The Master's Chair (The Chronicles of Terah) (28 page)

“What would he do if he caught you?” Theresa asked.

“He’d kill me,” Taelor answered calmly. “But he would also have anyone who had helped me killed, and that’s why I’m not sure that this is such a good idea.”

“Well, let’s not worry about that right now. After all, I doubt that even Rolan would be willing to kill a sister or those under her protection,” Theresa said.

“Don’t be too sure,” Taelor said. “He doesn’t play by the rules.”

~ ~ ~ ~

By late afternoon, they reached the next town. Karl and Theresa made arrangements with the innkeeper for two rooms, meals for eight and accommodations for eleven horses. The innkeeper wanted to have an outdoor concert in the town square, and he wanted to have it before dark, so he told them that he would have a meal prepared for them afterwards.

Taelor took care of the horses while the others put on a show, and then after the concert, he joined them in the tavern for dinner. As soon as everyone had finished eating, he left with Karl, Darrell, and Steve to spend the night in the stable. No one in town gave him a second glance.

Theresa waited until she and Joan were alone in their room to tell Joan what Taelor had said about Rolan sending a couple of hit squads out after Myron.

“Should we tell Kevin?” Theresa asked.

Joan shook her head and said, “I’m not sure. Let me talk to Karl and see what he thinks.” She wasn’t sure that it would be a good idea for Kevin to know at this point, but then again, she wasn’t sure it was fair to keep it a secret either. This could be one of those Catch 22 decisions, and she didn’t feel that she was the one to make it.

Chapter 22

Kevin’s Dream

Kevin was more exhausted than usual that night and fell into a deep sleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Sometime after midnight, he became aware of the dreams that were floating through his sleep. Then Xantha appeared and the scenery evolved into the grassy meadow near Kalen’s Gate House.

“Just thought I’d pop in and let you know that things are starting to heat up and get interesting.”

“What do you mean?”

“Several of the seated sorcerers have commissioned assassination squads, and a couple have sent out protection squads.”

Kevin felt a throbbing pain start behind his eyes. “What do we do now?”

“Nothing. No one has any idea where you are or what you look like. They’re all out there chasing shadows. It’s sort of funny really.”

“I’m afraid I don’t find assassins very funny.”

“I was afraid of that,”
Xantha sighed.
“That’s why I wanted to tell you about it myself before you heard about it somewhere else. You take things too seriously.”

“Someone trying to kill me is about as serious as it gets,” Kevin insisted. “At least tell me which ones are my enemies and which ones are my allies.”

“Allies?”

“Yes, the ones who sent out the protection squads. Aren’t they trying to help me?”

“Help you get seated on the Master’s Chair, but that’s about it. They’re not going to help you get to Glendymere or help you learn to protect yourself. They’ve got enough confidence in their own skills to challenge you. They figure they’re strong enough to take the chair away from you and to stand up to anyone who wants to take it away from them. The only difference between them and the ones who sent out assassination squads is that they’re far more dangerous.”

“So basically I don’t have any allies in this mess?”

“You’ve got a lot of allies. They just aren’t on the council,”
Xantha said slowly.
“Kalen, Duane, Palladin, Laryn, Glendymere, Pallor, the people from Earth, me … we’re your allies, Kevin.”

“This is scary.”

“You’ll get used to it. Oh, by the way, Rolan, the Seated Sorcerer of Brendolanth, the province you’re traveling through right now, has sent two death squads to Camden to look for you. Sort of ironic, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, right!” Kevin said with a groan. “Sorry, Xantha. I just don’t find anything amusing about any of this.”

“All right. Let’s change the subject then. How are things going for you? Found anyone you might be interested in mating with yet?”

“NO! And I don’t plan to start looking for a long, long time, so just drop it.”

In Kevin’s dream, Xantha walked over to the other side of the small meadow and began grazing.

“Xantha, I’ve got a question,” Kevin began hesitantly.

“All right,”
Xantha acknowledged. Then after a couple of minutes passed and Kevin hadn’t said anything, Xantha prompted,
“I’m listening.”

