Chapter Thirty-Five - Promotions
“Who are you looking for?” Carla asked the leader.
“I felt something inside the bakery and then it was gone.” The leader answered.
“What he you feel?” Carla followed up.
“Another person who could use magic.” The leader explained, “When you are as powerful as I am, you can sense when someone else in the area can also use magic. If there is someone else here that can use magic, that might be a problem.”
“People are happier now. Life is better. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to ruin that.” Carla thinks out loud.
“Some people just aren’t happy, no matter what life is like.” The leader follows up.
“Are you happy?” Carla asks the leader.
“No. No one who leads is happy.” The leader explains.
“Why not?” Carla continues.
“Because you always have to keep an eye over your shoulder.” The leader answers.
“Maybe this person who can use magic just wants to be left alone.” Carla suggests.
“That might be true, but I have to know for sure.” The leader says.
Carla felt sorry for the leader. He had all this power, but he wasn’t happy. He could do anything he wanted and yet, he is fighting this war, trying to save everyone. Carla and the leader continue their tour. Carla is impressed with how different everything is. Everyone does seem to be happier.
“I want to help,” Carla offers, “What can I do?”
“I’ll tell you what, you can lead the staff that maintains the castle. If you prove you can handle that, I’ll give you something more challenging.” The leader offers.
Carla wasn’t sure what to say. She knew the entire staff that maintains the castle because she was part of that staff. The others are likely to resent her getting a promotion over them. Furthermore, the person who oversees the staff now probably isn’t going to like being replaced.
“What is the person that does that job now going to do?” Carla asks.
“We’ll find something for them to do. You don’t have to worry about that.” The leader assured.
When Carla returned to the Castle. The person in charge of the staff gathered everyone together. He explained that he had just been given a promotion that was effective immediately and introduced Carla as his replacement. Carla then got up to address the staff, but she wasn’t sure what to say.
“Thank you. I am honored to accept this responsibility. I know that you will do continue to do an amazing job. Back to work everyone.” Carla announced.
“To the point, I like that.” The leader approved, “I am aware that these people are going to try and stab you in the back. Handle it the right way, and you will have a bright future.”
“How do you know?” Carla asked.
“Because I know people.” The leader answered. Carla knew the leader was right. She was one of them and not all of them liked her. She needed to weed those people out fast.
“I won’t let you down.” Carla promised.
“I know” the leader agreed. After saying that, the leader left Carla to take care of other matters. Carla was left alone with her thoughts. Maybe she was wrong? Maybe she could fulfill her ambitions here in the past. The leader of the entire empire noticed her. She is being given a chance to show everyone what she can do.
Once Carla assumed control, little things started to happen just as the leader predicted. By themselves they were no big deal but accumulated, they added up. It didn’t help that the staff was uncooperative in identifying the ones responsible. It took Carla weeks, but she finally figured out who the culprit was. Once she did, she assembled the staff.
Once the staff was assembled, she called out the offending staff member and informed her that she was being transferred. Once the offending staff member was gone, Carla started giving little rewards in recognition for well-done jobs. Over time the staff started to like Carla being in charge.
One day Carla got a visit from the second in command.
“We have not been able to locate the princess yet.” The man informed Carla, “We are certain she is still here somewhere and that she has disguised herself. She may even have had help. Once we capture her, we are going to send her to the other side of the empire where no one knows who she is. We will give her something to do, and she will be able to lead a normal life there. We think you can help us find her. You have done an outstanding job. Find the princess and your future will be secure.”
“How do you know I can find her?” Carla asked.
“Because we now know that she was the other girl that was with you when we found you the night, we liberated the people here. The leader would like to speak with her.” The man explained.
Carla wasn’t sure the man was telling the truth about what would be done when Gina was found. However, she couldn’t deny that they are being treated more than fairly and that everyone was generally happier now that these people had come. Maybe Gina would be better off on the other side of the empire, leading a normal life.
“Okay, I will do what I can to help find the princess.” Carla promised.
Chapter Thirty-Four – Under New Management
“You haven’t done what I told you to do.” The new great one announced.
“We need more time.” One of the advisors answered.
“You don’t have any more time.” The great one informed the council causing fear to wash over them.
“A lot of changes must be made. We can’t just wave our hands and make it happen.” Another advisor protested.
“You haven’t made any changes, and you don’t intend to.” The great one answered,
“Now you will receive your punishment.” The great one started waving his hands around and uttering words that sounded like nonsense. When he was finished, the King and all his advisors turned into rats.
“Now the outside fits what is on the inside.” The great one said, although now none of them could understand him because they were all rats. Now he needed to address the people. The Kingdom was no longer a kingdom but an empire. He would need to turn it into a well-oiled machine, swift and efficient. To do that he would need to create a machine where everyone knew what was expected of them.
News of the King’s demise spread quickly and soon everyone was gathered. The great one stood up to address the crowd.
“For what seems like forever, the masses have always worked so that the few could lead fantastic lives. The life of abundance and luxury. A man should toil, first for himself, and then for the common good. I gave the King a chance to put this idea into practice, but he refused. He didn’t want to give up his power. So, I turned him and all his advisors into rats.” The great one paused to let this information soak in.
