To Be Chosen (The Maestro Chronicles) Page 2

  A group of yetis started around the flames from the north while two came from the south, one of which died with an arrow in its back, thanks to one of the archers on top of the wagons, and Daniel became aware of more yetis moving through the trees to his left while another five did the same from the right. They were going to encircle him and then charge at once. With those in the front and nine creeping into position this promised to get interesting. He drew and shot his arrows methodically, killing the closest yetis, leaving the nine, and then urged Sprinter a little closer to the fire, ensuring none of the shaggy beasts could get at him from behind. The move was more to protect his secret than anything else.

  The remaining yetis bellowed at once, all subtlety gone, and charged at him. Two of the white horrors died with arrows sticking from their necks, sides, arms, and legs. They apparently forgot about the archers on the wagons, who did not forget about them. The remaining seven were still focused on Daniel, who chose the nearest target and let fly. Number seven died with an arrow in its chest from twenty strides away. Number six died at eighteen strides away, followed shortly by number five. Yeti number four had an arrow in its right shoulder from one of the archers atop the wagons and took Daniel’s longer shaft in the jugular while its head was turned toward the other archer. It fell and did not get up. Yeti number three tripped over number four but was soon dead with one of Daniel’s arrows in its left eye socket. Number two died at ten strides away and the last beast died with an arrow between the eyes after coming to within seven strides of Sprinter.

  Daniel closed his eyes, scanning for additional yetis, and found none moving and no additional beasts even after extending his radius out to ten spans. If there had been any Aakacarns in the vicinity they would see a spell was being cast, but he truly did not expect any spell casters to be near, and he knew the non-Aakacarns within the firewall could not see the blue glow emanating from him. He sensed nothing dangerous and relaxed. This fight was over and he was ready to move on, but water splashed onto the flames nearest him and the fire began to die down in that spot, so he hesitated.

  “Can you make it?” a deep voice called to him.

  Daniel watched as a bucket of water and another of dirt hit the fire, reducing the flames to the point he was confident Sprinter could make the jump. With the personal shields in place there was no chance either of them would actually be injured, not unless he was stupid enough stay within the fire and choke to death on the smoke. “Yes,” he called and then heeled the stallion in the flanks. The brave horse sprang forward and leaped the fire while a stout man stood watching the outer darkness and four younger men, each about Daniel’s age, ran to add kindling to the area that had been banked down.

  The stout man’s silver hair and wide mustache were clearly revealed in the firelight, as were his bright green voluminous pants. His eyebrows were thick and nearly touching. His shirt was bright green with orange and yellow diagonal stripes. A scar marred his right cheek and soot covered his forehead. He beckoned for Daniel to come near while several other men gathered, apparently to get a look at the stranger in their midst.

  Daniel wondered how the travelers managed to create the firewall before the Yetis arrived. The man-eaters should have been all over the camp before the first flames hit the kindling. Looking about he noticed thirty-three wagons, like small cabins on wheels, some painted in bright red, others yellow or blue or green, and some in two and three toned combinations of the four colors. People were hopping from the wagons, some scrambling up from underneath, and many were coughing and peering around wide-eyed at the camp and the surrounding fire. Folks were waving their arms in wild gestures as they conversed with one another. Most of the archers remained in position, keeping watch for any yetis that might be still out in the darkness, even though all was quiet and no signs of movement came from beyond the firewall. Daniel knew no yetis were in the area, alive anyway, but chose to stay quiet on the subject, and besides, it did not hurt for the travelers to be on alert.

