Chapter 4: Young Hearts Tested
Asha struggled to breathe as she bounced on the saddle of the horse. Her stomach occasionally landed hard on the pommel and she groaned, the pain in her stomach mixing with the pain of her hastily bandaged arm. She could no longer see Wulfin, only the ground passing swiftly below.
They were now riding up the rocky path of the solitary mountain in the southern forest, toward the entrance of Shriekwind Bastion. She could barely make out one of its towers if she craned her neck. A horn blast sounded, notifying those within of the approach of the party.
The horses pulled up on a large rocky outcrop and the double doors opened with a soft clanking. The dragon priest Rukil emerged with his guard and Oran close behind. They fanned out and Rukil bowed low. “Lord Morokei, it is a pleasure to have you here.”
Asha felt her blood run cold. She had heard that name but only in the whispers of travelers. “Lord Rukil,” said Morokei, the greatest and most powerful of the dragon priests. “Your borders and subjects are in disarray.”
Rukil lifted his head, puzzled. “My lord?” He spotted Asha and Wulfin and stood tall. “What has happened? Guards, seize them.”
The guard moved forward and dragged Asha and Wulfin from the horses, holding them tight. Morokei dismounted, brushing his cloak in a flourish, and walked toward Rukil. His dragon-headed staff clicked ominously in the silence on the stones and Rukil’s stance shifted to a half bow. His face betrayed his nervousness and he stammered, “My lord?”
“I arrive in your hold to look for recruits and survey your holdings but find Reachmen raiders, crawling all over your forest. These two were fighting them and one was using magic.”
Rukil glared at Asha and Wulfin. “Believe me, my lord, if I had known they would never have been allowed to-”
“Your hold is all but overrun, Rukil,” said Morokei. “If I have to come and deal with raiders, then perhaps your position should pass to another. One more capable.”
Rukil shook and bowed, leaning heavily on his bronze dragon staff. “My lord, I will do whatever it takes to rectify this error. I will send out my hunters and warriors to kill the Reachmen. I will also punish these lawbreaking magic users.”
“She did nothing,” said Wulfin, “Only I used magic. Punish me, not her.”
“No, Wulfin,” said Asha.
“Silence!” yelled Rukil. “You dare speak in the presence of Lord Morokei, master of magics and chief of the dragon cult?” He turned to Morokei, “My lord, forgive them. I know nothing about this magic. We will execute them imm-”
Morokei raised a hand, cutting the priest from continuing. “I have my own tests to perform. I am here for those gifted in magic and from what I have seen…he may do.”
He lifted Wulfin’s chin and gazed into his eyes. Wulfin didn’t look away, showing some level of defiance in the face of possible death. Morokei nodded. “You have incredible power, but how much? I shall test you within the bastion.”
Rukil bowed and nodded. “Yes, yes lord.”
Morokei turned to Asha and lifted her chin as well. Asha found the cold mask staring at her and her gaze flicked down. In the shining moonstone, she could glimpse her terrified face. She couldn’t bear to see it, that fear of death. Morokei studied her then said, “Let us see if you possess magic as well.”
He took a deep breath in and whispered in her face, “GaaN Lah.”
The air shook with power and Asha felt her already weakened strength failing. She struggled to stand and she slumped in the arms of the guards, crumpling to the ground. Morokei took a deep sniff in, standing straight. She could feel her strength leave her body as Morokei stole it for himself. He shook his head, looking away dismissively. “She has no magic within her blood. She is of no use to me. Do with her as you wish.”
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“No!” said Wulfin, “Leave her be! It is I that-”
Rukil struck his face with his staff and Wulfin slumped in the arms of the guards. “Silence!”
Asha began to sob, feeling her body shake with fatigue and fear. Morokei ignored her and commanded, “Take him within to a private chamber where I will test him.”
Wulfin was dragged into the bastion, followed by Morokei and his guards. The horses were taken by hunters to be stabled while Rukil brushed his robes. Her nervous expression never left as he looked at Asha, quivering on the ground. “You have embarrassed me.”
