Rise of the Champion (The Sword of Kirakath Omnibus #1) (42 page)

“Before we get off, it’s important that you four understand that drawing needless attention to ourselves would be very bad,” Sir Edmond said as he pulled the hood of his cloak down. “Until we know more about the current climate of the island, we must act with the utmost discretion.”

“Where are we going, exactly?” Caleb asked with a glance at the possessed golem.

“We will go to Laus. I spoke with Eric White about many things before I made my second offer to you,” Sir Edmond answered. “He told me about a number of contacts that he has through Arcadia. One of them is on the island. It will not be safe to stay there indefinitely, but it will be a good place to start.”

“I think I know who you’re talking about,” Nicolas remarked thoughtfully. “It’s Meis, isn’t it?”

“Correct,” Sir Edmond replied with a brief nod. “Now, try to stay silent for a while.”

Judging from the look on Katie’s face, Caleb could tell that the name meant something to her. It sounded familiar to him as well, but he could not remember where he had heard it before.

After a few moments of silence, they made their way off the boat and stepped foot on the docks of Northport.

Compared to any of the cities, and most of the towns, that he had been to in the past, Northport was small. Given the nature of the island, Caleb was actually impressed by the size of the town. Hearing that it was a lawless island, he had imagined that it would be completely chaotic. Instead, it was actually fairly quiet and seemed peaceful.

“In all my years, I have never met a man that was evil,” Sir Edmond said softly, catching Caleb’s attention. He had to strain to hear him clearly. “All men are capable of committing acts of great good and great evil, but evil is never the motivation behind such actions. Not among sane men, at least. Self-interest, loyalty, and ideals are the most common motivations that I’ve seen. And as for good… the most harm often comes from someone who believes they are acting for someone’s best interests.”

It seemed a strange time for him to speak philosophically, but it definitely gave Caleb something to think about. Cain Fell was a despicable man in his eyes, but he had not carried out the Massacre of Kirakath just to be evil. Victor Abrams had been amoral with no qualms about ordering assassinations, but he seemed to be motivated by self-interest rather than a desire to cause pain. And then there was Count Clovis of Caldreth. He had believed that Caleb needed to die for the good of Arcadia.

When he finally stopped thinking about Sir Edmond’s words, he found that they were already out of Northport and were walking down the road towards Laus.

“I’ll never understand how you can safely walk without paying attention to your surroundings,” Katie said from beside him, shaking her head.

“I was able to do the same when I was alive,” Sir Edmond remarked. “Perhaps it’s a family trait.”

Caleb shrugged, not too concerned about that ability. “I don’t suppose you can answer any of my questions while we walk, can you?”

“Perhaps,” Sir Edmond said with a hint of disapproval in his tone. “However, some questions should not be answered where they can be heard by just anyone.”

He could not argue with that. Having the wrong person overhear about the Blood of Kirakath would have been dangerous, after all.

“Do you know how to cleanse the taint?” he asked after a moment of thought. It was vague and could be answered with a single word, so he saw no harm in asking it in the middle of the road.

Sir Edmond turned his head sharply at the question. “That is the last question I expected you to ask. I imagine Eric mentioned it.”

“Yeah, he said that if you didn’t know how to do it yourself, you might know who would be able to do it,” Caleb replied, thinking back to his meeting with Eric before he went to kill Clovis Averill.

“I know what must be done, but I do not know how,” Sir Edmond answered after a moment of silence. “Do not ask about the taint for the time being.”

Caleb nodded absently, though the way that his question had been answered did make him very curious. “You know,
he
mentioned you. He seemed to believe that you did something that couldn’t be fixed as long as I’m alive.”

Those words made Sir Edmond come to a complete stop.

“He is wrong,” he said quietly. “This is another matter that you should not ask about for the time being. Both subjects are intimately connected. If you wish to discuss another matter, feel free to do so.”

