The Hero of Brookshire

Chapter Five

    "Today is the day we make that little knife-eared elf come up with what he owes to our boss. It's been two weeks and we can't afford to let him get out of paying his debt, Little One," said Utorg. "Greigut will kill us if we do."
    "He won't get out of paying a second time," said Amere assuredly.
Amere and Utorg entered the elven shopkeep's store.
It was empty of any customers beside there being one white-haired bearded man wearing a regal purple robe decorated with unique designs stitched into its make. The bearded man wore large brown boots, a red and yellow sash around his waist that served as a belt, a brown pouch over his waist, and a purple-colored triangular-shaped hat over his long, straight hair that hung down from both sides of his head.
Carrying a broad, brown staff in his hand, the bearded man used it to walk around as if it were a cane. Looking closer at it, Amere saw that it looked to have been made from a special material not found in most areas in Braisen, let alone Aesorin.
The bearded man glanced over at Amere and Utorg as they entered Maurilin's shop. His eyes were especially drawn to Amere, not taking an eye off of him.
Standing behind his counter was Maurilin. His eyes widened as he saw Amere and Utorg walk toward him. As they approached him, his small eyes darted from one direction to the other in a panicked rush before coming to a standstill after seeing that he was cornered.
"Can I help you gentlemen?" he asked unnervingly. "If you're here for my gold then know I haven't had much. The business here has been slow and I don't have the funds to pay Greigut."
"Quiet, elf. We'll do the talking," demanded Utorg.
"We know you have the gold. It's been three weeks now. We know that you get customers in your shop so you aren't fooling us," said Amere.
"Business has been slow. I haven't had many customers come in and look at my wares in a long time," said Maurilin.
"That's hogwash, elf. We know that you make a living, and we see customers come into your shop! Now you hand over all that you've got if you know what's good for you!" roared Utorg, raising his hand out.
Maurilin's meek body shook as he whimpered. He reached into both of his pockets, digging out a handful of gold into each of his hands before passing them to Utorg.
"There, that's all the gold that I have on me," he said.
"Is that really it, Maurilin?" asked Amere.
"It is, I promise. That's all the gold that I have."
"How does it look, Utorg? Did the elf give us enough to pay his debt to Greigut?"
Utorg looked down at the piles of gold resting in both of his hands before he began to count them.
"This little knife-eared elf has only given us two hundred gold!"
"Two hundred gold?" asked Amere, shocked.
"Yes, only two hundred gold! Greigut is going to skin us alive if we return back to him without the gold Maurilin owes him!"
Utorg turned his attention back to Maurilin. Numerous veins began to bulge out of his leathery green skin. He tightly balled up both of his massive hands into fists.
"YOU LITTLE TWIG PIXIE! IF WE'RE GOING DOWN, YOU'RE GOING DOWN WITH US!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Little One, stand by the door and watch for anyone trying to enter the store. Deny them entrance until I'm done with Maurilin."
"What about the bearded man in the shop, Utorg?"
"We'll deal with him afterwards. Now go to the door and keep watch before someone sees us."
"Yes, Utorg," said Amere obediently before walking over to the shop's door. He stood in front of it like a statue and kept watch.
Utorg angrily backhanded Maurilin with great force coming from his pent up rage and strength. The sudden attack caused the elf shopkeep to stumble behind himself backwards before he fell on his back. Amere turned his head behind him as he watched Maurilin rise from the ground onto his feet before Utorg flew his left arm in a tight fist that connected to Maurilin's cheek. The hard hit made Maurilin fall back to the wooden floor of his shop as he writhed in pain.
Finally, Utorg picked up Maurilin by his throat in his left hand. With a burning anger that only intensified as their eyes met each other, Utorg tightened his grip on Maurilin's neck. Amere couldn't tell if Utorg consciously knew what he was doing, but the large, angry orc began to strangle and crush the elf's windpipe.
He dangled the helpless full grown elf off of the ground as he kicked his feet, screamed, and tried using his hands to get Utorg to release him. Amere could see the life in him slowly begin fading as Maurilin's skin began to turn pale. His darting eyes began to roll back into his head as he began to start choking. Desperately, the elf shopkeep gasped for air. After a few moments passed by, Utorg fiercely slammed Maurilin into the wooden counter of his shop, breaking it in two as Maurilin's body crumpled under the damaged wood. He cried out in loud, agonizing pain.