  The women wore blouses with skirts varying in length from all the way down to the ankles to just above the knees. These were also in vivid colors and Daniel knew he was now among the Teki, a race of traveling entertainers. They claimed no land and crossed inter-kingdom borders as if they did not exist. He had only seen a troop twice, once when he was four and the second time ten years later. Samuel Cresh, a friend, came to mind. The young man was now an Accomplished of the Eagle Guild but was born a Teki. The thick dark hair and long bushy eyebrows were a common trait among his people and the members of this troop were no exception, even the women had eyebrows that were almost a solid line over their brows, but were less bushy than those of the men. These people being Teki also explained all the waving of the arms when they spoke, their race was known for it. Back home on Mount Tannakonna, whenever a person waves their arms too much while talking, people often say to the man or woman, “You wave your arms like a drunken Teki.” Samuel never exaggerated his gestures while speaking, not any more than a normal person. Daniel paused in his thinking. It seemed he was going to need a broader definition of what should be considered normal, especially since most folks would place him in the abnormal category, and he would not blame them if they did.

  He stood head and shoulders taller than the tallest man in this troop, who happened to be standing near him and holding a bloody sword, the same fellow who had gutted the yeti. He himself was above average height among his own countrymen on Tannakonna, but not extraordinarily so.

  “You have skill with the bow,” said the silver-haired man. “I’m gladdened you made it into the relative safety of our troop.”

  “Baaa!” the sword wielding entertainer grumped. His shirt barely contained his bulging muscles and his shoulders were as broad as Daniel’s. “Look at him, young and sure of himself, and blighted lucky to be alive.”

  “Go easy on him Stephanus,” said the silver-haired man with a slight movement of his right hand, perhaps emphasizing his words. “He settled things down quite a bit. I don’t hear a single yeti.”

  Stephanus wiped the blood from his sword and sheathed it while giving Daniel a flat stare that showed he did not trust strangers. His mustache was thick, though not as much as that of the older man.

  Daniel knew this must be the troop’s strong man and if his no longer enhanced memory served correctly the troop should also have musicians, acrobats, jugglers, archers, animal handlers with cats and dogs trained to do tricks, and merry makers with painted smiles and long false noses. He knew somewhere in the troop there would be a Seer who foretells the future for a price. Seers among the Teki were reputed to be highly accurate but he had no intention of giving up a coin to learn his future, and no desire to hear it even for free. He already knew he was destined to live a long and lonely life. That is, if something does not succeed in killing him.

  The silver-haired man extended his right hand. “My name is Enrick Krellig, Chief of the Forager Troop of the Reshashinni Teki. Whom do I have the honor of addressing?”

  “Dan,” Daniel replied while shaking the chief’s hand. If the older man thought it strange that the family name had been left out of the introduction he gave no sign of it.

  So far none of these people seemed to recognize the vanquisher of Balen Tamm and hero of the Battle of Bashierwood, which suited Daniel fine. The only people in the twelve kingdoms of Atlantan who disliked spell casters more than Ducaunans were the Teki. Most everyone who knew who he was would also know he had been Silenced, but would that make any difference to the Teki? Daniel was not sure and did not want any trouble. No, they could not do him any harm, his shield was still in place. He just hoped to continue on his journey without causing a fuss.

  “You haven’t many arrows left in that quiver,” Stephanus informed him as if the fact was not obvious. The man could not be more than ten years older than Daniel and yet he seemed to be as prickly as Orin Netless, one of the oldest men on Mount Tannakonna. One would think the man had caught a truant sneaking out of the lear
ning circle. “What would you have done if I or Silvia or David hadn’t killed some of those yetis?”

  The two individuals named stepped forward to meet the man who faced the yetis from outside the firewall. One, at first glance, seemed to be a girl with short bow in hand and a quiver bristling with arrows. She was wearing bright green trousers and a tight yellow shirt with orange stripes that emphasized her ample chest, showing she was a woman, not a girl. She had a broad leather belt around her waist with a hand-sized crossbow hanging from a clip on her left hip, and a row of miniature bolts that went all the way around the belt at about two finger widths apart. Each bolt was about a hand span in length and no bigger around than her pinky finger. Daniel heard that the Zunean and Pentrosan infantry had crossbows but those were much larger and a bit cumbersome. This hand-held crossbow looked sleek, manageable, and probably did not have much range, but might be deadly at intermediate and close range if she can reload the thing fast enough. Clearly she preferred the regular short bow for killing yetis in the night.

