Lodrador-Journey to the Mountains

            Lodrador, “Journey to the Mountains and the Events that Followed” by Harry R. Mathias

            The next few days were filled with Ore regaining consciousness for only a few seconds at a time, and he never could tell if the events that occurred during this really existed or if his mind merely made a false reality to calm him. Theldan usually stood in the corner, watching him or sleeping upright. When he awoke, he tried to motion to the old man but the numbness he felt returned him to sleep. Once, the girl Meria, from the fight in the woods, lay on top of him, whispering in his ear. He assumed that this event must be a dream from the surreal feelings it gave him. In the latest hallucination, as light entered his vision, he tasted warm chicken and then woke up.

            “What?” Ore said in shock as he choked up whatever had entered his throat. “Oh Gods, what was that?” He pulled his bandaged hands towards his mouth, trying to cough up whatever had entered his throat.

            “Oh thank Gods you’re awake, Ore,” Theldan said before hitting him on the head with a cane.

            “Stop, stop!” he screamed. “You’re choking me!”

            “I’m relived you’re awake,” Theldan said, ignoring the fact he just hit Ore. “I’ve been trying to care for you nonstop since you fainted. The woman who owns the tavern, Circea, has been aiding me. I’m starting to feel bad for how rudely I acted when we first met her.”

            “The Bebnedi!” Ore said when his mind cleared and he remembered the events that brought him here. “Has Hernman returned? Do we know where they went? What about the baby, Nyeme”

            “No,” Theldan answered, looking towards his feet. “I haven’t heard anything from Hernman and I’m not sure I’d want to. I was caught in the moment and couldn’t stop to think about my actions and the consequences of them. Silly thing, the first lesson they drill into your head at our college. If we do go after them, I’ll need at least another two magi, not apprentices.” Theldan paced around the room in front of the door. “We’ll continue to your friend’s estate. Yuri, that’s his name right?”

            “Yes,” Ore replied.

            “After you fainted, I cast a charm an old friend taught me that knocked you into a hypnotic sleep until your wounds healed. No dreams, no nightmares, no glimpses of consciousness, just pure sleep. So now that you’re awake…”

            “Theldan?” Ore interrupted.

            “Yes…”

            “Can I please finish that chicken broth?”

***

            Theldan left Ore alone in the room to dress himself, after he made certain that Ore had finished the broth and not gotten himself sick from drinking so fast. Ore paused for a moment when Theldan closed the door to look at his wounds.

            The skin on his hands felt soft, like new baby skin, strange after having almost all of it ripped off. Theldan’s spell certainly preformed well. Ore felt sore only from staying bedridden for so long, not nearly as bad as constant riding, and the feeling quickly dissipated after a few stretches. His clothes felt great, washed and cleaned.

            Ore rolled out of the bed and stood, a bit shaky on his legs. He approached the door and opened it with his elbow. Entering the candlelit hallway, he looked outside through the window at the early morning rays of light. The stars had mostly disappeared with the dawn but the sun hadn’t begun to show itself through the trees.

            He walked slowly down the stairs to find Theldan drinking an amber colored beverage. Theldan looked at him for a moment, then back to the drink. 

            “Every new cycle, every time I receive a new apprentice, I promised myself I would stop drinking. A promise I have never kept,” Theldan somberly to himself, barely aware of Ore’s presence.

            Ore stared for a moment then spoke, “Are we ready to go? Did you already saddle the horses?”

            “I didn’t see you,” Theldan said calmly. The old man tipped the glass over, spilling the liquid onto the table. “Oops, don’t you worry. I’ll take care of this mess.” Theldan lowered his head towards the spilt liquid and seemed to blow onto the drink, making little waves. One second later, the liquid seemed to dissipate into the air as if Theldan tipped over an empty glass. “I’ll teach you that spell one day. Too bad it doesn’t work on cleaning any opaque liquids. I never understood the problems with, maybe the mixture, or the lighting, my magic is almost perfect.”

            “The horses,” Ore reminded Theldan. “What about the horses?”

            “Oh yes. I thought I said Cercia was tacking them, or did I say she was taking care of things.”

            They left quickly once Theldan forced Ore to eat something more filling than a carrot from the larder. At the boundary between the tavern and the road, a woman stood, holding the reigns of their horses. Cream stood nicking Theldan’s stallion, both were fully loaded with their luggage. Ore mounted and stared at Theldan, waiting for the old man to do the same.

            Theldan stood before the woman, took a bow, and said after taking and kissing her hand, “Thank you my dear. I would never have been able to care for the boy without your aid.” He turned to Ore and said loudly. “Give her a proper thank you, Ore. You owe her nothing less.”

            “Thank you for caring for me,” Ore thanked her humbly, “in my time of illness.”

            Theldan kicked the horse’s side and Ore followed as they began to travel down the road at a slow trot. When the tavern moved out of site behind the trees, Ore asked Theldan, “What did you do to that woman?”

            “Nothing, I only treated her with respect and she offered assistance after your wounds reopened. I’m certain you wouldn’t have healed as soon if it weren’t for her.”

            “You said, ‘as soon.’ Would I have been out longer? How long did I sleep?”

            “A little longer than a week,” Theldan replied. “I spent hours trying to make a healing poultice out of ferns I found in the woods. Cercia looked after you when I couldn’t work on healing you. Do you have any idea how long until we reach Yuri’s estate?”

