Thanks again Dalamar! Y'all need to REVIEW! Plz....: )
The next chapter might be awhile...I'm kinda booked up at the moment. Anywayz, hope y'all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own $&@#!
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` ```````````````````````````````` The Great Road North that led to Corus was dotted with small towns and villages where the weary traveler could get some rest. Forrooth was no exception and that night The Red Bear Inn was packed as usual. As one of the bigger villages, if not a small town, Forrooth was always full of merchants, travelers, soldiers, sometimes knights, and even the occasional noble.
The main room of the Red Bear was filled with people drinking, talking (shouting really), laughing, and dancing. The cheerful and wild mood that captivated the people in the inn that night seemed to pass right over the two men sitting slightly apart from the commotion.
Both men wore dark cloaks and hats low on their heads as to hide their appearances. The first man was tall and broad with dark skin, while the second one was tall, but not as tall as his companion, light-skinned and lean.
After the two had ordered and received their drinks the second man leaned slightly towards the other so he wouldn't be overheard. "Well, this is a surprise. I didn't think you could stand to bring yourself to share company with the lower society."
The first man smirked. "I have become more...tolerable of dirt in these past years." His face suddenly became serious as he said, "when is the soonest we can begin the first phase?"
The second man shook his head. "Your friends seem to be more capable than I anticipated on slowing down our shipments, but I think we will be ready in two weeks time."
The first man scowled. "That's the best you can do?" he whispered angrily. "The window of opportunity is getting smaller and smaller."
The second man looked unflinchingly at the other man. "It's the best I can do," he said coolly.
The first man leaned back in his chair, looking around casually. Suddenly, he grabbed a knife from inside his cloak and hurled it at a shadowy patch close to the stairs. A man collapsed on the floor with the knife embedded in his chest. "Thought so," the man said simply.
The second man just raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to clean that up?"
The first man stood up and smirked at him as he threw a gold noble on the table. "I'll let you take care of it," he said before he strode out of the inn and into the night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So where are we going today oh wise one?" Luke said cheerfully as he followed Rhazier on his horse.
Rhazier ignored him as they passed through the city gates. Once outside the city he turned to Luke. "To get a little outdoor training in of course."
Luke raised his eyebrows in surprise and interest. "Really," he said. "What kind of training are you talking about?"
Rhazier smiled slightly. "You'll see," was all he said.
After about an hour of riding, Rhazier led them off the main road and onto a dirt path that was almost invisible amidst all the trees. They rode for another hour before they reached the end of the path. Luke just looked at Rhazier who rode forward confidently on his horse. Rhazier stopped just short of the trees and clearly said, "Lohedri Fuhr Dasme."
Luke's eyes widened in amazement as the trees parted to reveal a broad dirt road. "That's a nice little trick," he commented.
Rhazier smiled and nudged his horse into a walk. Luke sighed and followed thinking about the last time Rhazier hadn't told him where they were going. Well, he certainly had something interesting to look forward to.
They had ridden in silence for about twenty minutes when the trees started to thin out. Luke could make out buildings through the trees. People too, could be seen milling around. As they cleared the trees, Luke got his first good look at the place.
It was obviously a training camp for the rebellion, probably one of their largest if not the largest camp. Luke looked around trying to estimate how many people were here. Rhazier, meanwhile, was talking to a group of guards that had come up. The soldiers nodded, and cleared the way for them to pass. Luke grinned at them. None of them grinned back.
'Rough crowd,' Luke thought as he followed Rhazier to a two story building made of dark grey stone. Probably headquarters Luke realized suddenly as he spied a man in what appeared to be the camp uniform of a dark gray shirt, dark green leggings and tunic, and black boots coming toward them from the building. This man carried an air of leadership about him that reminded Luke of Rhazier.
"Rhazier," the man said in greeting, smiling as Rhazier dismounted from his horse, "it's been awhile."
Rhazier turned to the other man and grasped his forearm heartily. "Yes, it's been awhile since I've been to Darkstrike."