Seeing the violence between his enraged orc partner and the meek elf caused Amere's heart to drop. In his mind, he wondered if Utorg had finally killed Maurilin. His shock quickly went away as he saw Maurilin's body move despite the damage it received.
Utorg reached toward his back, pulling out his great sword before pointing his blade at Maurilin's face.
Maurilin's eyes widened. His body tensed up, frozen from the cold fear that ran throughout the meek elf's body.
"I-I'm sorry! I don't have any more gold! Please, have mercy on me!" he cried out.
"You're going to have us killed, elf. You brought this on yourself," said Amere, coldly.
"You're not really going to kill me, are you? You never have before. That would be murder!"
"A shame what Utorg did to you wasn't enough to kill you. Much less, it's surprising you're able to speak right now."
"Yes, Maurilin. It would be. Cold. Blooded. Murder. No less than what you deserve," said Utorg.
"Please, don't do this, Utorg! I can pay Greigut back. I'll pay him double, no, triple what I owe him. Please! Leave me with my life I beg you!"
"Too late, Maurilin," said Utorg before raising his blade up in the air at Maurilin.
As he laid on the floor, Maurilin tightly closed his eyes and moved his hands out to shield himself from Utorg's blade.
   "Wait. He's lying," said the bearded man, approaching the three men. "He hasn't given you all of his gold like he claims."
"I would stay out of this if I were you, old man," said Utorg. "No one crosses Greigut and comes out alive."
"You speak boldly to someone from the Tower who you believe to be a searcor," said the bearded man.
"Only someone with a death wish dresses and walks around Braisen as a searcor. Your kind is few, and with how I'm feeling right now after this elf's continued games, I'm not afraid to speak boldly to an old man parading as a Searcor. Granted, if you truly are one," said Utorg.
"We both saw him empty his pockets and give us all the gold that he has. Are you really trying to say that the elf was lying to us?" asked Amere.
"I am," replied the bearded man.
"But how would you know that? Who are you?"
"Never mind who I am. Check the elf shopkeep's pockets if you wish. You'll find that he's hidden more gold than he lets on."
Following the mysterious bearded man's instructions, Utorg came around the broken counter and began patting down Maurilin. He trembled at the touch of Utorg's firm, heavy hands moving down his body.
"Gentlemen, is this really necessary? I've given you all the gold that I have. I assure you that you won't find anymore—"
"Quiet, Maurilin," said Utorg demandingly before reaching both of his hands into Maurilin's pockets, roughly pulling out handfuls of gold. "Well, well. It appears you weren't as truthful as you claimed. Was this small amount of gold worth dying over even in your last moments?"
Maurilin remained silent. He trembled violently as he gazed into the enraged brown eyes of Utorg.
"How much did he have, Utorg?" asked Amere.
"I can already tell not even one hundred gold."
"Pathetic. You really are a shifty little elf aren't you, Maurilin?"
"I think he has to pay for lying to us. For lying to Greigut, Amere. It's only fair. He has to suffer severely."
"Go ahead, Utorg. I think he's earned your wrath."
Utorg picked Maurilin up from off of the ground. Amere watched as the elf shopkeep groaned in pain from the damage inflicted upon him. Without warning, Utorg quickly slashed his great sword across Maurilin's right eye. The attack caused Maurilin to cry out in pain before stumbling over to the floor as fresh blood ran down his face from the wound. Utorg proceeded to lift up the injured elf with his right arm before using his left arm to aim his blade at Maurilin's stomach.
"Are you ready to die, Maurilin? I'm ready to watch you finally get what you deserve. Lying to us about Greigut's gold has now cost you your life," said Utorg.
"Hold on. To avoid any further complications, how much does the shop owner owe you? I can pay off his debt. You can also keep the gold you've already received off him."
Amere and Utorg raised both their eyebrows as they stared silently at the mysterious man.
"You don't want to get involved in this. Maurilin has been short on paying his debts, and he owes our boss a lot of money," said Utorg. "It's time he pays the price for crossing Greigut."
