The Rogue Knight

  “What’s for dessert?” Twitch asked.

  “I can’t say for sure,” Buttons said. “She’s improvising. Most of the desserts are slime-based. Don’t worry, she changes the slime.”

  Changed or not, Cole did not like the idea of eating slime. Dalton read his disgusted expression and scrunched his face in agreement.

  “Will she help us?” Mira asked.

  “I expect so,” Buttons said. “She doesn’t like the High King at all, and she trusts Trillian. Just humor her.”

  “I heard that,” Callista said, sweeping back into the room with a platter full of low wooden cups. “It doesn’t hurt to humor me, but watch that you don’t condescend. I’m eccentric, not daft. Our dessert tonight is sorbet surprise.”

  She brought the platter around to her guests. Cole took a cup. Inside was a soft white lump with tiny bits of some herb sprinkled on it. The lump moved as he watched, bulging and shifting. Some of the herbs disappeared into the mass.

  “Eat up,” Callista said, settling back into her rocker. “It’s best fresh. You don’t want it to get away.”

  Cole probed the white lump with his spoon. The mass flinched a little. Steeling himself, he scooped up a bite and put it in his mouth. The cool texture was like ice cream. It tasted like minty vanilla with a hint of salt. Not bad. He might have liked it more if he didn’t know the main ingredient was slime. Given how attentively Callista was watching everyone, he figured he should eat it all.

  “It’s quite good, thank you,” Mira said politely.

  “I like this one,” Callista said, winking at Mira. “If you all finish your desserts, I may have a surprise for you.”

  “I cannot partake,” Minimus apologized.

  “Neither can Buttons,” Callista said. “You’re forgiven. Now, where were we? Ah, yes, at the bottom of Fog Lake. You were wondering how I keep in touch with the affairs of Elloweer while shrouded in a clammy netherworld. My extended solitude has heightened my perceptions. I have some talent with enchanting, you see, and I can sense the web of power across Elloweer. Pluck a strand, and the whole web shivers. A discerning eye can learn much as the pattern evolves. And should a juicy fly land and become trapped?” She licked her lips. “Ambrosia!”

  Buttons cleared his throat. “Metaphorically.”

  “I’m trying to find a friend,” Cole said. “A shaper who got sold as a slave.”

  “Is this person in Elloweer?”

  “One of the other kingdoms,” Cole said.

  “Regrettably, my perceptions don’t extend beyond the Ellowine borders.”

  “You said you know about Morgassa?” Honor asked.

  “I have many methods of gathering information,” Callista said. “It helps that I’m an expert with figments. Tell me what you guess about her.”

  Mira explained about how Carnag was a manifestation of her powers, and told of their suspicion that Morgassa might be the embodiment of Honor’s abilities.

  “You know what I miss?” Callista sighed. “Sunlight. I can fake it better than most.”

  A brilliant ball of light appeared in the middle of the room, too bright to look at. A moment later it was gone.

  Callista scrunched her lips sideways. “There is something about the actual sun in the actual sky that I just can’t simulate.” She glanced at Honor. “You’re wrong about Morgassa, dear. She is not connected to your power. I can sense where your power goes, and it’s not to her.”

  “Whoa!” Mira exclaimed.

  “Wait,” Honor said. “Then what is Morgassa?”

  “She came from a real heavyweight,” Callista said. “I don’t know his name, but I felt when he surrendered his ability. It’s an odd circumstance. The power came from outside of Elloweer and was changed into Ellowine energy. A nifty trick. Trillian had told me it was possible, but I didn’t see how. Now I have an example to study.”

  “Brady,” Cole said.

  “Was he kept at Blackmont Castle until recently?” Callista asked.

  “Yes,” Cole said.

  “That would be the one,” she said. “He gave his power away, but a shadow of it remains. They can never really take it all, not while you live, at least. But he’ll never be anything like he once was. Talk about power! I wouldn’t have tangled with him.”

