The Dragon's Flame (The Chronicles of Terah # 2)

by Morgan, Mackenzie

  “Secret ballots can be rigged,” Malcolm said, glaring at Myron.

  “By whom?” Damien said with exasperation. He was running out of patience with Malcolm. “Let’s all agree that Malcolm should be in charge of collecting and posting the votes. Oh, and Malcolm, don’t throw any away. I’m sure someone will want to check behind you, to make sure you didn’t rig anything. All in favor of appointing Malcolm collector of the votes, raise your hands.”

  After a bit of snickering, most of the other sorcerers raised their hands.

  “Be sure you keep up with the votes now, Malcolm. You know me. I like to check behind people,” Judith said with a teasing lilt to her voice.

  “So do I,” Bianca said quietly as she cut her eyes over towards him. “So do I.”

  Malcolm’s ears turned bright red, but he didn’t say anything else.

  “So, are we ready to take a vote on the three options?” Kevin asked. When no one said anything, Chris stood up and handed each sorcerer a small slip of paper. “I thought we’d use secret ballots for this,” Kevin explained. “Vote for the one you like the best. Number one, the closest magical relative. Number two, the sorcerer’s choice. Number three, an open competition.”

  After a few seconds, all the sorcerers looked up. Kevin said, “Now, fold your vote in half.” When they had done that, Kevin looked at Malcolm. “Collect the votes and call out the numbers. We’ll all tally as you go along.”

  Malcolm grumbled, but he got up and walked around the circle, collecting ballots as he went. When he had them all, he sat back down and glared at Kevin.

  Kevin nodded and said, “Open each ballot separately, tell us what number is written on it, and then pile the open ballots on top of each other.”

  After the ballots had all been opened and the numbers had been read off, there were eleven votes for an open competition and two for allowing the current sorcerer to choose his successor.

  Kevin looked around the circle of sorcerers. “I would prefer that we were all in agreement on this, but we’ll go with the majority vote. Now, how shall we decide the number of events? Do you want to take it back to committee? Or should we decide as a group?”

  “I think we should have two of each of the three individual tasks and six of the more complicated ones. That would make an even dozen events in the competition,” Judith said. “Sounds like a good number to me.”

  Several of the sorcerers nodded in agreement.

  “All right,” Kevin said. “All in favor of Judith’s suggestion, raise your hand.”

  The only hands that didn’t go up immediately were Rolan’s, Gwendolyn’s, and Malcolm’s, but after they saw that they were the only ones left, they slowly raised their hands, too.

  “Good,” Kevin said. Then he turned towards Chris and said, “Chris, write this down. If any seated sorcerer dies without a direct heir, the seat will be awarded to the sorcerer who wins an open competition that will be organized and held by the remaining members of the Council of Sorcerers. All sorcerers who have maintained a permanent residence in the affected province for a minimum of three years will be eligible to compete for the vacant chair. The competition will begin with elimination trials consisting of four tasks, to be determined by the council at large. The competitors who demonstrate adequate skills will then participate in a more intense competition consisting of twelve tasks, with the winner to be determined by a secret ballot vote by the remaining members of the Council of Sorcerers.” After Chris finished writing, Kevin glanced around the circle of sorcerers. “Is that what we’ve all agreed to? Does anyone have any problems with what I said? With the wording? With any of it?”

  No one spoke up.

  Kevin nodded and turned back to Chris. “Make two copies, one for Damien as chairman of the committee, and one for me. He and I will both sign both copies.”

  Chris nodded and started making a second copy. As soon as he had both copies finished, he handed them to Kevin for his signature. Then he took them to Damien. After both copies had been signed, Chris picked up Kevin’s copy and went back to his seat.

  “Now, is there any new business?” Kevin asked.

  Damien cleared his throat and said, “While we were working on a way to fill an empty provincial chair, I started thinking that maybe we could come up with a way to fill the Master’s Chair. No offense, Myron, but without an heir, your chair worries me.”

  “I understand. What would you suggest?”

