Reunited at the Gates

  Early one morning, a few days after Maria’s party, the city gates outside Tab open far earlier than usual. Today is the day Maria and her entourage are leaving Tab. The early rays of sunlight have yet to mark the dawn. The event is marked with silence; there are no crowds or fanfare to see her off. The princess doesn’t mind at all. That’s what the prior celebrations were for. With the recent threats in the kingdom, the plan was always to leave the city unnoticed. Traveling alongside the princess and her two guards are Bao, the children, and Belos. Bao had previously agreed to join the princess for part of their journey but once they reach the Strix’s northernmost border, Bao believes they should part ways and use the opportunity to try and reunite Katz with some of his own people.

  Although the sun’s rays still haven’t reached over the easter mountains off in the distance, night in Tab is relatively warm and comfortable.

  “This reminds me of our first night in Tab.”

  Bao looks over the vast land outside the city walls. The people have changed, but there are still lots of people camping outside the city waiting for to be allowed entry once the day begins. In a few hours this area will become a bustling hub with people crowding in and out of the city.

  “That first night, we were escorted in by soldiers, but it felt like we were sneaking in like criminals,” Bao looks over his shoulder admiring the gates again while he is still close enough to do so.

  “I felt the same. We were waiting all day to get inside and when they finally let us in, it was in the middle of the night and wasn’t at all like what I expected.”

  Letz is riding one of the new horses they were given to help Maria on her journey. One of the perks of working with royalty.

  Kikka is sharing the horse with Letz. her small arms wrapped around his waist while sitting behind him, “That’s right! I remember we had to sneak in without anyone seeing us.”

  Katz rides alongside them, “Kikka I’m pretty sure you were asleep the whole time.”

  Katz and Letz go back and forth teasing Kikka as she continues to protest. The children weren’t unhappy in the city, but everyone else can see they are feeling more comfortable back outside. Bao looks around their reunited group and realizes this is the first time everyone has been together since they entered the city a few weeks ago. He would like to welcome everyone back together but before he can comment, Maria interrupts the children’s chatter.

  “Kikka, didn’t you have something you wanted to give someone?”

  The little girl thinks for a moment before shooting upright as she remembers, “Oh, that’s right!” she jumps from the back of the horse and rushes over to a bag fastened to Keyon’s horse.

  “Hey now! What did you hide in my saddle, Kikka?”

  Kikka giggles from Keyon’s teasing as she runs to the back of their group, “You’ll see!”

  The little girl stops in front of Belos who is just as curious as everyone around him. With a beaming smile, Kikka offers a small gift wrapped loosely in cloth to the man.

  “This is for me?”

  “Of course it is silly. I designed it special for you!” There is an aura of unbreakable confidence in the little Zultanite.

  As Belos cautiously unwraps his gift, Maria interjects, “It’s true, she designed it herself. Although I may have asked a craftsman to make it a little more uhm, practical.”

  As the final piece of cloth is removed from the gift, Belos stares dumbfounded, “It’s... a mask.”

  Belos lost his mask during their fight with Arnit weeks ago and has gone without a replacement ever since.

  “I know you don’t like walking around with your bug face around other people, so I made you a super pretty face!”

  The little girl is oblivious to the many connotations that come with a Bolbian mask. As Belos holds the mask up to his face he reflects again on the absurdity of his current situation. For a Bolbian, their mask is a symbol of their past and an anchor for their current fate. They hide their faces not for their own sake, but because others impose it on them. It is a symbol of their status as a defeated and doomed people. Still, there is another reason this Bolbian chooses to wear his face. His body, just like all Bolbians, was created and gifted to him by Su, and because of this, his role in the world is to spread death and destruction everywhere he goes. The masks he wears to hide his grotesque features are also there to remind him that he has rejected Su’s nature. Or at least, he hopes to.

  Thinking back to his fight with the Sulfuges, Belos feels some shame.

  Did I really cast away all of my hopes so easily? Did I have any to begin with?

  No one has ever handed him a new mask out of care or love before, and as he fastens the new face over his old one once again, he steels himself for the journey ahead.

  I have a once in a lifetime chance here to prove that we can move past out sins and create something new. All of this is thanks to my new ‘owner’. I’ll never meet someone like Bao again. If he is right, and humans can grow to become something more than the gods have designed for us, I want to see it happen.

