Deliverance

by Brittany Comeaux

  Gavril grabbed Blaze’s arm, pulled him forward, and stated, “If you aren’t going to train any more, then we will take you back to your room.”

  “Leave me alone!” shouted Blaze as he shook Gavril’s hand off of his arm. The crowd of onlookers that were distracted from their own training then readied their weapons at Blaze, which agitated him more.

  He was about ready to start slashing his way out of there when Crystal came running onto the training field and shouted, “Everyone stop!”

  “Crystal?” Gavril replied. The crowd dispersed as she walked onto the field. Gavril approached her and she stopped about a foot away from him.

  “Gavril,” she whispered, “I know that we need to keep an eye on Blaze, but we also need to gain his trust so that he can help us. Restricting his freedom isn’t the way to get him to trust us.”

  “What do you suggest then? We can’t let him go freely about the hideout. He knows too much!” Gavril argued.

  “Actually, Thaddeus may have found a way for us to do just that, but still rest easy knowing Blaze cannot give out our secrets,” replied Crystal.

  Confused, Gavril asked, “What are you talking about?”

  “Thaddeus has come across a spell that could give Blaze all the freedom he wants, but that can guarantee that he won’t get far if he tries to escape,” Crystal explained.

  “What kind of spell?” Gavril probed.

  “It’s called a tracking mark. It’s small and is placed on a person’s skin. It does take a lot of magic energy and supplies to use, but Thaddeus thinks he can handle it,” explained Crystal. Gavril pondered for a moment and then spoke.

  “Well then, let’s bring him to Thaddeus,” Gavril said. He then ordered the two rebels to grab Blaze and follow him, much to Blaze’s distaste.

  When they finally arrived in Thaddeus’s work room in the main building of the hideout, they saw him thumbing through an old book. He wore the oddest pair of what looked like spectacles that any of them had ever seen. There were a few layers of lenses piled in front of his eyes that were attacked to a leather band that was wrapped all the way around his head. The old mage turned around when he heard them enter and nearly startled them when they saw how much the glasses magnified his eyes.

  He laughed when he saw their faces and said, “My apologies! I needed to prepare a special powder and must be able to see the minerals very closely to get it just right! My eyes are unfortunately not what they used to be, so I needed this device to see the powder correctly. I am finished now though.” He then took off the strange device and blinked his pale eyes several times until they adjusted properly.

  “So what is it you wanted to try out, Thaddeus?” Gavril asked.

  “It’s quite an amazing spell!” the old man exclaimed. Crystal and Gavril then sat Blaze down in a wooden chair under Thaddeus’s instructions and they both stood on each a side of him. Blaze was of course very annoyed by this and didn’t bother trying to hide it.

  “So what’s going on? I’m a lab experiment now?” he asked loudly.

  “We are trying to help you get more freedom and privacy, Blaze.” Crystal answered, “After this, we won’t even have to lock your bedroom door.”

  “Like hell I won’t lock his door,” Gavril retorted.

  “Now Gavril, I assure you, we won’t have to treat Blaze like a prisoner anymore after I do this,” replied Thaddeus.

  “And what ARE you doing, exactly?” asked Blaze.

  “Well, I am going to put a tracking mark on you.” Thaddeus explained, “Once I cast the spell, the mark will alert me if you venture further than a set distance from me. I will have visions of where you are and I will be able to alert the other rebels to find you. If I am awake, I will get the images in my head and tell the nearest person what I see. If I am asleep, I will be instantly awakened. Therefore, even if you leave in the middle of the night, you won’t get far.”

  Blaze rolled his eyes.

  “So then, we can leave him alone and if he tries to escape, we can find him quickly because of this spell?” asked Gavril.

  “Precisely, it gives him freedom and gives us peace of mind that he will not reveal our hideout location,” Thaddeus assured them.

  “So is it permanent?” Crystal asked.

  “Not at all! In fact, there is a spell on the next page to remove it,” replied Thaddeus. “Now then, I shall apply the mark. About how big is this hideout, Gavril?”