  “I’m not sure. Several thoughts have crossed my mind. We could fill the seat for Camden and let that person be the Master Sorcerer, but that doesn’t really seem quite fair. Or we could all vote for a new Master Sorcerer, but I don’t know if anyone would get a majority of the votes. A competition might be a good thing, but who would judge it? I don’t know, but it seems to me that we could come up with something.”

  “What’s wrong with the way it is now?” Gwendolyn hissed.

  “There is no way now. That’s what’s wrong with it!” Damien argued.

  “What’s the matter, Gwendolyn?” Edwin asked with a chuckle. “Afraid you’d lose in a legitimate competition?”

  “How dare you?!” Gwendolyn jumped up from her seat with her fists clenched and glared at Edwin.

  “Gwendolyn, you wouldn’t have to compete if you didn’t want to. You could wait until it’s all over and challenge the winner,” Kevin said in a placating tone.

  Gwendolyn cut her eyes over at Kevin and glared at him as she slowly sat down on her chair. “Or I could just challenge you now. Then we wouldn’t have this problem.”

  Kevin didn’t bat an eye. “Yes, you could. It’s up to you.”

  When Gwendolyn didn’t say anything, Jason spoke up. “What kind of competition? What would be involved? And who would judge it?”

  “I don’t know, but I don’t think we should be the ones to set it up or judge it,” Bianca said quietly.

  “Who then?” Jason asked.

  “How about getting the dragons to do it,” Bianca said.

  “The dragons?” Jason asked.

  “No! Everyone here knows that Glendymere favors the House of Nordin. No one else would stand a chance!” Malcolm sputtered.

  Bianca glared at him. “Pay attention, Malcolm. If the Master’s Chair becomes vacant, it’s because the House of Nordin has no heir.”

  “I think Glendymere would be the perfect choice to run it,” Judith said. “After all, he’s the chairman of the Federation of Terah.”

  “Then who would judge it?” Starvos asked.

  “Other dragons?” Trivera offered. “Maybe a group of three? They would be impartial. They really don’t care who the Master Sorcerer is, just as long as there’s a body in the chair.”

  “That’s true,” Regan said slowly. “And they’ve already said that they’ll never allow another magic war to break out.”

  “And just how do they propose to prevent it?” Gwendolyn hissed.

  “By killing all of us,” Rolan said. “I think Damien’s right. We need a plan, some way to fill that chair that’s better than risking war with the dragons. I’ll volunteer to be on that committee.”

  Gwendolyn and Malcolm looked at each other in surprise, and then quickly volunteered to serve on the committee, too. Kevin almost frowned before he caught himself.

  “Chris, please note that Rolan, Gwendolyn, and Malcolm have volunteered to serve on a committee to find a way to name a new Master Sorcerer should the present one die without an heir,” Kevin said. “Now, would anyone else like to be on that committee?”

  Damien raised his hand, along with Jason and Bianca.

  “Damien, since it was your idea, and since you did such a nice job as chairman of the other committee, could I impose on you and ask you to chair this one, too?” Kevin asked.

  Damien nodded. “I’d be happy to. We’ll try to have something for you at the next meeting. I’d like to see everyone who volunteered for this committee after this meeting has been adjourned.”

  Kevin looked around t
he circle of sorcerers. “Is there anything else? Any more new business?” He waited a minute to see if anyone would bring anything else up. When no one did, he said, “Thank you for coming, and I’ll look forward to seeing all of you here on the seventh of September. The August meeting of the Council of Sorcerers is adjourned.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  When Kevin and Chris got back to Kevin’s office, Chris let out a low whistle. “Talk about tense! I thought she was going to challenge you right then and there.”

  “I did, too,” Kevin said as he dropped down into his chair.

  Laryn stepped through the open door in time to hear Chris’s comment. “Who almost challenged you? What happened?”

  Kevin shook his head. “Nothing to worry about. Gwendolyn was just flexing her muscles.”

  Laryn looked at Chris and repeated, “What happened?”

  Chris quickly filled her in on the last few minutes of the council meeting. Then he turned back to Kevin. “At least you got what you wanted. Although I’d feel better if the terrible threesome weren’t on the committee.”

