Bladvaneer Read online

  “I don’t think that’s necessary,” Maurya said.

  “I think it is. At least for him,” Gareth pointed at Klavin. “You two seem to be more at terms with what’s happening here, but he’s practically in shock. Maybe you should have prepared him better.”

  “I didn’t know how,” Simko said.

  “Well, he’s here now, so let’s get this over with. What’s your name?”

  “Klavin.”

  “Well, Klavin, what do you know about Healers?”

  “A small handful of people were born blessed with the ability to heal others simply by touching them,” Klavin began, practically quoting word for word from a book he had read.

  “Blessed?” Gareth asked sarcastically.

  “Um …” Klavin continued. “Okay. Maybe blessed isn’t the best word, under the circumstances. Anyway, Healers became highly sought after, and having one as part of a staff became quite a status symbol for royalty and other wealthy families.”

  “You’ve obviously read a lot of books. Tell me, how did you find out I was here?”

  “The king told me.”

  “Ah, the king. So he told you of our past relationship?”

  “Yes … at least, most of it.”

  “Did he tell you that I kept my ability as a Healer secret for a long time?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know why I did that?”

  “No, I couldn’t figure that out. Why wouldn’t you want to be known not only as a great warrior, but a Healer as well?”

  “Because the healing comes at a price. We all find that out sooner or later. The wounds or illnesses we heal don’t simply vanish into thin air. They have to go somewhere. Unfortunately, they go into us, or at least a part of them do. For a time, it is manageable. The king would catch a cold, I’d take it. I’d suffer for a few days, and then it would go away. If the worst things we had to treat were minor illnesses, there’s be little problem. But there’s much more. The king’s son broke his leg. I healed it, breaking my own leg in the process. Mine healed over time, but it was never as good as before. The king spilled hot soup on his lap. I healed it. It got to the point where if he got so much as a paper cut he was calling me to use my special ability. Years of picking up illnesses and scars that weren’t my own, and not all of them went away,” Gareth said, looking at Simko, who rubbed the scar on his chin.

  Klavin sat, not able to take his eyes off of Gareth. However, it was no longer because he was shocked by his appearance, but because his story was changing everything he had ever believed.

  “Did the king tell you why I stepped down as royal hero?”

  “He said that you became ill and weren’t able to do it anymore.”

  Gareth laughed. “That’s quite an understatement. Not only was I becoming less and less able to perform as a warrior, but it was becoming more and more difficult to cover the various scars and bruises I was picking up. We both decided that it would be best if I disappeared, even though I knew even that would come at a cost. His father had founded Lakron Island some time earlier. It became known as a place of great reward for those who had spent their lives healing others. It was really a place to hide us. Everyone liked to know that there was someone out there who could cure any ill, but no one wanted to see the side effects of doing it. It was common to make a Healer disappear once he’d been used up. Some people actually killed their Healers, claiming that they were putting them out of their misery. Looking back, maybe that was the merciful thing to do. Most sent us here, so that they could have a clear conscience, convincing themselves that they had allowed us to retire in peace and didn’t force us to heal to the point of our own deaths, while at the same time not having to be reminded of at what cost their various healings came.

  “I doubt the king really cared when the time came for me to leave. By that point the use of Healers had become passé. Those with enough money to do so aligned themselves with various priests who could do a similar healing without having their bodies deteriorate in the process. Do they still have Healers now?”

  “I’ve heard about a few being employed by some wealthy families throughout the kingdom. There don’t seem to be many around any more, though,” Klavin answered.

  “They’re out there, trust me,” Gareth said. “It’s just that if they’re smart, they’re keeping the ability a secret. That’s the only way to keep from being exploited. I’ll tell you, if I had it all to do over again, I would have let the king die that day, and kept my secret. I probably would have felt guilty the rest of my life, but I swear I wouldn’t make the same mistake again.”

  “There’s something I don’t understand,” Klavin said.

  “Just one thing?” Gareth asked, laughing. “Go ahead and ask it.”

  “Aren’t there a bunch of Healers on this island? Why can’t you all just heal each other?”

  “Because it would just be an endless cycle of healing. You need to understand that there’s only a limited amount of healing we can do, considering the toll it takes on our bodies. If you bruised your toe and wanted it fixed, I could probably do it, because my body, as bad as it is, could handle taking on that injury. If you came to me with a life-threatening illness and mere days to live, I wouldn’t be able to do a thing, because I would almost certainly die from the disease long before I was able to completely cure you of it.

  “The only thing we could do, and believe me, we’ve considered it, would be for everyone to pick one Healer to cure. Together the rest of the group could probably make that one person whole, but they’d die in the process. Unfortunately, chances are that if it got out that there was a fresh Healer walking around here, someone would grab him up and the process would start all over again.”

  “This is so hard to believe,” Klavin said.

  “But you do believe it. I can see it,” Gareth responded.

  “The king did ask me to tell you that he’s sorry all this happened.”

  “Oh, is he? Well, that means a lot. Let him know that, okay? This way he can sleep better and not have to feel guilty that he destroyed the life of someone who did everything he could to help him. But I’m sure you didn’t come here just to tell me that. What else is there? You’ve already been here too long, and if the guards find you they’re never going to let you leave, considering what you now know.”

