Adventures of the Seven Realms: Brady and the Elves of Blue Cloude

By Jane R Semu

An orphan boy living in the streets of a town of thieves needs to steal to survive, but Brady McVincent suffers from something mysterious, which makes him literally unable to steal...

When he fails to steal at the Thief King’s contest, the King is furious, and demands Brady’s head. A series of events unfold, as Brady escapes from the only place he has ever known, setting off an adventure he could not have imagined in his wildest dreams. Answers to questions which haunt him await amongst magical woods, gateways to magical realms, love, magnificent creatures, new friendships, and an unbelievable power waiting just for him.

An amazing epic fantasy adventure with swords, sorcery, magic, elves, evil villains, and magical new places!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jane R Semu
• Release date: Jun 10, 2022
• ISBN: 9780620997294

Book preview

From around a bend in the dirt road, an old cart appeared. An old horse clopped lazily, slowly pulling the rugged thing. These made the only sounds that could be heard for miles in the dirt highway, cutting through the woods. It was as if nothing else moved, or had life, even though the sun was high, with just a few clouds in the sky. On the cart sat a woman in a hooded cloak, and a boy.

The scruffy-looking boy sat next to the woman, staring at her like she was the first person he had seen in his whole life. He paid no attention to the quiet road, the trees whose leaves did not move an inch, the lack of a breeze in the air, or the lack of animals, or critters scuttling about. He just stared at her, particularly her face. The lady just kept a steady face ahead, with most of it covered by the hood of her cloak. She held the reins of the old horse, even though she did not move them.

Are you going to ask? She finally broke the silence.

The boy was startled.

Pardon, ma’am? He blinked, as his cheeks went pink. He tried to look elsewhere, but something just kept drawing his eyes to her face.

Your questions, she said, eyes still glued to the road ahead.

I... The boy could not find his words.

She chuckled.

Are you really from Little Hand, Brady? It is Brady, right? She asked him.

Yes, ma’am… No, ma’am… Yes, ma’am... Brady stuttered.

I am not sure which parts of my questions your yes’s, and no’s are replying to, Brady.

Brady went even more red.

Wow, I thought I had seen it all, but a blushing boy from Little Hand? That’s really something unheard of! Tell me Brady, how does a boy from the town of thieves blush? Little Handtons are known to have lost their ability to blush, or to be shy, generations ago when they perfected their art of stealing, and charlatanism. You definitely cannot be acting; you are like an open book. Who really are you, boy?

Brady’s face hardened as he looked away.

Not talking huh? The lady smirked. You might not be from Little Hand, but you are smart enough not to talk a lot.

I am from Little Hand! Brady’s voice was shaky as it rose.

Hey now, the lady smiled, it doesn’t seem like you are trying to convince me. Either way, you don’t owe me anything boy, well, except for the risk that I took to get you out of a town, especially Little Hand. I don’t usually smuggle people, you know.

So why did you?

Help you out? You seemed like you really needed it. Believe it, or not, it’s just because of what you are angry about, that made me help you. One look at you, and I knew you didn’t fit in the town of thieves. I bet that another week or so, you might have breathed your last. I don’t even know how you survived there. Plus, your little girlfriend paid me well to get you out.

I don’t have a girlfriend!

The lady laughed.

Oh, don’t you now? Then it must have been a very rich little admirer that cares about you a lot.

Brady looked at the lady, puzzled.

She paid money for you to help me?

You bet she did, pretty little girl. She is just about your age, isn’t she? About say, twelve?

Brady looked away again.

That’s okay. I won’t ask any more questions about her. I still took a big risk though, getting you out of town. Everyone is talking about, and looking for ‘the boy who can’t steal’. So, if I get caught, it’s my head that they will put on a stake.

Oh

‘Oh’, is about right, boy. So, do a kind lady a favour, and satisfy her curiosity. Do you at least know where you are headed?

Brady sighed. He looked at his grubby hands, and rubbed them on his dirty, tattered clothes. It had been a very, very long time since he had even thought of changing them. How long had it been? Three years now? It did not matter, it never had. He only had noticed it now because this lady was wearing what seemed to be a very nice cloak. Her cart was old, even her horse. She was nice, though. She had even given him food! He had spent many nights believing that each one would be his last. If this was really his last, maybe he could die knowing that he had at least returned a favour to one other person who had done an act of kindness to him.

