Siege of Pailtar (8 page)

While she pondered that, an older boy that she didn’t recognize came around and gave each of potential students a sheet of paper.
The grades
thought Kiana. Guild school was not like normal school, in Guild school students were graded on skill level and then students applied for courses.  Students could choose two subjects and two were given to the student by the school. The courses given to students were often more important than the ones they were allowed to choose. Guild school only lasted a maximum of three years and with only four classes per year and if stuck in dumb classes like Guild law it severally limited a student’s ability to improve their abilities. Her mother had often warned her that not studying Guild laws could lead to wasting a valuable spot having to take the Guild laws class.

Kiana was nervous when the boy handed her sheet to her. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and then looked at her sheet.

1)
     
Pickpocket: Four

2)
     
Sneak: Four

3)
     
Guild Law: Two

4)
     
Applied magic: One

5)
     
Hand to Hand: Three

6)
     
Cat burglar: Four

7)
     
Weapons: Two

8)
     
Surveillance: Three

Kiana handed her sheet to the old man, “Is this good? Does a two in Guild law mean taking a class?”

The old man carefully looked over her sheet. “Impressive scores you have there, young lady. Guild law only goes up to two. Getting a two means you don’t have to take the course.”

Kiana sighed in relief. Not having to take guild law was one less thing to worry about.

“How the hell can you get a four in three subjects and a one in Applied Magic?” asked the old man.

Kiana shrugged, “I avoided magic studies like the plague. My mother finally gave up trying to force them on me. She said I could do it when I was ready. But now I am all about the magic. I am going to study it like never before.” Kiana then told the old man the story about the scorpion.

The old man laughed at her “You must have pissed someone off to get that assignment. Most first time applicants don’t get things quite that challenging. Your mother taught you? So you are a legacy? Lucky child.”

Kiana nodded, she was a legacy, but not a normal one. She avoided that subject. “So when do we find out about the group challenge thingy?”

We find out about the team challenge any minute now. The Guild instructors compare our grades and put us into groups. Tomorrow we do the challenge.”

As the old man explained, the same boy who had handed out the grades came into the gym and posted a list on the wall. As soon as the boy left again all the students headed to the wall to read the list. Kiana looked at the list.

Group three

Aldwin Appleton

Osmond Wentworth

Aspen Wentworth

Kiana Clairmont

Kiana didn’t recognize any of the names. The old man stood beside her and read the list. “Ah it looks like we are in the same group,” he said.

“We are?” asked Kiana.

“Well, I am Aldwin, and unless you are not one of the girl names on that list, we are on the same team.”

Kiana laughed, “Hello, Aldwin, I am Kiana. It is nice to formally meet you.”

The other girl walked over to them with one of the two younger boys in tow. “I am Aspen and this is Osmond.”

Kiana looked at her group, she was pretty happy she didn’t have to work with winker or rude boy. Maybe the group challenge wouldn’t be so bad after all.

8

Morthon

“I THOUGHT YOU SAID WE were going to Balta?” asked Severa.

Everet turned sideways in his saddle so he could look at her. “Yes, we are going to Balta. But first, we need to go to Pailtar. We need safe passage to Balta and we need to arrange it so that we aren’t hanged the moment we arrive.”

Severa looked ahead, she could see they were fast approaching the end of the grasslands. She sighed wistfully,“I do hate crossing the desert.”

“Bad memories?” Everet knew the Severa, much like himself, had a dark past. The past was something they did not often discuss. Both preferred to enjoy each other in the moment and try to forget the darkness behind them.

“I was a slave girl the last time I crossed the desert,” she said in a soft voice. Her mind was elsewhere, visions of her previous voyage filled her mind. “I was just a young girl when I was captured. Slave traders attacked our village. The men were sold to mines and landowners. Women were sold to them as well, to the usual assortment of whorehouses and the like. Children were kept and trained by the traders, I was being trained to be a concubine for a rich merchant, but I had a stubborn streak and was always trying to escape. Finally, they gave up and sold me to pirates. We sailed for weeks until we arrived in Pailtar. From Pailtar we were taken to Meron. We travelled in these hideous carts, slowest mules known to man. I swear it took two weeks to cross that god forsaken desert. I’m pretty sure I still have splinters from the carts. It was not a pleasant journey.”

