fast moving wind but it still only helped to keep the worst off him. Finally he tried to mix up the first one while also trying to make a barrier that would hold the heat in. It took a while but slowly he was able to tell the deference. It wasn’t a huge strain on him but after a couple of hours the sweat on his brow started to drip increasingly. When his heat shield failed the cold wind ripped through him making him shiver as it raked across his sweat soaked body.

When they finally stopped for the night, Thad could see the faint light in the distance that he assumed was Southpass Fort. It didn’t look like it was far away but even a small distance seemed impossible as the snow was now almost knee-high.

Everyone was eerily quiet around the campfire that night. The meal was splendid steaks that Eloen had seasoned to perfection. He wasn’t sure when she had the time to pick it up while they were in town but was happy that she had.

Everyone seemed apprehensive each doing their own unique preparations for what they may await them in the morning. Darryl oiled his favorite and most worn battle harness. Ballard used a whetstone on his sword even though it did no good to the magic imbued blade. Eloen simply sat watching everyone as she organized her pack.

Everyone else went about their own routine as if no one else was there. Alden sat down beside him patting his softly on the shoulder. “Tomorrows the big day we are finally going to reach Southpass. Are you ready for it?”

“It’s not like the battle is going to start tomorrow I don’t think even the Ablaians are dumb enough to try and force a march against defended battlements in this snow.” Thad said solemnly.

“That’s true but whether the Ablaians show up tomorrow or next year when we arrive at Southpass Fort we will be there for war no matter when it comes. The second you lose that mindset is the moment you will find yourself in trouble. Complacency kills more soldiers than the enemy alone.”

Thad understood what Alden was saying. If he wasn’t constantly prepared for the war to start then when it did he might find himself with his pants around his ankles. He wasn’t a born soldier and didn’t relish the thought of having to kill a fellow human, but if he didn’t get it in his mind that it was going to happen and soon he might not be able to act when the time came.

As he lay down to sleep, his mind warred with itself on what he should be doing. Part of him wanted to run. He wanted to leave Farlan and everything with it far behind him. The other part wanted to help protect his fellow travelers, the soldiers who he had grown to care for as much as he would if they were natural brothers born of his own blood.

“Why couldn’t life ever be simple? What I wouldn’t give just to be able to wake up go to work the fields then go home to an enjoyable meal, like I had on Joan’s farm. Why did I ever leave that place?” Thad asked to himself.

He knew the answer. Joan’s didn’t have the excitement that he had craved. He had dreamed of being a great mage hailed by all those around him, but truth was far different than what he had dreamed about. He wasn’t an all-powerful mage, he could barely do a quarter of what he knew was possible. He had no clue how to defeat an army but here he was war knocking on the door and he was headed to answer its deadly call.

CHAPTER XV

Southpass Fort was a massive compound with walls that spanned nearly two thousand feet wide and fifteen feet thick. The gates were made of layers of hard wood that were banded in iron with three massive tree sized planks that held it closed. The wall was at least fifty foot tall with shielded battlements that soldiers patrolled constantly.

Inside the fort there were large barracks that housed over five thousand troops. The armory was huge. It held supplies for ten times the number of soldiers. There were also small stalls that had been set up but were currently abandoned, most likely to be used again when the trading season started up again.

Thad stared in awe as he looked at the sheer size of everything. He had imagined a large wall but nothing on the scale of what he now saw. Eloen and Captain Harmon escorted him to the main command center, located at the center of the fort.

Inside the command center they found a spry older soldier who was still well toned even though age was starting to show its effects on him. His body was still heavily muscled, but his hair held a shimmery sliver shine to it, and his eyes looked dull and cloudy.

“Captain Calisaren, Captain Harmon, and Master Mage Torin reporting for duty to General Foreman.” Harmon said loudly, in a sharp crisp voice.

The general looked them over them for a long time. The man’s piercing eyes made Thad uncomfortable. “Good to have you men with us. Captains, you may report to Captain Long. You should be able to find him in the training yard working with some of the younger troops.”

The two captains snapped to a ridged stance placing their fists over their chests and turned around before leaving the office. With his friends gone, the general turned to him giving him his full attention.

“Now Master Mage Torin was it? I got a messenger bird the other day about you from the queen. Don’t know what I did for the gods to grace me with the likes of you when we are in such dire straits, but I am happy to have you here. Now as much as I’d like to start barking orders at you, I wouldn’t know where to start. Magic is a little outside my knowledge, so for the most part, if you need something ask for it. If you think you can do something to help shore up our defenses ask about it first please. While it may seem like a good idea to you, we are more experienced in the art of war.”

“Yes sir. If possible I will need a heated room to work in. Currently I do not know what I will be able to do to help you defensively, but I have some ideas if you want to discuss them.” Thad said stuttering nervously.

“No need to be nervous son. Oh, and none of that sir nonsense. You are a civilian as far as I’m concerned so I would be happy if you would address me as either General or Trent. My day is pretty much open and I could use a distraction from the normal monotony I face around here.” Trent said giving him a friendly smile.

The two men talked late into the day. The General was very interested in what Thad could do with his enchantments. At the end of the day Trent ordered Thad to be given a room in the armory so that he could start work on enchanting the weapons. He also sent one of his men into Tremon to get a large shipment of cat’s eye gems, crystals, and a glass blower. It would take about five to eight days before the soldier would be able to return with the needed supplies and with only a handful of his own gems left there would be little he could do until they arrived.

One thing they both agreed to was him magically enhancing the wood, steel, and even the stone of the wall so that even if they found a giant to knock on the fortress it wouldn’t so much as chip.

Thad dined with the general that evening. He enjoyed the man’s company enormously. He was an intelligent soldier with more knowledge of battles than Thad thought he could amass in a life time. He had served in two prior Ablaian attacks, and both times had distinguished himself with his foresight and planning. He still wore his Slave brand of the queen proudly, although it had been covered by his hair when Thad had first met him.

After the meal Trent poured them each a glass of bittersweet blackberry wine. It was much like the wine had been when he was in Tremon. With the memory of his last encounter with such a wine still fresh in his mind, Thad made sure to only lightly sip his drink. His hesitancy got a hearty laugh from the older man.

“Now we have to figure where you should bunk. I could put you in the barracks with the soldiers, but I doubt you would be able to get much rest or planning done there. We don’t have any officer barracks available at the moment even your friends have to share. I do have a spare room in the command building, but only if you wouldn’t mind having to put up with a nosey old man from time to time.” Trent said cheerfully.

Thad smiled at the old man. He had to admit to himself that he feared he would have to live in the crammed barracks that smelled of sweat and other foulness that accumulated when a large group of people lived in close quarters. “Sounds like a plan to me. Honestly I’m quite exhausted, and if you would show me to my room I would love to take a quick bath and hit the sack.”

Trent’s smile widened at Thad’s words. “No problem, my young man. There is not a bunk in there at the moment, but while you are out at the baths I will have some of the soldiers bring one in for you. I will also have them clean up the room a little. I was using it to store some confiscated items, but we can move that to one of the other buildings for as long as you need the room.”

Trent led him to a cluttered room that was only a bit smaller than the one he had back at the palace. It didn’t have any windows but with as cold as the weather was, he considered that a blessing. The general promised him that when he returned he would have a clean room furnished with a bed, desk, and a few chairs. Trent had said they probably wouldn’t be anything exquisite, but they should do the job. As he left for his bath Thad assured him anything would work.

There were two sets of baths one for the regular soldiers and one for the officers. Thad on the General’s suggestion went to the officer’s baths. The General assure him that, while they were smaller, they did have the warmest water. The water wasn’t steaming hot but was pleasantly warm. It helped easy some of the soreness that days in a cold saddle had worn into him.

There were a few others in the baths with him but they remained silent like him just enjoying the pleasant soak. As he sat back he thought about what he would do first. The large doors were already secure but the general showed great interest in having them strengthened even more. He was the expert on defending the fort so he figured it would be a good place to start. After that he could start working on some of the battle harnesses in the armory so that when the gems arrived all he would have to do was add the defender enchantment to them. In fact he should be able to write the enchantment on the harnesses and then link them to the gems when they arrived. It would save a lot of time and in theory it should work.

Back at the command headquarters, he found his room clean and furnished with a stout wooden bed that looked as if it had once been part of a bunk bed. The mattress was lumpy and a little worn, but was still much better than sleeping on the floor. The desk was old and worn and one of the legs appeared to have been fixed numerous times.  There were also three chairs, each one different, and one was such a hideous green it hurt Thad’s eyes to look at it.

The next morning, he woke late. The sun had already cleared the horizon. Trent wasn’t anywhere to be found, so Thad decided to look at the large wooden gate, after he got a bite to eat.

The first task was, to simply to examine the wood and metal of the gate with his magical sight. The more he used it, the easier it was for him to control it. The wood was much easier to look into than a human body. The first problem he encountered was that while the wood was the same kind, it was not of the same tree. There were minute differences in its makeup meaning that he would have to enchant them separately. He could do this, but it would be stronger if he could enchant the gate as a whole.

Focusing harder, Thad tried to see if he could force the wood to bond together as one seamless piece of wood. At first, it went easily, until he came to the nails and iron that linked the pieces together. With a little extra force, the metal started to almost melt into the wood, making it shine light silver with little spots of brown where the rust hadn’t yet been scrubbed clean.

It didn’t take long, even with his staff, for him to begin to tire. He wasn’t even a quarter done with the gate when he was forced to take a break. It was still a few hours before it was time for the midday meal so, decided it was a good chance to check out the room in the armory that Trent had designated for his use.

The inside of the armory smelled of old leather and oil. A fairly young soldier sat in a cushioned chair with his feet resting on his desk. He wasn’t very big; to call him skinny would have been an understatement. He had short red hair and a very pale complexion with freckles covering every inch of visible skin. Thad knocked hard on the desk, forcing the young soldier to tear his attention away from the book he was absorbed in.

“Yes?” the young guard asked lazily.

“I am Thaddeus Torin; I believe General Foreman informed you that I am to have room to work here?” Thad said slightly annoyed at the soldier’s dismissive attitude.

At the mention of the general’s name, the soldier quickly straightened himself. “Ah, yes Master Torin. The room is through the door behind me, it is the second one on the left. It’s still a bit dirty, but I haven’t had a proper chance to get it cleaned.”

“I can see that,” Thad said sarcastically, “and where would I find the storage for weapons and other equipment?”

“The first door on the right is the weapons, and the second is armor. The first door on the left is where our blacksmith does repairs. The other two rooms are for spare supplies and records.” The soldiers said, his attitude changing abruptly from inattention to being fully cooperative. Thad was slightly surprised and wondered why the man wasn’t mucking out the latrines.

Not wanting to let the annoying young soldier ruin his day, Thad continued through the door and back to the room that had been set aside for him. The room was far from clean and more than one part of the wall had moss covering it. A few items still cluttered the room, including what looked like left over, moth eaten blankets.

The room smelled as bad as it looked, making Thad retch uncontrollably. Holding his hand over his mouth, he quickly exited the room so he could get some fresh air. Walking back to the front office, Thad was able to convince the soldier to part with a couple of burlap sacks he could use to clean out the refuse in his office.

Taking a deep breath, Thad steeled his stomach and headed back in the dank room. He carefully picked up the rotten blankets and quickly shoved them in the sacks.  It didn’t take long, but even after all the trash had been taken out, the stink still hung heavy in the air. Thad wished he had some of the air cleaning fungus from the capitals sewers.

Remembering the sewers, Thad thought of an idea and sent out his magical sight into the room. The parts in the air and ground that carried the scent were hard to find because they were so small, but after a few moments he was able to isolate and destroy them. He knew that he was taxing himself a little more than he should have, but he seldom had self-control when a new idea hit him.

In less than half an hour, the room smelled as if it had been aired out thoroughly with only a slight hint of the stench still remaining. He was happy with his success even though his head now hurt and his tunic had a nice ring of sweat around the neck.

With the room now cleaned, he took stock of everything that was left. The desk looked to be in good repair though it was a tad simple, barely any more than four legs with a rough top. It would work. It wasn’t like he really needed much; just a place to set the items while he worked was worlds better than what he had been doing. The chair was far more comfortable than it looked, though it had a large amount of stains that Thad wasn’t convinced were from age.

With his new office cleaned, Thad inspected the armor room first. The walls were lined with battle vestments of all kinds, from simple leather to steel breastplates. Thad had never seen a Farlan soldier wearing full armor before. While it added more protection, it also slowed down movement, and tired you out much faster.  He was sure that in a siege, they would be of little use on the battlements, so he left them alone. Instead, he grabbed half a dozen leather battle harnesses and headed back to his office to stack them on his desk. After a dozen or so similar trips, he had a few large stacks of armor to begin working on.

With more than enough armor to keep him busy, he decided to check out the weapons room. It was easily twice the size of the other room, the walls lined with racks of every type of weapon Thad had ever heard of, and some he hadn’t. He knew at some point, he would have to enchant the swords and shields of the soldiers, but from what he had learned from the general, the arrows should be his priority for the moment.

He found the arrows wrapped in large bundles in the northern section of the room. There were thousands of them, both arrows for bows and bolts for crossbows. Grabbing a bundle of each, he went back to his office to start on an idea that he and another soldier had discussed during the march to Southpass.

Setting down his load, Thad removed the thin cord that held the arrows together, causing them to spill haphazardly across the floor. He picked one up and inspected where the arrowhead and shaft met. The arrowhead was of iron and the shaft was made from a hazel shoot. Even though it was not really wood, it looked like it would still hold an enchantment.

The plan was simple; replace the metal arrowhead with one mace of crystal that was enchanted to be extremely sharp as well as to increase the speed of the arrow. The one thing he planned to do different from his normal weapon enchantments was to leave off the spell that strengthened them. That way if the arrowhead met with something hard and could not pierce through, it would break and the sudden release of magical energy would cause an explosion albeit a minor one.

He still had a few crystals from when he had bought a large order of them, before switching over to using the cat eye gems. However, only one of them was large enough to make an arrowhead, and it still needed to be cut down. He could do it with magic, but that would have to wait until later. He had already pushed his strength to the limit and needed at least a few hours to recuperate.

Tired and sweating, despite the cold temperature, Thad made his way to the mess hall. As he approached the building, he could see that a line had formed outside one of the doors, letting only a certain number of soldiers in at a time. It made sense to Thad, there had to be a limited amount of space, and he doubted that even a quarter of the troops stationed at the fort could fit in the building at a single time.