“Now we must forge a new future. One where everyone benefits, not just a few. Where everyone gets a chance to use their talents, first to benefit themselves, then to benefit others. Among you there are natural leaders, people who are respected by the community and able to organize people to accomplish great things. We need you to step up and use those talents. I have written out the rules that we will now live by as well as the tasks that need to be done. Life will be better, both for you and your children. Together, we will make it better.”
The people stood in silence. They didn’t know what to think about this new thing the great one is going to force on them. All their lives, all they’ve known is toil. They felt comfort in knowing that there was someone in charge directing society. Now that was all gone. What would become of them without a King? They all knew they couldn’t oppose the great one. If he thought this new thing was what should be done. They would all have to do it whether they wanted to or not.
The great one started identifying these natural leaders and over the next few years, he put them into place. At first, no one noticed that changes were being made. However, everyone noticed when food production increased. Everyone started to wonder where all the homeless people disappeared to. Crime became almost nonexistent. The people noticed that their lives were getting better and there was no King to thank for it, they had themselves to thank.
It took some time, but the great one had everything in place. It was time to start the war. Everyone was gathered for the announcement.
“We have enjoyed prosperity like no other people have enjoyed before us. When people are left to their own devices, they are capable of amazing things. You have all proven this to be true. There are other people in other places that are not as fortunate as you are. They suffer under the yoke of oppression by those who do not care if they live or die. We can change that. We have assembled a great army and now we will use that army to free the people of the world, so they can enjoy the life that you all now enjoy.”
The people listened. They could not deny life was better, but they didn’t see any reason why they should be responsible for bringing this life to others. They could not go against the wishes of the great one. They would have to force the rest of the world to be like them, whether it wanted to or not.
The great one knew that the people did not want war, but when the whole world is under the same system and everyone is happy, war will no longer be required. The great one knew that a woman would rise to oppose him. He had seen it in his dreams. He still never saw how the dreams ended but now instead of rooting for her victory, he rooted for her defeat. It was his destiny to sweep across the planet. It was his destiny to rule the world and no woman was going to get in his way.
Chapter Thirty-three Low Profiles
While Toby worked in the fields, Gina worked in the bakery. As she used her new powers to avoid getting fired, she started to attract attention because of its results. The quality of the bread that was made at the bakery became wildly popular. The woman who employed her became very happy.
Every morning, the people who came in who wanted to buy bread increased dramatically. Gina was learning to control her new powers and soon she could do just about anything she wanted. She felt empowered.
As the princess, everyone was afraid of her and only pretended to like her. As the baker’s assistant, everyone loved her because of the bread that she made. As the days passed, Gina began to feel better about her situation. She knew she was still in danger should anyone expose her identity to their new rulers, but she can’t say she was sorry the whole thing happened. Life did seem better now, not only for her but for everyone else as well.
Toby got used to the strangers watching him work. He wasn’t sure why they were there. They never said anything. They never got in the way. They just watched. After watching for what seemed like many days. The workers were all called into a meeting. At the meeting they were informed that the men who has been watching them were there to help them grow more food, faster. They were part of a vast empire now and they had a responsibility, not only to themselves but to the rest of humanity to be as efficient as possible. So, they started training the workers in new techniques. They built new equipment to aid in the process. Some of the things they did reminded Toby of the things they did in the future. Toby was amazed. The results were almost immediate. Toby couldn’t deny that life was better.
Toby could see Gina’s confidence grow with each new day. He could also tell she was happier. Gina felt comfortable with Toby now and he wondered if she could be persuaded to make the arrangement permanent. He didn’t want to blow his shot though, so he decided not to force anything. It would be better for it to develop naturally over time. At least that’s what he told himself.
Toby was concerned about Gina’s growing popularity. He could see that she was happier now, but he knew that the new powers that be were still looking for the princess and that when they found her, it would not be good. He felt like it was his duty to look out for her.
One day Gina felt something she had never felt before. She was at the bakery, and she sensed someone close. Someone who had the same powers that she had. She peeked out from the back room and looked through the crowd. There were a lot of people there and it was hard for her to tell who it was. Then she saw Carla. She had not seen Carla since the night they took her to the castle. Then she saw who was next to Carla. It was a man she had never seen before, but she knew he was the one. He was the one who had power and it wasn’t just a little power, it was a lot of power. She wished to be hidden.
When the leader walked into the bakery. He felt something he had not felt in some time. Someone in the bakery had the spark. He looked around but he couldn’t tell who it was. He thought that was a bit odd because he had sharpened his senses and could detect even the weakest spark in a person who was close by. A magician was trying to hide from him. No one hides for long. Many have tried and they all ultimately fail. As he had this thought, the thing he felt vanished. He looked to see if anyone had left the bakery. If he could no longer feel it, the person had to move away from him. He grabbed Carla’s arm.
“Let’s go.” he said sternly.
“I haven’t gotten any bread yet.” Carla protested.
“I’ll have some sent to your room.” The leader promised, “we need to go now.” The two exited the bakery. The leader looked down the street in both directions, but he just didn’t sense it anymore. Whoever it was, was now out of detection range. The person he was looking for was here. He was almost sure of it now.
That night Gina had a dream.
