The Hero's Peril (The Sorcerer's Saga Book 5)

by Rain Oxford

  My blood ran cold. “He can’t mean…”

  “Does your wife happen to be---”

  “What are the odds?” Lodeki interrupted, gesturing to the door.

  Merlin and I both turned. “Hello, Merlin, Ayden,” said Desandra Lenore. She had long white hair and kind blue eyes. Her face, while symmetrical and pleasant, was soft and pale.

  I met Dessa when I was a child and had since thought of her as a friend. It never bothered me that her advice was always cryptic until Merlin and I started learning about the Sjau. That was when she started sending us on quests and keeping information from us. That was when I started feeling used by her.

  Now it made sense; she was married to a sorcerer. She was never my friend to begin with.

  “How could you not tell me you were married to my uncle?” I tried to ask. It ended up going through my mental connection instead of out loud, so Merlin asked her for me.

  “Lodeki has nothing to do with us or my visions.”

  “Okay, I’m only a little offended by that,” Lodeki said.

  “I married him because he works with dragons,” she continued as if she hadn’t heard him.

  “Okay, now I’m a lot offended,” Lodeki amended.

  “And because he’s a lot of fun to be around and not hard to look at.”

  “Okay, I’m not offended anymore.” He rose from his seat, kissed her on the cheek, and headed for the door before she could say anything else. “I’m going to quit while I’m ahead.”

  She ignored him, as if he hadn’t been in the room at all. “I wish I could answer all of your questions, but it would do more harm than good,” she said.

  Merlin shook his head. “I comprehend that more than most people. Ayden, however, sees things differently, which you should understand. He has never held anything back from you and sees it as a betrayal that you cannot return the favor. If you came here to visit with him, he would forgive you, but I suspect that is not the case, is it?”

  “No. I have come to explain some things, though.”

  “Then you are an associate or ally, not a friend. You need to stop pretending to be his friend and he needs to get over the fact that you are not one.”

  I wanted to defend her, but Merlin was right, as he usually was. I wouldn’t have been nearly as upset with her if I thought of her as someone who occasionally had answers rather than someone I was supposed to trust and could be myself around.

  “I know why Yuri and Ayden are identical.”

  “Why is that?”

  “I caused it. I foresaw everything that happens here and on the other worlds. I selected the egg I knew Yuri would be bonded to and told Shaerl that the Romanus family would come for it. Then I went to Magnus and Livia and instructed them to make a special potion, which I brought back to the Rynorm family for Yuri’s mother. Before Yuri was conceived, I went to Ravindra Romanus and Kelseym Haywood, and I told them they needed to go to the Rynorm family and protect the egg. There, they were also offered the potion, which Ravindra took.”

  “And the potion made Yuri look like Ayden?” Merlin asked.

  “Yes.”

  “For what purpose?”

  “Haven’t you thought it was odd that everyone keeps talking about your destiny, but not Ayden’s?”

  “I do not hold the same faith in ‘destiny’ as people seem to think.”

  “Well, they can be dangerous, especially when the wrong person can see it. I had to protect Ayden and Yuri both from the wrong person interfering with their destinies. By making them identical, I concealed them. No one can see what their destinies are, not even dragons. It protected Ayden from Baltezore more than you can know and it will protect Yuri time and time again in the future.”

  After dumping that monumental information on us, she said she had to smooth some ruffled feathers and left.

  Merlin and I returned to our room to check on Yuri and absorb what we had learned. We reverted to our normal forms after a while to rest, but when Yuri woke, disoriented and defensive, we switched again so that Merlin could communicate easier with him. Also, I preferred to be a wolf for a while. It felt more natural than being a Rynorm.

  * * *

  Yuri was still resting when I sensed the mood of the entire house change. Shaerl Rynorm had returned. I could sense her magic as she made her way to the room. She had rust-colored eyes and long, braided black hair draped over her shoulder, accented with a ruby necklace. Her facial structure was softer than her sons’, but the aura of power around her was strong enough to warn anyone that she was dangerous.

  “Hello, Merlin, Ayden. It’s good to see you two again. And he must be Yuri Romanus, one of the new guardians of dragons.”

  “How in the world can you tell them apart?” Merlin asked. “You have only seen Ayden once, and they are identical.”

  She laughed. “They aren’t alike to us. Let me explain how I see people.” She gently grabbed his shoulders and turned him to face away from Yuri. “Describe Ayden.”

  “He is blond, blue eyes, about five and a half feet tall, a bit thin, could do with a haircut.”

  “Now describe Yuri.”

  “The same. Yuri’s hair might be a tad shorter.”

  “That is because you’re not from Caldaca.” She turned him back to Yuri. “Ayden has told you that the appearances of people from Caldaca are not deceptive. So what does Yuri’s appearance tell you about him?”

  “That he is a wizard and therefore selfless and best at defensive magic.”

  “But what about his appearance tells you he’s kind? Is it his hair, his face, or maybe his eye color?”

  “I suppose. I am not a fair judge, because the same rules do not apply on other worlds.”

