Untitled Fantasy Story
It was not uncommon for the Apprentices in the Wizard's Guild to not enter the Keep grounds where the Squires were for months at a time. It was even less common for them to enter the Keep free from their duties at the same time as the Squires were free from theirs. So it was no surprise then that the rumors in each group of student's about the other were quite rampant and commonly not true.
One of the stranger rumors going around among the Squires was that there was a new very talented apprentice who shimmered. Despite the fact that the majority of the Squire's found this rumor to be absurd, they still talked about it do to the fact that none of the adults had gotten wind of it yet, a fact that they knew because no one had told them to stop talking about it. Simply having secret knowledge the adults lacked was well worth the lack of it's validity. So of course when the Apprentices entered the Keep during their free time for the first time since summer, the Squires began to gather around the area. No one would admit that they were looking for the shimmering Apprentice, especially since everyone involved was male, but of course everyone knew that was the case. Aile, Neal and Richter were no exception, though they would have been waiting here anyway do to being friends with a number of the Apprentices.
Aile was not expecting to confirm the rumor with his own eyes, but he did see a slight shimmer or ephemeral something in the group of Apprentices when they entered the Keep. He of everyone should have realized the rumor was potentially true, since he had been able to see magic auras his entire life and weak or unfocused auras often looked to him like an ephemeral shimmer around whatever was radiating them. Unfortunately he did not get a look at what was emanating said aura and quickly turned to his compatriots. It was far more likely that some dumb apprentice had decided to get himself thrown out of the Keep by playing some dumb prank than that one of them just innately shimmered. It then occurred to him that the rumor might have simply come from some Apprentice under an enchantment, but he had no clue how it would circulate the Squires without anyone else knowing about it as he was the only sighted Squire that he knew of.
When Aile turned back to his friends, he did not bring up what he saw. He knew neither Neal nor Richter would mention anything they saw either, after all to do so would admit that they were here because of the ridiculous rumor, which of course though true, was nothing anyone would admit. Besides that the pranks pulled by the Apprentices were always funny whether they worked out or not and Aile was not about to ruin it before it had a chance to begin, “It would be on a dull day like today that they let them out.” He said to no particular person.
Neal shook his head, he was sitting on the table rather than at it like Aile and Richter were. He did that because he was significantly shorter than his two friends and he felt small. It wasn't exactly a secret between the three boys, and Neal knew that neither of them would ever hold their difference in size over him, but he did it regardless, “When is the day ever not dull around here?”
Richter simply shrugged in response, he was the quiet one of the three. He was also the largest and strongest of the three, though Aile was was the tallest.
“Oh hey!” Neal waved at one of the Apprentices, “Raz! Over here!”
Raz waved as he walked over to them, “Hello.” The three Squires nodded and grunted at him in response. Raz had been their friend since before they were Squires. He was one of the few commoners who routinely ventured into the noble section of town and even the Keep despite constantly being told not to. The reason he kept coming back despite the constant punishment was one of the best kept secrets of the Saleenan youth. Raz was an amazing performer and many of the kids who would grow up to be Squires had spent many a night entertained by his amazing shenanigans. He also was rather humble when he wasn't on stage.
Neal smirked at him, “So how are the books treat'n you?”
Raz shook his head, “Same as always.” He sat down, “I wish they let us out more often. I haven't seen you guys in a long time.”
Richter smiled at him, “Yeah. We missed you.”
Aile looked around. Thankfully the Squires had largely disbanded from the area once they had confirmed that the shimmering Apprentice was not in fact around, or they would be congregating to Raz in the hopes that he might perform for them again.
He leaned over to Raz conspiringly, “So I noticed someone had a spell on them when they came in. You can tell us what you know right? You know we won't say a thing.” Raz knew about Aile being sighted, it was largely why he was friends with him and Richter and Neal by association. Aile confirmed that what he was doing wasn't magic and congratulated him on it and that was that. Raz actually had a lot in common with Neal than he did with Aile and Richter had often acted as the boy's bodguard when some of the more rowdy kids had decided that throwing things at the commoner was more interesting than what he was doing, so he was actually closer to them despite meeting Aile first, but he was closer to the three of them than he was to the other Squires.
Raz' response to Aile's question was not what he expected, first confusion, “Aile I don't know what...” Then his eyes widened and he looked at the three of them before he quickly got up and walked away.
Neal raised an eyebrow, “Thanks Aile. You scared him away.” He said sarcastically.
