Rise of the Citadel (The Search for the Brights Book 2) (40 page)

John gave a bow
and moved back to take Bowie’s place in the front. Bowie slowly walked back,
giving Kilen a look. Kilen knew this is usually where Bowie would give some
words to whoever was berating him. Kilen was happy Bowie held his tongue for
once.

Chit emerged
with a set of rusty armor and a weapon and started helping one of the men
leashed to the back of the wagon put the armor on. The man was not a large one,
and had a hard time standing with the armor. The ropes were cut free but left
hanging around his wrists. Chit finally handed him a short sword and closely
watched him tie it on his waist.

Once the man was
dressed and looking about awkwardly, the king spoke, “Great. Sir, you will not
fight against the Fire Realm. You will be granted your wish and fight against
the Earth Realm.” The King paused waiting for a reaction from the crowd. “You
will face us one man at a time until we are all defeated. Come forward.”

The man finally
started begging, “This is not what I wanted. Please let me go home to my
family. I will not fight with the Fire Realm.”

The entire camp
watched as the man begged for his life in the campfire light that found its way
between the soldiers. Nearly a thousand men and only one spoke, crying out into
the night. Kilen felt bad for the man, but he could not turn back time to help
stop him from making the traitorous choice.

Finally the king
approached and Chit took a step to the side, “This is exactly what you wanted.
You wanted to stop these men from cleaving our lands of the Fire Realm. You
built defenses that were designed to kill these men.”

Kilen watched
the face’s of the knights that stood around the king. Some were nodding in
agreement but most were dreading what would happen next.

“You wanted to
fight against us, so stand and fight.” He nodded to Chit who nodded back.

Pulling the
mule-headed sword from his back, Chit retreated two steps. He flourished the
unpolished blade around his body then held it in one hand, waiting for the
other man. The man still begged as tears ran down his face and the more he did,
the more Chit smiled.

“Stand up and
fight,” Chit chided.

The man was
either very tired or very distraught, his legs were bent and his entire body
sagged as he cried for mercy. The man slowly pulled his rusty blade from the
sheath. Kilen couldn’t believe that Chit had been able to find armor and
weapons so poorly taken care of. The tip of the blade went directly to the dirt
as soon as it left the sheath. The man’s wrists were almost totally limp, and
mucus seeped from his nose and mouth as he cried. Chit took a step forward and
the man’s eyes went wide with fear. Chit with his bastard sword in his right
hand. His strength being bolstered by the imbued armband he wore made the two
handed sword easy to lift. The man raised his sword above his head to block
Chit’s blade. At the last moment, Chit altered his strike and went wide.

Expecting the
blades to collide, the man’s small sword pointed straight to the sky, leaving
him open and vulnerable. Chit easily corrected his stroke with the blade hewing
the man’s hand from his arm, with fingers still gripping the hilt. The rusty
sword almost hit the onlookers. Blood sprayed Chits armor and the man let out a
scream that raised the hair on the back of Kilen’s neck. Gripping his stump of
a wrist, he fell to his knees screaming out in either pain or terror, no one
could be sure.

Chit looked
around the camp and found no one cheering. Kilen knew that even when the
commoner did not stand a chance, Chit would think that he deserved praise. The
lack of cheers enraged him, forcing his face to turn red. In Chit’s eyes the
fight had just lost its amusement. He grabbed the man by the neck and pushed
his blade into the top of his shoulder through his chest until it exited the
ribcage and into the ground.

The man’s
screaming stopped and Kilen presumed it was due to the pain in breathing. Kilen
closed his eyes and prepared for the impact. The familiar concussion
reverberated inside his head. The world spun but Kilen was able to stay on his
feet. He felt a breeze straightening him where he stood. Inside his head the
hysterics blossomed once again. He could barely think over the man’s voice
resonating where no one else could hear. He pushed at the voice with anguish,
just as he had with Joahna and Max. The voice shriveled but he could still hear
the man crying. Inside, a knot of emotions was threatening to overwhelm him. He
concentrated on his own emotions and tried to ignore the man's pain and fear.

