We took the energist up on his offer. I was wary of him still, but our carriage was worse for the wear and our options were limited. The back wheels were dented which made it harder for the horses to pull, and the carriage itself had taken on structural damage. If he could fix this within the hour with his scientific skill, that would help us considerably.
I sat in the driver's seat of the carriage next to him. He called himself Master Cabel and he was rather personable if not a bit off. He looked at everything with excitement as if it was his first time seeing it and he laughed even when there was only silence. I held onto the reins, but I kept glancing over at him, making sure he didn't pull out any dangerous weapons from his brown coat.
"Where are you from, Master Cabel?" I asked.
"Here!" he said, raising his hands into the air. "I was born in Sentria many decades ago. In my youth, I was a goldsmith at Fox Hall until Master Indus came and convinced me to be his apprentice. I agreed and I've been here ever since!"
"And what is it that you do?" I asked the kook.
"I make magic out the science of course!" he said, as if his words were normal. "All things are made of elements—energy. I harness them to create everything from weapons to potions."
"I've heard rumor that energists are able to bring the dead back to life. Is that so?" I turned to him slowly, as if I didn't really want to know the answer.
"Some dabble in the darker arts," Master Cabel said. "But you can trust me! I never experiment on people. What brings you all this way?"
"We are going to Loria in hopes or receiving aid against the Cordathian threat. We need their forces now more than ever."
"Ah, yes. It's about that time. The stars always foretell these things."
We came up to his tower on the Cliffs of Renmar. Below it was the Ansel River running below that continued onto Loria. His tower was gray and modest and puffs of black smoke rose up from its chimney to the sky. I stopped the carriage in front of his broken gate and told Eldwyn and Prince Lucas to come out.
"Go inside as I see to your carriage," said Master Cabel, still in the driver's seat. "I don't mind if you look around. Just keep your hands to yourself!"
I nodded to him and we hesitantly walked through the gate and up the cracked pathway to his front door. There were scraps of metal all over—gears and half-finished inventions littered his lawn without any sense of order.
"This man has lost his mind..." said Prince Lucas.
"I think he's extraordinary," said Eldwyn. "Anyone who devotes themselves to understanding how life works deserves to be commended."
I entered the tower first and looked all around to make sure it was safe. It was dark and windowless, only the candles and the burning logs from the fireplace brought light to this creepy place. There were tables with bubbling liquids in test tubes, a bin with metal scraps, bookshelves filled with old books, jars of various insects, and oddly-shaped experimental tools.
"This is a madhouse..." said Prince Lucas.
"It is a laboratory," Eldwyn said.
"How do you know that word, Eldwyn?" I asked, turning to him.
"I learned a great deal from the Wind Riders," he replied.
Prince Lucas walked over to a tube of blue liquid and peered inside of it. "Is this place even allowed?"
"It's technically in Loria," I said. "Sentria doesn't allow any unauthorized practices, but they're right before the border."
"Loria has always been more open than our realms," said Prince Lucas, holding up a vial. "Their openness might lead to their downfall if they're not careful."
"Be careful, young prince," said Master Cabel, causing Prince Lucas to jump. "If so much as a bead of sweat lands in acsium it'll explode in your hands." He had come in so silently that none of us heard him until he had spoken.
Prince Lucas put the vial down and straightened his clothing. "How is the carriage coming along?"
"The inspection is done, I just came here to grab a few items for reconstruction." Master Cabel walked across the room and grabbed a toolbox. "I'll be done in a dragon's breath!"
Master Cabel left and we sat on a bench waiting for him to return. I sat in the middle, which was fitting, and we remained quiet until I remembered that Eldwyn had been injured.
"How are you feeling?" I asked.
"I'm quite hungry, but things could be worse." Prince Lucas held his stomach.
"I meant Eldwyn. He was shot with an arrow."
"Oh." Prince Lucas's hand dropped.
"I'm well, knight," said Eldwyn. "It's merely a puncture. Not that deep."
"You understand he's not a knight, correct?" asked Lucas.
"You should still tend to it," I said, looking at his bloody side. "It could get infected. Don't you have any medicines in your satchel? What about the vital elixir?"
Eldwyn obeyed and grabbed the vital elixir from his satchel. He applied it to his skin, and I was reminded of when he had died after our battle against the dark wizard Allaster. It was the saddest day of my life and I never wanted to experience anything like that again. He always thought of himself last and I felt responsible for making sure he prioritized himself.
We discussed where we would go once the carriage was fixed. It would take another three days to get to Loria. Their region was highly populated for such a small area. The peninsula wasn't as big as Sentria and Stargon, and yet it had more people than both. The more towns they had, the more people they could tax.
"It's been over an hour," said Prince Lucas. "Master Cabel should have been done by now."
"He is done," said Master Cabel reentering the tower. "You're carriage is good as new. Better even."
"Good," said Prince Lucas standing up. "Let's pay the man and leave."
"Not so quickly Prince of Stargon." Master Cabel held up his hand. 'You won't be needing it."
"What game are you playing at?" asked Prince Lucas. "Is this some plot?"
"No, but the path you are taking is the wrong one. It will take you another three days to reach the Rose Castle by carriage, but if you use the Ansel River, you can avoid the Petia Forest and arrive in one day. It's simple math!"
"None of us are sailors," said Prince Lucas.
"Don't sell yourself short." Master Cabel pointed to Eldwyn. "This one can control the winds and that's half the battle."
I stepped up after a brief deliberation and said, "It is a kind offer, Master Cabel, but I'd feel safer traveling by land. Water can be reckless."
"You of all people should know that this isn't about safety." Master Cabel became more serious, as if someone else had taken over his body. "I deal in metals and energy and they tell me things. You're energy too, you know. Once you understand the elements, litrogen, airgen, iron, you can understand people. It's how I know that one is a wind relic...and that you can speak to the animals." Master Cabel said pointing directly at me.
"What are you saying?" Prince Lucas stepped back and stared as if I had become someone else.
"Your energy is like that of an animal. You're linked to them in a beautiful way."
"I knew something was amiss." Prince Lucas began to circle me. "Birds don't behave that way, and carriage-horses need drivers."
"I'm sorry for lying Prince Lucas, I—"
Prince Lucas jumped towards me and hugged me tightly. I was greatly confused and I froze with my eyes wide open.
He backed off and explained himself: "You should have told me. When our reign ushers in the new age, we'll have a king that can be a uniter. We'll never have to worry about missing cattle and the crows that threaten our corn will know to stay away. People will love us."
"It doesn't quite work that way..." I said, scratching the back of my head.
"I like Master Cabel's idea," said Eldwyn. "We're likely to come across more marauders and unknown dangers along our way. If we can get there quicker, it'll give us a chance to cut off Cordath before they strike."
"Then it's settled!" said Master Cabel, "I'll put on some stew and you can leave in the morning. I hope you like potatoes!"