“I could have thought it all coincidence but for one thing.” Rose pulled a small shard of crystal out of her pouch and laid it in her open palm for all to see. It was the crystal Kestrel had given her just before granting her the last divine spark she had. “I met the goddess Kestrel while in the astral fade. She told me that these prophecies were engineered by a false seer. Though fabricated, he was a powerful man with designs on the world and a seat of godhood. He penned the books in secret and destroyed all other records of his existence. Then he set out to destroy my people. He killed them for the sheer pleasure of watching them die, to hear the sound of their bones crackling under his feet.”
Rose indicated Leonidus with a single digit never taking her eyes off of him. “Once my people were all but destroyed he set about putting things in motion by hiding the books among his allies just before they all began draining the planet of its life.”
“All of this and more you have done Leonidus, the Death’s Head of the sorcerer lords.” Rose heard several people gasp and she saw the look on both the queen and Merek’s face.
“We all have suffered but none more than me.” Rose shouted, clenching her fists tight at her sides. “I will not have your lies! Tell me the truth I demand it.”
“The truth?” Leonidus scoffed. “The truth is that I tire of your mouth little girl. Indeed, as you have said this I have done and so much more all to see my prophecies come true. I am living in my legacy, mine, my own! I may not have invented the original Spellrage but I perfected it and took it from its creators and made it into a god-slaying tool of destruction.”
“I ask again, why Leonidus?” Rose pleaded with him and felt the sting of treachery deep within her chest.
“The gods were petty and cruel; they hoarded their power and refused to share it. So they told the dragons to share their power instead. The taste of magic we got was intoxicating but not enough. The naarabi were the first to learn and they took to it the easiest. When the dragons finally got around to teaching the rest of us they expected the same results so they barely instructed us on how to touch the fabric of magic and bend it to our will.” Leonidus was standing stone still with his eyes narrowed and still on Rose. “We struggled, the first sages. That was all until the nypthians collaborated with us and created the Spellrage. Several of us died in the initial test run but oh the power we felt. It was the might of the gods at our fingertips.”
Rose was taken by surprise. The Spellrage she had been using unwittingly was the same tool that had sundered the world once and she could initiate it by herself. Her mind worked quickly and she met his eyes again. “You did this to me.”
“I did. Time and time again I attempted to create the perfect naarabian puppet to exploit. So many died in the process that I began to think it was impossible. Then you passed the test Rose, you of all people.” Leonidus frowned and shook a clenched fist at her. “Then your mother took you away before you were born and hid you. She put you right into the lion’s den in the last place I would ever think to look. But no matter I killed her and every one of your relatives I could find. My master’s armies are massing even as we speak. This forest will fuel his ascent to godhood and he will make me his right hand man!”
“You would kill your own people? Murder and destroy lives just for this ridiculous quest?” Rose put her hand on her blade and grimaced. “I’ll not let you leave to start this process again.”
The old sage laughed loudly, more cackled madly. His hands fell to his gut and he bent in half as if attempting to quell a pain from the hilarity of her statement. After he was done laughing he flung his arms upward and sent his hands sprawling out to his sides. One blade of pure energy rocketed toward Rose and another toward Liostro and her friends. The spell flew past her as she barely dodged out of the way but her eyes fell on Liostro as he jumped in front of the blast to save Avreel and Nina who were too wrapped in the story to react. A spray of blood erupted from his chest and Rose felt a keen sense of loss as he hit the ground in a thud, his body limp; and at the same time Nina gasped and she and Talisbane disappeared from sight. “No!”
“You will trade this land for the life of your precious princess. You have an hour to decide and send word to the sorcerer in the ranks of the army by the mountain.” Leonidus began to disappear from sight.
Rose growled audibly and used some of her stored magical power to grab onto his spell, tailing him to his destination. She found herself standing in his tower and he was obviously surprised.
The fire in her eyes could not match the festering feeling of betrayal and pain that sat in the center of her chest where her heart was. Her anger was all she knew the hatred was all she could feel regardless of what she had been through with this elf. Standing before her was the man who had sent her to the ends of her world on a crusade that he himself had created so long ago that no one living knew any better. He had known the entire time that she would be made to suffer at the hands of those who wanted what she had, a ‘gift’ that felt more like a curse. She had made the best of it, never complaining or making more than a frustrated fuss even in the hardest of times.
Her destiny had been laid out before her and every sentence of it was a lie fabricated by Leonidus. Her mother had been murdered along with the rest of her family. Her entire race had almost been wiped from the face of their great empire because one man felt that he could change the world. All of these thoughts swirled in her head, penetrated her brain, but of everything that she knew the greatest hole in her heart was the fact that this man had endangered not only the lives of everyone he supposedly cared for but his own daughter and grandchild. After everything he had done he had taken away the love of her life to top it off. Liostro had been the last thing in her miserable existence that had made any semblance of sense.