After a short wait, Thad found himself at the front of the line where a large cistern had been placed so that soldiers could wash their hands before eating. He had seen similar things in the palace for the bathing, large cisterns were built to allow the water to be heated before being channeled to the bathing house for use. It took a fair amount of manpower to keep the cisterns full and few could afford such luxury, but Thad guessed with the soldiers it was a little different.

Inside, everyone was shoulder to shoulder with very little room to move freely. The meal didn’t look too bad, even if it was a little plain. Some kind of steak with mashed tubers smothered in gravy with dry biscuits. It wasn’t a meal to celebrate, but it would stop his stomachs grumbling. For a moment, he missed the palace and its rich and diverse food. Not to mention the fact that the cooks always had something ready for him to eat during the night in case he happened to be working late.

Thinking of the palace, Thad cursed himself. He had promised the princess he would write her as soon as he arrived and send the note through the sending box. Rushing off to do it now wouldn’t accomplish much; he would just have to see to that as soon as he finished eating.

His hunger satisfied, Thad headed straight for the command center. He causally greeted Trent before entering and continuing to his room. He found his travel sack and began empting its contents until he found what he was looking for. The sending boxes had been one of his greatest ideas as far as he was concerned and, he didn’t know how he had forgotten about it or his promise to the princess.

Opening the box, he found a neatly folded letter inside. He knew he should have checked the box more often, but with everything happening around him, it had skipped his mind. Opening the letter he slowly began to read it to himself.

Dear Thaddeus,

I have just heard that you have come under attack south of the Calisaren duchy. We have only received the barest of information and while we heard that you were in good health, you had sustained some form of injury. I know that the plan was for you to inform me of your arrival at Southpass, but I hope you have received this and will ease my worried mind.

Mother is working hard to get the other nobles to accept her new decrees over the treatment of free men .It hasn’t been easy, and more than a few are causing endless trouble for her, but most of them have come around. The threat of an Ablaian invasion coupled with civil rebellion is helping the cause more than one would think.

Mother has even gone so far as to create a group of knights who are made exclusively of slaves. Their job is to make sure the laws governing the treatment of men and slaves are upheld. Their captain, one of mother’s former guards has been very enthusiastic about his new post.

I guess I have rambled on long enough for the time being. I will eagerly await your response. Safe travels and speedy return, your friend Maria

Thad read the letter three times making sure he didn’t miss anything of importance. He didn’t know why he didn’t think of conversing with the princess more. It wasn’t like he could send a letter every day. The sending box had its limits and could be used only every few days because of the massive draw on magical energies it used. Though it also had its advantages, the size of the boxes only changed the draw slightly; it was the initial connection that caused most of the drain, so you could make the boxes from small to large without a large change in effect.

Looking around his room, he noticed he didn’t have anything to write on or to write with. He had seen many different ink bottles on Trent’s desk and wondered if the old man would be willing to part with a few.

Thad found the general sitting in front of his fireplace drinking something from a heavy ceramic cup that steamed in the chill air. “Trent, I find myself in the need of some writing materials. Do you think it would be possible to get some?”

“Sure, there is plenty of parchment in the top of the drawer, and the quills are in the center section. You may take any of the inks you think you will need; I have plenty more back in storage. The quills and parchment aren’t of the best quality, but they serve their purpose.” Trent said, waving his hand dismissively toward the desk.

Thad grabbed a handful of parchment as well as a bottle of dark black ink and two quills that looked as if they were still in decent condition. He thought about grabbing a bottle of red ink as well, but decided against it. It would come in handy if he was planning out future enchantments, but right now he had his hands full with the simple ones he had already performed hundreds of times.

Thad set the writing materials down on his desk and pulled his chair up. He put the pen to the parchment, but nothing would come to mind. What should he tell her? He had never written a letter to anyone before other than the short notes he had sent the princess back when he lived in the sewers of the capital.

Maria,

I am sorry that I have neglected checking the sending box and have not contacted you sooner. The trip to Southpass has been entertaining to say the least and we did run into a bit of trouble on the road. I was not injured in the engagement; the only trauma I sustained was caused by my own hubris.

We have made it to Southpass and I am currently working on enhancing the defenses. I am running low on supplies, but general Forman has sent a soldier into town to requisition the needed supplies and personnel needed. Hopefully by time the Ablaians attack, I will have this place completely prepared; however, it looks like an impossible task at the moment, as there are thousands of soldiers to equip and only one of me.

I shall write you another report in a few days, when the sending box has had time to recharge. As for now, I hope you and your mother fare well in your endeavors to quell the current rebellion.

CHAPTER XVI

Thad waited anxiously as the wagon was unloaded and the supplies were moved to his. They had brought far more than he thought he could ever use. Sacks upon sacks of cat eye gems as well and a huge amount of uncut crystals, some of which were nearly the size of a man, were moved from the back of the wagon. They had been unable to find a master glass blower was willing to shut down their shop and make the trip, even for a short time, but they had been allowed the use of two apprentices that were of little use during the slower season.

Thad met with the two apprentices while he waited for his materials to be completely unloaded. One was a male and the other female, both were still in their mid to late teens. They only wore cheap wool clothing bundled tight around them to help stave off the cold.

“Hello, I am Thaddeus Torin, the mage you will be working with. What I need isn’t very difficult, I will need glass globes that are strong enough to withstand a bit of handling.” Thad said holding out his hand.

The young man took his hand quickly, but the young lady looked at him as if he was a leper. “I was told we would be assisting a great mage, but I didn’t expect to find that this so called mage was nothing but a poorly bred boy.”

“You are more than welcome to return Tremon if that is your wish.” Eloen said, coming up behind Thad putting her arm protectively around his shoulders.

“Fine, when can your men start the trip back?” The young girl asked spitefully.

“You have misunderstood something miss. The guard will not be headed back to town until the next time we are in need of supplies. It appears that you will have to make the walk on your own.”

The young lady looked horrified as a group of soldiers removed her from the compound. Thad thought that it was a little harsh, but Eloen would hear none of his complaints. “She agreed to the conditions freely. If she can’t honor the agreement, then were not going to waste the manpower to see her back to town. The snow is starting to melt and when the Ablaians attack, we will never every man available.”

In his office, Thad grabbed a handful of gems of varying sizes from one of the sacks. He would have a lot of heavy work in the days ahead of him. He had already finished the preparations on the gate itself as well as about ten percent of the wall while he waited. The general mainly wanted him to make as many of the magical arrows as he could. The demonstration he had performed for the army had been a huge success. The arrows had gone through one of the reinforced shields before breaking and blowing a hole through the steel armor behind it.

The enchantment itself wasn’t hard to do. The hard part was cutting the gems to the size and shape of an arrowhead. Luckily Andre, the blacksmith, had agreed to help on that end and had the crystals moved to his workshop, which he was now sharing with the apprentice glassblower.

Thad wasn’t sure how long it would take the man to get him a batch of arrows, but there had been hosts of volunteers to help him. Thad even had his own security detail that was insisted upon by both Harmon and Eloen. It seemed silly, and he found it annoying to have someone waiting outside the door for him everywhere he went. Who was going to try and attack him in the middle of a military base? As with most things when it came to Eloen, it was impossible to sway her from what she wanted.

Setting the gems down on his worktable, Thad picked up the first battle harness and began the tedious process of linking the gem with the enchantments he had placed upon the armor. It was easy and only took time and a bit of focus since he had done the majority of the work ahead of time. He had already prepared a little under a hundred and though it was only a fraction of what he had to get finished, it was a good start.

Time passed quickly as Thad worked. It had felt like only a few minutes when a knock came at his door from one of his guards. Hunter, a young soldier with a sunny disposition and wicked sword arm poked his head through the door. “Master Torin, it is time for the midday meal. Do you want to go to the mess, or do you want to stay cooped up in here all day again?”

Thad finished the battle harness he was working on and set it down gently on the pile of finished projects. He quickly counted what he had done, and was surprised to find that he had already finished twenty battle harnesses. At this speed, he would have the first hundred done within two days, meaning he would then have to expend more energy as his pre-enchanted stock would run out.

“I could use a good walk. I would also like to check on the new worker, and see how Andre is fairing with the arrowheads. Thad said, getting up from his chair and stretching to alleviate the throbbing in his back from sitting hunched over for such a long period of time.

Exiting his office, Thad was joined by his other daytime escort, Kylee. She was a nice older woman in her early thirties with light brown hair that had been cut short in military fashion. Unlike Hunter, Kylee had asked for the post. Thad had a sneaking suspicion that Eloen had more than a hand in that. While she was a kind woman, she tended to treat Thad like one of her kids. She spent half her time scolding him about spending too much time indoors.

The blacksmiths workshop was only a few doors down from his, but its layout was much different than his own office. Inside held all of the tools the blacksmith needed, but the most of the work was done in an open area outside that was easily accessible through a second door at the rear of the workshop.

Today, Andre wasn’t banging out horseshoes or working the kiln, so he was inside with a grinding wheel and a slew of other tools. Five others also sat around at almost identical looking grinding wheels, working on the arrow heads while two others firmly attached them to the shafts. A large pile of finished arrows were piling up on a nearby table, making Thad wince. While he didn’t mind helping out, the task of reproducing the same enchantment over and over wore on him.

Hearing him enter, Andre looked up from what he was working on and greeted Thad with a large grin. “Thad my boy, at this rate, we should be able to keep more than enough arrows for you to work on. I never worked with crystal before, but after the first few failed attempts I realized that it’s not that much different that working with some of the more delicate metals.”

“We were just headed to the mess hall; I thought I would stop by and check on you and our new worker to see how things were coming along.” Thad said returning Andre’s smile.

“The new lad is out back at the kiln. He’s been making up those glass orbs you asked about in about every size and thickness you could ask for. He seemed more than a little nervous about it all. Then again, you never do leave a man much to work with do you.”

Thad knew what Andre was getting at. While he knew what he wanted, he wasn’t very good at describing it. If he had taken the time to learn more about how they perform their jobs, he might be able to more accurately describe what he needed, but he was so busy that was hard to find the time for such an endeavor.

Outside, Thad found the young apprentice glass worker. The temperature had increased dramatically over the past few days. The snow was still sticking around, but no one knew for how long. One of Thad’s best ideas involved the need for glass spheres. He had worked out the idea back when he lived in the capital’s sewers. Glass was much like crystal and he had tried to use it as a core, but learned that while it could hold and store magic, it couldn’t release it. He wasn’t sure why this was, but he learned that it made very effective weapons. When they broke, they let loose an explosion that ripped through anything nearby.

Thad approached the young man who was currently working a piece of red hot glass. The young man, who Thad realized he didn’t know the name of, looked up. An eager smile quickly replaced the look of sheer concentration on his face.

“Master Torin, I’m glad you came by. I wanted to show you what I’ve come up with, but I didn’t want to disturb your work.” The young man said, setting the glowing glass down to cool.

“Ah yes, I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name earlier.” Thad said slightly embarrassed.

“Oh, it’s Todd sir. Do you think any of these fit what you’re looking for?” Todd asked, showing a dozen spears that one could place their hand in.

Thad picked up the spheres one by one and checked them with his magic. Each one appeared to be similar, but they were different thicknesses. The seventh one seemed about right. The rest were either a bit too thick to break when they needed to, or so thin that they might break by accident causing a large amount of damage to their own forces.

“This one right here is about perfect for what we need. I need a large amount of these if that wouldn’t be too much trouble.”

“No trouble at all sir.” Todd said smiling.

Todd pulled a large thick pot from one of the shelves, the weight nearly causing him to fall. Hunter quickly went to the young man and helped him set the pot over a grate that was situated on the back of the kiln. Thad watched as the man poured a large mixture of something from a heavy burlap sack into the pot.

“Todd, we’re about to head to the mess hall to grab a bite to eat. Would you like to join us?” Hunter asked the young man, who looked as if he could use a break from the sweltering heat the kiln was putting off.

Todd pulled off his heavy apron and gloves and set them neatly on one of the work benches. “Might as well, it will take a while for the glass to melt down and I don’t have anything to do until then. I will just have to see if I can get one of Andre’s workers to stir it every so often until I return.”

While they walked, Todd told them about himself. He had grown up in Tremon. His mother had bought him an apprenticeship with one of the local glass works when he was ten. It was hard work and he hoped that working with the army would show his master that he was ready to move on to being a recognized journeyman. He enjoyed what he did, and his small glass sculptures fetched a good price from passing travelers.

Thad enjoyed listening to Todd’s tale, it wasn’t riveting, but it was nice to hear none the less. They were about the same age and while their backgrounds were completely different, the two seemed to get along well. Thad had few friends and since he would be seeing Todd regularly, he figured it would give him a change to be around someone his own age that shared his enthusiasm for their chosen profession.

The meal line was long, but Thad had learned that since he was considered the same rank as an officer, he was allowed to skip to the front of the line. It felt a little wrong to jump ahead of those who had stood out in the cold, but no one seemed to begrudge him or his escort for it.

The meal was the same as usual, meat, vegetable, and hard bread. Todd seemed to enjoy the food way more than anyone should. It wasn’t that it tasted bad, but it didn’t taste good either. Seeing his new friend take after the food with such fervor made him chuckle lightly.

Looking up from his plate, Todd blushed a deep red. Thad thought that a major challenge, considering his skin was a deep bronze from his many hours standing in front of a hot furnace.

“Sorry, I usually only get to eat some tasteless slop the master feeds us.”

“Don’t worry about it, not all of us are used to eating from the queen’s table. Master Torin here is used to eating roast duck, and other such fine foods.” Hunter reassured the young man, while slightly mocking Thad at the same time.

Thad wasn’t sure why Hunter didn’t like him, but he had made sure to let him know on more than one occasion of his disgust. He never missed a chance to point out his shortcomings during his morning sparing practices, even though the young soldier had failed to beat him once when they had paired off. Thad had considered asking the general to replace the man as his guard, but didn’t want him to get in trouble so had merely tried to ignore his veiled insults.

“Wow, you really got to eat with the queen?” Todd asked excitedly.

Thad brushed back his hair, showing off his slave brand. “On occasion, I have eaten at the same table as the queen, though I usually prefer to dine with the princess or the guards. No matter what you heard, the food isn’t always the best. Sometimes the head cook tries to get creative, much to the queen’s ire.”

“Really, why doesn’t the queen just fire him?”

“Serena knows better he’s supposedly one of the best cooks in the Queendom, and if she has to put up with his eccentrics every now and then, she does. Not to mention, the queen is smart enough not to mess with the person who prepares all your food. People who do that don’t live very long.”