“What was that about?” Richter asked, though the question was obviously rhetorical.
Aile simply shrugged in response an started looking around. That was when he saw it again. An ephemeral shimmer indicating a magic aura. This time however he could make out what the aura was coming from, it was coming from a boy, about their age, who he had never seen before. Furthermore, the magic aura seemed to be coming from his entirety which was somewhat strange for such an unfocused aura. Most auras large enough to cover an entire person that he had seen were quite focused. Of course it was entirely plausible that Aile simply hadn't seen this before and he was more ready to believe that the boy was enchanted rather than simply emanating magic, but regardless it was something he was supposed to report as entering the grounds while enchanted except on specific business was prohibited for the safety of the people who lived there. When he first saw the aura it looked weak enough that it wasn't a big deal, indeed he had seen many an Apprentice try to sneak a spell onto the grounds before, some more successfully than others. But this was different... this could be something dangerous.
Aile was about to excuse himself from his friends to go find a Knight to tell when Raz appeared again and walked straight up to the shimmering boy. They both then looked directly at him and exchanged a few words before Raz headed over in their direction again. The other boy stayed where he was but his eyes were wide with fear, not a good sign certainly but Aile trusted Raz enough to give him the benefit of the doubt and not go immediately to a Knight. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately considering the sequence of events that was about to pass, an older Wizard quickly entered the Keep, intercepted Raz and then the two of them had a short chat before finally moving to where Aile was sitting.
Aile, Neal and Richter quickly stood where they were and bowed their heads to the man in respect as was customary for all Keep or Guild members to do when approached by an unknown superior. First he addressed Aile directly, “Aile, I know this is supposed to be your free time but I would like to have a word with you in private if that's possible.”
The three Squires sighed in relief upon hearing his voice, Tom Hayes was Richter's father and thus a man they had known intimately since they were children, “Father, what's this about?”
Tom sighed, “Unfortunately, I must discuss this with Aile before I can tell you anything.” Richter nodded, he was usually fairly easy to appease in situations like this. Neal was harder, but he still knew when to not but his nose into things. This was obviously one of those times.
Aile stood up, “I will have to ask Sir Luke first of course.” He couldn't really deny a request from Tom Hayes. It did occur to him that someone would know that and send Tom in specific, but if this was important enough for a Wizard to approach a Squire privately during his off time, it was probably important enough to warrant that anyway.
Sir Luke was surprised to find a Wizard and an Apprentice with his Squire when he opened the door, a fact that was obvious from the expression on his face, “Tom Hayes? I assume you have a good reason for disrupting my Squire's free time?”
Tom nodded, “Unfortunately yes, though it shouldn't take more than a few minutes. I simply need to speak with him in private. It's an important matter which concerns him in specific.”
Sir Luke's eyes thinned suspiciously. It wasn't that he distrusted Tom, while they weren't exactly close friends they had known each other growing up enough to know that they were trustworthy. “I will allow you to speak in private, from everyone but myself. I will not have you putting something onto my Squire's shoulders. He has enough to bear with his duties.”
Tom nodded, “I must oblige, this is too important to be delayed.”
Sir Luke nodded, “So come in already.”
Tom shook his head, “It cannot be done in the Keep as I must use a spell which I do not have clearance to use within the walls.”
Sir Luke looked him in the eyes, “This spell is not dangerous right?”
Tom shook his head again, “It is entirely benign.”
Sir Luke looked at the two boys before turning to Tom again, “The forest then?” Tom nodded and the four of them headed off to the forest near the Keep. Said forest was small, surrounded on all sides by Saleenan and thus essentially safe. No one exactly knew why that particular stretch of wood was never cut down, but most suspected that it was purely for aesthetic reasons.
The four of them stopped in a small clearing and then Tom went around the clearing and put up some wards and alarms, which only made Aile more curious and Sir Luke more wary of this entire situation.
Once that was done he turned to the group, “No one should be able to see or hear us right now.”
Sir Luke was obviously irritated, “Will you please explain what this is about?”
Tom nodded, “Aile, as you obviously are aware, Art has a magic aura around him.”
Aile gave him an odd look, “Yes sir.” Sir Luke gave Art a suspicious look, which caused him to step back from the man in fear.
