Spellscribed: Conviction (41 page)

Bridget blushed. “I don’t wanna talk about it.” She grumbled.

“Aww!” Selene exclaimed. “Don’t do that. Tell us!”

Bridget’s blush deepened. “I was… learning how to garden.”

“Really?” Tanya said. “That’s great!”

“It’s embarrassing.” Bridget snapped. “I’m a warrior, not a gardener.”

“I think it’s nice.” Selene advised. “It kind of makes you a well-rounded person!”

“Well what did you do?” Bridget demanded.

“I can’t talk about it.” Selene murmured, looking down at the floor. “They told me I could only join if I promised not to tell.”

“Oooh.” Tanya said, grinning. “I bet it’s spying.”

“Nah.” Bridget said. “Probably one of those assassin guilds.”

“Or maybe she joined a theatre troop.” Endrance said, choosing that moment to step in. “They may want to hide her being there until they can surprise their audience with her presence.”

“Oh, Endrance!” Tanya said, hopping off his bed. “What did you do today?”

He gave them a weary smile. “I was very busy.” He said, shaking his head as he walked up to them. Selene stood and hugged him, and they sat on the bed together.

“First thing, I had instruction in elven politics.” Endrance said. “That was mind-numbing.” Then I had… physical training for several hours.”

“That sounds pretty tough, for you.” Bridget said. “You know you don’t have to push yourself too far here, right?”

“That’s not even all!” Endrance exclaimed. “Then I spent the last five hours being tutored in life magic. I spent that entire time meditating, and I couldn’t even manage to so much as sense my connection to life energy.” He sighed. “I’m exhausted.”

“You are training in three pursuits in the same time.” Tanya observed. “I’d be worried if you weren’t.”

“If you want, I can stay the night with you.” Selene said, leaning into him. He instinctively reached up and held her to him.

“I’d like that.” He said. He looked up at the other two and smiled sheepishly. “Is it bad that I miss the old days where we had that huge bed we could all share?”

Tanya looked confused, but Bridget scoffed. “Pig.” She said jokingly.

“It was definitely warm at night.” Selene said.

“Yeah, yeah. I know.” Bridget replied with a wink. “It was nice, once you got used to sleeping next to such a wimp.”

“A wimp?” Endrance asked incredulously. “I don’t think a wimp would be confident enough to fall asleep with three barbarian warriors in the room with him.”

“Barbarian warrior is a poor description.” Bridget snapped in response. “All barbarians are warriors.”

“Except the ones that keep whining about the poor wimpy mage they have to live with.” Endrance replied back. “Then they sound more like… an Ironsoul citizen.”

Bridget gasped in shock. “Oh you take that back!” she demanded, shaking her fist.

Endrance stood, putting himself inches from her face. “Make me!” he shot back, grinning.

Selene broke the trailing silence. “Now start kissing!” She commanded.

Bridget and Endrance broke down laughing. Tanya stood to the side, still confused. Selene started giggling, and Tanya eventually joined in.

“Ah, that was great.” Bridget said, wiping a tear from her eye.

Selene tried to put on a stern expression. “No seriously. You two need to kiss.” She added. “I have this love scene in my head and you’re so close…” she hesitated when she realized that everyone was staring at her. “What?”

Endrance exaggerated a sigh. “I don’t think I have the strength for her kind of foreplay.” He said remorsefully. “But maybe another day.”

Bridget kissed him on the cheek, surprising him. “If that day ever comes, it won’t have to be so rough.” She said with a wink. She walked out of the room, turning to smile coyly at him before closing the door.

Endrance flopped down on the bed sighing for real. “I find you all quite perplexing.” He said. “But I can’t imagine not having you around.”

“That’s how it is with any woman.” Selene interjected. “But thank you nonetheless.”

“So I take it that’s the friendliest she’s been with you?” Tanya asked, watching Selene climb onto the bed and curl up next to Endrance.

The wizard looked over to her from where he lay. “Yeah. Well, no.” he struggled to find a way to explain. “I mean she’s been friendly before, but she’s never been affectionate like that.”

“I think she’s starting to get feelings for you.” Selene said. “I can tell.”

Endrance and Tanya both knew why she could. “That’s possible.” Endrance said, chuckling. “Tanya, you better be careful, or somehow you’ll get roped into some kind of romance circle, too.”

“I’d rather just referee.” Tanya replied, laughing lightly.

The door knocked once and then opened. Joven stuck his head into the room. “Hey, Endrance.” He said cheerfully.

“Hello.” Endrance responded. “How was your first day among a different people?”

Joven walked the rest of the way in. He was not wearing armor or carrying any weapons, but both his hands, forearms, most of his torso, and up his left leg disappearing into his pants, were covered in bandages. “Oh, it was fantastic!” Joven exclaimed happily. “I can’t believe how scrappy these people are.”

