Tower of the Watchful Eye

Prologue

"The troops march on your command, Master Holcombe," a soldier in full chainmail said.

I surveyed the battlefield. The castle lay quiet, we had snuck up unheard and darkness would continue to serve us well. I didn't recall ever seeing this castle before but one thing stuck in my mind.

Rescue her.

"What is your name, soldier?" I asked.

"Captain Smith, sir," he replied with pride.

"Where are the other masters, Captain Smith?" I asked.

He looked confused. "What other masters?"

"The other masters of the Order," I responded equally confused.

"We were told it that it would just be you leading the troops, sir," Captain Smith replied.

"Very well," I said, thinking it was strange that the Order of Magic would only send one Master for a mission. I hadn't been with the order for very long, but I knew that the Masters only responded to catastrophic situations.

"You don't remember volunteering for this mission, sir?" Captain Smith asked, reading my mind. "You felt that returning the King's daughter was important for the BalendarKingdom. You told the King himself you would personally lead the troops."

Everything sounded familiar, but something didn't feel right.

"Yes," I said, rubbing my chin. "We must hurry then. Have your men ready to follow me. I will cast an Illusion spell over the guards to give us cover. We'll strike from within the castle itself."

"Brilliant plan, Master Holcombe," Captain Smith said with a smile.

He left to address the small group of troops behind me as I started to walk slowly towards the castle. The rustling of the grass behind me indicated that the troops were following slowly behind me. I reached out with my mind and searched for mental activity within the castle.

As we drew closer, I started to make out the hum of mental activity. It was quiet at first but slowly grew louder with each step and I could identify individual minds. As soon as a mind was in focus, I cast my Illusion spell on it. From now on, whenever they would look out in our direction, they would see nothing but open field. One by one, the castle guards fell under my spell.

When I was confident that we were covered, I openly sprinted towards the castle. The clank of the chainmail behind me was noisy but thanks to the spell wouldn't give away our position.

At the front gate, I searched for the mind of the gate master and influenced him with Mind Control. The gate slid open slowly and my troops and I walked through the front door into the courtyard.

I chuckled to myself softly at the child's play that was this mission, but a small part of me was impressed by the amount of power I had at my disposal. It was a weird and almost unnatural feeling to be impressed by my own magic. I shook it off and motioned for Captain Smith to spread out his troops so I could drop the Illusion spell. I scanned the courtyard and found the guards' barracks. I smirked as a little plan formed in my head.

I released my hold on the guards' minds and held out both of my hands towards the barracks. Focusing my energy into my hands, they grew warm as a massive Fireball launched from them. The Fireball singed the ground under it causing a burning trail as it drew closer to the barracks. A cry of alarm rang out as the ball struck the barracks, causing the stone building to explode.

"Intruder!" a booming voice shouted from the upper walls of the castle.

"Now's our time," Captain Smith called to his men.