A Scheme Of Spirits

Chapter 1

Kane was unimportant in the eyes of many. Something most people mistook as a disadvantage. No second glances could be spared for a lowly servant such as him. Not even for the servant of a nobleman. This was going to be easy. Kane's orders were simple: kill his master and take his place.

Kane strode through the camp. The night was young, and everyone tended to their duties as the sun dipped below the horizon. Tents were being pitched, horses cared for, and fires started. The majority of the company was made up of mercenaries. Around two dozen of them. They were not the same sort of honorless savages for hire like the ones in Kane's homeland. The occupation was quite honorable here in Kyreel.

Kane only recently joined his master's ranks, but the last few months had been the most boring of his career. His days of running errands and setting tables were finally coming to an end. But his suffering had all been in the name of the mission, and the mission had only just begun. After taking his master's place, he would infiltrate the White Watchers, and uncover one of the greatest secrets in the world.

Nobody stopped him when he receded into the forest, for he walked with an air of purpose, as if he were simply following orders. The woods became increasingly dense as he ventured farther from the campsite clearing. Kane breathed in deeply, enjoying the distinct scent of nature. Pine needles crunched under his feet as he continued onward.

Once he felt he was a sufficient distance from the others, he took a seat on a fallen log. He opened his bag, rifling through it's contents. He stuffed himself with all available provisions. A jar of honey, a slab of cheese, some stale bread and a browning apple. He would need a full stomach for what came next. He had stolen the bag from one of the busy mercenaries. Kane's master fed them well.

Kane scanned his surroundings, making sure he was completely alone. Satisfied, he closed his eyes. It didn't take any concentration to transport his mind to the spirit realm anymore. When he opened them again, everything was different.

The once colourful scenery was now overshadowed by a cloudy white haze. It was as if he had put on a pair of foggy spectacles. He saw everything as it was, regardless of light. This meant he had perfect night vision. More importantly, he could see the spirits of all things.

The trees, the rocks, the soil, everything had a spirit. Even the wind had one, though it was ever changing and impossible to pin down. The fallen pine needles had formed their own individual spirits, separate from the tree from whence they came. Kane could distinguish each of them from each other, as easily as one could distinguish red from blue. The experience never ceased to amaze him, even after all these years.

Kane bent down to pick up a small stone from the ground. His movements were slightly blurry to his eyes. He held the stone in front of him, staring at it. Through force of will, he exerted power over the stone's spirit, and gained complete control of it. Now it would do as he told it to.

He used his other hand to carve an intricate pattern in the air. It looked as if he was tearing a gash through an unseen fabric. The rune was quite basic, and it took him under a minute to complete. He bound the rune to the stone. Once he released the rune, it would act as a command. A command for the stone to fulfil.

Kane stood up, and took a mental note of a distant tree. That would be his target. He drew back his arm, then threw the stone towards the tree. Under normal circumstances, the projectile would have fallen short, but these were not normal circumstances. As the stone left his hand, he released the rune he had created.

The stone instantly picked up speed, flying through the air like an arrow. It struck its mark, and exploded in a flurry of shrapnel. Kane was a perfectionist, and had been practicing that rune for weeks despite it's relative simplicity. The more complex a rune, the more room there was for error. Draw one line just a sliver too long, and the whole thing would collapse into nothing when you released it, leaving no effect. Or in the worst case, an undesired effect.