Aracule
((This story, a singlet from a trilogy about the main character of this one, her older sister, and supposedly distant relative is the only surviving one. The other two never made it to paper. You are in luck however, to know that there IS more to this story than is currently being posted...it just needs to be translated out of my rather sloppy hand writing and off a cassette tape that needs a working player to listen to. There is yet hope. I do plan to get the rest of the paper copy up and while this too like all the others is an unfinished story it is at least one that will have some form of continuation and a hope of an ending as I know the ending not unlike that of Gargoyle, Lislaria, and Exchange. There is also hope of you meeting her sister, and this mysterious relative...in time.))
‘Your ladyship… are you in there?’ the dragon whispered into the window of the tower. No movement could be seen from inside the tower but suddenly a hooded figure stood at the window. ‘Darkon, have I not told you hundreds of times not to call me your ladyship? My name is Calisto. And of course I’m here where else would I be until tommorow?’
‘I’m sorry yer lady…I mean Calisto. It’s just I’ve been the slave to Lord Coronath so long that I’m used to things bein’ a certain way. You know if I let you escape I’ll lose any chance at freedom don’t you?’ he asked in a beseeching tone.
‘That is why I’ve arranged it so you may come live in the forest. No, stop!’ she said sharply putting up her hands to stop his speech, ‘I know what you’re thinking and I can rid you of that collar easily even if it is made of magic links. I’ve been studying your mind and I found that the collar has a glitch. When they tried to attach it to your mind it failed to completely set. A sharp mind block would break the link all together, she said without emotion.
‘You’re really her aren’t you? ‘The Teacher’ I mean. You would really help me; let me go live with you?’
‘Let’s just say I have power enough to deal with your problems.’
Two weeks later in the kingdom of Druin.
The sergeant was drilling his troops when a cloaked figure rode up on a midnight colored horse. Had the sergeant been a more detailed man he might have noticed that the sun did not shine off any part of this stead and in fact it seemed to pull in light like some sort of dark matter. He was not however and was merely irritated that this upstart had interrupted him during a lengthy lecture on discipline. The troops however were relieved. The man was known to be a pompous wind-bag and they were finding the truth of it out the hard way.
‘I understand that there are openings for seasoned soldiers,’ the cloaked figure said without inflection. The voice wasn’t high so probably not female yet not so low as to indicate the male gender either.
‘And what makes you think we’d take someone like you?’ sneered the Sergeant.
‘I am a fair sword and marksman,’ came the reply again without tone.
‘Well, let’s see how you do against me,’ he said already unslinging his sword in an open taunt. ‘Cadets, watch my technique and his. I expect you can learn something from me. With this he rushed the figure without giving it time to dismount. As he lunged forward though he found to his surprise neither horse nor rider where he had last seen them. Stumbling he righted himself and turned to find the figure standing some distance away in a crouch, sword already drawn. Although something prickled in the back of his mind the sergeant was not one to be made a fool of and he again charged the black cloak like an angry bull towards a matador’s cape. Again he was repulsed by the figure and on the fourth try he found himself on the ground with a sword to his throat. His opponent showed no signs of even being winded.
As quickly as it had made all it’s earlier moves the figure sheathed it’s sword and reached out to help him up. ‘We…we don’t need you,’ stuttered the now humbled sergeant, refusing the proffered hand. The figure bowed silently and moved towards its horse. As it made to mount a new voice interrupted the awed silence.
‘I believe you would be wrong there, Sergeant Geoffreys.’ All eyes turned to find one of the top ranking officers sitting astride a malt coloured stallion. ‘You would have let a great fighter such as this go just because your pride didn’t like that he could best you? I thought I did the right thing when I told the council you were ready for promotion but I see I was wrong. You are only in your third week as a lower officer and already you’re abusing your powers. I’m sorry but if this is the way it’s going to be I’m going to have to ask you to turn in your epaulet. You’ll be paid for the time spent as an officer but you must remove your belongings from the officers quarters effective immediately. You may have your bunk back in the soldiers mess.’ Without a second glance he turned to the figure now seated on his own stead. ‘You, come with me. We’re going to start you right now. Would you be willing to be willing to let us test you to see your best placement? It will give us a better idea of your skills.’ At a slight incline of the hood the Colonel turned and began riding back towards the castle proper.
The rest of the day past happily for the Colonel. He wasn’t himself an easy man to please but watching this cloaked phantom made him smile. His skills with the sword were unsurpassed by any the Colonel threw at him whether on foot or horse, same weapon or different. Size didn’t seem to matter either. He had thown a couple of axe-men in and that didn’t sway things in the least. Having not heard about the comment about marksmanship he tried this as well and was happily surprise to find that an expert marksman not only with stationary but moving figures as well. The only thing that bothered him was the ever present cloak. After an initial appeal for it’s removal he had given up because the figure had been adamant. ‘I will serve you and loyally to a fault, work hard and do ask you order but I will not remove this cloak.’
He had finally broken down and asked for a name as well. It was not his style to pry into others business but no other had ever held there identity so closely guarded before. ‘Please, if a name you must have, call me by the name of Cailen.’
