Power Quest: The Rebellion of Terrakia by Andrew Koenig (best free e book reader .txt) 📕

            With a grunt of pure disdain, the guard withdrew his lance to his side.  “Get him out of the damn streets, kid.”  The guard spat, his mouth contorted into a vile sneer.  “If he soils my armor, I’ll soil these streets with his blood.”

            Casimer and Amanda nodded and trudged to the Common Cup Inn’s large oak door.  Amanda glanced at Casimer and sighed.  “Is he going to be okay?”  She asked, glancing into Casimer’s electric blue eyes.

            He nodded and sighed as he opened the door and helped Leif into the inn.  “Yeah, he’ll be fine.”  Casimer chuckled and shook his head.  “He probably doesn’t even realize what just happened.”

            Amanda gave him a half smile, followed by a hug.  “Stay safe, Casimer.”

            “Yeah, you too, Amanda.”  He smiled, holding her in his arms for a moment.  “Walk safe, okay?”

            “Of course I will.”  She laughed, breaking their embrace.  “Have a good night, Casimer.”

            Amanda gave him a wave and walked off into the night before he had a chance to respond.  Casimer sighed as he closed the door.  “You too, Amanda.”

Beams of sunlight peaked through the tan, linen curtains of Amanda’s room.  They fell on her pale face and bathed her in the white glow of day.  Amanda groaned and buried her face under her pillow, but it was too late; the sun had disrupted an already fitful sleep and all she could do now was wake up.  With a groan, she rolled off her bed and threw open the curtains, lighting up her entire bedroom with the warm embrace of morning.

            Amanda filled her family’s small, wooden tub with water, then slowly sat in the tub, shivering.  “What I wouldn’t give to bathe in one of those hot springs in Frantel…”  She muttered to herself, lathering her arms with a bar of soap.

            She dunked her head into the water and soaked her hair, washing away the sweat and grease from yesterday.  Amanda held her breath as her hair floated about in the water, as if suspended without gravity.  Lifting her head out of the water, she took a deep breath of fresh air.  The scent of cooking ham, fresh bread, and sizzling eggs filled the bathroom with their mouthwatering aroma.  Amanda let out a sigh and began ringing droplets of water from her hair.

            Water splashed to the wood floor as Amanda stepped out of the tub.  Shivering, she grabbed her black, cotton towel and wrapped it around her body, savoring the warmth as she dried herself off.  After she pulled on her undergarments, she pulled on a loose, white, linen under-gown, followed by the Temple of Divinity’s hooded, light brown robes.  She fastened the thin black sash around her waist, then shimmied her body until the robes were loosened to her liking.  She made her way to the kitchen, but despite the tantalizing aroma of breakfast, her stomach refused to growl.  Rather, it felt weighed down, like a rock sinking to the bottom of the ocean, unable to bring itself back to the surface.

            “Good morning, Amanda!”  Her father boomed as she entered the kitchen.  He was wearing an egg stained apron and Amanda noticed a smear of flour on his right cheek which lightly coated his umber brown beard.  “Going to the temple before your classes, I see.”  He noted with a smile.

            Nodding, Amanda grabbed a wooden plate and placed a slice of ham, two eggs, and a slice of fresh bread on it.  “The head priestess is considering extending my training to include alchemy,” she explained, spreading a tart, homemade raspberry jam on her bread.  “I’ll be there in the mornings until the late evenings.”

            “Is that where you were last night?”  Amanda’s mom asked, entering the kitchen.  Her wiry hair was hidden by the hood of a grey knit shawl and a fussy toddler was squirming in her arms.  With a groan, she bent down and placed the child on the floor, letting him run around the kitchen table.

            “Yeah, the head priestess showed me some basic medicines and tonics.”  Amanda lied, lifting her brother up by his arms and placing him in the chair beside her.  “And what about you, Mani?  Did you enjoy your night at the temple?”  She smiled, ruffling his fair, amber hair.

            The child shook his head pounded his palms on the table.  Amanda’s father placed a plate of pre-cut food in front of the child, who proceeded to shove it into his mouth with his chubby fists.  Amanda looked to her mother as she bit into her slice of bread.  “What did the priest say about Mani?  Does he have Merinas’ Touch?”

            Rachelle shook her head and sat at the table, across from Amanda.  “If by that you mean ‘does he have healing powers like you’ then no, I’m afraid the priest saw nothing like that in Mani.”

            Amanda nodded her head and looked down at her plate and picked at the eggs with her fork.  She glanced between the members of her family enjoying their breakfast as her mind wandered to memories of the night before, when she and Casimer had met the People’s Liberation Rebellion.  A knot twisted in her stomach and she pushed her plate forward.

            Lucjan raised a bushy eyebrow and stared, his chocolate eyes weighing down upon her.  “Is something wrong, Amanda?  You’ve hardly eaten.”  He sighed and looked over at his wife, his eyes heavy.  “My cooking wasn’t that bad, right?”  His wife rolled her eyes and rubbed her temple with her slender fingers.

