Silverspear (Rise to Omniscience Book 6)

by Aaron Oster

  “I’m fine, really,” he replied. “I’ll be up in a couple of hours, good as new. So, I expect you to be ready to go by then.”

  “How…?” she began to ask, but Morgan answered before the question was fully formed.

  “It’s a trait I have, a part of your status that will be unlocked after you become a supermage. I can heal from any injury, so long as I stay alive for three hours after sustaining it.”

  “That sounds…amazing!” Grace said, wondering if she might be able to unlock such a trait.

  “Yes, it’s quite useful,” Morgan replied, giving her a weak smile. “I hope you learned something from watching that fight, even if it was stupid of you to be there.”

  Grace flushed once again but nodded all the same.

  “I now know that there’s still a lot for me to learn and that if I apply myself, I can one day be as strong as you…” She trailed off once again, wondering if he’d be offended by that, but Morgan simply nodded.

  “Life has many lessons to teach, and I’m glad you took what you saw to heart. The most important lesson you can take from this fight is that no one, not even me, is invincible. No matter where you are, there’s always someone stronger, better, smarter, or all three. But this also cuts the other way. No matter who you face, you can always come with the knowledge that even if you can’t win today and have to flee, you can always get stronger and come back another day.”

  Grace nodded once again, feeling her bottom lip trembling, but fought to keep the tears at bay. She’d thought she’d known fear, understood what it was like to face a real monster, but tonight, Morgan had faced something that could have destroyed the entire city and had done so with the knowledge that he could lose. She found herself unconsciously drifting closer, until she was standing by his bedside, the question already spilling out before she could stop it.

  “How do you do it, face the fear and fight through the pain? Even after facing those gazelles today, I’m still scared. So, how?”

  “It’s only pain,” Morgan replied with a shrug. “It’s all temporary. It’ll go away when the source is gone, so why bother letting it get to you in the first place?”

  Grace let out a snort, feeling herself close to tears once again. She hated how weak she was, how often she still cried. She was supposed to be strong, yet she broke down every time she saw something even remotely scary.

  “That’s easy for you to say. You have the power to back it up. I…”

  “Have me,” Morgan said, sitting up and placing a hand on her shoulder. “Grace, I don’t know your past, nor do I care who you were before coming here. I’ve judged your character, and you are a good, honest, and hardworking girl. Fear is a normal part of growing up, but so long as I’m around, you don’t have to be afraid.”

  Grace was crying now, tears spilling down her cheeks for what felt like the thousandth time. Standing there, her shoulders shaking, she was mad at herself for feeling this way. Strong arms wrapped around her then, pulling her partially off the ground and holding her close.

  “Do not be ashamed of your tears,” Morgan said in a quiet voice. “It takes strength to show emotion so openly. Just know, if you ever need someone to listen, a shoulder to cry on, or just to have someone to be there, you can always count on me.”

  That was the last straw for her, and Grace threw her arms around Morgan’s shoulders, completely breaking down for the second time that day. This time, when the tears finally slowed, she felt much better than she had since first facing the beast that had almost killed her. That wasn’t to say that her fear was completely gone, but the warmth and surety of Morgan’s embrace made her feel far more secure than she had in a long time.

  ***

  Morgan looked down at the small girl, now sound asleep in the bed next to him. She’d cried herself to sleep while he’d been holding her and now looked quite peaceful. He brushed an errant strand of hair from her face, smoothing it back and letting out a sigh. For some reason, he felt oddly protective of her in that moment, as though he would do anything for her, should the situation demand it. He wanted her to be happy, strong, and have a good life, a far better one than he’d led thus far.

  “Is this what it’s like to have a daughter?” Morgan wondered out loud.

  He’d wanted to start a family with Sarah, and they had been planning on doing just that when the war with Octagon was over. Fate had had different plans for them, and now he was starting another war to try and reverse fate’s fickle decision to tear her from his arms.

  “It could be,” Lumia replied, breaking him from his ruminations. “Does she bring you happiness and fulfillment?”

  Morgan looked over the sleeping girl once more, turning Lumia’s words over in his mind.

  “Yes,” he answered after a few more silent moments. “I think she does.”

  27

  “You can’t really be going. Please consider staying at least one more night!”

  “I’ve already told you, Katherine, I can’t stay. My mission has already been delayed once, and I can’t keep pushing it off. For all we know, the countryside is already swarming with enemy agents. The sooner I finish my mission, the sooner I can return. Please don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”

  Katherine blew out a long, slow breath, then took a few steps back. They were standing in the entryway of the palace, alone but for the guards standing some distance back and Grace and Lumia, standing just outside.

  “At least promise me that you’ll come back this time,” Katherine begged. “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you for good this time.”

  Morgan resisted the urge to sigh and instead gave her a solemn nod.

  “I will do my best to come back as soon as my mission is complete. In the meantime, please get the others ready. You gave me a communication pendant, and I expect you to contact me only if there’s an emergency. I can’t be distracted in the middle of a fight, so I’ll ask you to resist the urge to check in.”

