Her new routine got easier and easier each day. Before long she was waking up before Lucas, and her lessons began to come more easily. After her lessons with Lucas Jesse practiced archery with her and gave her lessons on horse back riding. These were fun times for her. Michael joined them almost daily. The only time he wasn't present is when the king called council amongst his higher officials. At night she had lessons with Roger. These slowly became harder than Lucas's teachings. They started requiring much more concentration and they had many small bits and pieces.
Shelby felt odd learning the forbidden spells. But Roger insisted on her learning them. In the months that followed she began to actualy grow attached to the dead sorcerer. He was hard on her about her lessons but whne they were done teaching he made a decent friend. He gave her insight on the "What Not To Do's" while at Court. He told her the stories of his darker days. Shelby couldn't believe the things he had to tell her. He described to her the university in Carthak, and the great City of the Gods. She was entranced with the tales of how he tried to overthrow his uncle and cousin, and how he almost got away with it. Shelby made it clear that she didn't approve but it was intresting to hear the story from another point of view. The pendant he gave her hung around her neck on a long silver chain. She hand't run into a situation where she needed to use it yet. But she kept it around her neck all the time.
On the weekends when she wasn't training Jesse, Michael, and some of the other knights would go with her into the city before the castle. She liked visiting the market place and look at all the things the city's residents had to sell. Nickolas had her on a small weekly allowance. She kept her money in a small box she bought from one of the castle's carpenters. She had built up a hefty stash of copper, silver, and even a few gold nobles.
It was a sunny day in early April when Shelby, Michael, Jesse, and Keith rode into town. Shelby rode on Demon today. The tall black stallion made her feel like she towered over the world. People quickly moved aside for knights and magelet.
They were in the center of the market place. Here the crowds were the thickest. People hustled and bustled, buying what they needed at one stall, then quickly moving to another. That's when Shelby noticed a light flickering in the distance. She turned to see a large stall. This one was bigger than most, with more goods on display. There was a guard on either side, watching closely for any thieves trying to make a move at the items. It was an armory. Not one commissioned by the castle, but a private armory. Shelby guided Demon over to the stall and dismounted. She had to get a closer look at the equipment that glinted in the early morning sun light. There was a sword. It's blade was polished and it rippled with light. There was palte armor, dark in color and of the finest quality. There were gauntlets, mail, daggers, but what caught Shelby's eye was the fine bow on the far end of the display.
It was a recurve bow. It was stained black, and polished to a shine. Shelby walked over to it, running a hand over it she saw intricate engraving in its wood. The shop keeper walked over to her.
"'Tis a fine bow. You's intrested in purchasin' it?" Shelby nodded as she inspected the bow. Suddenly Michael and Jesse were on either side of her, and Keith stood behind them, mounted on his big boned mare Precious.
"What are you looking at Shelby?" Jesse asked. He eyed the shop keeper. The boys knew Shelby looked like a potential target. She was inncoent faced and she had no idea how to haggle.
"I was thinking about buying this bow." She indicated the black one that she ran her hand over.
Jesse lifted and inspected it. "You wanna take a look?"
"Sure," Michael said. Shelby watched as Jesse passed the bow to Michael. He tested the bend and studied each bit of the weapon. Fianly, satisfied with his inspection he placed the bow in Shelby's hands.
"So, what do you boys think?" She asked them.
"It's well constructed, light weight." Jesse said.
"It has a nice bend, over all it's a fine piece of equipment. Do you want to buy it?" Shelby held it in her hands. The wood was warm on her pallms. She ran a thumb over it, contemplating. Finally she nodded and smiled.
"Yes, how much is it?" She asked the shop keeper. She strted to pull her purse out. Unlike most people, she did not keep it on her belt. She instead kept it on a long thong around her neck. She hid it in her tunic, safe from the fingers of a pick pocket.
The shop keep tapped his chin. "Twenty gold nobles." Shelby felt her heart break. She didn't have that much.
"That's ridiculous!" Michael exclaimed. "She'll pay no more than five!"
The shop keep scoffed at Michael. His kind demeanor dissappeared. "For such a fine piece of equipment I'll take no less than fifteen!" Michael opened his mouth to argue, but Shelby interrupted.
"How about I pay you eight gold nobles and ten silver." She offered. Her eyes looked at the man behind the counter pleadingly. For a second he just stood there and huffed.
"Fine, eight gold nobles, and ten silver nobles." Shelby smiled gleefully and opened her purse. She fished out the eight gold nobles, the only gold she had, and ten silver nobles. She placed them in the shop keeper's hand and took her new bow.
The small group remounted and continued around the market. Shelby purchased some string and polishing wax for her bow. Jesse insisted she wait to get her arrows from the palace armory.