“The person who sits in the Master’s Chair is supposed to be the most powerful human sorcerer on Terah, right?”

“Yes, he would have to be, or he would soon lose it to someone else.”
Xantha picked up his head. Something in Kevin’s tone intrigued him.

 “What about Glendymere? Assuming that my father wants to protect our line, he would have asked one of the most powerful sorcerers to teach me, right? If Glendymere’s so good, and if being the Master Sorcerer is such a big deal, and everyone wants it, what’s to keep this Glendymere from taking me out himself? Even if he waits until after I’ve been seated, there’s no way that I could become good enough in less than a year to protect myself from my mentor.”

“The key word there is ‘human’. You’re in absolutely no danger from Glendymere.”

“Glendymere’s not human?”

“No,”
Xantha said slowly.
“Kevin, Glendymere’s a dragon.”

“A dragon?!” Kevin gasped. “You are kidding, aren’t you?”

“No, Glendymere is very much a dragon. Why are you so shocked? Naturally the most powerful sorcerers on Terah would be those who were magic to start with, right?”

“I can’t believe this is happening. You’re telling me that I’m going to apprentice with some dragon, and you can’t understand why I look shocked?!”

“First of all, Glendymere is not just some dragon. He’s more like the head dragon. He’s the oldest and the wisest. You’re incredibly lucky that he liked your father enough to agree to teach you. Do you have any idea how many young sorcerers would sell their souls for the chance to just visit him? And you’re going to study with him!”

“Yeah, I feel really lucky,” Kevin said with sarcasm dripping from his words. “Come to a strange new world, be held captive by a dwarf, spend a year with a dragon and learn to be a sorcerer, just so that someone who has been practicing sorcery for longer than I’ve been alive can blow me to bits in a showdown of magic, provided I manage to evade the assassins.”

“Put like that, it doesn’t sound so good to me either,”
Xantha said with a laugh.

“I think I’ll just go back to Earth and take my chances with the tornado. Let one of those other sorcerers go work with Glendymere. I’m sure you can find someone who could hold the Master’s Chair. Pretend he’s me! No one would know the difference, and I sure won’t tell!”

“Kevin, you really can’t afford to get all bent out of shape over every little thing. You won’t make it through the first year at this rate!”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell all of you! You need a hero, and I’m a coward. I don’t like violence. I don’t like pain. I don’t like the idea of blowing up someone else much more than I like the idea of being blown up myself. And I don’t like the idea of dragons! Don’t I get any say in any of this?”

“Not really. You don’t know enough about any of this to make intelligent decisions, so we have to make them for you.”

“I can always refuse to go along with this charade.”

“You’re overreacting again. You don’t know whether you like dragons or not. After all, how many have you ever known?”

“That may be, but …”

“Look, Glendymere is the best there is, and while you’re with him, no one can harm you. That’s the one place on Terah where you will be completely safe.”

Kevin paused, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled it. Meanwhile Xantha went back to grazing. Finally he said, “Okay. Tell me about Glendymere.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Well, what does a dragon look like? Is he as dangerous as I think he is? How do I communicate with him? By talking? Telepathy? I don’t know what I need to know. Just tell me about him.”

“See? It’s like I told you. You don’t know enough to make informed decisions. That’s why we decide for you,”
Xantha said smugly. Then he answered Kevin’s question.
“First of all, Glendymere is old, really old, but age makes a dragon stronger, not weaker. He’ll communicate with you like I do, by telepathy. As to how dangerous he is, that depends. If he sees you as his enemy, he would be the most dangerous force you would ever encounter, and he would see to it that you cease to exist. But if he sees you as his friend, you would be safer when you’re with him than you would be in your mother’s womb, just as long as you don’t wake him up. That can get a bit dicey. His yawns can pack a wallop!”

“What does he look like? All I know about dragons is what I’ve seen on television on Earth.”

“Well, I could give you a mental picture of him if that would make you feel better. Here.”
Xantha projected a memory of Glendymere standing beside Duane into Kevin’s mind.

