When his mind was finally still, Merrick opened his eyes and prepared to spring for the pile of divinium cubes. Before he could make a move, Merrick felt a hand on his shoulder. The pain from the touch was excruciating, filling his nervous system with fire. He sank to one knee, wrapping both of his arms around his midsection in a primitive attempt to keep his insides from exploding. Looking over his shoulder, he saw that the person who had touched him was also on the ground, apparently in as much pain as he was. His attacker raised his head to look at Merrick. Aside from the maniacal grin on his face, Merrick was looking at his mirror image. Even though the Queen had said that Eudroch had traveled on ahead of them, Merrick knew that he had just been touched by his brother, Eudroch, for the first time in his life—and that it had hurt like nothing he had felt before.
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If there was one thing that Cara had learned from her father, it was how to be tough. She could take anything that bitch, the so-called Queen, could do to her and more.
Her father had died without revealing anything to Eudroch, and Cara would die before giving the Queen the satisfaction of hearing her scream. Cara remembered her father’s creation name and repeated it to herself, even as she tried to observe Merrick and see how he was going to react to the Queen’s demand. Cara wanted to scream out—to tell Merrick to escape and to leave her to fend for herself—but the gag in her mouth prevented her from saying anything.
Even as Cara was desperately trying to think of a way to regain her voice, she thought she was seeing double—two Merricks now lay on the ground at the Queen’s feet. As she rationalized the scene in front of her, she realized that her vision was fine. Eudroch had returned, despite the Queen’s command.
Unable to do anything else, Cara closed her eyes and wished Merrick all the strength she could, even though she knew that hope was not a very effective method.
CHAPTER 41
THE QUEEN’S FACE was red with anger. The best Mona could tell, this wasn’t the first time that Eudroch had disobeyed her orders.
At first, the Queen took two hesitant steps toward Merrick and Eudroch. With an exhale of disgust, she ignored Merrick and stood looming over Eudroch.
“I told you to leave this place,” the Queen hissed, still standing straight but with her head jutting forward. “I hope you are enjoying your pain. The two of you should not have met until we were ready to perform the ritual.”
Eudroch snarled and looked up at the Queen.
“You never told me it would be like this,” Eudroch said. “He’s supposed to be the one in pain when I drain him of the rest of his magic—the magic he took from me when I was inside you.”
“He will be the only one in pain soon enough. Now get up and stay away from him until I tell you otherwise. You must learn to obey me without question, my son. Do not forget that I have much knowledge to which you are not privy.”
Eudroch got up and brushed the dirt off of his pants leg. Merrick watched as a few granules of dirt fell to the ground. Despite how shaky he felt, Merrick thought that he could hear the sound of the dirt hitting the ground. He knew the name of this type of dirt found in the Earth City, and he wished that he were in a position to listen to what the soil had to say about life.
The Queen ordered her Fianna to surround Merrick and to help him stand. On shaky legs, Merrick started walking with his guard. The Queen, Eudroch, Mona, Cara, and Balach went ahead, surrounded by Eudroch’s Fire Warriors and the Queen’s Fianna.
As Merrick suspected, the group headed for the exit from the Earth City, and soon they all stood at the foot of the mighty mountain in the cool open air of the Highlands. The sun had started its decline in the sky, and the resulting shade turned the mountainside dark green. Merrick shivered as they stood in the secluded valley.
Overhead, the sky was blue-gray with only a few wispy clouds. The Queen stepped slightly away from the group as she raised her arms, spreading her fingers like she was trying to touch the sky. Eudroch stepped forward to stand beside her.
“Mother, if you are planning to take us all back to the Fire Tribe, I think that would be a mistake.”
The Queen turned to Eudroch, her face showing more disbelief than anything.
