King Of Souls (Book 2) (27 page)

Danielle tipped her head in ascent without comment.

Connal clinched his jaw, nodded, and turned moving into the sprawling cavern beyond.

The heartwood chamber reached a height of thirty feet. An overpowering aroma of cinnamon filled the room leaving the air close to unbreathable. Ramps built of flowing heartwood shifted changing direction and course. Each ramp connected different layers of living wooden decks. Decks that provided direct access to a bright red sphere at the room’s center.

The sphere bulged and contracted pulsing with different shades of red energy. The heart’s surface moved and rotated while its liquid surface flowed like a pool of molten lava.

Brees stared, jaw-agape, at the bright red heart.

Dozens of wardens perched on the living platforms surrounding the sphere. Heavy fatigue lined their faces as they channeled a never-ending stream of nature magic into the tree’s core.

Danielle leaned into Brees and spoke. “As I mentioned earlier, each tree is a sentient being more ancient than any creature in the world.” Danielle pointed toward the heart. “That’s the tree’s heart. This tree, and the ones surrounding it, came to life over a thousand years ago. The first Ayralen that could use and understand nature magic planted it. She built and passed along the magic necessary to protect and care for these trees. Her name was Lora.”

“Speaking of Lora, we need to check on the sphere.” Connal said. “And, we need you for that Danielle.”

“Yes, of course.” Danielle followed the ramp nearest her and descended moving on a path that took the group under the tree’s heart.

The ramp ended, depositing the group near a platform supporting the tree’s heart. A ten-foot tall, twenty-foot wide platform nestled the heart inside its bowl-like surface.

Danielle walked toward the platform with Brees, Connal, and Jeremy following close behind.

A pair of menacing saber cat’s lay stretched out near the platform tracking Danielle with penetrating eyes. The largest cat, gold with black stripes, shifted and a young woman appeared smiling. Her white teeth flashed as her lips parted into a full grin. “Danielle!” She didn’t try to disguise the excitement in her voice. She hurried toward Danielle while her long dark braid swayed from side-to-side. When she reached Danielle, the young guardian, standing five feet tall, opened her arms.

Danielle stepped forward and embraced the guardian in a short hug before stepping backward. “Noel, it’s so good to see you unharmed.”

“We were beginning to wonder if you’d ever make it back.” She glanced over her shoulder as the second guardian shifted appearing beside Noel in human form. Noel bowed before Connal Deveaux who’d moved ahead and stood beside Danielle. “Monsieur Prime Guardian.”

Connal tipped his head to the female guardian. “Noel.”

The male guardian bowed before Connal. “I hope you’ve brought us good news sir.”

“I wish that were so, but I’m afraid not Caine. The situation aboveground has worsened during the last several hours,” Connal said.

Caine’s eyes drifted over Connal’s shoulders and locked on Brees standing a few feet behind Danielle. “Who’s he?”

“He’s someone that can help us,” Danielle said answering for her father. “Have you noticed any changes with the tree down here?”

Noel shook her head. “The wardens say the tree is under extreme stress. A few have dropped from exhaustion. I’m not sure how much longer they can hold out,” Noel said.

“Maybe we can help,” Danielle said.

“Noel, can you and Caine make sure we’re not disturbed inside the sphere room?” Connal said.

“Yes Prime Guardian. Of course.” Her eyes darted between Danielle and Connal and her expression tensed. “Is Lora’s Sphere okay?”

“Shouldn’t it be?” Danielle said.

“Yes. We’ve not let anyone past, but the look on your face has me worried,” Noel said.

Danielle forced a slight smile, but felt none of the reassurance she tried hard to convey. “Try not to worry. Okay?” She squeezed Noel’s hand and walked past her pausing beside the platform. She pressed her palm flat against the smooth heartwood surface.

A wide archway appeared leading to a small planning room beneath the platform. Danielle disappeared through the open door followed by Connal, Brees, and Jeremy.

