The Divine Apprentice (The Divine Series)

by Allen J Johnston

  Kade turned and grabbed the books of power from the cubby, making sure to keep them all closed. His eyes fell on the demon and his grip tightened even more. Deathly afraid of triggering any of the protections, he set the books on the table, putting the book with the demon on the bottom of the stack to make sure it did not flex open. He turned and looked back at the bookshelf. Rayden’s panicked roar echoed through the cabin, making it almost impossible for Kade to organize his thoughts.

  Seeing no other books that Kade felt needed saving, he moved back to the table. He did his best to steady his hands. He forced himself to calm as best as he could and carefully picked up the pile of books. He turned toward the door and the dragon roared again. His head rang from the increased ability to hear. For just a moment, he decided that his enhanced hearing was not such a good thing and then the thought was gone as the heat beat down on him.

  Kade raced out of the cabin, running until he was sure that he was far enough from the fire and set the books down. He raced back into the blaze, and just as he went in the front door, the dragon rounded the corner. It had been running around the cabin, looking in each window in search of him.

  Kade raced to his left and charged into his personal room. He quickly grabbed the largest sack he could find and proceeded to pack as many of his clothes as he could carry. He pulled the drawstring closed and raced back through the house to the front. He skidded to a stop and threw the bag out the door as far as he could. Seeing the bookshelf out of the corner of his eye, he turned and raced into the den to grab anything else that might be of importance. He took one step in and started to turn to his left when his legs gave out, sending him slamming into the table. His head hit with a jarring impact. The world started to slip away.

  It took a moment for his head to clear enough for him to form thought. No, I will not give in like this, Kade thought as he fought to keep conscious. He forced his eyes to focus on the bookcase and the darkness slowly receded. His mind cleared and he realized he was lying across the table.

  What in the land of the dead…, Kade thought, and then he realized that he had run through the door without deactivating the trap. Panic surged through him as the weight of his situation came crashing down on him. He was facing the front of the cabin and all he could see now was a wall of flames. Fear of burning to death hit him so hard that he would have screamed in sheer terror if he could have. The thought of being burned alive caused his mind to spiral out of control.

  Master, where are you? Kade thought over and over as the heat caused him to want to blink.

  If I get out of this, I promise I will never consider any calling unimportant, no matter how small it is, Kade vowed to himself as the ceiling started to creak. Dust drifted down onto his face and into his eyes, causing him to mentally wail. He found himself wishing this were over as despair racked his mind, but then in the next instant, was determined not to die such a painful death. His fear of dying by fire was enough to force him to stop and think.

  The dragon roared again, and at the same time, something brushed Kade’s mind. Whatever it was, it did not go away. There was intense panic, and Kade was certain that it was not all his. He could hear Rayden running around the cabin, blasting every side with his panicked roar. Kade’s mind came to a screeching halt.

  There is one chance, he thought as a surge of hope hit him. I know one use of the Divine Power that needs no motions. The Drift Calling. Just maybe…he thought and started to draw on the power. He was relieved to feel the sweet sense of the Divine as it filled him.

  Kade tried to clear his mind as much as possible. Drift, he thought in the ancient language. Nothing happened so he forced himself to focus again. The power was still surging in him so he concentrated again. Drift, he thought once more, but the panic started to consume him as he looked down at his body lying on the table. He looked around the room at the fire and almost lost control. It worked!

  Now, if I can just get to the dragon!

  Kade directed his awareness through the fire and out to the front of the cabin. The dragon came around the corner and roared. Kade tried to call out to Rayden but the dragon raced by him. He tried to catch Rayden but the dragon was moving too fast. Panic, again, started to take the place of hope until he saw the dragon pause at the front of the house where the lightning had blasted the wall. After several seconds, the dragon ran to the other sides of the house. It would pause at each side and then run back to the hole in the wall and roar his call.

