Catalyst (Book 1) (31 page)

She didn’t say anything. She stood up, ignoring the map, and watched me.

“Forgive me, Your Highness,” I said, breaking the silence. “I was looking for my master.” I bowed, then turned and walked to the entrance. “I’ll leave you alone.”

“Hellsfire.”

I stopped. Suddenly, I realized what a coward I was being. I turned around. “I’m sorry for what I said earlier. You have a kingdom to think of. I have to remember that. It was just so hard to leave you there, with Premier, and I was terrified something would happen to you before I had a chance to bring help. And if anything were to happen to you…I don’t know what I’d do.”

The princess didn’t say anything. She walked closer. Her being so close made me nervous, and my fire disappeared. I held my breath, afraid to even breathe on her. I had forgotten how tall she was. “But you did come. And you did bring help.”

“I keep my promises, Your Highness.”

“We're alone. You may call me Krystal.”

I nodded, not trusting myself not to say something stupid again.

“If we survive this,” she said, “Alexandria will owe you a great deal. You'll be richly awarded.”

I shook my head. “I didn't do this for money or power.”

“Then why did you do it?”

This was an echo of our very first conversation, in the woods near Sedah. And the answer was still the same. “Because it was the right thing to do, and…for you.”

I met her violet eyes and smiled. She smiled back. I saw the remains of tears on her cheeks, as though she’d been crying before I came in. I took a chance and gently put my hand to her face, wiping them away. Her eyes filled, and more tears spilled over. Despite her vulnerability, she looked stronger—not weaker—when she cried.

If she were anyone else but a princess, I would have kissed her. I wanted to—needed to. I let my hand fall and took a step back. In a surprising move, she took a step closer, her warm body brushing mine.

I cleared my throat and whispered, “Krystal, Princess, what are you doing?” I tried to lean back, but any farther and I was going to fall.

“Be quiet, hero,” Krystal said, leaning closer and putting her fingers against my lips. She ran her fingers slowly through my hair. I shivered. She pulled me closer until our bodies pressed together. She groaned softly from the pain in her side.

“Krystal! Are you all right?” She held on tighter.

“I'm fine. You worry too much.”

Krystal moved closer and brushed her lips on mine. Everything slowed. It was stronger than any magic I had ever experienced. Emotions flowed through my body as I returned the soft kiss. I was drawn into our own little world, where I only wanted to be with her. Nothing else mattered. As unexpectedly as it had begun, the kiss ended. Krystal released me and stepped back. I stood there, dumbfounded, my eyes still closed, dwelling on that magical kiss. Finally, I blinked and shook my head.

“Wha-wha-what was that for?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

“For luck, hero.” Krystal kissed me on the cheek and smiled one last time before she glided out of the tent.

I stared after her. I couldn’t believe that
the
princess of Alexandria had kissed me. If I survived the battle, perhaps things might not be so bad. Perhaps a simple farm boy could be more.

But I couldn’t think about the future now. I first had to make sure that Krystal survived and Premier died. It all came down to that. Too much rode on today—far too much for a wizard-in-training and a young man from Sedah. I gazed up, praying the gods would walk with us.

CHAPTER 22

I met everyone at the edge of camp. I walked past the fifty elves and dwarves that had been chosen for this mission. Unlike those I had seen earlier, these elves and dwarves were older and had bodies full of scars. Their faces were grim and their eyes were hard.

I went to the front of the group, where my friends were. Cynder towered over all, letting everyone marvel at him; Master Stradus, a bucket of water at his feet, was talking to Sharald; and Jastillian, Prastian, Behast, Demay, and Krystal were busy discussing the attack.

“Sure took you long enough,” Cynder said and snorted. “We don’t have all night.”

“Forgive me, everyone,” I said. “But I can't fly like some creatures here.”

“Not yet, you can't,” Master Stradus said. “Not yet.” Everyone laughed, releasing our tension.

I stopped laughing. I took a deep breath and said, “I'm ready.”

“Plans have changed, Hellsfire,” Master Stradus said.

“Oh,” I said, hoping that he hadn’t changed his mind about me going with the team into Alexandria.

Master Stradus looked at the night sky. “Unfortunately, the clear night is going to cause a problem. The creatures will spot you before you get to the walls. We're going to fix that and provide adequate cover. Pick up the bucket and let's be on our way. We'll be back in an hour or so.” He started to walk towards Alexandria.

