The Sorcerer's Ring (Book #1 of the Seven Sorcerers Saga)

by Julius St.Clair

  ***

  “Thank you, I’ll be fine,” Tyuin called out to the guard as he pushed Remi and Kace into the large room they had met with the King in earlier. Without even being asked, they took the same seats they had been in earlier. Tyuin sighed and clasped his hands together.

  “I need to ask you two a couple of questions. Simply as a precaution.”

  “Go ahead,” Remi said. “We have nothing to hide.”

  “Do you know the Sage that killed some of my people?”

  “Not at all,” she said truthfully. “I never heard of him.”

  “How about you?” Tyuin asked, turning to Kace. He shook his head. “Next question then. Are you sure you don’t have any alliances with anyone?”

  “Not at all,” Remi said. “I came from a small town near the edge of Cimmerian, but we weren’t affiliated with them. My people would go there on raids to get supplies, but that was as far as their relationship went. And even if they did have some kind of agreement with Cimmerian, I left that place for good. So that says a lot about me.”

  “And you disobeyed my one order,” Tyuin said to Kace. “I asked you not to reveal your nature.”

  “It was either that or watch your people die.”

  “Yes, I figured as much,” he said. “But I wanted to hear your reasoning. I can’t be too careful from here on out. I’m not surprised that Cimmerian sent someone to our doorstep, but I didn’t think it would be this soon.”

  “They might have been watching the Kingdom last night and saw that everyone was celebrating.”

  “True,” he said, closing his eyes. “We lost eighteen people today. That’s not going to help with morale, but there is always a way to turn a bad situation around. I would like to enlist your help, and in exchange I will ensure that when you leave here, you will be given enough supplies to take you the rest of the way to Paragon.”

  “What do you need?” Remi asked, feeling anxious. After her embarrassing fight with Dominic, she was hoping he wasn’t about to put his faith in her fighting prowess, because it was a mistake. Kace had been right. What was she thinking when she suggested they go look for the Sorcerers? She couldn’t even take down a rogue Sage.

  “I want you to help me interrogate Dominic. With your eidolon out, you can tell if he’s lying or not.”

  “Dominic confuses me in general,” she said. “I didn’t even know Cimmerian had Sages on their side. I thought they were all a part of Paragon.”

  “Unfortunately, no. There are Sages fighting for both sides. And that’s another reason they aren’t seen as beacons of light amongst my people. I’ve personally had a lot of run ins with them, and that’s why Dominic’s arrival disturbed me today. Because I knew that you had Sage abilities, and the very next day, he appears. I was wondering if you two were working together but your answers have calmed my troubled mind.”

  “But how do you know we’re not lying?” Kace asked.

  “Trust me, I have my ways,” Tyuin said with a smile. He unclasped his hands and stood up from his seat. “Now…we should be getting to the dungeon so that we can talk to Dominic. He’ll have vital information for us, I’m sure.”

  “That’s one thing that concerns me,” Kace said. “Dominic is faking. He didn’t get knocked out earlier, and it’s obvious he got captured on purpose. Having him in the dungeon…you have to assume that’s all part of his master plan.”

  “I’m fully aware,” he said, ushering them to the door. “Don’t worry. Even now we have guards all over the Kingdom keeping a lookout.”

  “It won’t be enough,” Remi said as they walked out the door and down the hall. “The people…they were running from Dominic, not standing up to them.”

  “Cowardice is nothing new,” Tyuin replied as they reached the dungeon door. “But as long as the majority stands strong, we’ll be okay.”

  “I hope so,” she said as Tyuin slid back the locks and opened the door. A flood of light engulfed the room and Remi winced once she saw Dominic chained to the wall. It was as if every inch of his body except his head was covered in steel. After his eyes adjusted, he smiled with his full set of teeth.

  “Is it lunch time already?” he asked, then his smile dropped once he saw Tyuin. “The King himself? Wow. This is an honor. And I admire your work ethic. Not too proud to serve the prisoners, huh?”

  “I have nothing kind to say to you,” Tyuin said, “especially considering who you work for. But you will answer our questions.” Tyuin nodded towards Remi and she pulled her eidolon from out of her hip. The dark purple Falchion radiated as she pointed it towards Dominic. She could hear his heartbeat and when it picked up in tempo. She could count his breaths and sense his emotions.

  It was like reading someone’s body language but now her senses were enhanced. Since she had believed Sages and eidolons to be weak, she hardly played around with it unless it was to hit something, but once she gave it time to breathe and explore the world around her, she saw that it wanted to learn just as much as she did.