  It was strange for Cole to hear Callista discuss Brady with such respect. He was just a little guy! Of course, that little guy had created a bizarre wilderness full of killer skeletons and enormous toy dinosaurs. His power had been no joke.

  “My power connects somewhere else?” Honor asked.

  “Surely you’ve guessed it, my dear,” Callista said. “It couldn’t be more obvious.”

  “I don’t know,” Honor said.

  “You have one of his minions in your midst,” Callista said. “Your power produced the Rogue Knight, of course.”

  Cole paused with a bite of sorbet almost to his lips.

  “Her power?” Minimus cried.

  “Others channeled it to him,” Callista said. “I’m sure they hoped to control Honor’s power through him. But her power claimed the host body and mind.”

  “Wait,” Cole said. “The Rogue Knight is Honor’s power, but also a real person?”

  “Same with Morgassa,” Callista said. “The power can’t just take shape here like it did in Sambria. It needs a host. Brady’s power worked a potent changing on someone, as did Honor’s. They became Morgassa and the Rogue Knight.”

  “I’m astounded,” Honor said. “I’ve heard of this Rogue Knight, but I never suspected a connection to him.”

  “He knows much about you,” Callista replied. “His strength rises from your power.”

  “Is the Rogue Knight all right?” Mira asked. “He’s alive?”

  “He is well,” Minimus said. “I would feel it if he fell.”

  “Likewise,” Callista said.

  Mira looked relieved. “We know a little about the people who created Morgassa and the Rogue Knight,” she said, then explained about the shapecrafter Quima and how she tried to control Carnag.

  “I bet Owandell was a shapecrafter too,” Honor said. “That would fit.”

  “I knew there were people like these shapecrafters,” Callista said. “I’ve felt them meddling with the shaping power. I never learned what they called themselves. They’ve effectively kept to the shadows.”

  “But lately they’ve taken on more than they could handle,” Twitch said.

  “In Morgassa and the Rogue Knight both,” Callista agreed.

  “I’ll have to defeat the Rogue Knight to get my power back,” Honor said.

  “You’ll do no such thing,” Minimus said heatedly. “I’ll be a corpse first.”

  “Let’s not be too hasty,” Callista said, turning a sharp eye to Minimus. “I would hate to unravel the changings worked on you, little man.”

  Minimus stood up and drew his sword. “You’re welcome to try.”

  Hand straying to the hilt of his Jumping Sword, Cole shifted to the edge of his seat. He had seen Minimus in action. If this escalated, it would get ugly, fast.

  “Sheath that at once, or the mist grifters will feast on your organs,” Callista threatened. “If anything happened to Honor, the Rogue Knight would not only lose his power, but probably his life.”

  “Kindness works better with him,” Mira said. “Minimus, you’re under orders to protect me.”

  “I’ll always defend my lord,” Minimus said.

  “Your loyalty is commendable,” Callista said graciously. “Was that better?” she whispered to Mira.

  Mira gave her a thumbs-up.

  Callista stroked the arms of her rocking chair. “We must work together. The Rogue Knight may have Honor’s enchanting power, but the threat we all currently face is Morgassa. Unchecked, she will undo all of us—me, you, the Rogue Knight, even Tri
llian. She generates figments that turn any they touch into her creatures. Her horde will absorb us all unless she is stopped. How are the rest of you enjoying my dessert?”

  “It’s good,” Jace said.

  The tension had diminished. Minimus sheathed his blade and sat down. Cole relaxed. Most of the others muttered positively about the sorbet.

  “The grinaldi representative has not finished his portion,” Callista observed.

  “It was wonderful,” Twitch said. “My stomach just gets a little upset when we talk about the end of all life in Elloweer.”

  “Out with it,” Callista demanded. “Too minty? Too sweet?”

  Twitch bowed his head. “It was squirming.”

  “That just means it was fresh!” Callista exclaimed. “Who wants to eat a dead sorbet?”

  “How would we work together?” Mira asked.

