“Where is the boy, Avenell?”

Sir Perry crunched down on a hand full of bacon, scattering black and brown crumbs onto the table. Avenell believed Sir Perry took the term “mess hall” a bit too literally.

“He refused the tutor this morning, as he has all week, Sir Perry.”

Sir Perry sat with Avenell, Ingrid and an older woman at a table that was situated at the head of the mess hall, facing out towards the other guests. There stood an empty chair on Sir Perry’s right side. Three other long tables filled the rest of the hall, each flanked with long wooden benches. The hall was at about half capacity, with most of the guests sitting in the space closest to Sir Perry and the dais.

Perry shook his head as he reached for a small tin cup.

“That boy is a pain in my— AGH!” Sir Perry spat out the dark brown liquid onto the table. A roar of laughter erupted from the Starspwan members seated below.

Sir Perry slammed down the cup and shouted out into the hall.

“Hugo! What in the rank hells did you give me!?”

A burly man with tan skin, hazel eyes and curly dark brown hair called back to Perry.

“It’s called coffee!”

The table of men around him all burst into laughter and held up their cups.

“Bah.” Perry slid the cup away with the back of his hand.

Avenell waved quickly to a servant boy near the table who ran over as fast as possible.

“Yes, Master Avenell?”

Avenell did not wait to respond before he leaned over and snatched a cloth from the boy’s arm.

“Sir Perry,” Avenell said as he handed him the cloth.

“Thank you, Avenell.” Perry took the cloth and wiped the coffee from his face and clothes.

“Sir Perry,” Ingrid said, “It is quite good if you add milk.” She then took a small sip from her tin cup. “Also, I don’t think you’re supposed to drink so much at once.”

“If you like it,” he grumbled, “You can have it, Ingrid.” Perry then thought a moment. “Perhaps I should punish Ellis by making him drink this bean-water swill.”

“Shall I have the kitchen staff prepare more, then?” Avenell asked with a smile.

“No…” Perry answered with a sigh. “It’s not worth the cost.”

Sir Perry leaned back in his chair and looked at the rafters that spanned the ceiling of the great hall. Only a few years ago, this was the place where his troops had gathered to regroup after battle, where they held their war meetings. Now, it was filled with smiling faces, warm food and a feeling of ease.

Suddenly, a sharp pain ran through Perry’s right shoulder. He winced slightly and shrugged to the side. Perry lifted his arm and started to move his shoulder back and forth in order to loosen up his muscles.

“Is it bothering you again?” Avenell asked.

Perry patted his arm.

“The wound has been acting up for the last few weeks, but it is nothing I cannot handle.”

Ingrid leaned over and addressed Perry.

“I told you not to do so much heavy lifting. That’s why we have the others.”

“I’m perfectly fine, Ingrid, thank you,” Perry shot back. “I just need some of that medicated balm and I will be good as new.”

“Ah, about that, Sir…” Avenell tapped his chin. “You took the last of it with you to Gate City.”

“Well, send word to Falbrin at the Royal Palace. He should have no trouble whipping up some more.”

“Should we not get our physician on hand to prepare it?”

“No, no. Falbrin is the only one who gets it right. Besides, he owes me anyway.” Perry smiled and brought his mug to his lips. He took a sip of water and stared down at his plate, lost in thought. Finally, Perry slid back his chair and stood to leave.

“Sir Perry? Are you full already?” Avenell asked, looking at the unfinished food on his plate.

“I am going to speak with my nephew.”

Perry left the mess hall behind and walked the long hallway to the main staircase.

The ground floor of the manor was by far the largest, with the second floor originally having only a few rooms meant to house generals and other important visitors. Since the end of the war, the second floor had been converted into bedrooms for Sir Perry, Ellis, Avenell and other high-ranking staff, as well as space for the library. They had toyed with the idea of renovating more of the second floor, but it ended up being cheaper to build separate lodging on the grounds to providing housing for the rest of the Starspawn. Ellis’ room had been moved right next to the library in a failed attempt to spark in him a desire for education.