            “Do you have any maps of the territories?”

            Theldan removed from a satchel one large map and undid the bindings. He slowly passed the map to Ore, taking great care not to drop the parchment.

            “You’ll probably find some of the name a little out of date and there’s no mention of any canals. But the trade routes are still good and I’m certain a few of the forts are still around.”

            Ore unraveled the map and scanned the landmarks. Theldan’s remark was an understatement. Half of the map’s markings weren’t finished and the uncharted segments broke the surveyed pieces into divided chunks.

            “How old is this map?” Ore asked.

            “Well, my master left it to me on his deathbed a long time ago. You can find the way, right?”

            “All I know is that he’s said their house overlooks the Grenfelder River. The rivers here aren’t even marked and the routes between the forts no longer exist. I’m not even sure the forts still exist with all the inland traders working with steamers nowadays, no one maintains these routes.”

            “That’s strange,” Theldan stared down the road. “Those roads were solid and sturdy eighty years ago. I don’t see why they would have switched to the rivers, especially with the rapids at the base of the foothills.”

            “They’ve built canals to bypass the rapids. Yuri told me about how he remembers seeing workers finish the construction when he was three and the land routes were shortened to save time. When did you last travel those areas?”

            “I traveled near them twenty years ago and I never suspected the routes changed that much. I’m sure we’ll find our way there.”

            “I hope so,” Ore said under his breath, not really believing himself.

***

            “How are you booked? This town has no more than fifty people and you say you’re booked,” Theldan swore angrily at the steamer captain.

            After few days of travel, Theldan and Ore found themselves in a small logging outpost on the banks of the Grenfelder River. In a moment of pure luck someone at the post office mention Yuri’s family traveled to the town and booked a ride up the Grenfelder to the town of Berlum on’ Grenfelder. Now, instead of following the river bank, Ore and Theldan only need to ride a steamboat up the river. This would have cut two weeks from their travel if the captain would agree to book them.

            “I’m not booked in terms of passengers but in terms of cargo,” the captain replied. “I’m still transporting for a family of nobles. It’s not my fault if they’re renovating their house.”

            “How much wood does one family need? This doesn’t even matter anyway. Look at my seal and see that I’m a Magi. You can’t deny passage to me and my apprentice. Well maybe him, but not me!”

            “I do believe I can,” the captain argued. “This dry spell hasn’t exactly made navigation the river any easier and I’m the only man with a boat capable of running upstream without scraping the hull along the bottom. You won’t find another captain willing to take the two of you upstream with the water level this low. You don’t need wait long anyway it’s my last full trip before I’m finished with this order. You can probably stay at the post office. I’m friends with the postmaster and he’s perfectly fine with guests, especially ones with your circumstances.”

            “How long will we be staying with the postmaster, if that were the case?” Theldan asked impatiently.

            “I don’t really know about that,” the captain said as he scratched his ear. “Maybe five days, if I don’t stay overnight in Berlum, otherwise you’ll see me in a week. I don’t want to her drive her to hard in case I blow the boiler or scrape the riverbed. If that’s the case I’ll lose the ship and you’ll have to hike three weeks along the old trail.”

            “Why can’t we ride along the river?” Ore interrupted.

            “Because, little wizard, you’ll have to travel along the impassable gorges found upstream and I believe even Magi wouldn’t be capable of levitating themselves continually for more than twenty miles multiple times. I’ve seen your kind slow your descents from large falls but I don’t think you can fly.”

            “Wait, what is he talking about?” Ore asked Theldan.

            “There are a few ward combinations, that when used correctly, allow the user to slow their fall so they won’t die on impact. I haven’t shown them to you because there are really no scenarios when one might need them. And we can’t levitate ourselves, only small objects. I’ll teach those to you when we arrive at your friend’s, if this man lets us board.”

            “I’m telling you, I only have one more run before I can start ferrying passengers again. You’ll be my first priority when I return. I’m leaving in a half an hour anyways. We’ll begin casting off once my workers finish loading the last of these crates.” The captain nodded towards the stern end of the steamer where a large pile of crates waited to be loaded.

            “Find then,” Theldan answered calmly, waving his hand in disgust. “Just to clarify our situation the postmasters back there, right?” Theldan pointed towards the town, just past the cargo.

            “Yeah,” replied the captain. “Just past the cargo and you can’t miss it. I thought you came from that direction anyway, so why would you need directions?”

            “I’m an old man,” Theldan answered sarcastically. “I tend to forget the trivial things like where the post office is in a town I won’t be returning to for some time.”

            Theldan grabbed the hood of Ore’s cloak and pulled the boy towards the crates. “Won’t give me a ride,” the old man muttered to himself. “I’ll just take a ride. Bastards won’t be looking through the cargo, probably. No customs officials up here.”

            “Wait, what?” Ore asked, puzzled. “What are you doing?”

            Theldan pulled him behind a large pile of crates. “Help me find a crate large enough for you to lie in. Don’t worry about me because I’ll take care of myself. I always take care of myself. We need to hurry. I don’t know when they’ll start to finish loading these crates.”

            “What are we going to do about what’s already in the crates,” Ore questioned Theldan, “and the horses and eating, considering it’s a four day journey? We can’t go for four days without eating,” Ore protested.

            “I’ll handle horses and you get in the crate. This one seems like a good size,” Theldan said, opening a large square crate. “Jump in here and I’ll take care of the captain.”