"I'm confident in my ability to pay his debt. How much does he owe?"
"Six hundred gold," answered Amere.
Reaching into his pocket, the bearded man pulled out a large brown pouch of gold.
Utorg released Maurilin from his tight grip, dropping him to the floor before he motioned his hand over to the bearded man, taking the brown pouch of gold from him.
"I believe that should cover it," said the bearded man.
"We don't know who you are but thank you," said Amere. "You've saved this elf's life."
"In times like these, seeing as little violence and bloodshed is a rarity and something I like to uphold," replied the bearded man.
The bearded man proceeded to walk over toward Maurilin who was lying sprawled out on the floor of his shop. Maurilin moaned in pain as he tightly clutched on to his right eye, covering it from view as trickles of blood ran down his face. The bearded man bent down over the injured elf and slowly moved his hand, revealing a deep wound and scar over his eye.
"No, please don't hurt me," said Maurilin weakly as he looked up at the bearded man.
"Be at ease. I'm not going to harm you," said the bearded man reassuringly. "Your injury to your eye is serious, but perhaps I can heal you."
The bearded man placed his hand over Maurilin's scarred, bleeding eye. He closed his eyes and began focusing his power to heal Maurilin's wound. After a few seconds passed by, the scar over Maurilin's right eye vanished and the bleeding stopped.
"There. I've healed you. You should be feeling better now. Please, for the sake of your life and future health, pay what you owe to Greigut. He's a dangerous, ruthless individual that will stop at nothing to gain his gold. His henchmen are equally as violent and not merciful. They wouldn't hesitate to kill you for not paying their boss. You'd be wise to heed my words and not underestimate the Thieves Guild," said the bearded man before rising to his feet.
"Yes, thank you, kind sir. I won't forget this," said Maurilin. "Now, please, will you all leave my shop?"
The bearded man turned to face Utorg and Amere.
"We can talk more outside if you two wish. I was actually meaning to talk with you Amere," he said.
"How do you know my name?" asked Amere.
"I have my ways, dear boy."
"While you both get better acquainted, I'm going to drop off the gold Maurilin owed to Greigut. The extra three hundred that he gave me I'll keep for us. I'll see you back home for dinner Amere," said Utorg.
"Yeah, I'll see you back home, Utorg," replied Amere before he followed the bearded man outside of Maurilin's shop. "You showed mercy to Maurilin back in his shop. You healed him somehow."
"I did. I couldn't stand by and see him suffer in pain like he was," said the bearded man.
"Maurilin is a shifty elf that got what he deserved. I don't know why you'd show him any sort of mercy, but you did."
"I don't believe you truly feel that way. I can sense good in you. There's still a chance for you unlike your orc companion who is set in his ways. There's enough evil in this world, if I can be a light to shine down on and cover even the smallest bit of darkness, then I will."
"How did you know that Maurilin was lying about the gold that he had?"
"A special ability of clairvoyance," replied the bearded man. "I'm one of the few who still possess the old, rare, arcane ability."
"Only someone as powerful as a searcor would have that kind of power," said Amere. "You can't possibly be a searcor."
"I speak the truth. You're right, only a searcor would possess such a skill."
"You expect me to believe that you're a searcor? Clearly you have some power, but you can't be a searcor."
"Your belief in what I am isn't necessary. In the end, I am what I am. But let me ask, your partner, Utorg, noted that I appeared to be a searcor, so why not you?"
"Anyone who goes around Braisen these days dressed as a searcor must be looking for trouble or attention from the guards."
"Interesting. I'll let you find out the truth on your own with that logic."
"Well, if you are a searcor, do you think I could learn to become one too?"
"Perhaps," answered the bearded man before Amere and him began walking through Brookshire's streets. "It all depends on if you're born sensitive to mystic energy and if you're guided correctly on your path. Back when I was your age, you had to be trained at the Tower in order to become a searcor."
"I see."
"Tell me a little about yourself," the bearded man said.
"Well, I'm seventeen, I'm part of the Red Skull Marauders, I have an elf sister named Evelyn, and two guardians named Utorg and Fenyl," said Amere. "I also have a father who I like to believe is still alive somewhere."
"Interesting. Very interesting."
"What about you?"