She was seeing all the Kingdom’s of the world and all their splendor, then she saw the people. The people who were used as pawns by the world’s elites. She could hear those people cry out for help. They needed relief from their suffering. She saw a man rise. It was the same man she saw in the bakery with Carla. He had a vast army at his command. He moved across the world, liberating the masses from their oppression. This war that had engulfed Gina’s Kingdom. It didn’t start or stop with them. The war would continue until it reached the end of the world.
She saw information flow in this new empire and the advances that there made benefited all who belonged to it. This man was going to force the world to become one, confident in the fact that once that happened, everyone would be happier.
Gina heard another cry for help, a specific cry from a specific person. It was someone she knew but he was far away. She had to get to him somehow, his life depended on it.
She woke up and for the first time in her life, she had purpose.
Chapter Thirty-Two – The Front Lines
Mark woke up in his tent for the millionth time. Every morning was the same. He took down his tent in minutes and within 20, the entire army was ready to march. It was crazy how fast they could break camp, get in formation and march.
They had just entered a large plain. There was tall grass as far as the eye could see. Everything was peaceful. They continued marching. Then from out of nowhere, a single arrow came hurtling toward them. Another arrow followed a few moments later. The arrows kept coming until there were hundreds of them hurtling through the sky.
Some of them connected with their targets, most of them fell harmlessly to the ground. The army kept marching. Another wave hit, a few more soldiers fell, the army kept marching. When the army got to a certain point on the plain, the enemy sprang up all around them and attacked. The surprise gave the enemy an advantage, but the advantage didn’t last long. While the enemy did manage to kill quite a few soldiers, the ambush was quickly defeated.
The army continued to march. It started as a speck in the distance, then as it got closer, it got bigger. A huge boulder came hurtling at the advancing army. They managed to avoid being hit by it. Then another boulder came which also did no damage. Then several boulders at once came. It was too many to dodge all of them. The soldiers that were unable to get out of way perished. The army continued to march. More boulders came. The number of soldiers dwindled but they kept marching.
Finally, the source of the boulders came into view. Rows upon rows of machines that catapulted the boulders high in the air became visible. As the army got close to the machines, they stopped throwing boulders. The reason they stopped is because another army was there to oppose them.
The fighting was fierce, and Mark had thought that they had finally met their match. He didn’t believe there was an army that could oppose them, yet this seemed to be that army. Mark’s comrades began falling around him. He had to use all his training to stay alive. At a great cost of life, the army broke through the enemy’s defenses and destroyed the machines. When the dust had cleared, very few soldiers from either side were left standing.
Mark considered himself lucky to be one of them. The battle was a draw and Mark’s army retreated. They would have to wait for the new soldiers to arrive before they could make another push. It wasn’t defeat, just a delay of the inevitable.
They set up camp on the plains. Mark sat in his tent. He was tired. He didn’t want to fight. He wanted to go home. He wanted to see Carla again. He wanted to tell her how he really felt about her. He wanted to know if she felt the same way about him.
The next day Mark woke up in his tent. When he looked outside, he couldn’t believe what he saw. In the night, the enemy had infiltrated the camp and had captured the few forces that remained. They were taken to a prison and locked up. The plan was to publicly execute them as enemies of the state.
Mark was barely given enough to eat to stay alive. Of course, there really wasn’t much point in feeding the prisoners at all if they are just going to end up being executed anyway, they just needed to be kept alive long enough to make it to their execution.
One by one, Mark’s cellmates disappeared and never came back. This took longer than you would think. The reason is because they had to make a spectacle out of it. They had defeated this huge threat that had bulldozed its way across the planet. Stopping this threat was a big deal. So, Mark waited for his turn. Mark never wanted to fight, and he certainly didn’t want to die.
Mark wasn’t sure how much time had passed; He didn’t have a window and he couldn’t see outside. What he did notice was the number of his comrades still in prison was decreasing. There were only a handful of them left now. The odds of his “turn” coming up were high. Mark wished he could have stayed in the future. He could have graduated from high school and made a career for himself. He could have lived a life in peace instead of war. Now that life was coming to an end and there was nothing he could do about it.
His day finally came, He was dragged out of his cell and marched outside. A guillotine was waiting for him. A large crowd cheered, and he was taken up to the platform where the guillotine had been placed. Before Mark was put to death, the King felt it necessary to give a speech.
“A great army came to take over our Kingdom. That army has been defeated. It was at the cost of great life. We honor those who have died by executing the ones who remain alive that have attacked us without cause.” The King finished his speech and gave the signal.
Mark was moved into position. His head placed in such a way that it would soon be removed from the rest of his body. The executioner swung his axe, which in turn cut the rope that was holding the blade in its position. Once the rope was cut, the blade made its downward trajectory toward Mark’s neck with the intention of slicing through it. As the blade nearly reaches Mark’s neck, the blade mysteriously stops, as if frozen in time.
The ropes that were securing Mark’s hands disappear and he is free to remove his head from harm's way. The executioner grabs Mark. A mysterious woman appears out of nowhere.
“Forgive me, your highness,” The mysterious woman starts, “This person belongs to me, and I cannot allow you to harm him.” After saying this, both Mark and the mysterious woman vanish.
