Rise of the Citadel (The Search for the Brights Book 2) (33 page)

Jace’s voice
heeded him, “Walk forward.”

Kilen listened
and walked between the two groups of men, keeping his arms at his side. Jace
wound the wind and debris closer to Kilen’s body, making it hard for him to
make out their facial features.

He watched as a
dozen shirtless men ran towards him, each with a red band on their arms. Before
they could reach him, Joahna grew in size and changed into the form of a man.
The eagle’s wings grew in size and stayed attached to his back. He stood
defiantly flapping his wings, holding the Crimson at bay. Kilen stopped about
ten paces behind Joahna. As if stepping out of the ground, Max took the form he
had taken in camp, only this time with two curved stone blades in his hands.
The wind died down at Jace’s command and none of the Fire Realm’s men moved.

Seeing that none
of the soldiers were advancing, Joahna casually walked to Kilen’s other side,
tucking his wings in behind him.

“I am Kilen
Everheart, Weapon Bearer appointed by the Elder Wizard’s Council. I have come
to speak with King Elric Rekkan of the Fire Realm under direction of Fire
Wizard Joahna Rekkan and Max Rekkan of the Crismon.”

No one spoke and
not a sound could be heard except for the constant babble of water in the river
near by. Only the dust stirred as Jace kept his line drawn in the dirt from a
circle rotating around the small party. Finally, one of the Crimson sheathed
his sword and bowed to Kilen. He held out his hands for the others to put away
their weapons. Max melted the stone swords back into his arms and they
reappeared on his back as if in a stone sheath. His white marble eyes urged
Kilen forward.

The man that
appeared to be the leader of the Crimson took one step forward to the edge of
Jace’s circle. “I am Pada of the Crimson, I will take you to see our king.” He
turned and walked towards the tent Kilen knew Elric occupied.

Kilen followed,
keeping some distance. Joahna and Max stayed to either side of him and kept one
pace behind. He wasn’t sure if the soldiers were staring at him or at his winged
elemental man walking through their camp.

As they passed
by the tents, carts, and campfires, Kilen saw men that looked too pale to be
from the Fire Realm. They wore clothing of linen and not of leather straps like
he had seen on almost every soldier in the camp. Each man went about their
business trying to act as if Kilen wasn’t there. Just when he thought they were
ignoring him Joahna would flap his wings and draw their attention again.

Pada walked
ahead without looking back and disappeared inside of the tent. The guards
outside held up their hands for Kilen to wait. They looked at Kilen and his
elementals as Max and Joahna looked around.

Max took a step
closer to the tent, “Jebra, Toren, how was the journey?”

The two guards
looked at one another then looked back at Kilen, ignoring Max’s form.

“Short enough,”
one said.

The other
answered, “A bit too cool for my liking.”

Kilen didn’t
want to know what hot was like if crossing a desert was too cool. Max returned
to stand beside Kilen looking as though the short conversation did not take
place.

Pada came out,
nodded to the guards then waved Kilen inside. Max melted himself into the
ground and Joahna followed Kilen, tucking his wings in.

Inside the large
tent was a set of carpets, a plate of food, and large pitchers, one of which
King Elric was dipping a ladle into for water. Max rose out of a uncarpeted
area of the ground and formed himself back into his human likeness. Kilen
stopped watching him change and looked at Joahna who had donned his previous clothing
as a fire wizard.

Kilen kneeled
and clasped his fist against his chest.

“Rise. I have no
need for theatrics, warrior.” Elric said.

Kilen hardly
thought of himself as a warrior, but did as commanded.

“A weapon bearer
appointed by the Elder Wizard’s Council. The title would suggest that you are
very powerful, but controlling two elementals while you walk,
that
is
impressive.” He said taking a drink from a waterskin.

“Three,
actually.” Kilen said.

Elric lowered
his head and closed his eyes for a moment. “Very well, three. Please, a warrior
of your strength I treat on equal footing. Make yourself comfortable.”

Kilen leaned his
shield against a tent pole and joined Elric on the carpet. Elric offered him a
cup and Joahna filled it with water.

“Pada tells me
that you have come by the council of my ambassadors.”

“I come on
behalf of the Earth Realm’s people and under the council of your brothers,
sire.”

Elric nodded,
“What is it you will have me do?”

“I would have
you leave the land and stop this war,” Kilen answered with as much confidence
as he could.

