The bard was okay. My mending spell had worked. Kaavi, Ghala, Huy, Ynec, and I sustained bodily injuries during that last fight with the cyclops but once Barth was right as rain he was able to cast a healing spell on us and get us back in walking shape. We began the last leg of our trek, as the forest gave way to meadows. After a few hours, we found our first sign of human civilization. A road. Soon down the road, we encountered the first person in the last few days that wasn’t trying to kill or eat us. A local scroll salesman walking back from Memphis.

He had probably never seen that many kids excited about reading as we seemed to be. We explained our situation with him and he shared a hardened piece of bread that he had in his bag. We dipped it in the river and split it thirteen ways.

I was laughing with Huy, eating my crumb of bread, when I noticed that he started to glow. He was leveling up in front of me. I looked and saw Tuf, Kaavi, and Ruglio all began to glow too. They had all matured a level. The boys who hadn’t were all jealous as they asked those that did what it felt like.

“Like I grew an inch,” Tuf said, “Someone line up with me. I want to see if I did.”

One of the level one boys lined up with Tuf but it did not appear that he grew.

The boys tittered as they described their newfound powers when I interjected, “Why did you all need bread to evolve and I needed to be beaten with a stick?”

Some of the boys looked at me, a little quiet as they pondered how to break it. Ghala spoke up,”Most people don’t evolve mid-battle,” Ghala said, “Don’t you know that? The gods send you to the next level only when you’ve rested.”

“Then why did I?” I asked.

Ghala shrugged, “Maybe ‘cause of your ears.”

I gave a soft ‘hmm’ sound as the others resumed their chittering. That was the best explanation anyone could come up with. I decided it was more of an advantage than a disadvantage. Maybe the goddess Seshat knew I was different. We all began our walk again and I checked in with Yajaira as we got to the last leg of our journey.

“You’ll finally be a bardic student. What are you going to do as soon as you get to college?” I asked.

“Bathe. Easily. Then send a letter to my mother and father. Then bathe again just to make sure all of the tarantuladon’s webbing is off me for good.”

I laughed, “Yeah, that would be nice.”

“I will provide you all with quarters when we arrive. Then I’ll send you all off back to Skorwind with a full convoy. It’s the least I can do for your bravery.”

I waved my hand, “It was nothing. Really. I think these kids could use the adventure, honestly.”

“And what about you? Was there some part of you that enjoyed this gauntlet?”

I thought about it. Then I said, “No.”

“Ah,” Yajaira simply said.

“I loved seeing my teammates be badasses but… I felt so useless at times. Like… What was the point of becoming a paladin? I knew about seven spells. Now I know ten. I don’t know.”

“Well-” The duchess began.

“Hey, Duchess!” Tuf interrupted, “Who’dja think was the best fighter?!”

All the boys crowded around her. Some of them rolled their sleeves up and tried to show off their biceps as they all gave the duchess reasons to choose them.

Yajaira giggled and quietly looked between all of us, “My. I find it so hard to choose. You were all so brave.”

“No chickening out!” Tuf said, “You gotta choose!”

“Okay, okay. Well… You were all so brave. Each one of you will make an amazing Paladin… I’ll have to say Egen, for his cunning.”

The boys promptly rejected that, and fought against it by championing themselves for the best fighter, but left Yajaira and I to ourselves again.

“Thank you for that, Duchess.”

“What say you?”

“About what?”

“Do you think you’re the best paladin among the troop?”

“That would depend on what you mean.”

“Why do you say? You lead us out of danger. You’re a great swordsman. Maybe the best in the troupe.”

“I’d give that to Kaavi, easy.”

“Second best?”

“Tuff’s pretty good. Great with the spear, too.”

“Hmm, third?”

I started counting the numbers on my hand, “Maybe Ghala or Huy? Then afterwards I’d say Bova. I think I have Apep beat in terms of swordplay.”

Yajaira gave a sort of exasperated laugh.

“What?”

“You are the sixth or seventh best swordsman?” Her laugh turned to a giggle.

“I am,” I said, “I am good in other ways.

“Nimble?”

“I’d have to give that to Huy.”

“Then what puts you ahead? Why are you so impressive in battle?”

I thought about it. What did make me impressive? Was it simply my strategy? Sure, that could get me far but unless I could execute my plan, I was toast. There was something about my abilities that put me ahead, “It’s my magic. That’s the thing I’m best at. I can use my spells effectively.”

“Well, silly,” Yajaira said, “Paladins simply don’t use that much magic. Why didn’t you become a magic user?”

I kicked a rock as we kept walking. I stared down at it and watched it tumble forward. I kept kicking it upward while I thought about what she said, “Well…” Was all I could say.

