The Ransom Knight Read Free Page A

killed him. Which also seemed like a likely fate for Mazael and the others. Dozens of the ghostly forms moved out of the trees, and Mazael and the others could not overcome them all…
    Blue light flashed, and Mazael spotted Trocend. The monk walked forward, his right hand extended, a pale blue crystal clutched in his fist. The light from the crystal sheathed him in a pale corona, and the phantoms recoiled from the light. Trocend raised his left hand, and volleys of blue sparks burst from his palm. The sparks ripped through the phantoms, and even the touch of a single spark was enough to unravel a phantom. Within moments the sparks had shattered the phantoms, and then the mist itself vanished.
    They stood in silence, staring at the monk.
    “How…did you do that?” said Gerald. 
    “The gods are with him,” said Tollard, his voice awed. “They must have sent their divine power to drive away the ghosts.”
    “The gods might be with him,” said Mazael, and Trocend’s pale eyes shifted towards him, “but that wasn’t divine favor. That was a magical spell. You’re a wizard, aren’t you?” 
    “A wizard?” said Gerald, astonished. “But the lords of Knightreach do not keep court wizards. They…”
    “A polite fiction,” said Trocend, tucking the crystal into one of his pouches. “Maintaining order is a difficult task, and the abilities of the Brotherhood of wizards are a vital tool. The Justiciar Order, of course, frowns upon all magic, and the Order is one of your father’s closest allies. So to show respect to the Grand Master of the Justiciars, your father does not keep a court wizard.”
    “Instead he has a monk,” said Mazael. “One who also happens to be a wizard.”
    “Alas,” said Trocend with his thin smile. “I never claimed to be a monk. I am uncertain how people keep coming to this incorrect conclusion.” 
    “This is a dishonorable deception,” said Gerald, “to masquerade as a monk…”
    “We have more immediate problems,” said Mazael. He sheathed his sword and pointed at Trocend. “You knew we would encounter something like this. That’s why Lord Malden sent you, isn’t it?” 
    Trocend said nothing.
    Mazael snapped his fingers. “Wait. When Tollard came back, you said we would reach Castle Highstone by noon. You’ve been there before, haven’t you?”
    “I have,” said Trocend. 
    “I suggest, master wizard,” said Mazael, “that you tell me what is going on. It’s more than a simple ransom, isn’t it?”
    Trocend stared at him for a long moment, and Mazael felt a prickle of alarm. His instincts screamed for him to cut down the old monk before he could cast a spell. Physically, Trocend would be no match for Mazael, but if the wizard brought his magic to bear…
    “Very well,” said Trocend. “But you shall keep my secrets, sir knight.” He pointed at Gerald. “You have to learn the truth of me sooner or later, squire.” His pointing finger shifted to Mulger and Tollard. “You men, as well, by risking your lives have earned the right to know the truth. But you shall keep this truth a secret. Breathe a word of it to anyone, even your own wives, and you shall suffer a mysterious and accidental death soon after. Am I understood?”
    Both armsmen agreed quickly. No one in their right mind wanted to cross a wizard.  
    “Now that we have the threats out of the way,” said Mazael, “perhaps you can tell us what is happening.”
    “I am not entirely sure, not yet,” said Trocend. “Suffice it to say, Sir Edmund blundered into a situation far more dangerous than a simple abduction. Castle Highstone is…old, quite old. Older than Knightcastle, even.”
    “A Roland has ruled in Knightcastle for almost three thousand years,” said Gerald.
    “You see that I do not overstate the matter,” said Trocend. “It has changed hands and been destroyed and rebuilt a score of times over the centuries. Sir Traeger Highstone is merely the latest tenant to occupy the castle.