The Shard (Act VI - The Call)

By: Fonetic Posted on: October 30, 2004

Act VI - The Call

"I don't understand." I took a healthy sip from the glass in front of me.

"I afflicted you."

"Right." I shifted around on the rather hard wooden barstool I was sitting on.

"I gave you asthma."

"Right." A large man sat down at the bar next to me. His bulky frame pressed against my own, which didn't seem to bother him as he didn't bother to move aside to allow me more room. I shifted my weight to move my barstool over a bit and turned my body to face my mentor, away from the stranger. "I remember."

"I gave you visions of hell."

"Right." I shuddered at the thought. He had told me once that such skills led balance to our power, reminding us that we were capable of great horrors as well as great joy. Or something like that. I'm sure it was a lesson I should have paid more attention to.

He looked at me, waiting for a respone. "And?"

"And.. I turned the tables on you by switching my own afflictions to you."

He shook his dead in disbelief. "No, no.."

"What?"

He signaled for the bartender, who ignored him, more interested in some young druidesses at the end of the bar than in his sales. I was beginning to wonder why we had come in here. Although, after days of endless traveling, it was good to have some real food for a change. And to see some people who weren't going to lecture me about combat.

"You had some minor afflictions, which I know you know how to cure because I taught you how to cure them. You should have either rid yourself of them, or amassed more afflictions before trying to Bedevil me."

"Would you like to dance?" I suspected this deep voice belonged to the fellow who had sat down next to me. I closed my eyes and hoped that he wasn't talking to me. Or maybe I just pretended he wasn't.

"While you were screwing around giving me minor afflictions which I could easily handle, I was preparing to cut your head off. That," he gestured with his empty glass, "is why you were defeated." He frowned as the bartender continued to ignore him.

I sighed wistfully. "I should have broken your arms."

"Perhaps. Next time, try it."

I felt a tap on my shoulder. "Excuse me." I took a deep breath and held it. "I asked you if you'd like to dance."

My companion made an odd frown as he looked up and slightly to the side of me. "We're having a conversation. Don't you need to go check on your horse?"

"Pardon me, I need to go check on my horse," came a mumbled reply. The aged wood floors creaked as heavy footsteps slowly moved away from me.

"Force abuse?"

"You're free to dance with him when it returns if it bothers you." He offered his glass to the bartender, who had finally decided to take some customers. He smiled as he filled my companion's glass with darkbrew.

I smirked. "There isn't any music playing.

"Look." He paused to take a gulp of his drink and put the glass down again. "It takes years before you can become a truly great combatant."

"Like you, you mean."

"Your words, not mine."

As a patron opened the door to leave the small, grungy establishment, a tiny white dove flew past him and landed on the bar. I gave him a friendly petting as he chirped happily.

"Yes?" my mentor asked him, as if expecting a response. The small bird flew towards him, flying over his shoulder, dropping a rolled-up letter as he passed. He then flew away.

"How do they manage to always find you, anyway?"

"That's a good question," replied my mentor as he broke the seal. "I have a few theories." He frowned as he read the letter. Then he crumbled it up and shoved it into his pocket. "We've been recalled."

"What?"

He stood up and reached for his gold. "Something's happened. We need to go back to Shallam." He tossed more than the bartender had earned onto the bar, and slung his dusty kitbag over his shoulder.

"What? Why?"

"Doesn't say." He looked towards me and then behind me, at someone coming our way. "So it can't be good."

"I wasn't done speaking with the lady," came a familiar, deep voice.

I smiled at him. "Trust me. You were done before you walked in." I took a sip from my mana vial.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

My mentor turned his head towards me and uttered in a low voice, "we don't have time for this." I ignored him for the moment.

"You're not my type," I said, staring into his eyes. "I like a man that can handle his darkbrew. I patted him on the belly. "Maybe next time I'm in Hashan." I moved to pass him, proud that I had managed to avoid a conflict.

"I said," he grumbled as he grabbed my arm," let's dance. With a quick move, my mentor parted his cloak, as to prepare to reach his scabbard.