I am going to this place, he said as he took a small piece of wood with rough engraving on it, and handed it to the lady. He looked at her with worry all over his face.

The lady took hold of the reins with one hand, and took the piece of wood from Brady. The markings were rough, probably made by Brady himself.

This is an address? She asked.

Yes, he replied quietly.

You know the folks there?

Brady hesitated for a moment then answered.

Yes.

She looked at him for a while without speaking, then remarked.

You are a very strange boy, Brady.

Brady looked at her with a frown on his forehead.

No, I don’t mean it in a bad way. Anyone can see that you are a handsome little fellow under that frown, but there is just something about you that I have never seen in more than one other person I have known.

Who is that? Brady asked, with some excitement in his voice.

Tell you what, said the lady with a smile, if you answer one of my questions, I will answer yours. Deal?

Brady slowly nodded.

Okay then Brady. Tell me this, why can’t you steal, when it is obvious that you grew up in the town where stealing is everything?

The lady watched Brady as he looked ahead to the road. He seemed like he was looking for the right words to say. Finally, he looked at the lady.

I don’t know, he began. I just can’t. I’ve tried to, all my life. In the streets… It’s very hard. It’s not like I can’t take stuff... I can, but there is something that happens... I just end up throwing up because...

Because what, Brady?

This time, Brady noticed that the woods were indeed quiet. He could not see anything else moving, except for their cart. He could feel his heart beating fast in his chest.

Please, not now! I haven’t stolen anything!

He thought frantically. He shut his eyes hard, and clenched his fists on his side. He could almost feel everything around him starting to swim.

Please, not now! Please, not now!

Brady! Brady! Are you okay!? He heard the voice of the lady cut through his thoughts. Suddenly, it was gone. He was feeling fine again. He opened his eyes, and looked at her.

I’m sorry ma’am.

That’s okay. Do you want some water?

"No ma’am. I’m okay. It’s... It’s gone.

Okay… What’s gone, though?

Brady sighed.

I don’t know. It’s... It just happens; always happens to me every time I want to steal, or do anything to get things in Little Hand. It has ruined my life!

His voice had risen an octave.

Ruined your life?

Yes ma’am! You can’t go about falling into a fit, or throwing up every time you are trying to get a good stealing job so you can get food, or a nice place to sleep. You can’t have many friends either because no one wants to hang with the weirdo who can’t keep his head cool enough to steal an apple from a blind man’s bag. They all...

They all what?

They all think I’m cursed.

The lady saw tears threatening to roll out of the corners of Brady’s eyes. The boy was strong though; he never let one tear fall.

Not being able to steal doesn’t necessarily mean that you are cursed, you know?

Brady flashed her an angry look.

It sure does, when you can’t steal, and you don’t have family, or even anyone to claim you as a lousy fifth, or tenth cousin. I have been alone for as long as I can remember! No one even pretends to know who I am related to.

The lady looked at him with warm eyes.

That’s gotta be tough, she said.

You think, ma’am? I thought that I was finally going to prove everyone wrong, in the annual King’s Junior Swiper’s Contest. I would prove to everyone that I was as good a thief as any of them, and get to ask the King for anything I wanted.

And what would you have wanted, boy?

To join the king’s Little Hand Boys so that one day I would be the leader of the Heistmen. I would practice hard, more than what Chido, and I were doing, and one day become the greatest thief in all of Little Hand, and the seven Circles.

Wow Brady, such ambition, hey?

Brady looked ahead.

Ma’am, when you don’t have anything in the world, dreams are all you have. They don’t cost anything, so, why not dream big? That’s what Chido would say.

So, I’m guessing this Chido is your little friend who paid me?

Brady nodded.

How did she get so much money? I mean, even for a thief, she isn’t supposed to have such money. And it is polished well, like it came from a high-ranking person’s vault.

Brady shrugged.

She was just kind to me. She was the only one who did not laugh at me. She was determined to teach me how to steal. When we practiced, I would do it so well. It just didn’t work in front of the whole town. I just ended up making the King very angry. They thought I was mocking the code of Little Hand.