Luke gave his horse to a boy that had come up quietly while the exchange was going on. Turning, he looked at the two men. Rhazier waved him over. "Mac, this is Luke, the newest addition to the circle. Luke, Mac is the head of Camp Darkstrike."
Mac kept a broad smile on his face as he clasped forearms with Luke. "So, you're the Tyran."
Luke grinned. "Looks like my reputation precedes me," he said.
Mac laughed. "Why don't you two follow me and I'll brief you."
Mac led them into headquarters and up the stairs to a sitting room that had a window that overlooked most of the camp. A young woman brought in a tray with three glasses on it and a pitcher containing ale. As they sipped on their ale, Rhazier asked Mac how things were going at Darkstrike.
"Busy as ever," Mac replied. "We'll be graduating seventy-seven trainees come summer, sixty-six field agents, seven mages, and four healers."
Rhazier nodded his head as he sipped on his wine. "How many new recruits?"
"Around a hundred give or take a few," Mac said. "More keep coming every year."
"About how many people are in this camp?" Luke asked.
"Around fourteen hundred," Mac replied, "and this camp can hold a maximum of sixteen hundred."
Luke leaned back in his chair. "I suppose the trees blocking the path are more than just an illusion?"
Mac nodded. "They're what's called a materialization," he explained. "The trees are solid object until someone says the releasing phrase or the magic is disrupted somehow."
Luke thought of something to ask Rhazier, but he wanted to wait until he could speak to him privately. Instead, he asked, "What kind of training goes on here?"
"A little bit of everything," said Mac. "Recruits wanting to go into the field are taught hand-to-hand combat, fighting with knives, staffs, and survival skills. Aspiring mages are taught control, manipulation, spells, and other such things that are unique to their Gift. Healers are taught how to heal anything from a broken fingertip to a severed limb. All of the recruits are taught the art of spying."
"The instructors here at Darkstrike are some of the best in Tortall, if not the entire Eastern Lands," Rhazier spoke up. "We recruit everywhere from the Yamani Islands to the high mountains of Saren."
"Where do you put everybody?" Luke questioned.
"The higher-ups stay here at headquarters," Mac replied. "Across the way are the soldiers' quarters, which each holds 200 soldiers, 800 in all. Beside us is the cookhouse and mess hall, where about 20 people reside. On the other side of the flagpole are the hospital and blacksmith/weaponry with 15 and 20 people respectively. About 50 hands live in the building down from the blacksmith, next to the barns. Behind the hospital and blacksmith is where the novice healers and mages reside, all 250 of them. And behind them are the classrooms where the 30 teachers live, not to mention the practice courts. Oh and north of the hospital is where the stables are and the 75 hostlers' quarters. Next to the stables is the tanner's where there is a staff of 15. Well, I think I covered it pretty good don't you?" Mac asked as he looked at Rhazier.
"He probably knows more than he ever wanted to hear," Rhazier commented dryly.
On the contrary, Luke was fascinated. To have a camp like this under your control would be a rewarding venture on itself. "What time is supper?" he asked, feeling his stomach rumble.
Mac grinned. "About two hours from now if you want to go to your room and rest."
Luke nodded and after saying goodbye to Mac and Rhazier, he climbed the stairs to his room. Falling on the bed he almost fell instantly asleep, but not before one last thought crossed his mind, 'I wonder how things are in Corus?'
Things in Corus were not as good as Luke would have hoped. Three members of the rebellion had gone missing while undercover at a merchant's house. Loni suspected foul play of course, but there was no evidence. They had just seemed to disappear.
"No one's heard anything down at Fiddler's," Josua announced as he walked through the door and casually tossed his wet cloak on a chair. "At least they hadn't heard anything someone told them they didn't here."
"You know one of them's lying then?" Loni questioned as she turned around.
