The Way of the Blade by Stuart Jaffe

Author:Stuart Jaffe [Jaffe, Stuart]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Epic, Sword & Sorcery, Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Magic, Monsters, sword, apocalypse, Fantasy
ISBN: 149429978X
Amazon: B00H0GO8G4
Publisher: Stuart Jaffe
Published: 2013-11-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Javery

It had all slipped away so fast. All he had reached for, all he had worked for, every moment of his life had led toward a successful day in which his town would be free from tyranny and he would feel the warmth of their admiring eyes.

All gone now.

Druzane. Canto. Malja.

As he paced his bedroom, his thoughts churned into a dark mass of pain.

No. He slapped his leg hard. He had to be better than a cuckolded fool. He couldn’t allow self-pity to drown him. If he did that, all of the Carsites would lose.

“Then what?” he whispered.

Action. He needed to take some kind of action. Do something that brought him one step closer to victory. Easily thought, of course. Far more difficult to enact.

Think, Javery, think. You designed the Waypoint system. You can’t let a whore and a politician best you.

“Tommy.” The name burst from his lips and filled him with sharp hope. If he could convince Tommy to help his people, then Tommy could change Malja’s mind. After all, Tommy controlled the magic. Though both Fawbry and Tommy acted as if Malja were the leader, they would hardly qualify as gods without Tommy’s power.

Javery rushed outside and searched for the young man. Fawbry would be flirting with the women, but Tommy seemed to prefer time alone. With a little luck, Javery would find him in the men’s guest room.

He knocked on the door — a timid sound. Javery scowled at his own hand, tightened it into a fist, and pounded on the door. Part of him considered kicking the door hard when Tommy opened it.

“I need to speak with you,” Javery said and barged in.

Tommy appeared to weigh a few thoughts before opting to close the door and sit on the edge of a chair situated against the far wall. Javery could not sit. He paced this room much as he had paced his own. He scratched his head, paused, and looked straight at Tommy.

“You’re the god, aren’t you?”

Tommy’s brow scrunched up.

“You’re the one with magic. Your friends need you if they want to travel through the worlds.” Javery watched for a reaction, and when Tommy remained stoic, Javery figured what he said was true. Otherwise, the young man would have denied it. “You’re also the one who can save my people. If you share your magic with us, if you turn Malja away from her games with Harskill, if you —”

Tommy raised his hand and shook his head.

“I know, I know. You’ve all made it clear that you won’t do anything to help us. Not unless you’re forced to do so. But think about this. When you leave, when you go off on Malja’s crazy desire to face Harskill, you’ll be leaving us to die. This war is happening, and you —”

This time, Tommy waved his hand furiously. He pointed out the window into the sky and on the ground. He pounded his chest.

“If you mean the last battle, then yes, I appreciate all you’ve done to help.

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