The Charmcaster Read online

  Rell walked along with the mountain warriors. All were impressed he had the axe the tribes had given his family strapped across his back. The building his father had set aside for him was spacious enough for everyone to fit into comfortably. Rell received reports all morning on the preparations. Mages were now at his estate and so was the royal family. His brothers were there also. Davin was dressed in a blue outfit and had an insignia all over it declaring him Baron Cliffs. From what Rell was told Davin was still a slight little man. He was both shorter and thinner than the average man his age so Rell was not worried if the fight became physical.

  When Rell had not been spotted in the estate, rumors had been going around about him fleeing from fighting a full mage. Rell found that bit funny. When the time came, Rell had his people line up. Lute musicians followed the horn blowers who blew loudly. Behind them were groups of children who were somehow roped into walking along in his procession and waving at people. Two banner men were next. The banners they carried were the banners his father had made for him long ago. Four men from the town followed them. These men wore all black and each had a sword by his side. Following these four were ten mountain men, all dressed in skins and furs and each carrying a large axe. Rell was last in the procession. By the time he made it into the gates of his estate, he could tell that everyone who had come to see him lose was in an uproar. Some called him disrespectful, others thought he looked like a massive target in his armor.

  “Davin.” Rell smiled as he made his way over to his little brother. “Look at all these people.”

  “Don't talk to me like we know each other,” Davin said.

  “Just because all of these idiots are pitting us against each other does not mean we have to hate each other,” Rell said. “You are my little brother and whether you like it or not, you will always be my little brother.”

  “Svend is my brother,” Davin said as he looked up at Rell.

  “You are being an idiot, brother,” Rell continued. “I am of your blood and you are letting others determine our relationship. You remember this day when you need something from me. Hang your head in shame for the way you are acting.”

  “The only person who will be shamed is you. All of these people came to see you lose. I heard how you treated my mother, you will pay for that.”

  “Whatever you heard was a lie. Kimberly does not like me just like you don't. Neither of you even know what kind of man I am. The fact you see nothing wrong with hating a brother you do not know is why you should be ashamed. You will learn a lesson this day, though.”

  “And you think a charmcaster is going to teach it to me?” Davin laughed.

  “Your brother is going to teach it to you. It will be a lesson about the importance of never turning a friend into an enemy just because others want you to.”

  Rell then walked back towards his small cheering section and raised his hands. The small group cheered fiercely as Rell spun slowly around in a circle. Rell could hear some jeers but ignored them as he saw his father. Rell bowed to him, then to the royal family who gave him a polite clap followed by a sneer. Kimberly was with them and just looked angrily at him the entire time. A man Rell did not recognize went over the reasons for the match, Rell thought it was entirely one sided as the speaker made it seem like Rell was little more than some guy off the street trying to unsurp Davin’s birthright. Rell stayed looking at his little brother as the small boy pranced around holding a staff. Once the match was started Rell was more than ready.

  Rell held his shield out in front of him and cast his shield spell as he eased forward, a big amber colored shield spread out just in front of his physical shield and a lightning bolt crashed into it and made it blink away. Rell quickly cast shield again as he wondered if he had gotten his facts wrong. Lightning was a big spell to cast. The fact that his brother started off with it instead of saving it for a last gasp meant his brother could be a lot stronger than Rell previously predicted. His brother could also be a young man who went for it all on one shot. As Rell crept forward behind his shield, fireballs started impacting it. Rell could tell each one was weaker and weaker as his shield spell held. Rell put his staff up, there was no need to use it as his axe would do fine. Rell was right up on Davin by the time his shield spell finally broke. His brother was either out of energy or close to it as Rell swept his feet out from under him and held his axe to Davin’s throat. Davin looked up to him in horror.

  “You have lost,” Rell said as he backed away.

  Rell raised his axe as a cheer went up from every charmcaster, mountain man and commoner present. Rell sheathed his axe, dropped his shield and went over to his little brother who still lay on the ground stunned. Rell offered him a hand up just as a small fireball erupted from his brother’s fingers aimed at his face. Rell put up his arm and dodged. The fireball barely missed his head. Rell snatched his brother up by the front of his shirt and backhanded him hard to the dirt.

  “I ought to stomp the life out of you right now,” Rell said as he bent down and got into a scared looking Davin’s face. “Say one more hateful thing and I am going to smash your face in, I dare you to say something.”

  “Leave my brother alone!” Svend screamed from the balcony.

  “He is my brother; I am the eldest Glades,” Rell shouted looking up at Svend angrily. “If you want to take his beating for him then you can come down here.”

  “Are you challenging me charmcaster?” Svend said as he looked down on Rell. “My magic is better than Davin’s. I would kill you in an instant.”

  “Then come down here and try me,” Rell invited. “You can become an embarrassment to our father as well. Who attacks someone showing them kindness? A coward is who does that. Anyone defending a coward is worse still.”

