Techromancy Scrolls: Soras (2 page)

I gave some pressure to Goliath's side as I finally reached for the reins. He reared a little and turned back as Celeste slid in on my right, looking ready to chastise me for being reckless. We caught up with Dru, who was now just hanging limply from his saddle. I shook my head at her and gave a pained look of apology and said, “He's hurt.”

Celeste reached his side and grabbed the reins of his mount and urged it to a stop. We dismounted and I ran over to them as Celeste helped him out of the stirrup and to the ground. I got to the man I owed my life to, and he was barely conscious. The handsomely rugged man, with his flowing mane of black hair, raised a hand up to first cup Celeste's cheek then mine as he rasped out in the tongue of the Mountain Gypsies, “My Soras. I have found you.”

He gasped, then said in a pained voice in English, “Mother Udele has been... kidnapped.” The man passed out, leaving Celeste and I staring at him in stunned silence. Mother Udele?

After the field medics at the gate saw to the unconscious Dru and stabilized him, he was spirited off to the Hospital. I couldn't help fidgeting in worry. He had lost a lot of blood. I had felt his weakness in my vision.

For all the wondrous things my magic brings me, it is a double-edged sword. My visions are a curse, as I can feel, see, and live the terror in them. They are part of the Gypsy magics that I somehow possess. It is unheard of for an Altii, an Other, to have the gift of spirit element magic. My visions are what they call, the Sight.

I have no control over them nor their intensity. Sometimes it is as simple as seeing my little brother, Jace, arriving with an official message a few seconds before he actually arrives. And sometimes I see a possible future of pain and fear, like I had in the expedition to Far Reach. That was just two years ago, but it feels almost like another lifetime.

I don't just see things in these visions, I am subjected to an assault of all my senses, and feel as if I am actually there, living them. Mother Udele had called that Transference, back when her band of gypsies had saved my life.

I stood by my Lady, Celeste, as the medics assured her that Dru would survive and that they would send word the moment he regained consciousness at the hospital. She spotted Jace hiding near the portcullis, watching, he must have followed the knights to the gates. She smirked at my mischievous brother and crooked her finger at him in a 'come here' motion.

He slunk over, eyes down in embarrassment for being caught spying, he bowed his head to Celeste. She ruffled his hair then instructed the medic, “Use Lord Jace here. He is the fastest of the runners.”

The medic cocked an eyebrow at that. Jace may be small, but even at just nine years old, there is no messenger of the court as fleet of foot as he is. He has a keen ability to find the quickest routes through the maze of lanes and alleys in the village. I beamed with pride at him. He looked so cute in his page uniform and cap.

Then the man just nodded and pointed at the wagon that was already half way up the Crossbar and he smiled, “Best catch up then young Lord Jace.”

My brother shot us a smile that reminded me so much of his father, Corrick, rest his soul. Then he took off in a flash over the cobblestones of the lane, just to turn and disappear into Cheap Quarter. I grinned, he was going to cut through Cheap Quarter and either use the great bridge at the Belt, or the footbridges into the Warehouse district to get to the hospital before the wagon could arrive.

I exhaled heavily in relief. Then Celeste looked down at my worried face, her emerald eyes sharing her strength with me as she pulled me beside her to hug me with one arm. I sighed. I could live in her arms forever.

I was startled as Donald spoke from beside us, his brows knitted in suspicion, “How did Laney know a man was in peril?”

I knew that the Keep didn't want it known I was an Adept. It was a closely guarded secret. We had known it would be tough to hide when we had so many cross-training programs going on with the other keeps now. We've been able to explain away the ghosting effect that the magics of the People have on me when I exert myself, by pointing out the gear I wore that was heavily imbued with runes and charms filled with that mysterious Gypsy magic.

Sir Tennison stepped up before we could speak and he said, “Outside sound carries on the wind here in Wexbury, and it uses the courtyard like an echo chamber. I heard it too, a distant cry of pain as the man was hit, then the pounding of hooves getting closer to the Keep.”

Celeste gave him a discrete smile. Then he added, “And little Laney is small as a bunny and has ears like one too.”