  “The problem is not the rule, the problem is that you are looking for physical tells, of which there are none. I look at Yuri and I see that he’s lost. He lost his magic, his home, his comfort, and his mortality. Instead, he has gained a purpose, and he won’t get anything else back until he accepts it.”

  “How do you see that?”

  “That is the way everyone from Caldaca sees people, though some focus on the wrong things because they were secluded growing up or because their minds will not let them see the world as it is.”

  “How is that different from Ayden?”

  She looked at me and smiled. “Ayden has not lost his home; he found it.”

  “Ask her what she knows about the immortals.” He did.

  “I know less than you do, I’m afraid. This is a new concept even to dragons. The Sjau are the bridge between people and dragons, the protectors of Caldaca itself. Magic was returned to Caldaca after you killed the black star, but it was not the same. These new dragon guardians are not the only change we will see.”

  “Should we tell her about the dragoness that took over for the ancient dragon?” I asked.

  “Do you trust her enough to tell her the most powerful secret of Caldaca?”

  “I don’t know. You know her better than I do. If I was a proper sorcerer, I would hold onto the information until I needed to trade it for something.”

  “It is what she would do. However, it is your secret to share with who you choose.”

  “I’m not her. The other Sjau might also be sharing the secret and I don’t want my grandmother to be the only one who doesn’t know. Tell her.”

  He nodded and did as I asked. Shaerl listened thoughtfully. “Thank you for telling me,” she said when he was done. “It comforts me to know our magic is in the hands of a dragon.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I believe in dragons. I trust them not to make mistakes.”

  “Baltezore was a dragon and he would have killed us all.”

  “I always accepted the fact that we could lose magic. I was prepared. The black star was even prophesized. Although it was prophesized to be the death of magic, I think we have more now than we ever did.”

  “Do you mean that people are more powerful?”

  “I mean that Yuri is ju
st the beginning. I believe that with a new dragon, it stands to reason that she will change the rules of magic itself. It is possible— probable even— that there will be new types of magic users on Caldaca. Maybe they have yet to be born, or perhaps people are already discovering their magic has changed. Who knows what powers Yuri will have now that his dragoness has hatched?”

  “Why do you think anything will change?”

  “Aside from the fact that change is the way of life? Aside from the fact that there has already been change? The dragons have foreseen it. There will be people who can bend minds the way elementalist command the weather. There will be people who can stop time, even reverse it, rather than just seeing the future.”

  “That sounds terrible.”

  “It is the natural step forward in our society. We can only hope it will be gradual, and that dragons will help teach people to control themselves the way Cennuth taught you. Imagine what you would have become without him?”

  “Without Caedmon or Brynjar, either. All three of them made me who I am today.”

  “As did Baltezore.”

  “Yuri will need guidance.”

  “We will be happy to provide it, but he must choose to accept it, just like you had to.”

  “I was different. I was younger, for one thing, and I did not have a kingdom to protect. He will have to choose between his dragon and his family.”

  “No,” I said. “First, he has to choose between warning other immortals about their dragons and saving his kingdom.”

  Shaerl left and soon after, Merlin and I switched back. It was definitely easier when we did it voluntarily. It was my first real chance to relax since Merlin and I reached Zuras’s castle, so I quickly fell asleep.

  Chapter 16

  I saw a man walking down a hallway. His face was blurry. The hallway, however, was clean and well-lit. On either side of him were four prisoner cells, all empty. At the end of the hall, however, he stopped at a ninth cell that was separated from the others. Inside, Zuras paced restlessly. The stranger watched him for a while before clearing his throat. Zuras jumped, shrieked, and tried to dive under the bed.

  “Stop embarrassing yourself,” the stranger ordered. “Stand and face me, Rheim.”

  As if he couldn’t help himself, Zuras stood and approached the bars, his eyes lowered.

  “I had everything except the book,” Zuras said.

  “And if you had gotten the book as soon as you reached White Hills instead of playing around, you would have succeeded. You would have had an entire world to do with what you will. It was your arrogance that lost you everything.”

  “Please. I can get it all back.”

  “Behind bars?”

  “If you can return my powers, I can escape.”

  “Why would I do that? Why would I reward failure?”

  “But I still have the paintbrush.”

  “That is one less thing I have to hunt down myself.”

  “Please don’t leave me here.”

  “Oh, I didn’t plan on leaving you here. You know too much.”

  * * *

  Merlin and I woke simultaneously and with a definite gloom. Merlin blamed himself for not realizing someone else was behind Zuras’s attack, even though he had believed the situation was strange. How could someone that dimwitted cause so much mayhem? I blamed myself for trapping Zuras on that world without any way to defend himself.

  When Yuri woke, we went over everything the dragoness had told him, just in case he missed something, as well as what Desandra had done to make us identical. He wasn’t taking it well, so we couldn’t bring ourselves to tell him what we saw. As far as we were concerned, he had enough to deal with. He understood that he needed to tell others about their dragons, but he also had a duty to his kingdom.

  “Merlin and I can return to the kingdom and help them.”

  Yuri shook his head. “I can’t ask you to do that.”