Tom nodded and turned to Art, “Do you wish to explain?” The boy shook his head no and Tom nodded, “I suspected as much. Before we go any further, I must remind you that Art is a member of the guild and has our protection, and furthermore that the information you are about to be given is common knowledge within the guild.” Both Aile and Sir Luke looked at each other, neither was sure why they would need to be reminded of either of those things. Tom gave both of them a serious look before turning to Art and casting, or as Aile realized actually removing a spell from him. As Tom's hands moved Art's hair fell off his head, but rather than landing on the ground the simply dissolved into nothingness as they fell towards the ground. When Tom was done Art's head was covered in short brown hair which no longer covered his ears.
Sir Luke didn't say anything and though Aile still saw his aura and could now sort of see how it was different without the... illusion? He wasn't exactly sure what sort of magic the hair had been, “Okay, he has short hair.” Aile wasn't sure what he was supposed to be looking for.
Tom reached down and cradled Art's head and turned it so that its side was facing them. Sir Luke's eyes widened, “Is he an elf?”
Art started visibly shaking at Sir Luke's comment. Tom held the boy close to him protectively, “No, though he is of elven lineage. His father was an elf, his mother was human. We confirmed this though divination. We also know he is part human as he bleeds red.”
Sir Luke stepped forward towards Art and then lowered himself to look into the boys vibrant colored eyes. To vibrant really, they were the color of a autumn leaves, shimmering between red and gold. He gazed into the boy's eyes for a moment before speaking, “You're name is Art right?”
Art thought for a moment before speaking, “Araetris... sir.” He added the last word late as if he had forgotten and was afraid he would get hurt if he didn't say it.
Sir Luke nodded, “Ah, that does sound elven... but you go by Art if I'm not mistaken.” Art nodded. Sir Luke put his hand onto Art's shoulder before continuing, “I understand your feelings on this matter. You must be afraid that we would see you as a threat?”
Art nodded, “You don't?”
Sir Luke mused for a moment, “I cannot say that I don't, but it is not because of your lineage. It is because it was kept from us.”
Tom stood forward, “And for that, we are to blame, not him. It is known to us that some knights are fearful of magic and even more fearful of the fay. The circle felt it was more important to protect the safety of our charge than to reveal him to the rest of the world. I do not believe it was a decision that was come to lightly, but you cannot deny that if this was publicly known his well being would likely be in jeopardy.”
Sir Luke nodded, “I cannot deny that, but I cannot condone information being kept from the Lord, especially when illegal magic is being used as part of an active deception.”
Tom nodded, “I suspected this might happen. I cannot rightfully ask you to keep this from the Lord, nor will I. I myself have had misgivings about this from the beginning. I will say this, the Lord may want proof that he is in fact part human. Proof in the form of blood shed from his body.”
Art's eyes widened at that and Aile moved towards him, “If it must be done, let me do the deed.” He said to him in as forthright a voice as he could muster. Aile was more curious about the half elf than he was scared.
Sir Luke stepped forward, “As much as I am proud of you for offering your services, I believe that Art himself deserves to make the final choice here. I swear that I will do all in my power to make sure that if your blood must be shed as proof of your lineage, that it is either my Squire or myself who does so. Furthermore I will do whatever I can to ensure that no other harm comes to you so long as you are not a danger to me, my Squire, the Lord or any of his other subjects.”
Art shut his eyes and nodded, more to himself it seemed, and then looked Sir Luke in the eyes, “Thank you.”
Sir Luke smiled down at him, “Think nothing of it. It is my duty to protect the Lord's subjects. You are no exception.”
Art sighed, “Even from the Lord himself?”
Sir Luke sighed, that was a difficult question, “I believe I will not have to. I do not think he will seek bloodshed if we approach him with the truth.”
Tom stepped forward, “I agree. The Lord will undoubtedly be angry, but his anger will fall upon us, not upon you.” He then recast the spell over Art's head and his hair again grew long and covered his ears. Aile couldn't help but stare however, as having seen the illusion cast, and he was certain an illusion was exactly what it was, he could see the difference between the spell and the rest of his aura. Beyond that, he could in fact see both the illusion and the shape of the head below it now that he knew what to look for. It was an exhilarating for him.
Given Tom and Sir Luke's status, it was no trouble for the four of them to get an audience with the Lord, even on such short notice, and soon they found themselves in a rather large room. The room was tall, long and had a blue rug extending from the doorway up towards a dais on which sat the Lord's throne. The rug didn't extend all the way to the walls and had white trimmings. The Lord's signet printed on it about halfway across the room. There were a number of tapestries and candelabras on the walls giving the entire room a powerful and slightly foreboding feel.
