Kade almost couldn’t process seeing the man who’d rescued him from Altera, what felt like a lifetime ago. His mind was just so heavy, and the pulse was just so loud! He quickly turned to Cerano to make sure the Bringer could see Edwin as well, and noticed the red haired man looking at the woodsman with suspicion. It took Kade a second to remember they had been speaking of mutiny and murder only minutes earlier. Had Edwin heard?
He looked more closely at the solid man he’d trusted so easily, the man’s casual confidence and dependability having been such a comfort when Kade was just beginning to find his way in this deadly world. There were changes, he realized. The dark brown hair appeared to have gray in it, which was exceptionally rare among such long-lived people, and his eyes were sunken, with dark circles around them so pronounced it looked like the man hadn’t slept in months. But when the familiar easy smile appeared on his face, it was such a relief that Kade could swear the pulse actually quieted slightly.
“Kade,” the deep voice spoke again, “I’m sorry it took so long to meet up with you once again. I had planned to find you long before the excursion left, but…the circumstances were out of my control.” The last was said with a quiver that Kade couldn’t remember hearing from the woodsman before.
“What circumstances? You never really told me what you were doing.”
“Perhaps introductions first? I don’t recognize your companion,” he replied. Cerano stepped forward with his hand outstretched.
“But I recognize you, Keeper Edwin, and I’m honored to meet you. I am…Bringer Cerano. I’m not used to introducing myself as such, but the situation in the camp has grown complex.” Edwin shook the offered hand, and nodded at the assessment.
“I haven’t been here long, and I’ve been looking for Kade since I arrived, but even still I’ve heard…disturbing things. So many dead, so many old rules and traditions broken or abandoned. I almost don’t believe that Bandal leads this group.”
“You know Bandal?” Kade asked. Edwin’s reputation had confused him since he’d arrived in Karthas with the veteran Keeper. Some spoke of him almost in awe, while others dismissed him as ‘merely a Primus’, and Kade was still piecing together exactly who the man was.
“I’ve known the High Keeper for a long time, but he left me behind–so to speak–long, long ago. Still, I expected more from him. Pushing the army this far, this fast, the recklessness of it…But I’m speaking out of turn. Forgive me, these months have taken their toll on me.”
“So where were you, then?” Kade asked again. Edwin still appeared reluctant to speak of it, but after letting out a prolonged sigh, he answered.
“I was taking a trial.”
“You took a trial!?” Cerano cut in. “But you’re famous for refusing to advance! What could possibly have–” Edwin cut him off with a harsh glare and a raised hand.
“I do not wish to discuss it. Suffice it to say that these are extraordinary times, and extraordinary measures were necessary. Speaking of which, I find my manners failing me yet again. If you’re a member of the Bringers I must give my condolences on the loss of the First. Heletta and I didn’t cross paths many times, but the mood of the camp makes it clear how valued and respected she was.” Cerano’s head fell, and he didn’t respond.
Edwin seemed to consider the Bringer for a long moment before he turned away and spoke again. “I had planned for a longer reunion, Kade, but perhaps that should wait. I need to report to High Keeper Bandal and I sense that you both might benefit from joining me.” Cerano’s head shot up, and when he looked at Kade he could almost feel the man willing him to silence.
Edwin clearly noted the exchange, and nodded slowly. “Yes, I can see it’s necessary. Follow me, both of you.” He didn’t wait for any kind of confirmation, merely turned and strode away from the campfire at a steady pace. Cerano rushed to Kade’s side.
“I wasn’t prepared for this, but I can’t turn down a chance to hear Bandal questioned by one of his peers. He even treats High Priest Lothros as a subordinate.”
“Wait, peer? Bandal is the High Keeper and one of the most powerful people I’ve ever seen. How could Edwin possibly be his peer?” Kade asked. Cerano gestured after Edwin and the two began to follow a short distance behind before the Bringer answered.
“Edwin’s power has never been what made him special. The circumstances by which he gained–” he stopped himself abruptly. “Nevermind that, he clearly doesn’t wish for it to be discussed. Regardless, the reason he’s so respected is because he’s one of the original Keepers. There have always been Awakened protecting Karthas, but the Keepers as an Order is relatively new, and Edwin may be the last living person who was part of their first ranks.”
