The Legacy (The Darkness Within Saga Book 1)

by JD Franx

  “I will, my lady, and thank you. I’ve grown quite fond of her over the last two weeks while here. I’ll see you both soon. Please take care.”

  Sephi smiled and bowed out of habit, even though the woman on the other end of the raptor couldn’t see her. “Be safe, Dekayna. Wings of death’s shadow, words of the faithful… Begone.” The shadows that made up the raptor disappeared with a squawk of rebellion at the completion of the dark spell.

  “Luthian will follow the ArchWizard’s group until the preparations have been made to act. It will take about two weeks before we will be ready to leave as well,” Nekrosa said as he winked at Sephi. Her smile lit up with brightness that rivalled the morning sun.

  “We’ve not rode off together since the war, my love. I only hope we can get to her in time.”

  “I have the same fear. Taking her is a huge risk, but what she needs is here. Unfortunately no one else will believe us or her once she arrives,” Nekrosa added, his mood darkening once more.

  “I know,” she replied. “We’ve much work to do. If the other kingdom leaders discover that we plan to take the last living Fae, they will unite against us.”

  Nekrosa laughed at the idea.

  “We’ll just have to be sure that they don’t suspect us. She belongs here. No one else can help her. The prophecy speaks of the four, but we have no way to confirm if he is here or not.”

  Sephi’s gold eyes flared with power. “He’s here, husband,” she stated with the utmost confidence. “Our allies will find him for us. Just permit them the time required and we will speak with a living DeathWizard, the pinnacle of necromantic evolution. If it turns out that he is a true Kai’Sar, what will we do, my love?”

  “I don’t know, but we must be prepared. Be sure to pack the rarest supplies we have, especially the last of our old world potions.”

  Shocked, Sephi shook her head. “Surely not the accelerated healing and Brethren blood vials? Only one of each remains. They can’t be replenished.”

  “Yes, love. If we need them, we must have them at hand. We can’t fail in bringing those involved back. The Arcane Library has turned up nothing to help yet. The scholars work around the sun and moon’s path, but you know how far the catacombs extend under the city. It could take decades to find the answer behind the true meaning to those ancient words of prophecy. All I know is that those pompous Council fools have the wrong meaning when they use the term Kai’Sar.” His wife circled her arms around his neck and pressed her forehead to his.

  “And we have it right. Patience, my love,” she whispered, as her warm breath washed over his cheek. “For now, we have the time. Patience will grant us the rest, including our very own Fae.”

  CORTINA MONASTERY

  The supper hour had just ended in the Cortina Monastery on the day that Giddeon, Ember, and the others departed Corynth to try and find Princess Corleya. Zaddyk regained consciousness with both Brother Donis and an initiate Priestess, Kimbra Dorn, beside his bed. Brother Donis refused to leave Zaddyk’s side until he knew he would be all right. Kimbra had been Zaddyk’s closest friend for almost fifteen years. Only two years younger than him, she was already a ward of the temple when he arrived. An orphan with no affinity for magic and no mystical abilities of any other kind, she had been left abandoned when Brother Donis found her on the streets at three years of age. She was supposed to take her vows to be a priestess at the same time that Zaddyk was to become a priest.

  The young prophet woke, obviously confused, his eyes blinked but he could see nothing but blackness.

  “Brother Donis? Brother, are you there? I can’t see,” he called out, terror riding on his voice.

  “Yes, Zaddyk. I’m here and so is Kimbra. I know you can’t see but try to stay calm and tell us what you remember,” Brother Donis said. The security of his voice calmed Zaddyk’s rattled nerves.

  “I… I was on my way to see you, Brother. I wanted permission to go see Giddeon. I stopped to say a prayer in the chapel, but something happened to me... And then the nightmares began. Now I can see nothing, but… blackness,” he said, fear stretching his voice even more.

  “I know, son,” said Brother Donis. “You’ve been touched by our lady. I’m sorry, Zaddyk, but you will never see again. Your eyes are black. You’re a prophet now. The first in over four hundred years. Do you remember nothing?” he asked.

  Hesitating for only a minute, Zaddyk’s lips trembled with fear. “I remember. I heard her, Brother Donis. I talked to the Lady Cortina. She told me to show Giddeon his mistake, that her visit to him was wasted twenty years ago.”