  Gavril pondered and then answered, “I’d say about a quarter of a mile wide, at the most.”

  “Then I will set the distance that wide. That way, I will be alerted if he leaves the hideout,” replied Thaddeus. He then reached into a small, cloth pouch on his desk, pulled out a handful of orange sparkling powder, and muttered an incantation as he scattered the powder around the tip of his staff. The powder floated around the tip and glowed like embers. Once they disappeared, the tip of his staff glowed orange.

  Blaze leaned back in the chair hesitantly and blurted out loudly, “Are you going to set me on fire?!”

  “No, no. Of course not!” Thaddeus promised him, “Now lift your head so I can get a good view of your neck.”

  Blaze hesitantly complied. He stared up at the ceiling and braced himself for whatever was coming.

  “Now this may sting a little. Of course, I have never used this spell, so I am not entirely sure,” said Thaddeus.

  Before Blaze could yell “WHAT??” the mage pressed the tip of his staff into the prince’s neck. Blaze felt a surge of heat through his body and then and explosion. For a moment, he thought he was dead, but then he realized that his chair had fallen backwards and that his neck stung.

  “Is he all right?” asked Gavril, whose question was answered when Blaze moaned.

  The prince covered the side of his neck with his hand, where it burned. He opened his eyes to see Thaddeus, Crystal, and Gavril hovering over him.

  When he removed his hand, he heard Thaddeus shout excitedly, “It worked!”

  “Wow, excellent work, Thaddeus,” Gavril praised.

  “What the hell? Someone help me up!” said Blaze. Crystal bent down and offered him her hand, which he took. She pulled him up and without thanking her, Blaze stumbled over to the nearest mirror. He immediately saw the solid black mark. It was curved upward and made a round curve at the bottom, making it resemble a flame.

  “Great,” he said, “I’m a branded cow.”

  “Don’t worry, lad,” replied Thaddeus, “You will enjoy the peace and quiet you will get now.”

  Blaze turned to the old mage and asked, “Just so I’m sure, you can’t invade my thoughts or anything like that now, can you?”

  The old mage laughed and assured him, “No, I cannot see what you are thinking, just what you are doing if you get far enough away from me. Even if I could do that, I wouldn’t invade a person’s mind like that.”

  “Fine. Now may I please have some time alone?” asked Blaze.

  “Of course, Blaze. You are free to go anywhere you want around the hideout now,” replied Crystal.

  Blaze responded by immediately walking out of the room.

  “What an ungrateful—”

  “Now, now, Gavril, don’t fret.” interrupted Thaddeus, “It’s only natural for him to react that way.”

  “Especially after being locked up like a prisoner,” added Crystal.

  “Well, I still don’t trust him.” replied Gavril, “You may be able to see if he leaves, but he could slay one of our rebels within the hideout and no one would be able to stop him in time if he were alone. He can’t be any good for our cause; just look at the man who raised him! If only—” Gavril then stopped abruptly as if to catch himself before saying something he didn’t want to.

  “What? If only what?” asked Crystal.

  “Nothing,” Gavril muttered. He then left the room without another word and shut the door behind him.

  There was a brief, awkward silence until Thaddeus muttered, “Strange fellow.”

  “F
ather always said he was quite the mysterious man,” Crystal agreed.

  “Indeed,” Thaddeus replied.

  ****

  Blaze trained completely alone until nightfall. He wasn’t spied on, smothered by people who didn’t trust him, or hauled back to his bedroom when he was done. Apparently, word about the tracking mark spread fast, so Blaze finally felt a sense of peace and quiet, even though he felt degraded at the same time. Despite the fact that Blaze felt like he was being treated like a dog being trained by its master, he had to admit, he liked it better without the dwarves and Gavril constantly on his back. He took solace in the thought that the old mage wouldn’t be able to spy on him as long as he stayed in the hideout area.