Everet was not surprised by Severa’s story. When he had first met her she was working as a barmaid and had been part of a plot to blackmail Bryant Bingham. When he first laid eyes on Severa, or Shelley as she had known as back then, he had recognized a kindred spirit. Someone who would do whatever it took to survive. You don’t get that look without going through Hell once or twice. “How did you end up working as a barmaid?”

“Martel Briggs. He purchased me from the slavers. Martel was rich, old and single. He would purchase young slave girls and they would work for him. For the slave girls it was a pretty good deal. Martel didn’t abuse us, he allowed girls to choose how they worked for him. All the girls would work in the brothels for a year or two. The ones who wanted could stay after that. Others were given the choice of working in one of his pubs. Some girls would rather work on their backs instead of scrubbing floors and washing piss pots. I was cute and sassy enough to be given a serving wench job.”

“What happened to Martel?”

“Martel caught the eye of Connard Bingham. Connard saw Martel’s operation and thought it should be his. His thugs murdered Martel and took over operations. Connard would come and oversee things occasionally, test the merchandise so to speak. When Connard’s men started running things, blackmail became one of their favorite past times. Bryant Bingham was not the first man that I helped Connard blackmail.”

“Such a bad girl!” said Everet. “I thought you were such a sweet and innocent girl. I shall never look at you the same.” He was teasing her of course, Everet cared not what was in her past. Nothing she had done would compare to the horrors of his past.

Severa laughed. Everet’s bad girl comment was ironic. “You wouldn’t have looked twice at me if I was a sweet and innocent girl. You like bad girls. Now that you know some of my deep dark secrets are you going to tell me anything about yourself? It doesn’t matter if you don’t want to.”

Everet looked carefully at Severa. He had never told anyone about his past, but he had never had anyone one he trusted. “Are you sure you want to know? I’ve done things that make men like Connard and his thugs look like angels.”

“Nothing you say will make me change the way I feel, Everet. You don’t have to tell me anything. It doesn’t matter what you have done before. You are mine now.”

Everet smiled. “In that case perhaps I had best tell you. I would not want you to learn it from someone else and change your mind about how you feel.” Everet paused to collect his thoughts. Where does one start such a story? “I was born Everode Elmore Evollan III, son of Lord Everode Evollan. My father was a tyrant. He was a noble who ruled his lands with an iron fist. Mercy and kindness were foreign words to my father. My mother was a kind woman who loved me and tried to install some of those qualities into me. My father would beat them out of me at every opportunity. He wanted his son to be a fierce warrior, one who would lead armies and make his father even richer and more powerful. When I was young, I watched my father torture men those who crossed him. I felt bad for them and sometimes would sneak them water. Then one day my father caught me. I then became the one being tortured. It was simple for my father. I was going to either become like him or die. My mother saw what he was trying to do so she took my younger brother and me and fled. Father caught us and took us boys home. He killed her that night and took a new wife within the week. I quit trying to fight his training. I feared he would kill my brother next. So I became the fierce, merciless killer he wanted and together we fought, expanding his lands and those of the king he served. There was a great war and we ended up in a battle that should have ended in our retreat. We had met a large force of men on the battlefield and fought them to a draw. The other commander signaled retreat and withdrew his men. He knew the battle was even and if drawn out would result in both sides losing a majority of their men. Father did not see this. He saw the other commander’s retreat as weakness and ordered our men to follow the other army. What Father did not know was the other commander had a strong troop of reserves hidden in the woods. When we attacked the retreating army, we ended up surrounded and trapped. Father refused to surrender and was cut down by enemy archers. It was a shock to me, to see my father die. He had seemed an indestructible force, a cruel, unflinching, and undefeatable man. His second in command signaled the retreat and some of our troops were able to flee. Despite only being a teen, I took over my father’s position and despite the losses my father caused was able to help our king win the war. It took years and many battles, but when it was all over I was a duke. A trusted servant of the king, but true to my father’s training I wanted more and was always working to further my own cause. I wanted to be king. I fought hard, gaining my king’s trust and years passed. When I was given an assignment to clear one of the outlying areas of bandits, I saw it as an opportunity to gain even more power. I ignored the local lord and went out with my troops searching for bandits. We found signs of bandits around a small village and Bailmont, my right hand man, who was even more ruthless and bloodthirsty than I, convinced me that we should attack. I knew he really didn’t care if the village had bandits or not. I needed a victory. So I approved the attack. Bailmont and my men murdered innocent men and woman, but no bandits. Even more unfortunate, the village happened to contain a northern prince and his southern wife. Their child ended up being my downfall. The murder of his parents almost brought the entire continent to war. My carefully built up position with my king was gone, so I turned to robbery and treachery and made my way to Pailtar. The boy followed us for the girl I had kidnapped, and when he caught us he killed Bailmont. He likely would have killed me too if I had not hidden and fled like a coward in the night.”