“You and I know that it is only a matter of time before our two families are united with the power of two dragons,” Eudroch continued. “But some of those in the Fire Tribe are skeptical at best that our peoples can ever get along. If we appear with a full band of Fianna at our side, there’s no telling what the tribesmen and the King might do. I would take no more than two of them with you. Let them see that their warriors outnumber the Fianna. They’ll feel safer and will be less likely to start something. I think that we both agree that we have no time for anything that would further postpone the ritual.”
The Queen shook her head and closed her eyes, a slight grin on her face.
“Of course, you are right, my son. You see, I’m not beyond admitting when you make a reasonable point.”
The Queen motioned for two of her Fianna to come to her side. Both of them were huge with arms that bristled with muscles. They stood next to her without a word, their large divinium swords and other assorted weapons hanging from their belts.
Merrick recognized one of the Fianna as being the one who had stopped his fellow guards from beating him to death when he had been captured. Now Merrick was sure that the guard was also the same Fianna who had visited him in his cell and who had expressed his continuing loyalty to Ohman.
The other Fianna was one that Merrick recognized as well. He was the one who had taken the most joy from kicking him while he was helpless on the ground.
The Queen turned to the other Fianna.
“The rest of you go back to the council and explain to them what is happening just as I have instructed you. Seek the help of the council in starting the repairs to our fine city. Please express my prayers to the families of those who lost their lives today. And, if the council does not cooperate, then I empower you to unseat them and place the city under marshal law. Am I clear?”
The guards responded by snapping to attention in unison and saluting the Queen with their fists over their hearts. Their faces were stern and without emotion, but their eyes were set with unquestionable loyalty as they served their Queen without question. Merrick was sure that the council would see things the Queen’s way in no time at all.
“My Seer must also accompany me,” the Queen said, “whether your primitive people like it or not.”
“Well then,” Eudroch said, “let us call on Sigela’s fingers of light to take us to the Fire Tribe and to our destiny…Mother.”
Eudroch and the Queen raised their arms again to the sky and each spoke words that sounded like the sporadic popping and crackling of fire. Within seconds, the gray skies had darkened to a deep aquamarine, and heat lightning in the distance quickly approached the small crowd that waited to travel through the heavens.
Merrick knew what to expect as he felt the familiar electrical tingle in his stomach. In fact, Merrick had called on the lightning so often since his powers had emerged, he actually felt a sense of comfort at the sound of its approach.
Suddenly, there was a deafening boom, and their entire group was swept up into the storm, their molecules being ripped apart and then riding the lightning—arcing high into the sky. In less than a second, he could see the patchwork of unfamiliar lands speeding by underneath. As they rose above the cloud level, the land faded to white, and for the next several seconds, there was only endless blurred sky.
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Gerald stood with his fellow Fianna, watching as the Queen and Eudroch argued about Eudroch’s unexpected return to the Earth City. Gerald’s heart began to race when he heard Eudroch tell the Queen that only two of the Fianna should accompany her. If Gerald wasn’t going to be able to go with Merrick, he’d have to make his move now or not at all. Gerald wasn’t even sure what he was going to do, but he had to do something to help Merrick before it was too late.
He h
oped that the rest of the Fianna were having their own doubts about the Queen’s actions, but they were too well conditioned to openly disagree with her. That was both the strength and the weakness of the Fianna—trained from a young age to always follow the monarchy unquestionably, its ranks trusted in the Queen’s wisdom no matter how foolish.
Gerald was raised with that same conviction, but as far as he was concerned now, his loyalty stood with the true Earth King—Ohman. Gerald had always suspected the Queen of treachery, ever since that day long ago when she returned without Ohman, lying to the Earth Council about how Ohman had mated with a woman from the Fire Tribe and then killed her after she had given him two illegitimate sons. The Queen had always said that Ohman’s two sons would grow up to fulfill the most evil of predictions ever made—Sigela’s return to the world.