As they ate, Todd continued to ask about the palace and what it was like living there. Thad answered all his questions as best he could and asked him questions about his work as an apprentice. He found a lot of similarities between glass work and magic, how one had to take great care and concentration to mold the work. Once a mistake was made, you couldn’t just correct it. Instead, you had to start over from scratch. Thad considered trying to test Todd to see if he possessed any magical gifts, but with war looming over head, it seemed that it would have to wait. Thad knew his magic and Todd’s glass were vital to the defense efforts and every moment that was wasted on something else was a life that might be lost.

With their meal over, it was time to return to work. The walk back to the armory seemed to pass much faster than normal and Thad found himself wanting to continue talking to Todd, but his work beckoned him.

“Do you mind if I take this with me?” Thad asked, picking up the lone glass sphere that had met with his approval.

“Sure, I’ll have a batch of them ready for you in the morning. Would you like me to bring you what I get done today before nightfall?” Todd asked, as he walked over to the pot of now bubbling liquid.

“Please do.” Thad said, walking through the door and into the room where Andre and the other soldiers were working.

Thad gave the blacksmith a friendly wave as he picked up a bundle of arrows that lay finished on one of the tables. Everything was working out perfect so far. All he had to do now was show the general and officers what he planned with the glass spheres. He had already explained it, but they had shown a keen interest in seeing how it worked with their own eyes. Thad could understand their sentiments; hearing about something and seeing in action were a world of difference.

“Hunter, send a message to the general that I will be ready to demonstrate my exploding spheres whenever he can arrange for it to be seen by the proper individuals.” Thad said before opening his office door, leaving the soldier little time to complain or comment.

Infusing the glass with magic was easy and took little concentration. He didn’t have to really focus on any particular spell or formation. It would just take time to infuse a large number of them as they did hold a large amount of magic and while the mental strain was minimal the fatigue was something else altogether.

Setting the glass orb next to the pile of gems, an idea stuck him. It would be easy to construct a device that fed magic into the orb without him having to directly fill it. It wasn’t much different than what he had done to his staff or magical box. With his new idea in mind, Thad rushed from the room back to where Andre sat, working with his two guards quickly following behind him.

“Andre, can you make me about ten disks of steel, about a foot in diameter and about an inch thick.” Thad asked as soon as he burst through the door, gaining a big smile from the blacksmith.

“Sounds easy, don’t see why a few metal plates has you all hot and bothered, but I can have them ready for you by midday tomorrow. Will that work Master Torin?”

“Andre would you please stop calling you master Torin? Thanks to the general, I have to put up with it from the soldiers; don’t make me hear it from you too.” Thad said slightly annoyed.

Andre knew he hated being called master and did it just to rile him up from time to time. It wasn’t that he didn’t like being treated as important, it was just that he didn’t consider himself anywhere near a master of anything yet. He didn’t want to assume a title that he didn’t feel like he had rightly earned.

Andre laughed at him and waved him off. Thad returned to his office where he began to slowly fill the glass orb with magic until it began to glow a bright red. He could have made the orb glow any color, but red just seemed to be the most appropriate and the easiest for him, and it was also his favorite color.

With the orb ready for its test, Thad set it aside in a box that he had had made shortly after arriving. It could hold twenty of the orbs, each safely in their own little section lined with old blankets and tunics to help insure they didn’t rupture prematurely. Thad couldn’t even begin to imagine what would happen if a large group of the orbs all exploded in one confined area. Luckily the general understood his request and had even cleared a room in the command center vault for the orbs.

Sighing out of sheer boredom of his current tasks, Thad picked up an arrow and began infusing its crystal arrowhead and wooden shaft with the needed enchantments. It was going to be a long day, but at least he had the test for the orb to look forward to.

CHAPTER XVII

Thad stood with General Foreman and a host of other officers, including his friends Harmon and Eloen, waiting for the test to commence. A young volunteer stood with the magically altered orb, a fair distance away, waiting for the signal to launch it toward a large grouping of straw men wearing steel armor using a modified sling.

Though they had only been there a short time, the wait grated on his nerves. Everything that could go wrong with the test ran through his mind. What if it didn’t go off as planned? What if the soldier missed and the orb flew toward them? What if it went off in the sling killing the soldier? Before he left, he was sure that nothing could go wrong. He had check and double checked the thickness of the orb. He had even stopped by and asked Todd what force he believed it would take to cause a crack deep enough to reach its inner core, but now his confidence was waning. He had to fight to keep himself from fidgeting as he watched the soldier place the orb in his sling.

It was a new form of torture, watching the sling spin over the soldiers head with the orb inside. He could hear the whistle made from the leather as it cut through the air. Then the orb was launched. It flew at an arc far down the field were Thad had to squint to see it as it struck the straw dummies.

Thad’s heart stopped as the orb disappeared, replaced by a flash of light and an ear shattering explosion that sounded as if lighting had stuck right next to them. Thad was too afraid to look at everyone and occupied his mind by surveying the damage the orb had caused. The straw dummies were destroyed beyond recognition, and it looked as if bits of armor had been thrown twenty yards or more. The soldier who had unleashed the orb lay on the ground, and for a brief moment, Thad was worried that he may have been injured. His fears were soon alleviated when the man got to his feet, he was unsteady and breathing heavily, but he appeared to be uninjured.

He felt a hard slap on the back that made him jump in surprise. His startled reaction made the soldiers around him break out laughing.

“Thaddeus my boy, I am most impressed. When you first explained what you planned to do, I imagined something much less effective. I understand now why you insisted they be guarded to such an extent. If a large group of those went off in once place, I daresay we wouldn’t have a fort left to defend.” General Forman said, his face holding a little more awe than Thad had expected from the seasoned warrior.

“That’s the truth General. I can see why the queen sent you to us now. I must admit, at first I figured you wouldn’t be of much use, but now I’m starting to feel sorry for the Ablaians. How many of these do you think you can prepare for us?” An older captain with a thick gray mustache and bald head said, giving Thad a hearty smile.

“I don’t know how many I will be able to prepare at the moment. Tomorrow blacksmith Andre will be making some plates for me so I can enchant them to charge the glass orbs with magic. I’m planning on making ten of them; each one will take about a day and a half before the orbs are full. As long as you keep putting new orbs on them, they will continue to make more. I will be adding a time sequence to the devices, so that they will quit working after a set period of time.”

Trent and the older captain who had been speaking nodded their heads in approval, but a brash young lieutenant didn’t seem too pleased with his answer. “Why would you make them so they quit working? With a weapon like this at our disposal, we would never have to fear another Ablaian invasion.”

Thad started to explain his reasoning, but General Foreman beat him to it. “Yes, with a weapon like this we could defend the fort from many attackers. We could most likely take over Abla, after we amassed enough ammunition. In fact, we could probably start our own empire with enough weapons of this kind, and that is the exact reason that it shouldn’t last. Today we know that our queen is a kind and gentle sort, but what of the future Jacob. Can you promise our young mage here that these will never be used for evil purposes? While I wouldn’t mind having one of these permanently at the fort, I can see Thaddeus’ reasons for not wanting something so dangerous to last forever.”

Thad had expected there to be some fuss about making a weapon that only worked for a short period of time. Even the orbs wouldn’t hold magic over an extended period. In less than a year after being made, they would be so weak that the glass orb itself would cause more damage than the magic it held. He was glad that some of the officers understood his motives. He had learned one thing well from the lesson in the book of magic. The mages own creations were used against them during the Fae Wars, and that was something he didn’t want to repeat.

As the group made their way back toward the main area of the fort, Eloen jogged up beside him. “Remind me not to make you mad when you’re holding one of those.” She said nudging him hard in the ribs with her elbow. “I have seen you do a lot of damage since I met you, but that is the first time I nearly wet myself. Seriously Thad, those scare the living hell out of me. All I have to say is I’m glad you’re on our side. I can’t imagine what war must have been like when there were thousands of mages running around.”

Thad understood what she was saying, and a part of him could start to see why the emperor had gone after the mages with such vehemence. He was still new to magic and most of his efforts were trial and error. Back then, they had mages who could pass down their knowledge to the next generation, constantly building on their skills. If he could do so much damage while learning everything on his own, what havoc could the mages of the forgotten past been able to do?

The sun was already setting so instead of heading back to his office, Thad walked back to the command center with Trent. He was glad the day was over. He had worked himself with hardly any breaks since the shipment of good had come in earlier that day. He was surprised that he was able to work for such a long period of time. The constant strain would show sooner or later, but the fact it hadn’t yet meant that he had grown much stronger over the passing year. Using direct magic still tried him fairly fast, but enchanting seemed to take a smaller toll on his body and mind with every passing day. Maybe it was because with enchanting, you were slowly building the magical force that would be employed by the combined effort of the core and body instead of hastily building it and directing its force with your own. He wasn’t quite sure, but he wished he had someone with knowledge of such things.

Back in his room, Thad checked his sending box as he did every day to see if the princess had sent another letter. It was bare, but Thad wasn’t disheartened. It had just been used a few days prior when the princess had told him about the meeting that the king of Rane had set up with her to discuss the impact of the new laws on their merchants.

Pulling out a sheet of parchment, Thad quickly wrote a letter telling Maria of the arrival of the shipment of supplies as well as the result of his test. He also wrote of Todd and everything else that had happened to him in the past few days. The letter wasn’t overly long, it only took up half the page but he figured it was enough information unless he wanted to bore her with what he had eaten for his midday meal.

Folding the parchment neatly, he placed it inside the sending box before laying down on his bed. Closing his eyes, Thad tried to plan out what he would do when he awoke. He got as far as an early morning run before he drifted off into a deep sleep.

Thad woke early the next morning, feeling thoroughly rested. Leaving his room, he found his two guards waiting for him. Their own eyes were still sluggish from lack of sleep. He felt bad making them exercise before the sun came up, but he knew that if he didn’t force himself to exercise, then he would fall back into the pattern of spending countless days without moving.

He didn’t take a fast pace, just a slow run around the Fort. After seeing his guards lagging behind, he switched to shorter circuits around the training area so they could watch him from a fixed position. He decided to stop when the rest of the guards started showing up for morning sparing practice. He estimated he had run about three miles, he wasn’t breathing hard but he hadn’t really pushed himself either.

Eloen and her group were some of the first ones to the training arena. They had a running completion going with the other squads. Eloen had drafted Thad into her group, and they were currently ranked second among all the units. Captain Bower and his men had held an iron hold on first for the past week. Unlike Eloen’s group, his were all older seasoned soldiers who had all seen countless battles. A lot of the soldiers had nicknamed the group the silver soldiers making light of their age, but there was no denying their skill at arms.

As per the rules, they would each have a match, half with the team higher than them and half with the team lower. Even though he was skilled, Thad was far from the best in the group, so he was always placed fighting against the weaker team. He had lost more often than not, but he could tell his skills with the sword were growing every day.

The first five matches against Bower’s platoon commenced. Thad and Lucas warmed up preparing for their fights. Lucas was a few years older than Thad and had joined Eloen’s unit shortly after he had been placed in the duchess’s army. Like Thad, Lucas was also a slave from the academy. He was good with his blade, but he lacked patience and would often resort to a risky move in order to finish a fight rather than wait for an opening to present itself. Sometimes it worked, but more often than not, Lucas found himself on the receiving end of the wooden practice blades.

After they warmed up, the two sat and watched the remaining battles waiting for their turn. They lost terribly against Bower, with only Ballard securing a win. Their next set of fights would be against the third ranked squad that belonged to the snarky lieutenant that had been at the weapons demonstration the night before.

Darryl was up against their top man and scored an easy win, quickly dispatching the man with blurring movements from his double blades. Thad felt slightly bad for his opponent; if one wasn’t used to fighting against a skilled dual wielder, it was easy to be overwhelmed.

The next two fights passed by much more slowly with one win for each team. That put them at two to one against their opponents. Thad stepped apprehensively to the field, knowing that if he won, he would secure their spot as number two for another day. He was surprised when the lieutenant was the one who stepped onto the field as his challenger.

“Let’s see if the mage is half as good with his sword as he is with his little parlor tricks.” The lieutenant said as he took up a fighting stance.

Thad refused to respond to the man’s taunt, instead he readied himself. He placed his lead foot slightly to rear, in a defensive position. The lieutenant attacked with vigor, but each blow was parried by Thad, who was slowly moving in a routine pattern forcing the lieutenant to readjust after every few attacks. Thad was conserving his energy while, at the same time, forcing the lieutenant to expend his. It was the oldest trick in the book, but his opponent was so obsessed with beating him, he hadn’t noticed that Thad had yet to launch a single attack.

He could see that the lieutenant was tiring quickly as he started sweating profusely the front of his tunic growing darker every second. His attacks were also coming less frequently and with reduced force. It was almost time for him to make his move. Waiting paid off as the lieutenant made a sloppy, slow overhead chop. Thad quickly moved into action, letting his sword travel up the side of the man’s blade until it reached the guard. He snapped it hard to the left, pushing the sword wide and forcing his opponent off balance.

Thad could have easily made a winning blow in the time it would take the lieutenant to regain his stance, but he wanted more. He wasn’t usually the vindictive type, but everything about the young officer seemed to rub him the wrong way. Even the way the man moved seemed to be so self-important, it made him want to slap the swagger out of his step.

Stepping forward and turning on his lead foot, Thad brought up his elbow, smashing it hard into the officer’s nose. He was rewarded with the sound of breaking cartilage and a grunt from the lieutenant as he stumbled backward. Thad didn’t let up, bringing his sword around and down, sweeping the man’s feet out from under him. As the lieutenant tried to pick himself off the hard ground, Thad brought his sword down across his back with a loud thud.

With the battle won, Thad walked back to his comrades who cheered and patted him on his back. Eloen joined in, but he could tell she was less than pleased with his performance. When Lucas moved up for his chance to fight, Eloen grabbed Thad by the arm, pulling him away from the crowd.

“What was that?” She asked; her voice and body language clearly showing her displeasure with his show.

“He’s a pompous ass that needed to be taken down a peg or two.” Thad replied defensively.

“Yes Webber is a major ass. But we can’t afford you to start making waves this close to the Ablaian attack.”

Thad was saved from having to respond, thanks to Lucas losing in a grandiose style. Thad quickly joined his other friends in breaking down the fight for Lucas and helping him find out where he needed work.

After their sparing was finished, they all headed for a quick breakfast where they talked more about their previous and upcoming fights. Once their meals were devoured, they all headed to their respective posts.

Thad’s first stop was to see Andre, who was busy working in the smithy, making his steel plates. The blacksmith had already finished three, so Thad grabbed them and headed for his own office. Once inside, Thad went straight to his desk and began working on the magical charging plates.

