A Witch's Word

CONFLICTED CONCLUSIONS

Reid was summoned to high council to explain the events of the past five hours when they first realised that the Princess was missing. It was humbling to have to confess to the emperor and his lords that no one had considered putting guards on the princess’ door because they had assumed that as an isolated woman she would have stayed in her room or, if she was brave, remain in the confines of the castle at least. Little did they know that Edith loved a rule for the pleasure of breaking it and nothing would keep her confined to the perimeters. If Reid was to be her captor every day, it would make each day a challenge he was unsure that he would welcome.

Reid felt his mind unraveling during his approach to the council rooms. Before Cadmus had married, he was certain of several beliefs. Having seen firsthand what a witch was capable of, his first unshakable conviction was that all witches were naturally inclined to cause the greatest amount of harm possible with the least risk or impact to themselves. When Reid fought on the battlefield, he had to look his opponent in their eyes before he cut him down. When he instructed Sidnax to let his flame loose, he was forced to look at the devastation it caused and accept that responsibility. A witch could make a potion, mutter a curse or hex an enemy and days later in their beds they would die in the cruelest of agonies and there wouldn’t be a witch in sight to look at the horror of their work.

It was true that Reid was the youngest General to be acknowledged in the chronicles of the realm, but the vital information that was often overlooked in that acclaim was that the title was inherited, so to be General was to be fatherless. During the fifth year of the Almighty War, Reid’s father had been battling a force of witches that had joined forces with the elves and were using their magic to interrupt the supply routes of their enemies. His father was asked to dispatch the group of rebels as sufficiently as possible. He did. When he returned, the crowds celebrated as the food was once again brought home. He slept well that night, but in the morning, he woke up in a pain he didn’t know it was possible to live through. Reid, only in his fourteenth year, watched as his father withered away, writhing in agony. When Edith had ridden on Dex for the first time, Reid had been the first to bend the knee as he believed in the wisdom of dragons, but that one act had been harder than fighting one hundred battles. One single well-aimed curse made a hero, his dad, die an inglorious death. There was one belief that Reid was sure of and that was that all witches were cowards.

“What had she been doing then?” Lord Jarlou, Lizzip’s father, questioned him.

“She managed to improve the quality of life for every single citizen of Novtexo in a single day by using her magic to clean all the water supplies in Novtexo,” Reid answered.

The professional manner did nothing to distract from the incredible feat achieved.

The courtiers looked at each other, all trying to find a conclusion that Reid had also been searching for. How did it benefit the witch to help Novtexo people?

Silence.

Nokon had listened to the report and although there was no explanation for her actions, he knew he was disgruntled by them anyway. Edith had overstepped by interfering with his people. Surely, if Nokon was inclined to help them, it was his prerogative and if he was inclined to remain ignorant, that too was his choice. Unfortunately, by fixing this problem, she had forced him to take accountability for other issues with the poor and one thing Nokon didn’t like was to be forced into decisions he didn’t make himself.

“Why was the water supply so poor? Who oversees caring for our people’s amenities?” Nokon called out.

Jarlou stepped forward, with the grace to exhibit a little humility.

“It is obviously Queen Loma’s job, but I was temporarily given the task of monitoring the situation. Unfortunately, the problems outweighed the money put to one side and the distribution of food was the priority, emperor.”

Reid knew it was not his place to speak or contradict what was said. He was merely waiting for his punishment for allowing the prisoner or princess, depending on the perspective of the speaker, to leave without anyone knowing. However, it was obvious that Jarlou was a liar of the highest order. He had never seen the lord leave the safety of the castle to assess the needs of the poor, and as for the food he supplied, that had always been the leftovers from the banqueting table. There was no funding in the system that was frequently used to aid the poor. The system which was used was the same that was used to feed pigs.

Reid's second unshakable opinion was that being born a dragon rider was the greatest luck a person could have, but perhaps there were many in Novtexo that would disagree with him. It had taken a witch to show him the truth.

“Queen Loma was loyal to her people and beloved by them. I think the threat was not the missing witch but my oversight in not inspecting you more closely. Reid as punishment for your actions, you are now to ensure that Jarlou is attentive when dealing with the most vulnerable among us.”

Bowing, and accepting his punishment, Reid smiled at the greedy lord. It would be an additional responsibility that he would be glad to carry out.

Although he was exhausted, he knew that Cadmus would want to speak to him too. The corridors were quiet as people prepared for their evening supper, and in the brief moment that he had to himself, he thought about another witch that had challenged his viewpoint and considered his third cemented perspective that a dragon rider could never learn to love a witch.