The Unexpected Heir: A Tale of Alus (2 page)

Killing someone supposedly unkillable had proven a challenge at first, but they had discovered a couple ways to finish off even men with the ability to return to life after their hearts had been stopped. What damage they could truly endure hadn't been disclosed in front of a girl who had only been ten at the time; but the fact that he could be killed had lingered even after more than a decade since.

Annalicia had no plans of harming her grandfather, but it made him more relatable once she realized that even he could pass away in time.

Though not everyone knew Darius to be her grandfather, he had visited the masters of her school even before she was born. Just as they had made pilgrimages to the great schools for magic, so he had come to Malaiy to exchange ideas with the wizards here.

The problem was the masters looked at her and saw the legend that had helped form her. Unlike her parents, Annalicia had great strength in magic like Darius, making the comparisons even more common. Though she had love for her grandfather, there were certainly times where she felt like the masters wanted her to live up to his legacy.

"If you don't think that we are up to it, you could always come along master or send one of the others. You could give us guidance during the tournament as well. There would certainly be more to gain from watching your students dueling new opponents than continually training us to fight each other."

Qerlan laughed and shook his head. "Dueling is a young person's game and I for one am willing to leave you to it. As to traveling all the way to Southwall, I don't know about the other masters; but I for one do not relish spending a month or more on a little ship just to get there and turn around to do it all over again."

Making a face revealing displeasure, the young woman replied, "Well, if you put it that way, maybe I should reconsider leaving."

Again he laughed as Ivanor rolled his eyes. The younger wizard looked to be trying to avoid showing any amusement at her joke, but Qerlan could see that fight inside of him.

"It is too late now. You, Reynolvan, Ivanor, Jezra, Fisen and Keith will have to do your best. Represent us well!" he added starting to sound like a cheerleader for the younger wizards being sent to a far off land.

Noting that she had wasted more time debating the issues, Anna nodded and shortly after gathered her slipper like shoes for the walk back to her parent's home. It wasn't too far away. Like the training courtyard, her family had a view of the Talmoth Sea to the west. They lived nearly far enough north that they could have lived on the Glacian Ocean instead. It was the stretch of water that drew cold currents from far to the north before turning east between the continents of Taltan and North.

Ivanor shadowed the girl as she walked. Even in more conservative clothing, the lady was a beauty and would draw an eye. Added to the obvious draw of her looks, many knew the girl as one of the royal family, albeit a branch further from the king than might warrant as much attention as others.

Two more men with swords at their hips had joined them from the gate opening onto the street east of the wizards' courtyard.

"Did your training go well, my lady?" one of the guardsmen asked from her right.

"It went about as usual, Ryan," the girl replied to the older man. He wasn't old compared to someone like Master Qerlan, but to the twenty-two year old Annalicia, he was old enough. Unlike the other guard, a man much closer to her age; Ryan had most likely been chosen by her parents because he was more mature and had the wisdom that came with age. He was the lead of her guard detail, though most often it was just the two men and one of the many male wizards she worked with.

That was another reason that the girl stood out. Malaiy had an unusual shortage of female wizards. It was a small country, but she had heard most countries had a nearly even number of males and females with the talent.

"So you gave Ivanor about eighty percent and you were yelled at by the master?"

Eyes darting to the man as she frowned slightly, Anna refused to turn and give him the satisfaction of being surprisingly correct. "It is hard to give your all when you know your opponent so well. We fight nearly every day. There is nothing more that I can learn about his choices in magic."

Ivanor frowned and replied without looking at her directly, "You could vary it up, if you wanted. I am hardly so predictable that I couldn't surprise you and win a match."

Looking at the other wizard, the girl stated, "You know the pool of choices for sparring partners is small, Ivanor. You can't tell me that you aren't more excited about going to Southwall to test yourself against someone new."

"I didn't say that I wasn't. I am just saying that we could certainly test each other to push our growth more than we usually do."

They walked through a crowd that was still thin enough to see well beyond their immediate surroundings. A small group of men in red cloaks and robes were in the next intersection shouting to the throng around them.

"More Brothers of the Blood?" Annalicia questioned as they slowed their feet to watch the men calling out to the crowd, which was forced to move around them. She realized that she had never stopped to listen to their speeches.

Her father and brother had made mention of the Brothers a few times at dinner or in conversations around their home. Neither seemed overly fond of their message. They spoke of change and apparently the Brothers were most emphatic that that change should include the king and any of the royal family that might side with him.

"They've become more common of late," Ryan commented stilling his face against revealing either distaste or acceptance of their message. The guardsman had never given her a reason to believe that he sided with such a radical view, and Annalicia had a trusting enough heart to not question those surrounding her. "When the economy slowed, more people joined the unemployed. Beggars and those starving would believe that the king is doing something wrong. There are still many making a good living, and even becoming richer, while others stumble."

Annalicia watched the crowd ignoring her desire to see the actual reaction of her guards as the brothers shouted their beliefs.

"So they wish to pull down the king... and then what?"

The guard leader shrugged. Ivanor, on the other hand, spoke up on the matter. "They don't preach about whether Malaiy can survive a change in government. King Orlaan hasn't always created policies that everyone likes, but I think that he's led well enough."

Welden, her younger guardsman, had been silently listening while keeping his eye on the nearby crowd. He spoke up saying, "That isn't what I've heard of their message. You're saying the more negative and probably most radical opinions of the brothers."