A white-hot golden fire sprang into being around her body as the Spellrage began to take hold. Though she felt the need for vengeance she tried to fight it and subdue the beast that was even now clawing at her body. A scream of pain and unbridled rage escaped her lips as she sank down to her knees and dug her fingers into the melting stone that was beginning to pool around her feet. She was able to direct it at least; the artifacts and tomes in Leonidus’s workshop began throbbing and pulsing in protest as she tapped them all for their strength. Nearby she could feel the betrayer’s wards fighting back against her. She knew this elf, one of the oldest beings alive on any of the known continents, would be an opponent of titanic proportions. The rage did not care.
Rose stood up tall and terrible before one of the mightiest wizards of all time and did not flinch as he sent a killing spell her way with just a flick of his wrist. The magical energy was added to her store instantly, much to his surprise.
“Impossible! You cannot defeat me using a technique I invented!” Leonidus screamed at the top of his lungs as he began shaping the energies of another spell even as the first syllable escaped his lips. “I will not let you alter the path of this world’s destiny.”
“Betrayer, slayer of your own kind, destroyer of worlds, murderer, you will pay for all of these titles with your own blood!” Rose clenched her fists tight and dropped them down to her sides, bringing them back up in an arch that formed two void-black lashes magically attached to her. The dark energy collided with Leo’s shield and she felt it unravel just a little. She reached out to those magical strands of energy that had frayed just a little and tugged on them, causing a layer of his defense to unravel like a ball of thread. The black energy solidified before her into a shield blocking a ball of crackling blue electricity summoned by his unbroken spell.
Rose lifted up into the air and rocketed toward the black wall before her, bending it into a shell of protective magic that she used to slam into him. Though she did not score a physical hit she knew she was weakening him with each blow. Her hands closed in around his arms and she pinned him against the wall as they both crashed heavily into the dense stone. The entire tower shook slightly and dust choked her for a second too long. She was
flung backward underneath a wave of invisible force and she slid back against the floor and clawed her way to a halt. Dropping the negative energy around her body the flames that surrounded her once again wavered freely in a non-existent wind. Not wasting time she chopped her arm and hand in a downward gesture and let those same flames fly forth, burning a molten hole into the ground. It carved a path toward her target but he merely dodged out of the way and rolled back to his feet. “You’re spry for a thousand year old prophet.”
“Oh I’m much older than that my dear.” He replied with a menacing smile creeping across his features. He spread his arms and legs out wide and opened his palms. A series of pulsing orbs streaked toward Rose from each of his fingers.
Her first instinct was to dodge them but she could read the spell even before it reached her. Her Spellrage was getting more powerful and the information it provided more in depth each time she used it. Rose quickly slammed her palms together and left her hands out to each side with her fingers curled to face the other wizard. She blew out a breath from her lips and enhanced it as it passed by her outstretched digits. The cold whirlwind disrupted the magic for just a moment as she sucked in a breath and reversed its direction, focusing them all into a single point of magic so she could absorb it easier. She realized her error just as her triumphant smile began creeping across her lips. She had been preoccupied too long and another barrage of golden missiles followed the second and every one slammed home into her body. The force of the impact staggered her to her knees.
Leonidus walked forward toward her and swept his hand across his chest then back out, conjuring two blue fiery scythes of energy that swept across her unprotected body causing her to cry out in pain. “As I told you, I created the Rage and I will not be defeated by it.”
Lurching forward Rose grabbed him by the tunic, bypassing all of his wards and protective spells with but a gesture. She smiled broadly displaying her teeth for him like a predator would just before she flung him back against the wall with a blow of telekinetic force. “I’ve made some improvements.”
Rose used that same telekinetic power to draw the stones around him inward and push down on his frail body. She did not need pure magic to defeat him. The ancient mortar crumbled as though it were as soft as bread and the stone blocks that had been the foundation of his tower pressed down on his wiggling form. She was satisfied to hear his bones popping and a cry of pain from beneath them. “You will die this day and all your sins will be known to those who trusted you. Your people will know that you created this hell.”
“Rose.” She heard him say pitifully from beneath the crushing weight. “Have mercy please! I submit myself to justice.”
“Did you have pity on Liostro? Did you have pity on Nina when you sent her into the enemy’s arms?” Rose screamed as hot vengeance fueled her waning power yet again.
“In the end you will be just like us. You will drain this world and its people of their energy just to fuel your needs. The power you feel will convince you that it is worth the sacrifice and it will tell you that the price they pay is for a noble cause.” Blood escaped his lips in a spray as he coughed loudly.
She felt a pulse of anger reach out and touch the forest around her. It cried out in pain as she began draining the life from it instinctively. “No! I will not be like you!”
