Arlena could barely move her weedy legs because she hadn’t slept a wink during the last two days, afraid of what the wizard might do to her should she fall asleep. And her eyelids were so heavy, so unbearably heavy, that she couldn’t even open her eyes wide and take a glimpse of the gloomy sky.
Ashy clouds filled the entire welkin to the point where the merry sun couldn’t shine through to brighten the lonely and bleak land of men in the north. Soon, rain followed and poured all over this dim piece of land and soaked everything.
Somehow, and she couldn’t grasp why, the weather went to rack and ruin, worsening with every step they took along the boardwalk through some sort of wetlands filled with peats, bogs, and footpaths as far as her eyes could see.
It didn’t last for too long, thankfully, even though the weather didn’t improve.
The boardwalk creaked and swung as they trod carefully to the end, where a hill appeared and led to a gatehouse, which was once as white as snow but had faded over time and become yellow and battered.
She tried to keep her balance as best she could, even though her feet were already cold and damp. Naturally, she didn’t want to fall into the muddy bog and become as black as a sweep. The wizard was nowhere near as careful as her.
Just then, without warning, the footpath rocked back and forth and she knelt and clutched the sides of the swaying planks to keep herself from tumbling straight into the bog. Without realising it, she lifted her eyes off the dark water and sought the wizard.
The stranger, however, much to her dismay, had already dashed to the end of the boardwalk and stood inches from the bog. He waved at her to hurry, going back and forth on the towpath that crooked upward along the hill where the castle stood, eager and excited to have returned home – ignoring the fact that she literally stood on both knees on the boardwalk and could hardly stand up.
Arlena sighed and looked down at the damp planks, then gathered the courage to scoot to the other side of the wetlands. The towpath curved like a hissing snake, but they eventually reached the gatehouse and castle after a few hundred steps.
Two armoured knights guarded the gatehouse, each wielding a spear that was now pointed at them as they approached. She drew a deep breath and followed the knights with her shaky eyes, ill at ease, while stepping back inch by inch.
Her heart throbbed with a formidable dread as she simultaneously raised her eyes to the keep, where archers stood poised, bows drawn.
The peculiar wizard, on the other hand, appeared unconcerned and greeted the two guards, who clenched their spear shafts, visibly tense in the face of the hooded wizard, who didn’t back away or stop advancing.
Arlena could see their keyed-up expressions through their helmets, which let her see their eyes at a push as they followed the wizard’s every move.
The wizard then raised his hood just a tad, allowing the knights to see his face and, strangely enough, recognise him.
She was a few steps behind him, but she could tell right away how flustered the knights became as they lowered their spears and exchanged befuddled glances, utterly puzzled by the look of it.
They paid their respects to the weird stranger and gestured for the archers to lower their bows as well, while the one to the right of the gatehouse commanded whoever was above them in the guardhouse to raise the portcullis.
The grille was made of metal and wood and gradually revealed the wooden gatehouse door it protected. It took only a few seconds. One knight unlocked the hefty door for them right away, and the wizard motioned for her to join him as he passed through the first portcullis and walked through the gatehouse with light, feathery steps.
The gatehouse door slammed shut with a thud seconds later, sending shivers down her spine as she flinched and looked back, suddenly worried sick and biting her lower lip. No matter where she looked, the gatehouse was teeming with arrow slits and murder holes.
The wizard was unfazed, and she followed him quickly to another raised portcullis. A strange fear washed over her as she finally realised the gravity of the situation, far too late to regret it. Powerful spells protected Belzcakir, mind, and for some strange reason, none of them seemed to work on her.
There was no way she could get through the entire gatehouse undetected, but somehow, the wizard made sure the spells didn’t cause panic throughout the castle and allow the guards to strike her down, although she knew not how he did so.
She needed to be wary of him, that was certain, since someone who disregarded the rules of Gartâr could be very dangerous. But not only because of that.
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The knights seemed to recognise him, which meant that he was a high-ranking member of the royal court or someone well-known and respected. But why would someone in such a powerful position act so rashly?
She was his enemy – why would he bring her here? The wizard couldn’t be insane… right? Maybe he was smarter than she realised and planned something behind her back?
In any case, there had to be a good reason behind his odd behaviour, and whatever it was, it was worth keeping her safe for – for the time being, that is.
It poured down once more without warning – just as they entered the bailey and the portcullis was lowered.
The rain soaked her without mercy, and she sighed, annoyed because she had just walked through the entire wetlands without getting soaked to the bone, and now the pouring rain tried to drench her – for a second time! This time, however, it looked as if the rain would stay for much longer than she hoped.
She kept staring at the wizard the entire time, lost in her own thoughts, and finally asked what had been bothering her for quite some time. It was time he answered.
