Wildfire: Book Two of the Everealm Series

by J. D. Wright

  “I can’t.”

  Dagan waited for his father to explain, but he didn’t.

  “Why can’t you?”

  “I just can’t. Here, take it,” he said, tossing it onto the table.

  Dagan was becoming frustrated at his father’s careless answers. On one hand, he felt sorry for his father. The man in front of him was pitiful. His entire face was covered by his peppered gray beard and hair, which were overgrown and frazzled. Having spent over a year in confinement, he was pale and malnourished. Even with the clean clothes that the queen had given him, he still looked like a beggar. Regardless of Edmund’s current state, Dagan still couldn’t help but feel anger and resentment when he looked at him.

  “I don’t have time to play riddles,” Dagan said, turning to go, but his father spoke up just before he reached the stairs to the casting room.

  “I don’t have magic.” Edmund looked down at the amulet sitting on the table. “Anymore, at least…”

  “You lost your magic? How?”

  “The only way a wizard can lose their magic… The Elder Mage.”

  “I don’t understand. Do you mean to tell me that my grandfather, your father, abolished your magic?”

  “No, not abolished. Though, he very well could have. He sealed it, instead. Either way, I have no magic.”

  “If it’s sealed, does that mean it can be unsealed?”

  “Yes, theoretically. But seeing as he has gone…”

  “Why did he seal it?” Dagan asked. It was rare for an Elder Mage to administer such a heavy punishment.

  Edmund stared at the table.

  “Why did he seal it?” Dagan asked, again.

  “It doesn’t matter. All that does matter is that I have no use for the amulet anymore.” Abruptly, he stood. “Put it in a safe place. You never know when you may need it.”

  “I don’t plan to make a habit of disguising myself.”

  Edmund snickered. “The stone is capable of more than that, son.” Much more.

  “Don’t call me that.”

  “Very well.”

  ~*~

  Dagan stomped up the stairs to the casting room. He probably should feel guilty for what he said to his father, but he didn’t. In fact, he didn’t feel sympathy for his father having lost access to his magic either. Whatever happened between Elric and Edmund, it must have been bad enough to warrant Edmund getting his magic sealed. Sealing the magic, instead of abolishing it, was probably the only reason that Edmund was still alive. After all, this year he would be turning one hundred and one years of age. And without magic in his body, he never would have lived this long.

  But how he was able to live, without another wizard to help heal his body as it aged, was another question. And where had he been this entire time? Questions upon questions plagued him and he didn’t expect that getting answers to them would be easy. Edmund hadn’t been very forthcoming thus far. And Dagan had more pressing concerns at the moment.

  Less than three weeks. That’s all of the time they had. If what Dahlia heard was true, Junacave would be attacked and they had no plan for how to defend themselves. It wasn’t as if Junacave was defenseless. Far from it. But soldiers and defensive spells were no match for what was coming.

  Feeling defeated, Dagan put his hands on the table and hung his head. Perhaps, taking this position was a mistake. How could he protect the kingdom he swore to serve? Simply put, he couldn’t. His grandfather would be so ashamed…

  A light shone into Dagan’s eyes. He opened them to see the scrying mirror, sitting on the table. It was glowing. He watched the light begin to swirl and soon an image started to form. It looked like an island, but he didn’t recognize it. Not that he could have. He’d never been to sea. It had always seemed like a terrible way to travel. Cramped inside a ship with no way to escape.

  The island disappeared, suddenly, and was replaced by an image of Sidonie, standing in the hall. Sid and an island? He didn’t understand what the mirror was trying to tell him. So he decided to try asking the mirror, instead.

  “Can you be more specific?”

  The mirror zoomed in on Sidonie’s face.

  “Alright, Sidonie. I get that. Is there something on the island that Sidonie needs?”

  The mirror didn’t change. Dagan thought about it for a moment.

  “Or someone? Is there someone on the island that Sidonie needs?” Her father.

  The island reappeared.

  “What is the name of the island?”