  Callista clucked her tongue. “I suppose if you each take a bite, we can consider his sorbet eaten and the dessert a success.”

  “I mean against Morgassa,” Mira said.

  “What would happen if you went to fight her right now?” Callista asked.

  “Her figments would take us over,” Mira said.

  “They would change you into mindless servants under her control,” Callista said. “Long before you got within sight of her, you would merge with her army. Anyone you harmed along the way would be some poor innocent enslaved to her.”

  “Can they be changed back?” Cole asked.

  “Only by separating them from her power,” Callista said. “Morgassa must be unmade. Isn’t anyone going to finish the sorbet?”

  “I’ve got it,” Jace said, taking Twitch’s cup.

  “Don’t hog it all to yourself if others crave a final taste,” Callista said.

  Jace let Cole and Dalton each have a bite.

  “Morgassa has a lot of power,” Mira said. “If we kill her, won’t we let it all loose?”

  “Her power is grounded in her,” Callista said. “It isn’t shared with anyone else. It is stable. If you kill her, the power will perish with her. Mira, when your power roamed free as Carnag, your death could have destabilized it enough to incite a catastrophe. But now that your power is once again grounded in you, your power will pass away quietly at your death. As will mine.”

  “But how could we get to her?” Honor asked. “Her figments would turn us.”

  “This is why Trillian sent you to me,” Callista said. “Morgassa’s figments merge with people and change them. But if you have already been sufficiently changed, there would be nothing to merge with. I’m not talking about a minor cosmetic alteration. I mean a deep, fundamental change like her figments are trying to provoke.”

  Cole met eyes with Dalton. He could tell he and his friend were wondering the same thing: What kind of change was she talking about?

  “You can make us immune to her figments?” Honor asked.

  “If you let me change you enough, yes,” Callista said. “All except Minimus. He has already been sufficiently changed by the Rogue Knight. No figment could touch him. I would have to destroy his connection to the Rogue Knight before I could enchant him.”

  “My enchanted nature is meant to remain secret,” Minimus said.

  “Then you shouldn’t have come here,” Callista replied. “The connections are plain to me. The Rogue Knight works excellent enchantments. He wields impressive power. Honor has some real potential.”

  Minimus turned to Honor. “The Rogue Knight and I are truly fashioned from your stolen power?” he asked.

  “My power was stolen by my father,” Honor said. “That much I know.”

  “It was channeled to whoever became the Rogue Knight,” Callista assured him.

  “Perhaps I spoke rashly before,” Minimus said. “I will always side with him and defend him, but the Rogue Knight needs to know of this. I’m not sure whether he fully understands where his power originated. I have never known him to turn a blind eye to injustice.”

  “I appreciate the sentiment,” Honor said.

  “Honor, you need the Rogue Knight,” Callista said. “He and his followers are the strongest allies we have in the fight against Morgassa. Her figments cannot touch them. With the Rogue Knight at your side, the chance for success increases.”

  “I believe he would aid us,” Minimus said. “I’ll ask him myself.”

  “What about Brady?” Cole asked. “Why were the Enforcers holding him? Did they think he could still help?”

  Callista frowned, rubbing her chin. “He would be of little direct use. The power is no longer anchored to him. Perhaps they hoped to gain insight into the power by studying him. Perhaps they thought Morgassa would be sympathetic toward him since she originated from him. At this stage, I believe Morgassa would only be a danger to him.”

  “You mentioned you could change us?” Honor said. “Into what?”

  Callista made a point of glancing around the room at the cups. “I see your desserts are all finished. As a reward, I will introduce you to my Hall of Masks.” She rocked up out of her chair. “Follow me.”

  CHAPTER

  35

  MASKS

  As everyone rose from their seats, Cole and Dalton drifted over to a corner. “I was with Twitch on the dessert,” Dalton whispered.

  “It didn’t taste bad,” Cole said.

  “No, but it moved.”

  “I hear you.”

  “Do you think it’s still alive in our stomachs?”

