The Year of the Lumin (26 page)

Ratt responded with recognition to the thoughts that Noir inadvertently sent through the connection.  “Oh.”  Noir was startled when he realized what he did.  He mused on the self control that the Syeters must have in order to not allow their thoughts through.  Perhaps they controlled it with some sort of sye trick.

Ratt walked over and took the open spot next to Noir.  Just as he sat, the large doors opened again and revealed two Azurite Knights.  Noir felt a quick moment of confusion from the Syeters.  The names Mende and Keel came to him through the connection.  Apparently this was not what the Syeters had expected.

An older Syeter that Noir had learned was one of the most respected in the group spoke with his physical voice, “Azurite Knights Mende and Keel.  Why do you not come with your captain?”

The two knights walked forward and knelt on the designed marble floor before the Syeters.  One knight said, “Master Syeters.  We come of our own will, apart from the will of Captain Osarik.”

“You have doings beneath the view of your captain?  Tell us the reason, Mende.”

“His intentions are not aligned with the preservation of the Syeters.  They go against the code.”

Jotunar’s voice rumbled the hall, “And your intentions do not?”

“No, great Jotunar.  We serve the Syeters of the Azurite Tower, not Captain Osarik.”

Jotunar said, “Rise.”  They slowly stood.  “If you are truly loyal to the Syeters, then remove your helmets so we may scan and see how deep this fissure within the knights goes.”

The two knights removed their helmets without hesitation and held them under their arms at their sides.  For the next few moments, Noir did not see anything happen and nothing came through the connection that the Syeters had provided for him.  But he knew their minds were being quickly flipped through by the powerful combined force of the Syeters.

Before Noir could figure out what had happened, the huge hall’s door flung open once again.  A blur of motion came in through the doors and surrounded Mende and Keel.  A ring of swords, axes, and spears were leveled at the two knights by the time Noir comprehended the scene.  Captain Osarik’s stocky figure stood in front of the other knights facing the Syeters.  His weapon was sheathed, but he seemed tense, as if ready to draw.

Jotunar stirred and quickly rose.  Noir could sense the tension and frustration from the Syeters and the dragon.

Jotunar’s low rumbling voice shook the hall, “How dare you enter our chambers thus?  These two are an audience of the Azurite Tower Syeters.”

Osarik said with a forced calmness, “These two are under my command.  They are under
my
authority.”

One of the Syeters said harshly, “Be careful of your words or you will lose that authority.”

Osarik held an open hand toward the center of the circle behind him. “My actions are always for the better of this tower.  These two have gone against my orders and our code.  They should--“

Bearing massive white teeth, Jotunar raised to his full height and growled, “Fool!  We have seen their minds.  We know of your treason.”  His massive voice echoed and shook the large hall.  “We know of your desire and attempts to usurp the prophesied Lumin from us.”

Osarik’s body tensed and he quickly glanced at Noir and Ratt.  “These two could be dangerous.  Our duties are to protect the Azurite Tower.  We were performing those duties when we apprehended the one.”

Jotunar ignored the captain and rumbled at the other knights, “Your captain’s actions are against the will of the tower.  Stand down, Azurite Knights, or face banishment from the tower and kingdom.”  At that, most of the knights looked at their captain with resolve.  However, a few looked doubtfully at the dragon.

The tense atmosphere and the drawn weapons bothered Noir.  He embraced lux and made two flows.  He put a small light barrier around the encircled Mende and Keel, and a large one creating a wall between the knights and himself and the others.  The barriers shimmered faintly and Noir realized how little of his chakra these barriers took.  Two months earlier, it would have drained him in a few moments.

Captain Osarik turned his glance to Noir and laughed.  “Boy!  These small barriers could not stop the onslaught of the Azurite Knights if we chose to attack.”

Noir heard Jotunar’s mental voice come to his mind.  He seemed to be speaking to the Syeters.  “I have heard enough.”  A quick series of images flashed through Noir’s mind.  They depicted dozens of flows of blue energy flowing into the knights.  The blue energy looked exactly like the yellow that Noir saw whenever he used lux.  Noir was not sure what the images meant, but the Syeters apparently did.  They all responded with quick mental agreement.

“The decision is made,” Jotunar growled at those before him.  “All who stand defiant are stripped of title.  Remove your armor immediately or be banished from the tower and kingdom.”