  Kikka doesn’t understand the negative meanings of a Bolbian mask, or the emotions she has conjured within her friend. He chooses to accept her gift as the pure expression of care that it is. He has no words to accurately express his feelings to the little girl, so he uses the language that she will understand best.

  “Thanks kid. It’s beautiful.”

  With that validation, she runs back to Letz who helps her climb back up onto their ride. With this satisfaction, she should be impervious to the boy’s teasing for at least five minutes.

  Bao surveys the group who all appear to be in high spirits. Including their new companion. The new guard traveling with Keyon and Maria hasn’t been introduced yet but already he is smiling and laughing right along with everyone else. He looks like he is the type of person who would get along with just about anyone. His appearance resembles a Half-Elf; very similar to Keyon. His hair is black though compared to Keyon’s red. Slightly older than him too despite what his jolly nature might suggest. Bao wonders how much of a difference appearances make in age for races that live several generations longer than Sosuns.

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  Bao thinks back to the tense version of Keyon he had originally met just after leaving his home. That version was exhausted from fighting and ready to lay down his life for Maria. Surely this man must be in a similar state of mind to be serving directly under the emperor’s family.

  Isn’t he a Green Plate like Keyon? Maybe they just handle stress differently.

  Bao decides this isn’t anything worth worrying about, and chooses to be grateful for an experience with a guard that is completely different from all of his previous experiences and on all accounts significantly better.

  “Actually, before we leave, I’m still waiting for one more person,” Maria takes charge before either guard makes the call to depart.

  Keyon and the guard both exchange glances. It looks like neither of these men were aware of this chance, “One more person?”

  “Don’t worry, I think that’s him walking through the gate now. Keyon, You and Bao have already met.”

  As she finishes, a young man slowly trots through the gate to meet the group. Bao recognizes the man as Jun from the School of Magic. The assistant that helped Fos with Bao and Letz’s affinity testing. The one with the Zultanite eyes.

  “What are you doing here Jun? You’re not supposed to know about this,” Keyon is clearly surprised to see his friend.

  Jun turns to Maria before answering Keyon, all he has with him is a light bag and a walking stick. His outfit still resembles the ones they wore at the School of Magic, but this one is just a fancy white tunic with a matching cloak.

  “Sorry I’m late princess, I’ve been up all night packing and I lost track of time,” he turns back to Keyon, “The princess made a special request to the School of Magic as well as to my family’s house: As a thank you to Bao for ending his training early and joining the princess on her travels, master Fos will provide a special tutor for Bao from the school until the end of their journey. As one of the most skilled magic users under Fos’ care, and with life magic affinity, I’m naturally the best choice for the role,” Jun looks over to Bao and gives a confident grin and a thumbs up, “And it’s doesn’t hurt to be owed a favor by the emperor’s family.”

  Keyon is extremely annoyed by this sudden change of plans, “I’m against this Jun. Maria, I really wish you had made this a proper request and informed us about your choice. I trust Jun but we’re not even out of the city yet and already you’ve jeopardized our secrecy by involving not only the School of Magic but Jun’s house as well,” he thinks for a moment, “We need to leave right now. Sorry Jun, but you can’t come with us.”

  “Wait just a minute Keyon,” Jun really wants to join their adventure, “I’m standing right here. Are you really just going to send me back? Me going back won’t make the school or my family forget anything and you know I’ll be a huge asset to you.”

  Katz rides his horse between Keyon and Jun before either of them have the chance to say another word, “I’m also against this. Jun’s family deals in Zultanite eyes and Jun himself is decorated in them. Would you really ask Kikka to put up with this for our entire journey? I won’t.”

  Kikka is sitting silent behind Letz on their horse with her head is turned away from Jun. Her silence is a sure sign that she is intently listening to the discussion. The pride and confidence she boldly showed only a few moments ago is nowhere to be seen.

  “Sorry princess, but I’m with Keyon and Katz on this,” Bao would like to be a peacekeeper in situations like this however, “Where I come from, life and death are both sacred things. Displaying the dead as art or as tools is unthinkable. Jun, you do both with those eyes,” even now, Jun is decorated with bracers embedded with Zultanite eyes, “I was respectful during our stay in Tab, but I don’t think I can tolerate someone like you as a traveling companion.”