"I really wouldn't do that," I said cheerfully, gazing deep into the large man's eyes. A look of gentleness suddenly came over his face. He slowly let go of my arm as I pulled it away. "See?" I asked my mentor.

He quickly spun around to face the man behind him. I was surprised to realize half the room was standing, readying for a fight. As if choreographed, we drew our weapons as one; he unsheathed his ancient battleaxes from his scabbard as I summoned my spiritual mace. We readied ourselves, standing at a close distance with our backs towards one another. We both bowed our heads in unison, praying for strength.

"You shouldn't have come here, Paladin," spoke the bravest of the lot, directing himself towards my mentor.

"I'm not a Paladin," I answered, calling my angel to my side. A few quiet gasps indicated these people had never seen such a thing. She quickly began to cause a number of them to panic and drop their weapons.

Demonic screams could be heard as a Demon rite was cast. I responded by calling for Divine Healing.

Then, they came.

I uttered a prayer as I swung my mace around in an arc, connecting with the closest one down as he came at me with his broadswords, knocking them to the side. I kicked him in the gut, knocking him into his friends behind him. One of them stumbled into the bar's hearth, catching his cloak on fire. Through my link with my angel, I asked her to drain their mana.

Behind me, I heard only the clash of swords as my mentor dueled what sounded like three opponents. I used what he taught me, visualizing the combat in my mind as to keep track of what was going on around me. I felt that he had been wounded. Calling upon my own powers, I purged the venoms from his body. I paid for this momentary lack of concentration as a weapon struck my left arm, breaking it. I swung my mace with my right arm at my new opponent. I took a sip of health elixir as I concentrated on repairing my bones.

As my own opponent began to get up, I reached a hand towards him, causing him to fall lifelessly as I Absolved him. Shocked, his companions watched in horror as he fell. They looked at each other, then fled the room.

Behind me, my mentor grunted in effort as he continued to fight with an aspiring knight. I laid my hands upon him, renewing his health. The young man quickly realized he was outmatched, wiping dripping blood from his nose. He stumbled as he turned, running out of the room.

"Let's go." I started to leave before realizing he hadn't moved to join me. He picked up the man I had killed and slung him over his shoulder.

We exited the building and walked a short distance down the road. It had been raining earlier, but the skies were starting to clear. He took the corpse in his arms and breathed life into him. The body's wounds closed up before me, something that still managed to amaze me. My mentor put the body down, weakened.

The man scrambled to his feet, startled.

"Be gone. Before I change my mind." The man ran off.

A falcon flew in and perched itself upon the hitching post.

After watching the man run off into the distance a moment, I turned to my mentor. "What did I do wrong?"

"You pacified your target, but you didn't anticipate his friends. It's the same problem you have absolving." I rolled my eyes. I couldn't believe he was going to bring that up again. "You focus on the attack you're on, but not on the next one, or the one after that. You see five seconds into your battle, not five minues."

"As least I managed to get one of them."

"Yes, although I'm sure the Demon rite didn't hurt. Did it occur to you that no one needed to die in a foolish bar fight? We are guardians of this realm. Have you no compassion for these people?

"These people, I pointed out, "would not have shown you the same compassion."

"Indeed, but we are better than they are, are we not?"

I sighed again. "So, now what?"

"Go home. Get our provisions restocked. Feed the horses. I need to see someone."

"Who?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small pouch. I recognized it. It was that stupid artifact we had spent the last few weeks searching for. He casually tossed it to me as it if was a money purse.

"Take this to the dragon. Tell him to eat it or hide it or... I don't know, whatever it is he does with these things. Just be quick about it."

I nodded in understanding. "Consider it done."

A tiny smile crept upon his lips. He gave his falcon a knowing look and the creature perched itself upon his shoulder. "Get going." He shimmered out of view.

I muttered to myself. All these years and he was still treating me like a child.

I reached into my kitbag for an apple leftover from this morning. I cut it in half and fed a piece to each of the two horses.

We hadn't even returned from our quest and we're being sent off on another one? He hadn't let me read the letter, but I recognized the seal easy enough.

If Tarah had sent for him, it must be pretty important.