Perry reached the landing and wound his way up the stairs to the second floor.

“Ellis?” Perry called out as he approached Ellis’ bedroom. The door was shut, and he heard no noises from inside. He then brought his knuckles to the door and knocked several times. “Ellis, you’re missing breakfast again.” There was no response. Perry grew angrier. “Making me knock in my own home…” he mumbled to himself.

With that, he shoved open the door and walked into the room.

“Ellis!”

But the room was empty. The curtains were drawn back, the bed was made, and the room was relatively tidy. Perry heard footsteps behind him as the manservant came into the room carrying an armful of folded clothes.

“Is there anything you need, Lord Mannigold?”

“Where is Ellis, Hector?”

“He was walking outside the manor when last I saw him.”

Sir Perry thanked Hector and left the room, his frustration building.

Perry wandered around the grounds for almost half an hour before coming to the southwestern side of the manor. This area was located just outside the great hall, where some of the animal pens sat a few hundred feet from the entrance to the kitchen. Smaller chicken coops and goat pens had been hastily built in the months since the Starspawn’s expansion. Meanwhile, the rest of the herding beasts and farm animals remained in the field lands. There was the usual commotion: servants moving back and forth carrying feed and water, scooping manure from the pens and carrying in the animals that were being prepped for dinner. Sir Perry watched as a few goats were brought over to the slaughterhouse just outside of the kitchen. He was wondering what delicious stew the chef had in mind when he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

There was an outside tent that covered an area where the animals were to be killed and exsanguinated before they were skinned and cut up for the kitchen staff. Sir Perry watched as one of the staff tied together the hind legs of the goat and held it in place. He then saw Ellis bring the knife to its throat and cut, stepping back to let the blood drain.

“Ellis! What do you think you’re doing!?” Perry shouted as he jogged over to the tent.

“Lord Mannigold!” the servant said, bowing his head as Perry came towards them. “Ellis has been very helpful these past few days, he is learning well.”

Perry shot Ellis a look, but Ellis said nothing. Instead, he sank the knife into the hunk of wood they were operating on and turned to the butcher.

“Thanks for letting me help, George,” he mumbled.

Perry stood there expecting an explanation.

Ellis avoided eye contact and started walking away.

Perry rolled his eyes.

“Please, George, if he comes here again, do not encourage him.”

George looked between the two of them and nodded.

“As you wish, my lord.”

Ellis picked up his pace and headed down the dirt path away from the kitchen with Perry walking after him.

“Where are you going?” Perry called out to him.

“To the training grounds,” Ellis said without turning around.

Perry jogged up to him and planted himself right in front of Ellis.

“Have you lost your manners? Or did you never have them to begin with?”

“My apologies, Lord Mannigold,” Ellis said with a flat voice before bowing his head.

“Enough of this nonsense, Ellis. You can protest all you want, but I have had enough. Avenell has curated a fine selection of educational material for you and has even found several tutors willing to put up with you. Yet you decide to ignore his efforts and spend your time doing what? Slaughtering goats?”

“I don’t care about Avenell’s stupid teachings.”

Perry looked at him closely.

“How many times have you come out here to help George?” he asked.

“A few…”

“When did you become so comfortable with death?”

Perry knew Ellis well, even if Ellis himself wouldn’t admit it. The boy had a good heart and was eager to try new things, but he lacked experience. When he was younger, Ellis would always avoid going near the kitchen during this time. He hated the smell of blood and he couldn’t stand watching the staff kill the animals. But now here he was not only was he watching, but he was the one doing the killing. This was not the same boy he had left a few months ago.

“Ellis…”

“Does Avenell have plans for me, or can I go to the training grounds?”

Perry held himself back, biting down his urge to yell.

“Currently, there is no lesson planned for this afternoon.”

“Then can I go?”

Perry folded his arms.

“There is no need for you to be in the training grounds.”