  Rell watched as Svend disappeared and made his way down the stairs. His brother would get the full extent of Rell’s ability. Rell was angry at the cheapshot Davin tried and was surprised anyone would stick up for him. Rell had lost many fights before. While he knew his instructors and the others went much harder on him than they were on the rest, the fights were always fair and he was always gracious in defeat. The opponents he beat were angry at losing but they held their composure. Davin was not honorable and neither was Svend. Perhaps this is what his father meant by both of them being bratty, snobby and any other word he could think of. Rell pulled out his axe and his staff, when Svend finally stood across from him he was ready with a spell on his lips.

  Rell’s silence spell landed perfectly, Svend could not finish getting his spell out before he was silenced. Rell’s next spell started draining away Svend’s magic, his younger brother was trying to scream at the top of his lungs while Rell was walking towards him, his axe and staff now on the ground behind him. Svend reared back and punched Rell square in the chin, it was a decent blow Rell thought but he was much larger than his brother was and had him by at least a head in height. Rell grabbed his brother by the collar and put his all into a punch to the stomach. Svend buckled over and fell on the ground as Rell walked towards his father in disgust.

  “Sorry father” Rell replied. “I let my emotions get the best of me but Davin acted without honor.”

  “Rell. That spell you used was silence. How did you cast it?”

  “I told you I am decently skilled. I hit him with silence and drain magic. There was no way for him to fight after that. I am much bigger and if this was a real fight his blood would be decorating my axe.”

  “I think I underestimated you son. We all did. I thought that lightning spell would rip through whatever you put up. Your shield held off enough of it and Davin was too in shock to really do anything else. Svend did not stand a chance from the time he walked onto the field. You do not have anything to be sorry for. Enjoy your estate and get to know your people.”

  “You had help charmcaster” said an old man wearing purple robes. Rell had not seen the man before but knew this was the Archmage, the greatest magic user in the kingdom.

  “You will respe
ct my title or stop speaking to me” Rell said.

  “Or you will do what?” the Archmage said angrily.

  “He is not who you have to worry about” Duke Glades said. “If you are threatening anyone of my family members your fucking head will decorate my door.”

  “I just-” the Archmage said.

  “You just nothing,” Duke Glades said. “You better remember yourself in my presence. You are not His Majesty and you have no dominion here. Great mage or not I could have you killed easier than I could a fat hog during feastday.”

  “Calm down John,” King Wayne called down from the balcony. “The fight is over and the Archmage is just curious.”

  “As you wish Your Majesty,” Duke Glades said. “Perhaps the Archmage should get going to his other engagements. Having a Duke for an enemy is something best avoided.”

  CHAPTER 3

  John Duncan, Duke of the Glades

  “John your wife has told me that you are shunning her because she came to me in her time of need,” King Wayne said as he sat down his goblet. “She was just a worried mother.”

  “She was little more than a commoner when I found her,” Duke Glades said. “She went against my wishes and now she is reaping what she sowed.”

  “Look at it from her perspective John,” Queen Crystal said. “She could not stand by while a charmcaster just swooped in and took over.”

  “Your Majesty, my son has a name,” Duke Glades said getting a little angry.

  “I am not trying to offend you John, but he is a charmcaster,” Queen Crystal said. “Kimberly thinks the way a lot of people do, that a full mage should be leading the Cliffs.”

  “Why is that?” Duke Glades asked. “Rell would have been within his right to kill my idiot son Davin after the stunt he pulled and Svend didn't even last ten heartbeats before he was beaten. Rell is a much better fighter than both of them and is smarter as well. He is my oldest and Kimberly has no say over him. Kimberly is not going to have much say over anything anymore. I am the Duke and I am her husband. It doesn't matter who she came to for help, she betrayed me. I am the third or fourth most powerful man in the kingdom after His Majesty, Duke Stoney and possibly Duke Welch. I was an enemy she was better off not making. She was a low born noble with poor chances and not much chance of riches before my man Jennings found her for me. While she will not return back to that life, her life as my wife is going to change drastically.”

  “John, Kimberly asked me to speak to you,” King Wayne said. “She said you kicked her out of your home and have banished her and your youngest son to some home in one of the smaller cities you look after.”

  “And there she will stay Your Majesty,” Duke Glades said.

  “What could make this go away John?” Queen Crystal asked. “Kimberly was not born into our pedigree but she is a good woman and has proven to be an even greater friend to me. She has been a good Duchess and a faithful wife to you John. It is not worth it to throw her away over a misunderstanding.”

  “She put my boys at odds with one another,” Duke Glades said. “That lightning spell could have killed Rell. No one can tell me she didn't know what his first attack was going to be. Kimberly is not worth it no matter how decent she was to me. Perhaps she will learn from her own treachery eventually.”

  “John there has to be something that would make things right between you two,” King Wayne said. “Your son is going to be a Baron soon, maybe I can do something for him as a show of good faith.”

  “Like what?” Duke Glades said as he narrowed his eyes.

  “Well since the fight two days ago I have heard the charmcasters have really been living it up,” King Wayne said. “They are telling anyone who would listen about how one of their own took out two mages in the same day. We both know your younger sons are weak in magic. Your oldest probably had a lot of help from a bunch of charmcasters to get him enough spells. Since he is near the border with Balen anyway and will not have too much help if you withdraw your people, how about I exempt him from taxes? I know that area does not bring in much money anyway so it will not hurt the kingdom one bit. I will also mandate that any charmcaster in his lands does not have to pay any taxes either. I know that would hurt him a bit but they are looking at him like a god reborn anyway. He can have mundane magic at his disposal and they can help out the Barony in case a fight with the Balenians happens.”