  Brother Donis had been there all those years ago when Giddeon’s mind had been torn open by two goddesses and sent back to witness the final fight with Jasala Vyshaan. He knew all too well what Zaddyk was referring to. From what Giddeon had told Brother Donis, the vision was very straight forward. The old priest couldn’t understand how they had made a mistake.

  “Zaddyk? Were you told what kind of a mistake Giddeon made?”

  “No, Brother Donis.”

  “Hmm, Lady Cortina does not plan to lead us by the hand then. Very well, we shall figure it out. You must listen carefully, son. Around your neck lies a pendant that will act as a conduit for your visions, for the magic of prophecy. Touching it should send you off somewhere into the future. As long as your body can withstand the strain, you should be able to use your power many times a day, at least until it tires you. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, Brother. I don’t ever want to go back there but if that is why our lady has chosen me, then I’ll try my best,” Zaddyk said, with a nervous hiccup.

  Kimbra placed a soft kiss on his forehead. “We’ll be here for you, Zaddyk. I promise you we’ll not leave until you are back with us.”

  “Thank you, Kimbra,” he said. Taking a deep breath, Zaddyk grasped the amulet around his neck and tried to keep in mind that he was looking for Giddeon’s mistake.

  With the savage power only a god could supply, Zaddyk’s mind was torn from his head and launched across the stars. The thought of Giddeon’s mistake evaporated in less than an instant as the young prophet was unable to hold on to his conscious thoughts. The velvet voice of the goddess, Cortina, rolled through his mind with no warning.

  “I cannot take you backwards, my child. You must see what lies in the future that your people currently make. Only a Saint may see the past, present, and the future, but no mortal has ever survived the transformation. Therefore, my most beloved apostle, Brother Donis, will help you put together what you see and the chroniclers will record it, but only from the future.”

  “I can hear you, my Lady!”

  “Of course you can, my dear. You are my chosen one now.”

  “Why me, Lady Cortina?”

  “You must understand that I need you to help your people, Zaddyk, all of them. My interference has already cost you your vision. I cannot physically interfere further. I’ll always be with you now, my dear child. You need only speak and then listen. May my sister Lykke be with you. You will need all the luck you can get. Giddeon’s mistake has already caused permanent damage to the future of your world. See the future that lies ahead.” The voice of the goddess left his head just as suddenly as it entered. And again, Zaddyk’s mind was on the move.

  Differing shades of darkness flashed through his consciousness, years rolled past in a mere blink of an eye as Talohna’s main time-line branched and forked with every optional future. The visions sped past Zaddyk’s confused mind until at last, the torment came to a rushing halt with nauseating results. The new-born prophet’s first trip into the future ended like every others had: he vomited all over himself, a result of the dizzying colours and sounds that began to filter back into his cognisant mind.

  At first he caught only bursts of events that were there and then gone in an instant. An underground room, a city under attack, several people surrounding others and the ever-present scent of fear accompanied by the onset of death. The dazzling speed of the images slowed eno
ugh for him to recognize Giddeon tied to a rack and being tortured, with Saleece being held as she waited next in line, both of them cut off from their magic and suffering great pain. The scene held, showing him a young man and his female companion coming to their rescue. Another flash of light and Zaddyk’s mind was whisked away to another point somewhere in the future.

  The prophet could see Giddeon, Saleece, and Kasik surrounding a young man covered in tattoos, even his face was inked in the detailed black vines and their vicious-looking barbed thorns. Zaddyk recognized him as the same young man who had saved the ArchWizard and his daughter in the last vision, but this time the young woman stood with Giddeon against the man. The tattooed young man was cornered with no one to help and Zaddyk could feel his fear, the tattered remains of his tortured soul, along with the loss and loneliness that he had suffered for so many months. Unaware of how, Zaddyk knew beyond a doubt that this lost and devastated being was Kael, the DeathWizard they had all been hunting. The prophecy also showed him that Kael was Giddeon’s son. Kael screamed, his voice wept with desperation.