Endrance pinched the bridge of his nose as he felt a familiar headache coming on. “You didn’t just walk up and start punching people again, did you?” he asked.

Joven shook his head. “Nope!” he said with a chuckle. “They have a brawler’s guild! I spent all morning there being used to mop the floor, they were so good!”

“What did you do in the afternoon?” Endrance asked.

“That’s when I started mopping the floor with them!” Joven replied with a grin. “Even better, when any fight was over, they healed us all back up with some of that life magic and we were able to do it again!”

“Then why are you covered in bandages?” Endrance asked.

Joven looked down at his hands, only then noticing they were still there. “Oh. I got jumped by a few elves on the way back here.” He said. “They weren’t happy that I had beaten their friends. Of course, by the time I chased them all off, the healers had gone home for the day, so…” he shrugged indifferently. “Either way, good times were had.”

“That’s… nice.” Tanya said. “I think I’ll head to bed.”

“Good idea.” Joven said. “I’m gonna catch some sleep. Endrance, you should get fired more often.”

Endrance watched the door close as Joven and Tanya left the room. He looked over to Selene, who had been watching their exchange silently. “You’re going to be okay, right?” He asked. She nodded.

“I will be fine.” She said. “They’re not going to make me do anything that could get me killed.”

“And you can’t even tell me who it is?”

Selene subtly shook her head. “No. I’m sorry.” She replied. “I was told I couldn’t say who, but they didn’t tell me to lie about it. I just wanted to tell you that I’m going to be fine.”

“That’s good.” He said.

“We’re all going to be so busy, I wonder if we’ll even have time to see each other for more than a few minutes.” She said. “I hope we can take a few days off once in a while, to spend as a group.”

Endrance ran his hand through her extremely curly hair. “I’m sure that we’ll be fine.” He said. “They are not nearly as demanding as Balator was, nor Ironsoul. I’m sure there will be days to relax. And we’re guests here, after all. I’m sure that we can figure stuff out.”

“So how long until you get to meet the Ambassador?” Selene asked.

Endrance felt a twinge of irritation. “Another nine months or so.” Endrance replied.

“Oh.” Selene said, frowning. “Well at least you have time to study for once.”

“Yeah. There is that.” He said, closing his eyes. It was going to be a busy nine months, but he hoped that he could use that time to finally get ahead of Valeria’s schemes. It was the whole reason he was brought to Salthimere, and he was going to take every advantage he could grab.

“Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Ambassador.” Endrance stated haltingly in the elven language. “I appreciate you meeting me on such short notice.”

Endrance stood next to a beautifully crafted silver chair set before a similarly crafted silver and gold crafted table. The precious metals had been intertwined in thin strands, woven into both a smooth surface and a marvelous pattern depicting the suns and moons dancing together in unity.

The official embassy for Ironsoul was equally ostentatious. Warm tapestries hung from the walls, decorative plants were potted and tended to by human staff, and someone had even brought in polished stone to set into the floor. From inside the room, it looked like they were in an office in Ironsoul, not stashed in a tree a hundred and fifty feet up in the air. Endrance had gotten to know the staff of the human embassy quite well in his time here, but still something about the room felt wrong, despite its splendor.

The ambassador for the elves, Rasmiel, stiffly nodded his head in acknowledgment of Endrance’s attempt to greet him properly. The elder Suo’hdi actually looked elderly, with white hair that was cut close to his scalp, long creases in his features and a slight sag to his longer than average pointed ears. His frame was not yet frail, but his motions were as if he was feeling his fragility, moving cautiously among the furniture and people. His gray eyes were sharp and clear, however, and Endrance could see the bearing of someone who was greatly respected by his peers.

“I appreciate you attempting to reach me on even ground, though I believe your inflection is not yet ready for conversation.” Rasmiel responded in perfect elven. “You thanked me for berating you on such short notice.”

Endrance swallowed his embarrassment and nodded his head graciously. “I apologize for my clumsiness.” He replied, still in elven. “I have been studying hard for the last ten months, but it seems that Hdi is a language not easily learned.”

“I am willing to discourse with you in the common tongue, sir.” Rasmiel said. He then switched languages. “I mastered this language centuries ago, so there will be less chance of any accidental insults this way.”

Endrance bowed his head. “Thank you, Ambassador Rasmiel.” He said. “I had been hoping to meet you half way, since you have been so kind as to come to our embassy for discussions.”

Rasmiel’s lip ticked, as if he had managed to control every impulse to frown, save for one errant muscle. “Of course.” He said. “The human embassy is such a… marvel of human engineering.”

Endrance shook his head. “I think it’s horrible.” He said.