  And why not? It was her soul after all. Once again she saw the importance of standing back and stopping to enjoy the moment. Her mind was still her greatest asset, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t learn anything from giving in to her emotions from time to time. She had taken a chance with Kace and that had worked out so far. What other feats could she accomplish by focusing on that balance between logic and emotion?

  “That’s unnecessary,” Dominic laughed. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”

  “Call it a precaution,” Tyuin said, clasping his hands together. He cleared his throat. “Why are you here? Did Cimmerian send you?”

  “Yes,” he said truthfully. Remi nodded, confirming his intentions. “I’m here to lead an army through your borders. Allay has to fall. Once and for all.”

  “So you have an army nearby?”

  “Yep,” he said. “They should be attacking any moment now.”

  “We have guards all around the wall,” Tyuin said. “How will they get in?”

  “Underground,” Dominic replied, and Tyuin’s eyes went wide. “What? You didn’t think of that? Yeah, it takes a while, but you have to remember that we have our friends, the Langorans, at our disposal. They know a few things about digging intricate tunnels.”

  “Excuse me,” Tyuin said as he left them all. “I have to tell the guards.”

  “That was quick,” Dominic chuckled as Remi realized that they were all alone with the prisoner. “So, what do you want to talk about?”

  “Why are you doing this?” Remi asked in disgust. “Killing people…it doesn’t make sense.”

  “You wouldn’t understand,” he said low. “You didn’t grow up here.”

  “And you did?”

  “Long time ago. Can I ask you something? Do you know James? Or Catherine?”

  “I’ve heard of Catherine, but I don’t know her.”

  “I’m sure you’ll come across them at some point. Be careful of them. They’ll betray you when you’re at your weakest.”

  “That’s not how Tyuin talks about Catherine.”

  “Tyuin was friends with the Sages so it’s hard to trust what he says. You know, it’s not too late to come over here and free me. You could join Cimmerian, which would be pretty smart because we’re going to win anyways.”

  “I don’t want to choose sides.”

  “Yet, you’re working with Tyuin, who works for Paragon.”

  “Just for now. I have no allegiance to him.”

  “You say that now, but you’ll choose a side before long. You’ll have no choice. And you should really join Cimmerian. I see the potential within you. Why do you think I tried to leave you and the Quietus alone? It’s because I can see your strength.”

  “You’re being deceptive,” Remi declared, her eidolon humming in response. “You’re not lying, but there’s something hidden behind your words.”

  “Whatever you want to believe,” Dominic said, casting his eyes to the ground. “I don’t
understand why you’re putting so much faith into an eidolon anyways. If you can’t even trust yourself at times, how can you trust that thing?”

  “Don’t listen to him,” Kace said, putting his hand on Remi’s shoulder. “He’s trying to mess with our head.”

  “I know,” Remi said. “I’m not naïve enough to consider anyone from Cimmerian a brute. If they’re making any big moves, it’s calculated.”

  “It doesn’t sound like you’re going to join us,” Dominic commented.

  “That’s safe to say,” she replied, sheathing her eidolon. “I don’t need my eidolon anymore to know that you’re a liar. And that you’re not worth my time.”

  “That wasn’t nice.”

  “We just close the door?” Kace asked her as Dominic sucked his teeth.

  “Okay, okay,” Dominic spoke up. “I’ll be honest. Don’t leave just yet. I have something important to say.”

  “What is it?” Remi asked. He lifted his eyes to look into hers.

  “When I am freed from these chains, I will make you scream. I will make you feel a pain that you never thought possible in your lifetime. But no, baby, I won’t let you die. Because you’re mine now. I’m going to take you back to Cimmerian and make you one of my wives. I’m going to break you until you call me master and worship me. And I’ll use my eidolon to know if you’re being genuine. And every time I find out you’re not, I’ll break you again and again. Until you either become mine, kill yourself, or beg me to put you out of your misery.”

  “You’re sick,” Kace said, clenching his jaw. “And you’ll never get close to her again. You won’t even be able to break out of those chains. You’ll rot here where you belong.”

  “Don’t think so,” Dominic laughed. “Because the party’s just getting started, and I’m the host!”

  “What are you talking about?” Kace spat, but then the ceiling above them shook. A rumble vibrated the room, and then it stopped as quickly as it came. Dominic began laughing manically.

  “Oh, this is going to be good.”