"Zeke Mossler," Josua replied, "Swears on the Goddess that he wasn't anywhere near Fiddler's house when they disappeared. He smiled grimly, "except he was seen by Lila when he went down to the kitchens from his post to get a snack."
Loni shook her head. "So he's either being blackmailed or paid." She looked at the panes of glass that were streaked with raindrops, "we need to find out which, so we can either destroy the blackmail or pay him more then they did."
"Already on it," Josua replied smoothly. "Dreir should be back any minute."
Loni nodded. "I sent word up to Trows in Port Legann. He's sent out all of the tracers available within the border. They'd have to be gods to get out of Tortall in less than twenty hours."
At that moment a drenched form came hurtling through the door. "Sir, Miss," he said respectfully as he addressed them. "Zeke's body has been found in his room at Fiddler's, three stab wounds in the chest."
"WHAT" roared Josua. "I SAW HIM NOT TWO HOURS AGO, WHO THE HELL WAS WATCHING HIS ROOM?"
"Josua calm down," Loni said sharply. "Explain yourself," she said calmly.
Drier looked slightly terrified as he spoke. "I went to question Zeke about thirty minutes ago," he began. "There were people watching the house, but no one was watching his room which struck me as odd. So I went in, and there he was sprawled out on the floor, the blood flowing out of him. I called in help, and ran as fast as I could over here."
Loni nodded and turned to Josua. "Who was supposed to be watching his room?" she asked quietly.
Josua still looked livid as he replied, "Feryl."
Drier looked faintly surprised at this. "Feryl? He was posted outside of the house."
Loni frowned. 'Something is not right,' she thought.
"He was assigned to watch Zeke's room," Josua hissed between clenched teeth.
"Drier, I want you to get Feryl over here now," Loni commanded sharply. "I want to know what the hell happened over there."
Drier nodded and rushed out of the room. Josua slammed his fist on the table. "You break it you buy it," Loni commented dryly.
Josua glared. "I'll be back," he said shortly as he threw on his cloak and walked out into the rain.
Loni sighed. 'Rhazier, come home soon,' she thought, 'we need you.'
The next chapter might be awhile...I'm kinda booked up at the moment. Anywayz, hope y'all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own $&@#!
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` ```````````````````````````````` The Great Road North that led to Corus was dotted with small towns and villages where the weary traveler could get some rest. Forrooth was no exception and that night The Red Bear Inn was packed as usual. As one of the bigger villages, if not a small town, Forrooth was always full of merchants, travelers, soldiers, sometimes knights, and even the occasional noble.
The main room of the Red Bear was filled with people drinking, talking (shouting really), laughing, and dancing. The cheerful and wild mood that captivated the people in the inn that night seemed to pass right over the two men sitting slightly apart from the commotion.
Both men wore dark cloaks and hats low on their heads as to hide their appearances. The first man was tall and broad with dark skin, while the second one was tall, but not as tall as his companion, light-skinned and lean.
After the two had ordered and received their drinks the second man leaned slightly towards the other so he wouldn't be overheard. "Well, this is a surprise. I didn't think you could stand to bring yourself to share company with the lower society."
The first man smirked. "I have become more...tolerable of dirt in these past years." His face suddenly became serious as he said, "when is the soonest we can begin the first phase?"
The second man shook his head. "Your friends seem to be more capable than I anticipated on slowing down our shipments, but I think we will be ready in two weeks time."
The first man scowled. "That's the best you can do?" he whispered angrily. "The window of opportunity is getting smaller and smaller."
The second man looked unflinchingly at the other man. "It's the best I can do," he said coolly.
The first man leaned back in his chair, looking around casually. Suddenly, he grabbed a knife from inside his cloak and hurled it at a shadowy patch close to the stairs. A man collapsed on the floor with the knife embedded in his chest. "Thought so," the man said simply.
The second man just raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to clean that up?"
The first man stood up and smirked at him as he threw a gold noble on the table. "I'll let you take care of it," he said before he strode out of the inn and into the night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So where are we going today oh wise one?" Luke said cheerfully as he followed Rhazier on his horse.
