When the noise stopped I looked up, there was a 3 foot wide hole in the ceiling, smoldering at the edges, the mayor had hold of the magistrate by his wrist and collar holding one arm pointed up in the air. “Cease this madness!” he roared directly into the magistrates face, “don’t you gather another manna for another spell! Not in the bounds of MY village! You may be a magistrate, cousin, but this is MY village! While here YOU ARE accountable to ME!” The mayor was practically frothing at the mouth, face red and veins bulging from his forehead, spit flying from his mouth and landing on the magistrate. He violently shook the magistrate to punctuate every sentence. “Look at him! Use those damn silver eyes of yours! Whatever he is, the boy was ready to shield her instead of attack us or run.”
“Alright! Alrig-“ the magistrate tried to get out between being shook. “I say! Just stop shaking me!” The magistrate managed to get out in-between shaking and the mayor slowly let him go.
The mayor listened his grip for a moment, then let go and stepped back while the magistrate made a show of rearranging his clothes then rubbed his wrist where the mayor had had gripped it and shot him a glare. He then sat down on the edge of the desk, regarding both myself and the mayor. “he doesn’t even have a class yet and he didn’t even flinch at a sleep skill, you think a monster like that should be loose in the kingdom?”
“He is a good lad, from a good family. He is no monster.” The mayor said through clenched teeth, visibly trying to calm himself.
“Men can be made to be monsters, once they have a taste for it.” The magistrate said.
“Are you a monster yet then?” The mayor spat back. “Am I?”
Still holding Madeline I lowered her into a chair and checked her breathing, she appeared to be peacefully asleep. The last 30 minutes had been a whirlwind of events, but I believed I had the gist of situation. I retrieved the tablet she had dropped, I could feel my mind expand into the page size shallow grey rectangle slightly and I willed the class selection screen onto it. I stood and faced the magistrate, this was not the first or even the hundredth time I had someone try to kill me, the magical aspect of it was new, but at least two people in the room didn’t want me dead and nobody had holes in them yet, so I had been in worse spots. The majority of those times I was too young to appreciate that I could have easily been killed, and for a while I truly felt I was immortal, currently I knew at least my soul was, so it made it a easier to keep calm. I could see a few ways out of the situation, but these were direct men so a direct approach would be best.
I handed the tablet to the magistrate and he actually gaped at it, or at least as close to a gape as his time of a stern man was capable of, his eyes widening and his jaw going slightly slack before snapping shut with a click. “I…” for the first time in my memory of him he seem ruffled, “twelve pages like this?”
The mayor leaned over the reception desk to read and coughed.
Drawing on all the experience I had presenting reports, pitching projects, and conflict resolutions I put out everything out of my head and just started speaking. “Yesterday, after I was healed, I woke with the memories of another life. I believe they were in another world, 46 years of memories from that life, and 18 from this one.” Pausing long enough to let that sink in but not long enough to let them respond, I continued. “Those class options come from things I have done in that life as well as this one. In that world, we have laws against making children into soldiers. Some believe those laws are written to protect children from the horrors of war, but some like me know the truth. Those laws were written by men who had to face those children in battle, they had to see the atrocities carried out by children who were told they would be heroes. The authors of those laws had faced the choice of killing children or letting child soldiers slaughter innocents.”
“This!” I gestured around the room at the trophies and prizes, “this peaceful village is everything... In my past life this type of place only exists in stories! Here I am, part of place beyond my dreams! My dreams are not the chance for adventure, might or magic, but the chance for a peaceful life.” I grabbed the mayors mace from where he had dropped it and he actually gaped when I handed it to him. “I don’t really understand why I can remember one other life, but I’m glad for it if only I could appreciate this one.” I turned away and got on my knees, head bent forward, hands resting on my things. “if I am a threat to the people I love, to my friends and family, then end me, I will not resist.” This wasn’t a ploy or a feint, I really would let then kill me, for the same reason I threw myself over Madeline, I didn’t want to see any more people I cared about harmed. I found myself crying again, just a few silent tears dropping onto the mayors floorboards, not out of sadness, but because of the idea that I would hurt the people I care about. I really would miss this place.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
I heard a scuffle behind me a hushed tones, I closed my eyes and tried to keep my breathing steady. Neither of them seemed cruel men, so hopefully they would be quick about it.
“Ok, I’ll go first but you use your skill to make sure.” I heard the mayor try to whisper behind me, this is it. I take a deep breath in, savoring the last moment in my village. “What class would you have chosen?” the mayor asked. I know what he is doing, distracting me in my last moment so I don’t die afraid. I can’t decide if that’s kind of him.