One fight in particular stuck out in his memory. A man among the soldiers loitering around watching the fights had made a joke about Cailen’s cloaked figure saying that he must be scarred. Soon after this the Colonel had asked Cailen if he wished to choose a partner to spar with. Without failure the pale hand had pointed out the joker though how he could have known who it was when the joke had been made in the middle of intense fighting on his part the Colonel could not figure out.
‘Fine,’ said the man strutting forward and drawing his weapons, a set of daggers and twirling them with a flourish. Cailen surprisingly followed suit, sheathing his blade and pulling two knifes from unknown sheaths on his person.
‘Ready…and fight!’ Called a mediator.
‘The joker thrust but with each thrust he found himself expertly parried. He made a lunge but was repulsed and soon like the others found a throat at his throat. He, unwilling to admit defeat, kicked his legs out trying to overthrow his opponent but found his own legs swept from under him. Cailen put a foot on his chest bringing one dagger to his throat and drawing the other across his tunic making an x shaped tear. ‘You’re dead,’ he whispered before getting up and walking away without a backward glance. ‘You’re next he said pointing to another in the crowd, one who had snickered at the earlier remark. One by one each who had found merriment in the quip were taken down a peg.
As the sun began to sink the Colonel called a halt. He was about to ask Cailen if he had already taken quarters at a local inn when a man road up. ‘Colonel, you’re needed at the outer gate,’ the man said snapping off a salute indicating he was a lower ranking officer greeting his commander. Knowing that something must be wrong for them to send someone on horseback the Colonel sighed. It forever seemed that if he didn’t have his attention on things directly they went to hell like a basket of tangled yarn and he was the one always in need of untangling it.
‘Drech,’ he called to one of the men standing around the training ring, not noting it was one of the men that had laughed at the expensive of his newest prodigy. ‘Take Cailen to the officer’s building and see that he gets a bed for the night.’ Without further worry, he was after all a man who was used to his orders being followed as soon as they were made clear, he mounted his own horse and moved off in the direction of the main gates muttering something about pig grease and barn fires.
As soon as he was out of ear-shot the man answering to the name of Drech turned to Cailen with a dirty smirk starting at the corners of his mouth. ‘We’ll find you a place to stay all right.’ He said with a laugh as he cracked his knuckles. ‘As soon as you learn your place.’ He and several of the others formed a loose circle around the new comer. ‘Maybe I’ll use that cloak to wipe down my horse when it gets dirty,’ he followed up feeling pretty big now that his superior officer wasn’t around.
Just as they went in for the kill a low howl brought them up short. Half turning they saw a huge bear of a man bowl over one of their number before coming to a halt near the black cloaked figure and raised his fists at them. ‘You leave him ‘lone. Colonel say help find room. You all bad.’ He shook one ham sized fist at them before turning startled as he felt a small almost delicate hand on his other arm.
‘You don’t have to do this. I thank you for your protection and for trying to be a friend but this isn’t your fight.’
The giant seemed confused by this and finally asked, ‘friend?’
‘Yes, friend. Anyone who would try to protect someone they didn’t know from neanderthals like this should be counted as a friend.’
‘Drell you friend?’
‘Yes, if you’ll let me be yours as well,’ came the quiet yet clear response.
‘Cai…Call….Callen is Drell’s friend.’ The huge man said, fighting to try and pronounce the unusual name.
‘Thank you Drell. That means a lot to me to know I have a friend here. Will you escort me to the officer’s quarters?’ With a nod of assent from the giant they ambled off amidst murderous yet fearful looks from the onlookers.
Chapter 2
Time went by as days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Cailen moved up the ranks quickly and had been put in charge finally of training some of the upper level soldiers in more exotic weapon and fighting styles after it was found out that he had high skills in multiple fields of study. He was finishing up a training session involving using common household items as weapons when Colonel Vereth arrived. It had been some time since he had gotten to watch the dark, brooding figure work as his own job kept him well occupied most of the time and it was always a pleasure to watch him work even though the ever present cloak was an odd quirk. He knew it had been a rocky start with many of the young soldiers trying to best him to make a quick name for themselves and many had used underhanded tactics to give themselves the edge they didn’t have from skill but nothing seemed to faze the black clad figure and he was yet undefeated. With each new battle he earned more respect and in doing so had made friends in some of the most unlikely people. The hulking barn worker known as Drell had fast become Cailen’s self-appointed protector and would tell anyone who listened that he was Cailen’s ‘friend.’ One of the courtesans had begun showing up at the training grounds and for a time it was speculated that she was having an affair with the dark trainer but it soon became apparent that she was seeing one of the lower level Privates so the relationship was almost all the more strange. What she got out of it no one knew but the real question was why Cailen let her hang around if he wasn’t getting anything from her. A hawker, and one of the king’s bodyguards, long thought to be his personal assassin had also joined the group and at any given time a number of the young children of the castle could be heard chanting for a story from this most unlikely of yarn weavers.
