The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1

by AJ Martin

  “Then the dragon will escape,” he said.

  “For what reason?” she asked. “Are you telling me this prophecy did not tell you why these shadowy people would work to release a creature capable of wreaking utter devastation on this continent?”

  “I can only imagine that answer will become clearer in time,” Matthias replied.

  Josephine raised a hand to her forehead. “So if I do nothing, if I ignore your warnings and sit tight here in Rina, a lot of people will suffer.” She sighed. “How do you even expect me to stop the dragon escaping, if I haven’t got a clue what I am supposed to do? I have never been able to control my power! I was only able to suppress it with the wise woman’s help!”

  “There are some similarities between the different powers. If the gods have given you this gift, they must be confident that you will be able to use it. You wouldn’t give a hammer and an anvil to a blacksmith without them knowing what to do with them, so why would they give you something you couldn’t use?” He smiled. “Somewhere within you is the knowledge to wield your power. It just might need nurturing, which is where we can help. Where I can help.”

  The princess nodded hesitantly and then moved to the window. The sky was dark now.

  Matthias watched her. “Your Highness, you hold the pure power. It is the strongest energy ever created. It is simply too almighty a power to be suppressed forever. You act like a conduit for the power: it funnels itself through you like an aqueduct. I doubt that what this wise woman taught you, whoever or whatever she was, will last for any considerable length of time. She will have only put a cork in the pipe, shored up the defences inside of you with a few loose logs against a torrent of energy. However much it may seem to be stable within you now, I believe it will unleash itself again eventually, regardless of the lengths you have gone to stop it. It is the will of the gods. You can dam up the river, but eventually the wood will rot and water will flow again. It’s only a matter of time. My people can help.”

  “Mister Greenwald, forgive me if I am blunt, but I would sooner trust the dreadlord himself than your people right now,” said the princess.

  Matthias nodded. “I understand,” he said. Then he took a breath and started forward towards her. “Then trust me,” he said.

  “Trust my erstwhile kidnapper?” she mused.

  “Your Highness,” Thadius interrupted, looking awkward, “Forgive me if this is not my place, but I feel obliged to speak on this subject.” The princess looked at him, surprised a moment, but then nodded for him to continue. “I do not wholly trust Matthias. Since he came here he has given me - has given you - very little reason to, and his actions have been dishonest, to say the least, in what he attempted to do. But in remaining he has shown a glimmer of loyalty. And I do believe that what he has told us about the dragon and about you, is true.”

  “Are you saying you think I should help?” she asked.

  “Princess, we have known each other for a long time. I have served your family for my entire life. Your safety is my first priority. But I also believe in you, Your Highness, in everything that you do, and if this is your calling, then I know you can do it.”

  Josephine smiled. “That was laced with positivity, Thadius!”

  “I know,” he said chuckling. “I think I might be coming down with something.”

  “I have never known you to be so… progressive.”

  Thadius smiled back. “I imagine it won’t last for long, Your Highness, should you decide to do this. But if you do, then I know you can do it.”

  Josephine turned back to Matthias. “There is a problem, however, in that I do not trust you, Matthias, in spite of your protestations. My father says you are unlike any wizard he has ever met, but that does not necessarily mean you are more trustworthy than those that have come before you.” Matthias opened his mouth to speak, but she held her hand up. “Ah-ah! I have not finished. If the stakes are as high as you say, if the dragon is so close to being freed, then perhaps I have no more time for such matters. What I do need, however, is honesty. If this is required of me, then I need my questions to be answered with absolute candour. There are to be no more lies or falsehoods.”

  Matthias nodded. “I will speak the truth on those matters that concern you, princess. You have my word on that.”

  She nodded thoughtfully. “Should I agree to assist- and I am not saying I will- then what would happen then? Are there other wizards that are to accompany me on this journey?”

  “Before I tried to kidnap you the plan as it was originally intended was that I would have helped you to realise your abilities, if they were not already apparent, with the help of my Master, a great and powerful wizard.”