“You survived. It’s your instincts. So why did you change your name? You could have kept it in Meron. No one there cares what happened in Solotine.”

“I used the excuse that I needed a new identity. In truth I wanted change. I don’t know if I’ll ever have the kindness and compassion that my mother wanted for me, but I no longer want to be the monster my father created. I want to be something new.”

“What is that?”

“I’m not sure, but I know I am going to help defeat King Ganus, he is the kind of man my father was.”

“What of the boy?”

“If he wants his revenge, he will have to earn it. But I have done him harm beyond imagine. I am responsible for his parents’ deaths and I kidnapped his friends so that I could kill him, he has every right to want me dead. I’ll try make amends, but we will see what happens.”

Despite Everet’s claims that kindness and compassion were beyond him, Severa wasn’t so sure. He treated her well and it was obvious he had some remorse for his actions.

Everet stopped his horse. They had reached the edge of the grasslands, from here until Pailtar was the desert, an unpleasant and dangerous journey. “If you want to leave, now would be the time to do it. I will understand if you want to go back.”

Severa laughed, “You think you can get rid of me that easily? You have done bad things. You have a dark past. So what? You are mine, Everet. I will go anywhere with you. I will face kings or young boys who want to avenge their parents. Whatever comes, I am with you.”

Everet felt a tingle go down his spine. His worse fear had been when he revealed his darkness to Severa was that she would hate the monster and leave him. Now that he knew she was with him, he could face his fears, he could fight his demons and live. He no longer felt that driving urge for power that had driven him to lie, steal, and murder in the name of power. Now he would lie, steal, and murder in the name of love. It was a small change but an interesting one. Everet prodded his horse on. “Okay, my love, let us see what the future has in store for us.”
 

9

Pailtar

KIANA HANDED HER
grades sheet to her mother. She had just gotten home from the school and as she had expected both her parents were eagerly waiting to hear how she did.

Lilliana inspected the list. Kiana had passed Guild laws, Lilliana had expected that. They spent a lot of time going over the Guild rules, despite Kiana’s protests. A one in Applied Magic was also a given. Kiana had been stubborn as a mule about wanting to be a traditional thief. Lilliana had let the girl have her way on that one. Sometimes it was easier to just let her muddle her way through things and learn the hard way. The three fours were impressive. Lilliana had anticipated she might get a couple of them. The grading scale went from one to five, one meant little skill and five was a mastery of a skill. Getting fours signified that Kiana was already an accomplished thief in pickpocketing, cat burglary and sneak, three of the most important skills for any thief. Lilliana was proud of her daughter, she had done exceptionally well. Lilliana did raise her eyebrow when she saw a three in hand to hand. Lilliana handed her husband the list and then she questioned Kiana about it, “Hand to hand?”