"Well, as you can clearly see, I'm an elder man."
"But you're no average man. I could tell from when we were back at Maurilin's shop."
"Yes, I would agree that I'm no ordinary man."
"You were able to somehow tell Maurilin was lying as well as you healed him. That's how I know."
"I was, and only someone with mystic abilities would be able to accomplish such a feat."
"You may possess mystic energy but you can't be a searcor. You just can't be."
"Look inside yourself. Search your feelings. Deep down inside, you know the truth. Given everything you've seen, do you really believe I am not a searcor?"
Amere grew quiet. He thought to himself if it really could be possible that the bearded man was indeed a searcor. He thought about the works he performed back at Maurilin's along with how the bearded man was dressed. Amere searched his feelings and discovered the truth. 
"So, it is true then. You really are a searcor. I thought being a searcor and using your powers were illegal in Braisen?"
The bearded man laughed a little under his breath before he gently stroked his beard.
"Dear boy, there are a lot of illegal things in this kingdom, much less, in your own village here."
"Yeah, I guess so. Aren't you afraid of getting caught though?"
"I'm weary, but I'm never afraid. I've been taking care of myself for a long time now. You mentioned you had a father you believed was still alive, correct?"
"Yeah, his name was Kieran. Utorg tells my sister and me that in the past he used to work with him and Fenyl in the Red Skull Marauders."
"I also once knew of a great searcor back in the day named Kieran. He used to also be a part of the Order of Drakkun."
"Come to mention it, you resemble the Kieran that I knew. I wonder if you're related to him."
"When my sister and I were really young, guards came and took away our father."
"Did they?"
"Yes, and ever since, we hadn't seen him again."
"I see. Well, young Amere, I do hope you find your father. I suppose I should let you get back home before your orc companion worries."
"Would you like to come back with me for dinner?"
"If you'd have me, sure."
Both Amere and the bearded man proceeded to walk through the Brightwood Forest on their way back towards Amere's house.
"So, if you're a searcor, you must have gone on many adventures in your life."
"Most searcors are restricted from ever leaving the Tower since King Theron came into power. I was one of the lucky ones to have gotten out before the new laws took effect. But to answer your question, yes, in my lifetime I've been on several adventures and met a lot of people. Many of Braisen's citizens aren't used to seeing a searcor like they were before King Arturion died."
"King Theron has made many restrictive and unjust laws throughout the kingdom of Braisen. No one seems brave enough to challenge him."
"Fear and uncertainty leads men to cower and do nothing in the face of injustice. I've been around for a long time and I've come to realize that."
"Why don't you just use your powers to take down King Theron?"
The bearded man let out a short laugh from under his breath.
"There's a time for resistance and fighting back, and then there's a time to wait for the right opportunity to strike. I may be a searcor, but I'm not all-powerful. I cannot stop the king on my own. It would be incredibly foolish and a suicide attempt to even consider the option."
"But you're a searcor. You're incredibly strong and powerful. You are unlike normal men. With a man of your skills, there's no way you could lose, right?"
"Dear boy, I may be powerful, but one powerful searcor cannot stand alone against an army. To defeat someone of King Theron's might, one would need to unite the races of Braisen into creating an army. That's the only way I can see us winning against him. Power isn't just in the form of one's might, but it also lies in one's knowledge—wisdom."
"Maybe you're right," said Amere. "I just wish things could go back to how they were before."
"I'm sure you're not alone in that regard, my young friend."
Amere sighed. "I wish I were able to escape the Guild that I'm in now with Utorg."
"I've heard of your crime boss, Greigut, before."
Amere looked over at Ewyn.
"You have?"
"Of course I have. He's a renowned orc crime boss and drug lord. He's also head of the Thieves Guild. I must admit that it's remarkable that he's able to stretch his crime organization so far throughout the kingdom."
"I hate that he gets away with it. If I were king, I'd make sure that people like him wouldn't get away with what he does."
"Perhaps one day you'll be able to escape from the criminal life. All it leads to is death, betrayal, or imprisonment."
"Sometimes I wonder if Druvvalikar is still with me after all I've done and gone through."
"There's times I've wondered the same as you. I've wondered if he's left us all with the conflict of the searcor hunters, searcors, mystics, and the Church of Druvvalikar."