I grabbed the bucket and picked up my pace to catch up to Master Stradus.

“Good luck,” Krystal said. I turned around, and she gave me a warm smile.

We left the camp and walked north over the rough, barren terrain. We stopped when we saw the city walls.

I squinted. “Think they can see us from here, Master?”

“No, but this is far enough. I want you to create fog, and you will do so by using the water in this bucket. I will bring the clouds towards us so that they will blanket the area and shut out the light. You do know how to go about it, don't you?”

I nodded.

“Good.”

“Will Premier be able to figure out who’s behind this?”

Master Stradus smiled. “He’s going to think you’re behind this, and he’d be right.”

“What if he decides to undo the spell and they spot us?”

“He won’t. If I know him, his overconfidence won’t allow him to. He won’t see the point of it. He’s in a position of strength. Us hiding our troop positions won’t worry him.”

“If you say so, Master.”

Master
Stradus
walked away, and I sat down cross-legged in front of the bucket. Since fog is a combination of air and water, those were the mana I had to use. I closed my eyes and reached out to the fierce wind and water.

“May the cold air guide this water into fog. May the cold air guide this water into fog.”
I repeated the incantation in Caleea over and over. The cold air rose from behind me and flowed all around my body, numbing my hands and face. I wasn't sure how long it would take to create enough fog to blanket the entire field, so I kept repeating the words. Goose bumps popped on my body. This was much different from sitting on the ledge of the White Mountain. I wasn’t using my fire mana, and without it, the power of the cold overwhelmed me, making my body shiver. I forced myself to stay awake and finish the job.

“Hellsfire,” a sleepy voice said. “Hellsfire, come out of your trance.” I opened my heavy eyes. “Good job, my boy. Hurry, we must get back to the others.”

I wobbled to my feet. At first, I thought my eyes were fuzzy because of the deep trance I had been in, but the mist blanketed everything. I waved my arm through the ocean of fog. Everything looked unreal.

“Make haste and lead the way back to camp,” he said.

I took a step forward, then stopped. I turned my head to the left and then to the right. “Master, I'm not sure which way that is.”

“It's that way,” he said, and pointed. “Would you like me to provide some light, or would you like to do that?”

“I'll be more than happy to.” I released the inner fire that dwelled in me. The heat coursed through my body and filled me with life. I let out a sigh of enjoyment. I made a ball of fire that stayed in my hand. “I feel soooo much better, Master. Let’s go.”

It took us longer to go back to the encampment than it had to leave. I wanted to take it nice and slow so I wouldn't veer off and get us lost. However, I soon heard voices and continued to walk us in that direction until I was able to see who was talking.

“We're glad you're back,” King Sharald said.

There were multiple torches surrounding him, so I extinguished my little ball of fire.

“Is everything ready?” Lenora asked.

“As you can see, we have provided everyone with adequate cover,” Master Stradus said. “As soon as they leave, I'll work on a counterspell to this.” He looked at the princess. “You have one hour to make it to the walls before you'll lose your cover.” He turned his attention back to Lenora and Sharald. “Is your army ready?”

“Aye,” Lenora said.

“Are your elves ready, Prastian?” Jastillian asked.

“Yes. We can depart as soon as
your
dwarves are ready.” Prastian smiled.

Jastillian laughed and clapped him hard on the back. He put a helm over his head. “Then let’s be on our way. Your Highness, if you please.”

“Good luck, my son, and please be careful,” Master Stradus said. “And heed my words—
don’t
fight Premier without me.”

“I won’t.” I didn’t want to face Premier by myself. He did have the
Book of Shazul
. I walked over to Krystal. “Ready, Your Highness?”

She nodded.

I created a condensed and focused fireball, making it provide more light than heat.

“May the gods walk with you,” Sharald said.

“Fight well and die harder,” Lenora said.

Krystal and I led the group, the rest falling in behind. My heart pounded, ready to explode. I exhaled and said quietly, “This is it.”

Krystal’s hand brushed my arm. Her purple eyes stared into mine, calming me.

While we walked, I parted the fog around us just slightly so the princess could see better, though I was careful to keep it thick enough that we were invisible from a distance. She navigated the level terrain easily, only pausing now and then to correct our direction.