Chapter Thirty-one Prison
Carla was bored. Carla was bored out of her mind. She had been forced to stay in the castle in the princess’s own room and had not been allowed to move about freely. The servants brought her anything she wanted and while it was a lot more comfortable and a cell in the dungeon, it was a cell, nonetheless.
Carla missed Mark. Carla missed Toby. Carla even missed Gina. Before she had felt like she was in control of her destiny and now that control had completely vanished. The days wore on. The servants treated her like royalty. Several times she was tempted to use the secret passage to escape, but each time she thought about it, she decided to stay where she was. She tried to get information about what was going on outside, but each time she asked one of the servants a question, they would give a polite non-answer.
Then one day, she got a visitor, and it wasn’t just anyone. She had attracted the attention of the guy in charge and not just the guy in charge of this area, she attracted the attention of the guy in charge of everything, everywhere. He was old. Carla couldn’t be sure just how old he was, but she could tell that he had been through a lot.
“How are you my dear?” The leader asks.
“I’m okay. I’m kind of bored though.” Carla answers.
“That’s understandable.” The leader continues, “I hope you will accept my apologies for keeping you ‘locked up’,”
“It’s better than being in the dungeon.” Carla offers.
“It certainly is.” The leader agreed, “My second in command thinks you are a natural born leader. He can read people in moments, and he is never wrong. I have come to trust and rely on his judgement. We need leaders, leaders who can bring about the greater good.”
“Is that what your war is about? Bringing about the greater good.” Carla asks.
“I would hardly call it a war, but yes. What you say is correct. We are uniting the world under one system of government. A system which benefits all the people, not just a select few.” The leader explains.
“Why do you get to decide what the greater good is?” Carla asks.
“Someone has to decide, and once people get used to this new system, they are willing to fight to the death to keep it.” The leader adds.
“But why is it you?” Carla asks again.
“Because it’s my vision for humanity.” The leader responds, “and in my vision, you can use the talents you have to benefit, not only yourself but everyone else instead of wasting them because you lack opportunity.”
“What do you want me to do?” Carla asks.
“I want you to use your talents for leadership, to inspire people and get things done.” The leader answers, “You don’t know what’s going on outside because you have been here for weeks. Allow me to give you a tour, so you can see what I am talking about.”
Carla knew she didn’t have a choice. The leader and Carla left the castle and entered the city. The fires that had been burning the night of the attack were completely gone. The buildings that had been destroyed had been rebuilt. In fact, if you didn’t know that a battle had taken place, you would never know unless someone told you. Carla marveled at how ‘back to normal’ everything seemed and how happy everyone looked.
The city was clean and tidy, and everything seemed to be in place. Carla felt like there had to be something wrong, but if there was, she couldn’t see it.
“Now tell me, my dear. “The leader asked, “When was the last time you saw this place in a better condition than you see it now?”
“I’ve never seen this place in a better condition than it is now.” Carla had to admit.
“Pick any random person and ask them how they are doing?” the leader ordered, “Go on. Ask them anything.” Carla stopped a young woman who seemed like she was in a hurry.
“Excuse me.” Carla said to the young woman, “Why are you in such a hurry.”
“Haven’t you heard?” The young woman replied, “The bakery two streets over has baked the best tasting bread anyone has ever tasted. I’m hurrying to get some before it’s all gone for the day.” Before Carla could get in another word, the young woman was off.
“See, didn’t I tell you. Now ask someone else.” the leader prompted. Carla stopped a young man.
“Excuse me.” Carla said, “I would just like to know how you are doing today?” The young man stops to answer her. “I’m doing great.” The young man replied.
“Why is that?” Carla followed up.
“Before the attack, I was out of work. I was hungry. I didn’t know what I was going to do. They rounded me up and a bunch of other people and I thought they were going to throw me in the dungeon but instead they gave me a job. They said no man should suffer the humiliation of not being able to provide for his family. This attack was the best thing that ever happened to me.” The young man’s face was beaming with pride.
“Thank you” Carla said. Carla couldn’t deny what her eyes were telling her. Things were better. Things were better for everyone. The leader was right, who would want things to do back to the way they were before?
Carla couldn’t help but think there had to be some kind of catch, only she couldn’t think of what that catch was.
Chapter Thirty – Apprentice no more
The young apprentice kept being tormented by his dreams. He had basically the same dream every night. When he was asleep, it haunted his dreams and when he was awake, it haunted his thoughts. He became consumed with the idea of defeating this army that threatened to consume the world.
The great one became increasingly concerned over his apprentice’s mental state. He had made several attempts to change the direction his apprentice was heading in but each time his efforts were met with failure.
“We have to find the woman” His apprentice kept begging his master, “I will go look for her myself. She must be ready when this army appears.”
“No,” the great one argued, “We must be ready to defend our land. The woman will appear when she is needed, you have seen it in your dreams.”
“Very well” The apprentice conceded. He didn’t agree with the great one’s logic, but he wasn’t strong enough to oppose him, at least not yet.
When the apprentice went out on errands, he would notice the spark in different people. It wasn’t common but it wasn’t rare either. Most people never recognized the spark. It took someone who was already able to manipulate it, to point it out and train a person. The apprentice learned of a way to take someone’s spark without them realizing it. The apprentice rationalized this theft but concluded that the person was not harmed by the taking and would probably never realize they had the power in the first place, so they would never miss it. He did this sparingly at first, but as his power grew, he did it more often. The great one started noticing.