The first one took a lot of effort to find the best array for the gems as well as the perfect enchantment links that would allow for the best absorption rate. While he was working on the second, he heard the door to his office open. He didn’t think it was time for the midday meal, but he could be wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time he lost track of the hours as he worked. He was at a good stopping place, having just finished linking two of the gems together.

Turning around, he found Hunter creeping toward him with a bloody knife held in his hand. Thad had been focusing hard that his brain was still a bit sluggish. He didn’t quite understand what was happing until Hunter lunged at him with the dagger. Thad instinctively threw up his arms trying to protect his vitals. Thad screamed loudly as the dagger bit deep into his forearm.

Thad regained his wits quick enough to activate his shield ring as he kicked hunter off of him. He didn’t have a weapon, but he didn’t really need one. This was one time when no one was around to get in the way if his magic. Thad touched his rune necklace and cast a thick lightning bolt towards Hunter, hitting him square in the chest and throwing him back hard against the wall. Thad could smell the burning flesh and hair as Hunter’s body slid lifelessly to the floor.

Thad got to his feet and looked down at his arm. A steady flow of blood flowed from the wound. He tried to stem the flow with one of the blankets he had used to cushion the explosive orbs. The blood quickly started to soaked trough the blanket and Thad knew he was in trouble. He stumbled to his feet and made his way out of the office. Opening the door, he found his young female guard slumped on the floor with her throat cut. Well, now he knew why the dagger was already bloody when Hunter had come into his office.

He used his hand to steady himself as he staggered down the hall. His head was growing light and his vision was blurring as he reached the door to the blacksmith workshop. Thad fell through the door, barely catching himself on one of the workbenches. He didn’t see Andre, but the other soldier started yelling and rushed towards him.

Thad tried to fight the soldiers off with his one good hand, but his strength was waning and it was a constant battle to keep his eyes open. It was a losing battle and Thad felt as his knees hit the stone floor hard. He tried to stay upright, but it was hopeless. He began to fall forward. He didn’t feel the impact of the ground as darkness enveloped him.

CHAPTER XVIII

Thad woke on his soft bed, surrounded by three of his friends who all wore serious looks on their face. Eloen sat at his bedside while two of her troops Alden and Donnie stood armed for battle on either side of his door.

“Sleeping beauty finally awake?” Eloen said, smiling though her voice was taut with worry.

“I just needed my beauty sleep.” Thad said, trying to keep his voice light and jovial.

“We found Hunter and Kylee. It was pretty easy to piece together that Hunter had killed Kylee then attacked you. We searched his belongings and found a few letters indicating that he was working with the Ablaians. Since we don’t know if there are any more, we decided my squad will be reassigned as your new security detail since everyone here has had a chance to kill you numerous times and haven’t done it yet.”

“So the Ablaians are sending spies to kill me? That’s wonderful.” Thad replied sarcastically.

“We don’t think so. None of the letters pointed at you directly. They just said that he was to do his best to hamper our defensive efforts. We believe he saw you as an obstacle to the Ablaian invasion, but we’re not going to take any chances for now on. You will be guarded even when you go to the latrine.”

Though her voice was serious, Thad could see the concern in her face. It was nice to know someone cared, but he didn’t like the idea of having an even more intrusive guard than before. Looking up at Eloen, he knew arguing or complaining wouldn’t get him anywhere so he resolved to deal with his new guards as best he could. At least this time they were people he counted among his friends.

He wanted to get back to work, but Eloen and the military doctor refused to allow him any of his enchanting supplies. While his wound had only been on his arm, he had lost quite a bit of blood so they wanted him to rest for a few days without doing anything that stressed him physically or mentally.

With little to do, Thad asked for his magical book so that he could get some good reading in while he was stuck in his bed. It wasn’t ideal, but at least he might be able to learn something that would be of help later on. He had learned early that the better he understood the forces of the world, the easier they became to manipulate and copy.

Neither Eloen nor the doctor could see a good reason to keep him from reading, so they sent a runner to fetch his travel pack from his office. It was annoying not having the thing with him. He decided he was going to start carrying it everywhere. He hated being bored and everything to keep him busy was now on the other side of the fort. In all fairness, he wasn’t in the clearest mindset when he left it behind.

While he waited on the book, he chatted with Eloen whose worry still showed clearly on her face. He tried to steer the conversation away from talks of war and death, but somehow the conversation kept coming back around to the upcoming battle.

“Seriously Thad, I don’t want you on the battlements during the battle. If the situation gets that dire, we can call for you. Until then, you are to stay back at the command center.”

“Eloen, I know you’re only trying to protect me, but it’s my choice. If I decide to be on the battlements, nothing will stop me. If my being up there helps to save so much as one life, it’s worth the risk. By time the battle starts, all the help I can provide with my enchantments will be at its end. If I remember correctly, the queen wanted me to be seen during the battle, not just by our allies but the enemies as well. While I know you outrank a civilian in a war zone, I still don’t think that gives you the authority to override the queen.” Thad said, getting agitated with Eloen stubborn resistance.

“Fine, have it your way but don’t expect me to cry when you get yourself injured again.” Eloen said before storming out of his room.

Alden and Donnie broke out laughing a short while after Eloen had left the room. “You two lovebirds having a little love spat?” Alden said giving Thad a broad grin.

Thad wanted to throw his pillow at the annoying soldier, but he was too comfortable to bother with it. He opted instead to simple stick out his tongue out at Alden.

Thad was happy the runner returned with his magical tome. He had only had sparse moments on the journey to read so far. He had filled the tome with countless books before leaving the capital. A lot of them had to do with what little history he could find of the time before the Fae wars. The killing of magic had included any written knowledge, so he doubted he would find much about the mages of the past, but any hint he could find about them might aid him in his endeavors to unearth the secrets of the past.

Thad read late into the night. His guards were shifted every few hours, but he paid little attention to who was in his room at any given time. The first few books he searched were histories, only mentioning the scourge of the mages. They never offered many details about how they lived or their capabilities.

He was currently reading the diary of a long forgotten baron who had a small holding not far from what was now the capital of Farlan. Thad figured the book was found in the ruins of his estate and sold to the Royal school as an antique. It mostly held the Counts thoughts and day to day events, but it often mentioned a mage he had hired.

The mage had earned the job after creating a richly decorated waterfall from out of the ground. The baron had to pay dearly to keep the mage around and his main function seemed to be as a status symbol. There was little else written mention the mages power, but Thad continued to drag through the diary, reading every mundane passage in hopes of uncovering even the tiniest tidbit of information.

“Having fun reading through that musty old book?” Darryl asked as he plopped down heavily on the edge of Thad’s bed.

Thad kicked Darryl hard in the back. “I was trying to enjoy it until some loudmouth illiterate buffoon had to interrupt me.”

Darryl freighted ignorance and shock. “Who would do such a thing? Tell me who was so inconsiderate and I shall smite them with my holy wrath.” The two young men sat with serious expressions for a few moments before breaking out into a gall of laughter.

“You really know how to stir up a heap of trouble you know that Thad? Ever since your little attack, they have been searching every last soldiers personal effects trying to ferret out spies. So far they have found two more soldiers with missives from the Ablaians. It isn’t pretty, but spies are inevitable between countries and with this fort being the only link between Farlan and Abla, you would expect to find a couple. Everyone knows and expects that’s why we all observe each other so closely, but no one took it so seriously until you were attacked. I can understand why. If the Ablaians don’t know about you, then they’re in for a surprise when they launch their little attack.” Darryl said punching him solidly in the arm.

“Well next time I’ll try not to get myself injured so you don’t have to worry about upsetting your little routine.” Thad replied dryly.

“See that you don’t, and if it wouldn’t be too much trouble, could you see that you don’t upset the captain like that again. She has been a pain the backside since you got attacked. I don’t know what you said to her today, but she’s been on a rampage ever since she left your room.”

Thad let out a heavy sigh and grabbed the glass of water on the table next to his bed. After taking a hearty drink, he offered some of it to Darryl who gladly accepted. “We had a little disagreement on if I should be present on the battlements during the battle. She wants me to sit back in the safety of the command center while everyone else is out there in harm’s way.”

“Ah, so the young captain is worried about your safety and your pride forced you to refuse her generous offer. I’m telling you, the way you are with women, you will be lucky if one doesn’t kill you.” Darryl said laughing.

“You might just be right there my friend.” Thad said laughing along with Darryl.

The two talked until Darryl’s guard shift was over. Once he was gone, Thad went back to reading. The diary was still incredibly boring and he soon drifted off to sleep with the tome still in his hands.

The next two days were a measure of Thad’s patience. It was agonizing, having to stay in bed, but he had already fought with Eloen more than he wanted to and wasn’t looking forward for another round. The doctor had said that he would be able to get out of the bed today as long as his vitals were still good and his arm was healing normally, and there were no signs of infection. It was still early, but it was hard to wait for him to show.

Shortly after the sun cleared the horizon, the doctor walked through his door. He was a kind, older man with sandy-brown hair and a bushy mustache that looked as if a caterpillar had crawled on top of his lip.

“How are we felling today Master Torin?” He asked in his gruff voice.

“Feeling just fine doc. Ready to get out of this bed that’s for sure.”

“Well let’s take a look.” The doctor said as he gently lifted up Thad’s arm and removed the bandages covering his wound. The wound had already scabbed over and didn’t look pretty, but it wasn’t red or swollen so that was good.

“Looks like its healing just fine. You still have to be careful of infection, so make sure you keep it clean. If you can promise to do that, I’ll tell the captain you’re free to get out of bed.”

Thad reached up and gave the doctor a hug. It was the best news he had gotten in days. Wasting no time, he jumped out of bed, quickly dressed himself. The guards in tow he headed for the bathes. It had been too long since he felt clean, and the smell that was coming off his own body was beginning to make him gag.

Once he was clean, Thad headed directly to his lab to get back to work. The one charging plate he had finished was already at work, but at only one orb a day, it was incredibly slow. The second one was nearly finished when he left and wouldn’t take long to complete. Instead of heading though the main door, Thad made a detour and entered the armory through the Smithy entrance where he found Todd busy making more glass orbs. The young man must have already made enough to last them weeks already, but he was still fast at work.

“Hi Todd, still working hard I see.” Thad said starting the young man a bit.

“Master Torin glad to see you’re doing better. If you got a moment I have something I want to show you.” The young man rattled off enthusiastically.

Todd took him to a small box stored on a shelf at the back of the workshop. Opening the box, he placed a perfect replication of Southpass Fort in glass on the workbench. “I was wondering if you would be able to send this to the queen as a gift. I don’t know if she would like anything I make, but since you know her, I thought you would be the best person to deliver it for me.”

Thad could easily see the hope in Todd’s face. The glass fort wasn’t very big; it was barely taller than his hand. Each little section of the thing looked so frail Thad was afraid to touch it. The miniature fort was small enough to fit in his sending box and if the queen didn’t find it as beautiful as he did, the princess would.

“I can see to that, but before I move it do you mind if I magically strengthen it? I’m afraid it would break on its way to its destination as it is.”

“Could you do that? I had it placed in this box with plenty of padding, but with things this delicate, there’s always a fear of breaking.” Todd said almost jumping with excitement.

“It only took a few moments to imbue the glass with magic. Once he was done, he was sure he could pick it up without it breaking but it would still shatter if he dropped it from any height. With the gift for the queen safely stored in its box under his arm, Thad went straight to his office.

Unlike before, his guards didn’t wait outside, but insisted on being inside the room with him. It made him a little uneasy at first considering his last guard had attempted to kill him. After reassuring himself that the two men were friends that had traveled all the way from the capital with him, he sat down and began to work.

After finishing up the last bit on the second magical charger, he quickly finished up the second one. Once that was finished, he checked the time and noticed he didn’t have time to finish a third before the midday meal so he picked up a bundle of arrows and began the tedious job of enchanting them. The arrows were easy to do and only took about ten minutes apiece to complete.

Thad didn’t want to stop working to go the mess hall, so he asked Alden to send a runner to grab them a plate of food. He had already been out for too many days and didn’t want to fall behind any further.

Everything was going well and Thad had finished three bundles of arrows as well as four of the chargers well before dinner. His head was throbbing slightly from the strain, but it was far from unbearable. As was his normal routine, Thad checked each of his new works with his magical sight to make sure there were no weak links between the body and core of the items. It was a simple thing, but it was one of the most enjoyable parts of the day. Not only was he sure that his work was doing what it was supposed to, the golden lines that arched and twisted between the gems, connecting them together was a sight to behold.

Tearing himself away from the natural beauty of the magical forces. Thad stretched, his body stiff from hours of sitting still while his mind worked. Thad wasn’t really in the mood to eat in the mess, so he asked Ballard to send a runner to bring his food to his room. He knew they didn’t mind, and had even suggested that eating in such a crowded place was unnecessarily dangerous.

Once back in his room, Thad grabbed the sending box and opened it. For once he was happy to find it empty, or he would have to wait a day or more before he could send the queen her gift.  After scratching out a quick note to the queen explaining the gift and who it was from, as well as a short letter to the princess updating her on current events, Thad placed all three in the sending box and closed the lid.

His meal arrived shortly, delivered by Eloen. She placed the plate of food on his night stand and then turned to Alden and Peterson who guarded his door. “You two can wait outside for a bit. I promise he will be safe in here with me for the time being.”

Alden gave them a knowing smile while Peterson whispered something into his cohort’s ear, getting a healthy laugh from Alden. Eloen cleared her throat and both men looked up keenly before darting out of the room.

“Why have I been graced with your presence this lovely evening my lady?”

Eloen turned on him, her face slightly less than pleased. “Don’t you dare start that crap with me. I’m still not that happy with you at the moment. The doctor told me you have been released for duty so I thought I would come by and check on you myself.”

“How kind of you.” Thad replied disingenuously.

Eloen looked down at Thad as he lay on his bed eating his meal. She let out a soft sigh. Her eyes melted from their hard glare too their usual soft radiance. “I won’t apologize; I still don’t think you should be on the battlements during the battle. That said, I don’t want to fight about it either. I can’t stop you, just promise me you’ll try and stay safe.”

Thad wasn’t sure what to say. He could hear the catch in her voice and it sounded as she was on the verge of tears. “Well I’m not in any more of a hurry to die than you are.”

His words didn’t magically improve Eloen’s morose mood, but it did earn him a sad smile. Eloen never said anything else; she just stood there and watched him eat. He tried to think of what to say, but nothing would come to mind. He silently wished he had a spell that let him read someone’s mind. He quickly discounted the idea while it might be handy in certain situations, using it on a friend seemed wrong and more than slightly dishonest.

As soon as he finished his meal, Eloen collected his plate and cup and headed to the door. Thad called out to her to wait. She turned around and looked at him her eyes downcast and her face sullen.