Glendymere’s shoulders were twice as tall as Duane and his long neck snaked around from his shoulders to his huge, triangular head. His eyes were like glittering emeralds and showed no sign of age although he did have bushy white eyebrows. He had a lot of very big teeth, and a long white goatee that curved halfway to the ground. His huge torso was supported by legs that looked like tree trunks, and, even folded, his wings were massive. His clawed feet looked as deadly as his teeth, and his long tail curled around them just like a cat’s. His golden scales sparkled in the sun, and around his neck, he wore a pendant with a huge blue sapphire in the center. Glendymere was magnificent, regal, and in a way, beautiful. Kevin was completely mesmerized by the image until Xantha allowed it to fade.

“Do you feel better now that you’ve seen him?”
Xantha asked.

“I don’t know.” Kevin’s voice was a bit shaky. “When were you and Kalen planning to tell me about this? And when are you planning to tell the others?”

“Kalen was planning to tell you before you left the Gate House but I guess he didn’t get around to it. Not that it really matters. You know now.”

“Who’s going to tell the others?” Kevin asked.

“I guess you are, but be careful. You don’t need to be overheard talking about Glendymere. If anyone knew that you were headed for his territory, tongues would start wagging, and eventually the wrong people would hear about it.”

“I don’t suppose you could show the others the same picture of Glendymere that you just showed me, could you?”

“Sorry, but I need a mind link to share one of my memories. I already have two mind links, you and Duane, and there are times when I think that that’s two too many.”

“But they need to know what to expect, too,” Kevin argued.

“Why? Most of them probably won’t even see Glendymere, at least not at first.”

“What? I thought we were going to stay at Glendymere’s.”

“I’m sure he’s made arrangements for everyone to stay nearby, but only another dragon would actually stay in his canyon with him. There are plenty of caves in the area where all of you can live quite comfortably, or you can build a house if you prefer.”

“So I’m the only one who’ll have any contact with him?”

“Well, someone will probably have to go with you as an assistant. Most sorcerers have a non-magical assistant, you know.”

“No, I didn’t know. Who’s supposed to go with me?”

“That has to be your choice. After all, it’s your assistant.”

“How do I choose?”

“Carefully. You’re going to be spending a lot of time with this person, and at times, your life may depend on him, or her.”

“My life already depends on these people. They put themselves at risk everyday just by being around me. Now I have to ask one of them to live with a dragon?”

“Not exactly. You’ll probably live with the others and just spend your days with Glendymere. But yes, you’ll have to ask one of them to be with you when you’re with Glendymere.”

“Who?”

“That has to be your decision. Look, choose the one that you’re the most comfortable with, the one you can talk to the easiest. Now, it’s time for me to go. You need to wake up before long.”
Xantha leapt into the air and was lost in the clouds almost immediately.

Kevin tried to hold onto the meadow in his sleep, but it faded away almost as soon as Xantha did. As the meadow vanished, Kevin woke up enough to notice the faint sound of a rooster in the distance. He glanced towards the small window and saw a narrow crimson streak across the horizon. He sighed, closed his eyes, and tried to grab a few more minutes of sleep.

About half an hour later, Chris touched Kevin’s shoulder to wake him up. Kevin jerked up and spun around with clenched fists. Chris took a step back and said, “Whoa, take it easy. You must have been dreaming. It’s just me.”

Kevin stared at him for a few seconds, and then, with a sigh, said, “Sorry about that. Nightmare.”

While he was getting dressed, he considered telling Chris what Xantha had said, but he wasn’t really positive that it hadn’t been just a dream. If it had been only a dream, all that he would accomplish was embarrassing himself when Glendymere turned out to be some old man, and if it wasn’t a dream, if Glendymere really was a dragon, well, they’d all find out soon enough. No need for anyone else to be worrying about that now.

Chapter 23

Taelor Pitches In

Joan didn’t get a chance to talk to Karl about the assassination squads that Rolan had sent out until after lunch the next day.

“We knew that it was going to happen, but I’m a little surprised that it’s already started.” Karl said quietly. “Rolan didn’t waste much time, did he?”

