Death Comes To All (Book 1) (52 page)

“
Bree
can go find out when Bree wants to meet you,” the small man
replied with a merry grin. “Bree will be right back.”
Before Drom had a chance to figure out what the little man had in
mind, he disappeared once again, winking out like snuffed candle.

“
So
what do you think that was all about?” he asked Raine once he
had determined for certain that the little man was truly gone this
time.

“
Who
knows,” she answered distantly.

Something
was bothering her. Now that he wasn’t distracted by their
unexpected visitor, he was certain of it. It had been something that
the little man had said. Perhaps it had been when Bree referred to
him as the battle mage. It was bothering him as well.

“
He
seemed to know things about us that I wouldn’t have expected
anyone else to know. I wonder how he knew about that?”

“
He
probably didn’t really know anything,” she retorted
hotly, her temper flaring into life in an instant. “How would
he know anything about us?”

“
Is
everything alright with you?” Drom asked, in as sweet a tone as
he could manage. “Even if he somehow knows that I’m a
battle mage, there’s no reason to get angry. We’ll figure
out how to deal with it. It’s a little bit unnerving for me
too, but honestly, he didn’t seem dangerous. Perhaps he might
even turn out to be an ally, or rather this other Bree that wants to
meet with us.”

“
I’m
fine,” she snapped, then stopped herself abruptly. “Sorry,
I didn’t mean to be harsh with you. I just don’t like
vermin sneaking into my house uninvited. I could have sworn I had him
for a second, but somehow he managed to slip away. I’m not sure
how he did it. It bothers me is all.”

“
Hardly
vermin, young lady, but I can understand your feelings,” a
voice said from the corner of the door frame. “I apologize for
my messenger's abrupt manner. I apologize if he startled you when he
arrived to speak with you as well. My bree do not generally show
themselves to those that they visit. I’m afraid that manners
are not a normal concern for them. I do believe that I was invited,
however, unless I have misunderstood my messenger.”

“
Bree
told Bree that you would meet with him!” The small man from
before exclaimed happily. “Bree has come to meet with you.”

“
I
take it you must be Bree, again,” Drom stated flatly, staring
at the newcomer. Unlike the messenger who stood next to him, this man
was not at all young. Deep, thick age lines wizened his ancient face.
Unlike his messenger’s simple clothing, this man’s
garment was a deep, rich blue, with shining, gold embroidery.

Thick
gold necklaces adorned his neck, and gold rings dominated his
fingers. He wore a long cloak that covered his shoulders and back,
also the same deep blue, but trimmed in white fur around the collar.
All of these things were tiny to Drom, but on this small man they
appeared huge, and must have been quite heavy for him. The small,
aged man appeared every bit the scale model of a king.

“
Our
race is the bree,” the aged man explained. “Unlike you
giants, we do not have names to explain who we are talking about. We
can see into each others minds, and as so such distinctions are not
normally necessary. I am, however, the leader of our race. You may
call me Bree if you like, or you may call me whatever you wish.”

“
You
don’t seem to talk about yourself in the third person like your
messenger did,” Drom observed. “I would assume that you
must have practice speaking to people from other races. I’m
afraid I must apologize, but I’ve never heard of your race
before.”

Drom
considered the strangeness of that even as he said it. He had thought
he had learned about all of the other races from his mother’s
teachings in his childhood; teachings that had been confirmed since
then by the books he had read from Raiste's library. In all that time
though, he had never heard of a race of miniature beings known as the
bree. He was certain he would have remembered it if he had.

“
You
would assume wrong,” the elderly man returned. “I’ve
never spoken to anyone, other than my bree. Our race has stayed
hidden since we were created. No one knows about us, and if you don’t
mind, I would like to keep it that way for now. You are, I believe,
people who are used to keeping secrets.”

“
We
can keep secrets if we want,” Raine growled. “I still
haven’t seen any reason why we should keep yours. What is it
you want with us?”

“
You
have quite a temper on you young lady,” the old man replied. “I
believe you are calling yourself Raine at the moment. I will do so as
well then. You’re every bit your father’s daughter. A
good thing, I’m sure, considering what is coming. You will need
every ounce of that strength, much sooner than you think.”

“
What
do you know of my father!?” Raine shouted. “No more
riddles, old man. Explain yourself!”

Drom
put a comforting hand on her shoulder, afraid that she would suddenly
fly across the room at the miniscule king. He could feel her shaking
underneath his fingers, and added a small amount of pressure in hopes
of calming her.

It
certainly wouldn’t do to have her chasing him around the
kitchen like she had his messenger. They wouldn’t learn
anything that way.

“
I
know of your father the same way I know about most things. My bree
are everywhere. We hide in the shadows, and listen. The mages don’t
even know we exist, and we have listened in on their meetings for
thousands of years. They don’t know about you yet Raine, nor
have they realized yet that Drom is the battle mage. They think that
Raiste is the new battle mage actually. I don’t believe it will
take them long to figure out that it wasn’t Raiste that carried
that huge blade of yours though. Too many of his guards were allowed
to escape.”

“
Do
you know what happened to Raiste?” Drom asked before the man
could say anything more. He had planned on avoiding any discussion
about the assassin, but it seemed that this small king already knew
all about him; about them all it seemed. The king had already claimed
to have listened in on the mages council meetings, which was
incredible. If there was any truth to that, the bree could prove to
be a valuable ally. Drom sincerely believed that the king wished to
become his ally.

Why
else would he have shown himself to me?
he reasoned.