“Eloen, I’ll promise to keep myself safe as long as you do the same. I don’t have many people who I count as true friends, but you are one of them. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you around to constantly harass me.”

Eloen didn’t say anything, she just took the few steps to where he sat and wrapped him in a tight hug. He could feel as something wet dropped on his cheek as she squeezed tighter. Then hiding her face, she quickly turned and left the room. When she left, his two guards reentered the room fixing him with harsh glairs.

Neither Alden nor Peterson said anything, but he could tell they weren’t pleased with him. He knew that with the way Eloen left the room it must have looked bad, but if she had wanted them to know what had been said, she would have told them so he refused to explain himself.

CHAPTER XIX

Thad stood on the battlements and looked down at the ground below. The snow was all but gone and everyone was on edge. They Ablaians should attack any day. Thad had wondered why they hadn’t already. The ground had been more than clear enough for days now. The only thing that made sense, was they were waiting for the ground to dry so the small layer of mud wouldn’t slow them down.

He had already finished the sphere chargers and they were building up an impressive stock of magical explosives. There were already almost a hundred of the violent little orbs in the vault. Thad thought that would be more than enough, but the army kept making more. He hoped he hadn’t made a mistake in giving them a source of such power. His only solace was that they wouldn’t last long after the battle.

The blacksmith and some of the soldiers were busy making miniature catapults to fling the magical orbs at the enemy so they wouldn’t have to worry about one landing too close and destroying part of the wall they were meant to protect. Todd was still busy making stockpiles of the orbs. Eloen and her troops were still playing babysitter to him.

At least the relationship between Eloen and himself had returned to its former glory, with her constantly trying to make him blush as he tried to figure her out. He wasn’t sure how long he could have put up with her being morose and gloomy.

“Are you going to stand there until the Ablaians show up?” Darryl said from behind him.

“Thad turned around and started down the stairs back down to the lower compound popping Darryl in the back of the head as he passed him. “I thought about it, but I didn’t want to hear you whine all day long.”

With his main project done and plenty of arrows, Thad was working on enchanting armor for the troops, but he wasn’t pushing himself. He still did a pack of arrows a day, but he was sure that he had more than enough for the battle, but one could never tell. He had never been in a siege before, so it was hard for him to calculate how many they would actually need.

Thad really didn’t want to go back to his office and spend the rest of the day working. It would be different if he was working on something unique and new, but doing the same thing over and over day in and out was driving him insane.

“If you don’t want to work on the armor, take a few days off. I don’t think anyone will begrudge you some time to yourself. Even soldiers get down time.” Alden said as they made their way across the courtyard.

“I know, but what would I do. “

“I’m not trying to tell you what to do Thad, but you could always take the captain down to Soldiers Reprieve.” Alden replied laughing.

“Soldiers Reprieve?”

“It’s a hot spring a few miles from the fort. It’s a bit of a pain to get to, but it’s well worth it.”

“I might just do that, thanks for the tip Alden.”

Alden slid up next to him and slapped him roughly on the back. “Think nothing of it. Just try not to make the captain mad again.”

Thad found Eloen in the command center talking to General Foreman. The old general and young maiden seemed to get along well and Thad often found the two chatting. The only downside to their chats was that he was often the topic of conversation between the two. He knew people talked about him, but he didn’t think he would have to listen to the conversation from his room a few doors down. He slightly suspected Eloen knew he could hear her and chose the opportunity to redden his ears even if she couldn’t see him.

The old general gave him a smile as he walked into the man’s office. Eloen joined in, but where the general’s smile was friendly, hers seemed calculating and planned. He was getting used to it. She always seemed to be planning something where he was concerned; he just wasn’t sure what it was all the time.

“Just the Woman I was looking for.” Thad said cheerfully.

Eloen’s raised her left eyebrow and her smile became more of a smirk. “Oh, you’re looking for me. Pray tell, what has our gallant mage out searching for a lowly captain.”

“I could use some time off and one of my friends suggested I go to a place called Soldiers Reprieve. I was hoping you could show me the way.”

Eloen’s face changed to one of surprise and what he was sure was excitement. The sudden change slightly worried him as she jumped out of her chair and rushed for the door. Right before exiting the room she grabbed the doorframe and turned back to him. “I’ll be right back, I just got to grab a few things then we can leave.”

The general let out a barking laugh. “You two enjoy yourselves. I fear soon there won’t be much time for merry making. Ah! To be young again.”

Thad went to his own room and grabbed a second set of clothes and a towel. Alden had sad it was a hot springs and Thad didn’t think Eloen would let him get away with staying out of the water. With his supplies nearly packed away, he went back to the main chamber to await his friend as Alden and Darryl made light of the situation.

Eloen returned in short order, carrying the travel sack that Thad had made. “Let’s go, we’re burning daylight.” She said, grabbing his arm and tugging him outside with Darryl and Alden following behind laughing. Eloen turned quickly, giving the two men a scathing glare. “I think you two could use some time off yourself why don’t you go see what the others are up too?”

Alden face took on a hurt expression. “That’s very kind of you but we would be remiss in our duties if we did such a thing.”

“It wasn’t a suggestion, now go before I have you scrubbing pots in the mess for the foreseeable future.” Eloen said pointing toward the barracks.

Darryl turned to Alden, holding out his arm. “Shall we?” Smiling Alden too Darryl’s offered arm and the two ambled off.

With their shadows gone, Eloen quickly took off, Thad racing to keep up with her. When Alden said that it took a bit of effort to get to the hot springs Thad imagined a long hike. Instead, it was more of a series of long climbs up and down steep sections of the mountain. Thad knew he needed to exercise more, but this was ridiculous.

When the hot spring finally came into view, it was like seeing an oasis in the desert. Everything around them was barren and rocky except the large pool of water that had trees and flowers sprouting around it.

With her normal disregard, Eloen stripped down to her underclothes and jumped in the water laughing like a child at play. Thad followed her example except with a bit more decorum. The water was hotter than what he normally liked and the cool air blowing down from the mountain caused him to shiver.

Eloen floated around him, splashing him every so often with water. Suddenly she jumped up and placing her hands on his shoulders shoved him under the water. He could hear her laughing as he resurfaced.

“Lighten up and have some fun.” Eloen said, swimming back up to him and wrapping her arms around his neck. She placed her wet lips against his. The feel of her tongue darting inside his mouth and taste of her breath left him speechless. Pulling back, she looked him seriously in the eyes.

Nothing was said as the two just floated in place staring into each other’s eyes. Thad felt his heartbeat speed up and his temperature rise. It was the most peaceful moment he could ever remember having.

“Hungry?” Eloen asked, pulling away from him and swimming over to where her pack sat on the side of the pool.

Without waiting for a response, Eloen started pulling food and drinks from her magical pack. Thad was surprised on the variety of food she had thought to bring along. There were cold meats, cheese, and fruits.

Thad drifted over to where Eloen was and pulled himself out of the water, being careful not to get the food wet. As soon as his body left the hot water, the chill air hit him making him wish he had stayed in. He quickly went to his pack and pulled out his towel and dried off the best he could, then went to rejoin Eloen at the pool.

Thad sat down, letting his feet dangle off the edge his toes dipping in the water. Eloen handed him a gray looking plate filled with food. Cutting a piece of bread off with his knife, he made himself a quick sandwich. The food was still fresh and tasty even if the cheese was a bit bitter for his taste.

The stone cup Eloen handed him was filled with a sweet mixed berry juice. It faintly reminded him of his favorite juice back at the capital. All the worries that had been weighing him down seemed to wash away as he sat in front of the steaming water.

Eloen scooted over next to him, her arm and leg bumping into his. She swayed slightly knocking into him. “You know my aunt likes you a lot. She was pushing me to try and rope you into getting married.” Eloen’s voice was steady but Thad could see her cheeks take on a rosy tone as she blushed lightly.

Thad tried to keep the heat from his own face but failed miserably, blushing a deep crimson. “I know, she talked to me about it too. She said she thought it would settle you down.”

Eloen let out a flamboyant Laugh. “Got to give auntie one thing, when she wants something she goes after it head first.” Eloen said bumping into him again. “So what did you tell her?”

Thad was unsure how best to answer her question. He did like Eloen, but he was still unsure of himself. He silently wished that the Slave Academy had given classes on how to deal with women. It seems like that was a grave oversight, considering all their owners would be female.

“I told her I wasn’t really ready to get into a committed relationship. There is just too much going on and I’m not one to rush into things. I’m not even a free man, to make the choice really.” Thad said so softly that Eloen had to lean in close to hear him.

She gave him a slightly sad smile. “Well, at least it’s not a no. That means I still have a chance to steal you away from the little princess.”

The sun was already past midday and was lowering fast. “It looks like we should start making our way back down to the fort. It’s hard enough to navigate this terrain during the light, it would be impossible once the sun sets.” Eloen said as she started to pack up the leftover food.

The climb back to the fort seemed just as hard if not harder than the climb up. It was made even more so by the uncomfortable silence between the two. Thad was relieved when they made it down the last slope and the walkway to the fort was visible.

“Well, it’s getting late. You better get some sleep, you never know when the Ablaians are going to attack.” Eloen said a as she turned in the direction of her barracks.

Thad gently grabbed her arm, forcing her to look at him. “Eloen, maybe when the battle is over we can discuss the marriage again.”

Eloen kissed him gently on the cheek and lined his arm with hers. “No reason to rush things. As long as we make it through the siege, we will have all the time in the world for me to harass you about it.” She said smiling sweetly.

When they reached the main compound, they immediately noticed something was wrong. Soldiers ran all over the place frantically. Eloen grabbed the first person who came within arm’s reach, yanking the poor young man to a stop and nearly dumping him on his backside.

“Report.” Was all Eloen had to say before the young soldier started giving them a full run down of what had happened while they had been away.

It seemed that shortly before midday, the Ablaians had begun their march. They had sent a small foray to test the forts defenses, but were quickly pushed back. Since then, they haven’t sent any more troops against us, but have been doing something at the far end of the valley. They have been keeping it fairly well hidden, so we’re not quite sure what. The officers think it’s some kind of siege weapon, either a catapult or arbalest. If it is, it’s a small one. The valley really isn’t big enough to support a full size one and the troops. It would either block their advance or their retreat.

Eloen and Thad rushed to the battlements and were greeted by General Forman as well as the rest of the Captains who were currently on duty. “Glad you two made it back. If I didn’t know better I would have sworn they were waiting for you to leave before they attacked. A few were worried that you might have been attacked during your outing. I must admit I was beginning to worry a little myself.”

Thad walked up to the edge of the battlements and surveyed the ground below him. There were thousands upon thousands of troops. They were easily outnumbered ten to one. Thad had never imagined such a force was even possible to field at one time. He could see what the soldier earlier had mentioned. In a covered area, a large group of men were bringing in wood as well as other supplies, but he couldn’t tell what they were doing beyond that.

The general walked up behind him and placed his hand on his shoulder. “You might want to get some sleep. I doubt they will send any sizeable force during the night, and we will need you up to full force in the morning.”

Thad nodded his head silently and allowed Eloen to guide him back to his room at the command center. She stayed by his side until two of her troops were sent to take back up the job of guarding him. Before leaving, she leaned down and gave him a gentle kiss and a tight hug.

“Make sure you keep your promise and stay safe tomorrow.” She said before leaving him alone with his two sitters.

CHAPER XXI

Thad was on the battlements well before the sun crested the horizon. The Ablaians had been content to wait for daylight as well, and they hadn’t even seen so much as a small foray against the fort during the night.

About halfway to midday, the Ablaians started to form up ranks, uncovering what they had been working on. It was three long ladders on wheels protected by metal shields. They also had the same set up for what Thad believed was a battering ram set on pulleys and ropes so that it could more easily be swung.

The Ablaians moved in a formation, the men up front protecting the ones behind them with a large rectangular shield made of steel. The ones behind used the same kind of shield held over their head to protect from above. Thad wasn’t sure if his magical arrows would be able to do much damage against their formation, but they weren’t the first line of defense. The exploding orbs were.

As soon as they were in range, the officers signaled for the mini catapults to fire their payloads. Thad watched with trepidation as the glass orbs sored through the air, two thirds of them finding their intended targets. The resulting effect made Thad sick to his stomach. He watched as the bodies of soldiers were torn asunder, just like the straw dummies during the test weeks before.

After the third volley, the Ablaians began pulling back their rolling ladders, but the troops and battering ram continued their death march. The orbs were doing a great deal of damage, but each one could only do so much and compared to the sheer number of troops the Ablaians had fielded. They had barely made a scratch on their forces.

The Ablaians had managed to make it to the front gates and pounded hard on them with the ram. Thad could hear the gates creaking as they refused to budge against the onslaught. He hoped that they would hold, if the enemy made it inside the fort, there would be no way to hold against such odds.

So far, Thad had held back and watched and let the soldiers and his enchanted orbs do their jobs, but with the ram so close, it was too much of a risk to throw the volatile object so close to the walls. A few soldiers tried to shoot some of his enchanted arrows on the Ablaians, but as he feared the shields were too thick.

The shields were too thick to be destroyed easily, but that made them a prime target for him. Leveling his staff at the middle of the mammoth ram, Thad let loose the largest torrent of lightning he could produce. The sheer force of magic running through his body made his head begin to throb instantly.

His mind clearing, Thad surveyed the damage he had done. The Ram was still standing, but any Ablaian that was near it was down and even from the height of the battlements he could smell the charred corpses.

The other Ablaians surged toward the Ram to continue the barrage against the gates. Not wanting to let up, Thad let loose another lightning storm sending nearly two dozen soldiers to their graves. His strength waned and his legs buckled and his knees hit hard against the cobblestone.

In moments, he was pulled to his feet by Alden. “You got them unnerved. Stand as tall as you can. You don’t have to use any more magic just let them see you.”

Alden was right, the solders began to pull back shorty, rolling the battering ram with them as the soldiers from the wall shot anyone who left an opening. It had been a bloody first contact and the bodies of their enemies littered the valley floor. Hopefully they would lose heart and retreat back into their own land without much more bloodshed.

They had used a quarter of their explosive orbs, and only a small percentage of the arrows had been used. Thanks to the Ablaians fear of death, their archers had remained under cover so no one had even been injured from their side. It was a good start to the siege, but that’s all it was, a start. They still had pitch and oil, but had opted to save it until it was necessary, not knowing what all the Ablaians would bring to the field.

With the first wave repelled, Alden and Lucas helped Thad down the stairs to a small command center set up close to the battlements where the General and his top officers planned for the next attack.

