Chapter 8: Haley—The Rescue

The night had been stormy, and neither Haley nor Jason had rested easily. They had finally fallen asleep just before dawn. It was full daylight, perhaps two hours into the day, when they were awakened by noise from the road. They had camped on a bluff above the road. Slowly, quietly, they crawled to the edge of the bluff from which they could see the source of the noise.

A man in a hooded, rust-colored robe belted with a rope stood gesturing to a soldier. The soldier stood over a boy who was crouching at his feet. Another soldier restrained an older boy—perhaps a tween—who was trying to reach the first.

“His ankle is broken,” the soldier said of the younger boy.

“Kill him,” ordered the Rust-Robe.

“No!” the older boy yelled, struggling to free himself from the soldier’s grip.

“No!” Haley whispered.

At the same instant, Jason stood. His sling was already whirling around his head. Haley hurriedly strung his bow and pulled an arrow from the quiver. As he looked for a target, Haley sensed Jason release the sling. The rock struck the first soldier in the forehead and he dropped, senseless or dead, to the road.

The Rust-Robe didn’t hesitate. “Kill them both!” he ordered the surviving guard. Haley’s arrow pierced the second guard’s throat before he could obey.

The rust-robed man had seen the direction from which Haley’s arrow had come, and turned toward the bluff. Perhaps it was because Jason was taller. Perhaps a bush concealed Haley. In any case, when the man raised his hands, it was Jason whom he attacked. A blood-red streak of light left the man’s hands and rushed toward Jason. Instinctively, Jason held his hands in front of himself. The immaterial javelin struck Jason. It burst and seemed to wash over him before sinking into the ground at his feet.

Haley loosed his second arrow just as the light left the man’s hands. The arrow struck the man’s left shoulder. The man looked at the arrow for a moment before grabbing it with his right hand. The arrow began to slide from his shoulder. The man focused on the arrow and the pain. He didn’t see the older of his two prisoners creep behind him, nor did he sense the heavy iron chains that swung between the boy’s manacles and crushed the man’s skull.

“Jason! Are you . . .?” Haley looked at his friend.

“I’m okay,” Jason said. “I felt it, but it didn’t hurt me.”

“It was magic, wasn’t it?” Haley asked.

Jason nodded. “Some kind of magic, I think. The man in red—he must be a mage. We need to get to him quickly.”

On the road below, the older boy was trying to reach into the first guard’s belt pouch. The man had fallen on top of the pouch. The boy was struggling to move the body.

Jason and Haley ran down the bluff to the road. The boy looked up as Jason and Haley arrived. “Help me,” he said. “The key is in his pouch.”

“We’ve got to get away from here,” Jason replied. “I’m not sorry that we killed those men. They were going to kill you. But still, I don’t want to hang for it. He turned to Haley. “Help me pull the bodies off the road. We’ll be safer if they’re not discovered.”

Haley was crouched beside the younger boy. Once the boy’s manacles had been removed, Haley examined his ankle. “His ankle’s not broken, just sprained. But I must bind it. You two, you move the bodies.”

Jason nodded, and addressed the older boy. “Help me, please.”

“I want his sword,” the boy protested, as he unbuckled the guard’s belt. “And the mage’s purse.” The boy gestured toward the red-robed man, confirming Jason’s suspicion. “He had all the money. And the guards’ packs.”

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll get all that,” Jason said. “But first we’ve got to hide the bodies!”

By the time Jason and his reluctant helper had pulled the bodies off the road and hidden them in bushes, Haley had bound the younger boy’s ankle. When the older boys came back, Haley addressed Jason. “This is Troy. The one with you is Seth. They were taken by the red-robe mage and his soldiers. They were on the way to someplace called Herten. Troy won’t tell me anything else.”

“My name is Jason,” that boy said. “My companion is Haley. Who were these men? Why had they taken you? Are you criminals? Were they going to sell you?”

“Don’t say anything more!” Seth ordered the younger boy. “You’ve already said too much!”

“They saved our lives,” Troy said to Seth. “And they’re both mages. They don’t know—they don’t know, but they must know.”

“Whatever we must know can’t be as important as getting away from here,” Jason said.