  “I’d rather not think about it,” Cole said with a disgusted shudder.

  “What do you think she’s going to change us into?” Dalton wondered.

  “Hopefully something cool.”

  “Like a squirmy dessert?”

  Cole had to stifle a laugh. “I think she totally wants to help us. But I get why you’re worried. She’s a little . . . different.”

  “That’s why you shouldn’t live alone at the bottom of a lake.”

  Callista led them down a rounded corridor that felt more like an underground tunnel than a hallway in a home. The corridor opened into a dim, rectangular room with a large collection of primitive wooden masks hung against the walls.

  The Grand Shaper waved a hand, and globes of light brightened the room. “How does a space get so dusty when nobody uses it?” she complained, frowning. “I had no idea the Hall of Masks was so untidy! If I’d had even thirty minutes’ notice you were coming, this would have been a very different experience. You’re my first company in decades.”

  “You have a lovely home,” Mira said. “We appreciate all you’re doing for us. These masks are interesting. So diverse!”

  “Enchanters have different specialties,” Callista said. “Mine is making masks. Each of these masks can work a changing that will transform you into whatever the mask represents. Take a look and see what masks interest you, but please don’t touch any of them yet.”

  They spread out and started studying the walls like patrons in a gallery. The masks were all designed to fit humans. None looked very realistic. Some were just carved wood. Others were embellished by beads, stones, leather, paint, or feathers.

  Cole could tell what most of the masks represented, although a few were too plain or vague. Most depicted animals. He saw birds of prey, bulls, bears, canines, felines, boars, alligators, apes, rams, sharks, horses, serpents, elk, and even some exotic animals like a walrus and a rhinoceros. There were also masks that looked like certain types of people, including clowns, knights, and maidens.

  “Too many choices,” Dalton said, standing near Cole. “Flying would be cool.”

  Cole gazed up at a nearby eagle mask. Or was it a hawk?

  “How would you like being covered in feathers?” Cole asked.

  “Would they be real feathers?” Dalton questioned. “Or wooden, like the mask?”

 
“I don’t know,” Cole said. “It would be strange to have a beak.”

  “Good-bye, lips,” Dalton agreed.

  “Any suggestions?” Jace asked loudly.

  “Keep in mind that each mask depicts something you’ll become,” Callista said. “You’ll see differently, hear differently, move differently. Choose something that appeals to you. Don’t forget that you’re heading into battle and that you need to travel. With the mask on, you’ll enjoy a host of benefits. You won’t need rest. You won’t require food. You’ll have increased strength. And it will be virtually impossible for anyone to change you into something else.”

  “Can we try some out?” Mira asked.

  “It wouldn’t be wise to sample more than one,” Callista cautioned. “You can lose yourself in these masks. Each new mask you try significantly increases the risk of submerging your identity. Once you select a mask, you should go outside, put it on, and never touch another one.”

  “We can forget who we are?” Dalton asked.

  Callista nodded. “With the mask, you become yourself as a falcon, or a bear, or a knight. It’s then up to you whether you remain the falcon, or the bear, or the knight. Only you can remove the mask. If you choose to leave it on, you will live out your days in your new form. You would only last a few months. You’d burn bright and strong, and then you would be gone. It has happened before. I only lend these masks in times of great need.”

  “What about if we wear one for a few days?” Twitch asked.

  “You will cause no permanent damage, so long as you remove it in the end,” Callista said. “I would strongly discourage wearing one for more than a week.”

  “I can’t help but feel drawn to the knight,” Honor said, pointing at a certain mask.

  “Then it might be for you,” Callista said. She walked over to a support beam and squinted at it. “This wood is rotting. And there are traces of mildew. You see a room differently when you have guests. Suddenly all the imperfections you’ve learned to ignore leap out at you.”

  “The room looks fine,” Skye said.

  Callista waved her hands dismissively. “You can’t win against the damp. The worst of the mist stays out, but the humidity is unavoidable.”