  I know what I have to do. This is my last chance, Kade thought as he forced his awareness over to the gaping hole as the home turned into a fiery inferno. He looked in and saw the roof sagging lower and lower. It would be moments, at best, before his body was buried beneath the blaze. He felt as though a hand had a tight grip on his heart and was squeezing.

  Rayden raced around the corner at a full run. He leaned his body into the turn as his claws slid through the dirt, fighting to grip the ground for purchase. Kade drifted right to the dragon and merged. Rayden roared in desperation once again. Kade flinched, expecting his head to ring, but in this form, it was not like hearing with his real ears. The sound was muted considerably.

  Rayden! Kade thought as strongly as he possible. Rayden, help me! The dragon flinched, breaking contact as it quickly swung its head around to the right and then to the left. Hearing nothing, it swung its head forward again to look for the voice. Rayden, don’t move! Kade thought with force. The dragon froze. Kade saw its muscles twitching, desperately wanting to do something. I am in the fire right in front of you! I am trapped and can’t move! Save me! he pleaded.

  The dragon tensed, readying to tear the wall down to get to his friend. Kade sensed the dragon’s intentions and thought as strong as possibly, the roof is collapsing! The dragon paused, attempting to puzzle out what Kade was trying to communicate. Just then, the roof creaked loudly and started to come down on the helpless man. The dragon broke contact with him and charged into the burning room. That was the last thing Kade saw as his panic took full control of his heart, mind and soul. Everything faded.

  *CH4*

  The smoky smell wafted over Kade, waking him slightly. He inhaled and coughed weakly as the pungent scent of ash and soot overwhelmed him. Trying to open his eyes, he flinched slightly at the excruciating ache he felt from his muscles as they protested greatly. He found it hard to think as he struggled to rise from the murky depth his mind was trapped in. His thoughts turned sluggish, and he slipped back into oblivion. For a brief moment, just before descending into nothingness, he heard rasping, as though something were struggling to breathe. The last thought he had, as he spun down into the chasm, was that it had to be something important.

  As Kade started to awake, the strong memory of a fire caused his pulse to quicken. He was not sure why it was so familiar, but it was. He felt a stinging sensation creep over his body the more alert he became. Pain crept into his consciousness. A flash of a room on fire lit across his mind’s eye momentarily and then was gone. He could see light through his eyelids as the pain continued to intensify. He ran his swollen tongue across lips that were cracked. His throat was torturously dry, but was there more? Breathing hot air possibly? He did not know why, but for some reason, that thought seemed to fit.

  As he struggled to open his eyes, he heard an odd, rasping sound that had a slight gurgle to it. His adrenalin spiked, but his mind still struggled to understand why it should matter. The boost of adrenalin was all he needed to find the energy to pry open his crusted eyes. Straining through blurred vision, he tried to scan his surroundings. As his mind cleared more and more, his sense of dread and panic started to creep in, but why? That sound has something to do with it. He realized he was lying face down in the dirt and struggled to get to his hands and knees.

  A huge mound several feet off to his side caught his attention as it heaved and fought for breath. He squinted, trying to bring the object into focus, knowing this was important. Visions of a wall of flames flashed through his mind and he fli
nched. As much as he tried to think, he could not quite grasp what was happening. The rasping sound followed by the slight gurgle, once again, drew his attention. The picture of a dragon blazed in his mind, and his heart skipped a beat before taking off at an alarming pace.

  Kade squinted hard and forced his eyes to focus. Slowly, the blurred image of Rayden took shape and everything came rushing back. His painful eyes widened in horror. The dragon had been impaled with a large piece of wood from the roof. Rayden was coated with blood from the injury, turning the beautiful silver dragon a deep crimson. Kade struggled to his feet but stumbled and almost fell, catching his balance at the last second. Nausea threatened to overwhelm him as the taste of thick ash clung to the inside of his mouth and down his throat. He coughed hard several times, bringing up black phlegm.

