The Path of Decisions (21 page)

Darius cringed as the fighting began. He hoped he had changed
enough minds. He looked around for the Preacher. The man had somehow
disappeared from the crowd. Darius heard a shriek from Christine. He turned
around, and an arrow hit him in the thigh. He roared with pain as he searched
out the shooter. “Sean!”

“Now we will see who the best aim is.” Sean lifted another arrow
up to shoot. The last time they had faced each other with bows and arrows was
in an archery contest at the end of Darius’s last year at the academy. Sean had
taunted him then, and Darius had lost his temper. In the end, however, Darius
had won the tournament. Sean had been bitter about that loss ever since.

Unexpectedly, someone jumped on Sean's back. It was Kelln. Darius
sighed in disbelief. Impetuous, adventuresome, loyal Kelln.

Sean dropped to the ground and rolled, with Kelln still holding
on. Finally Sean jumped free, and Kelln got back up off the ground. Sean
grabbed a sword from a neighboring soldier and began to approach again.

“You!” The Preacher yelled at Kelln, as he came running hard from
behind a nearby blacksmith’s shop. “I will have you once and for all.”

Sean moved closer to the Preacher and stared at Kelln and Darius
with a smug look on his face. The Preacher’s power must have not been fully
functional yet, or he would have blasted Darius earlier. Now, though, Darius
saw fire run down the length of the Preacher’s sword.

The Preacher walked in a deliberate stride toward Kelln. “I am
tired of you escaping me. Now you will die. You can’t escape from death.”

“No, Father!”

The Preacher froze and looked toward the voice. Alessandra stood
in the muddied street. A look of shock ran across his face; then rage contorted
his lips. “You’re as bad as he is. You will die next.”

The Preacher’s eyes were afire, and his veins popped out of his
neck. Power began to crackle around him as he broke free of the drug that had
contained him. The wizard took two giant strides, bringing his sword up high in
the air above Kelln. 

Darius took a step forward, but before he had gone any distance a
shout came from close by.

“No!” shouted a new voice as Kelln’s father jumped between the
Preacher and Kelln. The power-filled blow of the Preacher’s sword hit him on
top of the shoulder, almost severing his arm.

Blood splattered over those who were close. Darius rushed to
Kelln’s aid, who had fallen down to the ground. His father cried out in pain.

Careful of showing too much of his power, Darius, with a quick
motion of his hand, pushed the Preacher back with a thrust of air. Another of
Darius’s soldiers grabbed the sword away from the man. The fire had vanished
from the Preacher’s sword, his still-limited power spent for the time being.
Others quickly bound him and Sean.

Darius stood up, and Kelln knelt down beside his father.
“Father...” came a choked sob.

 Alessandra stood next to Darius.

“They talked last night,” she whispered to Darius. “His father
came with us and apologized for what he had done. It seemed that many of the
people left in Belor were freed from the Preacher’s powers once the Preacher
had been gone a few days. Kelln and his father laughed and talked about old
times. Kelln sure has a way of not giving up on people.” Alessandra left Darius
to kneel down next to Kelln and his father.

Darius nodded and smiled, understanding completely what she meant.
He thought about his own father. What if he died now? The things Darius had
said to him over his life needed to be rectified. He looked around at the
fighting that still continued on the outskirts and caught Mezar fighting a
group of the Preacher’s men all by himself. A serene smile spread across the
Gildanian’s face. Darius marveled at the smooth and effortless sword strokes,
different from the Realm’s way of fighting. It was more fluid and graceful— almost
an art the way that Mezar danced around his opponents. Once again Darius
marveled at the man he had captured and wondered what else the Gildanian was
hiding.

 Darius turned to find Christine standing next to him. She smiled
at him, and among the sadness of the fighting, joy once again filled him just
by her being there by his side.

Darius winced as he remembered the wound in his thigh. He sat down
slowly, and Christine wrapped his upper leg in a torn up piece of cloth. It
throbbed but wasn’t severe. Kelln and Alessandra bound Kelln’s father’s wound
as well, but he had lost a lot of blood and was unconscious.

Darius moved over to Kelln and was about to bring his hands over
his father’s bleeding wound, but Kelln must have felt his intentions and caught
Darius’s eyes. Kelln shook his head to say that it was okay.

“You need to conserve your strength.  I will take care of him.”

Thoughts about his own father continued swirling around Darius.
What would happen to his father by the time he became king? How would the
leadership really work? Would Richard be jealous of his son?

A group of the Preacher’s men appeared, marching at a brisk pace
toward Darius. Elite soldiers moved in to block them. They demanded the release
of their leader. When Darius declined, one of them drew his sword and lunged
forward. Darius rolled over on the ground and bounded upright as he pushed
Christine behind him.

Sword struck against sword. Back and forth the two men dueled. One
would retreat and then the other. Everyone marveled at Darius’s use of the
sword against the skilled swordsman opposite him. Another rebel joined in
against Darius. Suddenly Mezar was at Darius’s side.

Soon the battle rose to a new fury. The Elite solders were in an
exhausted state at marching so quickly from Belor. It was wearing on them and
slowing them down. The Preacher’s men had two days in Forest View and had
plenty of rest and strength. Some of the Preacher’s men had decided not to join
in the fight on either side, and stood on the outskirts and watched what the
outcome would be.

Darius wished to use his power and end it once and for all. But
the people weren’t ready for it yet. An acknowledged wizard had not been seen
around Anikari for at least two generations, if not more. He didn’t want to be
like the Preacher. He wanted to earn the right to be king on his own. But he
was torn. He felt so exhausted. If he didn’t use his power soon, he was afraid
they would lose the battle, and possibly the kingdom.

Two men jumped toward him at once. Darius howled and retreated,
but stumbled on his way.