I protested, “Hey!” I took a couple swings at the big man as he held his hand leisurely on my head and kept me at a distance with his condor length arms. I swished the air harmlessly. I grinned at him and slapped his hand away as Celeste snorted. Why did everyone make fun of my height? I was just the right size for me, thank you very much.

I squinted an eye and crinkled my nose at my Lady as I shook my fist. “I'm glad this amuses you.”

Donald didn't look entirely convinced but he smiled at our antics and said, “You owe me a rematch, that was a dirty trick you pulled.”

I shrugged, blushed, and buried my face in Celeste's shoulder as the knights around us chuckled.

Celeste countered, “Seems her weak magics can do a few things after all, huh Sir Donald?”

The man finally grinned and inclined his head in acknowledgment.

Then she looked back at the gate as Lady Verna, Sir Kristof, and Bex came trotting back into the Keep. We could see the other knights slowly making their way back as well.

Verna slipped off her charger and shook her head once at Celeste. “They lost us in the woods. I don't believe they were marauders, their horses were shod.” And she held up an arrow. “And their equipment is Knight grade.”

Celeste took the arrow and looked at the fine craftsmanship of the serrated, bladed tip, and the uniformity of the feathers which had been dyed black. She squinted and looked closely, then asked, “Were these orange before?” There were a couple realms with orange in their colors.

I blanched at the implication and asked, “Do you think another realm was attacking a Gypsy? And within our borders?”

Tennison said, “We don't need to jump to any conclusions, they could have some into possession of it in a variety of ways.”

Celeste nodded and tossed the arrow to Bex. “Tennison is right. Bex, can you examine this to see if you can suss anything out?”

The tall, gawky Knight, who had more wires and gadgets on his armor than sense, nodded his head. He peered closely at the arrowhead as he clumsily mounted his charger and headed back toward the castle to his quarters that doubled as a tinker's workshop, much to the chagrin of the two knights that shared the quarters with him.

He belatedly remembered his manners as he turned back in his seat and grinned sheepishly back at us, dipping his head, “Ladies. Lord.”

Since Celeste, Tennison, and I were above his station I had to grin, the boy become man was one of my best friends.

Verna sighed at us and rolled her massively muscled shoulders. “I don't know about you girls, but I need a nice soak.”

I nodded earnestly in agreement. Celeste chimed in, “Yes we should visit the baths, Laney has an important day at the Dig tomorrow. So we should clean up.”

I blushed. The Dig was the name that the people of the realm had taken to calling the excavation of the settlement from the Before Times on the lands I donated as a treasure of the realm. The wonders we were unearthing at Gus Davis Ford were phenomenal and excited the scholars and Techromancers in the great library of the Techromancy Scrolls at the castle.

That wasn't what tomorrow's visit there, outside the gates, was about. I had more coin than I could ever need in twenty lifetimes as my share from of the prizes from the spoils of battle in the Far Reach campaign. I used a portion of it and some revenue from the salvage retrieved during the excavation, to commission a project that might revolutionize Wexbury Keep if it were successful. Or it could fail miserably and spectacularly.

We mounted up as Celeste called out to the captain of the watch, “Have someone call for Lord Peter, and have him track the marauders. He is not to engage, just report back to Wexbury their activities if he can locate them. And send word to the Duke about what had transpired here and that I would speak to him on the subject when we know more when our ally regains consciousness.”

The man said, “Aye!” He flicked his fingers at a page who was standing unobtrusively by the heavy oak table that was tucked away in the shade of the portcullis. The girl nodded once and ran off toward Uptown on the Crossbar.

We nodded our thanks and then started toward the Bath House at a leisurely pace to rest our mounts after exerting them in our rapid exodus from the Keep. I released the reins and just guided Goliath with my legs as I ruffled his mane and gave him a deep scratch, murmuring to him, “You were such a good boy, and so handsome.”

Celeste smiled over at me with mischief gleaming in her eyes. “Do you really think he understands you?”

I lifted my nose in a royal manner and stated, “Of course he does. My Goliath is quite intelligent.” Then to him, I said, “Don't listen to them.” Eliciting a chuckle from Verna.

After we turned onto Lord's Way and moved past the Belt, things got congested fast, so we dismounted and led our horses on foot through the evening crowds. Everyone was trying to get the last of their shopping done before the closing bell as Father Sol hung low on the horizon.