  Her black hair framed her face and fell over her shoulders in waves down to her lower back. Her eyebrows were thick but not nearly like those of the men and her lashes were long. A sudden smile formed dimples in her cheeks, making her altogether adorable, not that Daniel was interested in having a relationship with her. It is just that ignoring her would be like ignoring a bright flower in a patch of ferns.

  “Why would he worry about fighting the beasts? He’s nearly as big as a yeti and much better looking,” She said while answering Stephanus, glancing at David, and then looking Daniel in the eye.

  Considering the tough leathery face of a yeti, Daniel could hardly take her comparison as a compliment but the tone in which she had said it while batting her eyelashes at him indicated she meant it to be one. He gripped the knife in its sheath. “I would have killed them anyway.”

  “Ducaunan mountaineers are reputed to be masters of the bow and knife but I think even you might find yourself overmatched,” David stated while moving closer to Silvia as if staking a claim. His pants were bright blue and his shirt yellow with red horizontal stripes. He had a knife on each hip and rested a hand on the hilt of the one on the left. He also had a slim throwing knife strapped to each black shiny boot and perhaps more secreted within his clothing. His eyes were dark brown, nearly as dark as Daniel’s, and his hair was longer than most men wore, slightly below his shoulders, but not as long as the Teki women wore theirs.

  Silvia smiled at the young archer and Daniel realized her flirt was just to see how the other man would react. Stephanus shook his head and began walking the perimeter while grumbling about rash young men jumping thoughtlessly into danger. Enrick studied Daniel with a knowing eye.

  “You are a long way from Tannakonna,” the chief commented.

  “At least Tannakonna mountaineers dye their buckskins rather than leaving them bland and tanned, even if the red of your shirt and blue of your pants is dull rather than bright,” Silvia added, and kept staring at him as if this was the first time she had ever seen a stranger in the camp.

  Considering the color choices of the Teki, Daniel could see where she would think so. This troop was obviously well traveled, enough to recognize the clothing styles of different regions throughout the realm, perhaps the whole continent. “I decided it was time to take a look at life beyond the slopes of Tannakonna.”

  David laughed and clapped Daniel on the back, hard, “No one better than a Teki understands that sentiment,” he said and his eyes widened, hitting the invisible shield beneath the buckskins must have felt like slapping a stone. “I think you’re tough enough to face the dangers of the flatlands, and besides, the world is way too big and interesting to spend all your time on one mountain.”

  A young dark-haired girl in a bright orange dress ran up to the Teki chief, whispered something in his ear, and then sprinted bare foot to the wagons, slipping past the outer group and disappearing somewhere in the middle of the cluster.

  Enrick stared out at the firewall for about a ten count and then shouted orders. “The danger is past, put out the fire, wagons are to be placed back in camp pattern, and set the regular guard,” he commanded while gesturing with his hands and watched as scores of men and women ran to carry out his orders, and then focused on his unexpected guest.

  Daniel knew the danger from the yetis was over but how did the Teki chief know? And there was still the question of what a Teki troop was doing so far from any possible audience and how they knew to make the firewall.

  “Daniel Benhannon, our Seer, Ruth, has a revelation for you,” Enrick said while motioning with his right hand in the direction the girl had run.

  How did this man know his full name? The girl must have told the chief, perhaps she came across a drawing in some remote town or village. Enrick appeared solemn, not angry, which was a sign the troop might not get hostile. Daniel wanted to decline hearing the revelation and yet did not want to offend these people.

  Enrick seemed to perceive his hesitation and so added, “At the word of our Seer, I directed this troop to leave Lobenia, where we were earning no small amount of coins, to travel through the Ducaunan wilderness, avoiding all cities, towns, and villages, all on her say so. We camped in this spot for three days, waiting for something that, “must be,” her words, and then began making the firewall hours before we knew yetis were in the area. Her gift of Sight is strong and only a fool ignores her words. I do not think you a fool.”

