It didn’t take long for Arcanous to catch up to his new acquaintance. When he did, a new conversation arose about Korlon’s father. He had served in the five year assault on Silmoon. It had been unsuccessful. The Valdarian forces had suffered many casualties and were eventually commanded to break siege by the late King Aldorn II. Korlon’s father was one of the few who returned home, had a family, and died a peaceful death.
“My mother didn’t take it well. She joined him in the afterlife a month or so after he passed.”
Arcanous frowned. “How old were you when they died?”
“I was about fifteen. My younger brother was twelve.”
Arcanous was shocked. “I can’t imagine. I was well passed that age before mine passed.”
“It was hard. My brother and I nearly had to sell ourselves to slavery to get by. Still, we’ve done fine so far and our farm is well-tended.”
“How old is your brother now?”
“He’ll be eighteen this fall.”
“That would make you about twenty-one. Do you have a family of your own?”
Korlon laughed. “I’ve been too busy to go courting. Besides, I’m a poor farmer. I thought I’d follow my father’s footsteps a little before that.”
“So, become a knight?”
Korlon smiled. “Yeah, I’d be a knight or a priest. I have some training in fighting, but being a priest, in my opinion, is almost if not more noble than knighthood.”
Arcanous smiled. He suspected the young man was simply trying to impress him. However, he’d had similar feelings before he’d chosen to follow the light, so he wasn’t too sure of his intentions yet.
They rode in silence for a few minutes. Arcanous was quite fine with the silence, but a quick glance at Korlon made it clear it might not last too long. Rather than watch the young man painfully muster his courage, Arcanous skipped a few pleasantries. “What? You look sick.”
Korlon smiled sheepishly. “I had a question about your face.”
“Oh, are you sure you don’t want to ask about my feet? They’re pretty fascinating too.” This seemed to weaken Korlon’s determination. Fun as that was, Arcanous thought he’d answer the inevitable question. “Yes, my eyes glow.”
“Is it just color or can you see in the dark?”
“They light up brighter than torches, so, yes.”
From his reaction, Korlon might as well have been fifteen again. Questions became endless. Could he turn it off? Were they hot? Could he change their color? Could he see through things? To all of these he replied no. Only through a slight trick could he turn it off and that required him to sleep.
One wouldn’t need to meet a priest to hear of such things. Rumors of the changes a priest undergoes through his or her life were widespread and quite often exaggerated. Arcanous had heard many of them. Some even claimed they lost their humanity. Arcanous sometimes wondered that himself, but that usually ended with him chuckling to himself.
Finally Korlon gathered the courage to ask the real question. “Could I see?”
Arcanous shifted in his saddle. They’d been riding a while and had left the main road a good while before. The sun was low and it was quite clear this little errand would add another day or two. “Why don’t we stop and set up camp?”
Korlon paused, surprised at the sudden topic change. He looked slightly thoughtful, but climbed off his horse and began to unpack.
Arcanous looked around. “I’ll go see if I can find some firewood.” With that, he dismounted and walked away, bringing his axe along without a thought.
As much as Arcanous was fascinated by his eyes, he did not like showing people them. It was unusual to the point of scaring people for one. But more than that, he felt it made people view him more as a creature rather than a person. Not that he wouldn’t show people, but when it came to those he might spend time with, it could seriously hurt the trust they might give him otherwise.
When he returned, Korlon had already laid out the bedrolls and started a small fire. Arcanous didn’t hesitate in putting more wood on the fire and preparing a meal.
They did all of this in silence. It wasn’t until after they had eaten that Korlon spoke. “Sorry.”
“Sorry for what?”
Korlon shifted on the log he’d carried over. “Sorry if I crossed any boundaries before. I didn’t know it was a sensitive subject.”
Arcanous sighed. “It’s fine. It’s really not a problem.”
Korlon let it go. However, after a moment, his curiosity found a new topic. “Where were you going before I reached you anyway?”
The priest looked at the young farmer with a smile. “I was just going to a meeting of sorts.”
“Oh. I hope I haven’t pulled you too out of your way. Where was this meeting going to be?”
“It’ll be at Valdar.”
Korlon seemed quite surprised at this. “That’s a long ways. Who’s going to this meeting?”
Arcanous just smiled and shook his head. “It’s getting late. I think it’s time for me to sleep. How light of a sleeper are you?”
“I sleep pretty deep, to be honest.”
Arcanous sighed. He’d have to sleep yet another night outside with his face covered and eyes bright. He wasn’t used to these parts, and if there was a group of Borlasians nearby, he’d have to stay on his toes.
* * *
The night was uneventful. When they woke, they ate a quick breakfast and were back on the move about an hour after the sun rose. According to Korlon they’d reach his home about midday. So, they continued on.
As they rode, Arcanous thought about the coming meeting. The High Interpreter, Kiltor, was pretty good at getting Arcanous an agenda for the High Council meetings. However, it seemed the good interpreter had been too slow. Even though the interpreters were well known for their speed in sending information, the king’s messengers were much faster. That being said, had Arcanous waited back at Silsun even a few more hours, he probably would have received the agenda as well.
The sun was high in the sky by the time they crested a hill revealing their small village. As they rode for it, Korlon made it clear his home wasn’t in the village. His farm was about three miles west of the village, following a different path that led for Herion.
Before making for his farm, they stopped at the inn for a meal. This inn was no exception for Arcanous’s habits. His Meditation Sight didn’t reveal any dark spirits, which allowed him to relax. Considering he wasn’t alone anymore, Arcanous thought he’d follow some of the usual traditions a priest was expected to follow. Duty aside, he didn’t hesitate in complaining about the plain taste of his water.
They ate their fill and were about to leave when five men walked into the building. This wouldn’t have seemed unusual had they not come with axes.
Everyone else seemed to find this a reasonable distraction as well, for all the conversations paused. “What’s he doing here?” Korlon had paled at the group of them.
Arcanous looked around. “Who?”
Korlon didn’t answer. He really didn’t have to. It only took a second for Arcanous to find the family resemblance. “That’s your brother?”
In the center of the group was a large man. At first glance you’d think he was in his thirties. However, a closer look revealed youth. “He’s a lot bigger than I pictured.”
Korlon finally snapped out of his shock enough to reply. “He’s bigger than I remember.”
With that comment, Arcanous didn’t hesitate in turning on his Meditation Sight. He wasn’t surprised at what he saw. All five of them changed color. Unlike the people he’d seen earlier, they all grew dark. By their depth, one might have thought they were warlocks. However, in the center of each one was a gray patch. This, from his experience, could only mean one thing. “They’re all possessed.”
Korlon looked at him credulously. “Possessed? That’s not possible. He was fine when I left him.”
Arcanous ignored him. “What’s your brother’s name?” By this point the men were walking toward them, Korlon’s brother in the lead.
“Lonir, why?”
“You’ll see. Stay here.” With that, Arcanous stood and walked to another empty table.