  “Is he nearby?” the princess asked.

  Matthias shook his head. “No, he’s in Mahalia. But I have a way to communicate with him instantly from here. Together, he and I would work to make sure you could control your power as we travelled to Olindia, where we would then try to stop the dragon’s release. Meanwhile, in Mahalia my people will try to find and cut off the people who are intending to free Sikaris.

  “In case I were to fail?” the princess asked.

  Matthias shrugged. “To put it bluntly, yes.”

  The princess paced the floor of her room. “How many people live within the dragon’s reach?” she asked. “Hundreds of thousands?”

  “A lot more than that,” Matthias replied.

  The princess nodded. “How many of them will die if Sikaris is released and I selfishly remain here?” She shook her head. “I hate this power. You call it a gift from the gods, but all it has brought me this far is pain and suffering.”

  “I understand that,” Matthias responded. “What I’m offering you is a way to stop events like those in your past from happening again.”

  Josephine sighed. “How could I avoid using this power under such circumstances? How could I refuse and live with myself as people are killed in their masses? I have no choice in this matter if I want to look myself in the eye ever again.”

  “Then you will help?” Matthias asked tentatively.

  After a pause she nodded. “I will come on your little sojourn, but under several conditions, all of which are not optional.”

  Matthias smiled and nodded. “Which are?”

  “The first is that I will be accompanied by a full, armed guard. I do not intend to trudge my way to wherever it is we are to go.”

  Matthias licked his teeth with his tongue awkwardly. “That may be a problem. Such a large guard is slow and conspicuous. I…” Josephine lowered her head so that she was looking at him over her brow. “Ahem. I’m sure that will be fine.”

  She nodded. “Secondly, which seems to be a given anyway, is that you will teach me about my energy personally. Now we are acquainted I do not wish to meet any others of your kind if I can help it.”

  “Consider it done, Your Highness,” Matthias replied.

  “Thirdly, you will give me your word that if I stop this dragon-”

  “You will,” Matthias nodded. “I have every confidence in you.”

  “How inspiring of you,” Josephine said acerbically. “Very well. When I stop this dragon, you your people will allow me to return home to Rina. I will not be made into a trophy for your people to wheel out whenever there is call for it, or reprimanded for my use of this energy. I am not going to become your puppet.”

  Matthias took a breath. Then after a pause, he nodded. “You have my word.”

  “Very well then,” the princess said, and gathered her skirts. “Now that is agreed, we had best tell my father.”

  Discussions

  114th Day of the Cycle, 495 N.E. (New Era)

  “Never!” The king barked, his face purple as beetroot as he spat at the trio in front of him. “I will never allow it! And as for you, Thadius! You have betrayed the orders of your king? I should have your head for such a matter, friend or not!”

  “Thadius did not betray your orders!” The princess countered. “The wizard came
to visit me, not the other way around. Your orders did not prohibit such an occurrence.”

  The king opened his mouth to bark a fierce reprisal, but then considered the words she had uttered, before he scoffed. “A technicality is no justification when you know it still goes against my wishes!”

  “He was following my instruction,” Josephine advised. “If you are to be angry with someone, then direct it towards me.”

  The king shrugged. “I would if I thought it would make any difference to your behaviour!” He threw his hands up. “Why do the gods test me so? Is running a kingdom not enough in this day and age without a daughter who would sooner get herself tied up in the schemes of a wizard than to listen to her king and master?”

  “Father, my respect for you runs deeper than you can imagine. But this concerns my future. I had to speak further with the ambassador.”

  “The consequence of which conversation is that you intend to follow a near stranger and a wizard to boot, into our neighbour’s land? To battle the Great Dragon himself?” The king laughed. “What sorcery did you place upon her mind wizard?”

  “I told her only the truth, Your Grace,” Matthias replied calmly.

  “Father, I am going with the ambassador. Believe me, it is not my preferred choice, and it may even be the worst decision I will ever make. But I must help defend our people- all people- against this threat.” She swallowed. “I feel deep within me that it is the right thing to do.”

