Diary of a Conjurer (5 page)

“Who are you?” A man stepped forward,
crossing his arms. His language was foreign, but having the gift of
understanding he was able to speak foreign tongues.

“Meneka.” The conjurer only gave the man a
half smile, wondering what sort of defense these natives presumed
they had against him. “From Taikus. I’m a wizard.”

The man waited for the mumbling behind him to
cease before he spoke again. Meneka’s eye twinkled with delight as
he watched the crowd’s reaction.

“What do you want with us?”

“Well, you can start by giving me some food.”
His hope for dry clothes had already been stifled. These people had
nothing he would wear. He’d wring out his leather and let the sun
soak up the night’s damage. “A place to rest.”

Silence.

That surprised Meneka. Surely this village
had a policy toward nomads that entailed more than sending wobbly
projectiles their way. “What? You can’t help a stranger out?”

“A stranger from Taikus? Why would we?” the
man retorted quickly.

Meneka grinned and held up the arrow he’d
been carrying, tightening his fist around the shaft. With a single
thought, the arrow burst into flame. He dropped it in the sand at
the man’s feet, and then laughed when the crowd jumped away.

“Why wouldn’t you?” Meneka asked.

The leader’s face reddened. He turned to his
comrades and they spoke quietly among themselves. Meneka was
certain they’d grant his request, and turned his attention to the
wide-eyed boys. There wasn’t much to say to them. He was on a level
much higher than they, coming from a country so much more civilized
than this one. Still, he liked the awe that shone in their eyes.
Meneka was going to be considered special here. Something he had
never been back home.

When the men stepped out of their huddle,
they turned toward the boys and motioned them away, pointing to the
village. The men followed the group of boys up the hill. Meneka
watched them leave, puzzled. His gaze fell back on the one person
who remained.

He was a young man, but older than Meneka,
about Kaempie’s age, well-built, tan, with hair the color of the
sand. He was dressed in woven pants.

“If you’re hungry, follow me,” he said.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Eric. You’ll come to my home and I’ll
feed you, but you aren’t trusted here, you know. Wizards and
sorceresses have no name for themselves among us.”

Meneka shrugged.
Who says I want to be
trusted here? That’d mean I’m accepted, and then I’d be one of you.
I should stoop so low
.

“Just hungry.”

Eric paused for a moment, his blue eyes
studying the wizard.

Maybe he thinks I’ll promise to move on
after he feeds me. But I won’t. I’ll stay. These natives can learn
a thing or two from me.

“Just hungry,” Meneka repeated more
forcefully. Eric turned and led him up the bank and into the
village.

Eric

I don’t care how important you think you
are, it’s rude to sit and watch someone eat. Not to mention feeding
your guest on the floor while holding a plate on his lap. Haven’t
you people heard of tables?

Meneka glanced up at Eric. Not once had the
young man’s eyes shifted. Now that Meneka was chewing his last
bite, the stare felt more intrusive than ever. Meneka scowled. “The
food is pretty good. Not the best. But it serves its purpose.”

“You’re lucky you have food.”

Meneka shrugged. “I could’ve found my own. I
just figured since your archers scared the moonbeams out of my
friend on the boat, which then caused me to fall overboard, you at
least owed me a meal.

“Is that the way Taikans think?”

“It is. And we have manners. And
intelligence.”

Eric raised an eyebrow.

“And magic.”

“I’m not afraid of your magic,” Eric
said.

“You should be.”

“Why?”

“Because with one blink of an eye, I could
destroy you.”

Eric didn’t seem impressed so Meneka flicked
his finger. It wasn’t a real snake that appeared in his hands. He
hadn’t perfected that spell yet. But it looked real enough to fool
Eric. The young man jumped to his feet and backed away. Meneka
folded his hands over the serpent and it disappeared.

“Why are you here? What do you want with
us?” Eric asked.

“We have a common enemy,” Meneka began, his
tongue pushed up against his cheek as he pondered what to say.
Meneka set his plate on the ground and scooted up against the
driftwood wall attempting to find some comfort on the rough ground.
Eric stood near the entrance, mistrusting eyes fixed on the
conjurer. “So I’m here to help you stand against her.”