“I would have chosen [Miller].”
“WHAT!?” Both men yell at the same time.
“That’s bullshit!” the mayor shouted and the same time the magistrate yelled another expletive.
“No! My skill says no deception. Get your hands off me. Its my turn, cousin, damnit-oof”
Shocked I glanced back at them then did a double take, both men had one hand on the system display tablet while trying to push the other away. They struggled for a few moments before the magistrate finally won and wrenched the tablet away. “You would truly give up all these other options for a life as a miller? Why?”
“Yes, it’s the life I always wanted. A peaceful life in this valley, I have lived here for 18 years and I knew nothing else of the wider world besides stories. Now that I know another life, a life where I traveled a world, had adventures and ordeals, I know that the life of a miller here would be a good life.”
They both looked at each other then me, the magistrate laughed, the mayor punched him in the arm. “he has a point cousin, many adventurers and soldiers retire to places like this.”
The magistrate glared at the mayor, then back at me. “That may be the case, but hiding in a sheep shit village isn’t an option for him. We have something rare here, a man with S rank potential at level zero that actually has morals. No, the world will not…”
Whatever he was about to say was cut off by a loud banging at the door. “I’m afraid your light show has caused some distress among the good folk of this village.” The mayor strode towards the door, but stopped next to me, “Oh get up off the floor would you? You’re in no danger, you’ve passed his tests more soundly than anyone ever has.” He reached down to offer me a hand, “and it seems you’re a better man than either of us. Lets keep these events to ourselves so there isn’t a riot, let me speak to the people.”
The mayor opened the door to the family heads of the village gathered aground, my father at the center. Susan Baker, the matriarch of the Baker family, stood at the front holding a rolling pin in her hand, “What exactly is going on in there? First you take two of the villages finest young people into a closed meeting then you start blowing holes in your office that we pay for!”
“Misses Baker, my cousin and I were conducting our duties, all of you know well how grave they can be at times. The hole was us just having a bit of a family spat. You know how cousins can be, tempers flair over the smallest things, but none have come to harm, and what are a few roof beams between family, eh?” It was a small village, many of the gathered family heads were actually related, more than a few glanced at each other remembering fist fights over everything from fence repairs to lost tools.
While the mayor drew on every ounce of his charm to placate the crowd, the magistrate had found his way by my side and threw his arm around my shoulders, “act natural, the mayor and I agree that you arent a threat, and I hope you can forgive me doing my duty. But the less the people of this village know the better of they will all be after you leave. You understand you cant stay, now? Your potential makes you an asset to the kingdom, one that cannot stay hidden in a remote village.” I nodded, and I did understand, but I didn’t like it. “Good lad, now just play along for a while.” He steered me out of the door where my father lunged past the mayor and wrapped me up in a hug.
“My boy!” he yelled, “I thought something terrible had happened, thanks the pantheon you’re well and not replaced by some monster!”
The magistrate chuckled, then directed towards me father he said “So did we, to be honest. I’m rarely glad to be wrong, but in this case it is a relief. Your son does you credit, he is quite the talent, and we must speak later.” Then to the rest of the crowd he announced, “The leaders of Eagleton Village have not been lax in their responsibilities. His confusion was due to a head injury he had just yesterday. Your healer has great skill to have him back on his feet the next day! She was dead tired on her feet when we consulted with her, exhausted and sick with worry, I’m afraid she quite drained herself from checking him over again for us.”
“We apologize for the unnecessary worry we caused, but procedure is procedure and we had to be sure, you all know why.” At the mayor’s words the family heads all grumbled agreements and or nodded except my father who still held me in a bear hug. “My cousin and I were just about to take Mattie out for a drink after the ordeal we put him through. I’m of the mind for a drink myself, the first round is on me at The Local!” That got a few positive murmurs from the group, but he wasn’t done yet, “and I’m sure he my cousin will match my coin round for round!” That got a round of cheers, “come then, to the pub! I’ll have Allen break out my private stock of mead and maybe that’ll loosen up old Silver Eyes here enough that we can hear the firsthand account of the naked mage holding the Pass of Klaxor.” That drew a few laughs from the gathering and they turned to make their way to the pub.
That was met with some laughter as the group moved off towards The Local pub. The magistrate was still standing next to me and I heard him mumble something about taking a man’s dignity being worse than taking a man’s coin.
Susan Baker and a few others clapped me on the shoulder or patted me on the back, letting me know they were glad I was right, and I told them I was thankful for the rescue. My dad walked me all the way to the pub with his arm around my shoulders.