Legacy
Chapter 5

Even withthe horrors of battle still fresh in their minds and their bodiesstill numb from the experience, the group had no choice but to returnto their journey mere hours after the final blow had been dealt. Every bed in the castle was needed for the wounded, and the strongsmell of blood made Deerborne castle no place for them.

With Averyhaving been taken in the battle, Archer volunteered his services tothe group for the remainder of their journey. The things Shadow Kahnhad said to James left him sure that the trio would be in dire needof his assistance.

The newobjective was clear to James. He was to replace the man called ShadowKahn and prevent him from unleashing his fury upon anyone else. ButJames had more than that as reason for wanting to replace that man. Hewanted badly to know why Shadow Kahn wanted him and why such ahorrific creature could seem so familiar to him.

Aiko andArcher were walking at a sizable distance behind James and Jaycee. They knew their companions were in no mood to contribute to anyconversations after what had happened to one of their dearestfriends, so they would speak only amongst themselves.

“Whydidn’t we spend the night in the castle?” asked Aiko. “Whycouldn’t we have waited until tomorrow to leave?”

“Becausewe needed to set out to replace the man who killed the king as soon aspossible,” replied Archer. “We’ve sent out every availablesoldier we have.”

“So whyare you traveling with us? Shouldn’t you be with your comrades?”

“Becauseit wouldn’t be safe at a time like this for the three of you to betraveling on your own. I heard what that man said to James. I don’tthink you’ve seen the last of him. And James seems eager foranother meeting.”

“Then whyaren’t there more soldiers than just you joining us?”

“Becauseour numbers have been diminished because of the battle,” saidArcher. “We lost a lot of good men and many more are far tooinjured to travel. We’ll most likely have to call the instructorsfrom the academy into service. If you don’t mind me asking, whyaren’t you taking the loss of your friend as hard as the others?”

“BecauseI didn’t really know him that well,” replied Aiko. “I don’treally know any of them that well. Besides, I’ve lost enoughfamily and friends to war to know that crying about it isn’t gonnachange anything. No amount of tears can bring them back, so whywaste the effort? The truth is, I’m only joining them because theyowe me money.”

“They oweyou money? For what?”

“Forsaving their lives,” replied Aiko.

“Whywould you charge someone for saving their life?”

“Don’tjudge me,” said Aiko, doing her best to not let her anger dictatethe volume of her voice. “You don’t know how hard it is tosurvive out here on your own. We can’t all be polished littlesoldiers in some king’s army. I don’t regret a thing that I do.”

“ButJames saved you from that thing. Doesn’t that make them even? Oris there some other reason why you’re traveling with them?”

“Well, mylife was never in any real danger,” replied Aiko.

“Youlooked pretty frightened of that jester to me. I don’t think youwere prepared to defend yourself after it presented that sword.”

“I canalready tell . . . you and I are not going to get along.”

An awkwardsilence then ensued.

“So, whatkind of name is Archer?” asked Aiko. “You are your name. Wasthat by design? Would you still be a soldier if your parents hadnamed you Baker?”

“Youcertainly like to point out people’s names, don’t you?” askedArcher. “How about yours? What kind of name is Aiko?”

“It meanschild of love. Any more questions?”

“You’reright. We aren’t going to get along.”

“So,where do we go from here?” Jaycee asked Archer. When she turnedaround, it was evident by how red her eyes were that Jaycee had beencrying.

“Well,there’s really no way of telling where that man might have gone,”replied Archer. “So I can’t really give a definitive answer.”

“Then howdo we decide what to do next?” asked Aiko.

“Youknow, in times of great tribulation, such as these, the king wouldseek guidance from the Novas.”

“TheNovas? What are you talking about?”

“They’rethe holy leaders of our kingdom,” answered Jaycee.

“Ithought the king was your leader.”

“TheNovas have guided our kingdom for centuries,” said Archer. “Nothing significant can be done unless they give their blessing. From signing treaties to executing prisoners, the Novas have thefinal say in everything the kingdom does.”

“Forcenturies?” gasped Aiko. “They must be really old.”

“Eventuallynew Novas succeed the old ones,” explained Archer. “At least,that’s what people assume. I couldn’t tell you if these Novasare the same Novas that have been leading us for the past fivehundred years or not.”

“Have youever met them?” asked Aiko.

“No. Only the king is allowed an audience with the Novas.”

James cameto a stop, prompting the others to do the same. “Then they’llhave to make an exception for us,” he said.

The sky wassuffocating behind black clouds that blocked the moon from the townof Dorsett. It was a place that held very little significance tomost, but was of great importance to some. Its inhabitants consistedmostly of farmers and merchants, so at such a late hour, none of themhad reason to still be awake.

With asleeping town in the background, Shadow Kahn and Sage stood atop asmall hill on the outskirts. And upon that hill sat a tree, a treewhose limbs were twisted and charred black as night. Its formresembled a creature of many arms reaching vainly for the sky.

“Let ushope that things turn out better than the last time I was here,”said Shadow Kahn, who was speaking more to himself than to Sage. “Tothink there was once a part of me that was afraid of this place. Butthat feeling has since passed.”

Sagerefused to make eye contact with his master. For what was about tohappen would be done despite his earlier protest.

“This iswhere they buried me,” said Shadow Kahn. “After all I did forthem. This was how they showed their gratitude. Disposing of me insuch a way, as if I was some kind of beast. Still, this was quitethe fitting final act of degradation.”

The shoutsof the angered townspeople still echoed so vividly in Shadow Kahn’smind that it seemed as if they were once again surrounding him. Thisbrought back the rage. Shadow Kahn held back as best he could byclenching his hands into fists. “They will pay. They will all payfor what they did to us. Not a single one of them will be leftstanding. All who played a part in our demise will suffer for whatthey did.”

With eachword Shadow Kahn spoke, the look on Sage’s face grew darker. Forhe feared his relationship with his master was soon to change.

“They sawme as a beast,” said Shadow Kahn, focused intently on the patch ofearth before the tree. “If only those fools knew what a beastreally was. They would never forget the true meaning of the word.”

An armcovered in rotted flesh then thrust from the ground.