When he opened
his eyes the king was staring at him.

“If you are to
be a weapon bearer, you will need to exact the same kind of justice yourself
some day. If you cannot stomach the job, perhaps you should go back to the
Elder Wizards and retire your blade,” Atmos said mocking him.

“It’s not that I
can’t stomach it,” Kilen said defiantly.

The king laughed
and as if on cue, so did the rest of his wielders. “Then why is it you look as
if you will sick up?”

Kilen took as
step forward and spoke with authority so others could hear him or perhaps so he
could hear over the dead man screaming in his head. “Sometimes it’s a bit hard
to hold three elementals at once. Perhaps when you can do it, you will be able
to tell me not to sick up. Besides, I see no pleasure in seeing a man die, even
if he is a traitor.”

Max emphasized
the words by unleashing his stone wings. Joahna did the same and Jace stirred
up a dirt devil stretching to the sky. Kilen marched to the king’s newly
erected tent and found stools already around the table inside. He took a seat
and waited for the others to join him.

The council
entered first and found plates of food already sitting around the room, a
pitcher of water and bottles of wine sat on trays with cheese and bread. Kilen
had seen nothing but meat since arriving and wondered where everything had come
from. Then he remembered the wagon the men were pulled into camp on. He figured
the king had all but pillaged a village on the way.

Brent found his
way over, “I may have heard you wrong. Did you say
three
elementals?”

Killen nodded
his head, “You heard right.” He pulled out the dagger tucked into his beltline
hidden by the cape he wore. The sight of the dagger caused the man inside him
to scream again until Kilen pushed at him. The effort to silence the man was
taking its toll. He wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve.

“The Elder
Wizards gave me this when I became a True Weapon Bearer.”

Brent looked at
the knife and nodded his head.

All of the
council was there except for Mica. Kilen saw him in the crowd but he knew Mica
would not leave the king’s side.

Brent held a
hand out to his side, “Kilen, I would like to introduce you to the new Earth
Council Seat, Sasha Tarkey, born in the Wind Realm.”

Kilen stood and
shook her hand.

“Tell me Weapon
Bearer, what
is
a True Weapon Bearer?” She cooed her words smugly as she
spoke over a cup of wine. Her hair was a light brown color, pulled back in a
bun. The few strands that had gotten loose were tight curls that seemed to
bounce as she moved. Her cheeks were fat, but the rest of her body slender in a
way that made her look like she could have fit in with any village.

“As it was told
to me,” Kilen began. “A True Weapon Bearer is what every weapon bearer should
have been. They travel the world seeking justice for those that cannot get it
themselves. They answer to no king nor to a wizard, not even the Elder
Wizards.”

They stared at
him seeking a more thorough answer, so he continued.

“They asked me
to stop this war because of the soul wizard. I know they’ve sent out other
weapon bearers to stop the threat and could spare no one else to come here.”

Kilen hadn’t
noticed King Atmos standing at the tent flap and was almost startled when he
spoke.

“So I am just to
back away from the invading army?” The king moved around the small table in the
center and pulled up a stool to begin eating.

“I have spoken
to King Rekkan. He has agreed to meet with you to seek out and destroy this
wizard. I came here as soon as I found out the camp’s location so I could await
your arrival,” Kilen said.

“Again, am I
just supposed to forget that King Rekkan invaded the Earth Realm?”

“Justice for the
invasion will have to be set aside for another day. The fates of the elemental
realms are in danger of a potential dark army rising.” Kilen retorted, trying
not to sound like he was giving an order.

“Council?” Atmos
said as he popped a piece of cheese in his mouth.

Mica stepped
forward, “My lord, I have been thinking about this since I learned about the
soul wizard.”

“And your
conclusion?” The king asked.

“I do believe
that a negotiation would be suitable for our two realms. I believe that it will
be hard to trust one another, but with the traitors in our realm it would once
again unify your land to see you working with the Fire Realm. Perhaps after we
take care of this soul wizard we can negotiate a settlement for their
destruction here,” Mica said looking to the other council members trying to
sway their judgment.