“If you came
under my brothers council, you’d know that this request isn’t possible. They
know me well enough that I would not disregard my queen’s orders.”

Kilen smiled,
“They said you were obedient to a fault. Your brother’s advice is in line with
all who fight here.”

“What
did
my brothers advise?” Elric's eyes were untrusting and pierced into Kilen,
looking for lies.

Kilen felt as if
he was lying to Bowie’s father about where Bowie was. “We’ve been in discussion
with the Elder Wizards on how to restore the canal to the Fire Realm. They, the
Elder Wizards, are aware of the importance of this and that King Atmos has no
desire to assist. They also know that he has no desire to return the fire
wizards to you for training or any of the counseling wizards to the Fire Realm.
While we know of the problems between King Atmos and the Fire Realm, the Elder
Wizards have confided in me a bigger threat to our world.”

Elric raised and
eyebrow, “A bigger threat than forty thousand Fire Realm men in the Earth
Realm?”

“There are
whispers of a soul wizard in the elemental lands. The Elders are investigating
the rise of another dark army.”

Elric finally
sat up and put down his cup. “What is it they would have me do? If this is
true, the elemental lands stand no chance to survive.”

“Leave the Earth
Realm in peace. I will do my best to arrange for King Atmos to meet with you
when his army arrives. I hope that we can resolve this conflict peacefully.”
Kilen said taking a long drink.

“Where are my
brothers?”

Kilen heard the
one question he hoped Elric wouldn’t ask.

He looked at the
two statue-like elementals, “Your brothers stand with me. They are unable to be
here in person, but they are here with me in spirit.”

“I see that they
are. Your elementals are a perfect match for them. If they were not, I would’ve
killed you by now. I will meet with your king,” Elric said.

“He is not my
king. I am from the Water Realm. I am a True Weapon Bearer and I have no king.
I am glad to hear you will meet with King Atmos.”

Elric held out
his hand and waited for Kilen to take it.

“I am glad that
you are one of the Elder’s men. I probably would leave Atmos to fend for
himself from the dark army, but I will give this peace a chance for you and the
Elders. Perhaps King Atmos may see me as a friend and ally after this meeting.”

Kilen took his
hand and shook it. He hoped his past with King Atmos would not cause a
disruption in this meeting. Every time Kilen had done what the king had asked,
he felt like he was hated by him even more. He knew that Atmos wanted him dead,
even if he did complete the mission.

“The Elder
Wizard’s Council told me that as a True Weapon Bearer, no man rules me. I seek
only justice for the land and all that reside in it. I am the man that kings,
noblemen, wizards, and wielders answer to. I have a hard time understanding
this, but as I gain experience I am sure that I will understand how to fill the
role better,” Kilen said.

Still holding
Kilen’s hand, Elric’s grip became harder, “You mean to tell me this is the
first time you have negotiated something?”

“It is not the
first time I’ve had to deal with King Atmos. I will do my best to bring his
wizard council with him. They stand against this war as well. They will
negotiate on my behalf.”

Elric’s jaw
tightened just as his grip did. “For your sake, you better hope that they help
him see reason.”

Kilen nodded to
King Rekkan.

“Let us get you
settled and some rest while we wait for King Atmos’ men to arrive.”

Kilen picked up
his shield and Max helped him fix it on his back. Pada and a the rest of the
Crimson followed their movement throughout the camp in a protective ring around
their king.

“I don’t think
the king would be happy to find the Earth Realm’s men in my camp so I am
sending them away today.”
            “Earth Realm’s men?” Kilen asked, trying to keep up with Elric’s
long striding walk.

“Yes. We came
with the intent to buy supplies we needed from the locals here and build our
own fortifications. When we started to purchase our supplies the local towns
started giving them away. They asked if they could join our army.”

Kilen stopped,
“They asked if they could join your army and fight against their own king?”

Elric also
stopped, acknowledging Kilen had his question correct, “We wouldn’t let them
join in a fight against their king. We don’t take turncoats here, It’s a
dishonor. They agreed to help construct of our fortifications. I’m sending them
home today, they should not be here when their king arrives.”

“I think that
would be wise. If you’d let them join the fight, it certainly would’ve hurt any
chance we have at reaching a truce. The sooner they’re back where they belong,
the better. If any of them are caught on the road and questioned it would only
sentence them to death,” Kilen said as he looked around.