            “No, dad, it was delicious!”  Amanda insisted, shaking her head.  “I’m just nervous about starting alchemy today, that’s all!”

            “What do you have to be worried about?”  Rachelle scoffed, feeding Mani a small chunk of bread.  “You’re a natural at all of that healing magic.”

            “You’re mom’s right, you know.”  Lucjan joined in, taking a bite of juicy ham.  “You’ll do great today!”  Even Mani appeared to be giving Amanda a thumbs up as he shoved a piece of slimy egg into his mouth.

            Amanda gave a limp smile and stood up, leaving the table.  “Thanks for breakfast, dad, it was delicious.  I’ll probably see you all after my classes.”  She sighed and walked through the kitchen towards the house’s storefront.

            “I love you!”  Amanda’s dad called out to her from the kitchen.

            “Love you too!”  She turned back and shouted as she walked into the kitchen.  She didn’t notice the tall, dark haired boy standing in the center of the shop, browsing Lucjan’s assortment of breads and baked goods, and there was nothing to stop her as she ran into him.  Her face became buried in the black wool of his long sleeve tunic.  Screaming, she leaped away from him, her face blushing bright pink as she stammered an apology.

            With heavy bounds the shook the building, Lucjan burst into the storefront, his eyes wide and nostrils flaring.  “Are you okay, Amanda?”  He shouted, putting himself between her and the boy.  He immediately began poking the boy’s chest, pushing him back towards the door.  “Who are you?  What have you done to my daughter?!”

            The boy raised his dark eyebrows in confusion while Amanda patted her father’s arm, begging him to stop.  “No, dad, this is a customer!  I didn’t see him and he surprised me is all!”

            “Oh.”  Lucjan muttered, apologizing to the boy.  “Well, welcome to the Diarmaid Bakery!”

            “So, that’s a typical day at the Diarmaid Bakery, huh?”  The boy asked Amanda as they walked down the cobblestone streets of Kaneele.  The sun had already dispersed the early hues of pink and set the sky a bright, clear blue. 

            Amanda scoffed and crossed her arms.  “We don’t usually have customers during our breakfast.”  She scolded.  The streak of blonde in her hair whipped across cheek as she shook her head. 

            “Fair enough,” the boy mused as he scratched the back of his head.  “I just needed to speak with you.”

            His black eyes met hers as she gave him a skeptical glare, her eyes squinting as she studied him.  “I don’t even know your name, yet you know where I live?  Should I be calling a guard over?”

            The boy’s eyes grew wide and he pursed his lips.  “There may be a small possibility that I followed you and your boyfriend home from the barn last night.”  He confessed, his apricot skin blushing a slight pink.

            “First of all, Casimer’s not my boyfriend.  Secondly, that’s creepy.”  Amanda admonished, her eyebrows knit together and her face twisted into a grimace.  “You can’t just follow people around!”

            “I know, I know…”  The boy sighed throwing his hands up.  “I just… I wanted to apologize to you.”  He mumbled, looking at the ground as they walked.  Dirt and grime were caked between the cracks of cobblestone, but Amanda was too focused on his expressions to notice.

            She looked at the boy with a red blush painted on her cheeks and nose.  “Apologize?”  She repeated to herself.  Twisting her hair between her fingers, she nodded at the boy, urging him to continue.

            His fingers ran through the back of his soot black hair and his almond eyes darted around, looking for anything to lock gaze with besides Amanda.  “I’m sorry that I accused you of being an Imperial spy…” he muttered, digging the heel of his black leather boot into the cobblestone.  “I was wrong and… Well, I wanted you to know that I feel bad for it.”  He took a deep breath and looked Amanda in the eyes.

            Amanda opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.  Warmth radiated from his ash eyes, and she found herself lost in a daydream before she shook her head, roused from her mental vacation.  “Oh, well, if you really wanted to apologize, I suppose you could start by telling me your name.”

            With a chuckle, the boy gave a grateful nod, beginning to stroll down the street.  “My name’s Floyde.  It’s nice to meet you.”

            “Yeah, under better circumstances, at least.”  Amanda chuckled, following him down the street.  “So, did you just want to apologize or was there more you were hoping to talk about?”  She asked, staring up at him with a brow cocked.

            Floyde shrugged and dropped three copper coins into the open palm of a fruit vendor.  “Your family seemed… Interesting.”  He chuckled as he picked up a faded green pear.  He bit into the ripe flesh and stared at Amanda.

            Releasing an exasperated sigh and raising her eyebrows, Amanda scratched the back of her head.  “They’re characters, all right…”

            “That doesn’t sound good.”  Floyde noted, raising an eyebrow as juice dribbled from the corner of his mouth.

            “It’s nothing bad!  After all, they’re my family and I love them, but…”  Amanda paused as she bit her lip and knit her brows.  “Things haven’t been the same since mom got sick…”

            Staring at her with pear juice dribbling down his chin, Floyde coughed and swallowed his mouthful.  “She was sick?