We hadn't gone more than twenty feet or so when we were mobbed by a group of squealing and giggling children. I laughed happily as I was surrounded. I shot a pleading look over to Celeste, who had a huge toothy grin as she watched my plight. Most were yelling, “It's the Penny Lady!” Or, “That's Anadele on her hip. It can split lightning!” One little girl, I recognized, Misty Cobbler, stopped right in front of me and she smiled with wide eyes as she turned back to the other children with her hands on her hips.

She hadn't been more than four or five the first time I saw her, but now she was about seven and spoke maturely for her age though she still had the tone of a little girl as she chastised the group. “We mustn't behave like animals. She is a Lady and a Knight.” Then she made a cute little curtsy and said, “My Lady.” Then to the others, “Ladies.” The other boys and girls followed suit. She seemed to be the ringleader of the group of giggling mischief makers.

I was all too cute, and I had to bite the inside of my cheek to prevent myself from smiling like a loon. I said with all the seriousness I could muster for the girl as I took a knee in front of her, “It is very important for a young aspiring Knight like yourself Misty, to care for those under her protection.”

Her eyes went wide again in earnestness that I remembered I had said the same thing I told her on our first meeting.

I reached into a pocket of my tunic and pulled out a handful of violet penny vouchers and handed them to her. “I have a mission for you and your band of hooligans here today.”

She was nodding fervently in excitement as I said, “Do you think that all of you can make sure that every child in the market today, gets a penny voucher before closing bell? Be sure to keep one each for yourselves.”

She turned and held her hands out with the violet slips of paper and said, “Knights in training!” The kids all stood at sloppy attention, shoving each others shoulders and giggling. Then she handed the vouchers out. “You heard our Lady.”

They all nodded and vanished into the crowd. Misty turned back to me with a grin and reported, “Junior regiment is on the job, my Lady.”

I smiled at her and couldn't stop myself from giving her a hug. I held her at arm's length just so that I could see how much she had grown.

She cocked her head and reached out to run her fingers along the scars on my face that were shimmering a wispy white from the magic of the people in my cloak and glove. She looked far more serious than a little girl should be as she said in awe, “You got these in the battle of the Monolith.”

I nodded and she asked as her brow furrowed in sympathy, “Do they hurt?”

I smiled sadly and shook my head. “No. But they were a price I was happy to pay to protect those in need.” I removed my silken glove to reveal the scarred and gnarled skin beneath to show her, the aches and pains returning as soon as the spell-laden glove was off. The scars seemed to shimmer and sparkle in the light.

I said, “There is a cost to power. If you truly aspire to become a knight, you must be willing to accept that. And to sacrifice all for the good of the people.”

She reached out and ran her little fingers along my skin. Then she put on a cute but serious look and nodded once then took my glove from me and put it back on for me. “It is what knights do.”

I felt the pains ease away.

I smiled and winked at her as I swelled with pride, knowing that this girl one day would make a fine protector of the realm. She smiled back and spun in place then she curtsied again and said, “My ladies. I must complete my mission.”

She held up a few of the vouchers and darted off, with Verna telling her, “Godspeed tiny one.” Then our friend turned to me with a sparkle in her eyes as she spoke out of the side of her mouth to Celeste, “I never thought I would see a knight smaller than our Laney here.”

I scrunched my face up in warning at her as they chuckled at my wrath. I grinned and rolled my eyes then said, “She will make a fine Knight of the Realm one day.”

They nodded their agreement as we started moving again.

Celeste said, “They all love you, and you are so good with all the children.”

I blushed and looked at my feet as we walked. I gazed to the north, at the hospital as we tethered our horses at a trough by the Bath House.

Celeste reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “I know, I'm worried too.”

I looked up at her then nodded and gave a weak smile.

She offered her arm and I laid my fingers on it and she escorted me into the famous Bath House of Wexbury like I was a Lady.

Later that night I sat on the long lounge in front of the fire in our quarters, just looking at my silk gloved hand, thinking about how much my life had changed in just two short years. I may be a noble and a knight to most of Wexbury, but I knew who I really was. Laney Herder, chicken farmer for the Keep, from Cheap Quarter. A serf. It was only by happenstance that I find myself in the company of the Lords and Ladies of the Keep.