Clasping her hands around her head she fell to her knees and tried to purge the rage in an attempt to stop the killing force that was being exerted around her without her consent. Her struggle was evident on her face even as she heard the sound of armed feet running up behind her. The pain of the forest throbbed in her head and she could feel the presence of every living thing around. The power she could drain from this place would make her rival the gods themselves. With a scream she shook those thoughts out of her head. “I can’t stop it! Please someone help me!”
“Rose!” A familiar voice called from behind her and gave her pause. She knew the voice but feared it was a trick even as she looked up and saw Liostro walking toward her being supported between two guards. His breastplate had been removed and a bloody bandage was wrapped around his torso. “Please stop this!”
“Liostro?” She called out in a pitiful voice as blackness claimed her vision.
~~~~
It didn’t take long this time. She had recovered from her ordeal with Leonidus, now branded the betrayer, faster than she could have imagined. Rose was on her way to the council chambers to address the queen and the gathered elders of the elven court. Barius had informed her that Leonidus was left dead under the stones and the council had been gathered. Her feet carried her as quickly as she could make them and she had gathered Barius and Noranda on her way. She had no doubt that Liostro was already there offering what knowledge and advice he could. She hoped that the delay of her recovery did not cost them needed time.
Her surprise was genuine when she stepped into the council chambers to hear Taines and the other council members arguing about sending troops into the front when they had no information on the enemy. It was obvious from Liostro holding his head in his hand that he had tried his best to convince the council otherwise. Even Avreel, born of the true tyrants of the elven race, looked disgusted. She was appalled by their behavior. Nina was among the army or worse waiting to be saved and yet here again the elves were locked in debate. When she finally crossed into their view they stopped arguing for a moment to watch her approach.
Standing there among the gathering of elves with councilman Taines and the others still shocked from the recent events Rose could not help but feel a little overzealous. She had changed back into the black and red garments of her station and belted the trusty sword she had relied on to her hip. The red gems hanging from the chain that stretched from her ear to her nose sparkled from the light of the room. Everyone was silent so she took the initiative. “My queen, there is little time for pretty words and banter. If the betrayer was correct the armies of our enemy may already be upon us. Gather the strongest magic weavers among your people and have them join me at the mountain cave. I will distract them as long as I can. With their help it should give you enough time to gather those among you who can fight.”
“I do not take orders from you blood guard.” Miralastra replied with an air of superiority and resplendence as usual. Her blue eyes narrowed as she regarded Rose from her perch and turned to speak to the council again.
Liostro looked startled and Rose had definitely suffered the last insolence she would be able to take from the stubborn elf. She clenched her hands at her sides and glared at the queen and before she could stop herself she shouted at the top of her lungs. Even she was surprised when the marble beneath her feet cracked and nearly shattered. The fissure stretched out for several feet from her. “You will listen to me or you will all die where your pretty little posteriors sit.”
“I have bled for you and your legacy; I have bled for the elven people. I have sacrificed more than any of you know while you sit here in your little tree forts dabbing on perfume and sparring with words. You have asked so much of me and I have complied and now it is time for you to stand up for yourselves. Either you listen to me and gather yourselves up for a valiant defense or I leave now and never return again.” Rose paused for a moment and attempted to slow her breathing and make herself calm down but it wasn’t working. “Make no mistake I will go after my charge, no my friend, Ninanthia Sunmane a princess of the elven legacy. She is missing if none of you have noticed and requires rescuing before she is harmed or worse.”
“How dare you speak to me in such a tone!” Miralastra screamed back at her standing up on her podium.
“How dare me? How dare you call yourself Nina’s mother, how dare you sit there and allow her to get further away with each minute. Your duty to your people and crown aside your daughter is out there and I am going after her, I don’t need your permission but I am willing to forsake my quest for a short time in order to give the rest of your people a fighting chance. You will take it or you will leave it
and I will depart knowing that I did all I could to make things right for a people that freed me from my bonds. Make no mistake I’ve paid my dues to all of you and all that remains is my blood bond with Nina.” She stared at the queen unwavering in her judgment; even Liostro was amazed at her outburst which was obvious from the fact that his mouth was agape.
“You cannot speak to the queen that way you insolent…” Taines began before he was cut off by the queen herself.
“Barius, Noranda, do as she says.” Mira finally said and looked over at the council. “Liostro and Avreel will assist them in gathering every capable weaver within this forest. I’ll not see my home lost to invasion after protecting it so long.”
“Councilman Taines,” Rose turned to him and met his eyes for a second before he turned his gaze away. “That includes you. Your arcane dabbling is strong enough to be of use. Argue and I drop you where you stand.”
“Liostro, Avreel, attend me for a moment.” Rose turned and began walking away from the gathering with Liostro trailing behind her. Once she had exited the council chambers she turned to him. “What happened after I passed out?”
“Leonidus shuddered once and tried to say something about merging powers but he expired and his body began to wither instantly. I don’t know why.” Liostro eyed her for a moment. He was not sure what else to say.
Avreel nodded her head at Liostro’s words and then spoke. “What is the matter?”
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