It was difficult for Caleb to think of another subject to bring up. The Blood of Kirakath and the magic of the Sword of Kirakath were too important to speak of in the middle of the road.

“Never mind,” he said with a wave of his hand as he realized that there was nothing else that he really wanted to know about.

“Let us be on our way then,” Sir Edmond said as he began to walk once again.

“I think that was a sensitive topic,” Katie murmured from next to Caleb.

Caleb could not help but nod in agreement as he followed Sir Edmond.

Chapter 2

The trip to Laus did not take long. They reached the town just as the sun was setting.

Right away, Caleb found that Laus was very different from Northport, or any other town he had been to. It was fairly large in size, and it had a tall wooden fence surrounding it. The fence looked as though it was built by stripping the bark and branches off of trees, sharpening one end to a point, and then burying them so that the point came out at the top. Sentry towers could be seen on the other side of the wall.

“I’m blaming it on your luck,” Nicolas said under his breath, glancing at Caleb.

Personally, he could not find it in him to blame the former fence. He did have bad luck, and the dozen archers that stood to the side of the road with their bows at the ready could certainly be a product of that bad luck.

“You don’t look like any bandits I’ve ever seen.”

Caleb found his attention drawn to the gates of the town as a man walked through them, looking at him and his friends. With dark brown hair that fell to the back of his neck and icy blue eyes, the man had a distinctive look that Caleb knew he would never forget. He was not a short man, being a few inches taller than Caleb. He looked to have a lean build, though he still gave off the impression of being very strong. His suit of chainmail and the scimitar at his left hip only enhanced that.

“That’s because we aren’t bandits,” Sir Edmond stated calmly. Being able to remain calm was something that Caleb envied about him at the moment. A single arrow could prove lethal to a man, regardless of where it was aimed. On a golem, arrows were mostly useless. If one were to have an endless supply of arrows, it was possible to bring a golem down with them, but each one would only chip away at him. Of course, that was not even counting Sir Edmond’s ability to heal his golem body. He had done it when he initially possessed it back in Castle Caldreth, and he was reasonably certain that it was not a onetime thing.

“Then what are you?” the man asked with a raised eyebrow.

His answer was not what anyone expected. “I have been many things throughout the years. If you wish to know every single one, you will have to be patient. It would take longer to tell you than you would like to stand here. All you need to know is that I am a member of the Order of Kyran.”

The man before them looked at Sir Edmond carefully for a few moments before he spoke. “Eric sent word that I would likely see you before too long. I am Vincent Meis, and I invite you to stay at Laus for a little while. I will have to ask you to leave at some point, unfortunately, but that is a matter that should be discussed later.”

With that, he turned around and walked back through the gates. Wordlessly, Caleb and his friends followed him with the archers behind them.

As he walked with them, Caleb had to force himself to remain calm. He now knew where he had heard the name of Meis before. Vincent Meis was considered by many to be the greatest swordsman in Arcadia before he disappeared twenty years earlier. He was not just a swordsman. He was a blademaster. Even with the Blood of Kirakath, Caleb knew that he would not stand a chance if he was ever forced to fight him.

It was comforting to know that he was on the same side as him.

As they walked through the town, Caleb noticed that Laus was far different than he had expected, even after seeing its walls.

It looked as though it belonged on the mainland. Children were playing in the street, people were visiting the market as though they were not on a dangerous island, and no one looked upon any of them with even the slightest bit of suspicion or distrust.

Before long, they reached the largest building in town. It was a small manor that looked to be older than any other building in the town.

“Have our guests shown to their rooms,” Vincent told a guard that stood in front of the manor. His eyes then moved to Sir Edmond. “I would like to speak to you in private in the meantime.”

“Of course,” Sir Edmond replied casually.

“This way,” the guard said with a look to Caleb, Katie, and Nicolas before he entered the manor.

As they made their way into the building, Caleb could not help but feel that there was something going on that he did not know about.

* * * * *

Caleb did not see Vincent or Sir Edmond again until dinner.