  “You know I can't refuse that,” Duke Glades said angrily. “Kimberly must have left a decent impression of herself to both of you. As a father I have to do everything possible to see my boys succeed. But I know you are trying to find a way to rid the kingdom of the charmcasters, I think you have found the way by giving them a worthless piece of land near the mountains where most of the population refuses to visit.”

  “Guilty,” King Wayne admitted. “I also knew you couldn't refuse such a gift. Your sons have been beside themselves after they were defeated, especially Svend.”

  “Svend is going to be Duke one day” Duke Glades said. “This is just a learning experience for him. He went at his older brother and got smacked down. In the future he will be able to lean on his brother if war ever comes. He should be grateful Rell does not hold grudges.”

  “John we both know I do not have any sons,” King Wayne said. “I do have four daughters and one of them may be named Queen one day. Svend seems to have gained Teresa’s favor and Svend will most likely be named king. His status as a future Duke bodes well in his favor. Davin though will most likely be remembered for losing the fight. True he was ill prepared but the facts are still the facts. Davin has lost favor and that is what is troubling. Davin is slight of stature but he comes from good stock. T’Ericka was able to look past his stature because many hoped you would name Davin as Baron Cliffs. Now he will never become Baron Cliffs and he was the first full mage on record to lose to a half mage, already I have seen T’Ericka cooling towards him.”

  “Davin should use the battle and its aftermath as a learning experience” Duke Glades said. “I am going to give him a few months to cool off then maybe I will send him to Rell so he can learn. Maybe he will learn to take his magic seriously now and practice to become a lot better than he is now.”

  “You are not worried about him losing T’Ericka’s favor?” Crystal asked.

  “He is seventeen and the son of a Duke,” Duke Glades said. “I do not think he will find much trouble finding a young lady. While she may not be of his same pedigree, I do not think it really matters. His mother was not much and both of you seem to favor her.”

  “You know since this is ending on a good note, I feel I should tell you that your son has angered a lot of people,” King Wayne said. “You have as well.”

  “Your Majesty, you know me,” Duke Glades said. “I am a man of the kingdom and I have done everything in my power to keep this kingdom running, including crushing all my enemies. I think my reputation speaks for itself. I welcome any fool who wishes to become an enemy of mine.”

  “It is not you who they are too upset about,” King Wayne said. “Your son is gaining infamy. He came dressed like a barbarian from the mountains and even used their weapons.”

  “He is from barbarian blood,” Duke Glades said. “You had me marry his mother. Rell is simply embracing who he is. I think he may be the only one of us who might truly lead the mountain tribes.”

  “Well even as a Baron, I do not know about his prospects with the women in the rest of the kingdom,” King Wayne said. “Anyone who would have considered him is put off by his attitude. You saw the way he spoke to the Archmage.”

  “The Archmage is lucky I didn't have him run through for the disrespect he showed me,” Duke Glades said. “I hope he knows your presence was the only thing stopping me from calling for his arrest and execution.”

  “Many of your people would have died in the attempt,” Queen Crystal said.

  “And so would he,” Duke Glades said. “And any future enemy would be careful to keep their comments to themselves. I am not call
ed the Hammer of the King because I put up with fools.”

  “You are one of my greatest leaders John,” King Wayne said. “Get your house in order and bring Kimberly back into the fold. Try not to be too cross at her for everything that has transpired. She is a good woman and a prominent member of the kingdom.”

  “I will Wayne,” Duke Glades said. “I hate to cut this short but I have to prepare for Rell’s investiture as Baron Cliffs. He has a lot of ideas he wants to implement and I am not sure it will all go over well. I want to help him out but once he is Baron I can only advise. I hope he is up to the challenge. Rell speaks like he is and I know he has the education. Some of my best people will be here to help him for the first few months. But after that he will be on his own.”

  ~

  “Do I have to be here?” Kimberly said looking at her husband.

  “You can leave and go back to wherever you were before I found you,” Duke Glades said. “As my wife you will be present for the biggest day in my son’s life and you will be happy for him.”

  “Why are you so mean to me?” Kimberly asked. “I have been a good wife to you. You were happy before he came.”

  “Kim, one of the biggest regrets I have in my life is that politics would not allow me to be there for my firstborn son” Duke Glades said. “He does not have a mother. He was born with a handicap. He had no one in this world to love him except me. And what did I do? I sent him off to a hellish school and took away his childhood because the kingdom was not stable at the time he was born. Now he is back. I want to be his father. We are distant because we really don't know each other and every bit of it is my fault. You should know of the pain and torment I have felt from keeping my distance all of these years, I have told you about it. And when he came home you wanted me to hurt him even more for your own shallow reasons. It is for this reason that I am falling out of love with you rapidly. When you ask questions like do you really have to be here, it makes it that much easier to see you gone from my life no matter who you have for an ally.”