  Nothing happened. The mirror was certainly making things difficult for him.

  “I can’t take her there unless I know where we are going…”

  Again, nothing changed. Dagan heard footsteps behind him, but he already knew who it was. His father had been standing in the doorway. Edmund may not be able to use his magic, but Dagan could still sense his presence, seeing that the magic was still there, in Edmund’s blood.

  “Mind if I take a look?” Edmund asked, and without waiting for Dagan to respond, he leaned over and glanced at the mirror.

  “Sure, go ahead.” Not that it mattered, since he was already looking at it.

  “Odustis.”

  “What?”

  “That island is Odustis, a small island southeast of Sire. About a five-day journey from here.”

  “Odustis… I’ve heard that name before.”

  “I would hope so. It’s where your mother’s parents were from. It’s where they lived when she was a child, just before they moved to Creeden.”

  “My mother didn’t speak highly of the place she lived as a child.”

  “No, I suppose she wouldn’t. It is a filthy place that people wouldn’t want to associate with. Kilharie, the pirate cove, is in Odustis.”

  “Now that place I have heard of.” Dagan turned back to the mirror. The surface had already returned to black. “Why would Sid’s father be in a place like that?” he said, thinking aloud.

  “Your lady friend, is that her name? Sid?”

  “Sidonie, yes.”

  “And you’re looking for her father?”

  Dagan hesitated. He already didn’t trust him. Adding the fact that Edmund had done something that must have been pretty terrible for his own father to find it necessary to take his magic away. Dagan just didn’t see a reason to even attempt to trust him. No, Dagan would handle this on his own.

  “Thank you for your help, but I need to get some sleep,” Dagan said.

  Edmund nodded, understanding the hint, and left the room. Dagan wasn’t sure where his father planned to spend the rest of the night. Nor did he care.

  ~*~

  At breakfast the next morning, Dagan pulled Sidonie away from the queen’s table to sit at another, so they could speak privately. Bree was entertaining a lord and lady from her kingdom and Dagan didn’t want their discussion to be overheard by strangers. He told her about the mirror and the island.

  “Does he know about my magic? I’m sure he could have sensed it when we were alone in the tower yesterday, but he didn’t mention it. He didn’t speak to me at all, really.”

  “No, he doesn’t know.”

  “How can you be sure?”

  “Trust me, he doesn’t.” Dagan decided not to tell Sidonie about the seal on his father’s magic until they were away from him. If she acted strangely around him, it might give Edmund a reason to be suspicious. It would be best if they could sneak away, quietly.

  “Well, we need to find a way to get to this island,” she said. “Odustis, he called it? We don’t have a lot of time.”

  “No, we don’t. I will go to the village and buy supplies for the trip. Then we need to get to Sire and secure passage to the island. Can you fill Queen in on the plan, once her guests leave?”

  “Yes, I can do that.”

  “Sid,” he said, taking her hand into his. Her fingers were warm and the touch caused the magic in his body to tingle. He had grown used to the feeling and barely no
ticed it anymore. “I want to say… I’m sorry.”

  “Sorry? For what?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “What did you do?”

  “I haven’t done anything. I am apologizing for what may come, in the future.”

  “So… you are sorry for something you haven’t done yet. That makes perfect sense.” She grinned, but he didn’t find it amusing.

  “It isn’t something I will do, exactly. I have lived around magic my entire life. I’ve seen the good, the bad, the magnificent, and the absolutely terrible…”

  “Where are you going with this?” She was beginning to think she should be afraid.

  Dagan shook his head, trying to put his thoughts into words. He looked into her eyes.

  “Once you get your powers, your full magic, people will expect you to use it. When this monster of a wizard, Mereck,” Dagan all but spat the name, “decides to attack us, you will have to use your magic to defend yourself and everyone around you. You are the only one who can.”