  “You don’t understand what is happening, Giddeon, please, you need to leave, now.” The words reverberated inside Zaddyk’s mind, pounding against his skull like a physical force. Again, an explosion of colour and pain lit up inside Zaddyk’s skull and it was his turn to scream. Frustration made him clench his teeth as he felt the vision slipping from his grasp. His brow furrowed and blood trickled from his nose as he desperately tried to hold on long enough to see this future play its final scene.

  “No!” he wailed. The tidal currents of time are stingy lovers, even for an experienced prophet and his tender touch. Time shifted, showing the inexperienced prophet something new.

  The city of Corynth burned. Swallowed in flames as magic of all sorts spiralled through the sky before crashing into the city adding to the devastation. The citizens of the Cethosian capitol fled the horror as the king’s guard, the city watch, and countless wizards defended the walls together. Some of the faces Zaddyk recognized as people he knew, his friends, were killed and wounded while he watched helpless, unable to do anything. The same flash in time showed him Avalera City and Drae’Kahn, the capitol cities of the huge Southern Kingdom countries of Ellorya and DormaSai. Flames roared, enhanced by magical energy as huge flying creatures destroyed the three most powerful cities in all of Talohna. Thousands of people suffered and died before his very eyes. Then, as quickly as it had started, the prophecy ended, and Zaddyk’s mind was again launched into the timeless dark of his new reality.

  Zaddyk woke covered in sweat and shaking from fear. Blood from his nose flowed into his mouth and over his chin. His body heaved with tremors and he cried out at the horrors of what could come to pass, all still fresh in his mind. The prophecy he had seen left him with remnants of the fear and hopelessness felt by Kael as well as every single one of the screaming, terrified mass of people from the three destroyed cities.

  There had been no foreseeable time frame of the events of the prophecy, and Zaddyk had no idea what the trigger might be, but he was positive that it was not that far away. Zaddyk hadn’t known that the DeathWizard they were hunting was Giddeon’s son and he had no idea if they would accomplish their goal or not. The prophecy hadn’t shown him whether or not Kael would die.

  Tears filled Zaddyk’s eyes as he cried out a second time. “Oh, Giddeon, what are we supposed to do?” It dawned on him that Giddeon’s group might still in Corynth. “Brother Donis, quick, you have to take me to Giddeon, now,” he said and stumbled off the bed. Unaccustomed to blindness, the vertigo upon standing caused him to crash to the floor. Kimbra raced to help him.

  “Careful, Zaddyk,” she warned, and with the gentlest touch tried to get him up. “There is no hurry. Giddeon and the others left hours ago. Are you hurt?” she enquired as he sat back down on the floor with a groan of disappointment.

  “No, Kimbra, thank you. If Giddeon has already left, I don’t know what to do. I didn’t understand the vision I got from our Lady,” he commented, shaking his head at the rotten turn of luck. Brother Donis bent over and offered his hand to Zaddyk.

  “Take my hand, son, and then tell us what you have seen. Fair enough?”

  “Yes, fair enough.” Accepting a hand up off the floor, Zaddyk walked to his bed under the watchful eye of Kimbra as she steered him around his crooked, wooden nightstand so that he could sit down. Zaddyk proceeded to tell them what he’d seen, but he had no explanation for what it meant.

  “It looks to me like we’ve had it right all along, Zaddyk,” said Brother Donis, “and that if Kael lives he will rain destruction upon everyone.”

  Though his eyes couldn’t see, Zaddyk stared at Brother Donis as he spoke. “You knew that Kael was his son, didn’t you?”

  “Of course I did, it’s not a secret, just not widely public knowledge. I was there the day Kael was born. I witnessed the aftermath of the Elvehn sorcerers and Giddeon sending him to another dimension, a place he should have stayed. What you saw makes me more convinced than ever that his death is a must. Otherwise what you saw will come to pass. Talohna’s greatest cities will fall into ruin at his hands. Thousands will die,” he said, with complete confidence.

  “She spoke to me, Donis,” Zaddyk said, in a soft tone. “The moment I grabbed the amulet, I could hear her voice, the beautiful voice of our Goddess, the words of Lady Cortina. She told me that Giddeon made a mistake and that I have to help fix it, but I don’t understand what I saw. What mistake?” he asked, almost pleading, his words heavy with guilt at not understanding the prophecy.