  Kevin nodded. “Rolan sort of surprised me. I thought he wanted a magic war, that that was why he tried to have me killed before I got here. By the time all the dust settled, he would be in a much stronger position than he is now, especially if the dragons lived up to their promise to end the war themselves. All of the stronger sorcerers would be gone.”

  “Makes you wonder what he has up his sleeve,” Chris said.

  Laryn sighed. “He may just be getting smarter.”

  “What do you mean?” Kevin asked.

  “If something happens to you and the chair goes to whoever wins a competition, there’s a good chance that either Gwendolyn or Malcolm will end up as Master Sorcerer. Then Rolan will have a lot of influence over the Council. Believe me, he’s only in favor of this because he thinks it’ll work to his advantage.”

  Kevin nodded. “But even one of them would still be better than a magic war.”

  “I agree, but you’re going to have to be even more careful now,” Laryn said. “I imagine Rolan is already plotting ways for you to die.”

  Kevin shrugged. “I’m sort of used to that idea. He’s been working on it long enough. Anyway, I’m not going to worry about that today. Let’s go get something to eat.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Kevin had trouble falling asleep that night. While he was tossing and turning in bed, he became aware of a faint light near his couch that slowly grew in intensity. As Kevin sat up and leaned back against the wall, Yvonne and Badec emerged from the light.

  “It’s nice to see you again,” Kevin said.

  “Sounds like you had quite a council meeting today,” Badec said. “Too bad it sort of declares open hunting season on you. I bet Gwendolyn’s mouth is watering right now at the thought of becoming Master Sorcerer.”

  “She almost challenged me today, but she backed down.”

  “I’m not surprised. She’s greedy and mean, but she’s not stupid. She can’t defeat you in a challenge and she knows it. She’ll come at you, but it’ll be in the dark, behind your back, and she won’t be the only one.”

  Kevin shrugged. “I know. I don’t have a death wish, but it’s more important to protect Terah than to protect one person.”

  Yvonne nodded. “We both want you to know how proud we are of what you’re doing. Just be careful.”

  “I will, Mother,” Kevin said. “I have a question that I want to ask you if you have the time.”

  “We can stay a few more minutes, but not long,” Yvonne answered.

  “Have you kept up with everything about Gerry, Glenco, and the mushrooms?” Kevin asked.

  They both shook their heads.

  Kevin told them about Gerry’s disappearance and that Brena had identified the mushrooms that Theresa had found in her workshop as Sleeping Angel mushrooms.

  “Are you thinking that she was in some way responsible for poisoning your father?” Yvonne asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Kevin answered. Then he looked at Badec and said, “Gerry had been living in Glenco, Prosidian, for two years before she vanished. I can’t see any way she could be connected with your death unless someone with a key was involved. Do you know if Rolan was seeing anyone?”

  Badec slowly shook his head. “No, I can’t say that I ever heard any rumors that he was, much less one of the sisters, but then he and I were not exactly friendly. Was she stationed in Trendon before she went to Glenco?”

  Kevin shook his head no.

  “It does seem strange though, doesn’t it?” Yvonne said quietly as she turned towards Badec. “Rolan was in the area right before you got sick. Sister Agnes feels certain that it was a poison made from Sleeping Angel mushroom. Then this sister who has been growing them in her workshop disappears.”

  “And on the same night that someone attacked Brena and stole the lamp and a pendant, a thousand miles away,” Kevin added.

  Badec shook his head. “That’s a lot of coincidences.”

  “I feel that way, too. I feel like there must be a connection, but if there is, I can’t find it.”

  Badec nodded. “Son, untangling all of this could get dangerous. Best to let Glendymere take care of it, especially where the lamp and pendant are concerned.”

  Yvonne reached for Badec’s hand and said, “We have to go now. We’ll be back when we can. Take care.”

  Kevin nodded as his parents began to fade.

  Chapter 29

  King Merdin Goes to Glenco

  Shortly after daybreak Sunday morning, King Merdin, Jaron, and Dani materialized on the road leading to Glenco in just about the same spot where Kevin, Marcus, and Rigel had materialized almost six weeks earlier. The only difference was that no one could have seen the gnomes and Dani arrive. They couldn’t even see each other.