“She’s not coming back. She’s been
defeated.”

“Is that right?” The conjurer picked at his
teeth with his fingernail. “What if I told you I know better?”

“What do you know?”

“I know that every time Hacatine has a
harvest, her power escalates. After the last invasion, there were a
score of wizards for her to come home to. Today, there are only
four left. I’m one of them. So you see, she’s gained quite a bit
more force since the last time she visited your little community.
Right now, she believes the world is at her fingertips. Starting
with you.”

The one room shelter was silent as they
stared at one another.

“Besides, I can also help you make a better
life for yourself.”

“There’s nothing wrong with our life.”

“Oh? How strong are these homes of yours?”
he peered up at the holes above his head where the matting fell
short. “I can show you how to build a house so strong that when the
winds of the north blow against Hacatine, you won’t have to hide in
the caves on the mountain. That
is
where you go, isn’t
it?”

Meneka had heard the stories of Hacatine’s
invasions. Accounts of the battles were taught to Taikan children
in school. The wicked queen mocked the natives for their cowardice
behavior. Whenever she attacked, the people would run to the nearby
mountain and hide in caves. If it hadn’t been for the torrential
storms that would come against her, Hacatine would be reigning over
this quaint little town, enjoying the wealth of its fishing
industry and making slaves of its people.

“I’m not the one to discuss this with you. I
only offered my home as a place for you to rest, not to engage in
battle plans.”

“Then tell someone with a little more
authority that I have a deal to make them.”

Eric left. When he did, Meneka inspected the
shelter. It was vacant of any furniture, floor mats or basins, a
far cry from the marble halls and exquisite architecture of Taikus.
These people were unclean, it seemed, although perhaps they did
their bathing on the beach. But still, they weren’t ruled by an
evil queen that threatened his life, and for that, Meneka was glad
he was here.

I wish Kaempie were with me. Maybe.
The responsibility of negotiating with these people would have
been on his shoulders. Still, I don’t see eye to eye with Kaempie
so maybe I’m better off. At least alone, I’ll have some
control.

Now that he was protected from the elements,
he took off his wet shirt and threw it over a stub on a pole.
Though elementary in its structure, the shelter offered Meneka a
safe place to lay his head. The night in the skiff had been
wearisome, his napping light. It didn’t take him long to doze into
a dreamless sleep.

Fair Trade

It was mid-day when Eric stepped inside with
three elders at his heels. Their entrance startled the conjurer
awake, and Meneka jumped to his feet. Though he didn’t want to seem
anxious, their age and size humbled him.

“Eric says you have something to tell us,”
the eldest spoke, his face stern.

Meneka cleared his throat and gained his
composure quickly. “I can teach you how to build a yurt.” He
blinked the sleep from his eyes.
Oh to be so blunt!
Wake
up Meneka.

“A yurt?”

Have you no knowledge of anything beyond
your own shores?
he thought, but cleared his throat instead. “A
structure that would withstand the winds when they blow against the
wicked queen.”

The three exchanged glances.

“Why would you help us do that? You’re a
Taikan.” They studied him intently, their eyes resembled the tips
of blue arrows aimed at his head.

“There are some things going on in Taikus
that you don’t know about. My friend and I are running from
Hacatine.”
I hope I’m not telling too much.
“A brutal
witch.”

“We know of her. She’s attacked us
before.”

“Then you know of her tyranny? She has
killed almost all of the wizards on the island, stripping them of
their power.”

“Why?” one of the elder’s asked. “Why would
she destroy her own kind?”

“Because when she does, her magical
abilities multiply.”

The smell of heated bodies permeated the
room as the men looked at one another. Meneka thought about pushing
past them into the fresh air outside, but he refrained. This was a
crucial moment. They were on the verge of a decision.

“So if you help us build one of these…what
did you call it? Yurt? What good is it going to do you?” one of the
men inquired.

