Sytravious: The Lost Warlock Of Moruz (The Oathbreaker Book 1) (3 page)

              He realized it was a battle he could not win when instead of agreeing, she gave him most unsympathetic scowl she could muster.  Even with her face screwed up like that, Sytravious was still entranced by her glowing beauty. 

              “Very well, if that is how it will play out, then it is agreed.  This will be our secret, and a secret it shall stay Priestess.”

              She peered over at Sytravious through her long lashes, and suddenly appeared to be shy.  “Just ‘Raiven’ will be fine, thank you.  And you might be?”

              In response to her question, he dealt with yet another internal struggle.  He could not just be open with a stranger, no matter how breathtaking she was.  His parents had raised him to never share any details of his life with anyone, but he did not want to begin whatever this could be with a lie.  So he settled upon being semi-truthful with the priestess by giving her his real name, but a fabricated story to go along with it.  While he thought through the backstory he had been taught in order to conceal his real identity, she had taken a seat on the grass.  She looked at him with inquisitive eyes.

              “You may call me Sytravious.  I come from west end of Havencrest.  I work as an apprentice blacksmith in a modest little place by the name of The Dew Drop Inn.  You may have heard of it.  I help forge arrows and horse shoes for the city’s court with my stepfather.”  He waited to see if she would accept his story as true.

              “A smith you say?”  She hesitated and eyed him up and down.  “No, I do not believe that for one minute.  What smith has a physique like yours?”

              “Like what?”  He was flattered the priestess noticed his build, and was unable to mask the overconfidence he had in his appearance.  It did not take much to notice that he was in better shape than most men, a fact he was well aware of.

              “So I gather you have been taking in more than just the scenery?”

              “What?  No!  That is not at all what I meant!” 

              Her cheeks turned pink with embarrassment.  Sytravious snickered as he noticed her rosy cheeks.  He thought it was charming how easy it was to embarrass her.

              “It is just…  I have never seen anyone so…able-bodied?”  She squinted her eyes, looking a bit confused by her own choice of words.  “You have a look that is reminiscent of a warrior, or even a seasoned knight, like my cousin Kenshiro.”

              “Your cousin is General Kenshiro, the knighted Commander of the elite guard?” 

              “Do not fear.  You can put your mind at ease, as I have already told you that today’s events will stay between the two of us.  Plus, I have no desire to witness the inevitable wrath that would follow if he knew you were taking in more than the scenery as well.”

              “Well of course, if you word it that way…” he mumbled, just loud enough for her to hear.

              She giggled, and then let out a relaxed sigh while staring up at their surroundings.  Seeing how she was allowing herself to loosen up in his presence, helped boost his confidence.  He decided to sit on the ground next to her and take a moment to appreciate the nature. 

              In the spring, the water now stood still and the steam continued to rise from its warm depths.  All types of branches and vines intertwined, creating the natural canopy that provided shade for them.  Through the organic cover, thin bands of light streaked through, illuminating various spots of the spring.  Wherever the sunlight touched was irradiated with vibrant colors.  He could smell the fragrant aroma of the variety of flowers that surrounded them, and their splendid hues offered a vibrant pop of color against the natural shades that bordered the spring’s edge.

“I can see why you swim here often.  I am tempted to return here myself.  It is a gorgeous place, but it is your presence that does it justice, and I must say I would love to see both of these beautiful sights again.  That is, if I am invited of course.”

              Raiven looked like she could not help but laugh at his audacious attitude.  It was understandable, he was sure no one had ever dared approach the priestess in such a blunt and daring manner.  Sytravious was pleased with himself, though he knew he risked being too forward. 

              “You are either very brave or very foolish.  Why would I invite you to swim with me?  You must be aware that since I am a priestess I am only allowed such freedoms with boys when the right to be courted has been granted by High Priestess Jezra.  The courting then leads to marriage with a suitor that she has declared worthy.”

              “So you cannot swim with me unless the High Priestess approves of it first?  That sounds complicated.”

              “It
is
complicated to say the least.  The decision cannot even be made until the High Priestess has prayed to Vesalys for guidance, which can take weeks.”  She sighed.  It was clear that Raiven had mixed emotions when it came to this topic. 

              “To even flirt with me the way you have today can be viewed as punishable.  How can you even imagine meeting again in private?”

              Sytravious was fascinated as he listened to her response.  He was never one to take the temple goddess serious, and often questioned the logic in worshipping her as a deity at all.  The temple of Valcrest had imposed strict rules on the realm, requiring them to hold Vesalys as the one true power over the entire kingdom.  In turn, this meant all other forms of worship and magic outside of the temple’s beliefs, were unholy.

              Many citizens had been dragged out of their homes and arrested in the past when word of something as minor as an interest in other types of magic was discovered.  The punishments were always more harsh when a major offense was involved, such as using actual talents in various styles of magic, especially the foreign arts from Moruz.  It was a well-known fact that King Lucas was prejudice against the kingdom across the sea, and regarded the entire country as a blasphemy to Vesalys.  Therefore, anyone associated with the western land was in extreme danger of being seized by the temple.

              Sytravious held a personal grudge against the persecutions of the people, being he was one of a few people left in Havencrest who practiced foreign magic.  It was something that had been passed down to him from his mother since he was a child, so his defiant attitude toward the worship of Vesalys was instilled in him from a young age.  He knew if he was not careful, it was going to get him in trouble.