  “You haven’t figured out how to use your powers yet. I can summon a dragon. Besides, you have a lot to learn about raising a dragon.”

  Yuri considered it while Merlin and I went to get food. Fortunately, there was plenty, despite the fact that dinner was winding down. I was surprised to see fourteen of my female cousins there, without any male cousins. All of them were within five years of me. I decided not to say anything.

  When Yuri emerged from our room with the hatchling on his shoulder, it took me a moment to realize what I was seeing. “Did your dragon… change color?” I asked. She was now emerald green, but when the light moved across her, she looked sapphire blue.

  “Apparently, she can do that.”

  After giving Yuri a plate of bread and cheese, my grandmother officially offered him marriage to any of my cousins he wanted. As confused as I was, Yuri nearly choked on a piece of bread. The dragoness turned her head until she was peering at the girls upside down.

  That explained why my cousins were there.

  “You are a new type of dragon guardian, and we don’t know if it is passed down genetically or not,” Shaerl said. “I want that in our family. We have been guardians of dragons since dragons ruled Caldaca. It only makes sense that the new guardians would be Rynorms as well. We could help you and the others to raise and care for your dragons. We can help you bring about a new era of dragons on Caldaca. Even though your children wouldn’t have the Rynorm name, they would have an alliance with our family.”

  He simply shook his head, turned, and walked away. Merlin and I caught up to him in our room, followed closely by Shaerl.

  “I don’t want to marry for an alliance,” Yuri said as if he hadn’t stopped. I figured he just hadn’t wanted to speak in front of the girls. “That was one thing my mother said I would never have to do as king.”

  “We’re talking about something better than being a king.”

  “I don’t care. Being a king is not something I ever wanted. It’s something I was born to do. It’s not a privilege; it’s a duty. My purpose is to protect my kingdom. They’re my people.”

  “So are the immortals,” I said. They both looked at me. “Bear with me, because I’m not good at explaining like Merlin is. You have land that can support a great many people. I bet it could also support dragons. Maybe your destiny is to help the other immortals… and your kingdom. Imagine how safe your land can be with dragons defending it. You can gather immortals and help them find their dragons, then bring them back to your castle and help them raise their dragons. Even young dragons who aren’t bound to immortals can find shelter at your kingdom the way they do here.”

  “People are going to start hunting dragons again,” Shaerl said.

  “That’s why it’s better to have them all together. It’ll be easier to protect one kingdom of dragons who are working together than to protect dragons scattered all over the world.”

  “You need caves for them to live in.”

  “We have a lot of mountains, so maybe there will be a few caves,” Yuri said doubtfully.

  Shaerl grinned. “If you have mountains, dragons can make their own caves.”

  “It’s up to you, Yuri. You have to go with your heart,” I said.

  “No, that is how you make mistakes,” Shaerl argued. “You have to listen to your head.”

  “I don’t know what either of them is saying.”

  “No one can tell you. We can give you advice, but it’s your life and your decision.”

  “I don’t want to decide.”

  “Let me talk to him alone,” Merlin said.

  “Do you want to switch?”

  “No, I think Yuri is more comfortable with me as a wolf and I know the hatchling is.”

  Shaerl and I left. I found my father sitting alone in front of the fireplace, reading. I stood in front of him, not willing to speak first, and for a while, he ignored me. Finally, I did what I never would have when we lived under the same roof; I interrupted.

  “What did you do with Ilvera?”

  Instead of telling me to go away or ge
tting angry, he said, “She is somewhere safe, where she can’t cause trouble and I can retrieve her when I’m ready for her. She’s not going to be bothering anyone.”

  “I haven’t been able to rest easy since she disappeared. Not knowing where she is at all is worse than knowing she’s after me. I feel like she’s going to attack me any moment. Please, just tell me.”

  He made a motion with his hand and a familiar chest appeared. It was made of dark wood and shiny silver metal.

  “The syrus? How did you get that?” The syrus was a magical box that could contain powerful beings. In fact, it was the magical prison I had released Merlin from. It was probably the only safe place to contain my mother.

  “You never wondered why I stayed at Magnus’s castle so long?”

  “I thought it was to help us.”

  He laughed. “I don’t do anything for nothing.”

  “How did you trap her?”

  “It was easy.”

  “Then why hadn’t you done it before?”

  “Because you needed her to help you defeat Baltezore.”

  Merlin had told me numerous times, “It is not necessary for you to blurt out every word that pops into your brain.” He thought that I never listened, but I did. Even terrified of my parents, I was known to say anything and everything that came to mind when I lived with them. Fortunately, I avoided them as much as I could, so it was mostly my brothers who punished me. No amount of torture could teach me to keep my mouth shut. Merlin’s patience, however, proved more effective.

  I carefully considered what I wanted to say to my father. I wanted to tell him that he should have told me what would have happened ahead of time, that he didn’t know what was best for me, and that I didn’t trust him because he had lied to me too many times.

  Then I carefully considered what his responses would inevitably be. He would tell me that if I needed him, I wasn’t worth his help, that he did what was best for himself, not me, because he was a proper sorcerer, and that I was right not to trust him and wrong not to lie to him in return.