A moment passed and Osarik turned and looked at his men.  Three knights dropped their weapons, took a step back from the others, and removed their helmets.  Noir then understood the images that had been passed to him.  Osarik’s form suddenly burst into a blur toward one of the relenting knights, but the Syeters were ready for this.  An immense force blasted the captain away from his target.  His form scraped and rolled along the marble.  The knights who retained their positions were also flung away from the others.

Captain Osarik sprang to his feet with amazing speed.  He seemed unharmed from the attack, though the marble showed long gouges.  The other knights were also to their feet, and with bursts of motion, collected behind their captain as he spoke.  The captain spat disgust into each word.  “Long have we served you complacent fools like dogs.  You trifle and plot but do nothing!  We will find the true Lumin through our actions, and you will do nothing through your thoughts.  Rot in your own stagnant filth, cowards.”  He turned to those behind him.  “Come, knights!  Let us leave these stagnant fools.”  With a blur of black, white, and bluish-green, they were gone.

The five left behind all had looks of pure shame.  Noir released the light barriers as Jotunar stepped forward over the heads of the Syeters.  His figure seemed less tense and almost sad.  “You three who stood against us, remove your armor for it is the property of the tower.  Mende and Keel, your loyalty is firmly noted.  Do not leave this chamber for the next few days; I fear what Osarik and his followers might do.”

Noir couldn't help but think, “They're not going after them?”  He was sure the thought had been picked up by the Syeters, but no attention was brought to it.

The mood of the Syeters was solemn.  They broke away into smaller groups, no doubt mentally discussing the events that had just taken place.  Noir and Ratt looked at each other dumbfoundedly.  Steven’s thoughts came to Noir through the connection.  “I think this day is one for the history books.”

Chapter 36

Return to Talik

              Grandel let out a sigh of relief as he crested another small hill.  He had been traveling for nearly a week by foot.  He stayed in Hess`erabi and Kuli as he traveled the dirt roads that connected the towns.  Kuli’s inn seemed to be in working order after the commotion before the destruction of Talik.  Another innkeeper besides Assai had taken over, so there was no worry of being recognized.

              Grandel had come across three groups of wandering straghs.  They were in groups of twos and threes, which were not too much of a struggle for him to dispose of.  What troubled him most was the sudden influx of straghs in the area.  They were more a thing of stories than a common sight.  As the rumors went, they were not born naturally, but twisted from normal humans, though their birth place had never been found.  He worried about where the poor people for these straghs were coming from.

              As Grandel traveled, he cared for his new fledgling companion.  He had tried to sense how she felt in relation to different names, but it was hard to interpret her emotions.  He felt they were slowly getting better at communicating simple emotions, but the animal was young and desired mostly food and rest rather than communication.  Grandel eventually decided on a name that Kahmi had said she wanted to name a daughter if she ever had one.  The name Isis fit the young hawk well, and Grandel was beginning to feel inseparable with the animal.

              Grandel had quickly become adept at finding food for Isis.  He had learned that she would eat anything and everything he could find and still desire more.  Sometimes a quick image would come through the link of a specific thing that she wanted.  Small frogs, baby rodents, and bird eggs were not easy to come by, but he found them or things as similar as possible none-the-less.  The simple act of caring for the animal somehow made Grandel feel free.

              Grandel hefted the cloth sling that he hid underneath his cloak to house the young animal and descended down the other side of the hill to where the new town of Talik was supposed to be.  He was only a couple miles away, but he could see no sign of the town.  As he had taught them, the residents were being careful about structure placement and hiding cooking smoke trails during the day to conceal their location.

              Grandel was anxious to see Luxin Adeel again.  He always felt confident and comfortable around her.  She was always a friendly ear to confide in when his plans did not go perfectly, or just someone to laugh with when everything around him felt so dangerous and dire.  Grandel caught himself smiling pleasantly.  Isis chirped and cooed happily in response to his emotions.

              The bushes were sparse on the hills leading to the folded cliff walls, but they were enough for the well-trained scouts of Talik to hide.  If protocol had not changed since he was captain, scouts were to patrol the area around town in a circular perimeter at a distance not more than a five minute sprint away.

              Within a few minutes, Grandel was proud when he saw two scouts stand up from behind a bush in leather hawk armor with bows drawn.  He recognized them immediately.  Heast and Illaus had joined Talik from Tier around two years prior.  He knew them and their families well.  He painfully remembered that Heast’s wife and son had been killed in the destruction of the first Talik.