“
He
is alive and well at the moment, though not out of danger,” the
aged man replied. “The mages still hunt him, and they are
relentless in their pursuits. Raiste is currently disguised as an
aged old man. I believe you are familiar with that disguise already.
So far they have not discovered him, but that may not be the case
soon. They have brought a dragon into the hunt, and that dragon may
be able to see through his disguise.”

“
How
do you know about that?” Raine asked.

“
Because
we watch, and we listen,” the king repeated calmly. “Admittedly
we can’t be everywhere at once, however we can instantly travel
from one place to another at will. You have already witnessed this
ability, I believe. We did not know anything about Raiste until after
Port Tam. We had seen him, and knew him by several of his aliases,
but he had never spoken to anyone about his true identity. We had no
way of knowing about it before then. We wouldn’t have paid him
a moments notice, if it wasn’t for Drom using his magic. That
caught our attention, as I’m sure you understand. I’ve
had my bree watching over him, and all of you, ever since then.”

“
Why?”
Drom asked. “You’ve said that your people have been able
to stay hidden for all this time, for thousands of years. Why would
you come out of hiding now, just to pay attention to us? I understand
that there hasn’t been a battle mage in a long time, but I’m
hardly the first. From what you’re saying, you never talked to
any of them before.”

“
There’s
a reason for that. Those battle mages that came before you, even the
best of them, were still a part of the system that the mages have
created. Not all of them were bad men, but none of them could see, as
you have, the inherent dangers in the ruling class of mages. Raiste
is right when he said that the ruling class has to destroyed.

“
The
three of you are special. All three of you. Raine, when you saw the
problems in your society, you knew that they couldn’t continue
as they had been. Raiste has seen similar corruption in this society.
Few people in the world have seen this as vividly as the two of you.
Drom, more than anyone else in the world, you are in a position to
finally, after thousands of years, put and end to the corrupt world
we now live in. The three of you have started something that may,
should you survive long enough, change everything. No one before you
has ever had such a chance.

“
I
would like to help you if I can. My bree can go to places that few
others can follow. We can pass information on to you that otherwise
you might never learn. The only thing I ask in return is that you
keep our existence a secret. If the mages learn that we exist, we
would no longer be of any use to you, so I’m sure you realize
that keeping our secret is in your best interest as well.”

“
I
still don’t understand why what happens in the rest of the
world would concern you,” Drom persisted. “If you can
stay hidden, than what the mages do shouldn’t make any
difference for you one way or another. I don’t see why you
would want to get involved.”

“
For
the same reason that anyone would want to get involved. The world has
become sick. If something is not done it can only get worse, and
eventually it would affect the bree as well. I would like to heal the
world before it makes everyone sick, including my bree. The three of
you are the means to that end. You are the ones who have a chance to
heal this world. You might be the only ones who can.”

“
How
can I do anything to save the world?” Raine asked suddenly. “I
can understand how Drom can help; he’s a battle mage. I can
even understand how Raiste can help. Since the mages are going to be
hunting him, that might be something that can be used against them I
suppose, though I don’t really know how. But not me. I’m
good with a blade, but so are a thousand more. There’s nothing
at all special about me.”

“
That’s
not true at all. You are your father’s daughter after all. You
have a fire burning in your heart, one that the world will need
before it is done. Even were that not true, you will all need strong
blades before this comes to an end. Right now it is only the three of
you, but in order to fight against the mages, you will need an army.
That is something that, unfortunately, I cannot help you with.

“
However,
I believe that your fire will help burn away the fear that keeps most
men frozen. Few men are happy with the way the mages control the
world. They need someone to show them how to fight back, and that is
something you can provide them with. They will also need someone to
follow. That person, I believe, would be your friend Raiste. Most
important of all they need someone to believe in. That person would
be you, Drom.”

“
That’s
the second time you’ve mentioned my father. What do you know of
him?”

“
He
was once a lot like you are now,” the old king replied sagely.
“Long before you were born, he tried to rebel against the
elders in your clan, much like you did. He wanted to change things
for the better too. One of the saddest days in his life was when you
had to leave the village.”

“
You
don’t know what you’re talking about!” She
screamed. “My father was the one who ordered me to leave the
village! Sure, it was the elders that had wanted it, but he was
chief! The final decision had been his, and he chose to force me to
leave!”

Drom
was glad he had a hand on her shoulder, meant to provide comfort more
than anything else. If he hadn’t, he feared she would have
attacked the old man then and there, which he was certain would have
been an entirely useless gesture, just as it had been before, and
would only infuriate the feral woman even more.

“
He
knew that if you stayed then the fire inside you would be smothered
under the elders ways, just like it had for him,” the wizened
man replied calmly. His calm demeanor while facing an angry person
reminded Drom of the way Raiste had been when he had been angry with
the assassin, after they had killed Sloan and his guards. “He
didn’t want to see that fire die in you, so instead he sent you
out into the world, where the atrocities of the mages would only fan
it further. As I said before, the world will need that fire now.”

This
was apparently not the answer that Raine had been expecting. Drom
felt her calm beneath his strong hand, though she still trembled a
little from the strong emotions coursing through her.

“
Your
people will need your help soon as well,” the old man
continued. “Things are not the same now as they were when you
left. As you already know, they have been paying a tribute to the
mages to retain their anonymity. The mages have been raising that
tribute regularly, and soon your people will no longer be able to
afford to pay it. Once that happens, the mages will begin an assault
on the ferals that they can’t hope to win.”