With Vincent, Sir Edmond, and his friends as the only ones in the room, Caleb chose to speak shortly after the meal began.

“What is the Order of Kyran?”

Katie and Nicolas both looked curious at the question, while Vincent appeared to be suppressing a smile.

“You have not told them much, I see,” Vincent remarked.

“We have been pressed for time,” Sir Edmond admitted. “Now that we are here, there is no harm in answering that question. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find a good place to begin such an explanation.”

“The Order of Kyran was formed during Archmage Kyran’s lifetime,” Vincent stated, catching their rapt attention. “The purposes of the Order are often debated on between its members, but it is generally believed that our purpose is to protect the land of Kyran. It’s a vague explanation, but it is accurate at the same time.”

“What do you protect it from? Sir Edmond said that he fought in the Arcadian Rebellion against the Calian Empire. He’s a member, and that doesn’t sound much like protection to me,” Caleb countered.

“I’ll let you take this one,” Vincent told Sir Edmond with a hint of amusement in his voice.

“That is because you do not know all the facts,” Sir Edmond said firmly. “Those facts are not up for discussion at the moment, but you do not necessarily need them to understand. Look at it from a different perspective, and you’ll get an accurate enough answer. Only Archmage Kyran could hold such a vast empire together. Between his death and the start of the Arcadian Rebellion, the Empire had a very bloody history. Countless civil wars took place, along with the wars that took place between them and Tiberia after it seceded from the Empire. Since the Arcadian Rebellion ended, there has been far less bloodshed. I would go so far as to say that this past century has been the most peaceful century since Archmage Kyran ruled as Emperor.”

Anger rose in Caleb as Sir Edmond spoke of it being peaceful, but he pushed the anger down carefully. It was difficult to hear Sir Edmond describe any time period where his family was murdered as peaceful. The rest of what he said did make sense, however.

“What’s a paragon?” Nicolas asked suddenly. “That wizard in Caldreth said he thought Caleb would become one.”

“Eric has trouble keeping his mouth shut sometimes,” Vincent sighed. He seemed to be debating on whether or not he should answer when Sir Edmond spoke.

“The only true paragon was Archmage Kyran. You could say that a paragon is someone that everyone should aspire to be. They are, in a way, the embodiment of all that is good. Caleb is a good man and a worthy successor to my sword, but he is not a paragon.”

Caleb let out a sigh of relief when his ancestor spoke. The thought of being held to such a high standard had unnerved him a great deal.

“If we’re each asking a question, then that means it’s my turn,” Katie said after a moment of silence. “What is it that you intend for us to do here? You mentioned wanting to teach Caleb, but even I can tell that there’s more to it. You forbade him from using the Blood of Kirakath because of how tainted it has become, and you have avoided the subject of what the Sword of Kirakath can actually do every time Caleb’s asked.”

“She’s sharp,” Vincent chuckled. “That’s to be expected of her though.” He gave her a knowing look as soon as the words were out of his mouth, causing panic to be seen in her eyes. “You’ll find that the Order of Kyran is very knowledgeable.”

“Don’t unnerve them too much,” Sir Edmond chastised, though amusement could be heard in his voice. He then looked to Katie. “I will answer your question. I have no designs for you or your old friend, though I have coerced Vincent into agreeing to train both of you.”

Katie and Nicolas both looked stunned to hear that. They had expected to have to work on their own to improve their abilities. Being trained by the greatest blademaster in Arcadia was the last thing that they had expected.

“You two must not leave this manor while you are trained. If anyone learns you are here, you will not enjoy the consequences,” Sir Edmond said, his tone grave. “Alexander and Victor were not the only Abrams brothers. The final brother- and the worst of the three from what I’ve been told- lives on the southern side of the island. If Isaac Abrams learns that Caleb and Nicolas are on the island, he will not rest until he has them both. He likely won’t kill them. If what I’ve been told is true, then death would be a reprieve from a man like him.”