“You’ve been taking other people’s spark.” The great one confronted his apprentice one day, “One person isn’t meant to have that much power, you need to let it go.”
“I need all the power I can get. With enough power, I could oppose this coming army. Besides, those people weren’t going to use it anyway.” The apprentice explained.
“That still doesn’t make it right” the great one replied. “If you don’t give it up, I will be forced to oppose you.” The great one said, “I don’t want to fight you, but if you won’t listen to reason.”
The apprentice decided it was now or never. He tried taking the Great One’s spark, but it wasn’t working. “You are going to have to try harder than that.” The great one said. The apprentice found himself restrained before he could even think another thought. His mouth was gagged so he couldn’t cast a spell. The fight seemed all but over.
“I’m going to take your power away.” The great one said, “If you can do it, I can do it.” The apprentice saw his life passing before his eyes. Even if the great one didn’t kill him, he couldn’t continue living without the spark. He couldn’t fulfill his destiny of finding the woman and helping to stop the spread of evil. He dug deep down inside him and used every ounce of his strength to oppose his mentor.
The great one concentrated. He could feel the spark starting to come out of his apprentice. His apprentice could feel it too. With the last of his strength, which had almost been depleted at this point. He got the gag that kept him from speaking to disappear. He uttered some words which seemed like nonsense to anyone that heard them, and the struggle was over. The great one collapsed on the floor. The apprentice was the apprentice no longer. The great one was the great one no longer. The apprentice had taken his spark from him. Now, he was just ordinary. When the great one came to his senses, he realized what had happened. He had failed to defeat his apprentice. His apprentice would try and find the woman and there was nothing he could do about it.
The apprentice disappeared for months. Even though the great one could no longer wield magic, he was still respected and kept his advisory position. He thought that his apprentice had left in search of the woman from his dreams and that he would never see him again. He thought wrong.
One day the apprentice, who was not an apprentice anymore, returned. He entered the castle and interrupted a meeting that the King was having with his advisors. There had been a revolt in a localized section of the Kingdom and while it was under control now, the King and his advisors were taking precautions so the civil unrest would not spread to the rest of the kingdom.
When the King saw him, he tried to have the apprentice arrested. This attempt failed. Several other attempts also failed. When the apprentice had everyone’s undivided attention, he addressed them.
“You are no longer in charge.” The apprentice takes out a document. “The rules stated in this document, will now decide how the Kingdom is run. If you refuse, I will kill you all.” Without waiting for an answer from the council of advisors, the apprentice disappears in a puff of smoke.
The former great one walks over to where the document falls and picks it up. He starts reading it quietly to himself. “Well, what does it say?” One of the advisors asks.
“There are a lot of changes to be made.” The former great one declares.
“If we refuse, can he carry out his threat?” Another advisor asks.
“Yes,” The former great one answers, “He is more than capable of carrying out his threat.”
“What are we going to do?” Another advisor chimes in.
“If you don’t want to die, I suggest you follow the rules of this document.” The former great one replies.
Chapter Twenty-Nine – Normal People
Gina woke up alone. The small dwelling which Toby had taken her to looked pretty much the same as it did the previous night. Gina didn’t notice the flame that appeared that kept her warm all night and by the time she woke up it was gone. Gina wasn’t sure what to do. She didn’t know where Toby was. She didn’t feel safe walking around by herself, so she decided to stay where she was.
The minutes ticked by slowly. As she was looking around, bored out of her mind, she noticed her clothes were missing. The clothes she wore that she had to change out of, they were gone. Toby must have taken them. Normally she would have been mad, but she wasn’t mad now. She didn’t need those clothes anymore. Those clothes belonged to the princess. She wasn’t the princess anymore. Toby finally came back. He brought with him some food for Gina to eat. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until she started eating.
“I have some news. I got you a job. If you are going to be normal, you are going to have to work.” Toby announced.
“I don’t know how to do anything.” Gina protested, “What kind of job is it?”
“It’s a job in a bakery, baking bread.” Toby explained, “You will be assisting the baker and I have already told her you don’t have any experience. All you have to do is be able to follow orders.”
“When do I start?” Gina asked. Gina was resigned to her new fate. At least she didn’t have to find her own job.
“Right now.” Toby said. When Gina was done eating. Toby took her to a small bakery and led her to a back room where the baking was done. An older woman was there.
“So, this is what I have to work with?” She said out loud as she looked Gina over, “I guess she’ll do.”
“Then I will leave you two to work.” Toby says as he excuses himself. Toby was a bit apprehensive about leaving Gina but had to grow up sometime and he knew coddling her wasn’t going to do her any good.
Toby worked out in the fields, planting crops, tending to crops, picking crops. Anyone who has ever done that type of work knows it’s more than a full-time job. Today was different though. Today there were men there that Toby didn’t recognize. Furthermore, they didn’t do any work. They just watched. They didn’t say anything. They didn’t do anything. Toby thought it was kind of weird. He asked some of his fellow laborer’s if they knew who the strange men were and none of them knew. Toby wondered if these new men represented their conquerors. While Toby was working hard in the field, Gina was trying to get the hang of taking orders.