“I’m sorry, my lord,” murmured Asha, struggling to stand.
“Sorry?!” he yelled. “I should cast you out. Let the Reachmen have you for their own.”
He lifted his staff over her, considering if he should land a blow on her. Oran stepped out of the spectators and approached Asha warily. “My lord, she was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. There are Reachmen to be dealt with. The rest of the hunters must be alerted.”
Rukil lowered his staff and backed away. “You are right, Oran. She is a distraction.” He turned to a group of men, hunters who had either returned or hadn’t left the bastion. “Blow the warning horn from the towers. Then send the best of the hunters and warriors out to scour around the bastion. Kill any Reachmen you see and make sure all hunters are returned.”
Oran helped Asha to her feet and led her toward the doors. “Come, let us get you something to drink and a clean bandage.”
“What about Wulfin,” said Asha, leaning on him heavily.
Oran shook his head. “He is in the hands of the Dragon Priests now. Pray to the gods they find him worthy of their ranks.”
***
Asha was led to the infirmary where she was cared for by the healers. Her mind continually wandered to Wulfin, wondering what he was going through, fearful for his life. What tortures would a Dragon Priest of Morokei’s stature put him through? Would he be punished for casting magic without telling anyone? All magic users were supposed to tell the priests when they showed even the slightest bit of magic. What would happen to him?
Oran could offer her no words of comfort. He merely helped her onto the stone slab for the healers to begin working on her arm and then sat in a chair in the corner. News arrived shortly on the hunters. Three of their hunters were found dead in the forest, slain by Reachmen. But the Atmorans had given back multiple times over, slaying sixteen Reachmen by ambushing them in the forests which they were unfamiliar with.
Rumors were already being whispered among the healers. The Reachmen had come to scout out their bastion. They were planning an invasion. The Dragon Priests should be warned. Perhaps a dragon would come to pay back the Reachmen. “Better they did not,” muttered Oran, now sitting beside Asha. “Where a dragon comes, so comes destruction.”
“Wouldn’t that be a good thing?” asked Asha, distracted in her thoughts of Wulfin.
“I suppose,” said Oran. “Until our forests burn. They will not discriminate against friend and foe. I believe their lives are so long-lived they do not have any concept of how frail and short our mortal lives are. If they did, perhaps they would take greater care to preserve our lives and world.”
Asha shifted uncomfortably. “Is that…correct to say?”
Oran eyed her and took her hand, smiling as he patted it. “Perhaps not. Ignore the ramblings of this old man.”
A healer approached and said, “You are free to leave, Asha. Keep the bandages on for the next few days and replace them every other day for the next week.”
Asha and Oran left the infirmary. “Where are they keeping Wulfin?” asked Asha.
“In Rukil’s private quarters,” said Oran.
“Can I see him?”
Oran shook his head. “I do not think that is wise. I will go and see what is happening and you wait in the main chamber.”
Asha was reluctant to hear this but she made her way to the open main chamber, sitting on a bench on the first floor. Members of her clan were walking about on the different levels. Whispers echoed in the large chamber, a slow and monotonous buzz that flited toward the ceiling and out of the opening in the mountain. She struggled to remain calm, seeing images of Wulfin’s burnt or blasted body as punishment by the priest Morokei. A breeze came in from the roof, somehow swirling its way to the bottom of the chamber. It brushed her cheek, feeling like a caress.
Asha took a deep breath. She could almost feel it. Mother Kyne was comforting her. “Oh, Mother Kyne, take care of Wulfin. Comfort him. He needs you more than me.”
Oran appeared in the doorway and she stood. She nearly ran to him and took his hand. “Tell me, don’t hold back anything.”
“He is alive,” said Oran.
“Thank Kyne,” said Asha, breathing a sigh of relief. “They will let him go?”
Oran hesitated then and Asha felt her heart sink once again. “What is it? Tell me.”
Oran took both her hands. “He is to be taken by the priests to the capital of Bromjunarr and be trained as a Dragon Priest.”