“Who… who are you, sir?”
Instead of turning around to face her, the stranger continued straight across the bailey while replying. There was a hint of amusement in his clear voice.
“Why, it’s Sirahael.”
“No, I didn’t mean your name—”
He sped through the bailey before she could finish her sentence. She wasn’t asking for his name, all right, but rather who he was because he seemed to be someone significant enough for her to know.
The name itself sounded vaguely familiar to her though, like a name she had heard before, but she couldn’t recall where she had heard it or why it sounded so familiar for the life of her.
Arlena hurried to catch up to him. Servants, one after another, bowed to the wizard, while the knights lowered their weapons to pay their respects. Everyone seemed to stop in the middle of their chores and duties at the sight of him. But why? Who was he – this Sirahael, exactly?
She mustered up the courage to ask the stranger who he was for a second time, when she, instead, fell silent as he abruptly turned towards her and stared her down as she stood there completely drenched, while his burgundy cape sucked the rain dry in seconds and protected him.
“Your name.”
“… My name?” She repeated in a high pitch.
He nodded to confirm: “I need you to tell me your name, lad.”
She bit her nails unwittingly, stuttering and looking away as she tried to come up with a response to the unexpected question. Her name? She couldn’t possibly tell him her real name since he mistook her for a boy, but she couldn’t think of one either.
“Don’t the children of the Queen have names? Hmm?”
Her eyes widened with terror the moment he spoke, and she immediately hushed him without taking her gaze off the servants, who passed by and took care of whatever chores they needed to complete. Was he insane? Why did he feel the need to tell everyone who she was!?
“A- Artam! My name’s Artam, my lord!”
It was the only name she could think of, and it belonged to none other than her late older brother. The wizard, however, didn’t seem to catch on to her blatant lie.
“Artam…?” He repeated more for himself than for her to hear, then nimbly added. “It’s a great honour to meet you, Artam. Come, I’ll show you where you’ll stay for the night.”
“I- I thought I was staying at the guild?”
“Not today,” he replied and glimpsed at the darkening sky. “It’s too late for introductions, don’t you think?”
Arlena felt relief despite not liking what she heard; she didn’t have to enter the guild right away. They ambled halfway across the bailey and passed at least a dozen tightly locked doors by the time the wizard came to a standstill.
She had by then given up all attempts to inquire about him. He would never answer. Instead, she looked around her surroundings and noticed that the fortress was rectangular and larger than it appeared from the wetlands.
It had four towers on each corner and flanking towers in between every corner of the bailey, or turrets, that hung low over the covered parapet walk as far as she could see.
Every wall or tower had arrow slits or machicolations for archers to use and hide behind, as well as a keep to the left of the castle’s main entrance at the far end of the bailey, which cast its massive shadow over them.
Sirahael turned left and headed towards a servant’s chamber. He opened the wooden door without hesitation as if he knew it was unlocked and utterly vacant. It creaked as he walked in.
But she hesitated for a moment and stared at the ajar door swing back and forth in the cool air with a lopsided smirk, contemplating whether to follow him into what seemed like a chamber in ruins or not.
The door itself was in a pretty poor condition; cracks and holes as huge as her fists riddled it, but despite this, she entered the room rather than stay behind among the curious servants passing by.
In the chamber, there were two staircases, one in each corner. They most likely led to the parapet walks she had seen from the bailey or directly to the turrets. Insects infested the stairs and the stone floor, which was also full of burrows.
This chamber hadn’t been in use for a long time, that was for sure! Even though she was used to living in the dirt and grime, she had never shared a room with anyone or anything morbid other than Nash’s late dog before.
Besides, there was nothing useful in here except two redwood cabinets and a bleak bed of timber draped in a dusty, hole-riddled emerald baldachin.
“I’ll come for you later.”
Sirahael headed for the battered door. Arlena shifted her focus from the grim chamber to the odd wizard, who was ready to leave her just like that. Taken aback by his sudden departure, she strode to the door and blocked his path.
“Hey, you said there was this- this wizard who—”
“I didn’t get the chance to speak with him yet, lad, so you’ll have to stay here and wait until then. I’ll come back for you as soon as I can.”
“But who are you, exactly, sir?”
For the briefest of moments, she thought she saw a smirk on his face. Her question surprised him, but why?
“You… don’t know who I am?”
She shook her head, her cheeks flushed with all shades of red as if embarrassed by her own question, which had slipped out of her mouth before she could hinder it.
“I guess you’ll find out in no time,” he muttered as he brushed past her with no intent to reveal his true identity.
Then, inches from stepping out, he broke off and added with a whiff of glee in his tone. He never turned around to face her though. “Get some rest now, child. You must be exhausted from staying awake these past few days.”