The woman who oversaw her was aware that she didn’t know much. So, she went over things as slowly as possible while still maintaining some efficiency. However, even going over things slowly was too fast for Gina. Gina was told what each ingredient was and that it was important to the right ingredient when called for.
The first mistake Gina made was mixing up the salt and the flour. If Gina had just taken a bit more time, she would have recognized that she was retrieving salt when she should have been retrieving flour. The problem was that Gina was flustered and not thinking clearly. When Gina’s mentor tasted the results, she realized what had happened.
“I’ve mixed up a few ingredients in my time.” The older woman said, “Just slow down and concentrate.” The older woman was understanding but this made her work harder. Because one batch was bad, she would have to take the time to make another one and all the money she spent on the ingredients in the bad batch were lost. “We’ll have to do it over again. Throw this batch out.”
Gina wished that she hadn’t made the mistake. Instead of being pleased, her survival depended now on pleasing others. She noticed the texture of the batch change at that moment and took a taste. It turns out the batch wasn’t ruined at all. She rushed back in to get the older woman.
“The bread tastes good to me. Will you try it again?” Gina asked. The older woman tried the batch again and this time it tasted good. In fact, it was the best tasting bread she had ever made. She wasn’t sure how this strange thing happened, but she was happy that she didn’t have to spend the time and resources to make another one.
“Maybe I was mistaken,” the old woman said, “This does taste good.”
Gina finished the day feeling a lot better. It wasn’t fun working all day, but she was doing something useful and participating in the general welfare of the community. She had earned her keep for at least one day. When her work was done, she waited. She assumed that Toby was going to come get her and while she had to wait longer than she wanted to, he did just that.
“How was your first day being normal?” Toby asked her as they walked back to Toby’s place.
“It was tiring. Is this what peasants have to do every day?” Gina asked.
“Everyday.” Toby replied.
“Something strange happened at the bakery. I had made a mistake with the ingredients and the bread tasted really bad. I wished for my mistake to be corrected and after that, the bread tasted really good.” Gina explained.
“Last night, a flame appeared on the stove but there wasn’t any wood.” Toby followed up.
“Last night I was wishing it wasn’t so cold.” Gina remembered.
“It’s just like the magic in the dream.” Toby said, “You thought something, and it happened.”
“Are you saying I’m a magician?” Gina asked, stunned.
“I don’t know but the old man let you kill him. Maybe by killing him, you got his power.” Toby surmised.
“That can't be right.” Gina shot back.
“It must be.” Toby said.
The next day, when Gina got to work, there was a crowd of people in the bakery. “You know that bread we made yesterday?” The older woman asked Gina.
“Yes.” Gina responded.
“All these people want us to make more!” The older woman exclaimed.
Chapter Twenty-Eight Basic Training
Mark was bored out of his mind. It seemed like he had been sitting in that cart forever. Regardless of how long they had been travelling, the horses were just not in any hurry to get to where they were going. Several of the men, including Mark, fell asleep as the night dragged on. When Mark woke up, the horses were still plodding along toward their destination.
It took two days for them to get to basic training. A camp had been set up to train the new men they picked up along the way to continue to fight in the war. So, one moment you were fighting against them, and then those who survived the onslaught were converted into fighting for them. In this way the army, kept replenishing itself. Mark thought there must be a lot of these camps and wondered if anyone in the original army was still fighting. It would be ironic if that were to be the case.
As soon as they got to camp, all the men were lined up and the commander who led the camp addressed them. “This is the best day of your lives.” The commander started off, “Instead of fighting for a royalty that could care less if you lived or died, you now have the honor of fighting for all humanity. Your job isn’t to conquer, it’s to liberate. It’s to liberate your friends and neighbors, not only here but in places you’ve never even dreamed existed. When we liberate an area, the people there experience a better quality of life, because their toil doesn’t go to benefitting a select few, it goes to benefitting themselves. By organizing resources on a mass scale, we can eliminate hunger, provide shelter, and give everyone the opportunity to reach whatever potential they have inside of them. We will eliminate violence and war and bring about a peace that will last for ages. The generations that come after you will remember you as heroes. The skills you will learn here will make you invincible. As you learn to work as a team, those who oppose you will have no choice but to fall. Now your instructor will tell you what to do.” After the commander had finished giving his inspirational introduction, he left and disappeared into a structure and that was that.
The man who was given the task of taking the men and turning them into a well-oiled fighting machine, was not inspiration at all. In fact, he always seemed to be in a bad mood because he yelled. He yelled a lot. As soon as the sun came up in the morning he yelled, and it seemed like his voice was stuck in the loudest setting possible. Mark didn’t have to think, he just did whatever he was told to do. In a way it was a good thing for Mark because he didn’t have time to think about the people he left behind. He didn’t have time to think about Carla or Toby and Gina.
Day after day it was the same. He had no idea of how long he had been there, but he did recognize that he was better. The things he learned about fighting and working as a team amazed him. Back in the Kingdom he had always focused on skill and never got to the point where he needed to learn strategy. Soon his group was the well-oiled machine his new masters had wanted to be. He was not only stronger, but he was also smarter.
