The Witch (Dragon Eyes Book 1)

by Kristina Hlaváčková

  “Had enough of his provocations.”

  “You totally freaked him out!” Philip was so obviously enjoying himself. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there!” he sighed.

  “He just tripped over his own ego,” laughed Elena with badly concealed merriment. However, she was not at all sure about her feelings. She had used kras, the martial art Mother had taught her, for real. On her sibling. But it was not only that. Strength totally unknown to her body had appeared out of nowhere, yet oddly familiar, as if it had always been part of her. Simply said, Dars wasn’t the only one freaked out. This time she had enough control over herself to do just what needed to be done, but would that be the case next time? What if it wasn’t real control? What if she was simply not angry enough? What if she was not furious enough to lose control over herself? She had a nasty feeling she could have seriously injured Dars, or worse… Philip, the youngest of her older brothers, was her soul mate, but no matter how much she wanted to, she could not talk to him about what Mother had taught her, about magic, and dragons.

  Her brother was watching her. Even though he did not understand the reason for it, he could not miss the apprehension and doubt behind Elena’s happy countenance. There was worry in her eyes that she couldn’t hide. Philip knew his sister probably better than anybody, but even so, he had long ago realized she had secrets she would not or could not reveal. It most likely had something to do with Ashka. When asked, Elena told him outright that she couldn’t talk about it, and that she didn’t want to lie to him. She even pleaded that he would not ask again. But that could not stop him loving her. So now, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

  “Oh, come on! Stop sulking! You wiped the floor out with Darsie! He’ll stay out of your way for ages now, you can bet on that. And it ain’t going to be only him!” That did not seem to help much. He went silent for a moment, watching her.

  “You know I am here for you, right?!” He wanted to say a lot more, but Philip tended to find it difficult to express his feelings in words. However, it Elena smiled at him. Philip’s optimism was contagious. With Philip, there was no worry in the world. Whenever something bad came his way, it bounced clear off him. Or rather, it ran away not to get utterly squashed by his laughing lack of concern. Once Peter, their oldest brother, had commented that if a dragon tried to eat Philip, it would definitely break its teeth on him and would have to spit him out unharmed. In which case Philip would probably only stink a bit.

  ◆◆◆

  Going to dinner, Elena almost automatically hid her consciousness and power behind a shield of sorts. Mother always said that it was easier to find what you knew was there than something unknown to you. Therefore Mother was a good person to practice on, although today, the princess didn’t really give it a thought.

  Ashka walked into the room and halted, surprised. She saw Elena standing among her brothers, talking to Philip. There was, however, a strange emptiness. Ashka, used to registering other magical minds, sensed none. Where she was accustomed to register a glowing, almost palpable sharp consciousness and magical power of her daughter, there was nothing but a calm surface of the surrounding world. The queen searched further and found nothing but the composed, investigative, mind of a little girl. Ashka tried to concentrate, to sense a trace of something she knew so well. And then, after some time, she encountered a silvery wall. It rippled slightly under the touch of her mind, but stayed firm. As if unaware of her mother’s attempts, Elena continued talking to her brother. Ashka gasped, startled. In a way, it made her proud, but it was also very disturbing. Such a level of protection demanded a huge amount of strength.

  At last, Elena looked at her mother with eyes of such dark brown they were almost black. Ashka felt a pang in her heart. For how long was her child going to be the little girl she deserved to be at eight years of age? She made up her mind. The unyielding, silent, Dars stubbornly avoiding any eye contact helped her to it. By now, just about everyone had heard what happened back in the forest. More or less. Nobody really knew what happened. Luckily. But the queen had to act immediately, because had anyone found out, the whole family would be in great trouble.

  After dinner, Ashka asked her daughter to join her for a walk in the gardens.

  “You can hide your mind very well,” Ashka complimented Elena after a long period of silence. Elena fidgeted, but said nothing. She was waiting for the but.

  “Will you tell me what happened during the practice battle?” Ashka asked gently.