Ivanor's eyebrows raised questioningly and the wizard said, "Oh, then feel free to enlighten us."

"I can't say that I've sat still long enough to listen to their full message myself, but I know others that appreciate what they are doing. They've set up missions to feed the poor. They can house the homeless putting roofs over their heads as well at least temporarily.

"For all the riches in Malaiy, especially in Yalan, there are still starving people and others in need that the king doesn't seem to have the time to address. The brothers have come and are filling part of that void."

Annalicia frowned and looked slightly confused at the two stories. The girl paused in the street listening as best she could through the noise of a crowded street as a handful of red clothed men appeared to hold their ground as a unit.

"Brothers and sisters hear our voices and know that we serve the gods and you. If you are starving, know that we can feed you. If you are tired and have no home, come and use our homes as yours. If you are in fear, we will protect you.

"If King Orlaan can't see your suffering, know that Sordrian sees you and has called us to come to your aid. Let his blood cleanse you of your sins and let his light shine upon your path. Come to him and our god can save you from the harshness of your lives. His servants are here to help you in his name, even if you don't believe in him."

Anna listened to the men as their words continued on similarly for a few minutes. They were calling to the poor to come to them for help. They used this Sordrian as their rallying point, but the god must have been a lesser god and Annalicia had to look to the men around her for enlightenment.

"Who is this Sordrian that they are talking about? I think that I have heard the name, but I am not certain," the young woman asked even as she began to notice the stares given not just from those closest to her, but from at least one of the brothers who had noted her listening as well.

"If you have money and wish to share with those in need, the Brothers of the Blood can take your donations as well. Perhaps those related to the king might make up for the slights to his people?" one of the men in red called her way.

Anna frowned slightly at his thinly veiled request of the girl. Whether she might wish to donate to this cult following Sordrian, a name she still didn't know; the wizard hadn't carried any money with her. To fail to give might make her family look unsympathetic, but the brothers were putting her in the uncomfortable position with no easy way out also.

"Sordrian was called the god of storms or weather, depending on who you might ask," Ivanor stated even as he waited to see how Annalicia might deal with the indirect petitioning of the brothers. "I would have to look up more about him in the library, but I think that I remember him being an immortal like Darius, the wizard. He may be older than that and from the old gods of legend, but that is what I thought I have heard anyway."

Annalicia turned from her stare down with the brother who had called her out for the crowd. More eyes had turned to look at the girl. Different faces revealed different expectations and reactions from those looking at her. Some merely saw her beauty and failed to realize that the wizard was any relation to the king. Many looked past her wondering who the brothers were speaking of with their most recent words.

Others knew of the young lady with the silver blond hair. A member of the extended family of Malaiy's royal family, any who knew of her, would believe she was rich enough to share some of their wealth. Anna might have been a daughter with parents who were rich, but the woman had chosen to become a wizard and face the future mostly on her own. She still lived at home, however, so the girl hadn't become completely independent; but she still considered her parents' assets theirs and not hers, even if Annalicia hadn't moved on from her childhood home yet. Since she wasn't her parents' oldest child, it wasn't exactly wrong to think that she would need to fend for herself; or perhaps marry a man with wealth to remain wealthy.

Moving away from the brothers and the crowd beginning to form around them without answering their call; Annalicia waited until they were farther down the street before questioning Ivanor once more. "It seems like these brothers have only shown up recently. If this Sordrian has been around for centuries, why has he suddenly been elevated to the head of this religion all of a sudden?"

"The brothers have been around for quite awhile," Ryan spoke up for the wizard when he hesitated. "They seem to have decided to spread to us more recently, but Tseult and Kloste have had temples in their countries for quite awhile."

Ivanor nodded and added, "Some people say that Alwere broke from Enswere because of the brotherhood, though the river is a barrier between the two sides of the old country and might be as much of a reason. That was a hundred and fifty to two hundred years ago."

If the brothers had been behind the splitting of an entire country, their influence might be of a bigger concern than Annalicia had first thought. While it was certainly disconcerting, the young woman also realized that it wasn't her biggest concern at the moment.

King Orlaan, her mother's uncle and her king, had requested that Annalicia would be one of their representatives for the tournament in Southwall. She was known to be skilled at magic, but the girl had a feeling that he also had placed this duty on his grandniece feeling that she must succeed if she was of royal blood.

Any trouble these Brothers of the Blood might represent would be dealt with by the king and his advisors, the girl supposed. Anna was just a wizard and far enough removed from the throne to know that she was safe from most of the headaches of his heirs. All that she needed to do; was do her best and hopefully win this tournament for her king and country.

Her feet led the pretty young woman to a gate, which opened on a well kept courtyard. Beyond the trees and flowers, which still bloomed seasonally in spite of the year round warm weather, a manor house loomed. It was her home, at least until the wizard could manage to afford something of her own.

The girl sighed and walked the path to the front doors thinking of the last preparations for her trip north.

Chapter 2- A Chorus of Goodbyes

A pleasant breeze blew through the courtyard in front of the palatial manse stirring the trees in a rustle of sound. Annalicia noted the scent of the blooming parsimon trees, golden dodera flowers and meris. While winter in name, these flowers chose this time of year to bloom and repeated the act twice more in Malaiy. The young woman wasn't sure of their timing outside of her country, but they were common throughout Taltan, she had heard.