King Atmos waved
his hand to continue while he was eating.

Ria stepped
forward clearing her throat. “If I may, your highness?”

He nodded.

“I have been
with the troops here. I know that the fighting is yet some time off because our
main portion of troops having not yet arrived. Right now we face close to forty
thousand Fire Realm troops to our own one thousand. I dare say that a
discussion of truce would benefit and speed the demise of this soul wizard. If
we act quickly by having messages flown ahead, we could turn the main portion
of your army and perhaps corner this soul wizard,” She said stepping in front
of Mica.

“How do we
corner a soul wizard? Where is it that a soul wizard cannot go and not rip
people souls from their bodies,” Atmos snapped.

“Kapal, my
lord,” She answered.

The room went
quiet.

“I have done
some research from my time with the Elder Wizards and this is a soul wizard’s
undoing,” She explained.

“Yes!” Brent
exclaimed. “I believe there is some speculation in the library at the Earth
Realm.” Brent was speaking in a hurry, clearly excited with new knowledge to
add to his research. “I do believe that the Kapal race is a result of one of
the soul wizard’s husks being impregnated by another living person.”
            Ria nodded, “Yes, this is the truth. One of the soul wizards own
“husks,” as Councilman Parker calls them, gave birth to the first Kapal. When
he first entered the world, the mother’s body finally disintegrated without the
soul wizard’s magic to keep it together. We need to get this soul wizard close
to the Kapal so they can stifle the ranks of their dark army.”

The king waved
them off, “Mary, where do you stand?”

“I am in favor
of the negotiations.” She said from an open area near the back of the tent. She
was probably standing away from anything flammable Kilen thought.

The earth
council seat, Sasha, stepped forward, “I am in agreement as well.”

“If my council
is in agreement, I will accept the request to meet in negotiations for a truce.
I trust that you will be there to hold the meeting, Kilen.” It was a command,
not a question.

“I will leave
when as soon as I can so I may arrange it,” he replied.

“Halfway between
our camps, in a large clearing, and at noon. He may bring fifty of his men with
him to ensure his safety. I will bring mine as well. These are my terms,”Atmos
said taking a bite of meat.

Kilen bowed his
head, “I will see that it is done.”

“Good, with this
all settled I wish to get some rest. You are all dismissed. Mica, I wish to
speak with Captain Lorusk,” the king said waving the rest of his council away.

Mica bowed his
head and rushed out of the tent. Kilen departed after him, followed by the rest
of the wizards. Kilen watched as the archers carried off the former body of the
man that now whimpered in his head. He knew that he would have to speak with
the voice soon so he could explain what was happening.

The flames
blazed as Bowie’s former soldiers tossed their hats on to the campfires. Bowie
stood nearby watching with his uncovered braided hair hanging behind him. From
behind there were little differences between him and his protector, Auburn.
John stood and made sure that Bowie watched every hat being burned; apparently
that was Bowie’s punishment for letting the traitors go.

Brent caught up
with Mary and Ria in tow. “Kilen, we must speak.”

“I have a
meeting to arrange so you will have to make it quick.”

The skinny
wizard cleared his throat but spoke in a whisper while looking around, “Did
anything seem strange about that meeting?”

Kilen was
picking up his pack, trying to think of everything odd that occurred. The man
in his brain was drawing most of his attention, but he was still rather pleased
that the king had agreed to meet with King Rekkan for a truce. The wheels of
his mind started to turn and he realized what Brent was suggesting.

“It was too
easy.”

“Yes, when has
the king ever
not
argued against anything involving you? He gave in
without so much as a minor complaint.”

Kilen nodded and
pushed again as the man started to sob at the mention of the king. “You’re
right. Something is strange about this, but we will have to let it runs its
course. We will be cautious. So far he has agreed to this meeting and that is
all we can hope for.”

“We’ll be able
to attend this meeting. The rules of negotiations state that wizard councils
may be present. If something changes, we will do our best to let you know, but
you should expect us there.” Brent patted Kilen’s shoulder.