            Ore knelt inside the crate, trying to avoid the nails sticking from the wood. He cursed Theldan, Probably another one of his tricks to teach me some life lesson. The captain’s probably in cahoots with him as well. Theldan pushed Ore deep into the crate.

            The crate contained a large collection of books, all tied together with twine, probably to keep them from shifting during transport. When Ore tried to move them to make room, the twine broke and a few books tumbled out. Theldan picked at them and looked over the bindings in his hands.

            “Wow,” he said surprised. “I never would have never imagined Yuri’s father a collector. Some of these tomes are over a hundred years old. Here,” he said, handing Ore a large tome. “Use this as a pillow. It’s certainly big enough and all you need to do is wrap your cloak around it.”

            “With all those nails sticking at me, I’d prefer to keep my cloak on,” Ore said. “I don’t want to get the spasm disease.”

            “Good enough reason,” Theldan chuckled. “Move your head and I’ll slide it under your neck. Then I’ll nail this crate up. See you in a few hours,” Theldan said right before he used magic to reseal the crate.

            Theldan left and a mere moment later right before Ore saw three men descend from steamer. He could only make out their shadows through the cracks in the wood but when he felt the crate lurch he prayed. He couldn’t bear the thought of being discovered. Ore learned long ago that not all of Theldan’s lessons were planned, even if most were.

            When the crate stopped moving, the light disappeared, leaving Ore in complete darkness. The men must have left him in the hold with the rest of the cargo, alone. He waited a few minutes then snapped his fingers to try and bring out some light with magic.

            The light hovered a few inches from his eyes, blinding him. He rolled away, into the side of the crate, then felt himself falling. Ore fell onto the floor of the steamer’s hold, breaking away the side of the crate. He coughed, trying to get the taste of old book dust out of his mouth.

            He felt a bit of wetness on his arm and looked down. During the fall Ore had cut himself on one of the nails. The cut itself wasn’t deep but did run from his elbow down to his palm and it bled. He lowered his sleeve to pressurize the cut, hopefully to stop the bleeding.

            At first Ore wasn’t worried, he was out of the crate and nobody heard him. He started to worry when he looked to the floor and saw blood all over the pages of one of the books that spilled out with him. He panicked trying to clean the pages with his cloak and tried to remember the spell that Theldan used to clean up his spilled drinks. But, Theldan never had taught him that spell or anything similar. Slowly he cleaned the books of his blood, working meticulously, trying to avoid a permanent stain. Soon all the books, except for a small tome with a strange lock on its side and gem on its face, were cleaned.

            Ore tried to force the lock open with no luck. His fingernails poked into the mechanism, trying to turn the lock and open it. A little blood from his still-bleeding cut ran down his arm and palm and dripped into the lock. Ore thought he heard something click, but the lock still refused to open no matter how much he pried.

            Then the light went out, leaving him once again in total darkness. Ore felt shocked and relaxed at the same moment. He conjured up the mage light again and this time cast it far enough away and outside of the crate, to avoid blinding himself.

            He fingered with the book lock again and succeeded in loosening the binding, a strange leather ingrained with a silver chain. He opened the book to check for any damage he might have caused with his blood. He saw none, its pages still looking the age of their cover. Ore fingered through the pages all the way to the end, then back to the inside of the front cover. On the opposite side he noticed a few names written in almost illegible handwriting. Nothing about this scarred him until he saw his name on the bottom, written in his own handwriting, and fresh blood.

            Okay, Theldan mentioned the books that we Magi use that write themselves as one improves upon their own skill. He promised me a copy, so this must be it. It must be that book he slipped under my neck, so it’s not stealing if I take it.

            He pocketed the book on the inside of his cloak in the pouch right beneath his shoulder.

            Slowly, Ore returned the books to the crate and nailed the side shut, making sure to make it appear untouched. He used magic to nail the wood back into place. Upon finishing, he felt a lurch in the hull and heard a loud whistle blow from the stack of the steamboat.

            “Oh Gods,” Ore said in shock to himself, “we’re moving.”

            He opened the door to the hold and stepped out onto the deck. Steam bellowed from the stack, sending black ash into the air and the paddles in the rear of the ship were already moving at a frighteningly increasing pace.

            Ore never felt shock, fear, or obstinate, Theldan must have already boarded when he snuck aboard in the crate. Then he saw Theldan, with the horses, waving from the dock. Ore ran along the deck of the steamer, trying to keep Theldan in sight.

            “I’m sorry about abandoning you like this,” Theldan screamed laughingly to him, “but you’ve got to learn I might end up separated from you for great periods of time. I’m not breaking the promise I made when I said I couldn’t lose you. But, you’re not lost, and I know where you’re traveling and where you’re heading. I won’t lose you, Ore, if you head for Yuri’s.”

            “I’ll murder you in your sleep, old man,” Ore screamed angrily towards Theldan. “And if anything happens to Cream I’ll make sure you die slowly.”

            “I’ll see you in a little more than a week. Enjoy your vacation.” As Theldan turned around he yelled something back. “No one on the ship knows you’re there, so you better have learned some fast talking from me.” He turned around waving his hand, “Bye.”

            One of the men turned the corner, coming from the direction of the stern paddles. “Hey! Hey!” the man screamed at Ore.