“Theresa asked what I thought about telling Kevin. Do you think we should?”

Karl thought about it for a moment. “Yes, but I don’t want to make too big a deal out of it. I’ll find a way to mention it to Darrell and let him pass the word to the others. In the meantime, tell Theresa to listen carefully to anything Taelor says about Rolan, but not to ask too many questions. We don’t want him getting suspicious.”

When they reached the town of Billows later that afternoon, Karl and Theresa went into the inn to offer to perform in the tavern that evening in exchange for room and board, but the innkeeper asked Theresa if she would consider holding a healing clinic that evening instead. “There’s something going around that’s making people awfully sick, and folks around here need a clinic a lot more than they need a show. No one’s died yet, but I’m afraid it’s just a matter of time until someone does.”

Theresa asked him to describe the general symptoms. From what he said, she felt sure that they were dealing with a virulent strain of flu.

“Have you let anyone know that you need some help?” she asked.

The innkeeper nodded. “I sent a letter to the district minister and asked him if he knew of a sister who would be willing to come and stay here for a while, at least until the worst of this is over. When I saw your pendant, I thought maybe he’d sent you, but then when the two of you started talking about a minstrel show …”

Theresa shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. I can’t stay, but we can hold a clinic.”

“We’d be mighty grateful, Sister,” the innkeeper said with a faint smile.

“Where would you like for Theresa to hold it?” Karl asked.

“We have a Chapel of Light, but I imagine it’s a little dusty. We haven’t had a sister in residence for quite a while.” The innkeeper took a big door key out of a drawer in his desk and handed it to Theresa. “It’s the big building next to the stable.”

Theresa pocketed the key. “We’ll go get set up.” She looked at her watch. “It’s 4:00 now. Let’s say 7:00 for the clinic. That will give most people time to eat dinner first.”

The innkeeper nodded. “I’ll get the word out.”

When Theresa returned to her wagon, she said, “We’re holding a clinic in the old Chapel of Light this evening. We need to go get set up.”

Taelor nodded and looked around. “Where is it?”

Theresa pointed to the old abandoned building next to the stable. There was a post in front of it, but there was no trace of a starburst sign. The grounds were overgrown with weeds and the porch was littered with old leaves.

Taelor nodded and drove the wagon around to the back of the building. Theresa and Joan went with him while the others took Kevin’s wagon and the rest of the horses over to the stable.

When Theresa unlocked the door and the three of them stepped inside, Taelor took one look at the dust and cobwebs, told Theresa that he’d be right back, and disappeared out the door.

As Joan and Theresa made their way through the maze of rooms, they found acorn shells, dried remnants of apples, corn kernels, leaves, and animal droppings, but even the animals must have moved on because the cobwebs didn’t look like they’d been disturbed in years, and there were no little footprints in the layer of dust that coated everything.

By the time they finished touring the building, Taelor had returned with brooms, feather dusters, buckets, pots, and an old wheelbarrow loaded with wood. He primed the old pump, started a fire in the wood stove in the kitchen, filled a couple of pots with water, and set them on the stove to warm. Meanwhile, Theresa and Joan took a couple of brooms and dusters and cleared out a few of the rooms.

When the others arrived from the stables, Theresa sent them over to the tavern to get some tables. After the tables were set up, she and Taelor started making up packets of herbs for the general malaise that accompanied the flu while the others helped Joan clean. A couple of hours later, four rooms were clean enough to use and Theresa was ready to begin the clinic.

Before she could open the front door, Taelor stopped her. “Theresa, I told the innkeeper you’d want to eat before the clinic started. They’re expecting you for dinner.”

“When did you go over there?” Theresa asked.

“When I went to get the brooms. I also told him that if they’re really interested in having a sister come here to take care of this town, they needed to get the clinic cleaned up, repaired, and furnished,” Taelor said as he ushered her towards the back door. “Go on over there and eat. I’ll stay here and keep an eye on things.”

“But what about you? When will you eat?”