Today however Vereth was here for reasons other than his own personal enjoyment in watching Cailen fight. He had been mulling over an idea for several days and had finally come to a decision. He waited for the final demonstration to end; Cailen let one of the men come at him with a conventional weapon only to take him out with a broom handle to the back of the knees, a chair to the back, and a broken bottle to the throat. Their was applause from the gathered onlookers and after helping the young man to his feet both the teacher and student bowed to each other, a practice started by Cailen himself and always followed through after each battle. He had explained that it showed respect from the teacher for assistance and effort and respect from the student for guidance and wisdom.
Vereth waited until the group of starry eyed young recruits who now were regularly to be founded crowded around the weapons master to disperse. It took longer than he would have liked but there was nothing to be done about it. The young man was popular for a reason. Swift and efficient he had something to teach everyone and at the same time was ready to lend an ear to anyone who wished to speak their mind. He had watched his new arms-man go from a near loner hated by all to a company favorite though his mannerisms still made him the butt of many a jest. It might have been the way he ate; slowly, methodically, never touching a drop of mead but instead the servers had begun to keep a small pot of tea at his end of the table and were never disappointed when he took the time to personally thank the particular server for that day. It could have been the way that no matter what woman threw herself at him, young or old, titled or the lowliest farm hand, it mattered not; he was polite but made not advance in return. In fact many had become close friends with the brooding young man and his table was filled with the oddest assortment of people. It was bridging the gap between the different social ranks but some were not as happy as Vereth to see it be so. There were those who felt that this young upstart was changing the the social way of things and leading to unrest. The Colonel sighed and mentally shook himself to draw his thoughts away from these darker thoughts and realized with a start that the crowd had visibly thinned and Cailen was making his way over to him.
'You came to see me I think,' the young man said in his usual quiet manner.
'Yes, well, I have, a possible opportunity for you. A job proposition as it were. Wondered if you'd be interested,' the Colonel blustered, caught slightly off guard as usual by the young man's cool demeanor.
'What exactly is this offer, sir?' Cailen was retrieving items from around the rooms and righting overturned furniture as they spoke yet it did not feel as though he was being inattentive but rather that he was being quietly efficient.
'I'm sure you've heard that a few weeks before you arrived the bodyguard to the prince was killed, well, butchered rather. They found his body...' a young woman peaked around the corner of the door but upon seeing the two of them stopped abruptly.
'I...I'm sorry. I dinna mean to disturb ye. I was sent by me mistress with a message to the young laird over thar.' She pointed to Cailen. The young man seemed to take in her anxious demeanor. He walked over to her in his flowing manner and when she shrank back from his darkened physique he stilled and finally lowered himself so he'd be at her eye level.
'What is it you need to speak to me about young one?' he asked in a curiously soothing tone for one so imposing. She trembled a bit but finally found her voice in a quavering tone, 'my lady Serena requests yer company at yerr leisure this evenin. She would like to further discuss the topic you spoke of before.' This last bit came out so deadpan that it was obvious she had been repeating for quite some time to make sure she remembered it exactly as her mistress had told her. When she had finished she fell silent but continued to ring her hands together.
Cailen stood silently a moment as though digesting this information before clearing his throat. 'Tell your mistress that I will wait upon her pleasure this evening if she would be so good as to meet me out on the stone deck facing the north garden at sun down. I shall not fail her. Can you tell her that?' He asked earnestly making sure to speak slowly and quietly so as not to disturb that girl. She nodded and just as quickly as she had come she was dashing off, obviously relieved to be well away from the dark robed figure.
'If you don't mind my asking, what was all that about?' the Colonel asked having taken in the whole bizarre scene and being able to make neither head nor tail of it was at a complete loss.
'While the matter itself is somewhat of a private nature, a certain lady is feeling in need of some self defense lessons as she has been lately harassed by an overly ardent suitor who won't take no for an answer. Her parents don't believe her or choose not to in hopes of a good alliance so she finds herself in the rather awkward position for a proper young lady of having to protect her own honor and has thus turned to me. She wants to meet in private so no one knows what she is planning.'
'I see.' The Colonel thought about this for a moment and realized that it made him all the more resolved to give the young man this opportunity. 'Ahem, well, as I was saying before we were interrupted, the position for bodyguard to the Crown Prince must be filled and in a timely manner. In the morning there will be a try-out of sorts to determine who would be best suited to this role and I have been asked to submit a champion from among my ranks. I believe this might be a good fit for you and would be a far better use of your talents than teaching new recruits who can't tell the the right end of the sword from their own boots.' He had long since given up on expecting his attempts at humor would take any effect on his young friend so he had a chuckle at his own joke before sobering once more. ' In all seriousness I think you may be our best choice. There may be some who would be more suited to the job in so far as they know the prince on more intimate terms or that they are known to the King himself but you have the talents we need if we are to keep the Crown Prince safe.'
'Do you fear he is in danger then?' Cailen asked keeping stride with the taller man without seeming difficulty as they headed for the dining hall.
' There's always the chance that an enemy nation will take this opportunity as a sign of weakness and strike at him while he's so, frankly, poorly guarded. Without an appointment by the King we can only keep the usual soldiers out side his door and a small platoon of
