Heir to the Sundered Crown (14 page)

The knight stepped forward placing a cloth map onto the dais floor. The realm of Delfinnia was laid out before them.

“The order dispatched me and Alira here to find out about Luxon,” he explained gesturing to Luxon. ‘The rest of the order meanwhile mobilised, with a squadron of knights dispatched to the Diasect’s stronghold at Tentiv.’ He traced a route from the Niveren priory east to Tentiv. The stronghold was located deep in the heart of a forest known as the Fallen Wood. 

“The masters of my order, like you Master Thanos want to know why there has been no word from them. As guardians of the kingdom they should have intervened a long time ago, instead only silence has emerged from Tentiv,’ Kaiden added. 

Luxon thought for a moment. He had read about the Diasect in a number of history tomes from the library. It was a council charged with overseeing the affairs of the realm. Several times in the past they had resolved disputes and offered guidance to the Kings. Mystery revolved about them though, and the common folk had little trust for them.

Some books said that the Diasect was made up of the souls of dead kings, others that they were a council of solitude loving wizards or even creatures of the void. So rarely were they seen that many believed them to just be a myth.

“I thought that it was forbidden for anyone to seek them out, that Tentiv is forbidden for all but those chosen by the Diasect to be their servants...” Alira said softly.

Luxon frowned at the girl. Her face wore an expression of worry but there was something else there behind the nervous exterior.

“It is forbidden my lady, but we must find out why they have not intervened, and we must also find out more about your visions,” Thanos said kindly.

Ferran clapped his hands together loudly.

“Right then, I want us to be on the road by the end of the week. The healers say that your leg should be better by then knight. As for you Welsly are you even able to come? We can’t have someone who can’t even move with us”

Welsly tried to stand straighter but winced as his wound pinched.

“I am afraid Ferran is right Grandmaster. I am in no position to travel let alone fight if needs be,” Welsly explained miserably.

“Very well,’ the grandmaster said distantly, his eyes unfocused as though he was seeing some far off place. ‘Yepert, Luxon’s friend will accompany you,” Thanos said raising a hand to cut off Ferran’s protests. A twinkle was in the Grandmaster’s eyes. Luxon scowled slightly, what was Thanos up to? Both he and Yepert had no training in the martial arts and neither of them could cast the magic needed to fight, at least not consciously.

Ferran fumed but kept his mouth shut. Too many times in the past he’d gone against the desires of mages and every time had paid the price.

“Fine. The boy can come but I cannot promise his safety. If we are to reach Tentiv alive then we are going to need more than just two men able to fight and three children with no training.’ He held up a hand to quell, Alira and Luxon’s protests. ‘There is another in this city that I want with us...I just hope she’ll forgive me enough to listen to what I have to say.”

***

15.

It had been a good six years since Ferran had willingly chosen to walk the streets of the stone quarter. This part of the city was renowned for being the home of Caldaria’s less than respectable citizens. It was a well known fact that the guild of thieves known as the Fleetfoots had a presence in the warren of ram shackled stone houses.

The sound of a bar room brawl came from an alleyway to his left. He pulled his black hood tighter about his face and took a deep breath. He hated this part of the city. It was here that he had spent much of his misspent youth. He smiled at the memories of being a snot nosed cocky kid who wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone. The smile abruptly faded as other, darker memories resurfaced.

He picked up the pace and made his way across the rickety wooden bridge that led across the pungent stream that ran through the quarter. Being just down from the alchemist district meant that the fast flowing water was often contaminated with all sorts of dangerous poisons and dangerous magical property’s. Many were the number of children that had played in the fetid waters only to fall ill, or worse die. The mages from the medica did their best to help, but resentment towards the spell casters who lived in their crystal towers was high.  

It was ironic that even in the one city where the mages were allowed to practise their spells and magic’s they were disliked. Ferran shrugged his shoulders, Master Durak had been right; if the mages defied the old law then most of the common folk would turn on them out of fear and old resentments.

