FicWad

Chapter 1
Evan

Evan clapped as his grandfather finished his story.
"Did the Summoner really get eaten by the sea serpent?" he asked.
Even though he was fourteen Evan still enjoyed the stories that his Grandfather told his family.
"That's what we think" Garo answered "but no one knows for sure. The Summoner might have succeeded, that might be the reason that we don't see Keli anymore. But they did not disappear until they killed a whole city full of humans." Evan had been raised by his grandparents since he was ten. When his parents were killed, he had been given over to them and was now living in this old shack with his ten year old sister, Lillian, and five year old brother, Keli.
"Keli's my name!" he shrieked, the only stories that he would not fall asleep in was the ones with his name in them.
"Grandfather?" asked Evan "how do you tell you are a Summoner?"
"Well, good question," Answered Garo "it is very hard to explain, you know there is a Summoner every thousand years, so the only way to become a Summoner is if you are related to him and if you are born on the exact same day, time, and place as the previous one, there is another way but we don't know what it is."
"It would be awfully hard to become a Summoner" said Evan
"I want to be a Summoner!" said Lillian "then I can do everything and not be afraid of it"
"That's not true Lilly" explained their grandfather "remember that the Summoner was deathly afraid of sea serpents."
Evan Scoffed "well who wouldn't be. He did get eaten by one"
"And they can't do everything. See, the Summoners' have strict rules. You must not look into other peoples minds, you can not kill people. And the Summoner disobeyed those rules. And there are great punishments for them. And the Summoner received them. The only way to get through them is to be immortal, so the Summoner went on the quest to get it. He also wanted to wait one thousand years to kill the next Summoner and still be the greatest one in the world." Then grandmother walked out of the kitchen.
"Well? Are you finished filling up our grandchildren's heads with lies?" she asked "It's time for supper! Oh and Evan clean yourself up."
"Yes Grandmother" replied Evan.
He looked at his reflection in the water. Evan was quite the handsome fourteen-year old. He had long curly black hair, tanned skin, and was very tall and muscular. To add more good looks ones that he already had, Evan had the most dazzling eyes. He once heard a girl talking to her friend about them, "Those ice blue eyes, they freeze you in your foot steps when he passes." Girls, they annoyed him more than anything, more than the greatest foe. When he walked into the kitchen his grandmother said "What took you so long? The supper is getting cold"
"I was only gone five minutes" he said back.
"It THAT how you talk to your elders?" yelled his grandmother.
"Katrina, please," said his grandfather "give mercy to us all and not be grumpy as usual." Evan sniggered.
"Well," she said picking up both Garo's and Evan's plates "go hungry." Then she dumped the food on their laps.
"Oh!" she said in mock concern "you two are so dirty! Go feed the pigs, and the other animals." Evan groaned. This was faking or else Katrina would do something worse.
*
Even though Evan hated pigs, he enjoyed spending time with his grandfather.
"We are going to town tomorrow, sound fun?" asked Garo. Evan shrugged.
"Are we going to the black smith's shop?" He loved going there and looking at the swords.
"No" Garo "I'm not, but you can"
"Really?" said Evan, his voice cracking in excitement.
"Evan you are fourteen" his grandfather "and I think you are old enough, you have shown responsibility with your siblings, even in these dark times."
"Thanks" Evan smiled sadly. His Grand Father used to be so protective of him. When warriors came to town they saw his mother (Evan had his mothers looks) they said to his father to hand her over to be a prize slave, for a present to the captain of the victory. Of course his father refused. But after they threatened to kill Evan and his siblings, his mother had to accept. After a week, his father couldn't bear not having his wife in the house. So he went to get her back. Evan could remember the look on Garo's face when his father told him what he was about to do. "I will bring your daughter home" his father said "I swear." And that was the last time he saw his father. Of course he blocked out the memory of seeing his parents mangled bodies at the side of the river. After that Garo never let his grandchildren out of sight, Evan knew that he did not want to lose another child.
*
"There was another slave raid again tonight" said Katrina when they got inside "Garo, you should not let Evan go alone, I'm worried"
"Do you always have to eavesdrop Katrina?" answered Garo "Evan is a man now, I am going to teach him how to defend him self, that is why I want him to go to the black smiths. He shall get his first sword!"
"What? Me? You want me to get a sword?" Evan was dumb founded.
*
A sword, he thought as he lay in the bed he shared with Keli, a real sword.
"Evan?" called his grandmother "I think there is a vase in your room mind getting it for me?"
Yes. Yes I do mind.
He grumbled as he got out of his warm bed, his bones ached. Oh I wish it could come to me, he thought. Suddenly the vase hovered right to him. Evan yelled in fright, and made the vase drop and break. He cursed,
"Evan!" yelled Katrina "that was a good vase, clean it up." She tried to sound nice, but it didn't work "you have a big day tomorrow."
"I'm sorry Grandmother. I'll pay for another one." He said
"And then get to bed" growled his grandmother.
He tossed and turned that night not being able to sleep. Two things bothered him, one, he just remembered how poor they were. When his grandparents took them in they lost all they had because of child taxes. Kalama was a crude king. If there someone who had no money, the kings slave traders came and took them for slavery. Every one in the town was struggling to keep at least some money, so they would not have to endure countless beatings. The other reason of Evan's discomfort was, how in the world did that vase come to him? He searched his mind for answers. This was not the first time this happened to him. But this was the first time he was conscience. Once he dreamed that there was a cat flying towards him and when he awoke there was one hovering beside his bed. But when he woke again in the morning he thought that was just part of the dream. Evan decided that if something like this happened again he would tell Garo. He drifted into an unwanted sleep.
*