Rasmiel allowed himself to look mildly surprised. “Oh?” he asked.

The wizard gestured to the table and the stone floors. “Look at this.” He said. “We’re in a tree that has been painstakingly shaped and grown for centuries, and what do my predecessors do? Shove stone into it, cover the beautiful patterns with dull slabs of rock and shiny reminders of our wealth and power. That would be fine if we were in Ironsoul, but we’re here in Salthimere.”

Rasmiel seemed to be studying Endrance more intently now. “So you dislike the work we did to make you comfortable during your stay here?” he asked.

“I have loved everything you have done to make our stay here comfortable.” Endrance appeased. “But this, this was because we demanded. Did you offer to make these kinds of rooms for us?”

“No.” Rasmiel replied, his tone neutral. Behind him by several paces, his attendants watched the conversation warily. All except Pullar, who winked when Endrance made eye contact with him.

“See, from what my records say, our first ambassadors were rather embarrassing, diplomatically.” Endrance continued. “They apparently stated that they wouldn’t be comfortable in an elven building. Quite demanding of such a new country, wouldn’t you think?”

Rasmiel remained silent, so Endrance continued on. “I consider that your continued service as ambassador throughout this whole time, is an indicator that you’ve been more than patient with us, especially we short-lived, short-sighted humans.”

“If you’re attempting to appeal to me,” Rasmiel said quietly, “I am failing to see where you do so.”

“This is just the build-up, honestly.” Endrance replied. “I have more to say.”

“Go on then.” Rasmiel said, not nearly as angry as one would have thought he’d be after what Endrance had said to him.

“I have come to the realization that the human kingdom’s authority is even, after centuries, considered ephemeral to your people.” Endrance continued. “This actually explains to me quite a lot of the trouble we’ve been having with your people… it’s a simple, yet difficult to overcome matter.”

Rasmiel remained silent.

“Ironsoul, though we’re a strong, long-lived empire as far as we humans are concerned, are still metaphorically children compared to Salthimere.” Endrance stated. “So we’ve been coming into your home, demanding things that we know very little about. And that’s what I want to change.”

Ambassador Rasmiel tilted his head slightly. “And how do you propose to do that?” he asked.

“I wish to start our negotiations by wiping the slate clean, clearing out the weeds and starting this garden anew.” Endrance answered. “And I’m going to start by fixing this room.”

Rasmiel looked over the room, down at the table, and back up at him. “And you suppose you will ‘fix’ this room how?” he said. “I have heard no reports of you hiring elven workers, and you do not have enough manpower to change all this.” He observed.

Endrance nodded. “I know you were keeping tabs on my activities. I would expect as much from someone who cares about his kingdom as much as you do. I do not have workers because I intend to do this myself.”

“Yourself?” Rasmiel asked, his expression on the verge of a sneer. “That will take longer than you have time in Salthimere.”

Endrance shrugged indifferently. “If you say so.” He replied. “Let me ask you a question. If I was able to remove this affront to elven architecture, would you be willing to negotiate with me plainly, without any of the veils and innuendo that normally comes with politics?”

Rasmiel smiled, the lines around his eyes crinkling as he did so. “I promise you, should you prove to be skilled enough to prove your understanding of your kingdom’s position with ours, then I will work with you to plainly discuss our peace.”

Endrance nodded. “All right. Then if you’d like to have a seat, I will begin.”

Rasmiel raised an eyebrow. “You intend me to sit here while you work?”

Endrance looked at him, puzzlement obvious on his face. “Well, you did want to confirm that it was me who did all the work, right?” he asked. “Since we’re scheduled to negotiate for the next hour, you might as well take a load off and relax. If this takes longer than that, I would be content for one of your aides to observe until I am finished.”

Rasmiel pondered for a moment, then pulled out his chair and sat. “Very well.” The ambassador said. “I suppose I can take a break.”

Endrance smiled. “I’ll begin then.” He said, rolling up his sleeves. Both his hands and toned forearms underneath his bracers were covered in grooves that marked spells carved into his flesh. Not a single inch of inked skin remained on his arms. If Rasmiel took interest, he appeared nonplussed by Endrance’s increasingly Mercanian physiology.

“Do you need me to send an aide out for tools?” Rasmiel asked. One of his aides came up and set a long stemmed glass of wine on the table, which the elven ambassador plucked and sipped from curiously.

Endrance shook his head. “No, but thank you.” He said.

He turned to face the door he had entered through, held out his palm towards his Grandstaff and it flew straight into his hand from where it was standing quietly in the background.

All right.
Endrance thought to his stave.
Pentarch, like we practiced.