  “It wasn’t my fault. It was Dars who attacked,” Elena replied defensively.

  To her surprise, Ashka nodded. “Describe the fight, Eleanora,” she insisted.

  Eleanora. Whenever Mother called her that, it meant she was getting impatient. So, Elena gave a detailed account of what happened between Dars and her.

  “…One would’ve thought Aaron should know better than stationing Dars and I into enemy camps, making us face each other,” the girl muttered and went silent.

  Ashka agreed with the last sentence, but did not comment. “I’m glad you kept most of your power under control, but there are still too many things you have to learn.”

  Elena gave her a sideways glance. There was always the but. And there was also the most. At least Elena wasn’t in trouble. And then she stopped, startled.

  “Do you want to send me away?” Elena gasped.

  Ashka gave her a smile, not really noticing the horror in the girl’s eyes. “It won’t be for long. However, dragons and elves are the only ones who can teach you how to handle your gift properly. Your powers are beyond my skills now.” She watched her daughter. Elena was trying to sort things out in her head. Childish rebellion and longing to stay home, where she knew everything and everyone, battled with a suspicion that her mother was right. Elena wrestled with her own logic. She was scared of becoming a dark magician. But she just wished there was another way. After a very long silence, she mumbled: “But how? I can’t just disappear.”

  This wasn’t exactly the response Ashka anticipated. “No, you can’t so we will send you to school. A young lady of your position simply must obtain the best education possible,” answered Ashka, taken aback by the absence of any kind of opposition.

  “What will we tell father?” Elena asked.

  “I wanted to talk to you first. It won’t be easy; you will be among strangers and in a strange place.”

  “It will be an adventure, right?” it did not sound convincing, but it felt like a good argument. “Will we tell father the whole truth?” Elena persisted. Ashka caressed Elena’s red hair and looked her straight in the eye.

  “Maybe not the whole truth. Unless he asks, that is. Anything else you would like to ask?” Elena watched her mother thoughtfully. Anything else? Her mind was swirling with hundreds of questions. There were so many of them she didn’t know where to start. The worried crease on her forehead just did not want to disappear.

  “Can Michael come with me?”

  Ashka straightened her back. “I don’t think that to be a good idea.”

  “He is my personal guard. How would you explain that I’m leaving without him?” Elena clutched at a straw of hope. Ashka gave the argument some thought. She did not look happy. Unfortunately, her daughter was right. Elena leaving and the boy staying home would raise far too many questions.

  “We cannot be sure that we can trust him,” she tried to leave her answer for later, hoping some suitable solution would present itself.

  “Yes we can! He is my friend and he swore fealty to me,” Elena lifted her head proudly.

  “The personal guard oath…”Ashka tried to protest.

  “I used the ancient Adragon fealty you taught me,” Elena interrupted her. The Queen stared in silent disbelief. An eight year-old girl had thought ahead far enough to use a fealty obliging almost implicitly? The oath she had used not only obliged, but also hid within itself magic that enabled only those pure at heart, to understand and swear, thus completing the little ceremony. The oath was therefore not
only a pledge of fealty, but also its proof. Especially because the person taking the oath was swearing to his death.

  “We’ll see. We should talk to your father first,” answered Ashka at last. Elena gave her a look that Ashka missed, but had she not; she would’ve most likely misinterpreted it. That look was full of sadness and disappointed hope. Rarely was Elena sure that what she has done was right, but the oath she used with Michael was perfectly proper. With childish naiveté, she had hoped her mother would, for once, be proud of her. Ashka was, however, merely surprised. As if Elena doing something right was purely accidental. Even so, there was not much time to think about it. There were other matters at hand.