  Katherine pouted a bit, but eventually agreed. Their farewells said, Morgan turned to leave before she could do anything more, like try and kiss him goodbye. In a way, that beast had saved him last night. Even if he’d been horribly injured, it had intervened at just the right moment. He was sure Katherine was less than thrilled at the beast’s interruption and would try her luck when he came back. He hoped that when the time came, he’d have come up with a better excuse as well as the fortitude to refuse her.

  “You two ready to go?” he asked, exiting into the courtyard and calling out to Grace and Lumia.

  Grace turned at the sound of his voice and flashed him a wide smile. She’d been more than a little embarrassed this morning to wake up and find that she’d fallen asleep in his bed, but he’d assured her that it was fine. Still, she’d fled from the infirmary room, using the excuse of packing and getting ready. It seemed she’d calmed down by now if the smile was any indication.

  She’d tied her hair back for once, though she’d done it in a way that used strands of her own hair as the holder, rather than using a clip or pin. This made it look infinitely better for some reason, and the way she’d done it told Morgan that she was probably already packed when she’d left the room this morning, and had spent most of the time on her hair. She was dressed practically, wearing the armor he’d provided, as well as a heavy cloak and a sturdy pair of boots.

  “Yeah, I’m ready,” Grace said, trotting up to him with a spring in her step.

  “You seem excited to be going,” he noted as Lumia landed on his shoulder.

  “Well, duh! We’re going to some faraway land with completely different beings!” she exclaimed, practically hopping from foot to foot.

  “We’re not exactly stopping by for lunch,” Morgan admonished. “This is a covert mission, one that will be extremely dangerous.”

  “Yeah, yeah, I know that,” she said, waving off his concern. “But it’s not every day you get to go to some mythical place with all these unknown races. I mean, just think of all the
new hairstyles I might discover!”

  “Good to see you’ve got your priorities so straight,” Morgan said flatly. “You might also want to loosen up on those straps,” he continued, pointing to the cinched straps on her arms and legs. “We’re going to be flying for around two days, so you’ll want to be comfortable.”

  “Wait, two days?!” Grace exclaimed. “Without any stops?”

  “Well, yeah,” Morgan said, tying the small spatial bag with all his belongings to his waist. “We’ll be flying over the ocean. We can’t exactly land anywhere out there.”

  “Can’t we just…you know, teleport?”

  “They have wards that can detect long-range teleportation,” Morgan said as she began loosening the straps to get more comfortable. “I don’t know where they start, so we’re going to be careful and fly the whole way.”

  Grace let out a long sigh as she loosened the last strap.

  “It’s going to be a pretty boring two days,” she muttered.

  “Not at all,” Morgan said, removing a strange-looking harness from his pack.

  It had a set of eight loops, as well as crossing straps around the front and back. He turned it a few times, then slid his legs through the first set of loops.

  “Now, come around behind me and place your legs into the loops on the ground,” he commanded.

  “Why are you putting that strange thing on?” Though Grace asked the question, she was already moving to obey.

  “I had this designed so we can both keep our arms free the entire time. This way, if we get into a fight with a beast or otherwise, you won’t be tossed off my back if I have to perform some evasive maneuvers.”

  He had to crouch, due to the height difference, and waited until the straps went taut.

  “Okay, I’ve got the leg bit done. Now what?” Grace asked.

  “See the other straps? Slide them up and over your shoulders, then put your arms through the holes.”

  Morgan did likewise, pulling the strap up and over, looping his arms through.

  “Alright, I’m done,” Grace called.

  “Hang on,” Morgan said, pulling the straps tight in the front and looping them through the buckles.

  He felt Grace pull snugly to his back and made sure to ask if she could breathe. After all, he was very strong and didn’t want to accidentally pull too tight. After a little more fidgeting, they finally got it just right. Grace was snug enough so she wouldn’t fall, and still comfortable enough to breathe freely. He was sure he’d have to loosen them every now and again, but it would be much easier once they were in the air.

  Morgan stood then, barely feeling Grace’s slight weight, even as she let out an involuntary squeak of surprise and wrapped her arms around him from behind. He used flight then and took off into the air. He felt Grace’s arms tighten but knew that she’d relax once she became used to it. He continued to rise, speeding up slowly to get his passenger acclimated.

  “Alright, we’re going to teleport now, so hang on,” he called back.

  In response, Grace only tightened her grip. He used Gravity Tear, vanishing into the colorful tunnel. This trip was slightly longer than the others, as Morgan had to go all the way to the far border of the East Kingdom. Still, longer only meant a few extra seconds where he was concerned. The world abruptly slowed, coming into focus as they exited the tunnel, right over a massive cliff face, overlooking the vast, sprawling ocean.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, craning his head back to try and see Grace.

  He knew she hadn’t yet acclimated to teleporting with him, so he had to make sure she wouldn’t vomit all over him.

  “Just a little dizzy,” Grace replied. “Can you give me a minute, please?”

  “Let me know when you’re ready,” Morgan replied.

  He took the time to scan the open ocean, while Lumia squirmed around on his shoulder.

  “I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said, sounding oddly excited.

  “I have, though only once,” Morgan admitted.