Amere's ears perked up.
"Yeah, it's been a war between them for awhile. Since before I was born."
"I pray to Druvvalikar that an end is eventually in sight for them. Too much blood has been shed on all sides," said the bearded man. "Your necklace you're wearing, Amere. It is no ordinary necklace."
Amere clutched his necklace dangling over his neck.
"Of course. It's a special necklace my father passed down to me before I was born."
"By the looks of it, it appears to be a Black Scaled Dragon necklace."
"You're right, it is."
"It's incredibly rare that anyone in the kingdom would possess such a unique necklace."
"Utorg tells me that my dad found it during his travels and kept it with him ever since."
"Oh? Was he a dragon slayer, dear boy?"
"No. Not from what I've been told. Just a top henchman of Greigut's."
"Some say that the wearer of the necklace is granted protection."
"I'd like to believe that. I've been in some life or death situations and it seems to help me get through them."
As Amere walked with the bearded man deeper into the Brightwood Forest, he could hear a faint cry nearby.
"Did you hear that?" asked Amere.
"Yes, I did. It sounds like a wounded animal."
"Deer live in the forest here, and I know that hunters sometimes come into the woods and kill them for sport. We need to check it out."
"The animal is near us, I can sense its pain. We must keep moving forward," said the bearded man.
Amere and the bearded man continued treading through the forest, hearing the faint sound of the animal becoming louder and clearer the closer they got.
"There it is! It looks like an injured deer!" cried out Amere.
He ran over toward the hurt deer laying sprawled out on the ground with blood trickling down its wound coming from its ribs.
"It appears this deer is injured pretty badly," said the bearded man.
"Yeah, I know. Based on its wound, I think it's been shot with an arrow or stray bullet."
"That would explain the wound around its ribs," said the bearded man.
"We have to help it. It's dying."
"Maybe I can help it," said the bearded man as he approached the dying animal and stood over its body.
The bearded man bent down to his knees and stretched out his right arm toward the deer's wound. He closed his eyes, focusing on harnessing his power and transferring it to the wild animal. After a few seconds passed by, the deer's wound began to stop bleeding as well as close up.
The deer stopped crying in pain before getting up off the leaf covered ground. Reaching its head over toward the bearded man, it softly licked his cheek. The deer then quickly ran off into the woods.
"How did you manage to do that?" asked Amere.
The bearded man smiled.
"Through years of practice in the Tower honing my skills as a searcor. Because of it, I was able to save the deer as you just witnessed," he replied.
"You did the same thing back at Maurilin's. You healed him."
"I did."
"I've got to learn to do that."
"Be prepared for years of practice if that's what you truly intend. It doesn't come easy or fast. It's an advanced arcane ability."
"I'm surprised there weren't any hunters nearby. They must have left after injuring the deer and left it to die."
"Regardless, we can rest easy knowing its life has been saved."
"Yeah," said Amere. "Thanks to you and your abilities. I guess we should continue on back home."
The bearded man nodded his head.
Amere and the bearded man walked through the leafy path of the woods before they came out of it. In the distance they could see Amere's house. As they neared it, they passed by Fenyl.
"Amere, you're not with Utorg I see. Who is this man?" asked Fenyl.
"He's a new friend of mine. He means no harm. He's traveling and helped Utorg and me get the money Maurilin owed us. I'm inviting him over for dinner."
Fenyl's eyes turned to the bearded man.
"Interesting. Friend, you do realize these days it brings eyes upon you to be dressed as you are, correct?"
"Looks can be deceiving," replied the bearded man.
"I agree," said Fenyl as he glared at the bearded man before proceeding to walk away. "Regardless, I'll let you two be off then."
"Sorry about that, Fenyl can be a little too curious with new people I befriend," said Amere.
"It's no trouble. I'd be weary myself if I were him," said the bearded man.
As the two men neared Amere's house, coming out of it was Evelyn. Carrying two buckets in her hands, she dropped them upon seeing the bearded man with her brother.
"Amere! What are you doing?" she asked, panicked.
"What does it look like? I'm bringing a friend home for dinner," answered Amere.
"Amere! Do you realize who this person is?"
"You know, I don't think I ever got his name."