            Ore fled towards the bow, taking care to avoid slipping on the deck. He turned to one of the cabins and flung himself towards the open door. He slammed the door and hid behind it, hoping the man would run past him. Then he realized the man must have seen him enter as he never bothered to lose him.

            The man opened the door and grabbed the hood of Ore’s cloak and pulled him outside onto the deck. “What hells convinced you to sneak on board here, boy?” the man yelled in his face.

            “I thought my master would sneak on with me,” Ore answered. “Please sir, don’t throw me off. I just need passage up the river to Berlum and then I’ll be out of your way. My master will pay my fare when you return.”

            “I can’t deal with you, boy,” the man said, much more calmly. “I’m going to need to take you to the captain. We’ve never had any stowaways before. Well, I’ve never had to deal with stowaways before. I think we threw the last one overboard”

            The man led him to the only cabin on the third deck of the steamer. There sat the captain at a large desk covered in charts. The captain looked up at Ore, swore, and motioned for the man to leave them.

            “Well I see you’ve met my day shift engineer. Good man, awful temper. So, you snuck aboard?” the captain asked.

            “My master helped me sneak aboard, sir,” Ore replied, looking down at his feet, trying to avoid the gaze of the captain. “I believed he would join me but instead has left me abandoned.”

            “I’m Captain Yelner by the way. Why don’t you take a seat?” Yelner pointed to a chair. “We’ve a lot of talking to do. Considering your… circumstances, I’m going to let you stay, on the condition that you entertain my men tomorrow night.”

            “What?” Ore said in shock. “Why would you want me to entertain your crew? I’m an apprenticed Magi, not a magician.”

            “I don’t see any difference,” Yelner spoke under his breath, “when both of your kinds can use magic.”

            “Magicians can’t use magic,” Ore spoke sternly. “They’re nothing but tricksters who use their sleight of hand to make you believe what they’re doing is actual real magic. Sure, a few have the gift but most of them can’t even conjure a flame, and that’s one of the first spells we learn.”

            “I can throw you into the river right now, if you want.” Yelner spoke with a calm attitude, invoking a sense of authority. “It won’t take you that long to float downstream if you avoid getting crushed in the paddles.”

            “Entertaining your crew won’t be difficult. I can put on a light show, or invoke fire, or anything you request. We don’t need to take such drastic action,” Ore laughed, trying to hide the fear in his voice. “Just show to me to my quarters so I may prepare.”

            Yelner walked him back to the hold where Ore originally snuck aboard and moved a few crates to make a small clear area. After he finished Yelner spoke. “Since you snuck aboard here, you’ll stay here. Dinner’s in about six hours so I’d recommend you start preparing or you’ll be very cold and wet tonight.”

            The captain left him, leaving Ore in the dark without any tools or resources. Ore decided to cast mage light again to brighten up the cramped hold. He removed everything of use from his cloak, setting aside the strange blood tome, the revolver Hernman had given him before their flight from the Bebnedi, and some bread he would have eaten for lunch.

            “Okay, I’m dead,” Ore said out loud. “Without any of Theldan’s spell books, the most I can do is conjure fire or lightning, which considering how most of this boat is made of wood, is probably a bad idea. I can probably show off the weird signatures on that book. But I don’t see any way how that’s lasting entertainment. I’m even talking to myself, I’m so scared”

            He opened the strange book and fumbled through the pages, taking care not to rip any of the blank pages. Even if the tome proved useless, at least it would remain a good journal, or a gift for Theldan, if Theldan hadn’t actually given him the book.

            He still thumbed through the pages, half expecting something to happen, slowly without stopping. The third pass revealed something of interest, the book’s early pages contained basic spells, variants of the magic he already knew. The last page contained a spell Ore had never seen, a spell that allowed the caster to see through the eyes of another and a footnote described a variation that allowed another to see through subject even if they had no capacity for magic personally.

            Definitely entertaining, so I could use this.

            The spell was simple enough, all it required was an inked seal on parchment and familiarity with magic, and fit perfectly within his capabilities, as if the book knew his skills. He didn’t have anything to practice with so he decided he would use the spell as a last resort.

            He decided to stick with simple light tricks and illusions, anything mildly entertaining. A few light spells and normally physical impossibilities would suffice. He’d even let some of the men beat him to show off the strength of the wards Theldan taught him.

            He stopped when someone knocked on the door, reminding of how much time he’d just spent practicing. His caller summoned him to the galley, where most of the men would be waiting, eager to see the spectacle Ore had planned for them.

            Ore pocketed the book in his vest.

            Ore chuckled when he entered the galley, most of the men sat eating, a couple of them apparently traveled with their wives. Yelner called Ore to his table and invited him to sit, patting the chair. “You’re my special guest, dear boy. So do you enjoy mashed potatoes and preserved venison? There are some steamed carrots as well.” He passed Ore an untouched plate.

            “I don’t think I’ve ever tried venison before,” Ore answered as he sat down, feeling awkward among the stranger. “Aren’t I supposed to entertain your men?” he asked, avoiding eye contact.

            “That’s after everyone finishes,” Yelner said as he ate, the man’s creepy smile startled Ore. “Most people can’t exactly watch and eat at the same time now, can they? You do have ten minutes to finish, by the way. You see I called you here right before most of us finished. Don’t want you vomiting from stage fright all over my clean galley.”