To my ears, the light clattering of weapons and armor sounded far too loud. I kept glancing at those rattling chainmail or clattering quivers of arrows. The soldiers fingering their weapon hilts or scratching their beards added to the noise. Even the sound of their soft footsteps in the patches of grass on the flat ground rang in my ears. I tried not to think about such things and focused on the task at hand.

When we arrived at the city's walls, I let out a breath, thankful that we hadn’t been spotted so far. I craned my neck at the towering walls, hearing the constant movement from the heavy creatures patrolling. Worried that they might see us, I drew the fog around us.

“Please put out the flame,” the princess said. She walked along the wall. Her eyes scanned for something while her fingers danced on the stones. She slowed down to a crawl, then stopped. “Here it is.”

Krystal pressed one of the stone blocks. A small opening appeared in the wall. She stepped in, and I followed her. The others poured in past us, into the dark hallway. After we were all inside, Krystal pushed another stone on the inside of the entrance. The doorway closed, sealing us in the small, cramped, pitch-black hallway. It smelt stale and stuffy.

Even though the city walls were deep, it was too small inside the passage, especially with so many people. I hadn’t thought it would be like this. The space was only two people wide, and all the warm bodies made me feel trapped. I leaned on one of the walls, my hand tracing the lines in the stone. My chest heaved, and I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth. My heart vibrated through my ears. My breathing seemed louder than the entire force.

“Hellsfire,” Krystal said, keeping her voice low. “Hellsfire, are you all right?” She reached out from the darkness and grasped my shoulder.

I took a deep breath, trying to breathe normally. I remembered all the people outside who had far harder things to do than I did. “Forgive me. I'm…fine, Your Highness.”

I squashed my emotions and focused on my magic. It was hard to use only a small portion of it. The need to use more almost overwhelmed me, but my fear of hurting the others controlled it.

I created a fireball in my hand, illuminating the hallway. Monstrous shadows danced on the walls. Their pupil-less eyes forever watched us. That’s one of the main reasons I hate small spaces—your mind plays tricks on you.

The princess led me past the others to the head of the line, and we moved out. Although we were inside the wall, there were a lot of twists as well as branching passageways. They must have been put there to confuse people, or perhaps they led to other places in Alexandria.

A long time passed, and no one said a word. Only the scurrying of rats, the dripping of water, and the sound of the fire in my hand accompanied the tread of our feet.

My thoughts kept straying to those outside these walls. As much as I worried for them, I was thankful for something to occupy my mind. Thoughts of their well-being kept me distracted from the cramped corridor.

The corridor slanted steeply down and opened up, big enough for a cart and horses to travel through. The ceiling was much higher; I couldn’t even see it in the darkness above. The princess stopped. We all huddled around her. The stone had disappeared. We now seemed to be underground, and the tunnels were dirt shored up by timbers. Unlike the section we had just walked through, unlit torches hung on the sides of the walls.

“We’re underneath Alexandria and close to the castle,” the princess said. “Watch your step from here on out, and don’t touch anything. You may trigger a trap.”

Everyone moved uneasily. “Traps?” I asked. I didn’t like the sound of that. “Can you disarm them?”

“Unfortunately, no.”

I raised my hand. The flame left it, bouncing along the torches, reigniting them. That small bit of mana wouldn’t be enough for Premier to detect.

The princess led us closer to the castle and our destination. She paused every so often, peering through the dim light at the tunnel walls or the ground.

The princess stopped suddenly, and I almost bumped into her. There was a slight clicking noise.

“Down!” she yelled.

She fell to the ground, grabbing my robes and pulling me with her. I barely had time to put my hands out in front of me before my face hit the tunnel floor. Something whirled through the air above us like birds in flight.

We heard thuds and grunting as elves and dwarves flung themselves to the ground. One landed on top of us and didn’t move. The whirring echoed down the passageway, deadly in its quiet tune.

“Princess, what is it?” I asked.

“Quiet!”

The whirring noise stopped. None of us moved until the princess rose again. Two dwarves and an elf had fallen with tiny needles sticking out of their faces, necks, and arms. Their eyes bulged and their mouths were open. Their veins stuck out of their bodies, as if trying to leave their skin. Poison. Krystal’s face grew tight.

We were just starting to move the bodies to the side of the passageway until we could return to claim them, when a low rumbling noise surrounded us. The elves moved their ears, trying to pinpoint the sound. It sounded like it came from above.