Thad was unceremoniously dumped in a hardwood chair that was seriously uncomfortable. Shortly after he arrived, Trent walked over to where he sat, his face dour. “Well that went better than I expected, but we didn’t plan on those large shields. Whoever is carrying those have to be as strong as an ox. Downside to fighting against the country with an almost endless supply of oar, and most noted for their skilled blacksmiths. I fear without your orbs and as well as your other magical assistance, it would have been a very short siege indeed my young friend.”

Thad tried to smile, but his head hurt so furiously that it was all he could do to remain seated upright. “I’m glad I could be of help, but at this rate the orbs won’t last a day or two at most, and the arrows are largely ineffective against those thick shields. I can’t endlessly strike at them with such strong magic.”

Trent let out a short humph. “Don’t worry about that. We never had those before and we have never lost this fort. Even if the fort does fall, we can fall back to Tremon. There’s a reason that it has such high walls. No worries, we will win this, maybe not the way we want but we will win.”

Thad stayed in the small command tent listening to the reports of the scouts and the views of the other officers. Eloen even stopped by at one point to check in on him and rebuke him for his reckless overuse of magic.

Thankfully, he was spared from an overly long lecture as the general quickly sent her off to check on the troops that had been sent out to move the bodies away from the main gate. He couldn’t imagine having the job of moving the torn and burned wreckage of bodies on the field.

“What are you going to do with the bodies, I don’t suspect you have enough time to build a pyre or burry them?” Thad asked as the general took a seat next to him.

The general shook his head and looked down sourly at the ground. “We line them up so that the next group advancing on the fort has to pass over the bodies of their dead. The idea is that it will weaken their moral. Honestly, I don’t like the tactic. It leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Whether their enemies or not, they are soldiers, the same as us, just on the other side of the line.”

Thad could understand the Generals sentiments. While he might not like how the Ablaians ran their country and subjugated their people as a whole, that didn’t mean the average person who lived there and was forced into the army was evil or even bad. They lived their life the best they could, with what they were given. Farlan was far from perfect as recent events had proven, but he still loved his country and countrymen enough to give his life to protect it.

Why couldn’t life be simple like in the stories? It was always the good and righteous against the villains who were clearly evil. He slightly wished for that. It would be much easier to use his magic against what he knew were evil beings, instead of simple humans who had a different point of view.

The general had their midday meals brought to the command tent. It was hearty meal, if a bit tasteless. Thad noticed that many of the soldiers were sitting wherever they could find a spot eating and chatting with their fellows. Thad didn’t know how they could keep up such a positive outlook after seeing the force they were up against. He had to give them props, being a soldier took more than the ability to swing a sword. He wasn’t sure if he could live a life where he spent every day in the face of danger to protect people who barely knew who he was.

A loud horn sounded from the battlements. General Forman let out a heavy sigh next to him. “They’re attacking again. I hate to ask this, but could you make your presence known again. I’m not asking for anything as spectacular like you did before, just a little something to let the enemy know you’re still around.”

Thad rose from his chair, his head still throbbing but not nearly as bad as it had earlier. He wished for a few more hours of rest, but it didn’t look like Ablaians would afford him that luxury. Luckily, Alden steadied him as he made his way up the stairs leading to the battlements.

As soon as he appeared on the ramparts, the troops started to wave at him giving him bright radiant smiles. It was almost more than he could bear. It was one thing to kill another human, but to be honored for it just seemed wrong to him. Setting aside his displeasure at the situation, Thad looked over the Ablaian troops that marched toward the fort.

They still marched in the same formation with their heavy shields guarding them well from most attacks. They were still out of range of the orbs, but they weren’t taking any chances against their foes attacks.

Thad looked for an easy opening in their formation, but found none. He thought about sending more lighting toward the troops again but he knew it would be a one-time attack at that distance. He wanted to make them feel fear throughout their charge, not just at the beginning of it.

The Ablaians were crossing over their dead when an idea hit him. It wasn’t the best tactic and seemed more than a little abhorrent to him, but it would be effective and that was what he was looking for. Holding his staff out five melon sized fireballs raced toward the Ablaian dead. As soon as the fire touches the corpses, they burst into flames. Thad focused fanning the flames with his magic helping it rise higher and higher. It didn’t take as much effort as he thought. All he had to do was give it a little coaxing.

The Ablaians scattered and the Farlan soldiers opened fire at any who came into range. To compound the chaos, Thad threw more fireballs into the fray at any group that looked too composed. It worked to help scatter some, but other more disciplined groups marched on despite his efforts.

He was tiring quickly and decided to conserve what little strength he had left until it seemed needed. He watched as once more, the magical orbs began arcing through the sky. The orbs tore through whatever they hit shielded or not, but they were still doing too little damage to be truly effective. If only they had a few that were five times the size of the current ones, they could wipe out whole groups in one fell swoop. Killing five to ten per shot wasn’t bad as heavily armored as the enemy was, but when tens of thousands stand against you, it seemed comparable to trying to fight a barbarian with a wooden spoon.

Thad watched as they brought out long ladders and tried to breech the forts walls, but the second they stepped out from behind the cover of their shields, one of the skilled archers would quickly pick them off. Whenever he felt strong enough, Thad would launch an attack on whatever group seemed the weakest at the time. The battle raged until the sky was painted a burnt orange and the sun began to top the horizon. During the extended battle, only a few ever reached the top of the battlements and those tired few were quickly brought down by the rested troops who waited on them. One of the enemy soldiers got a lucky hit on one of the soldiers. He was severely injured, but was their only casualty so far.

With the Ablaians retreating once again, Thad with the help of Ballad made his way back down to the forts common area. Everyone wanted him to go straight to his room to rest while the chance was afforded, but Thad had other plans and made for the smithy where hopefully Todd was still at work.

Just as he hoped, Thad found Todd busy working on making more glass orbs for the army. Seeing him, the young man’s face took on a worried expression as he saw that Thad was almost being carried by the massive warrior next to him.

“Are you alright Master Torin?”

Thad let out a small laugh. “I’m fine Todd, but I need a favor from you.”

“Anything you want Master Torin.” Todd replied, his face going from worried to excitement in the space of a heartbeat.

“I know you’ve already worked all day, but I need you to work a bit longer. I need the same thickness of glass orbs, but made about five to ten times bigger. If you can’t do that make them as big as you can. As soon as their finished, I need you to take them to the command tent and have them put on the charger. The chargers won’t have enough to have them ready for tomorrow, but it will be a start and save me a little energy.”

Without saying a word Todd went back to work. Thad knew that if it was possible, the young man would get it done, and if it wasn’t, there was little reason to lament over it. With his business taken care of he allowed Ballard to escort him back to his room. Though he had little choice in the matter, it didn’t look like he or any of the others were willing to listen to his complaints or suggestions at the moment.

Back in his room, he was forced to strip and get into bed immediately. It was a little annoying being treated as if he was a toddler again, but it didn’t seem prudent to point this out to a bunch of heavily armed and trained soldiers when he was barely able to hold himself upright. So like a good little kid, he did as he was told. It was still fairly early and he wasn’t physically tired enough to sleep, so he passed the time by writing a letter to the princess.

He did his best to inform her of what was happing without making her worry. It was a fine line to walk. The queen did need to know the unadulterated trust, so he decided to write a second letter informing her of all the grisly details.

It only took him a short moment to pen the letter and he was still left with plenty of time to kill. He knew his “guards” would be much happier if he just lay down and closed his eyes, but he just wasn’t in the mood to sleep just yet. The day had been tiring, but it had also left him feeling empty and morose. If he went to sleep with that still weighing heavily on his mind he knew it would be far from a restful night.

Eloen came to his room a short time later. The look on her face spoke volumes and the guards in her room quickly picked up on it and vacated quickly. Thad thought it was funny the people who were supposed to be protecting him were now leaving him alone with someone who was obviously not very pleased with him at the moment.

Instead of flopping down on his bed which was her normal routine, Eloen grabbed the chair from his desk and drug it around to sit in. he knew she wasn’t please with him overworking himself, but the look on her face was much more intense than he expected. If he had thought she had seemed mad before, that must have only been a prelude to what she was showing now.

“The officers have had a meeting and during the battle tomorrow, they would like you to make a target of yourself.” Eloen said her voice showing her displeasure with their decision.

“Your magic was so effective today that they think if you make a bigger spectacle of yourself, it will weaken the enemies’ moral and allow us to deal with them without expending much energy.”

Thad let out a sigh of relief which quickly got a glare from Eloen. “Sorry I’m just glad it’s not me your mad at this time.” He said giving her a reassuring smile.

Eloen’s face softened as she halfheartedly returned his smile. “It’s not right. The second you make yourself too much of a target, all the enemy will focus on is you. While it will definitely help us win the battle, it might cost you your life. I don’t like it and I don’t think the queen would approve of such a measure either. Even general Forman was against it, but he was overruled when he couldn’t think of a good reason against it.”

“It shouldn’t be that hard with what I have planned for them tomorrow. I doubt there would be a way to hide my presence after everything that I did today anyway. What’s the worst they could do to me, shoot a few arrows? y armor will stop those.”

“You don’t get it do you. I’m not talking about it being dangerous during the battle, but afterward. If Alba learns we have a mage, let alone one with your level of power, they will make sure you meet a bad end. It wouldn’t be the first time someone was killed by an assassin in the night for being an inconvenience.”

Eloen didn’t say anything else; she just sat there watching him. Thad wanted to comfort her, but everything she had said was the truth. It made sense at least in the grand scheme of things; he was nothing but a tool of the crown. If the Ablaians wanted him dead, there were hundreds of means for them to achieve that goal. All that really meant for him was that he would have to find a way to protect himself even while he slept once this was all over with.

Thad wondered, not for the first time, if life wouldn’t have been easier if he had never learned magic. Honestly he didn’t understand why it had stayed lost so long. It wasn’t overly hard to learn. Someone had to learn it the first time anyway; it didn’t make sense to him that it had stayed buried for over a thousand years. Why couldn’t there have been someone to help guide him and make this a little easier. He hated bumbling around in the dark waiting to make a mistake.

With his mind laden with worries, Thad finally consented and closed his eyes. His rest came, but it wasn’t peaceful it was filled with thoughts of assassins and death. His magic haunted his dreams too, taunting him with more power than anyone should rightly hold.

CHAPTER XX

Morning came far too early for Thad’s liking when he was jostled awake by Darryl who looked as tired as Thad felt. “Time to get up, the Ablaians are already forming up. Right bastards won’t even let a man get a good night’s rest.”

When Darryl’s words registered in his head, Thad jumped and quickly dressed, grabbing his pack and staff as he ran out the door. He always packed up everything before going to bed, he didn’t really know why; it had just been a habit of his dating back the Slave Academy. Usually it was a hassle having to pull everything back out as he needed it, but today it was a blessing since he had plenty of gems and cut crystals stored in the side pouches. If his plan worked today he would need them.

Outside of the command center, the rest of the group waited on him, including Eloen who still wore a sour expression. Looking around, he noticed that many of his friends looked equally unhappy. He couldn’t say the prospect of being the main target was thrilling, but he wasn’t sure he was taking it as hard as his companions were.

On the battlements, the rest of the soldiers were preparing for another day of battle. The small amount of explosive orbs was being rationed between the three different miniature catapults and massive amounts of magical arrows were being handed out to anyone who could shoot a bow.

Thad wasn’t sure why everyone’s mood had changed so suddenly until he looked out over the field. So far the Ablaians had been content with sending out no more than two to three thousand troops at a time against them, but this morning it looked as if they meant to send the whole of their army to beat down the walls.

Thad grabbed Ballard by the arm. “I need you go down and see if Todd finished any of those large orbs for me. If he did, bring whichever one looks to be the darkest red. It looks like we may need it sooner than I imagined.” Without further explanation the large warrior disappeared down the stairs.

Not wanting to waste time, Thad started pulling out handfuls of gems and placing them around him in a tight circle. It wasn’t perfect, but it was the only thing he could think of the night before that might function given the limited time frame he had to work with. Gems worked by drawing in magic and focusing it. He knew a mage could use that power directly without the need for a core thanks to his rune necklace; however, a core did help with focusing the magical energies.

With enough gems working together, he would be able to augment his power and last much longer. The only downside was that without a core, the gems would form a link with him and when he broke that link they would explode without an outlet for their stored energy. If he didn’t break the link and someone destroyed a gem then it would cause a magical backlash that would damage him, or if the gem had enough stored energy, even kill him. He had went over the risks and found that in the current situation he had little choice but to try. If he lived through the day, everything would work out as long an Eloen never learned of the inherent danger of what he was doing.

Thad had the gems firmly attached to the stone ground around his feet and linked to him in a matter of moments. He could feel everyone’s eyes on him as he worked, but he tried his best to block it out. As an added set of protection, he set a condition linked to his staff that if he were to move to far, the link with the gems would sever. That way if the enemy gained the wall he would make a run for it without having to worry about his link.

Ballard returned with a large bolder sized glass ball in his arms. It looked heavy and even the large man was having a bit of trouble holding onto the slick glass. With the help of Darryl and Alden, Thad had them lay out his bedroll from his pack and set the orb carefully down on it.

With everything in place, Thad waved Eloen over to where he stood. Her face was apprehensive as she moved over to where he stood. “I need you to keep everyone away from me. I don’t want them to break my concentration and put us all in danger.”

She tried to get him to explain more about what he was doing, but he dodged her questions by simply telling her that he was following orders. She wasn’t very happy with him, but she still started barking orders to the rest of her groups to form a protective perimeter around him and not to let anyone close to him unless absolutely necessary.

The orb was only glowing a small amount and still needed a vast amount of magic to be volatile enough for his designs. Closing his eyes, Thad refocused the magic that the gems were collecting toward the sphere. There were easily over a hundred gems around him and while each one only collected a small amount at a time, combined together they seemed to multiply their strength. The sheer force of the magic transferring through his body to the orb left his body tingling as if lighting had stuck nearby.

Thad watched the Ablaians closely for any indication they were ready to start the battle. He wasn’t sure how long the orb would take to charge fully, but he feared he wouldn’t have enough time. He could easily see them getting their massive ladders and the repaired battering ram in place. They had also constructed what looked like massive shields on wheels. There were only four of them, but anyone inside its protective box was safe from most anything the Farlans could throw at them.

While he Waited, Thad learned of a nasty side effect of being linked to so many cores. The magic used his body like a guiding rod and no matter how hard he tried; some of the magical energy would break from its intended rout to the orb and course through his body. At first it wasn’t dangerous, all living things held magic inside them it permeated everything in the world around, but if too much got concentrated he wasn’t sure what it could do.

