Scanran Trust
Chapter Three
To See the King
Faun gazed in wonder at the city of Corus. She had never seen something so large, except once. She had grown up in her small village by the Tortallan border, and it had had nothing large in it other then the church. This place was a huge, bustling city with a few towers, and oh, the palace! What a large and fancy place that was! With towers and flowers, trees, courtyards, all shining in the sunlight it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Faun could barely keep her mouth shut. "It's pretty, isn't it?" Kel whispered in her ear. Faun could barely move her head enough to nod. Kel chuckled. She had been very surprised with Corus when she had come, but not this surprised. "Well, I did grow up in the Yamani islands and not a small village in Scanra. It makes sense," Kel thought to herself. Even with her newfound understanding, Kel couldn't help but laugh herself silly over the way Faun was acting. She heard Dom chuckle as well, and soon all of the Own, except for a few, were chuckling. Faun realized they were laughing at her and, from reading their minds, she could see that she had been quite a spectacle, so she laughed as well. Soon all of the riders except Raoul were laughing. It proved to lighten up the atmosphere.
Kel stood in front of the King, and bowed deeply. Her face was red and her mouth was set into a determined line. For the first time in her life she had yelled at Raoul. "Keladry, what do you think of this Scanran girl?" King Jonathan asked her.
"I think she is civil, kind, and nice. She never did anything remotely bad to us on the whole trip. Of course, she couldn't really anyway because she was tied up in chains. She came here because she is doing the will of her sister, who happens to be dead. Her sister and father were born in Tortall, and she has come here now, after her village is destroyed, to warn us about something. I don't know what it is, she said she should only tell the King and Queen, but it must be something because every time she speaks the name of the thing she is warning us against, all the horses in the camp neigh and buck. I think she has some kind of telekinetic power because she can talk to the horses in her mind. I know she isn't like Daine, because animals don't come running to her every second, but she has some kind of power," Kel said, her face boiling mad as she spoke.
"Keladry, why are you so mad?" asked the King.
"Because a person tries to come to Corus to HELP US, and what do we do? Put her in a dungeon and keep her in chains just because she came out of Scanra!" Kel screamed. All the room became deathly silent, for Keladry of Mindelan had screamed at the King.
"I was not aware of this treatment," the King said angrily, "who is responsible for it?"
"Lord Raoul of Goldenlake and Malories Peak, your grace," Kel answered, staring straight at Raoul. Raoul was very tense but stood tall and proud. "Raoul, just because you hate the Scanrans doesn't give you the right to imprison them without an order from me!" the King shouted angrily. "Go get her immediately, and take off her chains!" Raoul nodded solemnly and walked out. "Thank you, your grace," Kel said, bowing.
Faun stood in front of the King, her chains removed and her head high. "I am Faun, daughter of Erick of Whitethorn. I have come here from my home in Scanra to warn you of an evil coming. The Dark Mage, Avadth, has been awakened and he is destroying Scanra as we speak. He is the one who destroyed my village, and he is after all kinds of mages. I was the only mage in my village, so he has failed once, and I cannot let him get to me. I only came to warn you of him," Faun said, and bowed.
"Who is this Dark Mage and what kind of magic do you have?" the king asked.
"I have the magic of the mind, telekinesis. The Dark Mage is an evil Scanran mage from long ago. He destroyed most of Scanra and divided what was left into the tribes we have today. One man, the White Mage, who had powers similar to mine, as does the Dark Mage, came out of hiding and trapped the Dark Mage in a cage of telekinetic energy. He has been there ever since, until a few weeks ago, when an evil man named Saruf the Cunning let him out. To destroy the Dark Mage you must kill Saruf and the Dark Mage, which is no easy task. I came here to tell you so that you could send people out to kill him," Faun answered. The King's eyes grew wide and he dismissed the court, sending Faun to a room in the palace and everyone else to their rooms. Everyone except Alanna the Lioness, Daine Sarrasri, Numair Salamin, Kel, Raoul, Dom, and one other man she didn't know.
Faun heard a knock on her door and she opened it. It was Kel. "We have come to a decision. Almost. Do you know where the Dark Mage is?" Kel asked. Faun nodded. "Good. We have chosen Alanna, Daine, Numair, me, Raoul, Dom, and Raoul's second cousin Brian, who is a mage and a knight to go. Brian is a mage of the same type as you. We will bring you as well because you are the only one who knows the way. Be ready early tomorrow morning." Faun just stared as Kel left. "Oh sister, why did you not tell me of this?" Faun asked as she flopped onto the bed, exhaustion finally taking hold of her. She fell into a peaceful sleep, and dreamed of the next day's journey.