The elemental force within his Grandstaff acknowledged his command and together they wove the spell Endrance had spent weeks preparing and practicing. Endrance raised the staff over his head with his both hands, electricity crackling along the grip while Endrance funneled power into the staff. The arcane script carved into the bone lit up with a green glow. The staff resonated with the room around it, causing the stones to vibrate and the table to rattle. Rasmiel’s eyes widened in concern. All of his aides, except for Pullar, scattered.

The stave took Endrance’s power, collected the spell from his thoughts, and used them both to create the spell form within the staff. It indicated it was done wordlessly, and Endrance brought the point of the stave down onto the polished stone.

He could not cast spells internally like the elves could, except when he used his Grandstaff to execute them. The butt of the staff rapped upon the stone, and the green glow shot down from the staff head, through its length, and into the floor.

The stones under his feet simply sank into the wood beneath them, rippling out from the impact site in a glowing green wave. The wood underneath appeared faded and rough from the poor treatment. The stones and potted plants sank under the surface of the wood like it was merely water, yet the table and chairs remained unharmed and the elves standing in the room felt only a ripple pass under their feet. The wave spread up the walls, absorbing the tapestries and revealing the light crystals hidden behind them. The ring closed on itself in the ceiling, where it rebounded and rolled back down the walls. As it passed back down, the wood underneath took on a healthy color and polish, regenerating centuries of damage and misuse. The grains of the wood shifted tremendously along the walls, forming natural murals of elves and humans clasping hands and standing together in peace.

The floor received a similar treatment, the floor becoming whole again and with a clear picture in the grain mimicking the dancing moons and suns of the silver table. The ring of life energy closed in on his Grandstaff and returned back to it. Endrance felt quite a lot of the power he had invested into the spell return to him, replenishing the power stored in his body and aura.

The light faded from his staff, and he mentally thanked it before willing it back to the spot where it had before. As the staff floated to rest, Endrance walked across the newly polished wooden floor and took a seat across from Rasmiel. He rolled down his sleeves and smiled.

“It seems that I’ve finished ahead of schedule.” Endrance observed. “Since you’re still here, would you like to resume negotiations?”

Rasmiel glanced at the staff standing by the door. “I had heard rumor you came bearing a Grandstaff.” He replied. “What is its name?”

“It is named Pentarch,” Endrance replied. “And it has been most helpful in my progress.”

“Did you just bury the stones into the wood?” Rasmiel asked.

Endrance gave a slight shake of his head. “No.” he answered. “There’s a neat stack of stones and tapestries next to some potted plants by the easternmost roots of this tree. All accounted for.”

“That was a fine work of tree shaping.” Rasmiel complimented him.

“Thank you. I actually am still having some difficulty with life magic, as of right now, I can only use it with Pentarch’s assistance.”

“So you want me to deal with you plainly?” Rasmiel said. “I can accept that. What is it that you want for Ironsoul and Salthimere?”

Endrance shrugged. “High King Mastadon sent me to ensure peace with Salthimere. I only ask that we make a formal agreement that we will not go to war with each other, unless the other country attacks us first.”

“That kind of agreement sounds naive.” Rasmiel stated. “Anyone could bend such a simple statement to their own purposes.”

“An agreement that we will leave each other alone?” Endrance clarified. “I think agreeing to not get involved in each other’s politics, activities, or peoples is a rather simple beginning. After doing so, we can agree to adjust such a charter every so often to ensure everyone is being fair.”

“You don’t want to form any trade agreements?” Rasmiel inquired. “That was a common demand from your predecessors.”

“Well, for starters I’m not a normal human.” Endrance replied. “I’ll live a life nearly as long as some of your people. Additionally, I am a mage, and I understand how some decisions can affect far more lives than just those in the present time.”

“So you want us to have some kind of formal peace between Salthimere and Ironsoul?” Rasmiel asked. “We have been at peace.”

“Yes.” Endrance agreed. “We have not had any wars or major conflicts. However, humans live short lives, and having a long lasting document will help ensure that future generations will remember to keep that peace.”

“It seems unnecessary.” Rasmiel said. “To us at least. The Sea of Glass is nearly impossible to transport troops through, and your nation has nothing resembling a naval force.”

“Agreed, we can’t even deal with the sea monsters like the elves can.” Endrance responded. “But that is what I am asked to accomplish, and that is what I must press to achieve.”

Rasmiel considered. “Plainly spoken. I understand what you want, but we cannot afford to have such a document written in a similar fashion.”

“I understand. I wish to only speak with you plainly, not finalize our negotiations that way.” Endrance agreed. “I’ll even allow you to draft the initial proposal, if you wish. I only need to obtain a formal agreement of lasting peace for now.  I came to you recognizing how young Ironsoul is, and how crude we have been. My hope is that, as a long standing society, Salthimere may be able to take our hand in the future and help us rise to being a better nation than we are.”