A long rectangular worktable lined with varying styles of chairs sat in the room’s center. Atop the table, sat a thick stack of large worn maps beside several sheets of plain white parchment and ink pens. Above the table floated a sphere alive with varying shades of green and red light. The colors swirled like melted wax inside a candle maker’s shop.

Danielle moved to the table and extended her palm toward Lora’s Sphere.

Brees lunged forward stumbling over a chair before crying out. “Danielle, no don’t touch it!”

Danielle’s heart lurched, and she jumped an inch off the floor whirling on the shaman. “Brees!”

With a meaty fist, Connal yanked the shaman backward by the scruff of his robe slamming him into a nearby chair. “What in God’s name do you think you’re doing?”

Jeremy extended his hand toward Danielle with blue spirit rippling across his palm.

“Jeremy! Papa! Stop, both of you!” Danielle’s eyes glared back and forth between the two men. “He wasn’t trying to hurt me.” She turned her attention to Brees and her expression softened. “Why shouldn’t I touch it?”

Brees pulled his robe free of Connal’s grip and leaned forward. “Our emperor uses an orb like that one.” He tipped his head toward Lora’s Sphere. “With it, he controls the sorcerers and shaman across all seven kingdoms. He grants power and takes it by controlling the orb.” He leaned back rubbing his neck where Connal had pulled him. “He also uses it for torture. It’s very painful to touch the sphere if the emperor hasn’t granted his express consent.”

Danielle folded her arms and looked first at Jeremy then Connal before she spoke. “So you didn’t want to see me hurt by touching this sphere.” Her gaze drifted back to Brees. “Is that right?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Danielle extended her mind behind her until she felt the sphere’s full weight pull against her thoughts like a boat anchor. As she pulled it closer, the sphere floated forward stopping an arm’s length from both her and Brees. “Thank you for saving me, but you’ve no reason to worry for my safety.”

Brees bristled, and leaned away from Lora’s Sphere.

Danielle willed the sphere into her open palm. A flood of energy washed through her fingertips sending raw energy pulsing through her body. The pain in her side faded, and the fatigue brought on by twenty-four hours of straight travel receded. Her thoughts sharpened, and she smiled. “See. I’m fine.”

“Does your sphere grant your people power?” Brees said.

Danielle’s face flushed. “I don’t know. We haven’t figured out how it works.” Danielle pushed the orb backward repositioning it above the table. “In Meranthia, my brother controls an orb like Lora’s Sphere. We managed to rebuild them last year after both spheres spent centuries dormant. Some Ayralens controlled the sphere’s magic using shards containing its raw essence. After we made the spheres whole, they were able to reconnect with its power.”

Connal stepped forward, and his eyes settled on Lora’s Sphere. “But, we haven’t figured out how to implant the magic into our people who’ve never touched nature’s magic.”

“How do you know?” Brees said.

“I’ve tried to grant Lora’s power to at least a dozen students in our academy. The magic refused to enter their bodies,” Danielle said.

“Then you haven’t tried it with the right people,” Brees said.

“What do you mean the ‘right people’?” Danielle said.

“I told you about our tests Danielle. Proctors test all Obsith children for the ability to hold the emperor’s magic.”

Connal’s head snapped toward Brees. “How?”

Brees’s face reddened. “It’s not something I’m proud to repeat, but it’s a simple test.”

“We need to know.” Urgency laced Connal’s words.

Danielle’s chest tightened as her father’s tone set off alarm bells in her mind. “Papa, what haven’t you told me?”

Connal’s expression turned somber. “We’ve experienced heavy losses in the Guard Danielle.”

Danielle swallowed hard and dreaded asking the next question. “How heavy?”

His eyes drifted downward. “Two-thirds. Every able bodied member of the Guard is here, protecting the first tree.”

Danielle’s legs slackened, and she dropped onto a stool beside Brees. In Ayralen’s long history such a profound loss had never occurred. “That’s one-hundred twenty dead wardens and guardians.” She almost choked on the words.

