The Hero’s Right Hand

Guiding horses to pull a carriage was harder than I thought. The hundreds of pounds dragging behind us slowed the beasts.

“You seriously left a note?” Aisha complained.

“Yes. So no one would think we ran away,” I answered.

“They might come after us!”

“Knowing Elder Niko, he’ll spin this into some story that it was planned all along,” I said. “The town should party and send us off with a bang regardless of where we are.”

“If you’re so worried about them, we shouldn’t have snuck out,” Aisha argued.

“I was worried about you. Sneaking out was the best option but there’s the chance they’d assume the worst and I wanted to avoid that,” I explained.

Aisha shook her head and sighed. “At least it's not like when we were kids and you’d tell our parents we were going to the secret tunnel.”

“I was nine! I’m shocked we didn’t get lost with you leading,” I retaliated.

“That only happened once!” Aisha whined. Since stepping out of town she had turned into her usual self. It was like years of pent up stress were slowly fading.

I continued to tease her. “Do you know which way we’re going now?”

Aisha hesitated before reaching into the carriage. She retrieved a rolled up map from her bag and examined it. With soft mutters she traced a finger along a path leading out of our hometown of Neves, a river running along the east. According to the map, Balur floated in the ocean to the far east.

“You mentioned the elves said they’d help you-,” I said.

“They didn’t give me a way to contact or reach them,” Aisha interrupted.

“How exactly do you expect us to get there?”

Aisha huffed. “I don’t know, Kargon. But it’s on the map meaning people know about Balur. I’m sure we can find someone to help us.”

“Do you think anyone in Wolden would know?” I asked. It was a village along the river and the closest destination outside of Neves.

“It’s our best option.”

I shook my head and looked at the road ahead. We’d need to follow this path for a few days. Camping was a necessity as an adventurer, though I’d never actually done it. My guard duties never sent me out of town and even monk training took place at a well-developed monastery.

With luck, the trip wouldn’t be long. Travelers were a big concern, but Aisha knew to stow away inside our carriage whenever she might be recognized. Luckily I was unknown outside of town. I simply pointed people in the right direction and continued on the path before they could snoop around too long. Unfortunately, roads aren’t just for innocent travelers.

The road was clear and Aisha sat right next to me. On high alert, she could normally point out something amiss from hundreds of feet away. I remember the horses neighing before abruptly stopping. Aisha definitely kicked my arm as she was dragged away. Even though I could sense what was happening my eyes wouldn’t open and I struggled to move. We both lost consciousness. Eventually our assailants dragged me away too.

When I awoke the sun had long set. I lay in a large stone room with metal bars grafted onto one side. The stones had been magically bound to the steel to create a makeshift window allowing our captors to keep an eye on us. I never had a problem seeing in the dark so I quickly noticed Aisha nearby. She looked ready to tear someone apart. So ready that it surprised me we were still locked up.

“How come you haven’t broken out?” I whispered.

“There’s a magical seal surrounding this thing. I can’t do a thing,” Aisha said.

I was never able to detect magic so I tried to produce a fire in my hand. Even with my conduit equipped nothing happened.

“It is a powerful seal considering it was created by weaklings,” a woman said from the opposite corner of the cage. “I am unsure if they are overconfident or foolish for putting their trust in it.”

For an elf, something about her physique bothered me. The left side of her face was scarred and looked as though dragon scales had been grafted onto it. Her left eye was that of a dragonborn’s. 

I must have stared longer than I intended since her eyes threw daggers back at me.

“Ah, sorry. How do you know about the seal?” I asked.

“You should realize it by the fact they left your conduit equipped. I planned to break out when they opened the cell to move me. Unfortunately, they magically lifted the entire cage instead,” the woman replied gruffly.

“One of them has to be a geomancer,” Aisha said quietly. “And another has knowledge on sealing magic.”

I pressed my face against the metal bars and peered through. Our carriage and horses were on the other side of the small forest opening we were trapped in. A horse drawn wagon sat closeby that I assumed carried the stone prison. A campfire surrounded by five bandits examining their earnings blocked us from the carriages. My attention was immediately drawn to Valefor.

I turned quickly and whispered to Aisha, “You let go of the sword?”

“They knocked me out too, idiot,” she rebutted. “They can’t draw it from the sheath. Only I can.”

“Is it a magic sword?” the draconic elf asked. She chortled, “Similar to Valefor or its ilk?”

Aisha and I shared a look then turned back to the elf. Within seconds she went from laughing to pity to disappointment.

“If that is Valefor, you are the chosen one,” she said. “How were you captured by these fools?”

“You’re trapped in here too,” Aisha replied.

“I don’t owe an explanation to amateurs who failed to even cast a ward on their carriage. Everyone knows to do so when leaving on a journey.”

“I knew we forgot something in our haste,” I said.