  All eyes were on Daniel. He could mount Sprinter and ride away. There was nothing any of them could do to make him stay, but to leave at this point would be impolite in the extreme. “Can someone direct me to her?”

  As he was speaking, wagons were being repositioned, and one wagon painted dark blue with yellow stars and the different fazes of the moon depicted on the side, remained unmoved yet in the center of a slowly forming spiral pattern.

  “I will guide him,” Silvia volunteered.

  “We will both escort him,” David said while stepping between Daniel and the Teki woman, who smiled at the archer but did not argue with him.

  “You have your guides, not that you need them now,” Enrick said while smiling patiently at the couple. “Ruth’s wagon is there in the center. That blue one with the stars on it.”

  An escort clearly was not needed but Daniel followed the pair. They led him to the back steps of the wagon while the rest of the Teki, those not involved in setting up the camp, watched him wait for his audience with their Seer. The door opened and the girl in the orange dress beckoned for him to enter, which he did, after ducking his head because the opening was half a hand lower in height than he was tall. His escorts took up positions on either side of the steps, as if a guard was needed.

  Inside the wagon the colors were soft rather than glaringly bright. The walls were pale green and yellow curtains covered the side and back windows. At the back of the wagon was a cushioned bunk strewn with fluffy white pillows trimmed in lace. In the center of the space was a white table with a chair facing the door on one side and a three legged stool on the other. Oil lamps hung from the roof provided the light. The occupant of the chair was a gray-haired woman, wrinkled and wizened, with a floral-patterned violet scarf on her head and a dress that seemed to take in every possible shade between red, purple, and violet.

  “Come sit, Daniel Benhannon, I have seen much that you need to know,” the old woman said while waving casually at the stool.

  Daniel sat down. His knees were higher than his bottom, not the most comfortable position, yet even so he was eye level to the Seer. He folded both hands over his left knee, finding that more comfortable, and then asked, “What do I need to know?”

  The girl closed the door and then went and stood behind the seer. The old woman stared at Daniel as if reading something in his eyes. She finally gave a satisfied nod of the head. “You get right to the point, I like that. I am Ruth, Seer for the Reshashinni Teki and my revelation begins with this; you must be in the north o
r someone close to your heart will die. This I see and so it will be.”

  Daniel did not want to scoff but the revelation was vague, without specifics, and practically useless. “Who will die, when, and exactly where up north?” he asked while trying to keep a respectful tone.

  “I cannot say for the view is unclear at this time. There is much more so listen to my words. I know who you are and I know what you are,” Ruth told him.

  Could she know about his being an Aakasear? He kept his mouth shut.

  “At the dawning of the sun, when this night is done, will be the twentieth year since the birth of the Creator’s Chosen Vessel, every Seer alive at the time saw this, and those of us among the Teki have been discussing this for years. Our Seers have been looking forward to the coming of the champion for five centuries, all wondering when, both longing and dreading the day, each wondering which of us would be first to proclaim him.”

  This had to be a coincidence. Daniel had put the date out of his mind. What did he care if tomorrow marks the twentieth anniversary of his birth? He had no one to celebrate it with so the day held little meaning. When he still kept quiet she added, “It was your birth that I saw and not only me, every Seer, even those not among the Teki.”

  The girl gasped, clearly taken aback, quickly covered her mouth, and then flushed red when Ruth glanced at her. “The Sight in you is small, do not worry, it will grow. At least now you know what it is you are seeing.”

  Daniel decided to respond before the situation got out of hand. “I heard from an old Accomplished that the Chosen Vessel is the Creator’s champion, born to oppose the champion of evil, in this age, Tarin Conn. No thanks, that can’t be me. I’ve tangled with him enough already and would rather not do it again. Besides, the Chosen Vessel should come out of Aakadon, one of the Maestros or the Grand Maestro, certainly not me. Anyone who fights Tarin Conn needs to be able to summon potential,” there he said it, does she see what he really is, does she realize he is an Aakasear?