Off in the distance new yelling was heard. Down the street came
Jain and a large group of armed farmers fighting through the group toward
Darius. The Preacher’s men, not knowing who the others were, but expecting it was
the King’s army from Anikari, began to retreat. From where he was tied up, the
Preacher ordered them to continue fighting, but many began to lay down their
weapons and surrender. The Elite Army gained new hope and energy and forged
forward until the Preacher’s dwindling group of fighters became surrounded on
all sides by the new mixed army of farmers and Darius’s Elite Army. The battle
was finished.

Darius was still sitting on the ground, where he had stumbled.
Someone had kicked him in the back of the leg, causing his previous injury to
rip further. Blood soaked through his pants. The Preacher yelled out again, and
one of Darius’s men clubbed him over the head with the hilt of a sword. The
Preacher slumped unconscious to the ground.

Christine ran over to Darius and helped him stand. She held him
close to her side, looked into his strong, gray eyes, then leaned in and
whispered, “I will marry you, Darius DarSan Williams. I don’t want to ever lose
you.”

Darius grinned, then laughed out loud with joy.

Limping over to the group of soldiers, Darius felt the peace of
Christine at his side. The Preacher’s followers, still in defiance of Darius,
stood in a group together but now were unarmed. Darius directed the band of
farmers to begin marching the prisoners toward Anikari. The rest of the
Preacher’s men— those who agreed to leave in peace, he let go back to Belor and
instructed them that representatives from the Realm would join them soon to
re-establish an appropriate government.

He motioned for some of his army to help Kelln load his father’s
injured body into a wagon, but noticed tears streaming down Kelln’s face.
Darius ran over to his friend.

“He is gone, Darius.”

“So quickly? I thought… I could have...” Darius stumbled with what
to say to his best friend. The last he had seen of Kelln’s father, it looked to
him as though he would recover from his injuries.

Kelln half smiled. “It’s not your fault, Darius. The injury was
too much for him. We made peace in the end, and he will rest well with God. I
will never forget his sacrifice for me. He saved me in the end.  He gave his
life for
me
.” A sob escaped his lips.

Darius put his arm around him. “He was a wonderful man. I will
honor him with full honors as a hero in defending the Realm,” Darius said.

“Why? Why did he go to Belor?” Kelln whispered, barely able to
talk.

“Kel, I have learned this past year about many things we don't
understand. Only a few years ago we were children with hardly a care. Today we
are men who are shaping the future of the Realm. Who knows why it is us at this
point in time? The reasons may not be evident for years, but I have learned
there are reasons for everything.”

“So wise now, huh?” Kelln smiled, his eyes still full of tears.

“No, not wise, my friend, just finally figuring out some things.”

Kelln reached around Darius with both arms and gave him a quick
hug and strong slap on the back. Christine, Alessandra, and Mezar stood close
by. There was no shame in the sadness of that moment. Their lives had crossed,
friendships bonded, and though they would never be the same again, they would
remain friends no matter where their intermediate travels would take them.

Darius’s head picked up as he turned toward a sound off in the
distance. It was a yell for him. A rider appeared around the side of an old
house. His purple cape flew in the air behind him. He was one of the King’s
messengers, only a few years older than Darius himself.

“Your... men... said you... were still here.” He barely noticed
the somber mood. “You must... must return to Anikari... immediately,” he said
in between quick breaths.

“What is it?” asked Alessandra.

The messenger eyed her suspiciously. Darius nodded his approval of
the question.

“Senior Councilor Richard San Williams sent me. He told me a
strange message. He said you must ride the white horse if possible... I don't
know what that means.”

Christine smiled. “It's my Cremelino. He must want you to return
quickly, Darius.”

“The King?” asked Darius anxiously.

The messenger didn’t know, but Darius did. Whether it was the
newfound kinship they shared or the imminent passing of the mantle of king to
his heir, Darius knew King Edward DarSan Montere was passing on.

Darius swayed on his feet, paled, and fell to his knees. A rush of
power filled him. Tears and fear clouded his vision momentarily. Kelln rushed
to his side and leaned down to him.

“It is time. I must be strong,” Darius whispered almost to
himself.

“Time for what?” asked Kelln.

He looked up to his old friend, tears streaming down his dirtied
face. “My time in history, Kel. The time we never thought possible. The time I
never wanted.”

“You don't think...”

Darius stood up again slow and deliberate, his power bringing him
strength. “I know. I can sense things happening. It is time for my destiny to
take an unexpected  turn, my friend. And once again I must ask ‘why me?’”

“I will get Lightning.” Christine began to run off, but Lightning
was already approaching.

“Please join me as soon as possible,” Darius said to Kelln,
Alessandra, and Mezar. Mezar’s eyes held his own for a brief moment. Darius
felt something there. A power he hadn’t felt before. Mezar smiled and bowed his
head in slight obeisance. He would have to trust Mezar to return on his own
without taking him along with him.  Somehow he did trust the man.

Turning to Kelln, Darius spoke to him alone. “Take whatever time
you need with your father. I will send a rider to Belor to bring back your
family to Anikari.”

Darius motioned for Christine to join him on her horse and rode
off down the road to Anikari. Darius silently prayed with all the fervor he
had. If he ever needed guidance and extra strength, it was now.

They soon came up on the men marching from Forest View to Anikari
that had previously left with the prisoners. He spoke a few words to Jain, and
they continued on their way. He gave some of the herbs to Jain to make sure the
Preacher’s power would not return anytime soon.

Darius sat lost in his own thoughts as they galloped, and he
realized they were halfway to Anikari when two units of the King’s Elite Army
approached them on the main road. Darius informed the unit commander that an
army from the farmlands was bringing in the captured rebels from Forest View
and they were not needed for the battle, but they should accompany the men back
to Anikari.