  Doing his best to ignore his own plight, Kade stumbled over to the dragon. Tears seeped out of the corner of his eyes from the pain that racked his body and the feeling of anguish that assaulted his mind. His dragon was hurt because of him. His carelessness caused this. Despair clung heavily to him. Wiping his eyes with the back of his hands, he leaned against Rayden’s side. The dragon quivered slightly, breathed in raggedly and then out with a slight gurgle.

  Kade ran his hand along the thick, wooden shaft and tried to get a grip on it. His hands felt as if he was wearing thick, leather gloves. As he grabbed the wood, the pain came, making him wince. He tried again, but his hands did not have the strength to grab a twig, much less this shaft of wood. Helplessness washed over him as his vision blurred from the tears. He stumbled to the head of the dragon and cringed at the sight. The dragon’s tongue was lolling out, and its eyes were unfocused. There was a bloody froth coming from its mouth as it breathed. Rayden was suffering horribly. Every time he inhaled, he would quiver, struggling for each breath.

  Rayden’s eyes dilated slightly as he attempted to focus on his friend. He made a feeble attempt to raise his head, but he barely got off the ground before falling back down with a thud. Kade knew Rayden was not going to be getting up unless he could do something about it. He looked at his badly burned fingers in horror and felt the hand of fate demanding his dragon’s life.

  He shook his head in defiance and sheer determination. He ground his teeth hard and forced himself to think. While his dragon was alive, there was still a chance. He steeled his will to do battle with death, once again.

  What can I do? he asked himself as his mind started to spin. There has to be something. What can I do? There has to be…and then he stopped and looked back toward the cabin for the books. He was expecting to see them burned up, but there they sat, just a short distance away. He had taken them far enough to keep the flames from consuming them.

  With a small sense of relief, Kade limped over and slowly moved them one by one until he found what he was looking for. If any book was going to have something in it that could help, this was it, the book he had learned the Lightning Calling from. He dragged it out of the pile slowly and lifted it into his arms, holding it to his chest, careful not to let it open. He turned and worked his way back to the dragon.

  Setting the book on the ground, Kade focused. The pain surging all over his skin was almost too distracting for him to think. If not for the dragon, Kade knew he would have been lying on the ground, praying for any release from the pain, even if it meant death. But, he did not have that luxury if he wanted the dragon to live, so he forced himself to continue.

  The Healing Calling is not going to fix this, but it might give me some time, he thought desperately, as he cleared his mind and felt for the Divine Power. His swollen fingers and hands were going to make this difficult, but he was sure he could perform the moves. The sweet taste of the Divine helped numb the pain just enough for his mind to work.

  Slowly and deliberately, Kade drew on the Divine, completing the motions with his hands. He gritted his teeth as he worked through the moves and then placed his hand on the area where the wood was protruding. The trickle of blood stopped its flow; at least for the moment, it stopped. This was temporary, at best. There was still lung damage and only the Divine knew what else. The wood needed to come out.

  Kade gripped the shaft, but as hard as he tried, he was not strong enough to remove it. The pole was firmly embedded deep in the dragon’s hide. He tried a few more times, causing his skin to break open and bleed. The blood was making this considerably more difficult by adding a bit of slickness to the wood.

  “Blood and ashes!” Kade cursed as he threw his head back and roared in frustration at fate. “Why can’t you just let something go right?” he screamed.

  Kade forced himself to perform the Healing Calling one more time and then turned his attention back to the book. He dreaded having to perform a calling under these conditions. They were so simple before, but now with these hands and burns covering his body, it was torture. He glanced at Rayden, and with firm resolve, forged on.

  As carefully as possible, he got down on his knees and performed the Disarm Calling. It only required him to hold his hands over the object. Not having to move his hands was a relief, but he knew it was short lived. He slowly reached out and turned the pages, hoping desperately to find a calling that would save his precious friend. He tried his best to keep from smearing blood on the pages, but it could not be helped.

