The Weapon Bearer (Book 1) (19 page)

Brent looked over the town’s people then he turned his gaze on Kilen, dressed in plain wools and yet wearing a blue cloak, looking the part of a weapon bearer with his armor hanging on the side. He spoke slowly and reluctantly to the small man. “I cannot pursue these men.” The crowd began to shout out angrily that it was his duty to protect them from the Fire Realm and magic users. He held up his hands, and Kilen gathered fog above the wizards head to give the effect of power. Brent looked at Kilen and he immediately stopped the fog. It was too late as the town was silent looking at Brent. Brent let out a sigh, “I however have a weapon bearer and archer that may be able to help you.” The small man bent his bald head in thanks and the town cheered. Brent immediately pulled Kilen and Bowie off alone in the street around the corner. “Get your armor on weapon bearer. It’s time for you to earn your keep,” he snapped at Kilen. They all dismounted and started to put on Kilen’s armor. Bowie was readying his bow and arrows.

“What did I do? I tried to help you get their attention.”

Brent turned and shoved a finger into Kilen’s chest, “You showed them that you were a weapon bearer? What did you think my reaction was going to be? I was hoping to convince them that I couldn’t leave the fire wizard we have alone. I can’t say that now that they see how powerful I am. They do know enough about magic to know creating fog uses energy. Not to mention the fact you surprised me at it, and I looked at you, showing them you were the one summoning it.” He began mumbling about weapon bearers knowing their place, and letting him get away with it in Keepers.

Bowie had put on a brown leather jacket and pants that weren’t so lordly, and much better for hiding in trees. “Are we really going to go after the two fire wielders?”

“You are at that my lord. Now listen closely. Use what you have learned: fog, water, healing, using earth, and vines and roots. Use what you already know, the bow, the speed of your feet. Stop those two wielders and bring them back here at all cost. I told you this is my mission. It is also yours now.” Brent stopped and began to smile, “Do this and do it right, and we will have all the favor in the King’s eyes you will need to protect your sister.” Kilen heard those last word and let the magic take hold of them, setting it as his determination, his focus, his purpose for life. Kilen was helped into his chest piece and bracers. He slid on the bent helm and readied his shield. “I’ll watch Kara here, so you must return in one piece so we can continue our journey. When you are done, ask anyone in town and you should be able to find us at an inn. One last thing, I was planning on making you my personal weapon bearer, don’t disappoint me boy.”

Kilen dressed in his armor, slammed a fist against his own chest in salute, and bounded back around the corner, blue cloak flapping in the wind behind him. He had already disregarded what Brent had said about making him his personal weapon bearer. He had wasted long enough getting his armor on. He had to protect his sister. The two wielders were the only thing that stood in his way now.

Bowie spurred Charger into following him. The short mayor was still giving orders to those around them, and bowed as Kilen bounded up to him. “My lord weapon bearer.” Kilen cut him off with a wave of his hand before he could say anything else.

“Kilen, my name is Kilen. Can you have someone show me the trail where they ran off into the trees?” He said holding his head high trying to do his best and act the part of a full weapon’s bearer.

“Mak!! Come here man,” he shouted. A man wearing no shirt and a old leather vest approached with a large pipe hanging from his mouth. He carried a large stick, but no other visible weaponry. “This is Mak. He is be best tracker we have in Gulrich. He should be able to get you their trail.”

“Their trail shouldn’t be hard to find. Just follow the scorch marks in the land and ya’ll find ‘em. I’m not about to lead a blasted wielder to another and get caught in-between yer schemes.” The man walked away, ignoring the best efforts of the mayor. Kilen saw on the back of his leather vest a picture embroidered in white thread of a burning raindrop.

The mayor finally spoke again, “Yes well, you should be able to find the burnt buildings down this way and someone there will direct you to the start of the trail. Good luck weapon bearer, and my lord, please be careful.” Kilen bound off in the direction the mayor had pointed. Bowie followed on Charger. They heard the crowd cheer as they sped off. Soon they found the smoldering remains of two buildings. The town had been able to stop the fire from spreading to half of the structure, but it would take a lot of time to rebuild what damage had been done. Men stood from their now slumped positions, having fetched bucket after bucket of water from the wells to stop the fire. They looked at Kilen in his armor and pointed into the forest. Bowie pointed out arrows jutting from the ground and trees, where the town’s archers had tried to stop the fire wielders.