Elric waved Pada
over, “Issue the order. All men from the Earth Realm are to return home. They
should avoid the main roads and any troops they encounter for their own health.
They must leave within the hour.”

Pada nodded and
the Crimson ran in every direction.

“You may pick
any of these tents. We had them set aside for use by the Earth Realm workers.”

Kilen watched,
soon the camp was filled with Fire Realm soldiers and Earth Realm citizens.
They shook hands and some even hugged as they departed. Earth Realm men handed
off knives and weapons they had made. Axes and hammers were exchanged for
jewelry and keepsakes between the two cultures. He watched as these items were
exchanged, not one exchange was made with hatred or remorse between the men of
two separate lands. They had both suffered at the hands of King Atmos. Kilen
wished he had the same type of relationship with these Fire Realm men. He
wanted them to know he was here to help keep them all alive.

An idea struck
Kilen and he turned to smile at Max and Joahna, “Sire, do you have any practice
blades?”

Elric rose an
eyebrow, “We have a few. Do you wish to train my men? They are combat trained
amongst the best in our realm.”

Kilen took a
step closer to the king, “I have been trained by a Kapal, and trained with
another True Weapon Bearer. I have fought a king’s champion and trained with
another member of the Crimson. I wish to train with the best of the Crimson. I
may never get another chance to spar with a king.”

Elric smiled at
Kilen’s request.

Kilen started to
strip off his armor and Joahna and Max came to his aid. Kilen knew he would
lose, but if he ever found a woman to call his own, he would have another story
to tell his grandchildren.

  Auburn rarely
took her eyes from the surrounding area. Her paranoia was even more heightened
as the trees leaves went from far above head to being low to the ground and
hard to see through. She was on constant watch, as if the enemy could jump from
anyone of the evergreen trees. Bowie tried to calm and reassure her that
because they traveled at the back of the march, most would target the leaders
in the front. She still followed him in spite of his pleadings.

  Seven days of
travel had given him a lot of practice renewing the energy of his men. He felt
like he could do it in his sleep. He was almost sure he had a couple of times.
Auburn lent her energy out sparingly because of Bowie’s warning; “Don’t make
yourself too tired or you will not be able to protect me.” She had taken the
words to heart; only renewing someone when they said they were there to take
watch so she could eat.

  Bowie slept
whenever he had the chance, so he could keep as many troops renewed as
possible. With the help of the imbuement, Auburn didn’t sleep for four days. He
had finally convinced her to nap on the third day, convincing her by saying she
wouldn’t get a chance as the danger increased. She made sure there were four of
his archers in the cart while she drowsed beside him. She even insisted that
she had to have a rope tied to him just in case he tried to sneak away.

  Bowie didn’t
need to rest at the time, but laid with her so she would. He watched her in the
starlight as the cart rocked her to back and forth. He wondered how he could get
Auburn to keep her distance. He knew he couldn’t have her following him into
battle, but what kind of leader would order his men to their deaths without
joining them? He had to find a way to rid himself of her constant companionship
or take her magic.

  In the three
days he still hadn’t thought of a solution for either. The issues kept
recurring in his mind as they neared the battlefront. Surely if Kilen was here
he would be able to find an answer. Bowie only had a limited amount of time
with Atmos trying to catch up to him. He did not have a lot of time left to
separate himself from her.

  Bowie watched
as men started to jump from carts and run ahead to help unload. Their final
stop and last camp was just ahead. Bowie watched as the line of carts slowed so
John could organize them to help build the camp more efficiently. He knew this
was all for not because the rest of the army would soon swallow this small
campsite his men started. He let John go about his business anyway.

  John shouted
orders, getting men to surround the camp for security. For the first time John
ordered the carts be unloaded of all the arrows. He made a large stack in the
center of camp and covered it with canvas. Tents were being set up in a pattern
allowing maximum visibility. Bowie did his best to stay out of the way. He knew
that if he tried to help a soldier, someone else would only run up to take his
place. Bowie watched as his things were unloaded from a wagon. He saw them take
the stool out and he snatched it up for himself. He moved to the only fire that
was in the camp and sat on his reclaimed seat. A soldier stopped to look at
him.

  “Be a good man
and fetch me some of the fletching supplies. Now that we are near, I’d like to
make some arrows for myself.” He was sitting while others worked and he felt
like he needed to explain himself. He knew that the soldier would have done
what he had asked either way, but he felt better having an excuse.