Kade watched the older man as he guided them purposefully through the camp, occasionally stopping to acknowledge a greeting. He knew that Edwin had a lot hidden behind the simple woodsman persona that he presented to the world, but Kade was beginning to suspect that he would never truly know the man. As they neared the magically constructed stone building that Bandal always had created for strategy meetings, Cerano leaned closer.
“I need your discretion here, Kade. I showed my trust in you, as you’re someone I believe wants to save as many lives as possible. I didn’t fear one more rumor in the camp, but now the whole army has seen me by your side walking with one of the most famous Keepers alive. If you speak out against the Bringers, there may be none of us left by morning.” Kade looked at the man, still struggling to keep everything that had happened in his mind at once.
Truthfully he didn’t know exactly how he felt or what he would do if Bandal or Edwin questioned him directly, but the dangerous look in Cerano’s eyes told him to nod in affirmation regardless. The Bringer nodded in return, but Kade knew this would be a tense discussion as they followed Edwin into the stone structure.
The interior was well lit by a number of glowing orbs, and Bandal was alone inside in front of the only real furniture: a single table covered in maps and documents. The broad-shouldered man looked up, and his eyes widened when he spotted Edwin.
“High Keeper Bandal, it’s an honor to–”
“You’re Secundus! Edwin bloody Houseless is a Secundus. Has the end of the world already come?” the woodsman stopped in his tracks, and let out a long sigh.
“I’m going to have to have this damned conversation with half the Keepers in camp, aren’t I?”
“To the Hells with the other Keepers. They may have heard the rumors, but I know what you’ve been through. What in the name of all the Lost Gods was enough to send you back to the Mad Elder for more punishment?” The High Keeper clearly had no concern for the look of fury and frustration on Edwin’s face.
“I’d have thought that you of all people would understand the need,” Edwin replied in a strained voice. “We cannot afford to hold anything back in the face of this threat.” Bandal’s eyes narrowed at that answer, and he moved around the table to get closer to Edwin, still not having acknowledged the presence of the other two men.
“And what would you know about what we face, woodsman? I keep excellent track of all of my Keepers, and you left before we even announced the excursion. Was it the Bringers? I see one follows at your heels like a dog, have you been working with Heletta under my nose?” Edwin’s eyes narrowed at the accusation, and he didn’t back down even slightly under the scrutiny of the terrifyingly powerful man.
“I have many friends, High Keeper, and I have earned the trust of Bringers, Keepers, and Priests.” Bandal retreated at that for some reason, though Kade noticed that Edwin reached up to grip his pendant nervously when the High Keeper turned back to the table for a long moment.
“Graves. Of course. He was always one of Lothros' favorites. I should have realized.” He let out a long breath as he leaned heavily on the table. When he turned back around, his smile made him look like an entirely different man. “So tell me this, ‘ax-man’, I can smell another Path on you. What were you given?”
Edwin appeared to relax as well, and in answer he gestured behind him and a metal chair appeared as if from nowhere. He made a show of sitting down and stretching out his legs theatrically. Bandal barked out a laugh. “A Metallurgist? As if you need another way to make axes. You’re the only man alive that could branch out yet become more stuck in your ways.” Edwin smiled back, and much of the tension seemed to leave the room.
“A year ago I’d have agreed with you, but someone convinced me that Metallurgy could provide some interesting combat applications. I intend to show the world exactly what this Path is capable of.” Edwin looked shocked when Bandal roared with laughter. His eyes narrowed as he continued, “I thought you’d be more open to the idea, your own combination of Paths–” Bandal interrupted him with a hurried wave.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
“No, no, you misunderstand, old friend.” He gestured at Kade standing off to the side, the light of the glow orbs reflecting off the full set of silver armor he wore. “I’m afraid your protege’s companion has beaten you to that particular demonstration.” Edwin’s head whipped around to stare at Kade.
“I wasn’t aware that there was another Metallurgist Keeper. I suppose I’ll need to meet them,” his disappointment was clear, but Bandal was shaking his head again.
“Not a Keeper. The boy has an Aspect of Metallurgy. I’ve never heard of anything like it,” he was grinning like a child now. “You should see the thing, Edwin, it’s a giant bloody knight made out of silver chains! I saw it spear over a hundred flyers the other day all on its own–I hate flyers. It dragged them to the ground while turning its body into a shield for an entire unit of Keepers,” he shook his head in disbelief. “Your protege is good, have no doubt, but he’d still be on the line with all the rest if he didn’t have that magnificent creature with him.”