Now, it was obvious to Gerald that the Queen had formed a secret alliance with the Fire Tribe and that she had been the one who had mated with someone from the Fire Tribe. Gerald was sure that not even the Earth Council knew of her acts. The Queen was a traitor to her own family and now to the world, and Gerald would stop her even if it meant giving his life to do so. The way Gerald saw it, Merrick was the only hope any of them had.
There were too many of the Fire Warriors for him to take on alone, and at this point the rest of his Fianna brothers wouldn’t think twice about cutting him down if he made a move against the Queen. He could try to grab Merrick quickly and take him into the arms of the earth, but he knew that the others would just follow. Once they caught up with them…Gerald would die. Gerald could not even think of anywhere safe to take Merrick even if they could escape together.
Then another thought came into his head. What if he were to kill Eudroch? According to the prophecy, both of the brothers had to become as one to bring Sigela back from the stars. Gerald could disrupt the prophecy by killing either Merrick or Eudroch.
Gerald had never felt Eudroch’s magic fully unleashed before, but he could only imagine that it would be at least as powerful as Merrick’s, if not greater. In addition to that, Eudroch was a master of his craft and of both the Fire and Earth elements around him.
Battling Merrick would be like going up against a great, untamed beast, but fighting Eudroch would be like dueling with a talented and beastly surgeon. Gerald probably wouldn’t survive either of the scenarios.
As the Queen and Eudroch continued talking, Gerald heard the Queen agree to take only two of her guards with her.
Before Gerald could become anxious about which of the Fianna the Queen would chose, she picked him and Rameth. Rameth was a good Drayoom, and one of the few Fianna who made Gerald feel small in stature. He had the strength of an ox and could hurt a person just by bumping into them by accident. Rameth’s heart was good as was his honor. He never played around even when off duty and was always serious about his trusted role as protector of the Queen. Sometimes, he took his role too seriously, as he had when he had almost kicked Merrick to death earlier.
Gerald took a deep breath and tried to relax. He would wait patiently for his chance to do something, and when the time came…he would act.
Silently, Gerald stepped up to where the Queen pointed and suddenly he was in the air, coursing through the sky as a bolt of lightning. As he lost sight of the ground, Gerald spoke a silent prayer to Terrada asking for her wisdom and guidance.
PART FOUR
From the Tale of Abred
FOR A LONG WHILE, Gwynfyd stayed far away from Abred. But eventually she accepted his offerings of peace that came in the forms of beautiful plants and flowers that Abred collected because he knew that she found joy in the sight of them.
Eventually, they slept together again, and were each other’s best and only friend and lover. As Abred lay sleeping after making love with Gwynfyd, he thought to himself that this is the way life should be. One man and one woman, alone with the dragons and the world.
Abred did not know it, but every time he and Gwynfyd made love, Sigela was still there, fanning Abred’s flame softly this time, but making sure that it rose all the same. Sigela’s hope was that Abred would think of the fiery dragon each time he and Gwynfyd lay together.
One day, Gwynfyd awoke feeling unsettled in her stomach and barely made it to the edge of camp before becoming sick. Abred did not understand what was wrong with her, but he did his best to ease her pain with cool water and warm blankets he made from the animals he sometimes hunted.
The sickness slowly passed, but after a full cycle of the moon or so, Gwynfyd’s shape began to change, and Abred thought it strange that she should grow so large in her stomach and her breasts.
After many moon cycles, one morning Gwynfyd cried out in such pain as Abred had never before heard. He rushed to her side but did not know what to do. In his head, he heard the voice of the Earth Dragon, telling him that Gwynfyd was like the ground that sprouted the plants and the flowers, and that she too was about to bring forth life to another of Abred’s kind.
As Abred knelt by Gwynfyd’s side, he watched with his eyes open wide and his mouth agape as his first son was born. When Abred lifted the small, purple thing into the air, it cried and shook its feet back and forth.
Terrada told Abred and Gwynfyd that this was their son, flesh of their flesh, and blood of their own blood. Abred prostrated himself on the ground and kissed the dirt that was Terrada’s skin as he wept, thanking the Earth Dragon for their gift.