  CHAPTER 7

  A few days after Thaddeus had applied the tracking mark to Blaze’s neck, the halflings returned with important information about a possible Gaull shard sighting. It was late morning when Maryn approached Crystal with the news, and she soon found herself rushing around the hideout telling everyone she could about an emergency meeting. She then made her way to Blaze’s room after not finding him in anywhere else in the hideout.

  “Blaze, wake up!” she shouted as she opened Blaze’s bedroom door and peeked inside. The irritated prince groaned, sat up in bed, and rubbed his eyes. He’d only slept in his trousers, so Crystal was surprised and a little embarrassed to see him without a shirt on.

  “What the hell do you want?” he groggily asked as he tried to flatten his hair with no luck.

  “Maryn just brought her team of halflings back from the northeast, and she says that they discovered where a Gaull shard may be. We’re having a meeting as soon as everyone organizes in the meeting room,” Crystal explained.

  “And?” Blaze asked, giving her an exasperated expression.

  “And I want you to get up and come to the meeting so we can assemble a team.” replied Crystal, “So get dressed and come to the meeting room.” With that, she dashed off down the hallway.

  Crystal then made her way to the meeting room to see all of her friends as well as plenty of other rebels waiting for her. Maryn stood in the middle of the room with a group of older halflings surrounding her. When Crystal approached her, she could see Maryn gloating to her brother.

  “Told you I’d find something first!” she teased.

  “You had a head start! It’s not fair!” pouted Taryn.

  “It’s not my fault you kept flirting with the girls in that tavern! I just have more focus than you!” Maryn countered.

  Once Crystal cleared her throat, the twins saw her and immediately stopped arguing.

  “Hey boss!” Taryn greeted.

  “When do you want me to start?” Maryn asked.

  “In a moment. I want to give more people a chance to arrive first,” replied Crystal.

  Within a few minutes, a few more groups of people as well as Blaze arrived. Blaze walked over to a space by the wall and stood alone while the other rebels joined their friends. Once everyone was settled, Crystal beckoned for Maryn to begin.

  Maryn then climbed up onto the table in the middle of the room and began, “So my friends and I traveled northeast of here about fifteen to twenty miles, and we were passing through a village when we heard some people talking about a red flash of light they saw about two weeks or so before. It was around the time of incident at the City of Magi, so we asked around some more and heard that there were some old ruins half a mile outside of town. It was there that people said the red flash came from and everyone who goes near it sees these weird and scary creatures wandering around. The creatures attack anyone who goes near the ruins and the people are worried that they will attack the village before long. When we heard of this, we headed back immediately to report it to Crystal.”

  “So you don’t know for sure that the shard is even there?” asked Gavril.

  “No, but it seems to point that way. The villagers all reported seeing the flash stretch across the sky and then land around the ruins area, so it’s a safe bet that we will find one there,” replied Maryn.

  “Even so, we can’t let those monsters threaten the villagers either. I believe that this lead is worth investigating, so I will assemble a team immediately.” Crystal stated, “Thank you Maryn and to the rest of those who aided you.”

  “Not a problem, Crystal!” replied the halfling girl, who then jumped down from the table.

  “In the meantime, I believe we should still send people out to search the areas for more rumors,” Gavril said.

  “I agree.” replied Crystal, “Now then, Maryn and Taryn, I want you to continue to lead the searches in the surrounding areas.”

  “Will do!” said both twins at once.

  “Sigurd, will you stay here and watch over things while we are gone?” asked Crystal.

  “I shall make you and my brethren proud,” the dwarf confidently responded.

  “I have no doubt you will, my friend.” replied Crystal, “As for the mission, I would like for Gavril, Thaddeus, Kerali, and Blaze to join me on the journey to the village.”

  “Why me?” asked Blaze.

  “Yeah, why him?” repeated Sigurd.

  “Blaze can help us get there before his father by telling us what tactics his father will use and how to either avoid them, or take advantage of them. Therefore, it is a good idea to bring him along,” responded Crystal. She then turned to Blaze and asked, “Will that be All right with you?”

  “Fine, whatever,” replied Blaze.