The four boys, having stripped the bodies of the soldiers and the mage of everything useful, were back on the bluff, but much farther from the road. Seth and Troy had ravenously eaten the remains of Jason and Haley’s supper from the night before.

“Troy said that Jason and I were mages. But we’re not!” Haley protested.

“Yes, you are,” Troy said. “When you bound my ankle, I saw the magic you used. And Jason would be dead if he’d not used magic to protect himself from the Red-Robe’s missile.”

The boy seemed so sure of himself, neither Jason nor Haley could respond, at first. Finally, Jason asked, “How do you know these things?”

“For the same reason I was a prisoner. I can see magic. And the Red-Robes fear those who can do that,” Troy replied.

“And take us prisoner,” Seth added.

“You, too?” Haley asked.

Seth nodded.

Troy continued his explanation. “When Haley bound my ankle, I saw magic leave his hands. I could feel it, too. It felt warm, and made the pain go away. When the magic missile struck Jason, I saw his blue shield, and I saw the power of the missile go back into the matrix as it flowed around Jason.”

“What is your magic, Seth?” Jason asked.

Seth looked embarrassed. “My power is only to destroy,” he said. “I can break a rock, bring down a tree. I think I can call lightning, but I’m afraid to try.” His voice became a ragged whisper as he added, “I can kill.”

“Then why didn’t you kill the guards and the Red-Robe, and escape?” Haley asked the obvious question.

“Because of these,” the boy said, pulling from the guard’s pack the manacles with which he’d been bound. “They’re too heavy for me to gather the magic I need; and, I think the metal sucks up the magic. I tried, but I couldn’t seem to hold on to it.”

“Where were they taking you?” Jason asked. “Where are you from?”

“I lived on a farm about two tendays down the road in that direction,” Troy said, pointing to the west. “That’s when they took me. They came to the farm and just took me. About ten days later, we came to Seth’s home.”

“I lived in a village,” Seth said. “They arrived one morning during market, and ordered all the boys and tweens to assemble. The Red Robe pointed to me, and the soldier struck me to the ground. When I woke up, I was bound with these manacles. We started walking. No one from the village watched . . .” The boy’s voice trailed off.

“They were taking us to Herten. At least, that’s all they talked about—how far it was to Herten,” Troy said. “That’s where they would take our souls and turn us into slaves. Well, they would!” the boy insisted, sensing the others’ disbelief.

“I tried to fight a couple of times. The soldiers usually just knocked me down. I think they wanted to kill me, but were afraid of the Red-Robe. Once, he did some kind of spell on me. I felt like I was on fire, but when it was over, there were no burns. He said that was just a taste of what I’d get when we reached Herten,” Seth said.

“How do you know you can kill,” Jason asked Seth. The two boys were returning from a successful hunt. A brace of pheasants hung over Jason’s shoulder.

Seth turned quickly and held his arms in front of his body, his hands balled into fists. He was red and shaking with rage. “Because I have!” he snarled at Jason. “Because I have!”

Jason put his hands softly around Seth’s fists. “Please don’t be angry with me, Seth. I have killed, too. The stone that killed the guard was from my sling.”

Seth pulled his hands away. “You don’t need to remind me that you saved Troy and me,” the boy said, his voice still shaking with his anger.

“Seth, I didn’t mean it that way,” Jason said. “I only meant that I know how you feel. Please . . .”

Seth had regained some degree of self-control, but his voice was still harsh. “You can’t possibly know how I feel. You killed a guard. He was a stranger. I killed my father.”

Jason was stunned. “I’m sorry twice, Seth. No, three times. I’m sorry I thought I could share your hurt. I’m sorry you were hurt so badly. I’m sorry you won’t let me be your friend even though I want to.”

The two boys walked back to their camp; silence was an icy wall between them.

After supper, Seth sought out Jason. “Jason, you were right, and I was wrong. Now, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I struck out at you. I’m sorry I wouldn’t let you share my hurt. Will you . . . will you ask me, again?”

Jason took Seth’s hand, and gestured for the boy to sit. When they were both comfortable, their backs to a great tree, Jason asked softly. “Please, Seth, tell me.”