  “And if I do not allow it to be so?” The king rumbled.

  “Whether you permit it or not I will be going. Your alternative, Your Grace, would be to imprison me,” the princess said bluntly.

  King Arwell looked aghast and turned to Matthias. “You have poisoned my own daughter against me,” he growled. “You have done what I never thought would have been possible.”

  “Your Grace, I only want to help,” Matthias replied. “I made a mistake with my recent actions, but it was a mistake borne out of good intentions. I have pledged to teach your daughter how to control her abilities and she has my word that once this situation is over I will return her to you.” Matthias shook his head. “I know there is nothing more I can do to convince you of my good intentions.”

  The king raised a hand to his brow and placed the other on his hip. “Even if your intentions are just, this is my only daughter. Would you let your own child go on such a dangerous journey?”

  Matthias shook his head. “I can't answer that Your Grace, not having been a father. How could I measure your fear without that first-hand experience? There is nothing comparable to the love of a parent to their child, or so I understand.”

  “Father,” Josephine whispered softly. “One day you will not be here to protect me and I will have to stand on my own. What kind of a future queen will I make if I ignore the greatest threat to our people for centuries and hide away in a corner under your arm? I could never call myself the defender of the phoenix throne should my lack of action now result in the deaths of millions.”

  The anger in the king’s eyes began to fade, replaced with a sorrowful expression. He exhaled heavily. “Your mother was always stubborn, you know,” he said. “But I swear you are a hundred times worse!”

  Josephine smiled. “So you will let me go?” she asked.

  The king nodded. “I suppose I will,” he said reservedly. “But only with a pledge from you Thadius, that you will look after her yourself!”

  Thadius bowed his head. “I would want nothing more than to protect the princess, Your Grace. However, surely there is someone better suited to carry out such a task? One of your generals perhaps?”

  “Thadius, there is no one I would trust more than you with my daughter’s safety,” King Arwell replied. Then he scoffed. “Perhaps I would have sent the king’s hand, had I not just sentenced him to death for betrayal!”

  Thadius flinched. “Oh yes, of course. I’d forgotten about that Your Grace.”

  The king nodded. “You are the most trustworthy of all my men. You always have been. It is about time you rose to the position you have denied yourself for so long, Sir Thadius Wilhem.”

  Thadius swallowed and his eyes bulged. “Your Grace I… I don’t feel ready for such an honour.”

  “You have earned a knighthood a hundred times over! No more will I accept your refusal! You might not feel you have earned it, and I have tolerated your refusals before because I think a great deal of you. But this time I command it. You are charged with my daughter's wellbeing on this journey.”

  Thadius swallowed and knelt down. “I will serve you well, my king.”

  “You’re damned right, you will!” the king smiled and then, his expression growing icy again, he looked to Matthias. “And if this wizard betrays us one more time, I want you to personally take his head off.” Matthias held firm his stoic expression, not even swallowing at the prospect.

  Thadius nodded again. “It would be my pleasure, Your Majesty,” he chuckled.

  The king stroked his beard. “This morning I awoke with the greatest thing on my mind being what I was to eat for breakfast. Now I have a daughter with the fate of the world resting on her shoulders.” He turned and strode to a set of double windows, laying his arm against the alcove. “It is a dangerous world out there and you have never been in it, my daughter. You cannot possibly know how many dangers await you.”

  The princess swallowed. “I will be well protected, Your Grace,” she said.

  “You are a brave girl, Josephine. You always have been. But I know you do this out of a duty to the people.” He turned to face her again. “There is still time to walk away from this.”

  “If I can learn to control these powers, then it will be all the better for me as well as your people.”

  The king took a deep breath and nodded again. Then he looked to Matthias. “When must you go wizard?”

  “As soon as possible, Your Grace,” Matthias replied.