Lord Vandermere was sitting on his thrown, flanked by two Knights and two Wizards. There were also two guards stationed on the inside of the door, with four guards stationed outside. Tom and Sir Luke walked forward and stopped about halfway into the room before kneeling in front of the Lord. Aile and Art followed suit a few nervous moments behind. This was the first time either of them had been in the Lord's chambers outside of a formal function with set protocols. Lord Vandermere stood and addressed the room, “We are told you have something to tell us of great import. Thomas Hayes, Adam Luke, please stand and address the court.”
Tom and Sir Luke stood. Tom looked at the two Wizards standing on the dais. One looked uncertain, the other looked nervous. Tom thought they should both be way more than nervous at the moment, “My Lord, before I state the reason we are present, there is something more immediate which I must bring to you're attention.”
Lord Vandermere raised an eyebrow in curiosity before responding, “Oh? We are curious as to what could be or more immediate importance than why what we were brought here before you.”
Tom nodded, “I imagine so. It is not unrelated, but protocol must be maintained in this instance.” He turned to Art, “My Lord, are you aware that this boy currently has an aura as well as an active illusion placed upon him?”
The reaction was immediate, the two Knights stood up and put their hands to their weapons while the two Wizards went from nervous to scared, as they should considering that the Lord turned to them immediately, “This is most distressing, if what Tom is saying is true, then you did not do your duty and inform us something was amiss immediately.” His words seemed level but the expression on his face showed he was quite distressed at this turn of events. One of the Wizards turned to the other, there really wasn't anything they could say. Informing the Lord of that sort of thing was one of the court Wizards' primary functions, as this was meant to protect the Lord's life, to not do so was a huge problem regardless of the reasons. He then turned back to Tom and Sir Luke, “We trust that you have a good explanation for bringing an illegally enchanted person into our presence?”
Tom notice Art was shaking, but there was little he could do about that at that moment. Instead he opted for the truth, “The boy is enchanted for his own protection and he is not at fault for this decision. I am unsure as to the specific reason why you were not informed of this, but what's past cannot be undone. We are here to present the truth to you, nothing less and nothing more.”
Lord Vandermere looked at Aile, “Squire Roux, please rise.” Aile stood up, “We understand that you can see auras, that is correct is it not?” Aile nodded, “Then please tell me, is Tom speaking the truth?”
Aile nodded, “He is.”
Lord Vandermere then looked at the Wizards, “As you refuse to speak on you're behalf and you clearly cannot be trusted. Leave.” The Wizards looked at each other almost in a panic before quickly leaving the room. Lord Vandermere then looked down at Art, thought for a moment and then addressed the room again, “Knights and Guardsmen, will you please leave as well? We do not fear Thomas Hayes or Adam Luke but we do believe this requires our private ear.” The Knights and the Guards then bowed before leaving the room. With that done the Lord turned to them again, “Let us dispense with formalities. I assume that the enchantments on the boy, my court Wizard's silence and Aile's presence here are all related?”
Tom responded, “I can say for certain that the enchantments on Art and Aile's presence here are indeed related. I cannot say the same about the court Wizard's silence, but I think that is highly likely.”
Lord Vandermere turned to Sir Luke, “Sir Luke?”
Sir Luke shook his head, “I cannot add much more unfortunately. This was only just brought to my attention moments ago,”
Lord Vandermere nodded and then turned to Aile and Art, “Does either of you have anything to add?”
Art's shivering only got worse as he shook his head no. Aile decided to speak up, “Can we get on with this? Art is terrified he's going to be hurt of even killed.”
Sir Luke turned to Aile, “You do not speak to our Lord like that young man!”
Aile turned to Sir Luke, “'Let us dispense with formalities' I believe he said.”
Sir Luke was about to say something else but Lord Vandermere raised his hand, “You are quite brave to speak up to you're Lord like that, even though you are absolutely correct. Tell me then... what do you think of him?” He motioned towards Art as he said this.
Aile thought for a moment, “I just met him, but I have no reason to think ill of him. He is terrified, has a magic aura and has a relatively minor illusion cast over him, but that's all I know about him.”
Lord Vandermere then turned to Tom, “It seems that removing the Illusion should be the place to start. If you will?”
Tom nodded and soon the short haired half elf that Aile and Sir Luke had met in the forest was standing in front of them. No one spoke for a moment, then Lord Vandermere lowered his gaze to Art. “You are an Elf?”