Very quickly, the boy began to grow and learn how to use his new body. Abred and Gwynfyd were careful not to let any harm come to him, as he seemed not to understand any of the dangers of the world in which they lived. One night as they sat next to their campfire, their son struggled loose and reached out to touch the fire. The child pulled its hand back as it howled in pain, and Abred rushed to pour cold water over his son’s hand.
When Abred had calmed his son down, he looked at the fire and spat into it before extinguishing it by frantically kicking sand over it. It was then that Abred hated the fire and vowed never to let it harm his son or any of his kind again.
CHAPTER 42
MERRICK WAS HAVING a difficult time keeping his panic at bay. He had never been claustrophobic before, but standing in the altar room at the top of the Fire City pyramid, he felt trapped and unable to breathe. He scanned the room with wild eyes looking for an escape route, but he was standing in the center of the room, with a Fianna on either side of him. Farther away toward the back corner of the room, Mona, Cara, and Balach stood surrounded by Fire Warriors. Cara was gagged with a piece of heavy hemp. Sweat dribbled from their chins, and Mona and Cara’s shirts clung to their torsos, revealing the roundness of their breasts. Merrick knew that now was no time for those kinds of thoughts, but even in his dire situation, he couldn’t help but notice.
He closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of the room. To his left, the Queen and her Seer were talking in hushed tones, while Eudroch busied himself at the altar.
The altar looked like stone at first, but as Merrick continued to look at it, he could see the patterns of the stone slowly swirling—bright reds and yellows mixing with dark umbers and black. The altar was made from the Fire Tribe’s divinium, and it looked as if it were made of living lava.
The altar was also giving off an intense heat, along with everything else in the room, including the floor under his feet and the stone walls.
Merrick wiped sweat from his brow. At the same time that he was burning up from the high temperature, he also had cold chills in his limbs and in the back of his neck as if he had a fever. Merrick stared up at the stars through the giant opening in the apex of the pyramid. There were more stars than there was black in the night sky. That was where Sigela was—up in the heavens, waiting to be called down to the earth again. Merrick wondered if any of the other stars up there held exiled dragons of their own.
As Merrick returned his gaze to the room around him, he focused on the pile of the divinium cubes in the far corner of the room, near the entryway. He qu
ickly looked elsewhere, checking to see if anyone was paying attention, but everyone seemed to be involved in their own intense conversations. The Queen and Eudroch were probably feeling secure that he would pose no problem for them since the lives of his friends were in the balance, and they were right.
He didn’t want anything to happen to Mona, Cara, or Balach, and would do nothing to endanger them.
Suddenly he heard a quiet voice in his head, like a far away echo. It was a memory of what the Master Keeper had told him right before the mountain had come crashing down on top of him. The Master Keeper had said that Merrick was the only hope the world had. Not just his friends, but the world. His adoptive father had always told him that being an adult sometimes meant making the right decision and living with the consequences.
Merrick was sure that his adoptive father had never imagined that his words of wisdom would be used in a situation like this, but Merrick felt their truth anyway. If he really was the only person, besides Eudroch, who could prevent the sun from colliding with the earth, then he owed it to humanity to make the right choices now. He wondered if it would be easier to live with the death of his friends or the death of the world on his conscience.
With a pained thought, Merrick considered ways to kill himself. At first it seemed like the logical solution for everyone but him. Then again, for all he knew, his power would revert back to Eudroch the second he died. But if that were true, then why hadn’t they just killed him? He just didn’t know enough to be sure either way. The only thing he did know was that if he and Eudroch weren’t in the same place, the ritual couldn’t occur.
Merrick glanced again at the divinium cubes. Each of the cubes contained all of Ohman’s knowledge of Terrada’s tongue. Cara had told him about how the cubes worked, but he had never had the chance to try one out. If it was as Cara said, a cube might give him the advantage he needed to save his friends and the world.
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