Aisha turned to me. “Then why didn’t you mention it?”

“I forgot!” I exclaimed. “That’s in the past, we need to get out of here if we’re going to reach Wolden.”

The elf’s ears perked. “Why are you traveling to Wolden?”

I looked at Aisha for confirmation. She rolled her eyes and shrugged.

“We are trying to reach Balur,” I said.

The woman chuckled, sighed and leaned against the wall. “I’d like to see you try while being trapped in this magic box. I can’t even break the metal.”

Aisha’s eyes widened and she approached the bars. With a shove she kept me between her and the bandits in case their gaze wandered towards us. Light taps along the edge revealed something. Quickly, Aisha pulled me to the back of the cell.

“You can judge us and all but if we break out of here, will you help us?” Aisha asked our cellmate. “Just in dealing with the bandits and then we can go our separate ways.”

The elf eyed Aisha then me before nodding. “How will we escape?”

“They aren’t maintaining concentration on the spell that’s binding the stones to the metal bars. We just need a strong force to knock it out,” Aisha explained. “One shot only. If we’re heard, they’ll likely reinforce the cell.”

“I am unable to muscle my way through something,” the elf said.

“I can’t either. I’m bolstered by magic,” Aisha said. “Kargon, on the other hand, should be able to break us out no problem.”

The metal bars were the perfect distance away. If I extended my arm, I could touch the center. There was no reason to attempt an enchantment. Instead, I focused on my body. I felt the energy flowing within me from my core, to my arm, to my fist. With a focused punch I launched the metal bars off the cell and left a doorway.

I dashed to the campfire. Only a few bandits had caught on. With a swift motion I snapped the neck of one with his back still turned. Two of them turned their attention to me with weapons drawn while the others looked towards the broken jail cell. Aisha magically passed me and my opponents too quickly to see. The force of wind knocked her sword away from the bandit holding it. In midair Aisha grabbed the hilt and with a fluid motion unsheathed Valefor and decapitated the bandit. A swift kick to the falling sheath propelled into the other bandit’s face. While he was blinded Aisha lunged forward and pierced his chest.

I couldn’t assist with the other bandits ready to attack me. Taking Aisha’s lead, I ignited my fists and obscured my assailants’ vision. With one punch I burned a hole into his chest. Even though the wound cauterized, there was no way to survive a blazing heart. His ally got behind me and I had a distinct feeling a sword would cut through me. But as quickly as I had that feeling, it vanished. Two arrows were jammed through his ears and blood poured from the wounds. The elf violently tore them out and stowed them in a quiver on her hip.

“Thank you,” I said.

“Likewise. For breaking us out,” the elf replied. “Are there any others?”

“If there were, they’re long dead. It’s how she works.” I nodded towards Aisha who already walked to the carriage.

“Confident. I like that,” the elf said as we approached.

Aisha handed a rucksack to the elf. “Thank you for your assistance, I take it this is yours.”

“Yes,” the elf said and checked inside. “What are you seeking in Balur?”

Aisha narrowed her gaze. “We have questions for the enclave.”

The elf nodded. “We worked well together. How would you like to continue to do so until we reach Balur?”

“I’ll leave the decision to him,” Aisha said and tilted her head towards me.

Both women looked at me. With the dim light of the campfire I could now see the elf had draconic features all over her body. The metallic vambrace on her arm turned out to be grafted scales. There was a chip on her shoulder and an inexplicable anger in her eyes. It reminded me of Aisha during her training.

“My name is Kargon, the chosen one’s requested companion,” I said and put out my hand.

“Sariel,” the elf replied and shook it.

Aisha introduced herself then pulled the curtain of the covered carriage.

“Now that I know we’re in this together, do you know what this is?”

Almost everything in the carriage was as we left it, if a little out of place. But that wasn’t what Aisha inquired about. An intricate cobalt chest lined with gold enticed us to examine it. None of us recognized it. Aisha had gone through our supplies earlier and guaranteed this wasn’t ours. At least, not before. 

The chest was warm to the touch but didn’t burn. A metal lock hung on the front and Sariel offered to unlock it. She muttered a spell and vines extended from her fingers into the keyhole. Within seconds it clicked.

Sariel stepped back. Aisha nodded to me.

“Why me?” I asked. “You’re the Hero.”

“Are you serious? It’s incredibly hot!” Aisha replied.

“No, it’s not! I barely feel it!”

“Are you completely unaware of your magic’s passive traits?” Sariel grunted.

I huffed. “What do you — Oh.”

I felt my cheeks burning and stepped away from the others. They didn’t question it since the chest was in my path. Ornaments on it made it obvious a wealthy patron had owned whatever was locked inside. Regardless of the form it took, I was sure to have never seen something of such value. My hands shook as they hovered over the latch. With trepidation, I opened the chest.