“Besides, you really don’t seem the type to listen to some god.”

I shrugged my shoulders. Thinking back on the timeline, Ictar offered to help me for free. My parents couldn't afford a magic tutor. Let alone an elven one. And from that, he helped me get into the Junior Paladins.

“Might I suggest wizarding?”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Wizarding.” I said to myself, the rock I was fiddling with skewed to the right, away from the group, “Wizarding,” I repeated.

“My brother goes to Shai Thuul, it’s where the best and the brightest go to learn wizarding.”

“Is it expensive?” I asked, finding a new rock to play with.

“It’s worth it!” Yajaira said, “Tell your parents if this is something you really want.”

Yikes. No price tag. That was never cheap, “I couldn’t go if I wanted to.”

“Don’t do that to yourself, Egen. You’re brilliant. You absolutely could.”

“It’s not that I couldn’t. It’s that I couldn’t afford it.”

“You can’t… afford it?”

I shook my head, not looking up.

“What does your father do?”

I stopped walking when she said that. Then, said, “Well, he’s not a duke, duchess,” I said through gritted teeth.

We arrived at Memphis not long after. The guards instantly recognized Yajaira. Everyone had been out looking for her. They had sent couriers when she didn’t arrive and the duke had hired all sorts of rangers and survivalists to look for us.

The college put all of us up for the night in some guest barracks. We were too tired to eat, opting to fall asleep instead.

I rested on the cot they had given me. This was the closest thing to a bed I’d had in what felt like eternity. As soon as I closed my eyes, I fell asleep. Instead of being greeted with pleasant dreams of returning a hero, I opened my eyes, and found myself in the stone cathedral again. The deep void in the center greeted me again, saying my name.

“Egen.”

I stepped closer when it greeted me, same as last time. This time, I spoke back, “So, are you going to introduce yourself?” I walked up to and stared down the deep well of black. A terrifying familiarity hovering over me. Two red shimmering eyes opened in the darkness, staring up at me. This time, I did not wake up.

“Find me.” was all it said.

I heard wailing permeating the walls of the temple. There was only me and the thing in the void, “Are you… crying?”

It didn’t answer. The sobbing persisted. It was coming from outside of the dream. My attention briefly turned back to the two red eyes as I said, “I Will.”

I then woke up and noticed Kaavi in the bunk next to mine. He was the source of the sobbing. I sat up on my bed and looked at him, his back facing me.

“Kaavi,” I said, “We’re trying to sleep, buddy.”

“I.. I almost killed him.” Kaavi said, “I almost killed Barth. I let my anger get in the way of everything.”

“It’s okay,” I said to Kaavi, “I do it too. All the time.”

“How do you deal with it?”

“I don’t. Most of the time, I’m entirely driven by my emotions. Sometimes I think logically. Now, can we get some sleep?”

Kaavi turned to me and asked, “Will you take back over? Just see us through until we get back to Skorwind. The duchess said we’re getting a big convoy, they’re aware of the chacali. It should be ea-”

“No.”

“Wh-why not?”

“Failure isn’t the opposite of success, Kaavi. Cowardice is. I’ve failed. Hundreds of times. But the reason I was a failure? It’s because I was too afraid to try. I’m not going to let that happen to you, Kaavi. Don’t become comfortable with running away. That would be the real failure. You understand me?”

“Okay.” I could tell he didn’t. But he would when he was older. He turned back facing the wall. His cries subsided to muffles.

“Hey, Egen?”

“Yeah, Kaavi?”

“I don’t think you’re a failure.”

“Thanks, Kaavi. I don’t think I’m a failure anymore either.”

Kaavi drifted off and I was able to get to sleep. Unfortunately no more visit to the stone temple. The bardic college prepared a banquet for us. We sat at a table longer than my house as the chefs plated our bounty. Dates wrapped in meats. Cheeses only this world could offer. Drinks from fruits and roots that swirled in different colors. All of us wanted to wait for the duchess to get there but they informed us she was preparing for her first day of college. So we all dug in. From the first taste, my soul reinflated from its flattened state.

I felt a tap on the shoulder while I stuffed my mouth with bread. I turned to see Porta, giving me her normal studying glare, “The lady would like to see you before you all depart.”

“Won’t she see us all off?”

“She will. But first she’d like to see you.”

I swallowed the bread in my throat and told Porta to lead the way. I followed her to Yajaira’s dorm. The duchess was brushing her hair, getting ready for the day’s events. The first day of school was about to begin and Yajaira was already the talk of the class, having survived a chacali attack.

“How have you found the bardic college?” She asked.

“I haven't really had time to rummage around,” I said, “What about you?”

