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Chapter 3 - The Sign

The next morning Canthar was awakened by one of the guards. He recognized the guard as the man in front of the castle.
"Hey kid, get up," he said.
Canthar got out of his bed and looked for Diego. He didn't seem to be around.
"Diego's out hunting," the man said. "I'm Thorus."
"I'm-" Canthar began.
"I am not concerned with who you are. You've only just arrived. Diego told me you want to join the camp. We're always looking for new members, but it isn't that easy," Thorus began to explain.
"Why? What do I have to do?"
"You will be tested by both me and Diego. Our tests will be completely different and are important in getting Gomez to accept you."
"Gomez?" Canthar asked.
"You don't know who Gomez is? Well he is our leader. Everyone knows that. Anyway, if you accomplish our tests you will be able to go into the castle, but we can't guarantee that Gomez will accept you into the camp."

Canthar followed Thorus out of the hut. "So what is your test then?" Canthar asked anxiously. Thorus pulled Canthar close to him. He whispered in his ear.
"There is a robber here in the camp. A robber from the New Camp. He has his own hut, here, near the back gate. He's been stealing OUR supplies and selling them to OUR men," Thorus began sounding angry.
"So what are you telling me to do, kill him?" Canthar asked, a bit nervously.
"I don't care what you do. Just get him out of the camp and make sure he never returns."
"But why can't you just get rid of him? You're obviously more powerful then me."
"I can't because he is under the protection of the Magicians of Water," Thorus began.
"Who are they?"
"They are six of the twelve magicians who created the Barrier. The other six, as you must know, are the Magicians of Fire. The Fire Mages remained loyal to the king and stayed in the Old Camp. The Water Mages, on the other hand, joined the New Camp and began working on some loony way to destroy the Barrier. They're crazy and powerful."
"Oh. So you're saying my life isn't as important as yours?" Canthar asked angrily.
"That is true but you don't have to worry about the Water Mages. You're new here so they can't harm you. You're not yet a member of camp here in the colony. They see you as a possible new member for their camp, and wouldn't want to waste that chance that you could join them. We see it as the same way."
"O.K. I'll do it then. What is his name and how will I know who he is?" Canthar asked.
"His name is Mordrag, I believe. I can't describe what he looks like but go to the other side of the camp. His armor is different from ours. Now go, and hurry. I'm not very patient."

Thorus then walked into the castle. Canthar began walking down a long row of huts. The camp was much larger then he thought. The castle was in the middle and the camp went all around it. Canthar knew little about the castle but he had a feeling the Fire Mages temple was inside it.
A guard dressed in heavy armor walked up to him eagerly. "Hey you," he said. "You're the new guy here right?"
"Yeah, I just got here today," Canthar said suspiciously.
"Then you probably don't know about our protection promise here in the camp. Do you?"
"Yes I do. Diego told me about it."
"Oh really? Diego's a good guy," the guard didn't seem very serious. "You must know about the fee then right? You pay us everyday, just a small amount, and we guards keep you safe as long as you are in the camp."
"Yes I know about all that."
"Oh, good," the guard said looking impatiently at Canthar. There was a long silence.
Finally Canthar asked "How much?"
The guard began to laugh. "Only ten ore."
Canthar handed him the ore. He didn't have much at the time.
"Great," the guard said to Canthar. "As long as you pay me, we're friends. And I'll be looking out for ya."
Canthar walked away, feeling ripped off. He didn't feel he needed the protection.

Finally he came to the back of the camp. A wide stone ramp lead up to the back gate. He saw a few men dressed in red, and light armor, and a few guards as well. Out of all the people he could see only one stood out. It was a middle-aged man in raggy-blue clothes and gray armor. He stood in front of a hut full of supplies and ore. Canthar immediately knew that that was the man he was looking for.
"Hey, a new face," the man said to Canthar. "I'm Mordrag. You'd best remember that name. I sell any supplies you need at cheap prices."
"Ah, so you are the robber from the New Camp," Canthar said. The mans face didn't look so friendly, suddenly.
"So, I'm guessing you want to fight me then?" he asked Canthar. "Well I have a better idea. I can take you to the New Camp. It's a much greater camp then this. You don't have to pay any fees and you're free to do whatever you want. There are very little amounts of rules. I could lead you there and give you a tour. Doesn't that sound better then getting killed?" he asked.
Canthar glanced at Mordrags sword nervously. He decided to accept the man's proposal and followed him out the back gate. They turned right and followed a dirt path straight ahead and then down a hill.

They came up to a lone hut with a hunter from the Old Camp. A little further down the path they came up to a small, green goblin. It held a rusty axe and stared at the two viciously.
"I'll take care of this," Mordrag said, showing no fear in his voice. The goblin fell dead within five seconds of the fight. Then another goblin came down a hill and began attacking Mordrag. Canthar watched Mordrag's fighting closely, and learned a few things from it.
When the other tree goblins were killed they walked across a short bridge and then turned left. To the right was a wooden fence. Behind it four scavengers picked on the grass.
Canthar felt hatred as he looked at the creatures, though he didn't bother attacking them. Instead he followed Mordrag, who continued down the path.