Meneka thought for a moment. He didn’t dare
tell them he wanted to gain their reverence, nor would it be wise
to have them think he’d use them as pawns in his revenge against
Hacatine. No. He’d have to convince them of some charitable act.
“Your people don’t need to be running to the hills every time the
witch attacks. Reinforce the power of the winds by standing firm
against her. Don’t let her manipulate you. I’ve seen how she
operates, how she maims and kills. You need a little pride.”

The men shifted their stance.

Rude, Meneka.
“What I mean to say is
you’re a strong people. You shouldn’t run from her.”

He moved past the three, desperate for air,
and stepped outside into the sunshine.

The elders followed him out the door. “All
right then, tell us more.”

Meneka shrugged. “That’s it. I’ll help you
build some decent housing.”

“In exchange for what?”

Meneka thought for a moment. If he asked for
anything in return, anything, he’d be lowering his highly
sophisticated self to their level.

“I just want to make sure your village is
safe from the sorceress queen. After that, it’s up to you.”

“What’s this going to entail?”

Meneka shrugged. “Maybe five hours of labor
at the most. Yurts aren’t too much different than what you have
here. Just a little rearranging of the walls, really.” He shook one
of the poles of the shelter he had exited. Though it seemed sturdy
enough in fair weather, it wouldn’t hold a storm. Stories of
Hacatine’s battles followed the queen back to Taikus and everyone
would laugh at how easily the village was destroyed whenever it was
attacked.

“You should put this stranger to work,” one
of the men said.

“Let our boys help him. It’ll be good for
them. The nets are clean, and they’ve nothing but idle time right
now.”

The elder turned to Meneka. “I’m not so sure
of your motives. But if you have some technology from your homeland
that you can share, then go ahead and show us. Keep in mind,
though, that you are being watched.”

Meneka nodded holding back his grin.
Good. I want you to watch me.

“Eric! Arrange a work party and follow this
boy’s instructions. See if indeed he can build a wind-worthy
structure. We’ve nothing to lose from it.”

“And everything to gain,” Meneka added as
the three men turned and walked back to the beach.

Eric summoned a group of boys his age, and
they were soon dismantling a few of the shelters that stood on
higher ground, working diligently under Meneka’s supervision. They
notched poles together, tied them with lacing, and arranged the
‘walls’ in a circle. Meneka built rings with woven reeds that the
upper tips of the poles slipped into. The rings were erected above
the center of the circles, and supported with more poles. The
frames of the yurts were then covered with woven mats made from
reeds and grass. At the end of the day, they had built enough yurts
to shelter a hundred people easily. More if there were an
emergency.

“Back home, we cover them with hides. But
this will do for now.” Meneka smiled with a sense of accomplishment
as he glanced at Eric. Tomorrow, families would move into their new
homes.
This is probably the best thing I’ve ever done
. The
two stood admiring their work in the light of the setting sun. But
when Eric nudged Meneka and pointed out across the bay, the
conjurer froze.

It started as a tiny glow against the
southwestern sky, but quickly burst into a streak of red. The
forest on the southern shore was aflame. Black smoke billowed into
the heavens covering the earth in darkness. Already, Meneka could
smell the pine and fir that was being consumed as the salty breeze
carried the residue across the waters.

Alcove Forest was on fire.

There was no lightning. The day had been
clear and cool. This fire was not made by natural causes. Meneka
could only guess that Hacatine had a hand in it.

Fear became a lump in his throat. He wasn’t
safe. No one was safe. Whether or not Silvio and Reuben survived
her attack, he may never know. But he could be certain of one
thing. If she had captured or killed those two wizards, she’d be on
his trail soon.

Sails in the Night

Meneka stayed up all night watching the dark
waters. Fog and smoke hovered over the bay, but he could still see
the stars reflected in the tide.

What happened to Kaempie? Why doesn’t he
show up here and help us out?

Some of those shimmering reflections on the
water were moving. They weren’t stars at all. Meneka knew that.
They were ships, and most likely Hacatine’s ships. If Meneka didn’t
do something fantastic, she’d invade this village looking for him.
And these people would probably hand him over to her.