Kade raised an eyebrow at that. This was certainly the first he was hearing of this. He agreed, of course, and he was proud of how capable Drake had become, but he had to admit his ego had been deflated slightly. Edwin was staring at him as well, and seemed to finally take note of the Drake-armor Kade was wearing. “He’s resting right now,” Kade said, anticipating the question.
“I’m sure you’ll get to see it soon enough, Edwin. But we have other matters to discuss,” Bandal said, enjoying the scene.
“Such as the death of First Bringer Heletta?” Edwin replied, and any trace of mirth left Bandal’s face. His eyes narrowed at Edwin, then briefly flickered to Cerano.
“What could we possibly have to say about that tragedy? Is that why you brought the Second Bringer with you?” Kade raised an eyebrow and looked at Cerano. He assumed that title was as literal as it seemed, and figured he shouldn’t be surprised. The Bringer had stiffened at finally being acknowledged, and he stood up straighter as Bandal stormed up to him.
“Do you think I’m a fool, Bringer? Do you think I don’t know what’s being said in my own camp?” Edwin stood up slowly as the two men eyed one another. “Tell me, Cerano, oh great battle commander, what should I have done? With your weeks of experience, tell me what the right choice should have been.” The Bringer hesitated, glancing at Edwin and taking an involuntary step back.
“No answer?” Bandal pressed. “The center of our front line was about to collapse! And those Elders were beyond anything we’ve faced so far. They would have ripped through the reinforcement unit without breaking stride!” He whirled away from the man, and slammed his fist through the nearby table, obliterating it. Bandal stood there, facing away from them for a long minute. Edwin took a small step forward before stopping when the man’s voice rang out once more, this time with far more calm.
“I did the only thing I could. I ordered the reinforcements to the center line, and I went after the Elders myself. I was too late. I knew I’d be too late, and I did it anyway.” He turned to look directly at Cerano, “And I’d make the same decision again, because it was her, or the army. Whether you believe it or not, she’d have made the same decision. If you doubt me, then ask yourself a simple question: why didn’t she retreat? She was too fast for those ponderous monsters to catch her. So why, Second, why didn’t she retreat?”
Cerano didn’t answer at first, pain and fury painting his features. Kade could almost hear the sound of his teeth grinding, but at last he choked out a response. “Because…it would have meant losing the army. She would never have let that happen while there was still life in her body.” The two men stared at one another for a long, tense moment, before Cerano finally looked away.
Bandal didn’t press further, just looked back at the table he’d destroyed. Edwin quietly walked forward, and with a gesture the metal table reassembled itself. Bandal grunted a small laugh, then thanked the woodsman before gathering the papers from the floor. Watching the leader of the Keepers struggle to clean up the mess his temper tantrum had caused was oddly humanizing, and the mood of the room seemed to settle a bit. Cerano had moved to lean against a wall, obviously lost in thought, and Kade wondered if he believed Bandal’s claims.
When the papers were sorted, the High Keeper spread out a map once more. “I’m glad you’re here, Edwin, you and the Bringer, both. You’re going to solve a rather large problem I’ve been struggling with.” Edwin and Cerano both looked up at this, and joined the large man at the table, where he pointed to a circled area on the map. Kade moved close enough to see, but still kept some distance. He felt like he didn’t really belong in a meeting of this nature, and he suspected he’d already seen more than he should have.
“The scouts have found something in the mountains ahead,” Cerano’s face scrunched up at this.
“My Bringers have been acting as scouts for weeks, and none have gone so far out.”
“Your people have kindly taken over scouting duties for the army, leaving my stealthiest Keepers to search for our actual goal. We’re not here to slap down some mindless Elders and their pets; there are better places to accomplish that. We’ve been drawing the attention of the enemy to give our people a chance at finding what’s causing this, and now we think we have.” The three men exchanged surprised looks as Bandal tapped the map once more.
“Three days' journey when you’re not fighting every damned step of the way. There’s a cave there, which leads directly into the mountains. It’s the only thing for miles that the scouts felt was even worth mentioning, and the two of them sensitive to such things claim you can feel a fluctuation in the Chaos around it.” He looked up, his eyes wild with passion. “Whatever is causing this must be there.”
“And what’s between us and this cave? What problem are we meant to solve?” Edwin asked.
“I need to send a team. I need someone I can trust to lead it, and a group powerful enough to survive getting there. I assume the only reason you survived catching up with us is because Graves followed you, patching you up every step of the way?” Edwin nodded with a smirk. “Then he can keep the three of you alive while the army continues to act as a distraction.”