Rhazier ignored him as they passed through the city gates. Once outside the city he turned to Luke. "To get a little outdoor training in of course."
Luke raised his eyebrows in surprise and interest. "Really," he said. "What kind of training are you talking about?"
Rhazier smiled slightly. "You'll see," was all he said.
After about an hour of riding, Rhazier led them off the main road and onto a dirt path that was almost invisible amidst all the trees. They rode for another hour before they reached the end of the path. Luke just looked at Rhazier who rode forward confidently on his horse. Rhazier stopped just short of the trees and clearly said, "Lohedri Fuhr Dasme."
Luke's eyes widened in amazement as the trees parted to reveal a broad dirt road. "That's a nice little trick," he commented.
Rhazier smiled and nudged his horse into a walk. Luke sighed and followed thinking about the last time Rhazier hadn't told him where they were going. Well, he certainly had something interesting to look forward to.
They had ridden in silence for about twenty minutes when the trees started to thin out. Luke could make out buildings through the trees. People too, could be seen milling around. As they cleared the trees, Luke got his first good look at the place.
It was obviously a training camp for the rebellion, probably one of their largest if not the largest camp. Luke looked around trying to estimate how many people were here. Rhazier, meanwhile, was talking to a group of guards that had come up. The soldiers nodded, and cleared the way for them to pass. Luke grinned at them. None of them grinned back.
'Rough crowd,' Luke thought as he followed Rhazier to a two story building made of dark grey stone. Probably headquarters Luke realized suddenly as he spied a man in what appeared to be the camp uniform of a dark gray shirt, dark green leggings and tunic, and black boots coming toward them from the building. This man carried an air of leadership about him that reminded Luke of Rhazier.
"Rhazier," the man said in greeting, smiling as Rhazier dismounted from his horse, "it's been awhile."
Rhazier turned to the other man and grasped his forearm heartily. "Yes, it's been awhile since I've been to Darkstrike."
Luke gave his horse to a boy that had come up quietly while the exchange was going on. Turning, he looked at the two men. Rhazier waved him over. "Mac, this is Luke, the newest addition to the circle. Luke, Mac is the head of Camp Darkstrike."
Mac kept a broad smile on his face as he clasped forearms with Luke. "So, you're the Tyran."
Luke grinned. "Looks like my reputation precedes me," he said.
Mac laughed. "Why don't you two follow me and I'll brief you."
Mac led them into headquarters and up the stairs to a sitting room that had a window that overlooked most of the camp. A young woman brought in a tray with three glasses on it and a pitcher containing ale. As they sipped on their ale, Rhazier asked Mac how things were going at Darkstrike.
"Busy as ever," Mac replied. "We'll be graduating seventy-seven trainees come summer, sixty-six field agents, seven mages, and four healers."
Rhazier nodded his head as he sipped on his wine. "How many new recruits?"
"Around a hundred give or take a few," Mac said. "More keep coming every year."
"About how many people are in this camp?" Luke asked.
"Around fourteen hundred," Mac replied, "and this camp can hold a maximum of sixteen hundred."
Luke leaned back in his chair. "I suppose the trees blocking the path are more than just an illusion?"
Mac nodded. "They're what's called a materialization," he explained. "The trees are solid object until someone says the releasing phrase or the magic is disrupted somehow."
Luke thought of something to ask Rhazier, but he wanted to wait until he could speak to him privately. Instead, he asked, "What kind of training goes on here?"
"A little bit of everything," said Mac. "Recruits wanting to go into the field are taught hand-to-hand combat, fighting with knives, staffs, and survival skills. Aspiring mages are taught control, manipulation, spells, and other such things that are unique to their Gift. Healers are taught how to heal anything from a broken fingertip to a severed limb. All of the recruits are taught the art of spying."
"The instructors here at Darkstrike are some of the best in Tortall, if not the entire Eastern Lands," Rhazier spoke up. "We recruit everywhere from the Yamani Islands to the high mountains of Saren."