  ◆◆◆

  For Elena it was always a bit of a mystery that her father didn’t know about Ashka’s past and magical powers. Mother made her swear that she would never speak of what she was learning, to anyone, her father included. Hundreds of questions flew through Elena’s head. Meanwhile, Ashka walked her to her and her father’s quarters. Elena was so occupied with her thoughts she was surprised to see that door appear in front of her. They entered without knocking or announcement. For Elena, it was an unusual experience. Father sat casually in an armchair, reading. He looked up at them and smiled, putting the book down. He didn’t seem to be surprised to see Elena in his chambers.

  “We need to talk to you,” his wife told him in a soft, velvety voice. Father smiled a quiet smile again, still comfortably seated in his armchair. Elena pulled her hand out of her mother’s palm, and happily sat in the armchair opposite him. Unladylike, she left her shoes on the ground, and tucked her bare feet underneath her legs. The armchair was huge and she looked a bit lost in it. Since it was a quite a privilege to sit in the chair, Elena intended to make the most of it.

  “The day Elena was late for dinner; she was late because she met a dragon,” Ashka announced simply.

  “So it is true, dragons aren’t extinct? What was he like?”

  He was so calm! The total lack of surprise on his part astonished Elena. She gave him an intent stare with her almost black eyes. Suddenly it occurred to her that she might be missing some crucial information.

  It took a few seconds for her to reply, but then she blurted out excitedly: “Gorgeous! He was dark red, his scales shining like the Sun. And he was huge!”

  “Weren’t you afraid?” Father asked and Elena pursed her lips.

  “Scared to death!” she confessed and the King laughed.

  “She touched him even so,” Ashka amended. Her quiet voice full of apprehension was in high contrast with her daughter’s enthusiasm. John leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees.

  “Really?” he asked his daughter.

  Elena nodded.

  “That touch awakened an ancient magic of Mother Earth. Our daughter received a gift, a gift of power,” continued Ashka.

  Listening intently to his wife, John watched his fidgety daughter, who wished she could hide from his penetrating look. It felt as if he could see right through her, not unlike Mother with her magical powers. Elena tried to hold eye contact, but looked away after a while.

  “Magical power?” he asked, when Ashka finished. Ashka nodded. John turned to look at her with an unspoken question in his eyes.

  “I taught her a lot, but not enough for her new powers, I’m afraid. There isn’t much more I could teach her now. And we both know magic is tricky.” The anxiety in her voice was far more expressive than any words Ashka might use. It was obvious she already had a plan. Ashka, her majesty through and through, stood strong and dignified as always. She drew a deep breath.

  “Elena must learn to control and hide her magic. I would like to send her to the elves,” Ashka announced. John leaned back in his armchair, still looking at his apparently almost calm daughter, sitting in the armchair opposite him. It had often occurred to him that he didn’t really understand and know the girl. Surprisingly so, the youngest of his children didn’t seem to be afraid of what awaited her. Well, he was scared enough for the both of them. That her trip was inevitable, was no consolation to him. He loved his daughter and dreaded the feeling that he should lose her. Elena sat, returning his gaze, expecting his decision.

  “For how long?” he demanded.

  “As long as necessary,” Ashka answered, turning her back on both of them, looking out the window. She had no idea whatsoever as to how long she would have to part ways with her daughter. There were too many things that could happen and go wrong.

  “Aren’t you afraid?” John asked his daughter and deep in his heart he hoped she would refuse to leave her home. Elena gave him a serious, thoughtful, look. With those dark, almost black eyes of hers.

  “I’ve heard stories. If I don’t go, I might become a monster. And I don’t want that to happen.”

  Silence fell. Ashka was the first to speak: “My men and I will accompany her on her way. My guards swore fealty to me so they cannot reveal my secrets.”