One morning, his group was told they were joining the war. Mark was not at all happy about joining the war. He wasn’t afraid of dying, he just wasn’t interested in dying for someone else’s cause. All the talk about making the world a better place through violence didn’t resonate with him. It resonated with others, not him.
There were others in his group that had fully committed to the war effort. They believed that what they were doing was for the long term good of humanity. Mark wasn’t sure one way or the other. Of course, time would tell. The thing is Mark didn’t think he would be alive long enough to find out. Mark’s group were sent beyond his own kingdom to a place Mark had never been before. Anywhere beyond the kingdom was a place Mark had never been before. It took several weeks to get there. By the time Mark got to the front, he was amazed at just how much ground they had captured since his own Kingdom was overrun. He passed carts of men who had been defeated on their way to be trained like he was.
Now you would think that the new recruits would cause trouble, but you would be wrong. The morality of their mission and the promise of a better life for all resonated with all who were forced to join. They had a greater purpose now than just fighting for someone who didn’t really care if they lived or died, and they committed themselves to it.
Mark saw battle for the first time in his life. It was something you never forget. The first time you kill someone. The first victory your group secures for the cause. The strategy of those in command amazed Mark. It was like they knew in advance what their enemies were going to do. The battle that Mark participated in was nothing less than brilliant and the enemy soon surrendered. The bloodshed was kept to a minimum and the whole process repeated itself.
Once the enemy was subdued, the soldiers started directing the common people in getting their lives back to normal. New organizations were established, and the new territory started contributing immediately to the overall good of the world. Mark couldn’t see how this army could be defeated and over time, He felt like it was destiny.
Chapter Twenty-Seven - Role Reversal
Carla was taken to the castle. The same castle where she had been working before the foreign invaders disrupted everyone’s life. Ironically, she was given the room that the now defunct princess once inhabited. A guard was placed outside her door so she could not move about freely. However, the staff was free to move about. In fact, they were free to keep doing the things they have always done. The only difference as far as they could tell was that the people that they waited on had changed.
A young woman, whom Carla knew (she knew the entire staff) came in a made a polite bow. Carla was not used to being treated with respect and it made her feel uncomfortable to be given respect by someone that she had worked alongside previously.
“May I get you something miss?” The woman asked. Carla could see the fear in her eyes. It was the same fear they always had, only this time, she was the one they were afraid of.
“Some tea, please.” Carla answered. Carla did not drink tea often so she thought if she had privilege, she might as well have a cup of tea.
“Coming right up miss,” The woman answered and then disappeared out the door. Carla wasn’t sure why she had been singled out like this. She was just a common peasant. Did the man single her out for entertainment purposes? She couldn’t think of any other possibility that made sense. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do. She would decide when the time came.
It wasn’t long before the woman returned with Carla’s cup of tea. She placed the cup on a sitting table. “Here is your tea, miss.” The woman announced. After a moment, she turned to go.
“Wait.” Carla ordered. The young woman stopped and turned back around to face her,
“I didn’t ask to be singled out.” Carla explained.
“Of course not, miss.” The woman answered politely. Carla could tell the woman was very nervous and wasn’t interested in staying any longer than was necessary. She thought about questioning the woman further but then decided against it.
“You may go.” Carla ordered and having been given permission, the young women left. Carla sat down and took a sip of tea. It tasted wonderful. She sat back and got lost in the experience. However, soon she was done with her tea and didn’t have anything to do so she decided to go to bed. It wasn’t long until she was fast asleep.
Carla woke up the next morning to another young woman staring at her. It was a bit creepy to think this woman was just staring at her while she slept. “Here is your breakfast, miss.” The woman said. Carla sat up and the woman put a tray of eggs and toast on her lap with a glass of water.
“Thank you” Carla answered, still not quite awake yet.
“You’re welcome, miss” The woman said smiling as she left the room. Carla ate her breakfast. Once she was finished, she laid back down and stared at the ceiling. She wondered where Mark was and if he thought about her. She wondered how Gina was getting along as a peasant. She wondered when someone would come a tell her what she was doing in the castle.
The hours went by slowly for Carla. No one came to see her. The guard stood outside her door. She could have escaped anytime she wanted to through the secret passage, but she didn’t do it. There were two reasons why she didn’t, the first reason is because she was curious as to why she was there in the first place and the second reason is that she wanted to indulge in comfort. At least as much comfort as this time could offer. Carla had been spoiled in the future and to go back to being a servant was a thought she didn’t want to bear entertaining.
Sometime in the afternoon, two men came to visit Carla. She recognized one of the men as the one who ordered her to the castle. She didn’t recognize the other one. The other man was old. At least he looked old to Carla. He looked at her intensely. It made Carla extremely uncomfortable. After several minutes of just staring at her. The man spoke.
“She is not the one.” The man announced.
“My apologies, my lord” The man that Carla recognized said, “I know potential and this one has it.”
“You have a gift at appraising people, but you can’t tell if someone has the spark.” The other man said, “She does not have it. The old man gave his spark to someone before he died. I must find out who that person is. Was there anyone else with the Wizard when he died?”
“Yes, there were two boys and a girl.” The man answered.
“We need to find the girl. She is the one who has the spark.” The other man answered.
“What is the spark?” Carla asked. She knew it was impolite to interrupt but curiosity got the better of her.