"Where do you put everybody?" Luke questioned.
"The higher-ups stay here at headquarters," Mac replied. "Across the way are the soldiers' quarters, which each holds 200 soldiers, 800 in all. Beside us is the cookhouse and mess hall, where about 20 people reside. On the other side of the flagpole are the hospital and blacksmith/weaponry with 15 and 20 people respectively. About 50 hands live in the building down from the blacksmith, next to the barns. Behind the hospital and blacksmith is where the novice healers and mages reside, all 250 of them. And behind them are the classrooms where the 30 teachers live, not to mention the practice courts. Oh and north of the hospital is where the stables are and the 75 hostlers' quarters. Next to the stables is the tanner's where there is a staff of 15. Well, I think I covered it pretty good don't you?" Mac asked as he looked at Rhazier.
"He probably knows more than he ever wanted to hear," Rhazier commented dryly.
On the contrary, Luke was fascinated. To have a camp like this under your control would be a rewarding venture on itself. "What time is supper?" he asked, feeling his stomach rumble.
Mac grinned. "About two hours from now if you want to go to your room and rest."
Luke nodded and after saying goodbye to Mac and Rhazier, he climbed the stairs to his room. Falling on the bed he almost fell instantly asleep, but not before one last thought crossed his mind, 'I wonder how things are in Corus?'
Things in Corus were not as good as Luke would have hoped. Three members of the rebellion had gone missing while undercover at a merchant's house. Loni suspected foul play of course, but there was no evidence. They had just seemed to disappear.
"No one's heard anything down at Fiddler's," Josua announced as he walked through the door and casually tossed his wet cloak on a chair. "At least they hadn't heard anything someone told them they didn't here."
"You know one of them's lying then?" Loni questioned as she turned around.
"Zeke Mossler," Josua replied, "Swears on the Goddess that he wasn't anywhere near Fiddler's house when they disappeared. He smiled grimly, "except he was seen by Lila when he went down to the kitchens from his post to get a snack."
Loni shook her head. "So he's either being blackmailed or paid." She looked at the panes of glass that were streaked with raindrops, "we need to find out which, so we can either destroy the blackmail or pay him more then they did."
"Already on it," Josua replied smoothly. "Dreir should be back any minute."
Loni nodded. "I sent word up to Trows in Port Legann. He's sent out all of the tracers available within the border. They'd have to be gods to get out of Tortall in less than twenty hours."
At that moment a drenched form came hurtling through the door. "Sir, Miss," he said respectfully as he addressed them. "Zeke's body has been found in his room at Fiddler's, three stab wounds in the chest."
"WHAT" roared Josua. "I SAW HIM NOT TWO HOURS AGO, WHO THE HELL WAS WATCHING HIS ROOM?"
"Josua calm down," Loni said sharply. "Explain yourself," she said calmly.
Drier looked slightly terrified as he spoke. "I went to question Zeke about thirty minutes ago," he began. "There were people watching the house, but no one was watching his room which struck me as odd. So I went in, and there he was sprawled out on the floor, the blood flowing out of him. I called in help, and ran as fast as I could over here."
Loni nodded and turned to Josua. "Who was supposed to be watching his room?" she asked quietly.
Josua still looked livid as he replied, "Feryl."
Drier looked faintly surprised at this. "Feryl? He was posted outside of the house."
Loni frowned. 'Something is not right,' she thought.
"He was assigned to watch Zeke's room," Josua hissed between clenched teeth.
"Drier, I want you to get Feryl over here now," Loni commanded sharply. "I want to know what the hell happened over there."
Drier nodded and rushed out of the room. Josua slammed his fist on the table. "You break it you buy it," Loni commented dryly.
Josua glared. "I'll be back," he said shortly as he threw on his cloak and walked out into the rain.
Loni sighed. 'Rhazier, come home soon,' she thought, 'we need you.'