  “We have to find a magical sword. Apparently we’re going to need it if we’re supposed to stop Krot from returning.”

  “Bladvaneer,” Gareth said, the awe evident in his voice. “I don’t have it.”

  “We didn’t think you did, but the king said you had spent quite some time researching it, and looking for it. He thought maybe you had some information that you never shared with him.”

  “Bladvaneer,” Gareth repeated. “I’m certainly not the only person who’s searched for that sword over the years. The fact that no one has ever found it has led most to believe that it was only ever a myth.”

  “But you don’t?” Klavin asked.

  “No, I don’t. But I don’t think you can find it, either.”

  “Then what are we supposed to do?”

  “Please, let me finish,” Gareth said, smiling. “I don’t think it can be found, because I think it has to find you. It’s not going to let itself be wielded by just anyone. If you’re the person meant to use it, it’ll find you.”

  “You’re talking about it as if it were alive.”

  “I think it is, in its own way. The kingdom really isn’t that big. It should have been found by now. The fact that it hasn’t leads me to believe it doesn’t want to be found. Or else, it simply doesn’t exist. Which do you believe?”

  Klavin considered this. The obvious answer was that it didn’t exist. Either it never existed, or else was destroyed at some point through the years. Or perhaps it was picked up by someone who had no idea what a treasure it was, and it’s now stashed away in someone’s closet, or on a mantle. Yet deep inside he somehow knew that the sword was out there, and he just needed to find i
t. Or, if what Gareth said was correct, it needed to find him.

  “I can’t thank you enough for your help. I know we’ve been a bother, and have reminded you of things I’m sure you’d rather forget,” Klavin said.

  “If Krot really is about to rise, then you can thank me by putting a stop to it. And let the king know I’m still over here. I want to make sure he knows my suffering is still continuing, thanks to him.”

  Klavin hesitated, but answered, “Okay.”

  Klavin, Simko and Maurya headed toward the door. Gareth called Simko back.

  “Yes?” Simko nervously asked.

  “A word with you? In private?” Gareth said, staring at Klavin and Maurya.

  “We’ll head back to the cave. Get there as soon as you can. If you don’t see us, just go through and return to the forest. Either we’re already there, or we’ll get there as soon as we can,” Maurya said, grabbing Klavin and rushing out the door.

  “Yes?” Simko repeated, now that they were alone.

  Gareth stared at him. “That scar. It’s not yours, is it?”

  Simko forced a laugh. “Of course it is. Who else’s could it be?”

  Gareth continued staring.

  “Fine, it’s not mine. How long have you known?

  “I got a sense of it as soon as I saw you. I noticed you rubbing that scar while I was talking, too. It added up. So, no one knows?”

  “No one, except my mother. Once she found out what I could do, she tried everything she could to keep it a secret. I didn’t understand why. I thought it was a lot of fun, and although I didn’t like picking up whatever ailment I was healing, everything I got seemed to go away eventually so I didn’t see that it was a big deal. The scar on my chin was from my best friend. That one didn’t go away. All of a sudden the stories my mother told me about the side effects of healing became very real to me, and I realized she was just trying to protect me by hiding what I could do. I never healed anyone else again, and never will.”

  “That’s a smart decision, but trust me, it’s easier said than done. What I just said about being willing to let the king die rather than save him again? It was a lie. Go now, join your friends. If they ask what we talked about, just tell them that I noticed you were a wizard and I asked you a few questions about it. Now, go.”

  Simko nodded to Gareth, then exited, and was seen immediately by two guards.

  “Stop right there!” one of them shouted.

  Simko, of course, didn’t listen, but ran toward the beach. The two guards ran behind him, quickly making up the distance between them.

  “Run!” Klavin called, seeing what was happening as Simko neared the beach.

  “He’s not going to make it,” Maurya said.

  Just as Simko passed a tree, he surprisingly felt the need to stifle a sneeze. Suddenly a cat jumped out of it and landed right on one of the guard’s faces. He swung his arms wildly as the cat enjoyed his new scratching post.

  “Get this thing off me!” one guard yelled to the other.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Simko said as he reached the others.

  “What about your familiar?” Klavin asked.

  “He’ll catch up. He always does.”

  Klavin, Simko, and Maurya ran into the cave. A moment later they reappeared back in the forest. They kept running until they were back in town, and hoped that the guards wouldn’t pursue them.

  9

  The trio passed back through Toron quickly, not even taking time so that Maurya could say hello to her father. They soon found themselves on a path leading through another forest.

  “So what now?” Simko asked.

  “Well, if Gareth is right then there’s really no point in searching for the sword, because we’ll never find it,” Klavin said.

  Maurya looked at Klavin. “Do you think he was right?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “But I thought we needed that sword to do what needs to be done. What can we do without it?” Maurya asked.

  “I don’t know. I suppose that if we’re meant to have that sword, it’ll find its way to us.”

  “That seems like a pretty passive attitude, considering the circumstances,” Maurya scolded.