To drain off the excess, he cast a few simple illusionary spells that would draw attention to him as the officers wanted. He was surprised when he felt no metal fatigue or pressure from casting. The spells were just alterations of his light spell, but even so he expected some backlash. Soon though the simple spells weren’t using enough magical energy and the tingling sensation in his body reached an uncomfortable level. Panicking slightly, he started so feed his energy into his staff using it like a grounding rod.

Thad could instantly feel the difference as the tingling died down to a barely perceivable level. Looking down, he noticed that his staff was glowing, not brightly, but as if it were made of crystal and placed in front of a fire. The multicolored rays that sparked from it were enchanting.

“Are you ok?” Eloen asked coming up beside him.

“Yes, I’m just getting prepared.”

“It’s just that your eyes are glowing.” Eloen said her voice shaking slightly.

“Really?” Thad asked surprised at the revelation.

Eloen’s face took on a slightly scared look and he could see her hands were fidgeting with the pommel of her sword. “Yes, it looks like someone lit a blue flame in your eyes. It’s more than a little unsettling.”

“Don’t worry; it’s just a side effect of what I’m doing.” Thad replied in explanation. Eloen didn’t seem to like it, but she let the subject drop and went back to her position off to his side.

Thad didn’t have to wait long for the Ablaians to begin their march. It was a slow thing with the moving shields first flanked on each side by well over a thousand men. Second was the battering ram and in the last line were the massive ladders.

As the army moved toward the fort, it reminded Thad of a blanket being pulled over a bed. The sheer numbers in front of him was daunting. It was impossible to even see the ground through the tightly packed soldiers who marched upon it.

The trepidations from the day before were gone. He no longer could see an individual standing before him, just a massive enemy that wished to destroy what little he had come to care about. All he felt was a need to unleash his magic on the horde that marched toward him.

When the first rank of soldiers crossed the line into range, the small globes began to rain down on them. One after another were fired, breaking apart one of the moving shields and killing any enemy solder that was unlucky enough to be in their path. Having learned from their previous encounters, the archers held their arrows until an open target showed itself.

Thad held his own magic until the front line of the invading enemy was only a few hundred yards from the fort. Then he unleashed all the pent of magic in his staff, raking the enemy lines with lighting strong enough to fell a large tree. After the first three passes Thad started to feel the effect of his magic. normally a few lightning bolts of that strength would have left him unable to stand, but with the aid of the gems, he had been able to unleash nearly ten times as much with only a small amount of backlash.

Thad held back waiting for his body to recuperate from the massive display of magic. He could still push it, but the more damage he caused to himself the longer it took to recover, and currently it looked as if the Farlans had the situation well in control.

When the battering ram made its way to the main gates, Thad decided it was time for him to reenter the fray. He had thought long and hard about the best way to deal with massive thing and had come up with a few ideas and was itching to try them out. Focusing his power, Thad held his staff out in front of him. He concentrated on the metal of the shields that protected the apparatus below him. He forced the metal to heat up and he could see that it was working if a bit slower than he wanted. In moments the shields were all glowing a bright red and thick tendrils of black smoke began to rise into the air. The metal then began to melt and run as if it had been placed in a hot forge and the treated wood below began to cook and burn.

The effort left his head burning, but it had worked. He had hoped that with the extra help from the gems that it would have been as easy as the lighting had been, but it sheer amount of heat required to melt the metal was staggering.

Slumping slightly from exhaustion, Thad held himself up by leaning on his staff. It still glowed, but dimly. The color of the orb next to him was darkening but it had slowed down and it still needed more time. The enemy’s ladders were coming up faster and more and more of their soldiers were making it to the top of the battlements. Thad’s only solace at the moment was that the large ladders were still a good deal away and moving slowly.

With his energy depleted, Thad could only watch as the enemy pushed hard and soldiers fell around him. Shortly before midday, the Ablaians started to pull back just outside of arrow range.

The reprieve was greatly appreciated, as Thad still needed time to finish charging the large orb. There had even been a few moments where he was afraid it was going to get smashed by one of the Ablaians who had reached the battlement, but thankfully Ballard stepped in and stopped the man. Thad knew that every moment that the orb sat there, that the risk of it getting destroyed and killing everyone increased, but if he used it too early he would be wasting their last trump card.

“You look like you need a break brother.” Darryl said standing just outside his circle of jewels.

“I won’t argue with you there, but I can’t leave this confounded circle yet.” Thad said breathing hard even though he had hardly moved.

“I won’t pretend that I have the slightest clue as to what you’re doing, but it seems to be working. If what you have done so far is any indication. Well, if you can’t leave, I’ll bring you a bite to eat while the Ablaians are giving us a breather” Darryl asked, giving him a broad smile.

Darryl was true to his word and Thad soon had a nice bowl of stew and fresh bread to eat. Taking a seat on the hard ground, Thad relaxed as he enjoyed his meal. It wasn’t a feast or a feathered chair, but at the moment it was as good as either to his weary mind.

While he ate, Eloen came up and sat next to him. She stayed outside his circle, but just having her nearby seemed to ease some of the tension that had built up in his body. He could see that her clothes were covered in dried blood and for a few minutes feared that she had been injured, but on closer inspection he could see no visible cuts on her.

“The officers are preparing to fall back to Tremon. We just don’t have the manpower to hold them off much longer. We have only taken out two tenths of their forces and we are running low on arrows and the magical orbs have all been expended. I just wanted you to know that if you hear the sound for retreat, not to stay up here playing hero.” Eloen said seriously.

Thad wanted to laugh, but he knew that would be a bad idea given Eloen’s nature. He just wasn’t up for the thrashing she would most likely give him in response. “I don’t plan to play hero at all, but I wouldn’t give up the fight just yet. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

Eloen didn’t say anything else; she just sat their silently placing her hand over his. It was a nice moment, but it ended quickly when one of the other officers called to her. When Eloen got up to leave she let the tips of her fingers glide over the top of his hand.

The Ablaians didn’t make them wait long. Soon after the sun reached its apex they began their march.  They moved fast and hard with the massive ladders leading the charge. Every section of the ladder had a body holding it and helping it move along. Thad wanted to stop the ladders, but his orb wasn’t ready yet and he didn’t have the strength in him to concentrate on stopping both of them. Stopping even one by himself might be too much of a stretch with his current strength.

Trying to push aside what he couldn’t do anything about, Thad focused on what he could do; slow down the enemy. Picking up his sack and strapping it to his back, Thad pulled a handful of gems from one of the small pouches on its side. Praying that his experiment worked, Thad threw the gems as hard as he could over the edge of the wall.

Wherever the gems hit the ground, it became wet and soggy slowing down the movement of any troops caught within its mire. Then the ground erupted in miniature explosions, injuring many and killing a few of the enemy soldiers. Thad hadn’t really cast a spell, but altered the way the gems drew in magic. Instead of focusing on all magic he sanctioned it to earth magic and removed the limiter that controlled the speed the gem accumulated magic. He had tried using an enchantment without a limiter on a gem before and learned quickly that it caused a rather volatile reaction.

Thad hadn’t expected such a reaction with the ground so he was pleasantly surprised. Most likely, the sudden draw of energy from the earth caused it to loosen and weaken, allowing the water to come to the surface. He wasn’t sure if that was the case, but it was the only thing he could think of. Cursing his own mind, Thad filed his musing away for a day when he had more time available for it.

Thad continued to throw the gems until his supply was exhausted. Out of ammunition, Thad started to throw small fireballs at individual soldiers who showed an opening. The large ladders were close now and in a few moments, he knew that the top of the battlements would be overrun with enemy soldiers.

Thad threw a few fireballs at the massive ladders when they began to get into position, but they did little damage to it. Looking over, he studied the large orb it was glowing a dark red. Checking it with his magic he decided it was as close to ready as it was going to get. If he waited till he was overrun with soldiers, then there was too large of a chance of it breaking. Both the large ladders were on the western side of the fort, spaced out but if he aimed it right he should still be able to disable both of them it the orb did as much damage as he hoped.

Thad knew he had to hurry when a soldier almost got close enough to take a swipe at him. Luckily for him, Darryl intercepted him, allowing Thad to continue with his work. With as much finesse as he could muster, he used his magic to lift the orb off the ground. The miniature catapults were too small for the projectiles, but if he put the right amount of force behind it he was sure he could send it where he wanted it with his magic.

Leaving his circle, he moved to the edge of the battlements and prepared to send a great deal of soldiers to meet their ancestors. As he began to position the forces that would send the orb to its destination, he felt a shove from behind him and he was falling forward. He tried to right himself, but he was too close to the edge and soon he was staring as the ground loomed ever closer the magical orb right beside him.

Thad knew he only had a heartbeat to act so he unleashed his magic, sending the orb to toward the nearest ladder and activated his shield ring. When he hit the ground his body slammed against his shield hard. Everything in his vision started to blur and he had to fight to keep his eyes open. Suddenly, large forces ripped through his body making him feel as if he his insides were being torn out.

Thad tried to rise to his feet, but every time he got up on his hands they slipped and he fell face first back into the ground. He wasn’t sure how long he floundered on the ground like a fish out of water, but it seemed pointless. With his ears ringing and out of energy, he gave up and let his face rest against the cold ground.

He felt as someone grabbed him by the arms and drug him to his feet. The man’s face was only inches from his but he still couldn’t hear anything over the internal ringing in his ear. The man’s face contorted into range and he started hitting Thad over and over until his eyes rolled back in his head and all that greeted him was darkness.

CHAPTER XXI

When Thad woke, he found himself tied to a bed. His eyes blindfolded, and his body covered in bandages. His head hurt as if someone had used him to batter down the fort walls. As there was no obvious threat to himself at the moment, he worried about what had happened in the battle after he was shoved over the edge of the wall. He could only hope that his sphere had done its work and disabled the massive ladders and injured enough of the soldiers to give the Farlans a fighting chance.

He tried to focus his magical sight, but whenever he tried his head began to throb and he would lose his focus. He wasn’t sure how long he had been resting, but after a few hours he should have been able to perform some miner spells. He wasn’t sure what was going on, but maybe the prolonged use of high level magic had done more damage than he had thought.

“Looks like your finally awake, good I was hoping to have a chance to talk to you before you were sent to Treforge. What I really want to know is where the Farlans got their new weapons.” A deep voice said from his side.

“I don’t know.” Thad said defiantly.

“Come now you don’t expect me to believe that. I saw you on the battlements directing the attack with the new weapons. Did the Farlan queen find a new trove of magical items lost to the ages, or am I to believe the gossip that you are the first mage in over a thousands of years?”

“Think what you want. I don’t know anything.”

“That’s too bad. I was hoping I could at least explain what happen here to my superiors, but it looks like you’re not going to cooperate. It will take quite a few days for you to reach Treforge, but don’t worry you won’t be awake for most of the journey.”

A strong hand grabbed him around the shoulder and placed something over his mouth and nose. The fumes coming from the rag made his head fuzzy. He could feel himself losing consciousness. He tried to fight it, but it was a battle he was destined to lose.

Thad found himself drifting along in a dark void. He tried to access his magic to create a light but nothing happened. It wasn’t just that his head hurt or he lost focus, it was as if magic no longer existed.

Thad looked around trying to find anything except the darkness. Off in the distance, he saw a red light. He tried to move toward the light, when that didn’t work he tried to will himself toward the light. Still nothing happened. Frustrated, he spun in a circle and just stared at the light. It looked as if it was taunting him, silently whispering that all he had to do was reach out and take it.

The ground below Thad jostled and shifted under him, throwing him hard against something solid. He opened his eyes groggily, his head still fuzzy and muddled. He was still blindfolded, but it had slipped down slightly, allowing him see his surroundings. He noticed he was in some sort of cage. He could see that they were moving, but his eyes couldn’t focus on the landscape as it passed by.

“Looks like the little lad is awake, can’t have that now can me?” A blurry mass next to him said.

Thad heard the door to his cage open. He tried to back away from the black blur that moved toward him, but his limbs wouldn’t heed his commands. He could smell the noxious substance on the cloth before it touched his face. He tried to push away the hand that held the cloth, but his arms held no strength. Thad once again fell into unconsciousness to the galling laughter of people outside his sight.

Thad once again found himself in the darkness of the void. The light was still there, taunting him. He tried to move toward it again, but once more, nothing happened. Frustrated, Thad gave up and simply crossed his legs, floating in place. With nothing else to do Thad figured it was a good time to think. The first question coming to mind is where was he?

He wasn’t in the physical world, but it didn’t feel as if he was dreaming either. Everything was too clear, too sharp for it to be a dream. The only conclusion that made sense was that he was in the recesses of his own mind. If that was true, he should be able to reach the light, but still no matter what he tried it stayed out of his reach.

He still had to find a way to get out of his current predicament. It hadn’t been the first time he had been drugged and held captive, but he doubted that the Ablaians would simply let him go free if he promised to behave as the queen had.

If he could just get a clear mind and gain access to his magic, just for a brief moment, he could escape his captors. Without knowing where he was, he couldn’t plan any farther than that so he decided his best bet was, next time he regained consciousness, stay still until he could once again use his magic.

Thad slowly woke up, his head still fuzzy and his head hurting. The blindfold had been readjusted, blocking his view completely. Staying still, Thad listened to what was going on around him. Everything seemed slightly muffled to him, but he could make out a few spare words every now and then, however, not enough to tell him where they were. It was better than the silence of the void with that irritating light.

After a while, his head cleared to a degree where he could understand what the people around him were saying. He could hear eight distinct voices talking. He wished he could see them but just hearing someone else talk was a relief.

“Do you think he really is a mage?”

“He has to be. Did you see what he did during the battle? I saw him roast half a dozen men with nothing but that staff the captain has on the back of his horse.”

Thad almost shouted in relief, his Staff was close by. It was like a friend to him. He had kept it with him since he lived in the sewers underneath the capital. If he could just get to it, it would be much easier for him to access the flow of magic. The cart decided then to hit a nasty bump throwing him hard and bouncing his head off one of the cage bars forcing a pained grunt to escape his lips.

“Looks like out little bundle of joy is waking up again get the stuff.” One voice said sounding slightly annoyed.

“I did it last time. It’s your turn to drug the little rat. Last time I forgot to clean my hands good and almost caused myself to pass out when I yawned.” Another voice replied, followed by laughter from his fellows.

Thad cursed his own uncontrollable noise. He tried to access his magic, but his focus still wouldn’t hold. It was as if his mind was covered in a dense fog. He had some of his physical control back, but he was still far too weak to fight off an armed opponent or even someone who was in full control of their body.