Art was to shaken to respond, so Aile spoke up for him, “Tom said he's half elven.”
Lord Vandermere thought for a moment, “Then he bleeds red?”
Tom nodded, “He does.”
Lord Vandermere moved to draw his sword but Sir Luke stopped him, “Excuse me my Lord, but I will not allow any hard to come to this boy. I promised him that I would protect him and I will. If his blood must be shed, please allow my Squire or I to do so.”
Lord Vandermere looked at Sir Luke, Aile and Tom one by one before he spoke next, “Tom, hands in the accepted position please.” Tom acquiesced, lacing his fingers together in front of his abdomen as was the accepted way for a Wizard to stand down from using magic, “Aile, please watch as Sir Luke cuts Art's hand. Tell me if you see any magic aside of his natural aura.” Aile nodded he then lowered himself so he was at Art's eye level, “I am sorry, but I must know the truth.” He then stood up and nodded at Sir Luke. Sir Luke lifted Art's hand, but rather than drawing his sword he drew a small knife. This knife was one he kept very clean and orderly, as it was the knife he used to treat injuries when a healer was not around. He drew the knife lightly across a small portion Art's palm, just enough for a few drops of red blood to fall from the wound when he turned Art's hand over. Sir Vandermere nodded and spoke again, “Tom, I trust you can cast a simple healing spell to close Art's wound?”
Tom nodded, “I can.” He then used a minor regenerative devotion on Art's hand and the skin sealed. Aile never could tell the difference between a spell and a devotion, which wasn't to say they were the exactly same thing, but watching them it didn't seem to Aile like the two things were nearly as different from each other as both the Guild and the Church would have you believe.
Lord Vandermere quickly snapped Aile out of his musings by lowering himself to Art's eye level again and putting a hand on his shoulder, “You seem to be exactly what I am told. The truth is that I would not have harmed you had you proven to be an Elf either. I will not have you harmed nor will I allow anyone to harm you. You cannot control your lineage anymore than anyone else can. However I will not allow you to wear an illusion within these walls. You will have no special treatment in regards to that rule.”
Art was still shivering, “What about my aura?” His voice was timid.
Lord Vandermere smiled at him, “What about it? It is not a result of a spell or enchantment. The Keep has never had a law against beings with natural auras entering here. If you were told that it was in error.” He then stood up and addressed them again as a group, “If that is all? Then you may go.” He turned away before adding, “Oh, and please give Aile the night off his chores. This was meant to be his free time after all. I would request that the same be done for Art, though I have no control over the workings of the guild.”
Tom smiled, “I will make the request my Lord.”
Lord Vandermere responded with a, “Thank you.” Before walking out of the room via one of the two doors on the dais.
The rest of the day was rather uneventful for Aile and Art. Aile spent the rest of the afternoon thinking in his quarters while Art spent his free time reading in the guild library.
Over the next few days, Aile found himself spending more and more time on the keep wall overlooking the grounds of the guild. From there he could clearly watch the Apprentices training, something which he hadn't really payed much attention to previously. He wished he had now that he was watching them. His ability to see auras never seemed significant before, after all it wasn't as if there was ever a time when he couldn't see them, so he didn't even really have a conception of what that was like. Once he started really watching them clearly he began to see them the way he saw a person wielding a sword. Stance, hand motion, how each aura coalesced into a spell, there were a lot of things he noticed. Like how each Squire has a slightly different way of using a sword even when practicing the same technique, each Apprentice had a slightly different aura when they cast a spell. Which led to why he watched Art more than anyone else when he was there.
Though he could see that the aura's for the spells were different for each caster, he had no real knowledge of how a spell was cast and thus couldn't really see why they were different, except with Art. When Art cast a spell his aura interacted with the aura of the spell and changed it, something which Aile found fascinating. Given this, it was only natural that he found himself aware of the details of the half elf more than the details of the other Apprentices. Even details that had nothing to do with how he cast magic such as how he absentmindedly messed with the points of his ears or was constantly looking around when he wasn't focused on something, as if always on the look for some specific thing he couldn't find.
It was one of these times when he was staring at the Apprentices practicing, this time watching Raz, who seemed to be concentrating really hard on something that many of the other Apprentices seemed to just be able to do, when a voice startled him from behind, “I see you are watching the Apprenties again.”
Aile turned to Sir Luke, who was standing behind him with a knowing smile on his face, “Oh... yeah.” It didn't really surprise him that Sir Luke knew about this, he hadn't had any real reason to hide it from him. It was just that his master had never actually talked to him while he was doing it before.