  “Which way do we go?” Dani asked King Merdin telepathically.

  “According to the map, we turn left. Follow my footsteps and tell Jaron to do the same.”

  Dani relayed the message and both he and Jaron followed the faint indentations in the moss, grass, and leaves that marked King Merdin’s footsteps as he turned onto the small pathway that followed the foot of the mountain. After they had been on the path for half an hour, King Merdin spotted a bush that looked like the one Theresa had described. He moved a few of the branches aside, but the rock behind it was solid, so he continued along the path with Dani and Jaron following close behind.

  Ten minutes later, he found another bush that answered Theresa’s description, and this time when he moved the branches aside, he saw a dark hole. Dani and Jaron followed King Merdin into the cave and as soon as they were all inside, they made themselves visible.

  “This looks like the place,” King Merdin said. “It would help if the furniture and stuff was still here though.”

  Jaron knelt to look at the fire circle. “No one’s used this for a long time.”

  Dani walked around sniffing the air. “There’s a faint smell of humans, but even if I knew the scent of the sister you’re looking for, I don’t think I’d be able to tell whether she’d been here or not.”

  “There’s not much more we can do in here,” King Merdin said as he moved the branches out of his way and stepped back outside. “Dani, is anyone in the area now?”

  Dani stepped outside behind King Merdin. “No. No humans, no gnomes, no Alysian cats, no one.”

  “Then I guess we’d better head deeper into the woods,” King Merdin said as he continued following the path at the foot of the mountain.

  After they had followed the path for most of the day without coming across anyone, they walked around a curve and found a particularly large tree standing off to the side of the path. King Merdin had almost walked past it when he noticed a hole under its roots. The opening wasn’t very big, but it was large enough for a gnome or an Alysian cat to squeeze through.

  “I wonder,” King Merdin mumbled to himself. “Dani, I’m going to check out this hole.”

&
nbsp; “Do you think it’s a tunnel entrance?”

  “I don’t know. Could be,” King Merdin said, still looking at the hole. “You two wait here.”

  Jaron nodded and stepped to the side of the hole.

  King Merdin ducked his head and squeezed through the opening. Once he managed to get inside, the hole was large enough for him to stand up straight. It sloped down and began to curve. King Merdin stuck his head back outside and said, “I think we’ve found our tunnel. Come on.”

  The curve was the traditional “S” curve that all gnomes used for their tunnel entrances. After King Merdin rounded the last bend, he could see a faint light ahead. A few minutes later, they entered a larger tunnel that had small glowstones anchored along the sides.

  Jaron looked around and said, “I thought only prairie gnomes used tunnels.”

  King Merdin shook his head. “No, forest gnomes are the only ones who don’t rely on tunnels.”

  “Well, these gnomes live in a forest. Why do they use them?”

  “Probably because they live so close to humans. There’s a town just a few miles down the road, and from what Theresa said, the valley’s full of farmers.”

  They followed the tunnel for about a mile until another opening led to a small cove surrounded by rocks and thickets. King Merdin led Jaron and Dani to the center of the clearing and sat down on the grass with his hands folded in his lap. “Let’s wait here for a little while. I expect we’ll have company soon.”

  Jaron sat down beside him and Dani curled up on the other side.

  A few minutes later, several gnomes became visible around the clearing. After another minute or two, one of the gnomes stepped forward and said, “My name is Pharn. I’m chief of the mountain gnomes.”

  King Merdin nodded to him and slowly rose to his feet. “My name is Merdin, of Farowood.”

  Pharn’s eyes widened. “King Merdin?”

  Jaron slowly stood up beside his father as Dani uncurled and sat up.

  King Merdin smiled and said, “May I introduce my son, Jaron, and our friend, Dani.”

  Pharn nodded at Dani and then turned to Jaron. “Welcome to our village, Prince Jaron.” Then he turned back to King Merdin and asked, “What can we do for you?”