“They showed me to my room. It’s a little small for my liking but after having slept on the ground floor, it’s left me with little to complain.”

“Of course. I heard the library was nice!” I said, “I’ll have to stop by.”

“Yes,” Yajaria said, “Do that! Check a book out under my name. It’s the least I could do, really.”

I stuck my hands up, “That sounds like a lovely idea.” Then, silence filled the room. Polite chatter was over. I waited patiently for the reason she summoned me.

“So,” Yajaira started, “I wanted to apologize.”

“For what, duchess?” I asked.

“I… am not entirely sure.” She said, “But I noticed at one point during our conversation, you became colder. I tend to put my foot too far in my mouth. I am sorry if I was indelicate in any way.”

“Thank you, Yajaira. I accept your apology.”

I didn’t have much expectation for a young duchess to handle poverty with grace. But I was pleasantly surprised she handled apologies so well.

She nodded her head, then said, “I have to go to my first class. I shall see you off, but first, pick out a book. The Bardic has a wonderful library and a lot of books on magic.”

I did as she insisted. I made my way over to the library. It was stunning. There were rows and rows of books and scrolls. And spiral staircases that flowed up to a second story where more books and scrolls awaited me. This was much nicer than the one down in the bronze ring. I perused. Obviously most of it pertained to bardary. Music theory, Instruments, Magical theory. Then, some of sections even surprised me. They dealt with combat. Nature. It turned out there were more types of bards than just Barth. I looked for a section in elvish. I found a very small one in the back. It was only a few rows in a section, but I skimmed through them. Three caught my eye:

* Goblinology: The Path of Fire by Dr. Groktor, translated by Folas Kris;

* The Way Of The Elven Bard, by Eladrialle Felixus;

* and Where Things Most Foul Slumber: A Monster Manual For The Nosy Elf, by R.A. Crookshank, translated by Folas Kris.

I checked one out. While I was in line, Tuf came to get me. The convoy was ready. We all gathered around. The convoy was a similar setup as before. It was comprised of a troupe of battlemasters and cavalry. With the addition of archers perched on top of the carriage. Its roof was surrounded by a wooden parapet to provide the archers with some protection. Yajaria, Porta, and even Barth were waiting for us. Yajaira was a duchess, it was improper to hug her. She merely thanked everyone for their help. She graciously accepted their bows and thanked everyone for their bravery. I approached Yajaira. I bowed to her.

“Did you pick out a book?” She asked.

I showed it to her, “When I’m done, how should I return it?” I asked.

“Personally,” Yajaira said, “I want you to visit me soon, young half-elf.” Then she reached out and hugged me.

“My lady,” Barth pulled her off of me, “It’s most improper. He is, after all, a mere paladin.”

“We still got a problem, Barth?”

Barth sort of groaned, like he was thinking about it, then said, “Not… at the moment. But tomorrow is a new day.”

I stuck up a fist and said, “Knock’em.” He dutifully accepted.

“Thank you. For saving me earlier. I told Kaavi I forgave him. I don’t think he believed me. Send him my best. Make sure he’s okay, Egen.”

I told him I would and moved onto the final one. Porta. While Yajaira was busy with the other kids, she merely said to me, “I thank you for your kindness, Egen. Although, it wasn’t all kindness, was it?”

“You saw it just as I did, Porta,” I said, “Kaavi took over halfway through. If there’s anyone to thank it’s him. I’m sure Yajaira will be eternally grateful… to Kaavi.”

“Yes. You are quite proud of yourself. I want you to know that many will try to use my master and I will always have your best interest at heart. So don’t think you-”

“Oh come here, you.” I reached out and pulled her in for a hug, surprising her. After a little resistance, she hugged back. Then whispered in my ear, “Do not let your ambitions grow too wild, Egen.”

Then I whispered back, “You couldn’t stop me if you had an army. How about you try letting your ambitions grow a little more?”

Then I released her, and we all got in the carriage.

“Now it’s our turn to be in the carriage, huh?” I said beaming.

Ynec yipped and said, “Never sat down on wood bench before.”

“Get used to it, Ynec,” I said, “Stick with me and you’ll be living the highlife!”

We all crowded in, clearly the space too small for ten bodies even if the bodies were small. Ynec yipped and we were off. The first two days were easy riding. It was like things were back to normal in our camp, we were joking, fed, well rested. It was as we approached the valley, that we all went silent. It was only a day away from our home and we recognized as we approached that this was the valley we had battled at. Ynec spoke up and said, “You smell it? It reached my nose on the wind.”

“What do you smell, Ynec?”

He kept looking onward out the window, gazing at the horizon where the smell came from downwind, so far that only a hyper-trained canine nose could possibly pick it up.

“Father.”