Evelyn grew an annoyed frown on her face.
"Don't be an ass, Amere. Your friend here is a searcor. You know, the ones who are illegal."
"A smart sister you have, Amere," said the bearded man.
"Yes, I'm fully aware he's a searcor, Evelyn."
"Then why are you walking around dealing with him?"
"He helped us get gold from Maurilin to pay his debt, and I think he may have known our father."
"Be careful hanging around him you two, we don't want any eyes on us that could link him to us," said Fenyl, walking up toward the trio.
Suddenly, coming out of the front door was Utorg.
"Amere, I see you've brought our friend home for dinner, have you?"  he asked.
"Yes, I did. I think he may know our dad, Utorg."
"Does he now? Well, come in, come in. Evelyn prepared us a nice dinner," said Utorg before heading back inside of the house followed by Evelyn, Amere, Fenyl and the bearded man.
Inside, the four of them got seated at the dinner table before Evelyn passed everyone a hot plate of stew.
"So, friend, I don't believe we've ever got your name back there at Maurilin's," said Utorg.
"My name is Ewyn," replied the bearded man. "Master Ewyn to the searcors at the Tower of Searcors."
"Ah, so just as I expected you are a searcor then."
"I am. I've been staying low with my true identity up until recently. I've made sure I never stayed in any place for too long. It wasn't that long ago I picked back up my robe and hat."
"What brought you out of hiding? Surely you know searcors and any form of arcane spells outside of the Tower without special consideration by the king are illegal in Braisen."
"I'm aware, but the mission I'm on requires me to use my abilities and to not be afraid."
"Mission? What mission are you on?" asked Evelyn.
"To retrieve your brother, Amere."
Amere raised his left eyebrow. "What? Why me?" he asked. "There's nothing special about me."
"So you believe," said Ewyn. "Remember how I told you about the clairvoyant vision I received dealing with Maurilin?"
"Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?"
"That same clairvoyant vision I had relating to him, I had relating to you. I was shown a powerful vision of me meeting you through the ordeal from earlier. At the time, I had no clue what it meant, but I do understand it now. I had been trying to find you for quite some time now. I had gotten a tip of your location from a goblin who use to know your father before they lost contact. It wasn't until we met at Maurilin's and I got a chance to speak with you did I realize the king had taken him away and you were his son," explained Ewyn.
"You knew my father?" asked Amere.
"That sounds like a bunch of hogwash," said Utorg. "Little One has no relation to a searcor named Kieran and he's going nowhere."
"Your belief isn't necessary, I'm afraid. To put it simply, I'm here to take Amere with me on an important task to defeat King Theron," said Ewyn.
Everyone at the table stared at Ewyn.
"You, a stranger we've never met before who claims to know one of my kids' dad wants to take him away on a mission to decrown the king? Preposterous," said Utorg before lifting himself up off his seat and walking over toward Ewyn. "I'm sorry but you'll have to go. You've overstayed your welcome, and you're talking complete nonsense."
"I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me. Amere is the one I've seen in my vision. He's destined to come with me and do great things."
Utorg pointed his hand at the door. "Out with you. Now!" he cried out.
"Very well, I'll leave. Thank you for the dinner and inviting me over, Amere," said Ewyn as he made his way out of the door.
As he left, Utorg slammed the door behind him shut.
"A crazy old wizard he is. He'll be hanged before morning with the way he's talking. How do we even pick up the nutcases, Little One?" asked Utorg before grumbling under his breath as he made his way to his room.
"Well, Uncle Utorg is mad," said Evelyn.
"Utorg is always pissed off," said Amere.
"Yeah, but he seems really angry this time."
"Can you blame him? You have some random magical stranger off of the streets basically saying I'm some savior of the kingdom and how he wants to run off and train me."
"So, you don't believe him then I take it?" asked Evelyn.
"Believe what Ewyn said? I don't know. It does sound crazy, but what if it's true? What if he really does know our father too?" asked Amere.
"I don't know. For now let's just keep his name out of earshot of Utorg, ok? We don't need him to have a meltdown."
"Alright, fine. But I'm going to look for Ewyn tomorrow to get more answers."
"Just be careful Amere," said Evelyn.
"Always," answered Amere.