I know. It’s an offence punishable by hanging in Little Hand, when you fail to steal, especially for the King.

Brady clutched at his throat in fear. The lady laughed.

Don’t worry, we are well away from Little Hand now.

Brady held his hand out to the lady for his piece of wood back. She gave it to him.

You must just be careful. Kings do not like to feel humiliated, especially by people who look like little boys. Your description must be all over Little Hand, and surrounding towns by now. So, you might want to not tell people that you are from Little Hand.

Where should I say I’m from, ma’am?

That shouldn’t be a problem. Little Hand is the only town in the seven circles where things that are not so lovely are considered not only to be good, but a must. All the other six have different things that you can learn, and pass off to be. The next town from here is Oxhaldra, the town of livestock herders. They are a bunch of lovely folk.

Really?

Oh yes, boy. You are young. You will meet all kinds of different people in different towns.

I don’t want to go to many towns. I just want to be somewhere where I can lay low for a while, and go back to Little Hand. Chido might be in trouble because of me. I really don’t know where she could have gotten all that money to pay you.

Brady thought of his little friend. She was always courageous. Even though she was shorter than him, she always managed to intimidate even the toughest of boys in the streets. He still could not think of how she had managed to get into the Kings holding cells, and gotten him out without being caught.

The lady seemed to have guessed his thoughts.

There is more to your little friend than you probably know. She might be more than who you think she is. Think about it, not many people are able to escape the Thief King’s holding cells... Unless they themselves know them by heart.

Brady thought about it. He did not like where this lady was taking this. She must have seen his face because she quickly said,

Sometimes it doesn’t matter where people come from, as long as they are there for you when you need them; like your little friend.

This time, the lady turned fully to look Brady in the eyes. Brady blushed a deep red. Suddenly, all of what he was thinking went out of his mind. He finally saw what had been making him stare at the lady the whole time.

Your scar... He whispered.

The lady quickly fixed her hood, and looked away from him.

What about it? She seemed like she did not really want to talk about it.

I’ve seen it somewhere before, he said, still looking at her.

Really? So, you go about looking at people’s scars, boy?

No ma’am. It’s not that really. It’s just that…

What?

Well, I’ve seen it in passing. It’s like when you just don’t notice something, but you keep seeing it in many places. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen your scar before... Just that it has been on many people in different places. Does it mean anything? Is it a mark of something... Is it...?

Whoa, aren’t you getting ahead of yourself there? As far as I know, it’s just a scar. That’s that.

But...

But I wouldn’t have time to tell you about it anyway even if I wanted to. We’ve arrived where you drop off.

The lady suddenly stopped the cart. Brady looked around. A frown of confusion came across his forehead. He could not see any house, or any sign of a town anywhere. As far as he could tell, they could just have been in the middle of the dirt road anywhere in the Seven circles.

I don’t see anything here, he remarked with worry.

There is a lot here, even more than what people can see, the lady said with a steady look.

I wish I could see even just a person, Brady replied. He was not very keen on the idea of being left alone in the middle of nowhere.

On your left, there is a bit of an opening in the thicket. If you follow that, you will see something up ahead. Run along now, I don’t have all day. I don’t want the night to catch me in this part of the woods.

The lady was nudging Brady off the cart as she spoke. He reluctantly got off. He spent a few seconds looking back, and forth between the cart, and the small opening in the thicket.

You could carry on with me, you know, the lady invited.

For a moment, Brady was tempted. When he shifted his gaze towards the opening in the thicket however, and looked at the address on his small bit of tree bark, he mustered some courage.

That’s very kind of you ma’am, but I will be on my way now.

Every bit of him was kicking himself in the behind for not going with her. He steadily kept his reserve though.

Very well, then. I shall be on my way. Just remember this very carefully, the world is bigger than the Seven Circles. Do not find yourself in the Mirror Tree Woods by yourself in the open at night.

What does that...

Before he could finish his sentence, the lady was on her way with her cart. Brady watched her for a while, until he could not bear the thought of the thicket being behind him.

He turned then, and squeezed the tree bark hard in his hands. With one final look at where he had come from, he entered the little opening in the thicket.

The little cart kept going its way in the road, the noise getting lesser, and lesser. If only Brady had waited a little bit longer, he would have found it interesting to see that just before the next bend in the road, the little cart, and the lady with the scar slowly vanished into thin air, as if they had never been on that road, or existed at all.