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Ellis scrunched up his face in anger. He then spun around and headed back towards the manor. Perry remained unmoving as he watched Ellis leave. Then, he let the tension go from his body and hung his head.

“What am I going to do with you…?”

2

“Am I in trouble, Lord Mannigold?”

Marybeth stood awkwardly in front of Sir Perry with her hands held behind her back.

Perry had called for her to meet with him by the main gate of the compound. They were in a small building situated at the foot of the stone watchtower. The watchtower itself was built as a part of the wall that enclosed the grounds and served to protect it from invading forces. Perry did not want Ellis to know he had brought her. He felt silly trying to hide things from his own nephew; but still, he was concerned.

“No, Mary you are not in trouble. I just wanted to ask a few things.”

“Oh…” she said, loosening up a bit.

Perry surveyed her. He saw a few bruises developing on her hands, which themselves were more calloused than he remembered them. Sir Perry’s curiosity got the better of him.

“Have you been training with that man?”

Mary had a look of guilt.

“Not if it displeases you, my lord.”

He sighed.

“Mary, my only qualm is with Ellis. I have no need to impose upon you. So long as you are given permission from Gertrude, you may do as you please.”

She seemed relieved by this answer.

Mary was, in some ways, like a niece to him, considering her closeness with Ellis. But ultimately, it would not look good to give such special treatment to only one particular servant girl. Of course, having her trained in combat could be of benefit to the Starspawn in the future. His real concern, however, was that if Ellis knew she was training, he would feel compelled to defy him and seek out Telhari.

“Was…that all you needed to ask, my lord?”

“No. Mary, I would like you to tell me what happened in Malendar’s Edge.”

Her face became pale.

“I…I think that Ellis might be better able to remember…”

“I have asked him and he has told me his rendition of the story. However, I believe that he is lying to me.” Perry made full eye contact with Mary and held her gaze. “I trust that you will be more truthful than my nephew.”

Mary reluctantly began by telling Sir Perry about meeting Telhari in the Lonely Song. She told him how Ellis was angry at Telhari for dismissing them, and so they hatched their plan to go to Edge to try and beat Telhari and claim the reward before him. On the one hand, Perry was furious with Telhari for insulting his nephew, but on the other hand, he understood exactly why he had said those things to them. Mary continued, telling him about their journey to Edge, talking with the city folk, heading to the mountain and entering the cave.

“You just walked into its lair!?”

Perry wasn’t sure whether he should admire their dumb bravery or marvel at their profound ignorance.

Mary could think of no defense.

“Well…yes.”

Undoubtedly, she felt the idea was stupid as well, but Perry knew that she had a hard time saying no to Ellis.

“What happened inside the cave, Mary?”

“Telhari was inside by the time we had arrived. He was fighting the basilisk already, but he was wounded. We tried to help him, but the creature was too big for us to handle.” Her voice became strained as she continued her story. “Telhari told us to run, but…”

“Go on, Mary” Perry said, encouraging her with a soft voice.

“Ellis was caught by the poison. So was Telhari…”

Perry’s eyes narrowed.

“What poison?”

“The basilisk’s. The poison vapor that it releases will paralyze you. Ellis didn’t know and in seconds he was paralyzed and couldn’t run.”

“How did you escape?” Perry asked with genuine intrigue.

“Telhari told me to run, and to leave them both…but I just couldn’t do it.” She bit back tears. “Then, somehow, Telhari was able to move again, I don’t know what he did. He grabbed Ellis and we made a run for it. We almost made it to the outside of the cave when Telhari turned back to fight it one on one. He…” She stopped herself, unsure of how Sir Perry would respond.

“He used magic?” Perry offered.

She nodded.

“Some sorta spell. It came from a beautiful song, and it turned the whole thing into ice. Froze it dead.”

Perry thought to himself.

“Telhari had said that he owed you both for saving him?”

“He was unconscious after the ice spell. He looked really sick. After Ellis recovered from the poison, we took Telhari out of the cave and lit a fire to keep him warm. It was scary for a bit, but eventually he got better.”

