“I’m sorry,” James said, shaking his head and turning around to face them all. “I’m just thinking about how to go about this.” The young Sages were staring at him with wide, watery eyes and crestfallen faces. After James had stopped their climb, he had just stood there for a while. They didn’t know what that had meant.
“Stay close to me,” he said. “Be mindful of what I do. Don’t be reckless. As I told you before, there could be Quietus hiding here. We’re here to retrieve something. I’m sorry I can’t tell you what just yet. Don’t be afraid to let me do the fighting if you get worried. Just be my backup.” A chorus of nods followed, and James nodded back. “Okay, follow me.”
James stepped slowly, the sound of the crunching snow beneath his feet sounding like an explosion to his ears. With each step they took, his heartbeat was increasing a notch. He cleared his throat and kept walking, hoping that the Sages behind him were too scared themselves to notice.
Once they made it into the courtyard, and the crunching sound disappeared upon their feet hitting brick, he heard the crackling sound. Someone had a fire going. James brought his eidolon out a fourth of the way from his right palm and scanned the area. Up ahead. By the stairs to the castle. He stretched his neck and squinted his eyes as he approached. Light snow was beginning to fall from the skies, and snowflakes began to hit his face, trying to distract him.
The fire had been hidden by a pile of benches, ripped from the courtyard floor. But the benches were just a shield. They weren’t on fire. What was behind them was.
A pile of corpses.
They had been dead for hours, and their flesh had melted away. Based on what he was sensing, this was not the first fire. There were the ashes of old ones underneath the pile. He was unsure whether they were from Hakin’s Quietus group or not. But even if they weren’t, who had done this to them?
Then he felt a presence. He held up a fist to stop the Sages behind him, and they were happy to halt. They remained still as he continued to step forward and behind the massive fire. A man was there, crouching on the ground and fiddling with something. He hadn’t noticed James.
“Who are you?” James said casually, and the man nearly fell over. He glanced behind him quickly and then scurried to the left, taking off into a full sprint. He headed for the stairs, where something was shining from the bottom step. James didn’t take any chances. He unleashed his eidolon and swung at what glinted in his eye. The man stopped short and fell to his knees in front of his destroyed objects. It was only then that James realized—they were four stones—now cut in halves. The shine they once had shimmered and then disappeared. He had been careless!
“Shhhh,” the mysterious man said to the halves. “It’s okay. It’s okay.”
James grit his teeth, barreled forward and grabbed the man by the back of his collar. He forced him to his feet and then higher than that. The man kept his eyes closed and his hands over his face as James inspected him. It was a middle-aged man. His hair was gone, and his skin was covered in grime and blemishes. His clothes were new, but still dirty. A loose t-shirt and wool pants hung off him. James threw the man to the ground, and his butt landed on the brick pavement.
“Who are you?” James demanded. “And did you hurt those people?”
“I had to,” he said, breathing heavily. “They told me to. I had to get to the stones. I had to get their power. The Quietus wouldn’t let me.”
“How could you have killed all those Quietus yourself? Are you a Sage?”
“No! No! I don’t have any powers of my own. They helped me.”
“Who are they?”
“Um…I shouldn’t tell you that. Not until everything’s complete. It’s so close.”
“Who are you?!” James roared, gripping his eidolon tight.
“My name is Ephai,” the man said, throwing his hands up in surrender. “And…I’m not a Sage or anything. I went looking for the Sages. But I couldn’t find any. I worked with…um, I worked with Thorn for a little while, but then he stopped talking to me.”
James sighed. Was there no one that Thorn tried recruiting?
“Thorn’s dead,” James said. “I killed him myself. That explains his silence.” Ephai’s eyes went wide as he began counting on his fingers.
“How long ago?” Ephai asked, counting his ten fingers over and over. “I can’t distinguish the voices anymore. So many want my help. I can’t help them all, but the one that keeps yelling. I can’t ignore him. I—“
“WHAT HAPPENED HERE?” James yelled, sticking the tip of his eidolon next to Ephai’s nose. “How did you know the stones were here?”
“The voices told me. I had to get the stones. They’re fascinating. I was able to imagine stuff and they would come true! I thought of a little house, it came together after a couple hours. It was so fascinating. But they yelled at me again. I was taking too long. I didn’t need bigger. I needed denser. Stronger shells. Better stuff. I needed the stones to keep my power supply up. But now you’ve destroyed them! It will take longer! But they’ll come back. The stones always come back. You don’t know them like I do.”
“Who else is working with you?” James said. “These voices. Who are they?”
“I don’t know. They won’t tell me their names. One’s male. One’s female. That’s all I know.”
“Are they Sages?”
“That’s all I know! And it’s all your fault! The stones would have told me everything! But you destroyed them! I lost my power! If I still had my power, I could show you the voices. I could show you who they are.”
“You could show them to me?” James asked.
“Yes. It’s how they were able to talk to the Quietus before.” James frowned at him and thought about the situation carefully. He needed to know who the rogue Sages were, but at what cost? Ephai and the Quietus had both seen them. Would Ephai betray his new masters so quickly? Were they hiding among the shadows? Even now?