“The spark, my dear, is the ability to use magic. You either have it or you don’t. Now who was the other girl with you in the cave?” The man asks. Carla swallowed hard. She didn’t want to give Gina up but if she lied, she was pretty sure this guy could tell.
“It was the princess.” Carla answered, “The princess was the other girl in the cave.” The man studied Carla. He could not detect any deception in her.
“My Lord, the princess was apprehended this morning.” The man Carla recognized said.
“Are you sure?” The other man asked.
“Yes, she had on the same clothing as last night.” The first man answered.
“Then I must see her.” The other man said.”
“What should we do with this one?” The first man asked.
“She will our guest and stay where she is, after all, you are right about her potential.” The other man said smiling.
Chapter Twenty-Six - the Magicians Apprentice
The young man had become the Great One’s apprentice. He left his old life behind. He left behind his friends and the people he cared about. He left behind his labor in the fields. He left behind the evenings spent in comradery with his fellow peasants. He became singerly focused on becoming the best magician he could be. He learned about what the Great One called the spark and how to recognize it in others. He learned how to use its powers to shape reality and he dreamed.
He dreamed of an army sweeping over the Earth like locusts devouring everything in its path. He saw the Kingdom’s of the world fall one by one to this great power. No one could prevail. The dream always ended the same, with the woman opposing this army. A woman who could command the very forces of nature. Every night when these two forces collided in an epic battle to decide the fate of the world, the apprentice woke up. The great one had told him it was the future he saw. The apprentice knew that the woman must be found, she must be trained. The great one said that she wasn’t even born yet and that the events he saw were not going to happen for some time. But what if this army is moving right now, what if they have little time to prepare for the inevitable. The great one assured him that precautions had been taken.
They were currently assembling a great army themselves. All the resources at his disposal were being funneled into making this happen. The apprentice tried to reason with his master. None of their precautions were enough. Their only hope was to find the woman he saw in his dream. She is the only one that could save them.
One day the apprentice ran across a young woman working mending clothes. He sensed that she had the spark. Could she be the one? How would he know when he found her?
“Excuse me miss?” the apprentice greeted the young woman.
The young woman bowed in respect to the apprentice. Even though he wasn’t the great one, he still had a reputation, and no one wanted to feel his wrath. He had never actually done anything bad to anyone, but everyone knew he was capable of it and there’s always a first time for everything.
“How may I serve you?” The woman responded.
“How would you like me to teach you how to use magic?” The apprentice offered.
“Me, sir?” The women responded confused.
“You can use magic. I can teach you how to do it.” The apprentice explained.
“I intend no offense,” The young woman started, “But those who practice magic are cursed. I want no part of it.”
“No offense is taken,” The apprentice said warmly, “Do you want me to remove your ability then.” The apprentice had never heard of anyone’s spark being taken away, but theoretically he felt it was possible and if this young woman didn’t want it, he would be happy to add her spark to his own.
“Yes, please” The women answered.
The apprentice thought about it for a moment. After thinking about the right approach, he uttered some words which sounded like nonsense. A wave washed over them both and the apprentice could feel his own power increase. Furthermore, he did not sense the spark in the young woman anymore. When the apprentice returned to the great one. The great one sensed that his power had increased.
“Your spark has grown.” The great one said, “by quite a bit.”
“I met a young woman. I sensed that she had the spark and I offered to train her. She told me she didn’t want it and gave it to me.” The apprentice answered.
“You took the spark from another person.” The great one said, concerned, “How is that even possible?”
“I don’t know” The apprentice answered, “But I did it. I added her spark to my own.”
“That is not the right way to grow your spark.” The great one scolded, “That kind of power leads to corruption and corruption leads to suffering.”
“I meant no harm,” the apprentice answered, “I promise I won’t do it again.”
“The army has been assembled and trained. It is the greatest army the world has ever seen. When the army you saw in your dream opposes us, it will not be an easy victory.” The great one announced.
“We should not be assembling this ‘great army’. We should be looking for the woman.” The apprentice argued.
“We have no idea when this woman will appear, but you must trust that she will appear when she is needed.” The great one responded.
Didn’t the great one understand that this army is doomed. There is no way this army is victorious against the army is saw in his dream. The apprentice was convinced that the great one had lost his way. For whatever reason, the great one was not able to understand the dire situation they were in. They had been warned of the danger and it was their duty to make sure this future army didn’t succeed. The only way to do that was to find the woman.
“But you don’t know that the woman is victorious because you never see the end of the dream” The Great One would argue.
“But it’s our only chance.” The apprentice would argue back.
The Great One could feel that something was off in his apprentice. His apprentice wasn’t thinking clearly, and he had grown in power. If he were to come unhinged, it would complicate matters greatly.
That night the apprentice had a dream, only this time it was different. This time he didn’t see the splendor of the Kingdom’s of the world. He saw the suffering of the masses. He saw the ones upon whom the Kingdom’s were built and who did not share equally in its glory. In Kingdom after Kingdom, he saw misery and suffering as common people went about the task of survival while a privileged few benefitted from its wealth. He heard the people cry out for help, but no one answered their cry.
He woke up in a cold sweat. He was the one who heard their cry. He had to be the one who was going to answer it.