  The last and only ocean he’d seen had been the North Sea. That was where Octagon’s glacier had washed ashore. While that cold, miserable ocean was associated with his pain and loss, this one wasn’t. The East Kingdom was almost always warm, so the ocean here sparkled a brilliant blue, contrasting with the near-cloudless sky and meeting on the distant horizon.

  “It’s hard to believe that there’s so much water,” Lumia said. “How deep do you think it is? What types of beasts would live down there?”

  Morgan just shrugged.

  “If I were to guess, I’d say that it never ends, though I’ve never been deep enough to check. And, as for what types of beasts are down there, I’d assume the same as up here, but maybe more suited to living in the water.”

  The two of them remained silent for a few moments, Morgan allowing the warm, salty breeze to wash over them. They were some two-hundred feet up already, but he didn’t want to risk climbing any higher with Grace on his back. The air became thinner and colder farther up, and she was not yet strong enough to survive those conditions. Even this height would only be possible by day, the nighttime demanding they fly closer to the water.

  “Alright,” Grace called out, her voice sounding steadier now. “I think I’m ready. Just…take it slow for a bit, please.”

  Morgan nodded, then began to fly at a leisurely pace. Every moment took them further away from the Five Kingdoms, the place he’d called home as far as he could remember. Still, this was a new adventure, and across the ocean lay the enemy, the people who were keeping him from Sarah.

  Soon, he thought. Just wait for me a little longer.

  ***

  Queen Elyssa was sitting in her garden, watching a play on some tragic love story. The players moved about in their colorful costumes, declaring their lines in an overdramatic fashion. Elyssa hated these types of plays, but seeing as she was surrounded by other young ladies of nobility, she couldn’t voice her opinion out loud. This was a traditional pastime of the high-class, those who could afford such luxuries as to waste time watching these moronic clowns prance around and pretend to be in love.

  The worst part about these plays was that there was never any variety. They all told some version of the same story, which always ended in tragedy. For once, Elyssa would like to see the low lovers get married and live long, happy lives, instead of tragically dying together in some twisted gesture of love. That was why, when Gilderon came to tell her of the communication from Marcus, the gnome chosen to lead the Guild, she was very happy to excuse herself.

  “What is it about this time? Has he screwed up again?” she asked, once she was out of her garden and inside the wooden halls of her palace.

  Gilderon gave his charge a sidelong glance but kept his mouth shut. Elyssa hadn’t grown much since their meeting with the new Pantheon a little over a year ago. Sure, she’d filled out a bit more, and her facial features were a bit sharper, but overall, he was pretty sure she wouldn’t be growing too much more. Her hair was quite a bit longer than it had been, the shimmering silvery-blue hair cascading down her back.

  “What, nothing to say?” Elyssa demanded, her eyes narrowing in annoyance. “You do realize that you pulled me away from a play for this.”

  “Don’t pretend you enjoy those things. At least, not around me,” Gilderon replied. “And I didn’t say anything because I can’t tell you what I don’t know.”

  Elyssa’s figure wasn’t the only thing that had hardly changed about her in the last year. Her attitude was about the same, and her refusal to marry anyone had continued to be a heated topic between the two. Gilderon had tried to bring Ragnar in to try and convince her, but the dwarven king refused, on the grounds that Elyssa was still underage.

  According to the elves, seventeen was very much not underage, and the longer she refused to marry, the more it would undermine her position as queen.

  “How long ago did the communication come in?” Elyssa asked, snapping the elven captain from his musings
.

  “About ten minutes ago,” Gilderon replied.

  “And you waited that long to come and get me?”

  “The meeting isn’t set to start for another five minutes,” Gilderon said.

  “You could have gotten me out of that torture ten minutes ago!”

  Gilderon sighed but didn’t answer, knowing that there was no way to win an argument with his charge. All he could do was try and guide her, and hope that her attitude would change as she grew more mature. Although she might be an adult, she was most definitely not ready to be ruling over their nation, no matter how strong she was.

  They turned another corner, and a mass of vines shifted out of the way, flowing into the walls to reveal their communication room. A massive sapphire crystal was set in a bracket on the ceiling, and an open, circular space occupied the area below. This was where the images of the others would be projected, so it had to be clear at all times.

  Elyssa walked over and flopped into her chair unceremoniously, kicking her legs up to loosen the pull of the skirts she wore and wished that a queen would be allowed to wear pants like the common folk. Sure, they didn’t look as refined and weren’t as pretty, but they were far more functional and way more comfortable.

  She let out a sigh as Gilderon moved to stand at her side, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. The man treated her like a child, one that needed to be watched at all times. Even when she was watching those horrible plays, he was still around, lurking in the background, lest she do something stupid, like stuff a rock in her mouth and choke. Just once, she wanted to be alone, without the burden hoisted upon her due to her father’s untimely death.

  And then there was the war to consider. She didn’t understand why Gilderon kept pushing for marriage at a time like this. The human scourge was close to invading. Reports said that the barrier was failing more and more by the day and was even speeding up. It wouldn’t be long until the humans were sending their own spies, if they hadn’t already, so marriage was the furthest thing from her mind right now.