  “I thought you might say that,” the man said gruffly. “Thadius, prepare an escort to accompany you to Olindia.” He looked pensive. “Perhaps I should come with you as well.”

  “Your Grace, it is bad enough to risk the princess going on this journey, but for you to come as well…” Thadius said.

  “King Arwell, it is going to be difficult enough to hide the presence of the princess when she is surrounded by a cortège of guards. With the king joining us as well, word will spread. We don’t know who is breaking the dragon from his prison. We don’t know how much they already know about your daughter. The less of a fuss that is made, then the better our chances will be. I would not advise you to come,” Matthias said. The king looked sternly at him.

  “You must stay father,” the princess said sadly. “I would have you come with me, but if I do not succeed, then your kingdom will need its king to be here to prepare for the dragon’s arrival.”

  The king looked pained, but eventually, after a moment, he nodded. “Very well,” he said gruffly, and added: “The women always claim to know best, do they not?”

  “The world has known no other truth for hundreds of years,” Matthias replied.

  A Trust is Earned

  114th Day of the Cycle, 495 N.E. (New Era)

  Matthias returned to his room a little later, guarded from the outside now, of course, where he was left to his own devices. Beforehand the king had allowed him, begrudgingly, to venture into the city, escorted by two soldiers, where he had proceeded to lay invisible lines of energy across some of the more common routes up to the palace. If a demon were to trip them, he would know about it.

  When he arrived back at his room, his staff stood propped up against a chair, collected from where he had left it in the corridor earlier. He was glad of its return, having had it for so long. He used it, like many wizards, as a conduit to channel the earth power, which all wizards of Mahalia wielded. He could channel the power without it of course, but with its help he was able to better focus his strength and use the energy to greater effect. Other wizards used a staff
as well for the same reason, whilst some others preferred wands or even, in some rare cases, swords or lances. But he found the staff to be adequate and given its sentimental value, he would not be parted with it for any other prop. That walk in the forested countryside, where he had found the branch seemed such a long time ago now and yet, in the great scheme of the world’s life, he was but a tiny step forward.

  He sat in one the chair beside it and grasped its gnarled, bulbous top, patting it thoughtfully. He had disobeyed his master’s order to kidnap the princess. Pym would not be happy at that. But then again, it would not be the first time he had shirked his elders. He was confident that this way was better, with the cooperation of the princess rather than resorting to coercion, as was so often the case with his people.

  He fumbled in his bag and pulled out the communication orb, placing it on the table in front of him. He would speak with Pym later that day and let him know what was happening. First he needed some time to rest. He hadn’t slept in the cell and he couldn’t remember the last time he had actually drifted into unconsciousness. He eased himself out of the chair and moved to the bed, crawling on top of the goose - feather duvet and arranging himself into a cross - legged position, his staff resting horizontally over his knees.

  “Time to meditate,” he whispered to himself. “Then perhaps I can clear my mind enough to find sleep again.” He closed his eyes and steadied his breathing, drawing in the air through his nostrils and exhaling it back out through his mouth. He tried to block out the cawing of crows somewhere outside the window. After uncountable minutes had passed, Matthias felt his head start to grow heavier and images began to dance in front of his mind, as he entered a deep, dream - like state.

  He was standing in the centre of a street, the cobbles beneath his feet shattered and scorched. His clothes appeared unchanged and he had his staff in his hand. Where was he? He looked around. The sky was a ruddy orange, dense with clouds. His ears pricked at the sound of crackling wood and a multitude of voices. No, they weren’t voices. They were screams and wails. Around him, buildings sprung up from the ground and instantly burst into flames and then, swooping across his vision, the silhouette of the Great Dragon Sikaris soared through the sky. He stepped back in shock a moment until his mind caught up with his instincts. He knew he was meditating and so in no danger but still, it all seemed very real. These were the events of the past. Or at least, it was his mind’s representation of them. He was in Crystal Ember, the capital city of Olindia, and this was the last day of the greatest war ever fought. This was the day the dragon was captured.