  The soldier
tipped his black hat pinned up on one side. The feather in his hat was green with
no stripes. Bowie’s feather contained three stripes. The stripes were part of a
system Bowie employed to help him ascertain rank. Corporal Curtain had two
stripes, and Tyler and Andrew each had one. Each man had their place and job
and he watched silently doing his, as they did theirs.

  Soldiers and
fletchers arrived carrying supplies made for arrows and he soon found himself
surrounded by craftsmen. Each one made sure to hand him supplies as Bowie
needed them and some took a moment to watch Bowie’s nimble fingers put the
pieces in place. As more and more of the tents began to take form, more and
more men sat down to work around the fire. Fresh meat was placed over the flame
and the men began to talk amongst themselves. Bowie said nothing, he only listened
as his fingers worked and his quiver filled with Crescent Arrows.

  There was
something that calmed Bowie when working with the arrows. He focused on
gathering the parts and working each piece for its purpose. He knew that if one
part was not prepared properly, the arrow would not hit its mark. A small file
worked the rough edges of the arrow's tip into an angled point. This particular
part meant easy entry into its victim and gave a smoother flight to its target.
He tried to think of his troops as parts as well. Wizards, fletchers, archers,
and scouts each had their own part and purpose. They did not need to know how
to do each other part as long as they could perform their own.

  He held the
arrow he just completed in front of his face, spinning it in his fingers. He
wondered if it would be good for all the parts to know the purpose of the
others. His archers knew how to fletch, so why shouldn’t his fletchers now how
to shoot.

  When he looked
up he saw Auburn sitting near the back of a group of fletchers, making her own
arrows. Her eyes continued to flicker between him and her work. Her bow was
passed around as the men pulled back the string, trying to use her bow. Bowie
laughed a bit at their attempts to wield the girl’s weapon. John was working on
organizing the second shift of guards to watch over the camp and ignored the
playful banter.

  Tyler sat two
men down from Bowie and was in a quiet chat with one of the fletchers that had
joined on the way. They chatted about how much the entire group had bonded and
become like family. He learned the fletchers name was Paul, and he spoke of
John and Auburn as if they were cousins.

Paul said,
“Still wish we could join you on the field.”

Bowie heard the
statement and it drew so much interest he spoke without thinking. “Why couldn’t
you join us on the battlefield?” Bowie put a bite of bread into his mouth and
looked up at Paul and Tyler who were looking at him in confusion.

“Sargeant, they
are supposed to
make
the arrows, not fight with them,” Tyler replied.

“I don’t see why
these men shouldn’t be allowed to defend themselves. They of course will have
to be tested to wear the black hat in order to fight alongside us.”

Tyler stood, “I
will teach them.”

Bowie shook his
head, “No. I do not think that would be wise. I’ll need someone that has a bit
more drive to train them. Auburn, she should train them.”

By the time the
conversation had reached this point, only the sound of the crackling fire and
occasional bird disturbed Bowie’s eating. Auburn was not moving, probably trying
to decide what she should do.

“What do you
say, Auburn? Will you teach the men to fight beside us?” Bowie asked.

Auburn looked to
be at a crossroads. Her jaw tightened and she slowly shook her head.

The men at the
fire let out a sigh of disappointment, one even threw the arrow he was working
on into the fire.

“How dare you
ask me that? You know what I must do.” She stood with her face as red as her
hair.

Bowie calmly put
another piece of bread in his mouth. “When we first started the journey, I gave
you your orders. I believe I told you that you were to lead these fletchers.
Leading them into battle or leading them to make arrows makes no difference to
me. You, on the other hand, have taken it upon yourself to make it your duty to
protect me. I neither asked, nor wanted this from you.”

Another piece of
bread left his plate and into his mouth. He wiped the crumbs from his lap as he
stood. He handed his metal plate to the man next to him. “Besides, can you name
a better way to protect me than to arm another hundred men who are passionate
to go to battle with me? Auburn, you are surprisingly good with a bow. You
however, can’t fire one hundred arrows at once. You can’t be in one hundred
different places, no matter how powerful your magic makes you. One hundred men
is better than one.” He turned his back to the furious redhead, “Think about
it, Auburn.”