            Ore ate the carrots and mashed potatoes before hesitantly trying the venison. While the meat tasted fine, Yelner pushed him out from his seat after a few bites.

            “Gentlemen and the beautiful wives of said gentlemen,” Yelner said proudly, “I give you tonight’s entertainment, a wizard all the way from Emperor’s Way.”

            “Thank you,” Ore said, not sure what to say next. “, but actually I’m a Magi,” he corrected them. Wizards weren’t approved by the Highest Council or the emperor. “Well should we get started? I’m taking requests.”

            “So is it true you mages can make fire out of nothing? I bet all you’ve got is tiny piece of flint and steel and a little oil. Remove your cloak and roll up your sleeves. I want to see how you really do this trick,” one of the men randomly yelled.

            “It’s no trick good sir,” Ore raised his hand and snapped his fingers, incinerating the air above his hand, “and to prove I have full control I’ll remove my cloak while it burns.” As he removed his cloak, the cloth caught fire, just as Theldan sometimes warned him. But, the fire wasn’t true fire but magic, interacting with the air and giving smoke with no heat. As long as Ore fed the spell magic, he held no fear of accidently burning something. “Does this suffice?” He held the burning cloak before the crowd. “Any more requests, I’m afraid it’s a bit chilly out and I’d prefer to have my cloak back.”

            “I bet it’s not real,” a man to his left argued.

            “Well certainly it’s not real fire.” Ore tossed his cloak to the man, who fell back in shock. “It’s magical flame. I don’t want to accidently burn down the entire ship. Doesn’t this boat run on coal or just really dry wood?” The fire dissipated, leaving the man startled. “I’d like my cloak back,” Ore said as he picked it from the startled man’s seat. “Any more requests?” Ore asked his audience. I’m only here for half an hour, and then I make my leave.”

            “I liked that fire trick,” a woman said. “But, I don’t see how that proves your skill. Show us something real, something neither we nor you can deny is magic.”

            “Ma’am, I’m sorry but I can only show my spells to you directly. If you want to provide yourself as my assistant, I wouldn’t object. I’ll use magic to make you see from the eyes of another.” Ore’s eye twitched a second later. He had grown too impulsive, offered to use the spell the book showed him, a spell he had never preformed or even heard of in his life.

            “Can I volunteer my husband as well?” she asked as Ore helped her to her feet.

            “Certainly,” Ore approved against his better judgment. “The spell works far better with three people. Now,” he addressed his audience. “I need a pen and some parchment, or otherwise I’m afraid the spell may prove impossible.”

            Yelner passed him a pen and paper. Ore removed the book from his pocket and copied the diagram for performing the spell. It required the seals be placed on the skin of the participants while the caster maintains the link. Simple. He placed the seal first on the woman’s hand and repeated the step with the man. He spoke under his breath and removed the seals, leaving a small mark in their place.

            “Would the kind couple please shut their eyes, not to tightly now and don’t peek, while the audience watches?” While the couple obliged, he finished the spell, creating the link. “Now would the sir please open his eyes? Please don’t fear, for the blindness is only temporary, and would the madam please tell the audience what she sees?”

            “I see the galley,” she answered.

            “Good. Now would the kind gentleman please take my hand and step forward, keep your eyes open, and the madam tells us what she sees?”

            “My vision is moving. I’m seeing through my husband’s eyes,” she said in realization.

            “Now she understands. Quicker than most, I might add,” Ore said, selling the act that he actually knew what he was doing.

            One man stood from his seat and pointed to Ore, “There’s no way to prove what’s actually happening. Make him leave the room and I’ll show her my fingers, then we’ll see if she really sees through his eyes.”

            “An excellent suggestion,” Ore thanked, a few drops of sweat fell from his hair, and the room started to feel awfully how, “and would you mind sir if you guided her from the room? I don’t want to present any opportunities for deception.”

            The man guided her from the room and returned and held up six fingers to the man’s face, every finger on his right hand and his index and middle on his left.

            “Would the madam please shout from the other room the specific fingers she sees raised?” Ore spoke in a raised voice.

            “Every finger on his right hand and the two fingers next to his thumb on the left,” she shouted back, giving even more detail than Ore expected.

            “Again, again!” the crowd cheered them on.

            Ore’s uninvited assistant again raised his fingers in a new pattern and again the wife shouted what her husband saw. After the sixth go, Ore suddenly felt his stomach cramp up and lost control of the spell. The marks on the couple’s wrists disappeared into the air and Ore fell to his knee. “That’s enough for tonight folks. I believe this will suffice for entertainment for a good long while.” As the crew left, the couple thanked him and the woman kissed him on the forehead.

***

            Ore stayed to himself for the remainder of the trip, reading the strange book that revealed to him even more pages, even more spells, even more knowledge. In the evenings he would lean again the railing of the steamer, watching the landscape slowly move in pace with the ship’s trip up river. It grew colder in the nights as the mountain air travelled into the valley. Captain Yelner asked Ore to entertain again the next night, but he declined for fear of fainting.

            Ore awoke late on the third day, when the sun reached its highest point in the sky and back in the city most men would have started their midday siestas. While the distance between the riverbanks grew, the depth lessened, forcing Yelner to slow their pace. In the distance Ore made out and smelled the smoke of a few houses nestled in the woodland.

            He never noticed Yelner step beside him. “That’s Berlum, furthest stop you can make this time of year and, from what I understand, your destination?” the captain asked.