“Three of us?” Edwin asked.
“You want me there to keep us hidden,” Cerano supplied.
“Hidden and safe. Edwin became a candidate at Secundus, and Graves is nearly Tertius with that obscene Soul Core of his, but you’re nearly Quartus. They’ll need you.” Cerano didn’t answer immediately, looking down at the map.
“What exactly do you want us to do?” Edwin asked.
“What the scouts couldn’t. Go inside. The ones I sent were all stealth specialists, and they’d have been killed by a single Elder, and there were a lot more than one hanging around the cave.” He gestured at Cerano, “The Second Bringer should be able to hide you until you get inside, and you’ll be as prepared as any to handle whatever’s in there. Figure out what in the Hells is waking these things up. Stop it if you can, report back if you can’t.”
At last Cerano spoke, “You want me to leave my people,” he said quietly. And Bandal didn’t reply, clearly understanding what the Bringer was implying.
“Your people will be in the safest of hands, young Bringer,” a new voice said from the doorway. They all turned as High Priest Lothros entered, a serene look on his face. Graves was only a step behind him, his dark eyes and corpse-white skin making him look like an evil shadow of the bright and angelic Lothros. Silver hair was perfectly swept back, and the bright blue eyes were hypnotic even in the shadowy stone building.
“There you go,” Bandal said, fury in his tone. “The High Priest will look after your precious Bringers. Do you think you can find it in yourself to do your bloody duty now?” Kade was surprised that the man’s temper had returned in such force, and he wasn’t the only one. Cerano was seething as he responded.
“You would question my commitment, High Keeper? You haven’t earned that right,” he said, acid in his tone. “I’ll go to this cave, and I’ll babysit your people on the trip. See if you can manage to survive our absence without sacrificing more of my people.”
Bandal’s face screwed up and he seemed to be just barely restraining himself from leaping over the table and attacking, but he managed to keep his voice even as he spoke. “We’re done advancing. We’ll dig in here, and focus on defense. Is that acceptable to you, Bringer?” Cerano looked from Bandal to the pristine, smiling face of Lothros, before giving a single nod and striding out into the darkness.
They all watched him leave, and an awkward silence settled on the remaining group. At last Edwin broke it, “High Keeper, you said three, but I’d like to take Initiate Kadeus with me.”
“What?” Bandal said, irritation plain in his tone. “You want to bring someone not yet Primus into the deepest Chaos, on the most important mission of our lives?” Edwin didn’t back down from the challenge, standing up straighter.
“It won’t make a difference if Cerano is Shading us, and he can be valuable to us. You yourself said how much he’s contributed on the battlefield.” Bandal scoffed.
“He’s valuable on the battlefield because he can move quickly and disrupt lines! You’ll throw his life away in a damned cave against Elders and who knows what else!” Edwin seemed to be struggling to think of something else to say, and he was rubbing his pendant again. Kade had no idea why the man wanted him on the mission, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to go or not. Would he even be able to think if he moved any deeper into the True Chaos?
“Let the boy go, Bandal. Edwin obviously wants to keep his protege close, and who can blame him?” Everyone in the room looked at the High Priest in surprise. “We’re all old men here, High Keeper. Who among us hasn’t had a pet project or two over the years? I still remember when Graves came to us from the King’s court; I wouldn’t have let him out of my sight then either.” Graves looked extremely uncomfortable to be spoken of that way, and refused to make eye contact with anyone.
Bandal didn’t appear convinced though, and Kade realized he was looking at the silver Drake armor hungrily. The man hadn’t been exaggerating, he truly saw the Aspect as a key asset. When the silence lingered, Lothros let out a small laugh. “Very well, Bandal, I’ll take the field myself.” Everyone but Kade looked utterly shocked by this, but it was Graves who spoke.
“High Priest, it’s not your place to–” Lothros turned a dark gaze on the man, who shrunk back.
“My place is of my own choosing, Child Graves. And I had no intention of sitting back and watching the hope of Karthas slowly cut down before my eyes.” He turned back to Bandal, “I’m no Keeper, but I imagine you’ll see my power as a fair exchange for one Initiate?” Bandal was speechless for a moment, and finally nodded in agreement.
“Wonderful! Then perhaps we should let this new team go collect themselves around a warm fire. Tomorrow they go in search of our salvation.”