Bowie started to
walk away towards Ria’s wagon. The men around the fire and surrounding tents
began to beg Auburn to take up the mantel that Bowie had thrown down. They
begged to earn the right to join his men. Bowie smiled at the thought. He knew
she had the almost uncontrollable urge to follow him. He also knew she was
furious and wanted to storm away. While she stood and decided which action to
take he made every effort to get a few moments of peace without her. He knocked
at Ria’s door and took a moment to look back at Auburn. He could just make out
her face still staring at him through the crowd of men trying to convince her
to train them.

Ria opened the
door and looked around, finally finding Auburn and waved Bowie inside. “What do
I owe the pleasure, Sergeant Crescent?”

“I found a
moment of peace and I thought I would share it with you.”

She smiled a
moment and motioned for him to have a seat. A steaming pot of tea already on
the counter was poured into her usual tea cups and set down for him to partake.

“How did you
manage to separate her from yourself?”

“I told the
fletchers that they could join in battle if she would train them. I was hoping
that while she trains them, her earth magic might take the place of the
importance to protect me. Perhaps then she will leave me alone.”

“If it does
not?” She said coolly as she blew on her tea.

“If not… If not,
I will have a set of men trained to protect me by a woman will not accept
anything less than the best.” He tasted the tea and it was bitter. He choked
and almost spit it on the table. “What
is
this?”

“Just a bit of
tangleroot. It’ll replenish your bodies vitamins.”

Bowie was afraid
to take another sip, “I am sorry, but it tastes horrid.”

“You need to
drink it.” She refilled what little he had drank. “Do you think training the
fletchers would be wise?”

Bowie took
another swallow, disregarding all manners and gagged at the flavor. “I don’t
think it’s wise to leave a bunch of men without the ability to defend
themselves. The campfire talk is that they want to join in the fight with my
men. I just have to find a way to make some more bows for them.”

“You leave the
bows to me. I’ll make them the tools they need to keep themselves alive. You
make sure you give them the knowledge they need use it.”

Bowie nodded his
head. He knew Ria would make the bows.

“Now, what do we
do about Auburn? Do you really think that training the men will keep her from
battle?”Ria asked.

“I’m hoping it
will at least distract her for now. I’ll need to think of more to keep her busy
later on. Anything you can think of to help keep her from following me into
battle would help.”

“She has her
mind set. I think she would have done her best to protect you whether or not
she had the earth magic pushing her to this extreme. The day you took her on
the hunt with you, you sealed your fate. In her mind she saved your life. If
she did it once, she may be needed again.” Ria refilled his teacup as he stared
at the inside of his hat laying on his lap.

He took another
sip before remembering the taste. His face contorted at the realization that he
drank it again. “You are saying that she is going to be like this with or
without her magic?”

Ria smiled, “I
am afraid that magic only helps solidify our emotions. It makes our innermost
emotions more prevalent. Once we accept that, we are able to control it. She
wants to protect you from harm. She will be able to see dangers that you won’t
because of her heightened sense of caution.”

“So I am
supposed to just let a woman protect me?”

“What is wrong
with a woman protecting a man? When we started you came to me, begging to let
Auburn be in charge of the fletchers. Is this any different to you than to your
men that you put her in charge of?”

Bowie took a
deep breath and pinched his nose before swallowing the rest of his tea. He took
a few smacks of his mouth and spoke, “Thank you for your council, Ria.”

She nodded her
head and followed him out of the wagon, closing the door behind him. “I didn’t
beg you to let her lead the fletchers.” She smiled as he walked away.

Wizard Mica was
walking towards him, still wrapping his robe around himself. “Sergeant
Crescent, Wizard Ria, how is everything?”

Before Bowie
knew it, Auburn was at his side. He took a small look around and noticed the
camp was already in a flurry of activity. She smiled up at him and then gave a
glare at Mica. Auburn apprently wasn’t about to let the wizard forget how they
felt about him.

“We’re preparing
to welcome the king. The arrows are completed and we’re making an archery range
for practice until the troops can arrive. We’re also organizing hunting parties
for fresh supplies. When should we be expecting his arrival?”

“He will arrive
here in less than a day’s time. He’s traveling with one hundred of his most
powerful weapon bearers and the Wizards Council. I’ll go give him an update
after a bite to eat. I’ll return here before nightfall. Could you have a tent
made up for me?”

Bowie nodded his
head. “Thank you for the news. Is there anything else? Perhaps some orders from
the king?”

“He said that he
would speak to you when he arrived. He also wanted me to make it clear that you
are, in no way, supposed to make contact with the Fire Realm unless it is to
eliminate their soldiers.”