Free Steel and Sorrow by Joshua P. Simon

others fell in behind.
    The assumed leader held his head high, accentuating an already prominent nose that stood out on his smooth, young face. He tossed his head back, flinging his long hair behind him lazily as he extended a hand in greeting.
    “I’m High Mage Lufflin and this is High Mage Nora, High Mage Janik, and High Mage Yorn,” said Lufflin as he turned to either side. He started on introductions of the others when Krytien cut him off.
    “I was under the impression there were no longer any High Mages in Cadonia.”
    “Well, you’re obviously mistaken,” said Lufflin, chuckling.
    The rest of the group laughed as well. Almost all. Krytien noticed a mage in green robes off in a corner with his arms folded. He scowled at the others.
    “I don’t believe I am,” said Krytien.
    The young man’s smile faded and his voice took on an edge. “Then it appears that your eyesight has faded over the years because what you see before you are dark red robes and nearly a dozen black.”
    Why do they always act like the robes are what makes the mage?
    “Any seamstress can sew a robe.”
    “And apparently so can an old man like you. Though I think you should have had someone else pick the color, gray means nothing in sorcery except that you’re too old to even be worth our trouble.”
    Krytien’s hand came up and across Lufflin’s face with enough force to send the young man staggering backward. A sharp gasp among the other mages followed, staring wide-eyed in disbelief that someone would strike their leader. Krytien felt a slight change in the air, the hurried beginnings of a spell.
    He had already anticipated their reaction. Krytien had prepared more than a half dozen spells before entering the room. So when the woman introduced as Nora raised her hand to lash out, Krytien pinned her arms at her sides, raised her into the air, and flung her across the room against the back wall. Lufflin suffered a similar fate, more out of principal than any real threat.
    Krytien hadn’t needed to address the other two leaders, Janik and Yorn. Kroke, as expected, already had the situation under control—daggers pressed firmly into the soft tissue of each mage’s throats. Sweat beaded off their foreheads, eyes flicking about in panic.
    Janik called out to the others in black robes. “Don’t just stand there, do something. He’s just some two-bit mercenary with a knife.”
    “Wait,” called out the green-robed mage. He pushed himself off the wall and those in black robes seemed relieved someone else had stepped in. “That two-bit mercenary put a knife to your throats before you could think. He’ll kill both of you and likely a few others at the least. And you still have him to worry about too,” he said gesturing with a nod to Krytien.
    “What about me?”
    Krytien glanced to the side and saw Drake looming over one of the black-robed mages, holding a silver candlestick in his hand like a club.
    The green-robed mage grunted. “I’m sure you can take out one or two.”
    “Hey, I could take out more than that.”
    “Save it for later.” Krytien eyed the green-robed figure. He saw a confident man, but not cocky like the others. Someone with a head on his shoulders. “What’s your name?”
    “Tristan.”
    “Are you the one really in charge here?”
    He shook his head. “I’m not ready for something like that.”
    “You’re more ready than these fools,” said Krytien.
    Tristan shrugged.
    “Maybe you should be the one to tell us what’s been going on and why no one has answered the queen’s messages.”
    “Don’t say anything, Tristan,” said Lufflin from across the room.
    Krytien slammed his head back against the wall and then flipped him upside down. “Shut it.” He looked back at Tristan. “Are you going to cooperate?”
    The mage smiled. “You keep doing stuff like that and I’ll do whatever you want.”

Chapter 5
     
    Nareash and his party traveled for weeks down the stone road, passing half a dozen