  “I’m sorry everyone. I didn’t think you would feel so strongly about this. Jun is important for our trip though. This is my choice and I am sticking with my decision,” Maria looks for anyone who might give her some support in this situation and finally decides the new guard is her best option, “I’m sorry, your name is Kain right? What do you think about all this?”

  The guard, Kain, appears just as concerned as everyone else in this situation. Surely he doesn’t actually have a problem with Jun. He must just be empathizing with the rest of the group. He scratches the back of his head for a moment, but doesn’t spend much time thinking about it, “Ehhh, it’s a tough decision, isn’t it? I think the boy should come with us though. He has experience as a combat medic and as a teacher, that could come in real handy in a lot of situations. He’ll help the others to be more effective as well. I know it’s not easy for everyone to accept, but Keyon is right, we need to think about leaving very soon.”

  The sun finally reaches over the mountains. They should have left a long time ago. They’ll start attracting the attention of the people camped outside the walls soon.

  “Thank you Kain,” the princess hands Jun the reigns to a horse, “Jun is right, what’s done is done. He’s already here. Let’s welcome him and be on our way.”

  Maria is embarrassed by the uproar she has caused among the group. She is the princess though; this is a call she made, and she feels that she must stand by it. It would also be unprecedented for her to go through all the effort to invite Jun only to turn him away at the last minute.

  Kikka and Letz remain silent throughout this exchange, but Katz lets his disdain out one last time under his breath, “It’s nice to be reminded how much the opinions of slaves count around here.”

  Jun hears the remarks but keeps quiet. He was invited by the princess to join her on an important mission. He was honored and thrilled to join them just a few moments ago. He had no idea his very presence would offend so many of his new companions. He makes up his mind to earn their trust. He rushes to the front of the group and turns around to face them.

  “It’s nice to meet all of you today. My name is Jun Blue. Thank you for letting me join you on your journey! I’ll do my best not to let any of you down!”

  Most of the group doesn’t acknowledge Jun, and instead starts on their long journey west. Maria and Keyon both respond cheerfully to his words. Even though Keyon is against Jun joining them, the two have been friends for a very long time. Keyon’s objections were practical rather than the emotional and he is already over them.

  Surprisingly, Letz rides alongside Jun for a moment and offers his own greeting, “It’s good to see you again Jun. We’ll be relying on you a lot for our training and emergency care. Please take good care of us.”

  The young Redmane has always been keenly aware of other people’s feelings. Jun seems to be no exception. As Letz strides off to ride alongside Katz for the journey, Jun sees Kikka’s face buried in his back. She turns her face to Jun for a moment and the two’s eyes meet. It’s quiet and timid, but the boy can just make out the faintest, “Hello” from the little girl as they ride by. Jun thinks back to the first time he met the little girl, even then, surrounded by Zultanite stones, she did her best to be kind and respond to his questions. She is a sweet girl. The young man feels a tint of optimism about their group. While he was shocked to find some so opposed to him, there might be others who just need to get to know him more.

  The journey west to the Strix Empire, and Lismore beyond begins with familiar faces and a few new ones. Bao sets off on the next leg of his journey with Kikka, Katz, Letz, Belos, Maria, Keyon, Jun, and Kain. Three Sosuns, two Half-Elves, and one Zultanite, Strix, Redmane, and Bolbian each for a total of nine travelers.

  When Bao began his travels, he was aimless and without purpose. He quickly found Maria and Keyon and joined them on their mission. Now that he has learned more about the vast world he is a part of, he is leaving Tab with a new mission: to reunited each of the three children under his care with homes of their own. To do this, he knows that he must develop his magical skills and continue learning about the world. He thinks back to the words of the weaponsmith and his conversations with Fos. If his family’s spear is Ashwood and originates from warriors in the west, then he should make a point to visit them during this new journey. However, this new development with Jun has him second guessing the nature of magic and whether or not this is even a path he should walk down.

  The party has been riding for a short while now and already the sun is clearly lighting the sky. Bao turns back one last time to see the city walls as their details fade. A lot happened in Tab. Princess Claudia, Zultanite eyes, death magic, Ashwood, and emperor Teo. At Maria’s party Teo asked him a strange question: Can humans overcome the whims of the gods? What did he mean by that? At that time Bao had said yes but he couldn’t give his answer with any conviction. Perhaps on this journey he can find the convictions he is seeking.