The Keli's crying woke him up with a start.
"EVAN!" he screamed "you knocked me off the bed!" Evan rolled his eyes, his brother cried all day.
"Sorry" he mumbled.
"Evan?" asked Lillian entering the room "what was all the screaming about? You scared me." Lillian was very shy; she had no friends and always was teased by the town's bullies. He wanted to protect her, but he was so busy working for Marith the eccentric stable man. Evan thought, she has hardly any fun, oh I wish I could do something with her. His brain sparked, Lillian loved swords just as much as he did perhaps even more. "Lilly?" he asked "would you like to come to the black smiths with me?"
"What?" she answered "I won't be allowed. Grandmother will never let me, and besides what will Keli do."
"Grandmother will take care of him. I really want you to come." Evan said. Lillian was like his best friend and the only girl he liked. When Lillian grew older she would be the prettiest girl in Eleanor, she had blond hair, sparkling green eyes, and her skin was always pale, why Marith said she looked like an elf, and she did have strangely pointed ears.
"I'm not sure" she said sheepishly
"Fine" said Evan his impatience growing "don't come, I don't care, I do have money to buy you a fine dagger, but I can get one for my self"
"You would get me a dagger?" she said quietly "I'm sorry, get it for yourself you need it"
"I already have one," he said "besides, I want to get you one"
"Oh Evan!" she ran to him and threw her arms around him "Thank you."
"No problem."
"But before we tell Grandfather" she looked at Keli "we need to clean this little piglet." Keli started screaming all over again.
*
After they wrestled Keli into the warm lake, Evan and Lillian dreamed of what they would get at the black smith's
"This is so kind of you Evan" Lilly said "I dearly hope Grandfather will let me."
"I'll drive him to it" Evan answered "besides what will he have to argue about, I'm going to get you a weapon, and a woman of your beauty will have to defend her self."
"Ugh!" she said back "You are so annoying sometimes an- Evan stop!"
Evan was tugging on her hair, she hated when he did, that was the main reason he did it. Lillian and Evan wrestled a little while Keli walked around in the shallow lake.
*
When they got to the table Lillian gave a go ahead look.
"Grandfather?" he said
"Yes?" came the soft voice of Garo
"Um... I.....eh" Evan was stuttering "I was wondering if......um...if Lillian would come with me to...uh....the black smith's with me"
"WHAT?" Screamed Katrina "You, take Lillian to the smiths? When did you get that idea?"
"Well she rarely gets to do something with me and I thought...uh... I really want her to come I'll take my dagger!"
"Please?" Lillian pleaded "I don't want to be stuck with Keli, again" she added giving Keli a sharp look.
"No!" confirmed Katrina "Won't they Garo?"
"You can go." He said, Katrina's eyes filled with tears
"I guess you want them to die too." She said, and went to their room slamming the door. Evan could still hear her sobs when they left.