The Defender: Elderwood

Five

Allan held his breath.

He wasn’t sure if Captain William would come. He wasn’t sure if the man would come alone. Then he saw a man in a guard’s chest plate and helmet approach the ruined building.

The man appeared average in every way: average height, average build, average face. Allan wasn’t sure if this man was a Captain, a Sergeant, or just another member of the Lord’s Guard. The man walked slowly, and he looked around.

The man came around the front of the burned-out structure. He stopped, and jumped back a step, when he saw the bound and gagged forms of Merrick and Callum. “Do you need help?” the man asked.

“They need to go to jail,” Allan said.

“Who said that?”

“Up here.”

Allan had placed himself on the last chunk of the second floor of the hideout. That section happened to be on what had been the street side of the structure. Part of the front wall and one of the side walls still stood. The spot allowed Allan to conceal himself until the Captain arrived. It also allowed him to safely cast an illusion spell to keep his captives hidden until it was time to reveal their presence.

“Who are you?”  The man gripped the hilt of his sword.

“A friend.”

“Whose friend?”

“Yours. The people’s.” Allan nodded at the two criminals. “Not theirs. Are you Captain William?”

“I am.”

“The older man is Merrick. He owns a pawn shop on the Street of the Bass. The boy is Callum. Callum led a band of boy thieves. Merrick bought what the boys stole, and sometimes told them who to steal from.”

“How do I know you’re telling the truth?”

“They’ll confess to your crimes. If you go to Merrick’s shop, you’ll find a young woman there. One of the boys is her brother. Ask her how she came to be in Merrick’s bed.”

“I see.”

“It’s also possible that some of the items for sale in Merrick’s shop are stolen property.”

“Why should I believe you?”

Allan was aware that, just because he spoke the truth to the Captain, he wouldn’t be believed. He knew that he would have to convince the Captain in other ways. But he didn’t have letters, or a way to show the Captain what the two had been doing. The only thing Allan could do to make the Captain take him seriously was use magic.

Which was another reason for Allan to have chosen his hiding place. He concentrated for a moment, then stepped away from the edge of the floor. He floated forward a couple of paces.

The Captain gasped. His eyes widened. “You’re a mage!”

“Yes.” Allan floated to the ground floor. He kept a few paces of distance between himself and the Captain. “I use magic to help people, Captain. I used magic to find Callum. I used magic to set fire to this place, to get away from Callum’s gang of thieves. I used magic to carry both of these criminals away from the city.”

“Did you use magic to make them talk?”

“A little magic. Mostly, I didn’t share any of my food and water with them until they told me the truth.”

“I see.”

“When Merrick confessed to me, he asked me to take him to Captain Thomas.”

The Captain’s eyes narrowed. “Why would he do that?”