* * * * *

“It was a few days before the Summer Solstice,” Seth began. “The fields were sown, the animals had birthed, we had just cut a new millstone . . . my father was the miller . . . there was nothing to do but prepare for the Solstice celebration.

“We weren’t Believers, or anything,” Seth hastened to say, “but a market and festival were traditional. Anyway, two days before Solstice, a caravan of Romany came to town. Some people were pleased; the Romany were colorful, they were entertainers. Some people weren’t pleased, but I didn’t know about that. Until later, that is.

“I had just become a boy, and all I saw were the bright colors, the gold circles in their ears, the silver bells on the hems of their tunics, and the blue-black hair and silver eyes of one of the boys. I thought he was the most beautiful boy I’d ever seen. I fell in love the instant I saw him.

“Most of the Rom were shorter than average, and he was short even for a Rom—just a few inches taller than me. He told me later my black eyes and silver hair—the opposite of his hair and eyes--had attracted him. My hair’s just ash blonde, but his words were as colorful as his clothes. Anyway, we shared boy magic by the side of the stream the first afternoon, and again that night in their camp.”

Jason put his arm around Seth’s shoulder and pulled the boy closer. Whether for warmth or companionship, Seth snuggled closer.

“My father was angry when he found out where I’d been. I thought it was because I’d not gotten his permission, or because I was out so late. But it was summer, and it was still light when I reached home, even though it was after matins.

“The next day, father kept me busy at the mill, even though there was nothing to do. In the middle of the afternoon, he left, and I ran to the Rom camp to see my friend. He winked when he saw me. He was doing something with a horse, but as soon as he finished, he gave the lead to another boy and ran to the edge of the camp where I was standing. We kissed, and then went into the woods, to the stream. There was a pond where we could swim.

“After a while, we heard shouting, and then screams, coming from the direction of the camp. He pulled on his trousers and boots, and ran toward the noise. I put on my boots, picked up the rest of his clothes and mine, and ran after.

“The wagons were burning…and so were some of the Rom. Others lay dead or dying, with arrows and quarrels sticking from them. A few were fighting with swords against monsters. At least, that’s what they looked like. Taller than the Rom, and stout. They were wearing white robes and white hoods—like flour sacks tied over their heads. There were eyeholes cut in the hoods, and I could see that there were human eyes in those heads. The way the sacks were tied one corner made a point at the top of their heads. If it weren’t for the blood and screaming, it might have been funny.

“I saw my friend. He had reached a body lying in the grass and picked up a sword. I was still 50 feet away, when one of the white robed men attacked my friend, knocking the sword from his hand. The white robe raised his sword to chop it down on my friend.”

Seth’s voice grew even quieter. “I knew I could kill . . . I’d done it to a dog once, it was about to bite me, and then to a bear. I raised my hands and wished the man dead. I felt the power leave my hands, and saw the man stagger backwards when it hit him. I was too late. The sword caught my friend across the top of his head. I think . . . I hope . . . he died instantly.

“The man . . . he didn’t. He twitched and screamed and shuddered and clawed at the hood until it came off and I saw my father with blood pouring out of his ears and eyes and nose and mouth.”

Seth took a deep breath. “No one had seen me, and no one seemed to know that I had killed my father. The next day, the Masterguildmaster told me that my father was a hero, that he had organized and led the men of the town against the . . . he said the filth of the Rom.

“If I hadn’t fallen in love with the Rom boy; if I hadn’t told my father about him, then maybe my father and he would still be alive.

“My uncle took the mill. It was his right, and it was right that his son would inherit, and not me. My uncle let me work for him, as a drudge. In a way, I’m glad the Red Robes came and took me away. I may die here, but I would surely have died there.”

*****

Jason sat quietly after Seth finished his story, and then said, “You never asked me what my magic is, Seth. It’s seeing. I can’t see magic, like Troy does, but I can see people. I can see inside you. What I see there,” he said, touching Seth’s breastbone, “is a bright light wrapped in a dark blanket that winds around and around until the light is nearly smothered. When you were angry with me this afternoon, I saw the blanket draw tighter. Tonight, it’s as if you lifted a corner, and let the light shine out, just a little.”

