The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 2 - An Eye for an Eye (Part 2)

Amadeus did the math. He had sneaked around White Harrow before, and remembered seeing their entire army of battle-wizards as they assembled one morning for inspection. He recalled seeing ten platoons, each consisting of about a thousand battle-wizards. This would mean that there were at the very least ten thousand battle-wizards in the White Harrow army. Would five hundred Avianath riders be able to face down ten thousand battle-wizards? This was highly unlikely. Amadeus decided to keep this little fact to himself for the moment.

"How would we contact them?" asked of the older members of the camp.

"We would need someone with the courage and skill to sneak out of camp, and make the arduous journey towards White Harrow," answered Old Jarbus.

Amadeus would always much rather run away from trouble than into it. However, this time, he was fidgeting uncomfortably in place. This is all my fault. I'm the one who fought back against a Noble. Seeing that innocent man die for my actions, I just felt like throwing up.

Guilt washed over Amadeus in waves. It made him feel sick to his stomach. Amadeus held his fists so tightly that his hands trembled. It felt like he was about to explode. He couldn't just sit silently anymore; he had to do something about it.

Standing up, Amadeus raised his hand in the air. "This is my fault. Let me go."

There was a moment of silence and the crowd of commoners stared at him with disbelief.

"You have caused enough trouble already!" shouted one angry commoner.

"You are incapable, the weakest commoner from the smallest family of the weakest clan among us. You are unworthy!" another shouted.

Soon, the crowd began to chant in unison, shouting many vulgarities that should not be repeated here. Although Amadeus had been the object of ridicule and scorn many times, the screams of hatred that emanated throughout the tent were overwhelming. His heart felt as though it had sunk to the bottom of his stomach, making his insides churn uncomfortably.

"Stop yelling at him! He's just a boy," shouted Madam Marcella in his defense. She went to his side and covered him protectively.

Old Jarbus gave the crowd a stern warning look, and the chanting died down to a still calmness. He then looked Amadeus in the eye. In that moment, Amadeus saw a glimpse of pity. "I understand that you have good intentions Amadeus, but you would not make it far before a Noble would kill you.

"You are far from ready." Old Jarbus shook his head as he spoke. He then turned back to the crowd and asked, "Who else is willing to go?"

A few hands started to rise across the room, only from the bravest and toughest commoners who were well known for their strength and courage.

"We will only take the risk with one person. That way there is less risk of the Nobles noticing that someone is missing."

Old Jarbus's eyes scanned the crowd. Looking at the sea of hands, he raised a finger and pointed towards the crowd, slowly moving from person to person before coming to rest on one of the strongest commoners in the camp.

"You," he said as he gestured towards the chosen commoner to come towards the center of the room. The commoner whose name was Uthaes stood up proudly as cheers of encouragement burst forth from the crowd. "Gather a small bag of items for your journey and devise a plan to depart unseen by the Nobles. They would probably not have any lookouts, but would have left some sort of magical spell upon our camp to prevent us from leaving."

Old Jarbus's gaze returned to the piece of parchment on the table. He picked it up gently with his both hands and started to roll it into a scroll. "This map will lead you to the Jagged Peaks, where you will find my tribe. Please take good care of it, for without it – you would be lost in the wilderness."