  “Then we will keep trying until you can, son,” Brother Donis said. Kimbra looked at them both and smiled.

  “We’ll all help you until we figure it out,” she said. “There are many brothers and sisters here who would love to help their friend, don’t forget that, Zaddyk.” He nodded, as he thought about how his loss of sight seemed to be one of the lesser concerns of the last few days. The young prophet understood why his sight had been taken; it was the price paid for the goddess’s power being used in the mortal realm, but his comprehension of another reason became very clear as he laid back in his bed. With no sight, the black that surrounded him allowed him closer study of his visions without the visual intrusion of the outside word. Now all he had to do was decipher the true meaning behind both prophecies.

  Even though he no longer had to shut them, Zaddyk closed his eyes and replayed the horrific prophetic events in his mind over and over.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Since I’ve met N’Ikyah, I have quickly come to see that healing magic is not a miracle cure. Both she and Lycori told me that since the Fae extinction, magic healing has suffered greatly. Being able to completely heal someone deathly ill or mortally wounded is a skill long gone. Healers now can fix minor broken bones or close open wounds, and even use magic to stabilize someone if that healer is extremely skilled, but without the Fae’s influence in the world, nothing more than that can be done. There are a few exceptions, namely extremely gifted people and, of course, the Dead Healers. Though the Dead Healers are exceptional, Kyah has told me that most of their healing ability was more about countering the effects of their mistress’ demonic magics and repairing the damage done, and believe me, I am eternally grateful that she and her kind are as skilled as they are.

  Magic can still save lives, however—my own repeatedly, in fact—though it also leaves you drained and short any blood you might have lost. Considering there are no saline solutions or IV treatments around, and blood transfusions are non-existent, replacing lost blood takes time. For some reason, for me, it always comes down to a matter of time. How long before that time runs out?

  KAEL SYMES’ PERSONAL JOURNAL.

  DATE AND LOCATION UNKNOWN

  CATACOMBS OF ARKUM ZUL

  Lying on his back as the dust settled, Kael coughed again and again as a fine red mist sprayed from his mouth, only to land back on his face and neck.

  “Ah, crap, not
again,” he muttered, and winced through clenched teeth. Even though he had suffered through worse pain in the recent months, something was very wrong this time. He could feel it deep inside. He heard Kalmar shout at Kyah from a few feet away.

  “You need to get over here, girl, he’s coughing up blood.”

  “That bastard thing… stabbed me, dammit,” Kael cursed, as he tried to look down at his chest and survey the damage. Panting from the exertion, he laid back. Kyah rushed to his side.

  “I am here, Kael, hold still and let me see. Stop talking and save your strength,” she said, trying to keep him calm. Kael felt her magic flow into his damaged body, but easily understood it wasn’t enough to save his life. It wasn’t even close.

  As she peeled the blood-soaked Orotaq cloak from his chest, fear flashed in her eyes. Froth-filled blood bubbled from his chest only to be pulled back inside the wound every time he took a breath. Another racking cough ejected blood from the wound and more misted from his mouth.

  “It will be all right, Kael. It’s not as bad as it looks,” she lied, smiling.

  “Yeah, I know,” he groaned, and heaved more blood from his lungs. “Coughing up blood is part of our daily routine, isn’t it, Ky…” He gasped and clenched his teeth as he tried to ride out the wave of anguish that coursed through his chest. Tears ran from the corners of both eyes and his back arched upwards from the anguish of the severe wounds.

  Kyah looked down into Kael’s eyes and smiled as she placed her hands on his chest. “There is the Kael I have come to know and love,” she smiled, shaking, as tears welled up in her eyes. “It’s nice to see you are still in there. Please, Kael, hold still and try not to move.” Kael nodded as his consciousness wavered and darkness washed over his mind. His body relaxed as he passed out. Taking a deep breath, Kyah turned to Galen and Kalmar.

  “I know neither of you are natural healers, but please, I cannot save him, not on my own. Help me or he’s going to die… Please. These wounds are beyond anything I can heal.” She shook, her eyes filled with fear and when she got no response from the two wizards, she barked with frustration. “I cannot do it alone… Please!” she pleaded, tears pouring from her eyes.