Even he, a Nightblade had to be careful outside Caldaria’s walls. In the small villages and towns in the countryside he was often met with distrust. Even when saving them from the beasts of the void they would be reluctant to offer him any thanks.

Unconsciously he walked. He knew the stone quarter like the back of his hand. It only took him a few minutes to find his destination. Nestled into a stone wall was a worn wooden door. Above it hung a wreathe adorned with mystical objects and runes. Etched into the stone on the right hand side was a sigil warding against evil.

He took a deep breath his stomach fluttering with nerves. Would she forgive him? Would she even hear what he had to say? Cautiously he approached the door and knocked on the wooden surface.

The door creaked open a notch to reveal a small lad. The boy was no older than eight his dirty face and long shaggy black hair gave him away to be one of the street urchins that lived in the quarter. The Fleetfoot thieves often used the many orphans and homeless children as lookouts or in some cases as distractions.

“Is she in?” Ferran asked.

The boys green eyes went wide.

“I don’t know who you’re talking bout mister,” the lad answered nervously. The boy was to about to slam the door shut but Ferran jammed it open with his foot and forced it open. The boy fell onto his backside and scrambled to his feet. Ferran moved quickly and grabbed the urchin by the arm. He spun the boy around and glared hard into his face.

“Is she in?” Ferran asked again. This time the boy nodded in the affirmative. Ferran released the lad and with his boot kicked him out into the street before shutting the door. He found himself inside a place that brought with it bad memories. A  small candle was the only source of illumination in the living area, a broken chair stuffed with straw sat in one corner and a simple bookshelf lined the wall. To the side was a tiny kitchen area complete with several baskets full of dried fruit and bread. Directly in front of him was a narrow stone staircase which led up to the tiny homes two bedrooms.

Absent minded he ran a gloved finger over the back of the chair.

‘
It was here that I did it
,’ he thought as memories came flooding back. He was jolted back to reality by the feel of a sharp blade being pressed into the back of his neck.

“You have a lot of nerve coming here,” snarled a familiar female voice. Ferran raised his hands to show he was unarmed.

“I had hoped you would have forgiven me by now Sophia, I did what was necessary,” Ferran said sadly. Slowly he turned to see the woman who wielded the knife. She was stood on the stairs with a dagger aimed at his head.

He almost caught his breathe. She looked the same as she had done the last time he had seen her all those years ago. They had been lovers once but any look of kindness for him was absent from her eyes, instead all he saw was hate. Her long black hair was tied into a top knot and her large brown eyes were as fierce as he remembered. Sophia Cunning, the witch hunter who had won his heart was as beautiful as ever.

“Forgive you? You murdered my father you bastard and then left me at the roadside to hold him in my arms as he died. I should kill you!” Sophia yelled.

For a moment Ferran thought that she would follow through with her threat and plunge the blade deep into his heart. He held his hands up and walked forward so that the tip of the blade pressed into his chest, at this range his leather armour would do little to slow the weapon.

“Then do it if it will make you feel better. I did what was necessary; if you search your heart you will know it to be true,” he said.

For a heartbeat she hesitated then she lowered the blade. Some of the fire left her eyes to be replaced with sadness. He had wanted to see her so many times since that night but knew that it would only have brought them both pain.

‘Damn her father, damn the witch hunter general and his foul deeds, what is done is done, I did what I did to save the realm and to save her. One day she must realise that,’
Ferran thought angrily.

“What do you want from me Ferran?” Sophia said dully. She sheathed the dagger into her belt and sat heavily into the broken and worn chair.

“I need your help. Grandmaster Thanos has tasked me and a small group to seek out the Diasect, to find out why they have not intervened in the war and to find answers about this..” he paused pulling the N’gist amulet from his tunic pocket. He immediately sensed its power trying to feed off of his own.

Sophia’s eyes went wide. She leapt out of the chair knocking over some books from the shelf. She staggered backward to lean heavily against the wall.