Thad remained still, waiting until he heard the door to his cell open again. He could hear the man as he moved into his little room. When the man got close enough, Thad could tell his general direction. He went into action, kicking out with his tied feet. He felt resistance and head a nice loud pop followed by the cursing of the man.

Thad tried to sit up, but his the rocking of the cell made it impossible. With that option taken, he continued to kick in the direction of his captor until he was struck hard on the side of the head. Dazed, he continued to try and fight, but strong arms grabbed him yanking him around.

He felt himself being pulled out of his cell as he fell the few feet to the ground below. The men began to kick him with their steel boots until he once again succumbed to the darkness.

Back in the void once again, Thad cursed his own ineptitude. Even in the void world his body hurt where he had been kicked. He guessed it was too much to hope he wouldn’t have to deal with the pain until he woke again. Sore and in no mood to be annoyed,, Thad ignored the light that hovered in the distance.

Thad hated being in the soundless expanse of the void, even a nightmare would be better. There was no feeling of the passage of time, nothing to occupy his mind, but his own thoughts. It was the purest form of hell he had ever encountered. Even his time spent in the dungeon at the palace he had sounds sights to keep him company. Here there was nothing but darkness and that dammed light.

The next time Thad gained enough consciousness to focus on his surroundings, he found himself lying down on something soft. The area was also devoid of the sound of men, animals, and the wind. He figured he was inside somewhere; he just wasn’t sure where that was. His blindfold had been removed, but wherever he was it was devoid of light. Thad tried to move his arms and legs but found they were securely bound to whatever he way lying on.

Thad heard a door open and turned his head when light flooded the room causing his head to burn. His eyes involuntary closed from the unsuspected intrusion.

A short man with deep-set eyes the color of obsidian with a bald head walked into the room. “Looks like your awake. Great, I hate to work on someone who doesn’t respond properly.” The man said an evil grin spreading across his face.

Thad didn’t like the look on the man’s face and his dislike grew when the little man walked over to a small table and picked up a thick saw about a foot long and a few strips of thick leathers. Walking back over to where he laid, the stubby man laid the instruments down next to his leg.

“Ah, I see you want to know what’s happening. We don’t really want to spend a great deal of time having to worry about our more high profile prisoner’s escaping, so we found a tried and true method to keep them from running off.” The little man said laughing at some unknown joke.

When the man started tying the leather straps slightly above his ankle, Thad figured out what the man was doing. He tried to struggle, but his manacles held him firmly in place that all he managed to do was arch his back painfully.

“Now, none of that. Don’t want to mess up my cut do you?”

The first cut was sent tendrils of pain through his body causing Thad to scream out loud. The bald man seemed to get some perverse pleasure from the noises coming out his mouth. The pain only increased when the saw reached his bone. When Thad began to beg for the man to kill him, the cutting stopped and the bald man set down the bloody saw right next to his head.

“How marvelous, you haven’t even passed out yet. It’s not very often someone stays awake for the filing.” The man said running his bloody hands over Thad’s sweat soaked scalp.

Thad watched in horror as the man walked back over to the table and picked up a long thin piece of metal with a wooden handle. Bracing his now free leg under his arm, the man put the piece of metal to his bone bringing it up and down hard on the bone. It pain was so bad Thad couldn’t keep his body from involuntary convulsing.

Thad didn’t know how long he was able to keep his eyes open, but when he found himself in the void he was thrilled even though the throbbing in his leg continued, but it wasn’t bad enough to make him cry out in pain.

The light was still there taunting him. “Why won’t you let me near you? Please, I don’t want to be in the dark anymore.” Thad said, tears flowing down his face.

Suddenly, the light started to grow closer and closer until he was in the middle of it. The brightness didn’t hurt his eyes, but it felt warm on his skin. He could fell his magic once again infusing his body. It was like welcoming back an old friend. The magic flowed through him without him having to force it to his will. It just came as naturally as breathing. He only had to think of what he wanted, he didn’t have to form the magic to his will, but let it form itself to his design.

He didn’t know if it meant anything in the real world, but there was no backlash from the magic. No struggle to force it to its place. It just simply flowed though him caressing him like a gentle lover.

CHAPTER XXII

Thad opened his eyes; the fog that had clouded his mind was gone. Letting his magic flow through him, he simply let the manacles flow away from his body. Sitting up, Thad looked down at his leg. Where his right foot had once been now there was nothing but a stump that was red and swollen.

Just thinking about his staff, it jumped into his outstretched hand. Slightly surprised, Thad looked at the staff that he now held in his hand. Sliding off the table, he let his magic flow down his body replacing his missing limb with magical force. The slight pressure from the magic hurt, as if he had jabbed a knife into an open wound.

Sending out the magic he searched to see if any of his other items were within range. He wasn’t sure if it would work so he was pleasantly surprised when he felt a magical presence not far away. Following the resonance, he left the room and took a left turn. The walls to wherever he was were a dark gray, and only a few torches were spaced sporadically giving only enough light to navigate by.

He was obviously in a dungeon of some sort, but it was far different from the one in the Farlan palace. His magical senses led him to a large room with a heavy steel door. Melting the lock to the door with his magic, Thad threw open the door and stepped inside. The room was filled with numerous items, he figured belonging to the many prisoners that had visited the cells over the years.

Thad found his pack on top of the pile nearest him, along with his two magical swords. He couldn’t find his rings, but he was happy just to have his weapons and supplies back. His bed roll was still sitting on top of the battlements, but he at least had a small amount of food as well as his canteen and his sending box, ink, and quills. If nothing else, he could escape and alert the Queendom to his location and wellbeing.

After strapping on his weapons, Thad searched through the room for anything that might be of use. Most of the items in the room were worthless, but he was able to find a few daggers that were in decent shape, as well as a small bedroll and some other items that might be useful on the road.

With his pack full, Thad left the room and quietly made his way down the hall. It was impossible to tell which way the exit was. All he could do was hope he was going in the right direction. His movements were slow and every step sent a jolt of pain through where his foot used to be. He could only wonder how much pain he would be in if he didn’t have his magic to help him move along.

Turning a corner, Thad could hear voices down the corridor to his left. Pressing his back to the cold stone, trying to stay in the safety of the shadows, he slowly made his way toward the voices.

“It’s your turn to check on our new guest to see if he’s awake. The general wants to see him as soon as he opens his eyes.”

“Alright, but it’s only been a few hours since the doc got finished with him, do you really expect him to be awake yet.”

Thad stepped from his hidden spot in the shadows and stunned the two men before their minds had a chance to register his presence. For a brief moment, Thad thought about killing the two men so they would be unable to raise the alarm. He knew he was angry at what had been done to him and killing these men in cold blood would in no way bring his foot back. He knew it was wrong, but he still had to fight the urge to kill the men as they lay helpless on the ground. He settled instead of hitting them repeatedly with his staff until he was sure that they wouldn’t be waking for a long while.

With the guards incapacitated, Thad searched their bodies for anything of use. Their coin pouches were fairly light on gold, but there was enough to fill his belly assuming he could make it out. Nothing else they had really seemed prudent to take with him. He already had two swords and every item that he carried would weigh him down, forcing him to use more magic to keep his stub from touching the ground.

Directly across from the guard station, Thad found stairs leading up. Going up the stairs was only slightly harder than walking on a level surface. Thad was slightly surprised that he wasn’t tiring yet. He still wasn’t sure of how the magic was flowing through him without him having to force it to his will.

At the top of the stairs, Thad opened a door to find another long hall decorated with rich tapestries depicting different battles. Every time his staff landed on the stone beneath his feet it sent an echo down the hall that made him wince. The halls were empty, so Thad hoped it was late in the night and he would be able to make his escape long before people started to stir.

He tried to keep going in one general direction, but with so many twists and turns it was hard to keep his bearings. After what seemed like an endless walking down dark corridors, he finally found a door leading outside.

The courtyard of the building was surrounded by a tall wall that even with the aid of his magic, Thad was unsure of his ability to cross. Not wanting to attempt it just to fall and injure himself further, Thad followed the outside wall of the building, looking for an exit to the compound.

He found the main gate to the compound after turning the first corner of the large building. It wasn’t a large gate; it only had the room for a single wagon to pass at a time. It was easy to see the building was designed for defense. The gate was guarded by five heavily armored and armed men. There were no men walked the top of the wall and for that Thad was grateful.

Thad knew he would only get one chance to break through the gate. He doubted that if he was recaptured, the Ablaians would give him a second chance. That is if they even let him live. Letting the magic flow into him like a great torrent, Thad mixed his illusionary magic with fire making a large flaming horse the size of a small house and sent it toward the guards.

The guards had mixed reactions, but the primary one seemed to be panic. Only one of the guards stayed in the path of the raging beast as it rushed the gate and Thad involuntary heaved as the man was run down and turned into a burnt husk.

Shortly before the horse reached the gates, the small portcullis slammed down, but it was of little use as the metal melted away as if was made of wax. The thick wooden doors burst apart flaming as the magical creature continued a short way into the town beyond before disappearing.

The sheer force of the magic that had coursed through his body left him feeling tired and spent, but it wasn’t followed by the normal pounding in his head that he had grown to expect. Thad continued his slow pace, hobbling his way toward the gate where the guards quickly recovered and sounded a loud bell through the night. Thad cursed slightly knowing that if he didn’t act soon, he would find himself surrounded.

Allowing more magic in, Thad lifted himself off the ground until his remaining foot was clear of the cobble stone and shot forward with as much speed as he could muster. The guards moved to block his path. He leveled his staff at them and sent a torrent of force knocking the soldiers aside as he soared past them.

His victory was short lived as numerous soldiers rushed through the town toward him. Though his head wasn’t hurting, he knew his body was starting to reach its limit on magic. He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he felt fatigued as if he had been running for hours. Not wanting to chance it, he flew toward the direction of a small ally.

Turning every few minutes, Thad continued to evade his captors until he saw the edge of the town. He was happy to learn that there was no wall, just open field beyond the houses. Thad dared not look behind him, as he could hear the clanging and scraping of metal close behind him.

Ahead of him, all Thad could see was a large looming mountain. He hoped that it could provide some shelter or a way to elude his followers who were closing quickly. His hopes were soon shatter as the walls of the mountain were steep and with his waning magic, he dared not try and float up to the nearest edge. Turning sharply, Thad followed the canyon wall looking for anything he could use to his advantage.

Noticing some large boulders perched close to the edge, Thad send a small tendril of force against them, causing them to lose their hold and plummet toward the canyon floor behind him. He heard as they impacted and from the sounds behind him it had bought him some time, but not much.

Off to his right he saw an overgrown mine entrance. With little other choice, Thad shot inside the safety the mine offered. He wasn’t sure if his pursuers saw him, but when a few minutes passed and still no one followed behind him, he let out a sigh of relief.

With hopes that he had made a good escape, Thad sat down on the cold ground letting the magic that had been holding him up slip from his grasp. Once the magic was gone, the fatigue from its use hit him full force and he had to fight to keep his eyes open. He was glad his head wasn’t pounding, but passing out would be just as bad in the current situation. In the end, Thad had little choice as his mind shunt down sending him into a deep restful sleep.

Thad awoke with a start as the sound of men moving around outside of the mine carried to his ears. He wasn’t sure how long he had been asleep, but the light from outside said it was for more than a few hours; plenty of time for the guards to bring in trackers to find him. From the sound of things outside, that is just what they had done.

The voices continued to come closer and Thad’s fears were realized as the first group of soldiers made their way into the mine. Thad moved behind a large bolder, hugging the side of the cave hoping the darkness would conceal him.

“He’s still somewhere in the mine, there are no signs of anyone leaving. Spread out, there’s no telling how deep he went. If you find him, yell out. Don’t try and fight him by yourself. He’s already proved a difficult foe. Johnson, you go let the rest know we found him.” a commanding voice said from the mouth of the mine.

Thad wanted to curse.  There were easily thirty of them and from what he had just heard, there were more outside. He had no clue what to do. The chances of continuing to elude capture were dwindling with every second.

Thad only saw one way out of his current situation and even then, all he would be doing was sending himself to a slow death underground. After his short stay with the Ablaians, he figured even death was better than spending what was left of his life as their guest.

From behind his boulder, Thad sent his magic into the mountain, weakening the integrity of the mine entrance. Nothing happened. He started panicking as the soldiers began to draw closer to his location. He sent a massive surge of energy into the earth.

With his effort to collapse the entrance to the mine failing, his only option was to fight. Shutting off his link with the earth, Thad readjusted his magic and brought himself off the ground using his magic once again to replace his missing foot. Stepping from behind his cover, Thad drew his sword and faced off against the soldiers who were blocking his escape.

The soldiers began to yell out, and then form up to attack him as a single group. It was obvious they were well trained, and it also was apparent that from the orders their leader were giving, they expected to take him alive. Thad knew his chances of winning were almost nonexistent, but he promised himself that before he allowed himself to be taken back as a prisoner, he would end his own life.

Thad raked the first line of soldiers with a stream of fire that sent them and two behind them rolling and screaming on the ground. Not wanting to let up, Thad followed it up with a blast of sheer force, knocking most the others from their feet. The few who remained standing rushed him, forcing Thad to put his sword to work.

Thad considered himself fairly skilled with a sword, but these men put his skill to shame. Their movements and stance left no opening, and they struck at every chance, forcing Thad back. If not for his shield, he would have been cut to ribbons in the matter of seconds.

His sword never met flesh, but it did allow him to keep his opponents busy while he used his magic to take them out one by one. The sound of ringing steel and screams of the men who were unlucky enough to be on the bad end of his magic filled the cave. Thad was amazed; he could hear more soldiers amassing outside. He knew he was running out of time, but he didn’t know what else he could do.

As he fought with four different men, the ground below him began to shake. It started lightly at first, but steadily began to grow in intensity until it was even hard for him to stand without using his magic to lift himself completely off the ground.

With the soldiers falling to the ground, Thad took the advantage and headed for the mouth of the mine. A few feet away from the entrance, the old timbers framing the entrance cracked and fell, along with a large section of the roof, effectively blocking his path.

Cursing, Thad reversed direction as large sections of the roof of the cave began to rain from above. He raced down the winding tunnels of the mine, hoping to find someplace where it didn’t seem like he was going to get buried alive.

As suddenly as it started, the earthquake stopped. His nerves on end and exhaustion wearing him thin, Thad released his magic and allowed himself to settle on the ground. It hadn’t worked as he had planned, but at least it didn’t sound like anyone would be able to get to him.

He was safe for the time being. Now he just had to find a way out of the caves and make his way to Farlan. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do that, but for now, all he needed was rest. So pulling off his pack, he used it as a pillow as he lay down for a good restful sleep.