It wasn’t long before the party Kammon and Ezo were waiting on stopped their horses before them. There were four War-Sworn among them and two men who sat with their red cloaks blowing behind them. Someone was subtly adding a breeze to make them look more impressive. It was an excellent show, but it was entirely wasted on Ezo, who had no desire or patience for theatrics.

Kammon stood with his arms over his chest, his scowl firmly in place. He looked far more like the surly traveler he’d first met than ever. Ezo just stared between them, waiting.

“Kammon Harbinger, you are called to the University at Dezra to answer for complaints of misdeeds and misconduct.”

“Who is laying those claims?” Kammon asked.

“Come to the University to face the charge, and you’ll find out. We have the notice to bring you in, but we are not your jury of peers.”

Ezo let out a snort at that. They certainly weren’t. He could feel it in each of them; their magic strength didn’t compare to Kammon’s. They knew how overpowered they were, and Ezo saw it in how two of the War-Sworn fidgeted in their seats.

“Ezo, of Fairhills. You are called as well.”

“Ezo, not of Fairhills. Fairhills was destroyed, though I understand you must be confused. If you knew it was destroyed, you would have sent the help we asked for, right?”

One of the cloaked men turned red in the face, and the other scowled at Ezo. He felt them move the air around him, but whatever they directed at him was cut short by a wall between them before Ezo could act. Kammon looked at Ezo before glancing pointedly at Ezo’s right hand.

Ezo let out a deep breath, and Kammon waited until Ezo nodded before he turned back around to face the others. “Who is sitting in Dezra?” Kammon asked.

“You’ve been called by Imperator Zera.”

There was little outward sign of emotion on Kammon’s part, but Ezo knew him well enough to see that he was happy about that.

“I accept the call,” Kammon said, “but Ezo is not of the Imperium. He has no oath to fulfill and is not required to come at your call.”

“He claims the title elementalist, doesn’t he?” One of the red cloaks asked. “Then he has to answer for that title, whether he took an oath or not.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Ezo was surprised to feel a buildup of power in Kammon, but before he did anything, Ember dashed out behind the men, brushing her wings over the backsides of two of their horses. The animals reared at the touch, and the four War-Sworn had to keep their mounts from dancing away from the path Ember had just taken.

Kammon seemed to have calmed down with that show, but Ezo had no clue what had upset him. It wasn’t a great sign that they were both worked up already. “I follow where Kammon goes,” Ezo answered before Kammon could speak for him. “If he is called, I’ll come to Dezra. Though you might do well to remember that I tried to go to the University before, to seek your guidance. Your elementalists turned me away.”

“Return to your seats and tell them we come,” Kammon said.

“We will escort you-”

“He is the Calamity,” one of the War-Sworn finally spoke. “If he says he will come, he will. We have no need to escort him.”

The soldiers turned their horses back to the trail and began riding past them toward Dezra. One man of the Imperium looked towards their retreating backs and, for an uncomfortable moment, seemed like they might say something more. Instead, he booted his horse harder than necessary and took off after the War-Sworn. The last looked at Kammon and Ezo. “We’ll expect you by day’s end tomorrow.”

“The day after,” Kammon corrected. “We have had hard miles. We’ll see you in Dezra in two days.”

The man shot off, grumbling under his breath, but Ezo didn’t look away until all six were out of sight. “What is that about?” he demanded.

“I can’t say for sure, but I would guess Lestan is behind it.”

“Why did you agree so easily, then? What if they try to hold us like he did?”

Kammon gave him a small smile at that. “Then we tear down their walls too, but they won’t try, Ezo. I think we’re being called to ensure we have a fair hearing.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because it was Imperator Zera. She was a mentor to me at the University. And she was a friend of Jacob’s. If we are going to get fair treatment in Dezra, it’s with her.”

“I don’t like this at all,” Ezo complained.

“I don’t either.”

“Is that why Ember showed up again?”

Kammon rolled his eyes. “She showed up to keep me from losing my temper.” Ezo stared at him and waited for him to say more. After a second, Kammon looked away. “I don’t like the way he was threatening you. He was barely strong enough in his magic to gain the red robes, but he thought he could force your hand?”

Ezo smiled widely at the confession. “Why, Kammon, the great fearsome Calamity, I think you might like me!”

Kammon swatted at him, and Ezo dodged, laughing as he did so. Nothing about the situation was funny, but something about Kammon, this feared soldier and man of the most uptight, rigid control, who lost all sense of it when Ezo was involved, tickled him anyway. He dodged around Rile, but his foot caught on a root, and he went flying.

Kammon wrestled him to the ground from there. Ezo would protest because he knew Kammon shifted the earth under his feet, but Kammon kissed him instead, and Ezo was happier about that than he had any right to be.

When Kammon pulled back and rested his lips against Ezo’s forehead, Ezo sighed. “You don’t get to say goodbye,” Ezo reminded him. “You don’t get to agree to whatever they ask. Where you go, I go. Remember that.”

“Yeah, I remember,” Kammon said. “Works both ways now, though. If you agree to something, I follow you too.”

“That’s probably the stupidest thing you’ve ever agreed to do.”

“Tell me about it,” Kammon agreed.

“Hey!” But Kammon kissed him again, and Ezo let him win that argument. For the moment, anyway.