Chapter Two: The Mirror Tree Woods

‘D ot ray Of P h .’

This is what was written on a dirty, old sign, half-buried in a thicket just off the road known as ‘The Round Highway’. It was the one Brady had come off from. Of course, he did not have a clue as to what that meant. Map makers knew it as the road which cut across all the Seven Circle Towns, in a circular manner. What most of them had no clue about was that the Round Highway cut through more than the Towns, and forests they could see with their eyes. It was alright, they had other things to worry about.

Just like how Brady was wondering what the sign with the missing letters meant. Perhaps it was a secret language. It was known for some Circles or Towns to have their own secret or special language.

Whatever it was, he wished he knew what it meant because even though he had grown up in the rough parts of Little Hand Circle, he had never been in a forest before. Being In this forest was like nothing he had ever imagined. There were many trees around him which he did not know, and many things growing, and creeping under, and in them. Even though the sun was slowly making its way from the highest point in the sky which marked noon, the only place where the sunlight touched was the choked up, winding, and narrow path he was carefully following. Everywhere else in the forest was dark, and grew even darker as far as his eye could see.

Even though they were wide open, and his ears were as sharp as he could make them, Brady could only hear himself move. There was nothing living, apart from the vegetation, that moved. The only noise he could hear was the crunch of pebbles, and dry vegetation under his feet. He tried very hard to peer ahead, to get a sign of any building, or person ahead, but there was nothing. He just had to walk fast, and get out.

One, two, one, two...

He started counting. Chido had told him that counting helped when he felt nervous. She counted to ten. Somehow, he found it easy to just repeat one, and two. So, he started to count, first in his head. After a while, as he got more comfortable in the forest, he started counting out aloud.

One, two, one, two...

He did not even notice that he was doing it. He was busy thinking about Chido. He wondered what she was doing now.

One, two, one, two...

What would she think if she saw him now? Would she think that he was brave?

One, two, one, two...

Going out of a Circle all alone? And the people he was going to, would they receive him? Would they even be as nice as they were before, in Little Hand?

One, two, one, two...

Would they help him go back to Little Hand once things calmed down? Would they be able to help him solve the mystery of his birth, and parents?

One, two, ...

Three, four, five...

It was like a whisper from the trees, from all around him. The voice was unmistakable; it was Chido’s. Brady stopped. His heart started beating rapidly.

Ch... Chido? He whispered.

Brady, I’m here! This time he could hear her. Her voice was louder. She was calling from his right, there in the woods!

Chido! Where are you? Are you in there!?

Yes! Yes, I followed you. I was right behind you, and got lost!

Brady did not waste a moment. He charged straight into the forest, leaving the path right behind him. He did not feel fear, or hesitation. Chido was out there, and she needed him. He would do anything. He kept running. Bushes, and tree branches scraped against his arms, face, and legs but he did not care.

Chido! Where are you! Chido! He kept calling as he ran.

I’m right here... she answered him, but from behind, this time.

He stopped. Had he not heard right?

Chido? He called out again, gasping for breath.

Brady, I’m right over here...

This time, the whisper came from his left side. It was coming from all around him, again, and again, and again.

Brady started to turn, searching. He could not stop calling, and the voice just kept coming from all sides. He kept turning, trying to run in any direction, but he started feeling dizzy. He grew more, and more confused with each moment that passed.

The forest started spinning, slowly at first, then faster, and faster, until Brady clutched his head, and fell on his knees.

Stop, please, stop! He cried out.

The forest came to an abrupt halt, and made no further sound. Everything became so still as if it had never moved an inch. The silence was broken by footsteps coming right at him from the front.

Brady looked up around him, then up ahead. As he watched, the trees slowly started moving back. They were leaving him in a small clearing. It was closed on all its circular sides, except ahead of him. Right there, it opened a small way which was very dark inside. That was where the footsteps were coming from.

Who’s there? Asked Brady, his voice barely coming out.

Who are you? He called out again.

The footsteps were closer now. A figure started taking shape in the dark, as it came forward. It was the feet he saw first. He knew them. They had gone for so long without shoes that he knew every scar, every blister, and every cut they