Without waiting, Kilen bounded off towards the scorched ground. Kilen used his water vision to see clear footprints where the pants had been burnt and deprived of their moisture. He watched as Bowie rode Charger as fast as he could over the mossy ground. Any misstep could break Charger’s legs. When he finally caught up, Kilen gave them both some energy. “Follow me as fast as you can and we will catch up to them. I can track them with magic so I’ll move a little faster. I’ll stay within your sight. We can use the hand signals we use to use when hunting to stay in contact.” Bowie set his jaw in determination, and gathered his rarely uncovered head of red straight hair into a ponytail. Kilen stroked the blue ribbon hanging on his sword. They looked eye to eye and Kilen took off in chase of the fire wielders.

Bowie knew this would be a lot different than chasing a deer or other animals, today they might have to kill a man. He had never seen the look he saw in Kilen’s eyes, something not like Kilen at all. He knew that Kilen would stop at nothing to kill these men. He was all for mischief, but he didn’t like the thought of killing another man or woman. Kilen had already made a great distance and Bowie began to see him dwindle into the trees. He spurred Charger into action. The path was almost straight except the occasional weave around trees. Bowie found burned tree bark and small shrubs with leaves burned off, as he followed Kilen’s path. He saw Kilen hold one arm up and use the other hand in a motion telling Bowie he was going to climb the tree and look for their prey, only this time they were people. In one motion Kilen threw down his shield making it stand up in the ground and leapt straight up, disappearing into the tree’s. Bowie thought that they wouldn’t have been able to go far on foot without more elemental magic to help them, so they shouldn’t have gotten far. When Bowie came up to the shield sticking into the ground, Kilen fell from far up in the tree and landed shuddering the ground. Bowie wondered if he would ever get use to seeing magic being used around him.

“I saw some smoke drifting up through the branches not far ahead. Leave Charger here. You should be able to sneak up on them better on foot, don’t you think?”

Bowie climbed down, and knocked an arrow into his bow, “What’s the plan when we do catch up to them?”

Kilen looked at his friend and gave a small laugh, “Same as always. I’ll distract them and let them charge me. You shoot them in the eye so they break their neck before they kill me.” They both smiled at that and Kilen pulled his shield from the ground. Kilen pulled Bowie up by his free arm and put him on his back. They took four bounds, covering a large amount of distance. Kilen let Bowie off and he took a couple steps back to regain his balance. Steadying himself on a nearby tree, Kilen held a single finger to his lips, as if Bowie didn’t know to be quiet. In the distance two men could be heard shouting at each other. Kilen and Bowie started to stalk into the directions of the voices. They separated and Kilen made his way around to the side of the two men. The men were so focused on their argument they didn’t see the movements in the trees. The two men had shoulder-length black hair and wore tight fitting leather pants and boots. They wore no shirts only leather straps across their chests that hold the hand length curved daggers on their chest. The tall one was shouting at the other to take a bracer off before they were both dead. When the men moved their arms, sparks snapped at their fingers. The short man wearing the bracer would light in small flames at different points around his body for a few seconds before they were extinguished. Kilen saw movement of a bird fly off from the direction that Bowie was coming from, and knew that he should get men’s attention now or Bowie would soon be their focus. Kilen shouted and ran at them holding his shield in front of him just below his eyes as Wells had shown him. He gathered water to himself and would soon feel his clothes drenched with water. Water cascaded down his shield and fell to the ground in preparation for the heat that it would resist. The heat came soon after. As soon as he started yelling the tall man threw a fireball that ricochet off Kilen’s shield, exploding into the ground nearby. The move gave the tall man a chance to run off in the opposite direction of Bowie. The small man walked at Kilen slowly and opened his hands in front of him with his arms fully extended. The flames raced up his body, making the man a walking blaze. Then lines of flames shot from his hands, crashing into Kilen’s shield. Kilen stood his ground, determination in the back of his mind helped him pull water from the plants, air, and ground cooling and protecting him. The battle of flame and water was taxing on Kilen’s magic. He could feel himself wearing down. He knew that he would have to find a better way to protect himself, and pulled the ground up to shield him. The ground shifted, knocking Kilen off his feet. The earth had sprung up in front of him making a wall of dirt that arched over Kilen’s head at about seven feet tall. Kilen used his water vision to feel the man running at the crack in the earth on the other side of his wall. The man tried to jump across the crack but hit the side nearest Kilen, still inside the gaping hole. Kilen peeked his head around the wall and saw the man’s arms and head just above the top of the crack. With one hand the man held on so that he wouldn’t fall back down, and with the other he shot flames at Kilen. Kilen ducked back around the earth and felt for the second man, who had begun to flank his defended position. Kilen knew that he had to end this quick. He was tiring too quickly. Just as quickly as the magic faded, so did his determination. He shoved the earth back down into the ground closing the crack with the man still part way inside, crushing him and leaving his shoulders arms and above sticking out. What was left of the man’s body was extinguished but still steamed from the heat. A fire ball sped past Kilen’s side, burning his hand that held his sword. Kilen thought to hide from the danger and instinctively pulled a fog around him and the entire area. The flame wielder threw fire ball after fire ball in every direction he heard noise. What had transpired seemed to have lasted for ages to Kilen but he knew that only a few moments had past. Bowie hadn’t been able to close the distance that Kilen could while using magic. He was still a distance away.