  Something to dissolve wood. Something to transport wood away. Anything at all, he thought desperately.

  The calling for changing shape was no help. The calling for charming animals was no help. His mind flashed back to the clearing with the grimalkin and all the animals before continuing on. The Strength Calling was no help. The dragon needed healing not strength.

  Maybe a Greater Healing Calling that might push the wood out, Kade thought hopefully as he turned the page. The next calling was the Illusion Calling. For a second, he wondered why he had not considered learning this one, but even before he finished asking himself the question, he already knew the answer.

  I was too eager to learn the almighty Lightning Calling, he thought, chastising himself.

  Kade fought despair as he found himself at the last page. Nothing, he started to think and then paused as he remembered a calling that just might help. He quickly returned to the Strength Calling, reading it carefully. It was not a calling to enhance others strength but a calling to enhance his strength.

  I am such a fool for not realizing this right off, he thought. With the amount of pain he was in, it was a miracle that he was even able to read. But, he had no choice. At least, he had no choice if he wanted the dragon to live.

  Kade looked at his hands and gave a slight whimper. How am I going to complete such a complex calling with hands like these? he asked himself as he clenched his jaw tightly against the pain. The blood on his hands had mostly dried now, but he knew all he needed to do was flex his fingers and the liquid would begin to seep out again. There were only nine moves, but they were not easy, and he feared his hands were far too damaged to work properly.

  Kade shook in fear and agony as he slowly stood. He blinked away the tears as he searched the area for something to put the book on. He spied a barrel a little ways to his left, and with considerable effort, was able to retrieve it by pushed it with his elbows. He moved it closer to the dragon and set it upright. He laid the book on it and read through the first move. He gritted his teeth and ignored the lump in his throat.

  Focus, he told himself fiercely. Focus! You did this, now you need to fix it so FOCUS! He thought fiercely.

  He narrowed his eyes and forced his hands to move through the first step, ignoring the tears that were brought on by the pain from inflamed nerves. His clothes had saved most of his skin from being burned to the degree his hands and face were, but anything not covered had taken a lot of damage. Kade did not even want to see what he looked like. He reached for more of the Divine and was rewarded as it flowed through him like a torrent. To his amazement and relief, a good amount of the pain had faded. Not all, but enough that he felt he had a chance
to perform the calling.

  Kade returned to the book and read through the moves, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to make sure the dragon was still breathing. After focusing on the page and learning the first step, he returned to the dragon to perform the Healing Calling. The bleeding that had begun to flow again, stopped immediately. The healing was much more effective than normal, but Kade’s mind was too focused on the Strength Calling to notice. He learned the second move and then it was back to the dragon. Although the bleeding had not started again, he performed the healing just to make sure. He moved back and forth between the book and the dragon in a rhythm, as his mind continually went over the steps of the calling. As long as he Divine flowed through his body, the pain was not overwhelming.

  Kade was dimly aware of blood dripping from his finger as he finished practicing the third step. When he read over the forth move, he cringed, and again, felt a lump form in his throat. A simple move but… Kade held his hands out wide, then, through gritted teeth, made tight fists, lunged forward and brought his arms directly in front of himself. He finished with a motion that made it appear as if he were giving himself a hug.

  The pain lanced up his arms, making him jerk and flinch. He ground his teeth and firmly planted his feet, getting ready to perform the move again. If he flinched like that during the calling, things could go disastrously wrong, and he knew it.

  Again, he reached out, made his fists and lunged. And again, he could not help cringing from the pain. Not only were his hands sending crushing pulses of pain up his arms, but his legs and hips were threatening to give out each time he took a step. He recalled slamming into the table as he went through the door to the den and knew where the injury had come from. Or maybe it was from the roof…or maybe the dragon. All he knew was that it hurt, and it was impossible to ignore. Every time he thought he might not make it, all he needed to do was glance at his dragon, and he would firmly plant his feet, preparing to perform the move again.