  “I know. But despite what you might think, I’m not giving up. I just think we should stick to the original plan, find where Krot’s Elite Guard members are hidden, and stop them from being resurrected. If we can do that, then it should be impossible for Krot to ever return.”

  “And do you have any idea where to start? It sounds like we can’t just spend months aimlessly walking from town to town, hoping to find one of these guys,” Maurya said.

  “I don’t think it’ll come to that. I’ve studied Kriger’s journal, and although he doesn’t spell out a lot of details, it seems he stopped in a few places on his way back home from defeating Krot. It’s probably safe to assume that he made those stops to separate the remains of the Elite Guard, so they couldn’t bring back Krot.”

  “I’m not sure it’s safe to be assuming anything these days,” Simko said gloomily.

  “Never mind him. Where were these places?” Maurya asked.

  “He made stops in Pleg, Denorso, Flant, and Rha before returning home. We need to check those places for clues. It’s even possible he hid the sword in one of those places.”

  “Flant is nearby. It’s probably about an hour walk from here,” Maurya said.

  “I guess we’re gong to Flant, then. I just hope there’s something there,” Simko mumbled.

  They eventually reached the town, which looked like most other towns they had visited. They walked around a bit, and came across an older man washing the windows of a bakery.

  “So how do we do this?” Simko asked.

  “The direct approach is probably best,” Klavin answered.

  “Direct as in ‘Excuse me, but do you have any Elemental Warriors buried around here?’” Simko asked.

  “Well, maybe not that direct.”

  They approached the man, and Klavin cleared his throat to get his attention.

  “Yes?” the man asked.

  “I’m sorry to be of bother. I have a bit of a strange question for you,” Klavin said.

  “Okay?”

  “I really don’t know how to put this. Is there anything … unusual about this town? You know, anything … unusual?”

  The man laughed. “There’s something unusual about all towns. You’re going to need to be a lot more specific.”

  “Is that bread I smell? It must be delicious,” Maurya interrupted. Klavin gave her a dirty look.

  “Yes, the most delicious bread in town, or at least so I’m told,” the man answered, swelling with pride.

  “I don’t think you need me here. I’m going to go buy a loaf. Don’t worry, guys, I’ll share,” she said, smiling as she went inside.

  Klavin was confused by Maurya’s actions. She obviously didn’t understand how important this was if she suddenly decided to buy bread on a whim instead of trying to gain information. He looked at Simko, who seemed to be in the dark as much as he was.

  “So, did you think of anything unusual?” Klavin asked, and felt like banging his head against a wall.

  “Like I said, you’re going to have to be a bit more specific.”

  Which, of course, was the problem. Klavin wasn’t sure how to be more specific. He couldn’t imagine how to describe what he was looking for, because Kriger had completely left those details from his journal. It probably seemed to be a good idea at the time, but now Klavin was cursing him for it.

  “I think I know what you’re looking for,” the man suddenly said.

  Relief swept over Klavin. It looked like he might finally catch a break here.

  “Okay?” he prompted.

  The old man smiled. “You’re probably trying to find out why Mrs. Kenop needs to get her milk delivered so many times a week, aren’t you? Especially on days when Mr. Kenop happens to be out of town. Well, we folks like to talk, but we don’t like to talk, if you k
now what I mean.”

  “No.”

  “You don’t know what I mean?”

  “No, I know what you mean. It’s just that this has nothing to do with what I’m trying to find out.”

  “Well, maybe I could help you if you’d be a bit more specific.”

  Simko seemed to pick up on something.

  “Are you hinting that you might be more helpful if a little of our money wound up in your hands?” he asked.

  “No,” the man answered honestly. “I’m not looking for a handout. I work for a living,” he said abruptly.

  “I didn’t mean to offend …” Simko said.

  The old man waved him off. “Don’t think twice about it.”

  Maurya came out of the store carrying a loaf of bread. It did smell good.

  “I think we’ve wasted enough of this man’s time. We might as well go.”

  “What are you talking about? We don’t know any more than when we started. We have to …” Klavin said.

  Maurya ripped off a piece of bread and shoved it in his mouth, silencing him.

  “Trust me, we can go enjoy this nice bread, and everything will become a lot clearer.”

  Klavin could only nod, and they walked away.

  “What was that all about?” Simko asked.

  “It seems that a long time ago some homeless people decided to take shelter in a long abandoned temple on the outskirts of town. One day there was a statue inside. It hadn’t been there the day before, and was too intricate to have been crafted in one night. Some people said it gave off a strange glow at times,” Maurya said.

  “How do you know all that?” Simko asked.

  “I got the baker’s wife talking. Once we got past her leaving hints about who was having affairs with whom, she started telling me about an odd religious group in town.”

  “Religious group?” Simko asked.

  “That statue was there for a long time. People would go visit. Have someone paint their picture next to it. Families would make a day of it. Then someone decided that someone should be making money off of this, and that someone might as well be him. So he dug up some ‘evidence’ that this statue was the reincarnation of a long-lost demigod named St. Hoonygoonis of the Big Fat Toe. People who had never heard of him … mainly because he never existed … suddenly recalled their parents’ friends’ uncles talking about him appearing in the guise of a burning cow and switching around the sun and the moon and other godly things like that.”