  “Isn’t there any other way?” asked John and Elena registered uncertainty in his voice. It surprised and scared her. Her father, the solid unshakable rock of her life, had a hint of fear in his voice. Suddenly the enormity of the situation dawned on her, and her own fear gripped her. Dark brown eyes began to flick from one parent to another. It was an effort to look down and calm her quickening breath. She mustn’t be afraid! A gal has to do what a gal has to do. Anything was better than being overpowered by magic, better than becoming a monster! It was not hard to make a decision once you’ve heard all the Berber stories about black magicians, and once you had seen a Black Saurian. She had once witnessed the huge flying lizard emerge from the blackness of the night and attack a village. She heard his roar, the whizz of wings, people screaming, the horror. It was the kind of horror really powerful wizards could also spread, and she did not want to become one of them. She was flooded with a quickly changing mixture of feelings. Learning new things was something she was very much looking forward to. But she was also scared of the unknown, and what she may encounter. That, however, could not be worse than becoming a hated monster. She knew far too well, what the Berber thought about magic. Her mind was racing round in circles.

  Elena got up and walked over to her father’s chair. The King leaned forward. He was so tall he was face to face with the standing Elena, even though he was seated.

  “I would lie if I said I wasn’t scared. But Mother and Aaron have taught me enough so I won’t get lost in the world. And dragons and elves can teach me how to stop myself from becoming a dark magician. And if Mother is correct, well, a really powerful witch in our ranks would be … useful. So I have to go, see?!” she explained.

  Her father smiled at her, but that smile didn’t reach his eyes. Eight-year-olds should not talk in the way Elena just did. She had no right to sound so wise.

  “Magician apprentices are never younger than fifteen years old, and for a good reason too. You are too young,” John reasoned.

  “Apprentices are never under fifteen years of age because magic awakens fully in puberty; therefore they have no reason to study any sooner. I have that reason now,” Elena replied. John turned to his wife for support, but she was facing the window with her head bent, refusing to look at him.

  “Elves and dragons, especially dragons are …” the king paused. “They are dangerous. Even if they decide to teach you, they will not treat you as a child, as the small girl that you are. There will be no one to look after you.”

  “Michael will. He can come with me if he wants to.” Elena sought refuge in her new found friend.

  “Even if that is true, it still will be dangerous,” John tried again.

  “More dangerous than a power I cannot control?” she asked calmly. The king sighed. He knew there was no other way and that his arguments were lame. He was afraid for his daughter, while the nipper was trying to be reasonable and responsible.

  “I’ll be alright! I’m daughter of an Adragon and the greatest of Berber warriors!” Elena declared and hugged him ti
ghtly. The king laughed. After a while, he eased out of her embrace and looked at her, his hands on her shoulders.

  “OK, now that we’ve decided that you are going, how should we do it?”

  “She should leave as soon as possible, before she manages to do something else to compromise us all.” Ashka reentered the conversation. Her husband nodded.

  “How soon did you have in mind?”

  “At daybreak.”

  “No.” Elena surprised both of them. They turned to face her.

  “In two days at the earliest. If Michael is to come with me, I need to talk to him first and he should have a chance to speak to his mother. And if I left so abruptly, wouldn’t people find it strange?” There was a surprised, thoughtful silence for a moment.

  “She’s right. Too many secrets draw attention. We should treat this properly; organize a farewell party as if she really were leaving for school,” the king agreed. Ashka had no other chance but to accord with her husband. They began to go through all the necessary details of the mission.

  Elena was so exhausted with all the excitement that her eyelids were getting heavy. Seated in the big comfortable armchair again, she curled up into a ball, and lulled by the calm sounds of their voices, drifted off to sleep. The King looked at her, realizing Elena was asleep when he asked her a question. There was no answer. Lifting her gently out of the chair, he carried her into her chambers. He tucked her into bed lovingly and watched her sleep for a while. She was so petit and delicate. It worried him.

  ◆◆◆

  Michael stood facing Elena, listening. First, Elena asked him if he was willing to leave his mother for a long, unspecified period of time. Because if he would, they were going for an adventure. Well, he was not really facing her. He stood watching her pace. She was excited and restless; unable to stop moving. Not even for a second. She said she was going to school. But it was a strange school. Michael waited for her to pause for a breath so he could remind her that he’d decided to stay at her side the day he swore fealty to her.