              “What if I said I do not care because I do not believe in your goddess?  Would you invite me for a swim then?”

              Raiven stared at him, her expressive eyes gave away her initial look of confusion, but then they lit up with a passion she could not contain.  “How could you not
believe in Vesalys?  Her creations can be seen all around us, and her power has been witnessed countless times during times of war and peace.  She protects us from the evil of the western lands.  I have felt her power through my own hands and prayers.  Vesalys is very real, Sytravious, even if you do not believe in her.”

              “That may be so, but I still think it is preposterous that your goddess would deny you the natural freedom to be with any man whom you choose, and instead lets a high priestess decide who can court you?  Does that not seem a little bizarre to you?”

              Raiven frowned and seemed to dwell on his words for quite some time.  She looked away from his deep stare, and began to twiddle the edges of her cloak between her fingers.  Sytravious took notice of her unease while she fidgeted with the glimmering gold stitching in her lap.  Perhaps the realizations he had brought to her attention troubled her now.  He did not want to push the priestess too much, because he did not want their time together to end in such an abrupt manner. 

              She stood up and replied with conviction, “You know, it is not for us to question, but to embrace and be obedient.  Much of what we are taught does not make sense to us at first, but it is always for the best in the end.  It has been that way for countless years.”

              “Really, is that what you believe?  Do not question, just obey what you have been told?”

              His initial attraction to her had made him forget that as a priestess she would be strong-willed in her faith.  Everything Sytravious had grown to despise about this kingdom is everything this beautiful young girl believed in.  He knew he was more than just a little frustrated by her trust in such a flawed system, and unable to resist the urge to debate this topic with her, Sytravious decided to continue.

              “I am going to be straightforward with you Raiven, despite how a person is raised and what they are taught to believe in, they should always learn to question those teachings to some extent.”

              He saw her pacing back and forth.  It was apparent to Sytravious that she was bothered by the turn their conversation had taken.  She spun to face him, glower, and point her index finger at him. 

              “Those ideals of yours could be interpreted as a fool’s mentality.  Those are views that lead to separation from our goddess.  The temple teaches us to honor, trust and follow the wise teachings of Vesalys in order to thrive, progress, and better oneself.”  She retorted while nodding as if in agreement with herself.

              “Maybe I am a fool like you say, but I would rather be that than a disciple who blindly follows biased teachings because the temple instructs me to do so.  I just think there should be more to our lives.”

              He felt this was going to be another battle he could not win.  Sytravious knew there would be no getting through to her, so rather than going another round with the headstrong girl, he thought it would be better to revert to what sparked the conversation.  He stood up and took a deep breath before asking, “Meet me for a swim again?  It can be our next secret.”  He fixed his stare on her while he waited for her answer.

              “I...I just cannot do that.”

              Unwilling to give up on the opportunity to secure a meeting with the priestess again, he had to think of another strategy to win her over.  Sytravious snapped his fingers, getting her attention, and then turned his back to her.  He fell to his knees and lowered his head in prayer.

              “What are you doing?”

              “Please do not interrupt, Raiven.  I am praying to Vesalys for guidance so that she may grant you the courage to meet me again.”

              “I think you have gotten too much steam in that brain of yours, Sytravious.”

              With a loud sigh, he threw his hands up in defeat.  “Perhaps I did.”  He stood up, dusted off his knees, and then smiled as he faced her once again.  “Despite our little dispute, I feel grateful because this is more conversation than I ever imagined you would spare me.  Being able to have taken this much of your time is a blessing.  So, maybe I do have Vesalys to thank after all.”

              A long stretch of silence followed his last remark.  To Sytravious it was very apparent by the look on her face that rather than finding humor in his comment, the priestess was dealing with conflicting feelings. 

              “Sytravious, I told you before; I swim here almost
every
morning I can get away.”

              “Wait, are you suggesting I am allowed to meet you here again?”

              “I said nothing of the sort.  I only said that I would be here again tomorrow.  You are your own master.  If you are
foolish
enough to risk being seen with me, then any consequences that follow will be of your own doing.  I will not report you though.  I mean turning a man in for swimming would not be a
priestly
thing to do now would it?”

              He could see a small smirk forming on her face.  He was enjoying this sparring match of words and wittiness between them.  Secretly, he began to thank whatever gods there may be, that he too had decided to sneak away this morning. 

              “In that case, perhaps I shall find myself in this very spring tomorrow, as foolish as it may be.  A man has a right to swim, does he not?”

              Raiven’s eyes widened, her expression was a mixture of horror and fascination.  “Are you not afraid?  If you were to be caught here with me, they would seize you to hang, or worse!  Will you really come back again?”

              “I am coming back, but I would be lying if I said I was not afraid of getting caught.  However, it is not your guardians finding out that concerns me.”  He stopped there, not wanting to give her too much information about who he really was.

              “Who then?” she probed with intrigue in her voice.

              Sytravious did not know how to reply.  As he pondered the explanation he would give her, he heard loud shouts in the woods, and though he was startled, he was relieved that he would not have to elaborate on his earlier statement. 

              Galloping horses joined the hollers they heard, and he knew it must be the priestess’ guardians.  How long had they been here together?  The temple must have taken notice of her disappearance and alerted her protectors.  He looked around and wondered how many guardians would soon be crawling through the forest looking for her.  His eyes scanned their surroundings, and then grabbed Raiven by her wrist, yanking her down with him as he hid behind a large boulder on the bank of the spring.