              Grandel smiled and called out to them, “Heast!  Illaus!  Hello friends.  It is I, Grandel.  I have returned from—“

              “Do not come closer!” Illaus yelled at Grandel with a slightly uneasy waver to his tone.  “Stay where you are!”

              A feeling of fear came from Isis at his side.  Grandel tried to send comforting feelings through the connection as he said to the two, “Do you have a luxsyedin?  I am not sye controlled, but scan me nonetheless.”

              The two scouts looked at each other with confusion.  They said a few hushed words that Grandel would not normally have been able to hear, but through his connection with Isis, their words came through amplified.  It was not the first time that she had done this for him.  When he hunted for her food, she had helped with her enhanced hearing many times.

              Illaus whispered, “There is some trickery here.”

              “This can’t be him.  This doesn’t make any sense.”

              “Should we take him back to town?”

              “We can’t.  We don’t know what’s going on here.  What if…”

              Illaus interrupted, “We can’t just leave him here.  And we can’t leave him guarded by only one of us.”

              “Let’s bind him and take him back.  This is out of our league.  We have to tell Grandel.”

              As the two turned their attention back to Grandel, he worried most about the last sentence.  It didn’t make any sense.  Heast said to Grandel, “Put your arms behind your back and don’t try anything strange or—“

              Grandel completed his sentence, “Or Illaus will put an arrow in me.  I
know
the protocol;
I
was the one who
taught
you it.  What’s going on here?”

              “Just put your hands behind your back so I can bind your hands and cover your eyes.”

              Grandel did as the guard asked but said, “Heast, Illaus.  I know you know me.  You served with me for years.  What is this about?”

              Heast looked at Grandel with confusion as he walked around behind him.  “Do not ask questions,” he said.  “Just do what we ask and we will figure this out when we get back.”

              As Heast bound his hands and prepared the blindfold, Grandel’s mind reeled, trying to figure out what could be happening.  Were
they
being sye controlled by someone?  That couldn't be.  Their actions were too genuinely confused.  Had there been a change of heart in the town about Grandel?  Had they decided that he was unwelcome since he could not prevent the destruction of the first Talik?  That seemed more likely.  But Heast's statement about going back to tell Grandel stood out in his mind like a beacon.  He felt that was the key somehow.

              The two had not noticed the cloth slung at his side beneath his cloak, so through the link between him and Isis, Grandel was able to listen in when the two whispered to each other.  He tried to interpret what the two said to each other as he stumbled over hidden rocks and bushes, but everything they said was in riddles.

              After a few minutes, Grandel heard the familiar sounds of a town finishing their work for the day.  Grandel felt a hand on his chest to stop him from walking, then he heard Illaus a few feet away say in a whisper not meant for his ears, “We need to bring this guy to Captain Grandel, but with how he looks, we can't just walk him through town.”

              “I was thinking much the same,” Heast replied.  “I'll empty my things here and come back for them later.  We can use the sack to cover his head.”

              Grandel heard a clatter of things being dropped onto the ground.  Then a moment later, Heast said, “I'm sorry, sir.  We cannot allow your face to be seen in town.”  Then Grandel felt cloth being quickly pulled over his head.  It reached down to his elbows snugly.

              Grandel barely controlled the anger in his voice.  “What are you doing with me?  Where are you taking me?  I demand an answer!”

              As Grandel expected, neither man responded.  They were trained to not tell more than they had to.  It did not matter.  If he was going to be walked through town, another plan was forming in his mind.

              A nudge from behind spurred Grandel onward toward the sounds.  The familiar clang of metal on metal came to Grandel and he thought about Gonn, the town's blacksmith.  He also heard other voices that he recognized as he was walked through town.  Surely his people would recognize him if he could show them his face, or at least his voice.