At around noon the group stopped to have lunch. They ate a local inn that was suggested to them by a local. The food was delicous and the atmosphere was fun. Shelby was picking apart a roll and stuffing it with meat when a a strange man walked up to them. He was wearing brown breeches and knee high riding boots. His flowing cream shirt billowed as he moved and his brown vest was unbuttoned in a relaxed fashion. He had copper hair cropped short. He smiled at the knights, a sly look in his eyes.
"Hello, good sirs. It's been quite some time since we last saw eachother." He leaned at the head of the table.
"Ah, Gavin, it has been quite some time." Michael said. "Where have you been these past few months?"
"I had a few things to tend to." His smile was crooked. Shelby had to smile at the charming man. She was taking a bite of her roll when he noticed her. "And is the lass?" Shelby blushed and put her roll down.
"This is Shelby. She's studying magic at the castle. She just got here a few months ago." Keith supplied. He began on the soup a serving maid had brought him.
Gavin walked over to stradle the bench next to Shelby.
"Well it's nice to be meetin' ya lass." Shelby smiled sweetly at him.
"Gavin is the city's Rogue king." Jesse whispered in her ear. She looked at Gavin with a disbelieving gaze. He just smiled sweetly at her.
"I finally meet my first rogue and it turns out he's the king of them all." Shelby bit her lip as she looked down.
The rogue joined them in conversation for the rest of their lunch. He had some interesting tales to tell. It turned out he had been visiting the other areas he ruled, keeping his subjects cared for and in check. They were preparing to leave when screams erupted from outside. A sweat soaked man ran into the inn, there was a large tear in his shoulder. His arm hung uselessly at his side.
"It's- an attack!" He panted." They're attacking! At the wall!" He collapsed to the ground.
Knights, mage, and rogue ran out of the inn, followed by people trying to escape to their homes. There were large black beasts circling in the sky. Shelby counted at least six. They were descending lower and lower. She caught a glimpse of something and realized the beasts were carrying riders on their backs. Shelby looked towards the main gate surrounding the city. More beasts of the same color were crawling over the walls. These were smaller and wingless. About thirty were climbing over the walls into the capital.
Her knights ran to the stables. Shelby and Gavin stared as the guards on the walls fought off the creatures trying to invade the city.
"What in Mithros's name are those?" He said.
Shelby shrugged. "I have no idea, but I think I know who's making them." Gavin looked at her, a single bronze eyebrow raised. "Prince Shane. He's been seen drawing beasts from the earth before."
"Well why hasn't someone stopped him?" Gavin asked her.
"He keeps hiding over the Neonal borders. Nickolas would rather draw him out on our terf, rather than hunt for him on someone elses territorry." She explained.
"Well, I don't believe your Nickolas expected this." His mouth was tight as he watched his people run past him towards the castle.
"I don't believe he did." Shelby agreed. The knights ran out of the inn's stables, mounts in hand. Michael ran over to her and handed her Demon's reins.
"Mount up now." He ordered.
"But-" She started.
"I said now!" He yelled. Shelby looked at him wide eyed once before mounting up on Demon. The stallion quivered under the saddle. Shelby could feel his fear of the strange creatures in the sky.
What are they? He asked in her mind.
I have no clue. I think Shane made them. It looks like his handiwork.She waited for the other knights to mount up. Michael had drawn his sword and Shelby could feel his Gift buzzing. So was Keith's. His own sword glowed a deep violet.
"Alright Shelby," Michael was holding Demon's bridle and looking Shelby straight in the eyes. They were dark and angry. "You're going to ride straight to the castle." She began to protest. "Listen to me! We don't know what we're dealing with. Untill we know what exactly it is that we're dealing with it's not safe for you. So I'm ordering you to go back to the castle." Shelby looked pleadlingly in his eyes. "Go!" He yelled. Shelby hesitated, then kicked Demon into a quick canter towards the castle. She turned back to see Michael, Jesse, and Keith ride to the gate. She pulled Demon to a quick stop.
I thought the ghost eyed one said to go back home? Demon asked.
He did, but I think I could help more so here than hiding back there. She turned him down an alley and out to another street. The had to stop for a group of soilders rushing to the walls. She trotted Demon through the streets looking for a quiet place to sit and focus. Demon halted and reared when they entered onto a street where a group of civilians were wrestling one of the walking demons. Gavin suddenly appeared and drew his sword. He ran it through the animals head. It let out a last dieing screech before it burst into flames and dissappeared. The peasants stood back, looking at the spot where the creature had been. Shelby trotted over to Gavin. He turned and smirked.
"I thought Sir Michael sent you back to the castle?" He asked.
"I need a place, a quiet place, where no one will disturb. Do you know of any?" She ignored his question.
"Quiet? In this mess?"
"Please Gavin. I want to help. But I need to be able to focus. I just- I just want to help." She pleaded, with her words and with her eyes.
Gavin only needed a moment to think before he agreed. "Scoot forward. We need to hurry." He mounted up behind her and took the reins from her hands. He urged Demon into a gallop down the street. It was a matter of a few sharp turns when he turned into a small courtyard in front of a small home. He dismounted and urged Shelby do the same. There was no one to take the horse to the stables, but Gavin didn't leave her time to tear off Demon's saddle. He pulled her inside the small home.