Seth sat quietly for a moment, and then said, “That’s how I feel, sometimes. I feel as if something were trying to smother me. But you’re saying it’s me . . . that I’m trying to smother myself.” The flat tone of the boy’s voice made this last a statement, not a question. It was as if Seth had had an epiphany.

Jason saw the results, immediately. The dark blanket did not disappear, but it became thinner, and Jason saw light piercing holes, pinpricks throughout the blanket. It will take time, Jason thought, but he will rid himself of that darkness.

*****

The guards’ packs and bedrolls had contained more than the boys were able to carry, but they had taken extra blankets, and huddled together, grateful for their warmth. Seth and Troy had not been able to share boy magic during their journey.

“The Red Robe said it: they didn’t want to take any chances, especially with me,” Seth explained. The boys had, however, developed a strong bond based on captivity and common deprivation, and their first night together was joyous for them both. Afterwards, however, Seth sought out Jason.

“Are you and Haley heart-bound?” he asked. “Or, will you share with me?”

“Haley and I have been thrown together by fate,” Jason said quietly. Haley and Troy were fast asleep, and he didn’t want to wake them. “I am the only companion he has known and, except for a brother who showed me the mysteries, he’s been the only companion I have had. We are bound by ties that may be even stronger than love but yes, I would like very much to share with you.”

*****

Haley dared not move; he hardly dared to breathe. He had taken canteens to find water. Just upstream, and between him and his companions, were two of the Red-Robes and five soldiers.

“They can’t be far,” one Red-Robe said. “Not more than a day ahead of us.”

“They’re moving slowly,” the other Red-Robe said. “There are four, but one—the smallest—is limping, likely slowing the others.”

“We’ll have them, tomorrow,” the first Red-Robe said, turning away from the stream and back to the road. The second Red-Robe and the soldiers followed.

“They’re following us!” Haley reported, after repeating the overheard conversation to his companions. “But they think we’re east of here. They’re going east, too, and will soon know that they’ve passed us.”

“How do you know they’re following us, and not someone else?” Seth asked.

“They said four, and one limping,” Haley replied.

“I’m sorry,” Troy said. “I’m holding you back. If it weren’t for me—”

“If it weren’t for you,” Jason interrupted, “we’d be exactly where they think we are: less than a day ahead of them on the road. Because we stopped so you could rest, we’re not where they think we are, and we know we’re being hunted.”

“But how are they following us? We don’t leave footprints on the road,” Seth said.

“We do when we leave the road, though, and we do that several times a day,” Jason said.

“But, still, how . . . no, why are they following us? They can’t possibly know we’re the ones who killed the other Red-Robe and soldiers!” Seth protested.

Jason looked at Haley. “You know how the wolves always stalk the sheep with the wind in their face?” Jason asked.

“Yes, so the sheep can’t smell them,” Haley replied. “You taught me that.”

“Well,” Jason said a little less surely, “what if the Red-Robes can smell us?”

“You said they hunted for magic users,” he added, looking at Troy and Seth. “How did they know you were magic users? How did they hunt you? Troy can see magic; maybe the Red-Robes can, too. Only from farther away. Maybe they can smell magic; maybe they can sense it in some way we don’t know about.”

“Everyone used to say that the Red Robes could smell a mage,” Troy said. “I thought it was just a saying. I never thought they really meant it!”

“The one who took me . . . all the boys had to line up. He walked straight toward me, as if he already knew.” Seth added.

“That’s it, then,” Jason said. “We must stop using magic, in case that makes it easier for them. And, we’ve got to get a long way away . . . farther than their noses can smell.”

“But how,” Haley asked. “They’re ahead of us, now.”

“Two days ago, we passed a road leading north,” Jason began.

“Into the mountains? And winter coming on?” Seth scoffed. “We’d die.”

“The road leads to a town, I think. We saw wagons come from that direction. The wagons were full . . . there’s not been the famine here that Haley and I knew,” Jason ticked off the reasons for following his plan. “It will require us to backtrack two days, something I think the Red-Robes won’t expect.”