“Show them to me,” James said finally. The man shook his head.
“I can’t. I have no power. The stones are gone for now.”
“What do you mean, ‘for now?’”
“They’ll return.”
“How?”
“They will appear.”
“Where?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re beginning to upset me. Where are your masters?”
“I already told you. I can’t do it!”
“Your power is not lost,” James said reluctantly. “The stones grant you the power, but then it stays inside of you. You can make manifestations even after the stones are gone. It is now a part of you.”
“Really?” the man said with hopeful eyes. “You mean…I didn’t need the stones all along?”
“You just had to touch one of them once in your life. They’re all the same.”
“So I could have made my manifestations all this time without them?”
“That’s what I’m saying. Now show me your masters.”
“Okay,” he said, closing his eyes. James waited for him to make a move, but he just sat there in silence. James tapped the surface of his eidolon against the side of Ephai’s face.
“Hey!” James shouted, and Ephai’s eyes snapped open. He started sweating as he gazed at the eidolon out of the corner of his eye. “Where are they? You said I would see your masters!”
“They’re already here,” he said, and then James heard the first thump behind him. Before he could even turn his head, he heard another, and by the time he could process what he was seeing, he heard another. Three young Sages…dead. All had fallen to the ground, and they were all lying in pools of their own blood.
“DEFENSE!” James shouted, summoning the light from the skies to transform him. But it was like everything happened in slow motion, and he could do nothing about it. He just had to watch in horror, as one by one, the young Sages were cut into two with an invisible blade. The pillar of light that would normally engulf him in seconds felt like minutes. It came down slowly, as
if it hesitated to answer his call.
Finally, the light slammed into him, and his Sage robe flowed all around him. He immediately unsheathed his black eidolon along with his white, and honed his senses the best he could. But there was nothing there. Only the terrified cries of Ephai, holding himself as he shivered, and the sound of blood spilling onto the pavement. James grit his teeth and concentrated even harder. No one was going to get past him. No one—
He appeared.
The Sage he had been looking for.
It was like he came out of thin air. He was in mid-air, with his fist cocked back, and all James could see was the black robes of his enemy. The fist connected and propelled him backwards. The pain was so intense on the right side of his face that he audibly screamed. His body spiraled wildly out of control as it smashed into and partially through the castle steps. Hitting a surface of dirt underneath, he tried to leap right back to his feet, but all he could think about was the crippling ache. It flooded his face, consuming his thoughts like a parasite, numbing his instincts. He could feel his right eye closing shut from the swelling.
He heard footsteps in front of him, and out of fear, he lifted his head and quickly shot his eyes open. The man standing before him was just like the Quietus had described. He was tall and thin. His face was angular, and his eyes were deep pools of silver. He had long black hair that spiked at the ends. His black robe covered most of him up, but it moved with his body like it was his actual skin. His fists were bony but calloused. He glared at James with contempt.
“What—“James tried to ask a question, but the pain flamed back up. He clutched his jaw tight. The Sage before him parted his lips…
And then he spoke like a god.
“I am Lakrymos.”
Before James could speak, the Sage disappeared, and James felt a weight hit him on the back of the head.
* * *
“As I thought,” Arimus said with confidence. “There is nothing here.” They stared down at what remained of the old Sage Academy. It had taken him and Bastion a couple hours, even in full Sage form, to excavate the site, but at least they had been thorough. They had dug all the way from the surface down to where the glass floors had been suspended in mid-air. Now destroyed and reduced to rubble, they sifted through the pieces, examined the walls that once held defenses, and even went further beneath, in case there was something else to find.
Nothing.
“Well,” Bastion wiped his brow with his sleeve. “At least I know my eidolon works well as a shovel.”
“That it does,” Arimus said, eyeing the young Sage suspiciously. “Tell me Bastion, that black robe of yours. That appeared naturally?”
“It did,” Bastion said. He knew this conversation was going to happen eventually.
“What do you think that means?”
“I’m not one of those two Sages,” Bastion said quickly. He leaned on his eidolon shovel and took a deep breath. “I don’t know what it means. I wish I did. But I don’t.”
“Calm down, I believe you,” Arimus said, though his face didn’t lighten up. “It still concerns me—what Master Torill said. I’m trying to think of how someone could have come across some old history like that.”
“The Old Sage Academy wasn’t always known. Perhaps there are other secret buildings and information to find.”
“We would have to excavate the entire Kingdom to do that,” Arimus laughed. Bastion just shrugged his shoulders. He could get used to this. Hanging around Arimus. It felt so easy and simple. Already, he felt like a Master Sage, trying to solve the mystery. If only it would stay that way.
“Master Arimus,” he spoke up.
“Hmm?”
“Can I train under you?” he asked, unabashed. It was worth trying.
“I’m sorry, but those days are done,” he laughed. “Why would you want to train under someone like me anyways? What do I have to offer?”
“You make me feel at ease. I can think clearly around you. Around James, um, to be honest, I’m afraid of killing him.”