            “I thought my master already told you this?” Ore said, not really caring if Yelner answered.

            “We’ll be there in few minutes. Good village, even if the only real purpose is only to serve the local nobles. Almost no one lives here in the winter,” Yelner commented.

            “Where’s the dock?” Ore asked, annoyed about his treatment from the captain.

            “Just around the next bend in the river,” Yelner coughed out the next sentence. “I’m still going to need to throw you off for being a stowaway.”

            Ore sat by himself, alone, as the men navigated the ship to the side of the small wooden dock. Once the door opened Ore didn’t bother to wait, he jumped onto the dock and viewed the hamlet, a small cluster of cottages built neatly along the town’s only proper road that led into the woodland. The woodland led up a large plateau that dominated river valley. He made out a few smokestacks sticking out from the farthest trees.

            “Ore?” a voice shouted to him. “Dear Gods, Ore is that you?”

            “Yuri?” Ore said to himself, both surprised and shocked.

            Yuri ran to Ore from the side of a cottage where he had been leaning against its wooden fence. “Where the hell where you after that fire?” he shouted in anger. “My father said two Magi had been arrested and you never bothered send any letters. But, I’m glad you’re here. But, why are you here?”

            “Yuri!” Ore said backing away. “I didn’t expect to see you at the dock. Uh, surprise? I’m here to accept that invitation for staying with you as your guest.”

            “You really think that offer still stands after I haven’t seen you for almost three months. I never even expected you to find us here. How did you know where we kept our summer house?”

            “You always said each year in the springtime, ‘my family’s heading to Berlum for the summer,’ and asking for directions usually helps.”

            “Oh, wow,” Yuri said, taking deep breathes. “You’ll have to tell me about your trip. Ours was just a ludicrous mess after the fire. Father still keeps sending orders for replacements of the belongings he lost in the blaze. Wait, something’s wrong,” Yuri paused and looked at Ore.

            “Ore, you smell as if you haven’t bathed in a month…”

            “True,” Ore interrupted.

            “And your master is gone,” Yuri finished.

            “Yes… that’s also a long story,” Ore added.

            “Listen, just wait here,” Yuri said, motioning with his hands for him to stay. “I came with some of the staff to help move the collection. Well, I actually just wanted to get out of the house and avoid swimming. I’ll be back in just a minute, and then we can walk to the house together.”

            Yuri ran off, leaving Ore standing on boundary between the dirt road and the dock. A moment later two older men returned with him from the largest building on the street. From the frequent movement of men entering and leaving, Ore guessed it might be a tavern.

            “They can handle themselves,” Yuri said calmly. “We need to get back. I’m finally beating one of my sisters in a war game my brother made.”

            “Which sister?” Ore asked as they began to walk into the woods. “Full blood or half blood?” he questioned. No one except Yuri and members of his family could get all the relations strait.

            “Full blood,” Yuri replied. “The only times I play with any of my half blood siblings are when guests are around and even then I only play them when I’m certain I’m the one who will end up winning. So why did you take so long to arrive and what happened?”

            Ore spent fifteen minutes of their walk explaining what happened after the fire in the Imperial Reserve, the witches, Theresa and her girls, and the Bebnedi. He left out the parts about his prophecy and how the fight almost left him dead.

            “Wow,” Yuri said. “The most interesting thing to happen once we got here occured about a month ago. A rumor started about how a dragon came over the Peak Wall. Father almost sent for the militia but we never heard anything else about it.”

            “I thought dragons were almost extinct. I’d never expect to see one out here.”

            “Well, we are less than two hundred leagues from the edge, so we’re practically in the middle of the Foothills and we can’t exactly hunt them to extinction, the Peak Wall’s far too high and thick to try and form hunting parties. You see, my theory is dragons thrive since they have no natural enemies except for humans and elves and those mountains do provide the perfect barrier. So when they grow overpopulated, weaker dragons gets exiled to look for new territory and happen to leave the safety of the Peak Wall, happens all the time with rabbits down on Nebis Island. The runts, sick, and elderly swim out into the ocean trying to find themselves new breeding grounds when the food runs out. Dragons certainly feed like rabbits.”

            “You’ll need to tell me more about this later,” Ore said. He’d never seen the famous rabbit migrations from Nebis, but had certainly heard. Their meat was supposedly some of the best in the world and this news about dragons excited him further.

            “Where’s the house anyway?” Ore asked as they closed in on the top of plateau. 

            “See where the trees give away to grain field,” Yuri said, pointing through the trees. “It’s not a proper plateau but a collection of smooth hill peaks. We built the house at the highest point where you can see the entire river valley from the veranda. Look,” Yuri pointed as they stepped out of the woodland, “you can see the house now.”

            Back in Emperors Way, Yuri always described his family’s summer residence as a small retreat nestled in the Foothills Region, and Ore imagined it that way. Now, Ore thought the house a palace nestled in the Foothills Region.

            A veranda stretched around the three story structure, filled with an assortment of tables and chairs. A large greenhouse extended from the side next to a walkway that lead to a barnyard, where Ore made out a large assortment of horses in a corral. The house blocked a large orchard that seemed to just stick out from behind and then bleed away into a vineyard. The estate seemed capable of housing at least a hundred men in its rooms alone.