“Yes, and they aren’t leaving shards,” Connal said.

Jeremy stepped forward and stood over Danielle’s right shoulder before facing Brees. “How does your test work?”

Brees exhaled and nodded. “I doubt it will work for your people, but I’ll tell you.” His eyes glazed over as if he pulled on old unpleasant memories. “Every year the emperor sends proctors to each of the seven kingdom’s capital cities. Citizens travel to their respective capital. They bring with them any eligible children that haven’t already undergone testing. It’s a time of great celebration, and most cities hold a week-long festival.”

“How old are they children when they’re tested?” Danielle said.

“Ten solars.” Brees spoke without hesitation. “Even one day before their tenth birthday, and the ability won’t manifest.”

“How is the test conducted?” Connal said.

Brees shook his head. “It’s barbaric. Far more than it needs to be, but the emperor sets the law.”

Danielle’s stomach twisted. “Brees, please tell us. Our people are dying.”

Brees nodded. “Before the first proctor arrives, each city builds an affinity chamber. Only the purest atter crystal goes into its creation. Pure atter crystal is transparent. If it’s not transparent, the proctors can’t see the test play out. The chamber is six-feet long and allows a child to pass through unhindered.”

Danielle’s brow furrowed. “That doesn’t sound barbaric.”

The muscles in Brees’s jaw tightened, and he leveled his gaze on Danielle. “The chamber’s interior is set ablaze before the child enters.”

Danielle gasped. “We’re not going to burn our children. We’d kill them.”

Brees held up a hand. “Wait. I haven’t told you everything.”

“There’s more?” Connal said. “That’s no kind of test. It’s murder.”

Brees shook his head. “The proctors running the test are powerful sorcerers and shaman.”

“Brees is a shaman Papa. They control elements like fire, cold, and electricity, but they can’t create them.”

“That’s what sorcerers do,” Brees said. “Between the two, we achieve balance.”

“So how does the makeup of the proctors affect the test?” Jeremy said.

“The sorcerer creates flame inside the chamber,” Brees said. “As each child enters, how they interact with the flame decides their magical affinity.”

Jeremy tilted his head and rubbed the short blond stubbles sprinkling his chin. “How so?”

“A few boys and girls will walk through the flame unscathed. Their bodies repel the sorcerer’s fire.”

“Your shaman?” Connal said.

Brees nodded. “And some children absorb the flame as they cross through the chamber. These children express traits unique to sorcerers.”

“What about those children that don’t have any natural talent?” Connal said.

“They’re burned.” Brees held up a hand. “Before you interject, please understand, no child experiences permanent damage.”

Danielle glared at Brees. “Unharmed? They’re burned alive!”

“Once it’s clear the child holds no natural gift, a proctor extinguishes the flame and heals the damage,” Bree said.

“Why doesn’t the emperor just try to grant his magic to every child?” Jeremy said.

“There’s two reasons,” Brees said. “First, the emperor is far too busy to travel the entirety of the kingdom seeking out talented children,” Brees said. “The desert is vast.”

“So you burn children so the emperor isn’t inconvenienced? That’s barbaric,” Danielle said.

Brees nodded. “He has many faults, and lack of compassion is high on the list. But, the more important reason is that granting magic directly won’t work.”

“Because the emperor says so?” Connal said.

“No, it’s because something about the testing procedure imprints a child. It allows him to receive magic from the emperor’s orb. That is, if the emperor wants to grant his gift. He can also reclaim it at his whim.”

“Would he strip your magic if he knew you were sitting here?”

“Yes. Without question.” Brees’s words hung unacknowledged during a long uncomfortable silence.

“Brees, when we were in Mara, you told me you tested positive for both traits,” Danielle said. “How could you both repel and draw the fire?”

“The sorcerer’s flames bounced from my flesh several times before sinking into my skin,” Brees said.

“How does any of this help us?” Connal said. “We don’t control elements in Ayralen. We use nature magic, I doubt your flame test would work on our people.”