Perry laughed to himself at the thought but stopped short when he saw Mary’s disapproving stare.

“And then you collected the reward from Lord Thistletwat, correct?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Was there anything else?”

Mary didn’t move, nor did she speak, but Perry could feel there was a tension in her. She was trying terribly to hide something from him, which was unusual for her. Perry knew that Mary would only try so desperately to hide something if it was important to Ellis. The only thing more important to Mary than helping Ellis was Ellis himself.

“I am worried Marybeth,” Perry started, “Ever since I came back, Ellis has been different.” He watched her face grow more worrisome as he spoke. “He is behaving strangely…and I think that something happened to him in Edge that changed him.” Mary’s defenses were cracking. She was worried about Ellis too, and soon that worry would overtake her.

“He…”

“He what, Mary?”

Mary put her hand over her mouth and turned away. Perry saw a shiver run down her back. She was crying. He was tempted to console her, but he needed to know what happened to Ellis.

“Mary, it’s alright. You can tell me what happened.”

Wiping her eyes, she turned around to face Sir Perry once again.

“There was a man…a doctor named Egurd.”

“What did this man do?”

“He…he was murdering children. Experimenting on ‘em, and then he fed ‘em to the basilisk when he was done.”

Perry was so shocked that a wave of disgust ran through him.

“We caught him in his basement, trying to escape. Telhari killed the guards, but Ellis jumped down to stop Egurd from getting away. Egurd was going on and on about his experiments…he said he couldn’t be killed…” She caught her breath. “He started coming for Telhari…and that’s when Ellis charged him.”

“Ellis charged him?”

Mary nodded.

“He came at him with his sword and…it went right through him.”

That explained it.

Ellis had killed a man in cold blood.

“I see. So, Ellis killed that man Egurd?”

“It wasn’t his fault!”

Perry looked surprised at Mary.

“It was an accident! He didn’t know what he was doing!”

Perry stood up from his chair and motioned for her to relax.

“Mary, people in this world die. How many men do you think that Telhari has killed?”

“I saw his face after, my lord. He was scared, like he couldn’t believe he’d done it.”

“I am not mad at him, Mary. You do not need to defend him.”

“You’re not upset?”

“There are plenty of things that Ellis has done wrong, but in this instance, I believe he did well.”

“Did…well?”

“Egurd sounded like a terrible man who needed to be killed for the good of the people. Ellis has done a great service to Malendar’s Edge. No doubt Lord Thistletwat feels the same.”

“But I thought…I thought you were worried about him?” she asked.

Perry headed toward the door.

“I was concerned, but now that I know what happened, I am confident he will be alright.”

“But how can you be sure?”

“Ellis has learned a valuable lesson. The toughest lesson there is. Now, he can focus the rest of his time on his studies.”

“But—”

Mary’s call went unheard as Sir Perry exited the building.

Suddenly, Avenell spoke from the corner of the room, having been silently observing the entire time.

“Thank you, Mary.”

“I can go now?”

She posed it as a question, but the anger in her eyes told a different story.

“Yes. You are dismissed.”

She said nothing to him as she stormed out of the building. Avenell watched her stomp down the road for a few yards before breaking into a run and exiting through the main gate.

3

Ellis sat at his desk and stared out the window into the yard below.

“You can say something if you want, Ellis,” Perry told him.

“What do you want me to say?”

“Whatever is on your mind.” Perry put his hands on his hips and paced back and forth. “I know what happened, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

“I’m not ashamed!”

“Then what is it!?” Perry yelled back. “You just sit up here all day and do nothing! Tell me what is wrong!?”

Ellis flinched and kept his eyes fixed on the papers scattered over the desk below.

Perry looked over Ellis’ shoulder and studied the papers as well. Strange markings were written onto them with clumsy penmanship. He thought at first that Ellis might have been practicing his letter writing, but Perry couldn’t recognize any of the markings.

“What are these?” Perry asked as he walked over to the desk.

Ellis tried to gather them up, but Perry reached down and grabbed a few before he could hide them.

