‘Boring! I metcountless people who all smiled and said ‘Hello’. I moved my gearup into a room in the guard’s dormitory and was issued with auniform to wear. I start teaching tomorrow. Do you want to comedown to the inn with me?’
‘No, unfortunately beerand wine have no effect on me. It’s something to do with my Logiconbody. I’ve got some planning to do anyway. If you get a chance,find out what they export through the gateway. Now that I knowthere’s a node here I’m interested. Maybe there’s a way we can makesome profit out of our trip here.’
‘Be careful Aquitain,they’ve all been very nice and hospitable, and don’t forget theHigh Wizard is a friend of Granddad.’
‘I’ll be careful. Youjust be careful of who you make friends with down at the inn. Idon’t want to have to come down there fighting for your honour,’ hesaid, knowing what sort of response that would trigger.
‘You fight for me!That’s pretty unlikely. You’ve never had a fight in your life.You’d be wiped out in no time at all. Don’t even think about it,’she said. ‘Anyway I’m leaving now. I’ve brought you some men’sclothes and some work to do. Can you please find out what thoserings and the belt that Granddad gave me do. He also gave me anamulet of forbearance that I was instructed to get you to wear,’and she dropped a bag in his lap, broke the mindlink and left himalone.
Seeing and talking toZephira cheered him up and made him think much more positively. Hethen remembered that he had been given a bag of powerstones and aball of clay. ‘Looks like a busy night,’ he thought to himself andtook the items into his new workshop for examination. ‘But first Imight set up some wards to keep out the snoopers.’
**
For High WizardFeatherdown this was a day he had been dreading for three years,and even though he had considered all sorts of plans of actionnothing seemed to fit at the moment. So he decided to do nothing.He would watch and wait and act at a more appropriate time. He hadcontained the problem for now but he knew without a doubt itwouldn’t be for long. He had been forewarned and of all thingsasked to help, something he was still hesitant to do.
Archwizard Featherdownwas a battle wizard, which meant that he specialized in killingmasses of people in wars between states. He was originally from awealthy and politically active family located on a world whosepopulation was continually fighting amongst themselves and hetrained as a war wizard from an early age. While on a militarycampaign the government had changed and his family were caught onthe wrong side. All his extended family except for his youngerbrother and sister, who were away at the time, had been put todeath.
Realizing that his ownlife was at risk he fled his command and was branded a coward and atraitor by his government, but he was far from that. He was a verycompetent and talented military wizard. He traced his brother andsister, and using friends and his meagre resources at the time heleft for another world. For a while they had to move continually asgovernment assassins hounded them, but after a year or two theywere forgotten as other political matters became moreimportant.
They eventually settleddown in a small town on a remote world and he used the remainder ofhis funds to buy an inn. After a year he found it too boring anddecided to get back into the war wizard game by hiring out as amercenary. It was then he realized that there were countless poorand oppressed people being victimized by wealthy and ruthlessleaders of all descriptions, who could afford to pay for theservices of power hungry wizards to maintain their hold over thepeople. That was when he decided that the poor and the powerlessneeded a champion, and he would be it.
He began hiring hisservices out to the underdogs. Often they couldn’t pay in advanceand sometimes couldn’t pay at all, but he helped them anyway. Afterseveral spectacular successes the rich and powerful began to payattention to him. They considered him a rogue wizard and placed ahefty bounty on his head, sending assassins and bounty huntersafter him and his remaining family. Featherdown and his brother andsister then spent another two years running and hiding until thesituation cooled down again.
About ten years ago,Featherdown heard that the Druid’s Council on Mudrun had decided toemploy an experienced fighting wizard to help them secure theirworld from an increasing number of magic using poachers, who wereraiding the world and stealing the rare species living there, oftenkilling the druids. He decided that this might be a goodopportunity to live a bit more peacefully, and that the place wasremote enough to hide from his enemies.
The druids weredelighted. His reputation as a fighter had preceded him and hislack of affiliation with any religious or other governmental groupswas ideal. He would be given political asylum and the position ofHigh Wizard of Mudrun, if he would swear allegiance to the Counciland develop a fighting force made up primarily from locals thatcould be used to control any illegal activities involvingwizards.
They had given him afree hand and accepted his proposition to build a new town around apermanent commercial gateway established in a magic node. The townwould pay for itself from profits made from trade through thegateway. He had planned the town himself and they had spent fiveyears building it to its current size. He recruited his brother andsister to run the town’s best inn, and another archwizard friendwho was looking for a quiet new place to live.
All had seemed perfectuntil three years ago, when he had met a druid who shape changed toa Yith and told him a story so surprising that it shocked him tothe core. It was then that he had realized that fate or more likelythe gods had chosen him to be a part of something big. At first hehad panicked and told the High Druid a little of