“You wouldn’t be the first one,” he laughed. “Many a Sage wanted James dead. But, I’m sorry, Bastion. I just don’t have the time. Well, I would, but my wife, she would have none of it. And to be honest, I’m glad she wouldn’t. I’ve been apart from her for so long. She’s probably wondering when I’ll be back at this very moment.”
“I’m sorry. I just—I don’t want to go back to James. I don’t think he knows what he’s doing.”
“He doesn’t,” Arimus chuckled, to which Bastion gave him a glare.
“What?!” he exclaimed. “Then why is he in charge?”
“Because none of the old Sages are fit to lead that school,” Arimus replied, crossing his arms. “This is an age of peace. A new era. The Stone Era was a time of lies, deception, war and near extinction. That’s in the past, and Bastion, that’s all I know. I’ll be teaching you concepts that have little use in this era.”
“But there will always be enemies,” he said, taking a step forward. “If anyone thinks this peace will last forever, they’re a fool.”
“And yet, that’s what we all fight for when in battle. That’s always the end, isn’t it? Peace. Doesn’t matter which side wins. There’s peace. Sure, a tyrant could rule and enslave us all, but wouldn’t there be peace for him? What I want is for as many people as possible to live quiet, boring lives again. No more fear, no more anxiety. Just peace. The longer the better.”
“And James can provide that? Even though he doesn’t know what he’s doing?”
“He has the opportunity to grow with you. All of you. That’s a rare and precious thing. He means well, and that’s what’s important. Besides, he became more powerful than any of us back then in such a short amount of time that I know he’ll rise to the challenge. He has a purpose now, and when push comes to shove, he’s one of the fiercest warriors I know. He might seem like a doofus outside of battle, but in it? You would be surprised what tricks he has up his sleeve.”
* * *
“Wake up,” a voice, as deep as darkness pierced his slumber. James’ eyes shot open, and immediately they nearly closed again. He was still in the hole in the stairs, created by the impact from his own body. The snowfall had picked up, and it now covered him with a few inches. The cold suddenly nipped at his skin. He groaned and climbed slowly to his feet. The snow fell off him, but not the ache that pounded his face. He reached up and brushed two fingers against his cheek. The welt was huge. He concentrated on healing it, but he couldn’t find the focus. He decided to leave it alone for the moment.
He took a step forward and nearly fell over. He activated his eidolon instinctively, and the blade shot through the brick pavement from the palm of his hand. He held onto the hilt tight, keeping his body weight up. Taking a deep breath, he looked around him.
Ephai was nowhere to be found, but he could feel the Legendary Sage nearby. His presence was everywhere, like an invisible fume. It was thick and heavy, invading his space. James clenched his fist and fought the weakness that clawed at his resolve. He pushed himself off the hilt of his eidolon, he caught his balance, and then he stayed standing. With all of his strength, he remained vigilant. He summoned the pillar of light once again, and this time, it didn’t feel like there was any hesitation. It spilled over him like he had just walked under a waterfall.
A second later, he was back in his Sage robe. With his abilities enhanced, he focused on his surroundings while healing the distracting welt on his face. A laugh rode the wind, but he tried not to let it get to him.
“Come out,” James said, once the welt had been healed. “Lakrymos.”
“As you wish,” he said, the voice coming right from behind. James jumped forward and turned around. There the Legendary warrior stood, as if he had been there all along. He studied James with a sad expression on his face. His thin lips almost looked like they were in a pout.
“Why are you so weak?” he asked, with such concern that James was more appalled than angry.
“Sorry to disappoint you,” James said, unsheathing his black eidolon again. He held both swords tight. “You won’t be feeling that again.”
“Just stop,” the Sage replied, hurt in his voice. “Let us just talk. No false bravado.”
“It’s not false. I’m the strongest—“
“—then why are you weak?” the Legendary Sage asked again. “Tell me. I can help you.”
“Lakrymos…if that is your name—“
“The name was given to my mother in a dream. Before I killed her in childbirth. My father told me so. I was too strong for her fragile body to encage.”
“Encage?” James scowled. “That was your mother.”
“You act like I killed her intentionally. But we’re not here to discuss my mother while you slowly gain the little insignificant strength that you do possess. We are here to discuss why you are weak, and my conditions. You are to go back to Allay, and tell your Queen and the Kingdom that Lakrymos has returned, to take you all to your true and final potential.”
“And how will you do that exactly?”
“She will give me the Kingdom, and you have 24 hours to decide,” he said boldly. “I will reign supreme and alone. I will be given full access to the Kingdom, and my voice will be law.”
“And you expect us to just do that? You shouldn’t even be alive.”
“I have you to thank for that, don’t I? You may be weak, but your strength was sufficient in beating Thorn. Something that even we could not do. For that also, I spared you. You have my thanks.”
“You killed my students,” James seethed. “You don’t get my gratitude.”
“They would only get in the way of our conversation, and you still have a purpose to fulfill. You will help carry out my wishes throughout the Kingdom.”
Of Heroes And Villains (Book 4) Page 19