Sir Luke took a place next to Aile on the wall and looked down at the practice field for a little while, “I still don't understand what you are seeing. But it must be fascinating for you to keep coming back here.”
Aile nodded, “Yeah, I kind of wish I had joined the Wizards' Guild now. When they approached me I wasn't really interested in magic. Being able to see auras was neither special nor interesting to me... I was kind of foolish for thinking that.”
Sir Luke shrugged, “You might have been yes, but we can't do anything about the past. I might be able to do something about the present however.”
Aile looked up at him, “What do you mean?”
Sir Luke turned and looked down at Aile, “Have you ever heard of a mystic?”
Aile nodded, “A little. We were required to read about them during our studies. Aren't they Elves?”
Sir Luke shook his head, “Most people think they are, but I have been told otherwise. The original Mystics, according to Mister Faulk, were in fact the first humans to attempt to study magic in an attempt to learn to mix it with their martial capabilities. Mystics are rare now, as most people are simply incapable of mastering that art. You should have an advantage there though, because of your sight. I always realized you might make a good mystic, but you showed no interest in magic I never brought it up.” David Faulk was the Keep's main historian and the keeper of the library. Everyone knew him because he was a really old man and most of the knights had taken lessons from him as Squires. He was incredibly knowledgeable and excitable so he was a great source of all sorts of interesting information. Unfortunately this also worked in reverse, sometimes he would go on and on about something incredibly dull, and before you knew it you would know every last detail about how people a hundred years ago washed the dishes, assuming you didn't tune him out like most people did when he got like that.
Aile blinked, “You act as if mystics are trained now. If they were, shouldn't I have met one?”
Sir Luke shook his head, “I believe the art of the mystic is still taught academically at the Wizard's guild, unfortunately we have not had a person who was capable of wielding it in the last few generations. At the very least I have never heard of anyone. If you decide to go that route, you may be the first mystic in Saleenan in a long time.”
Aile turned towards the Apprentices and watched them for a little while longer before looking up at Sir Luke decisively, “Can I?”
Sir Luke nodded, “I would miss you while you were studying at the guild, but of course. I am not going to stunt the growth of my ward.”
Aile smiled, “Can we go now?”
Sir Luke nodded, “Sure.”
It was strange when they went to the Guild. The secretary at the front desk kept looking at him funny, and kept asking random seemingly irrelevant questions. Sir Luke had asked to talk to Tom, but the secretary kept either dodging the question or suggesting a better person to speak with. It eventually got to the point where Sir Luke had simply yelled at her to get Tom and refused to talk to her anymore. Aile had spent most of the time watching the people, a number of whom were Apprentices, who walked through the foyer. Raz gave him a strange look, but quickly smiled and waved at him. He looked like he wanted to come over and ask what was going on but had someplace to go. Art also walked by with a few other Apprentices, and though none of them actually acknowledged him, they did notice him and he thought they were talking about him amongst each other as they walked off.
When they finally saw Tom, it turned out to be a lot simpler than the secretary was letting on. Tom took them to his room and Sir Luke and he started working out schedule. Sir Luke made it clear that he only wanted Aile training with Tom. Aile didn't understand why but he liked the middle aged Wizard so he wasn't about to complain. After they had worked out a potential schedule, which they said they would finalize later, Aile and Sir Luke returned to the keep to go to finish training, attend to their duties and then go to sleep.
They never actually got to worry about that schedule however, as that night they got a frantic knock on their door. Aile wasn't sure what exactly was going on but Sir Luke had woken him and told him to start packing his stuff. He was surprised to see Tom and even more surprised to see Art with him. They were both wearing typical peasant clothing and looked like they were headed off on a journey.
It was soon clear from Sir Luke's orders to pack everything he wanted to keep and the fact that Sir Luke was apparently doing the same thing that they were also leaving. All he could get from Tom and Sir Luke was that they were all leaving, that it was important, that it was at the Lord's request and that they would explain it later. When Aile managed to ask Art clandestinely while the adults were doing final preparations to leave, Art didn't really get why they were leaving either.
By the time they left, Aile and Sir Luke's room looked like no one had lived in it. Presumably Art and Tom's rooms were equally emptied. The four of them secreted away into the night away from the keep, the guild and in fact, away from the whole of Saleenan. It would be sixteen full seasons later before Aile would see the Keep again. Sixteen seasons during which many things would change...