            “That’s not even the entire estate,” Yuri pointed to the tall domed tower jutting out of the side. “We have a smaller boathouse on our lake that you can’t really see from here. While we can almost use every room year round, except for the sunroom and few others that are just too cold come winter.”

            “You said it was small,” Ore said, still admiring the grand house.

            “Well, the estate originally was a small hunting cabin, built forty-five years ago. Thirty years ago, Dad knocked the whole thing down and commissioned the manor as an anniversary gift for...” Yuri paused a second then stopped, thinking of one of his stepmothers. “We’ve just finished the latest edition this spring, even though the house was perfectly suitable for habitation year round twenty-five years ago.”

            “Just how many people live here,” Ore asked curiously, as they walked onto the porch, “and where is everyone?”

            “Well, the air here this time of month just starts burning in afternoon so the rest of the family’s probably down at the lake. The gamekeeper lives in small cabin, evening during the winter, we have a staff of about twenty that we take along, and a housekeeper will overwinter as well, and including my family, that’s twenty-nine children here right now, my dad and his wives, sometimes my oldest siblings visit, so I’m not exactly sure of the exact number. I think it’s eighty-nine.”

            “Gods,” Ore said in disbelief.

            “Don’t worry,” Yuri assured him. “Most of my family are fine with the Magi, even my dad won’t try and refuse you the rights of hospitality. The only person we have to worry about is my magister, Iddilis,” Yuri said as he opened the door but still keeping his face turned towards Ore. “Oh hello, Magister Iddilis,” Yuri turned to see a man, probably in his early forties.

            “Hello Master Yuri,” Iddilis greeted them, “and for what reason do you need to worry about me?”

            “Magister Iddilis,” Yuri replied, “this is my friend Ore, from Emperors Way. He’ll be staying with us. I’ve invited him so we can’t turn him away.”

            “I’m well aware of your father’s tradition of keeping the elder house laws. But, I don’t think I’ve met you, Master Ore,” Iddilis held out his hand.

            “I would have thought I’d have met you as well,” Ore said as shook his hand. “Yuri never mentioned his Magister. Strange, I though Magister was a title appointed only to Magi. I was under the understanding that the master of this house disagreed with that specific order.”
            “Maybe you’re the one who’s wrong,” Iddilis corrected. “Magister was a title appointed to all teachers of the nobility, a spot normally coveted for Magi. Now, I believe the master of the house would like to speak with you two, Master Yuri and Master Ore,” Iddilis changed the subject, “especially to inquire on the purpose for Master Yuri’s reason for not swimming at the lake with the rest of his siblings. Please, follow me.” He didn’t lead them far. In fact Ore and Yuri never left the central hallway. “Please wait while I fetch the master, Cives Arthemur.” Iddilis left them and entered what Ore could only guess was a study, closing the door behind him.

            “Will your dad remember me?” Ore asked. “I mean, he did forbid me from setting foot in your home, three years ago.”

            “That’s the villa we have in Emperors Way, so he never actually banned you setting foot here. Don’t hate him, he has nothing against you, just your order,” Yuri iterated.

            “I never could properly understand why he hated the Magi so feverously,”
 Ore questioned. “We’re the only Gifted Ones the government approves of, and even though it hasn’t happened in over two hundred years, I’m still a direct servant of the state who can be drafted or commissioned at any time.”

            The right side of the double oaken opened. Iddilis nodded to Yuri, “your father will see you now,” and Yuri joined him.

            Ore sat against the wall, alone in the great hallway of this great house. For a moment he stood in silence, waiting for Yuri to return. But, he grew impatient and closed his ear against the keyhole to eavesdrop.

            “Why did you invite him and his master here, Yuri?” Ore heard Yuri’s father ask patiently. “You could have asked anyone else, even that blacksmith boy you visit every few weeks. Why him? Why a Magi?” he finished with a note of melancholy.

            “Because he is one of greatest friends and sometimes I want to spite you for what you do to mother,” Yuri replied sternly. “I never understood why you hate Magi so and for some reason you aren’t repulsed by any other magic user.”

            “Because I’ve had a long history with Magi and their order,” the patience in Yuri’s father’s voice grew cold. “You don’t understand, I’m not sending your friend away, a fourteen year old boy would never survive out in that wilderness by himself. And…” his voice paused for a second “why do hate your siblings so much and why do you get your mother involved? Leave her out of this!”

            “If you can’t realize that answer there’s no point in me explaining,” Yuri replied, ignoring the question about his mother. “Just answer me where Ore will say and where his master will join him when he arrives.”

            “So, only the apprentice is here?”

            “Yes,” Yuri said quietly.

            “Send him in, Iddilis. Don’t worry, son. I’ll take care of your friend. I promise you no harm will come of him,” said Yuri’s father with an oddly calmer voice.

            Ore entered the office. A large banner carrying the seal of Yuri’s house hung behind his father who sat at a large oaken desk. The fat man had a cigar stump in a tray in front of him that still gave off a bit of smoke. Ore tried to breathe but the smoke only made him cough.

            “Sorry,” the man apologized, “but smoking is this terrible habit of mine. It tried quitting once but the tremors that caused forced me back.” Yuri’s father took a long breath and peered at a paper before him with his glasses. “Tell me Ore, how long have my son?”

            “I’m not sure, sir. I think Yuri was seven when we first met.”

            “How old are you?”