              He knew Illaus and Heast would be on fierce guard with him walking through town, and he knew he would have steel through his gut if he did too much.  So Grandel simply stopped in his tracks and called out in as loud a voice as he could, “I am Grandel of Talik, your captain for years.  Whatever trickery is abound here, know that I have returned to--”

              Heast bludgeoned his prisoner with the hilt of his sword and Grandel fell to the ground limply.

~~~

              Grandel coughed and tried to open his eyes.  The area around him was lit dimly, but he could not make anything out past the black flickering specks floating around his vision.  His tongue felt numb and the metallic taste of blood lingered in his mouth.  Then he noticed the absence of Isis's consciousness amongst his own.  He panicked and searched out for her.  He did not understand how, but he searched via the threads that still connected them.  A small longing response greeted him.  She seemed frightened and confused, but safe.

              Grandel lifted his head slowly but replaced it when a sharp pain shot from the base of his skull.  The guards had incapacitated him to perfection just as he had taught them.

              The sounds of voices nearby came to him and Grandel struggled through the pain to make sense of what was said.  “Thank you, Illaus.  Nothing else is required of you.”

              He heard Illaus respond with restrained frustration in his voice.  “Captain Grandel, sir.  Please tell me what comes of this.  The resemblance is... shocking.”

              Captain Grandel?  Who was Illaus talking to?  “I will, Illaus.  Thank you for your service.”  Grandel thought his mind was playing tricks on him, but the voice sounded almost exactly like his own.  “Stand guard outside.  Life without freedom is death.”  He had said those words thousands of times.  The tone inflection was not that of his own and sounded vaguely familiar.

              Illaus repeated the creed of Talik, “Life without freedom is death.”  Then his boots made soft shuffling sounds as he exited the room.

              Grandel strained again to see the room around him.  His vision cleared enough to see a set of boots approaching him.  Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his chest and Grandel gasped as one of his ribs snapped and pierced into his left lung.

              “So stupid!” a voice said above him.  “Or maybe smart, depending on how you look at it.  Welcome home,
General
Grandel.  Grandel the Merciless!”

              Kit.  Violent anger bubbled up from Grandel's core as he realized the situation.

              Kit must have noticed the twisting of Grandel's face.  “Are you angry?” he mocked.  “Oh, if you only knew.”

              Grandel spat out hatred with every word.  “I'll kill you if you do anything to this town, Kit!  Our past is between us, not these people!”

              “Blah, blah, blah.  Screeches from a wounded hawk lost of its ability to fly.  I don't want to hurt these people.  They are now
my
people.  Your glory is my glory, Grandel.”

              “What drivel do you speak of?”

              Kit laughed and knelt down close to Grandel.  For the first time, Grandel saw that Kit's face was a perfect likeness of his own.  “Oh, now interested, are we?  I am now you.  Everything you have worked for is now mine.  And you know the best part?  I am a better leader of these people than you ever were!  I witnessed all of your pathetic efforts to run this town for years.  I saw the wrongs you did and heard the complaints of the people about you.  I am
better
than you, Grandel, and it's beautiful.”

              Grandel ignored the pain creeping through his entire body and lashed out at the kneeling visage of himself.  He connected with a wall of hardened air and was rewarded only with a gleeful laugh.  “You have nothing to harm me with and I have
everything
to harm you with.”  Kit stood up from where he knelt and drew out a spiked ball and chain from his belt.  “My good sir, I am so glad you came back.”  He raised it behind his head and looked down at Grandel.  “I have more glorious plans for you other than simply killing you now.  But I can't resist entirely.”  Then the ball swung up in a large arc and came down on Grandel's legs.  Grandel felt his lower left leg crushed and the bone snap.  He started to cry out in pain but hardened air in his lungs prevented it.  Three more blows came in nearly the same spot, crushing the limb to pieces.  Grandel could feel Isis panicking.  He tried desperately to send images of her staying back.  Keep hidden.  Keep safe.

              Kit said with a smirk, “Oh, that looks bad.  Does it hurt?  I'm glad we have a Luxin around to heal you up.”  Grandel was held in place by hardened air as Kit hastily healed his broken leg.  He felt the pieces slowly grow back together.  He also healed the broken rib that he had kicked in.  Grandel had been healed many times by Adeel, Kit, and other Luxins in his past, but Kit did not do it with the usual delicacy.  The pieces snapped back into place and were sealed roughly.

              Kit stood up and Grandel's leg was back to its original form, though it felt less sturdy and rearranged.  Then it happened again.  Kit wailed on Grandel's legs with a horrifying ferocity.  They were crushed beyond regard and Grandel nearly passed out from the pain.  Then, Kit hastily healed the broken pieces together again, though Grandel could tell the seal on his bones would not be strong enough to walk on.