“Just bring me something when you come back, maybe some cheese and bread. While you start the clinic, I’ll take a couple of minutes to eat. It won’t take me long.”

“Okay, and thanks, Taelor,” Theresa said as she stepped out onto the porch to join the others.

“All part of my job,” Taelor said as he shut the back door.

~ ~ ~ ~

The clinic lasted until after midnight even though it ran more smoothly than any that they had held so far. Karl and Steve ran a small wound clinic, but most people needed flu medicine. Joan made hot Echinacea tea and the tavern waitresses served it to the people waiting outside. When the waitresses brought back the empty mugs, the innkeeper’s wife washed them, dipped them in boiling water, and lined them up for Joan to use again. Chris and Kevin handled the crowd, and Darrell entertained the children who were there with their parents.

Taelor worked in the small examining room with Theresa, and anyone watching them would have thought that he’d been her assistant for years. He seemed to know what she needed before she asked for it.

By the time the clinic was over, they were all exhausted. The innkeeper brought over a barrel of scog and poured drinks for everyone who had worked at the clinic. Taelor gulped his scog down and went straight back to work. He had Theresa’s herbs packed up and stored in the wagon before the others finished their drinks. As soon as the wagon was loaded, he told Theresa good night and drove it over to the stables.

When everyone else was ready to head off to bed, the innkeeper handed Karl two gold coins and said, “This clinic was worth a lot more than a couple of rooms and a few meals. We hope you’ll accept these coins as a token of our appreciation.”

Karl thanked him and handed the coins to Joan.

~ ~ ~ ~

The next morning, several people from outlying farms came into town in hopes of seeing Theresa before she left, so she and Taelor went back over to the deserted chapel and held another clinic after breakfast.

While they were busy with the clinic, Joan asked the others what they thought about using the money they had received for the previous night’s work to buy some clothes and a blanket for Taelor.

Karl frowned. “Won’t that draw a lot of attention to him?”

“Not if we divide up the purchases,” Darrell said. “I’ll get a hat.”

“My tunics fit him fairly well,” Kevin said. “I’ll pick out a couple for him.”

“And his waist is about as small as Theresa’s. She could get a belt,” Karl added, nodding. “I’ll pick up a blanket.”

“I’ll get a cloak,” Chris offered. “Steve, you get some socks.”

Steve nodded.

“All that’s left are some leggings, and Taelor can get those himself,” Joan said. “And while we’re shopping, I’ll pick up the groceries we need.”

After Theresa and Taelor finished the impromptu clinic, they all went over to the dry goods store. While they were shopping, Joan asked Karl if he was planning to make it to the next town that night.

“I don’t think so. It’s nearly noon now, and I don’t want to push the horses that hard. They haven’t had a day off in over a week.”

“Well, do you want to find a good spot and set up camp for two nights then?”

“Sounds good to me,” Karl said with a nod.

“Then we’re going to need some more coffee. We go through a lot of it when we’re camping.”

Neither of them noticed the man who trailed along behind them, staying just within earshot.

By the time Joan finished stocking up on staples, the others had finished shopping and everything was stacked on the counter. The two gold coins covered all their purchases with enough left over for a couple of bags of rock candy.

As soon as they were out of town, Theresa insisted that Taelor climb in the back of the wagon and get some sleep. For once, he didn’t argue. The healing clinics had drained him, and he fell asleep almost as soon as he lay down.

While Taelor slept, Karl pulled his horse to the side of the road to wait for Darrell. After Kevin’s wagon rolled past, Karl signaled for Darrell to drop back a bit. Karl fell into place beside him and quietly told him about Rolan and the assassination squads.

“Well, I can’t say it comes as a surprise,” Darrell said. “I feel sure that Rolan’s not the only one who’s sent them out. Do you think we need to have three people stand guard and split the night into two shifts?”

“No, I don’t think one extra person would make much difference whereas more sleep might. Also, if we change things now, Taelor’s going to wonder why. He’s paranoid enough as it is. I don’t want to give him any reason to start wondering about us.”