  “Good.” said Crystal. She then turned to Gavril. “And can you round up some of your warriors to guard the village while we investigate the ruins?”

  “Of course,” replied Gavril. He then turned to Maryn and asked “How many people do you think will be enough to guard the village?”

  “The village isn’t that big, so not that many,” Maryn answered him.

  “We also don’t want to travel in such a large group, so about three or four of your best men will work fine, Gavril,” replied Crystal.

  “Very well,” replied Gavril.

  “Let’s begin preparations immediately.” said Crystal, “If we leave in about an hour, we can get there before sunset if we don’t make any stops. Now then, let’s get to work.”

  ****

  It was noon when Crystal and her team set out to the northeast. The air was still cold out from the late winter, but spring was approaching and the sun was shining upon them. The land was drenched with melting snow as the sun laid its blanket of warmth across its path. Throughout the day, as the afternoon came and went, the team did not even have to clutch their cloaks around them to keep warm.

  The sky had already begun to glow orange by the time the rebels reached the tiny village. The citizens confirmed what Maryn had told them about the ruins, so after a brief rest and a meal, they venture southeast of the village towards the ruins. As Crystal requested, three of Gavril’s best fighters stayed behind in the village.

  “According to the tavern owner,” said Gavril, as they walked across the plains, “the ruins were once an old mansion that burned to the ground about thirty years ago. The owner of the mansion apparently lost everything in the fire and died from a disease some years later.”

  “That’s quite a sad story,” replied Crystal.

  “That’s life, I’m afraid,” replied Gavril.

  “It sure is getting dark.” said Crystal, “I hope we can find the shard when we can’t see well.”

  “Or see the monsters well enough to fight them,” Thaddeus added.

  “I should not have a problem with my eyes.” said Kerali, “If you all cover me, I can take out quite a few of them in the dark.”

  “Good idea,” replied Crystal, “and with our fire spells, Thaddeus and I could light the way.”

  “Of course,” replied Thaddeus.

  “I can take the front lines and I am sure that Blaze can as well,” said Gavril.

  Blaze didn’t say a word and walked behind the group.

  “Try to keep up, Blaze,” Cryst
al called back to him.

  “I’m fine, Princess. Just keep walking,” Blaze remarked.

  The team reached the ruins in less than an hour. The sun was already below the horizon and the faint orange glow that peeked overhead was steadily fading into the black and starry night sky. As the dark curtain of night shaded the land, the dull shape of a crescent moon started to peek out in the east.

  When the rebels finally came upon the ruins, they found an old, rusted iron gate lining the property. The group daringly but cautiously ventured into an old courtyard in front of the wreckage and saw that the ruins of the enormous manor were covered in soot and cobwebs. The beams that once lined the walls were still standing upright and the archway of the front door was still intact. Several floors above the ground level still stood, but did not seem to still be able to support anyone’s weight.

  Not long after stepping into the courtyard between the gate and the front of the ruins, the rebels heard a low growling noise followed by steady footsteps.

  “What was that?” Crystal asked in a low voice.

  “It definitely didn’t sound friendly,” Gavril remarked.

  The rebels immediately braced their weapons and backed against each other to avoid a sneak attack. They watched around the courtyard, waiting to see the source of the noise.

  “Watch for any signs of movement!” exclaimed Crystal.

  The growling continued and seemed to be coming from more than one source.

  “How many are there, Kerali?” asked Gavril.

  “I hear about three different growls and judging by the sound of their footsteps, I believe they are quadrupeds,” replied the elf.

  “Quadawhat?” asked Blaze.

  “It means they walk on four legs,” Crystal clarified.

  Suddenly, Blaze caught sight of a dark, scaly creature with red eyes that ran toward him.

  “Over here!” he yelled. He then charged at the creature with his sword. It ran at him on four claw-like legs and whipped its spiked tail back and forth menacingly. It had a gargoyle-like face with enormous fangs and two curved horns on its head. It also had spikes that ran along its back from the head to the base of its tail. The creature roared as it lunged through the air at Blaze.