  “I realize that, Dagan—“

  “No, Sid. You may have to kill him. At the very least, you will have to abolish his magic. That will take a giant toll on you, both emotionally and magically. We feel things, emotions, more heightened than regular people do. You know that already. Guilt… It’s another emotion that will be harder for you to accept.”

  “Yes, I have considered that. I’ve killed a man before, twice actually. You were there when the assassin tried to murder me because he thought I was the queen.”

  “I do remember that, but… wait. Did you say you’ve killed a man… twice?”

  Sidonie pulled her hand back, surprised at her own words. She picked up a piece of honey oat bread and dipped it into her potato and pork stew, avoiding the question.

  “Sometimes, I forget that we are still getting to know one another. If you don’t want to tell me now, I respect that decision. I will wait until you do. Just don’t turn into Rowan, alright?”

  She chuckled at his joke. Rowan’s kill number was probably much higher than either of them would want to know. But at the same time, if they were glad to have anyone on their side when the time came to fight, it was Rowan.

  Dagan excused himself and left the hall. But Sidonie wasn’t alone for long. Edmund took Dagan’s place across the table. Sidonie held her breath, unsure if she should greet him or try to get away. She couldn’t read Dagan’s mind, but she could tell that he didn’t trust Edmund. And if Dagan didn’t trust him, she wouldn’t either.

  “I realize you may not trust me,” Edmund said.

  Can he read minds? she thought.

  “I don’t know you, sir.”

  “None of that ‘sir’ business, darling. Edmund will do. If my son considers you to be family, then I do, as well.”

  Sidonie wasn’t sure how she felt about Edmund referring to her as ‘darling’, or referring to either of them as family. But she decided to play along.

  “Thank you, Edmund. That means a great deal to me.”

  “I can tell you’re lying,” he said, laughing. “I am old enough to know when someone is humoring me, darling.”

  There is that word again. “How old are you?” she asked. If he were prepared to be bold by calling out her lie, she could be bold, too.

  “I will be one hundred and one, soon. And I fear I won’t have many more years ahead of me. That is why I am appealing to you, darling. My son may not want to listen to me, but I expect you will. Out of proper manners of a lady, if nothing else.”

  If he only knew the kind of lady I was before I came here, he wouldn’t, she thought. The wild Sabra in her may be covered with pretty gowns and slippers that actually fit her feet, but it wasn’t gone.

  “Of course, but I don’t want to get between the two of you,” she said. That part, she actually meant.

  “I understand. Having spent some time in solitude, recently, I’ve had a lot of time to think. About the past and the future. Once things are settled here, I will go. He never has to see me again.”

  “Pardon my frankness, but perhaps the problem between the two of you is because he feels you abandoned him. Leaving again, abandoning him again, will only make things worse.”

  “His mother is the one who left me. Dagan chose to go with her.”

  “And you never came to find him.”

  “Actually…. I did. But I was mad with grief. I spent the entire time drunk and angry. I wasn’t in my right mind. My father knew it and stopped me before I could do anything… reckless…”

  Sidonie could tell that this story was one Edmund had never told before. He choked up more than once and wouldn’t look her in the eye. But she knew that he was sharing with the wrong person.

  “Maybe you should tell him this, instead of me.”

  “I will. But I’m not sure he’s ready to hear it.”

  “Perhaps, not.”

  “I thank you, darling, for humoring an old man.” He stood to leave, then turned back. “There is a painting in the armory. I’m not sure if Dagan has been there. It looks just like his portal. He may want to see if the queen will part with it. It really is a beautiful painting.”

  “Wait. How do you know what his portal looks like?” She knew for a fact that Dagan hadn’t opened the portal since Edmund was rescued. The dagger containing the portal was safe inside Dagan’s trunk in his chambers.

  “I watched him create it. It was really something…”

  Sidonie eyed him, curiously.

  “You didn’t really abandon him, did you? You’ve followed him.” Edmund didn’t answer her, but a twinkle in his eye gave him away. “How?”

  “Disguise, of course.” With that said, he walked away and left Sidonie gaping after him.