“You’re right,” Darrell agreed. “Okay. I’ll tell Chris about the assassins this afternoon. Then I’ll tell Steve while we’re on guard duty tonight, and Chris can tell Kevin.”

“Just do it quietly. We don’t want Taelor to overhear us talking about it.”

Darrell nodded, and then, a couple of minutes later, he said, “I think we need to start working out again – tonight.”

Karl nodded and said, “Now’s definitely not the time to get rusty. Maybe we’ll have some time before dinner, and we definitely should have plenty of time tomorrow. Well, I’m going back up front with Joan before Taelor wakes up. You know, he sure was a big help with the clinics. We really lucked out there. He has a perfect cover. There’s no way anyone in that town doubted that he was Theresa’s assistant.”

“He certainly did know what he was doing,” Darrell said slowly. After a couple of minutes he added, “You do think he’s legit, don’t you? I mean … you don’t think he’s really one of the assassins, do you?”

Karl sighed and said, “That thought crossed my mind too, but I don’t think so. If they know enough to target us, why not just kill us? Why go to all the trouble to plant someone on us?”

“I don’t know, but those bounty hunters gave up a little too easily to suit me.”

“Did you see Theresa’s pendant? I think that had a lot to do with the way they backed off.”

“Maybe, but Taelor did manage to get himself covered up with the rest of those blankets and tarps pretty well. For someone so close to death …”

“Yeah, but you can do a lot of stuff when you’re life depends on it. Besides, if he was an assassin out to kill Kevin, he’s had plenty of opportunities to do it.”

“That’s true, but he may not have any idea who Kevin is.”

“I’m not following you. If he doesn’t know who Kevin is, why would he be here?”

“What if it was just a ploy to get someone in with us so he’d have a good excuse to travel around and scope out the towns? The townspeople are pretty free and easy around us. It would be a good cover if you were looking for someone and didn’t want to alarm the locals.”

“But why here? It would make more sense if we were in Camden,” Karl said.

Darrell shrugged and said, “I don’t know. Of course, it’s always possible that he’s exactly who and what he says.”

“Where’s Xantha when you need him?” Karl frowned. Then he laughed and said, “Now I sound paranoid.”

“Yeah, but just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that they aren’t out to get you!” Darrell said with a grin. Then he got serious again. “We’ll just keep our eyes open and our hands near our swords.”

~ ~ ~ ~

They made camp that night beside a wide but shallow stream about a quarter mile from the road. On one side of the stream there was a small grassy clearing for the horses, and on the other side the forest was open enough for the wagons, their sleeping tarps, and a small cooking area. Between their campsite and the road was a huge tangle of bushes and shrubs. Someone on the road might be able to smell the smoke from their campfire, but they wouldn’t be able to see it, and the only way to get from the road to their campsite was to come down the stream, just like they had.

By late afternoon, the horses were settled, camp was set up, wood had been gathered, and dinner was ready to go on the fire. Theresa offered to tend to dinner, and Taelor said he was going to look for herbs. That left the others with a bit of free time, so they worked out for a couple of hours while the stew simmered. Then, after dinner, everyone except Karl and Taelor headed off to bed. The last few days had been hectic and everyone was ready to take advantage of every minute of sleep they could get.

Karl and Taelor had not said more than a dozen words to each other since Karl had suggested that Taelor join the group, and Karl was hoping that guard duty would give him a chance to get to know Taelor a little better, if he could only figure out how to get him talking. At first, they talked about the weather and the horses, but those topics ran out pretty quickly, so they ended up sitting in silence.

Finally Taelor said, “You know, I envy you your type of life. Free to come and go as you please, no responsibilities, no ties, no worries, just taking life one day at a time.”

“Well, it’s not quite as worry free as you make it sound. I worry about where we’re going to stay at night, how safe the girls are, where our next meal is coming from, and things like that. It just looks carefree,” Karl answered.

“Maybe, but I like it. I hate feeling boxed in, trapped. That’s the way I’ve felt for the past six years, ever since Rolan took over. I hate him almost as much as I loved his father.”

“What happened to Rolan’s father anyway? I never did know.”