Beyond the Hell Cliffs Read Free Page A

homes in the morning shadow of the rising spires of Caelum Castle.  It was evening and the smells of spiced bread and roasting game filled the air.  Helfrick breathed deeply.  Damn the Twileens are splendid cooks he thought.  Besides being skilled hunters the Twileens were dealers in pleasure.  Food, drink and entertainment could all be found on the west side with the Twileens. Finding an educated one among the whole lot could take one all day, but no one came to the Twileen sector for studious endeavors.  That’s what the Faeir sector was for.
    As Helfrick moved past the pubs and gaming houses and reached the walls of the inner city, his elite gu ard greeted him and provided an escort.  Inside the walls of the capitol city was much more organized and formal.  Nobles and Citizens of influence lived within the walls.  There were not as many Twileens there.  Personal wealth and ambition were not natural elements of Twileen culture and therefore few had completed one of the passages to citizenship. 
    Faeir and Sabans dominated that area of the capitol.  They walked the smooth roads and greeted each other cordially, but quickly.  These were men and women who were educated or held positions of authority and power.  As Citizens, they were given the privilege of city life due to wealth, usefulness or veteran status.  These qualifiers were known as the Passage of Gold, the Passage of Skill and the Passage of Blood, respectively, and were the only way to gain citizenship in Rellizbix outside of nobility.  As Helfrick rode the path to his castle, he nodded at brightly attired officials and returned the salutes of the officers he passed.  He unconsciously slowed a bit when he saw the only group of people not dressed in expensive and vibrant clothing.
    The granite-hued trousers and tunics of the Stone-Seers stood out for their contrasting subtlety.  Though they were all Faeir, their hair hung loosely about their shoulders and they stared downward, submissively, always simply looking at the ground before them.  If one had lifted their eyes to the king, he would be able to see the solid, opaque eyes that distinguished them from the other, purer Faeir.  He would also have to put that poor soul to death instantly or risk reprisal from the Faeir Council. 
    The Stone-Seers were considered inferior specimens and a curse upon their people from birth.  Helfrick did not fully understand the reason why these Faeir, with their solid-colored eyeballs , were so disparaged; made to serve their masters unquestionably.  All he knew of them was that keeping them completely subservient was so important to the Faeir culture that the Council threatened outright mutiny every time a king proposed any kind of relief or liberation for them. He let the group pass on their way outside of the city walls, to where they all resided inside a locked compound on the east side of the wall. 
    Finally he was inside his castle home and dismounting his horse to enter the side entrance, through the stables.  Inside, he walked briskly to the war room, where several of his generals and advisors were awaiting him. 
    General Eramus, a Faeir Adept, was the first to ask his question of the king.  Eramus was of the Flame Sect and was tall, even for his kind, with red and orange robes and yellow hair that spiked nearly a foot from his scalp.  Helfrick could not look at him without thinking how ridiculous it was for a grown man, an elder at that, to try to make himself look so much like fire.  It was nearly laughable, but Eramus was a brilliant strategist and alchemist and was the most destructively powerful mage of the last crusade.  Helfrick had seen his power in action, as Eramus was attached to his regiment during the first clash and each one after that.  No one ever told him to his face how hilarious his fashion sense was.
    “The boy has agreed then?” Eramus asked , arms folded inside of his robes.
    “It was never a question that he would,”