Bowie shouted to Kilen, “I can’t see you.” A fire ball raced in that direction and hit a tree, catching it on fire. Kilen closed his eyes and used both magic’s to find the fire wielder and Bowie. His power was fading fast and so was his ability to maintain the fog. He lowered the fog in a tunnel between Bowie and the second man for only and instant. Kilen heard Bowie shout, “Again, I’m ready. Do it again!” Another fireball flew in the direction of Bowie. Kilen pulled roots from the ground and wrapped around the man’s feet trying to distract him. The roots were quickly burnt away, the heat not allowing them to grow in the man’s direction. The fire wielder lashed out at the trees thinking they were about to attack him. He threw fireballs at any he could make out. The man was a ball of flaming rage. The effect of the roots gave Kilen the distraction they needed. He lowered the fog and heard the distinct twang of a bow string loosing an arrow. Kilen tried to bring back up the fog but couldn’t force it back. Bowie’s bow let out a second arrow, and a third as the man screamed in rage and tree’s splintered at the force of fire hitting them. Kilen lifted his head unable to provide anymore magic help to Bowie. He saw the man with three arrows jutting out of his chest fall to his knees just as the massive tree collapsed behind him. Kilen’s vision faded, and he was taken by darkness.

Bowie moved quickly and pulled a dagger from his leather belt and held it to the still smoking man’s throat. He was dead. Bowie looked into his eyes knowing he was the one who had killed him. Bowie pulled the dagger from his hand with leather covered gloves on, and moved to the man sticking out of the ground as if he was digging his way out from a buried grave. The man’s bracer was the only thing that hadn’t turned to black charred flesh. Bowie placed the bracer in his pouch next to the dagger the tall man had. Bowie looked and finally found Kilen laying face down with his hand inches from his sword. He placed Kilen’s hand on the blade and Kilen started to breathe a little lighter. He knew that the sword could be the one thing that was keeping Kilen alive. He took an extra bow string from his pocket and carefully tied Kilen’s hand to the hilt of the sword. Bowie slid the sword back into the sheath at his hip, and began checking his body for wounds. When Bowie was sure that Kilen wasn’t physically injured he ran as fast as he could to get Charger. The distance that Kilen had covered was enough that Bowie had to slow and walk twice before he reached the horse. He pulled a water skin from his saddle and drank deeply. With legs tired from running he mounted Charger and sped towards Kilen and the two smoldering corpses.

When he arrived Kilen was still laying just as Bowie had left him. He jumped off Charger, and tried to figure out how to get Kilen into the saddle. He had to take the chance on borrowing some magic. It was the only option other than building a litter and dragging him back. Bowie reached and grabbed the chain around Kilen’s neck and felt the magic surge through his body, giving him excessive strength. He easily and delicately picked Kilen up and placed him in the saddle, then climbed up behind him. The small amount of time it took to use the rings made Kilen turn pale and totally limp without magic to help him. Bowie rode easy, using what strength he had left in his legs to keep him and Kilen in the saddle over the forest’s winding up and down trails back to Gulrich. The shadows played tricks on his eyes as he rode in the fading light of the evening sun. He kept going over what they were told back in town. Was it two or were their more fire wielders? The sun finally set and the moon rose partially in the sky. Bowie could make out the twinkling lights of Gulrich far in the distance. these lights kept him on course as the moon was no help in the thick forest. When he rode into the city lights, he saw that the color had returned to Kilen face. On more stable ground, he began to ride as fast as he could to find the center of town. As they rode into town Bowie could make out Leroy at the far end of one of the streets. Bowie moved in that direction, fighting Charger who wanting to run the whole way. He finally knew why everyone wanted that trait trained out of the horse. When Leroy recognized them approach he darted out of view and into a building near the town’s square.