            “I don’t know my birthday, sir. But I assume I’m fourteen.” Ore explained how because of his admission to the Magi as an infant, he never was told his true birthday and couldn’t remember anything about his life before.

            “I’m going to address this directly,” Yuri’s father spoke with a calm manner. “That’s one of the reason I don’t like,” he paused, “your order. They’re to powerful and don’t follow the rules like the rest of us.”

            “We have rules too, sir,” Ore objected. “I have to follow the law just as any other person must.”

            “Unfortunately, I believe your master will try to end you of that habit,” he said. Ore silently agreed with him. “You haven’t achieved journeyman status yet so I will let you stay, on the condition you don’t sleep in this house and don’t interact with anyone unless Yuri’s with you. No magic unless you’re in your sleeping quarters either,” he added.

            “Where will I sleep sir?” Ore asked.

            “A few years ago, before this house was finished, one of my oldest daughters married and for a wedding gift I built her a retreat by the lake for her and her husband. She hasn’t visited in a few years so you’re welcome to occupancy in the boathouse. Yuri will show you there and your master will join you there when he arrives,” he finished. Then he added, “Ore, I want to address me as Cives. I despise the times when people address me as sir.” Cives pointed to the door, ordering Ore to leave and shut the door behind him.

            “Well?” Yuri asked impatiently.

            “I think you have to show me where I’m sleeping,” Ore replied. “Your dad mentioned something about a your boat or lake house.”

            “That’s great,” Yuri said, pulling him away past Iddilis. “No one has slept there in a long while, but once we clean out the nests of whatever creatures have made a home there, it should feel quite comfy. Follow me,” he added. “I’ll race you.”

            Yuri and Ore ran back to the front hall through the double doors, trying to outpace the each other. Ore managed to outrun Yuri for a few seconds, mostly because of the aid of his wards provided. He stopped when he realized he didn’t know the shortest path to the lake. Yuri leapt out in front of him onto the veranda.

            A large shadow fell on Yuri from the roof as he passed over the steps and out into the open. Ore paused for a second in shock, feeling some magic drain as a few of his instinctive defensive wards engaged.

            “Gods girl!” Yuri screamed. “I though you were swimming with mother, the twins, and the rest of them.” He coughed out the dust he inhaled as from his fall.

            “No one told me the real reason you went to town was to pick up your friend,” the girl replied. “Hi Ore,” she said, holding out her hand. “I’m Tevisha. Well you already know that.”

            “Have we met?” Ore asked Tevisha. “I mean I’ve seen you before at your house in Emperor’s Way. But, I don’t think we’ve actually met.”

            “Fine,” she replied. For a second Ore though she seemed a little hurt but whatever that feeling was, Euda hid it.

            “Ore, my thirteen year old, full blooded sister Tevishaprimna,” he introduced them. “But don’t call her that. She almost broke my big brothers arm when he called her that by accident.”

            “I’m fourteen now,” she answered back angrily. “You were at the celebration last week.”

            “How is it you expect me to remember the ages of all our siblings? I thought that party was for Issma.” He stopped for a moment. “Oh yes, you share birthdays. I forgot about that.”

            “You still need to finish our game of Black Tongues,” she answered before walking away, leaving both of them on the steps of the deck.

            “I never understood her,” Yuri said, staring off at his sister. “She was always attached to my older brother and keeps attempting to outdo me in everything, hunting, strategy, sneaking.”

            “She probably looks up to you and your brother, but because your brother is so much older the only challenge for her is you,” Ore commented. “Though, I don’t think I’ve ever spoken to her before or even been introduced. Why did she refer to me by name?”

            “I can’t answer that, she’s bit strange. Look we’re almost there,” Yuri said as Ore looked through the trees to see a small lake, glistening in the sunlight.

            The light of the sun twinkled on the water, gently weaving its light through the waves. A small boathouse, made almost entirely of glass and built with an octagonal foundation, sat a hundred feet from the shore, catching the light off the water.

            Yuri’s family had built a dock on the water’s edge, directly between the house and the lake. Most of Yuri’s older siblings swam in the water while the younger ones raced each other along the beach. Euda had beaten them to the shore, where she sat waiting for Yuri.

            “I’ll show you the house first,” Yuri said, waving back at his sister, “and help clean out the nests of whatever critters have made their home there.”

            They climbed the steps onto the circular deck that surrounded the house. Yuri fumbled a bit with the door and forced his way inside. Ore peeked past him to a see a few pieces of wooden furniture, a small stove, and a large wooden frame for a bed. Surprisingly, except for a tiny layer of dust, the interior was clean.

            “I could have sworn we might have found a hornet’s nest,” Yuri said puzzled. “I’ll send a servant down to clean out this dust and bring you a proper bed.”

            “What’s wrong with this one?” Ore asked.

            “Ehh… I don’t want you sleeping there,” Yuri said with a hint of disgust, “so your master can stay there. I wouldn’t have you touch that bed for personal and legitimate reasons.”

            “Like what?” Ore asked, sitting against the wall. “Do you really think I care?”

            “No.” Yuri paused. “I just refuse to have anything to do with my half siblings. You won’t understand, so don’t try to. Besides, I’m pretty sure something’s infesting that bed. Our boathouse can’t possibly be this clean.” Yuri stood there and waited. “I’ll leave you here and have someone clean this place up for you during dinner. It’s getting late in the day anyway. We’re going hunting tomorrow.”