Fiction Vortex - August 2013 Page 17
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The midday sun glinted off of the calm sea as a small galley slowly worked its way across the harbor. Standing on the dock, Magnus waited impatiently as the ship approached. He really hated this kind of job. The wonders of his position, senior enough that he wasn’t allowed to wear armor but junior enough that he could be ordered off to perform trivial duties like this one.
Pacing back and forth, Magnus watched while the ship’s crew took its time maneuvering the vessel into position. While they fussed about, a man on board stepped up to the railing and scanned the dockyards. Of average height, he wore a bronze breastplate and matching helmet. Belted at his side was a short bladed sword, the hilt worn and faded with use.
“Hail dockside,” the man called out. “Are you here to greet us?” A cautious approach, not overly surprising considering the sword belted at Magnus’s waist. Magnus pulled his badge of office out from under his tunic.
“If you’re with the Lady Chara then the answer is yes,” Magnus replied. Hidden behind his back, he brought the ring on his left hand into position. The man on the ship was armed. If things turned ugly then Magnus wanted the ring ready to go.
With a bump and the grinding sound of wood against wood the ship slipped into position. Crewmembers jumped off the vessel and busied themselves with ropes. The man in the bronze armor took the opportunity to vault over the railing onto the dock. “Greetings,” he said, “I am Gaius, the Lady Chara’s bodyguard.”
“Welcome to the city of Cyrene, Gaius. I am Captain Magnus of the city guard. I’ve been ordered to escort the Lady Chara to the palace.”
Gaius looked at him for a moment, taking the time to examine his chain of office. Eventually he seemed to reach some sort of decision and nodded, extending his hand. The tension between them eased as they shook hands.
A voice echoed strangely from the ship. Magnus looked up to see a woman standing at the railing. She was short with dark hair that fell casually across a white tunic and long gray skirts. In her hands she held a ball of what looked like blown glass. She spoke, but the words she used weren’t meant for human ears; they slid across Magnus’s mind like oil, heard but impossible to understand. Magnus instantly recognized the woman’s use of magic, her prayer to summon divine power. The orb in her hands started to glow.
“Tell me Captain Magnus,” she said. “Is it true that I won’t be persecuted for my religion?”
It wasn’t the first time he had been asked that particular question. Granted it was the first time someone had asked while peering at him through a ball of magic, but that didn’t change his answer. “That’s correct ma’am. Visitors and citizens alike may worship whichever gods they choose in our city.”
There were many religions on the Middle Sea and it could mean a death sentence to worship the wrong god in the wrong place. Not in the city of Cyrene though. By royal decree there was no religious persecution in Cyrene. As long as people followed the king’s laws then no one cared whom they prayed to.
“You’re telling the truth,” the woman said, a note of surprise in her voice.
“Yes ma’am,” Magnus replied.
With a flick of her wrist the light from the orb dissipated. It had been a truth spell of some sort, one she used to test the veracity of Magnus’ replies. Apparently he had passed the test. She carefully put the orb in a pouch hanging from her belt.
“Are you the Lady Chara?” he asked.
“That is correct, Captain,” she said stepping off the ship. “However I am also an initiate of Athena. I was sent here by my father on a diplomatic mission.”
Magnus suppressed a smile at her words, she was saying more than she realized. If her diplomatic mission had been important then a member of the royal family would have been at the docks greeting her. Yet, if it weren't important then why would she be sent across the Middle Sea? The answer lay in the pendant hanging from her neck. Initiate was the title given to new members of the church of Athena. Her father had likely sent her on this so-called diplomatic mission in order to get her away from the virgin priestesses. It wouldn’t be the first time a high-born child was sent to Cyrene to save them from the clutches of a local church.
“Welcome to Cyrene lady Chara. Please allow me to escort you to the palace.”