They were greeted by a teenaged boy swinging a large broom. Gavin caught it with a single hand. "Are you so blind as to not recognize your own brother?" Gavin yelled at his brother. The boy dropped the broom.
"Gavin? I- I thought someone was breaking in. What're you doing here?"
"My friend Shelby here needs a place to concentrate. Shelby this is my brother Falin. Now brother dearest, will you take her to such a room?" Falin nodded. "Wonderful. And don't bother her. She's a mage." Falin's eyes widened with admiration. Gavin turned to Shelby. "Now, I need to go fight with my people. I'll return to you when the battle is over." He said.
"Alright. I'll see you in a bit." With that he was off. Shelby followed Falin to a spare bedroom. She sat on the bed and leaned against its head board. Falin stared at her for a moment and then left and shut the door. Shelby sat there for a moment, not sure what to do. She knew she was capable of the spells she imagined but she couldn't figure out how to put them together. Quickly she pulled out her orange butterfly. She gripped it in her hand and immediately she felt Roger flood into her mind.
You need me my blossom? Shelby ignored the pet name and immediately began explaining the situation. She told him about the flying monsters and the crawling ones that were invading the city. She rushed to give him all the details. Finally, she finished. He was silent and Shelby could feel him thinking.
Ok, here's what you're going to do. You're going to close your eyes. Imagine the city, see it in your eyes. She did as he said. She saw the city in her mind's eye, spreading out infront of her, sun light glinting off the roofs of the many houses. The castle glittered behind the houses of the peasants. Black beasts flew in the sky and several more dotted the wall. Very good. Now you're going to take a strand of your gift and weave it into the image. You must concentrate.Shelby did exactly that. Suddenly she was in the picture she had created in her head. It flared to life in her mind, making her dizzy and naesous. Relax. Focus. From here you can see any part of the city you wish. Shelby would have smiled were she not so focused on the magic she was using.
She sent Roger thanks and released her butterfly pendant. She dove down into the city, searching for her knight friends. There she found a group of the king's personal army along with Flame, Jacob, and Josh. They were fighting back a group of three crawlers. Shelby now took a moment to study them. They had the legs of a lizard and the body of a cat. Each head was different though. There was one dog head, a hawk head, and a goat head. The knights she saw now were dressed in full armor, and the soilders had on mail. They were holding their own, but just barely. Shelby reached into her Gift and summond a strand of it. She sent it out to the creatures. She wrapped it around the feet of the first one with a dog head. It tried to struggle free and fell to the ground. That gave Flame the opening he needed to run his sword through the beasts head.
Next came the beast with the goat head. He had already killed two men using his giant horns. Shelby wrapped her strand of magic around this ones neck. She squeezed it tighter and tighter. The thing began to gasp and choke for breath. A soilder sent his spear through it's chest. With long curled claws it tried ripping out the spear. Shelby pulled the strand tighter trying to choke the beast. Instead she broke it's neck. But even when it fell to the ground, paralyzed, it's head continued to thrash wildly. A foot soilder stabbed it in the forehead with his long dagger.
The knights handled the last beast on their own without her help. Once again she was flying through the sky. She found Gavin struggling with a flying beast. It was attacking him and a group of his men mixed with foot soilders. A few of them were archers and they shoot up and the thing. It's rider was a mage. He threw bolts of fire at them, sending three men flying. Another laid on the floor, his flesh burning before his comrades. Shelby was furious. She sent her magic into the flying thing snake like head. She felt into it's mind and with a furious thought she exploded it's head. The limp body fell down to the ground, it's rider still in his seat. Shelby took a moment to watch the group of men tear him apart.
She whisked off to the gate entrance. There she found Michael, Jesse, and Keith. They were fighting off a crawler and a flyer at the same time. The three knights stood back to back as a group of guards and peasants tried to get to them. Shelby Threw the crawler over the wall head first. It smashed into the ground below, its body layed sprawled motionless on the ground. Next was the flyer. This time Shelby attacked the mage first. She threw her Gift at him, sending hiim bursting into flames. Both beast and rider screamed. The mage fell of his ride into the group of peasants. Jesse had his bow drawn and let loose a bolt that flew straight threw the flyer's jaw. It squealed in pain and tried to explode. Shelby let the knight finsih it off. More crawlers were rising from the ground and this time shelby intended to end this at the source. She summoned Shane and suddenly her mind whisked into the surrounding forst. Through the trees, over hills, and through streams all the way into another city she found him.
Shane sat in the shade of a tree. Eyes closed. Shelby prodded him with her magic, trying to be discreet. Suddenly his eyes shot open. "Hello Shelby." He said vicously. Suddenly pain ran threw her head and hands. She had only a moment to gasp before she fainted.