“Ellis, what are these?”

“I don’t know…” he started, “I saw them on the papers…in the doctor’s lab. I was trying to draw what I could remember.”

Perry crumbled them up.

“Hey!”

“Egurd was playing with fell forces, Ellis. No good will come of this. That man is dead. Take pride in the fact that, thanks to you, there is one less villain in the world.”

Ellis grew quiet.

Perry leaned on Ellis’ desk and put a hand on his shoulder.

“You should take pride in it. You know you’ve done a good thing, right?”

“Then why doesn’t it feel good?”

Perry laughed.

“Because it’s your first kill. The first time you do anything, it is difficult and uncomfortable. But if you keep doing it, you get better, and it gets easier.” Perry raised an eyebrow. “Is that why you were bothering George so much?”

Ellis didn’t look at him.

“How many goats did you have to kill before you felt good about it?” Perry asked.

“It never felt good…it just…stopped being bad.”

“Well, you’re slaughtering a goat, Ellis, not bedding a woman,” Perry chuckled to himself.

“Did it ever stop being bad for you?”

Perry’s laughter stopped.

“You’ll have to be more specific.”

Ellis turned to look at him.

“How many did you have to kill on the battlefield before it stopped feeling bad?”

Perry stood up from the desk.

He was not about to be lectured by a boy.

“On the battlefield you do not have the luxury to worry about your feelings. However bad you may or may not feel, watching your men die will always be worse.” He leaned down to face Ellis. “And getting gutted yourself will always be worse than that.” Perry stood up once again and folded his arms. “Besides, when you fight for a greater cause than yourself, all that other nonsense fades away.”

“Egurd said that he didn’t care about killing those kids because it was for a greater cause…”

Perry was growing angrier.

“Egurd was an insane man who was obsessed with the occult. The same obsession that drove the Omnir’s to ruin.”

“Then why do you sound like him?”

Perry’s hand cut through the air before either of them could take in what happened. Ellis grabbed the side of his face, which was now growing red and burned with pain. Perry, surprised by the depth of his own anger, drew back his hand. Ellis said nothing more and continued looking down at the desk, a small tear welling up in the corner of his eye.

Perry readjusted himself and stood once again by Ellis’ side.

“Do you understand how difficult you’re being?” Perry asked him, finally. “I am trying to give you a real future. So that you can be more than just a farmhand or a foot soldier.”

“Like my dad?”

Perry caught a lump in his throat.

“Your father was one the strongest men that I have ever met. But even he knew that there is only so much one can do without the proper status. He knew I could give you a better life than he could. And I honor him every day by trying to give you that life.” Perry tried to rest his hand on Ellis shoulder, but he shrugged it off. Insulted, Perry backed away and scowled. “But you seem keen to throw it all away!”

Perry, feeling himself growing hot with anger again, turned away from Ellis and headed toward the door. “You should consider becoming a state worker or a governor, seeing as you have a knack for pissing people off.”

“Uncle Perry!” Ellis suddenly called to him, pleading as he stood up from the desk. “I know you don’t approve, but I want to train with Telhari and Mary.”

Perry stopped at the door and looked back at him. Ellis was just over sixteen now, and though he was still young, he was undoubtedly becoming a man. Perry even caught a glimpse of his father in him, the shape of his eyes and nose, and that determined stare. Perry had seen that look countless times: when Ellis’ father was training with the other men in their company; when the two sparred with one another; when they were on the battlefield surrounded by enemy combatants. Perry had seen nearly that exact face when Ellis’ father lay dying in his arms and begged him to look after his son.

“Ellis…”

“Please, uncle Perry, if you’ll let me, I promise to listen to Avenell’s tutors and do my duty as your heir.”

Perry tried to find a weakness in him. Waiting for some crack in the armor, a hint of doubt or uncertainty. But Ellis stood there, calm and sturdy, with no such hint of doubt.

Finally, Perry sighed as he leaned himself against the door frame.

“What am I going to do with you…?”