  The amulet.

  ~*~

  Rowan chuckled to himself and finished off his bowl of beef and cabbage. He picked up a corn muffin, took a bite, and laughed again.

  “What?”

  “You’re staring at her… Again.”

  “No, I wasn’t,” Reeve said, averting his eyes. “I was just… How can you not stare at her? She’s a fairy! Just look at her!”

  “I have looked at her.” I’ve seen more of her than you can imagine. Twice.

  “I’m not crazy. And I’m not the only one who’s looking at her.”

  Reeve wasn’t wrong. Any time Rhea came to the hall for a meal, both men and women would stop and stare at her. Seeing a fairy was a rare occurrence in the realm. And everyone was curious about her. But Rowan had a sneaking suspicion that Reeve was more than curious.

  “I can introduce you to her,” he said, taking another bite.

  The look on Reeve’s face was hilarious. He looked terrified and ready to hurl.

  Rowan laughed. "Never mind.”

  ~*~

  The horses were ready before the sun had even cleared the castle walls. Sidonie said her farewells to Bree. Sarita was displeased that Sid was leaving again. She stomped away, angrily, but Sidonie suspected it was only so that she didn’t show her tears.

  Dagan mounted his horse and waited for Sidonie to climb onto hers, then they set forth toward Sire. It was typically a two-day journey, but they rode overnight and made it there by late morning. The port was busy with people loading and unloading ships that traveled the sea and barges that ran up and down the Cyan River. They rode up to a tavern within sight of the port and Dagan dismounted. He was just about to tie the reins to a post when he felt a hand on his shoulder that made his body stiffen.

  He turned to see his father standing behind him. Edmund was wearing a set of dark green wizard robes over his brown pants and tunic. And he had somehow found time to cut his hair and trim his beard. He couldn’t have used magic, as Dagan well knew, but now he looked much younger and more alive than he did before.

  “I’ve chartered a passage to Odustis. We leave now,” Edmund said.

  “We can find our own way…”

  “Don’t waste time, Dagan. Let’s go
.” Edmund turned and walked toward the docks. Dagan looked at Sidonie, who smiled, faintly. Reluctantly, he turned to follow.

  “Leave your horses here, with Art. He will return them to Junacave,” Edmund said, gesturing to a young man who was putting a saddle on a horse nearby.

  “Dahlia suggested a man who works in the stables. We planned to bribe him into keeping them for us,” Dagan said, dismounting.

  “Do you want to mention her name to a man you don’t know? That doesn’t sound very safe, considering she just escaped this place.”

  “He does have a point,” Sidonie said. It earned her a stern look from Dagan, but she knew he agreed despite of it.

  “What will we do when we return? How will we get back to Junacave?”

  “I’ve already taken care of it.”

  Dagan was dumbfounded. How his father was able to put this plan into action so quickly, and thoroughly, was beyond his understanding. But Sidonie was already unloading the bags and pouches from her horse. And Edmund was right, to refuse his offer would be a waste of time. Time was a luxury that they didn’t have.

  Edmund greeted a man on the docks. He was just as round as he was tall and had many crooked teeth. He was standing next to a large wooden ship. Edmund introduced Dagan and Sidonie as his children. It was obvious that Edmund knew the man, but the man seemed surprised to learn that Edmund had children. The man, who they later learned was named Vicar, led them down to a small room below deck. They stashed their belongings in the room and left to return to the top deck. Dagan put a quick spell over the door, just in case.

  They watched the shoreline getting smaller and smaller. Dagan wanted to reach out and hold Sid’s hand as they enjoyed the view together, but it wouldn’t look appropriate. She was supposed to be his sister, for the journey at least. He would have to be careful of how he acted around her for the next five days. It wasn’t going to be easy, especially when a wave crashing against the ship caused her to fall against him. He caught her and looked down to see the tops of her plump breasts, just inches from his face. He closed his eyes and cursed to himself.

  “Oh, hell.”

  Chapter Fourteen