It wasn't much longer before they stood in front of a wooden gate in front of the camp. Two men dressed similar to Mordrag stood by the gate.
"Here we are," said Mordrag. "Follow me inside."
They walked through the gate and up a hill. Beside them was a crystal blue pond. They passed through a farm area where peasants were gathering rice. A man with enormous shoulders stood in front of a long hut.
"That man is the Rice Lord," explained Mordrag. "He is in charge of the peasants and rice gathering."
They continued up a narrow path until they reached another gate.
"Hey you," said one of the mercenaries by the gate. "You're new here, so you probably don't know about the dangers here in the camp."
"Dangers?" Canthar asked curiously.
"Yeah. We don't have any rules here. The rogues are to be watched out for. You never know what they'll do to you. Especially since you're new. Only we mercenaries stick together."
"Can I become a mercenary?" asked Canthar. The man began to laugh.
"Of course not. Not yet anyway. You have to be powerful and trustable. First you'd have to start off as a rogue, but it's not even easy to become one of them."

"Let's go, Canthar," said Mordrag. Canthar had told him his name during the trip to the camp. Canthar followed him in the camp. They crossed a bridge by a dam and a large pond. In the middle of the pond was a large stone building. "That building over there is the bar. Only scrapers and rogues are allowed in it," Mordrag explained.
"What are scrapers?" asked Canthar. "They are the miners. The New Camp, like the Old Camp, have their own mine. The Old Camp's mine is called the Old Mine, well ours is the Free Mine. I like ours' name better. What sounds better to you Canthar, the FREE mine or the OLD mine?"
"I guess the Free Mine sounds better," Canthar said.

They walked towards the camp area. Small stone houses lied on elevated land.
"There is one hut that isn't occupied right now. Follow me, you can sleep there for now," Mordrag lead Canthar to one of the huts. "Goodbye for now."
Canthar said goodbye and stepped inside the hut. He practiced sword techniques he had learned from Mordrag, until the sky became dark. Then he went in his bed and slept. The bed had a stone bottom and the cushion wasn't very comfortable, but he fell asleep quickly.

Again he had the nightmare. This time the creature seemed clearer. It had four legs now and two enormous claws. The claws came out from its back and then curved in front of it. It had six horns on the top of its head. Most of the dream was similar to his last dream. He was trapped in a dome trap. Five swords fell into his hands and he threw them at the creature. This time, though, the monster dodged the swords. They fell far from Canthars reach. Then the creature pulled back one of its legs and swung it at Canthar. It went through him and as he fell to the ground the creature showed glory in its face, and the trap grew larger.

He woke up, upright in his bed. His back hurt from the uncomfortable cushion under him. He got out of the bed and walked to the pond. It was still dark out and Canthar was still very tired and out of it. He could barely keep balance as he walked towards the water. He sat down and splashed water on his face. The water was cold and made him shiver. The air smelled like smoke but he didn't think much of it. Suddenly he felt a tapping on his shoulder. He screamed loudly in surprise.
"Whoa, calm down kid," said a friendly sounding voice. Canthar turned around to see a tall, dark skinned man with short black hair and a rough beard. "I heard you're new here, and are friends with Diego," he said to Canthar.
"Yeah, you know Diego," responded Canthar.
"Of course I do. He's a very good friend of mine. We hunt together, a lot. Maybe you should come along some time. You seem to have a lot of potential."

"Thanks." Canthar said still surprised from his sudden appearance. "What are you doing up this late?"
"I was about to ask the same question to you. It's not important though. I just make sure everything is ok in the camp. The guards from the Old Camp can attack at anytime," he explained.
"Why would they attack?" Canthar asked.
"Well, they haven't liked us since we left their camp. The Brotherhood and the Old Camp get along fine, but since we aren't loyal to the king, well you understand. We here also have good ties with the Brotherhood, but both our camp and the Old Camp believe they are up to something. Lares, the rogue leader, has been sending people to try and find out about this," he explained to Canthar. "Oh, by the way, my name's Gorn. And I already know your Canthar. Diego told me."

Canthar looked back to the camp and saw flames rising over one of the huts. Gorn noticed as well. They ran over to the hut where one of the mercenaries of the camp stood. He had a few burns on his face and hands. He looked over at Canthar and Gorn, panting.
"I had a dream of a monster. A huge, spider-like monster that, that shot fire out of its mouth. And in the dream it set me on fire. Then I woke up and my hut was on fire. It was if my dream came true. Your scream woke me up," he said pointing to Canthar. "One more second asleep, and I would have been burnt. I would have died."
Canthar thought quickly. His dream was just like the one this man had. The stone of the hut melted and broke into ashes. Smoke fogged the dark blue sky. Tired looking people crowded around the hut. They all looked shocked. Canthar looked up to see men in blue robes firing water from their hands.
"The Magicians of Water," he thought.
The smoke from the fire seemed to form a shape. A familiar shape, to Canthar. It was a face with six horns.

It wasn't long till Canthar remembered what it looked like.
It was the face of his nightmares.

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