“Where did you get that? It’s impossible! Get it out of here!” she yelled. Fear was evident in her face.

Ferran quickly wrapped the amulet back into the enchanted piece of cloth in which he used to transport it and tucked it back into his tunic pocket. The cloth had masked the amulets power preventing it from feeding on the magic users around it.

“The Baron of Retbit used a number of these to infiltrate the city during his raid. We intend to find out who provided him with them and what the Diasect knows about them. Please Sophia you know about the N’gist cult better than anyone” Ferran begged.

He had known it was a long shot just to ask her. Showing her the amulet was bound to get her interested. She and the order of witch hunters had spent decades rooting out those who followed the dark ways and nothing was darker than the N’gist. Sophia glared at him a mixture of emotions flooding through her. Finally her expression firmed.

“What do you have in mind?” she sighed.

***

16.

Luxon had triple checked his pack and had spent the previous days practising constantly with Master Ri’ges. Kaiden had also taught him the basics of swordplay something that he seriously doubted he’d ever get good at. Yepert too had been put through his paces by the old mage. Each of them had been taught most of the spells of the lower ring in a crash course of lessons that had pushed them both to their limits both mentally and physically. Alira too had joined them for one of the days. Her power was strong as was evident when she set the training rooms curtains ablaze instead of the candle at which she had been aiming for.

Ferran meanwhile had been busy gathering supplies and horses for the journey. With the gold Delfins given to him by Thanos he had acquired two destrier horses for himself and the witch hunter Sophia. Kaiden would ride his own horse
Herald.
For the two mages and Alira he had bought three shire ponies. The sturdy animals came from the Caldarian countryside and were used to rough ground after living and working in the regions rocky foothills.

The group met at the city’s main gate at dawn. The horses were already loaded with supplies of food and weapons. To Luxon’s surprise Sophia’s horse was covered in a sturdy harness which was filled with items.

“We witch hunters always go anywhere well prepared,” she said with a wink. She wore a purple cloak over a suit of tight fitting black leather armour. The material pronounced every curve of her supple body, for a teenage boy like Luxon it was a pleasant sight. Slung across her back was a longbow and on her hip a quiver of deadly looking barbed arrows.

Yepert was already mounted on his pony. They all wore cloaks but the mages wore no weapons save for small daggers which Thanos had given to them the previous night. The younger boy smiled with excitement.

“I can’t wait to get going Lux, this is so exciting!” Yepert giggled. Luxon couldn’t help but smile at his friend’s enthusiasm. It was something that he did not share. The sense of dread had only grown stronger.

Alira wore a blue cloak over her travel tunic and trousers. On her feet she wore leather boots that rose high on her long slender legs. Her blond hair was tied up in a top knot; she flashed him a nervous smile before climbing into the saddle.

The Knight Kaiden also wore a cloak over his mantle and chainmail armour. At his hip and in it’s sheathe was his trusty long sword. He was whispering soothing words into
Herald’s
ears which pricked higher at his master’s words.

“Luxon!” came a shout. He turned to see Hannah running up the wide avenue. She skirted her way past a group of traders ducking under a rug which two men were hauling across the street. She stopped in front of Luxon.

“I didn’t want you to go without us saying goodbye” she said breathlessly. She gave him a big hug. He savoured the smell of her perfumed hair and squeezed her back tightly in response. He didn’t want to leave her. Now that he was leaving he realised just how much he didn’t want to leave her behind.

“You come back safe,” she whispered into his ear. He stepped back keeping her at arm’s length and smiled.

“I promise you. It would take the ending of the world to stop me coming back here...and to you,” he added nervously. He could feel himself turning red.
‘I have all this power and yet I get shy around girls’
, he chided himself.

She returned his smile and kissed him on the cheek.

“I’ll hold you to that.’ She glanced at a nearby clock tower. “I have to go or else I’ll be late for my shift at the medica. I’ll miss you, write me if you can!” she said breaking free from the embrace and running off down the street towards the quartz quarter and the medica.