Return of the Crown (2 page)

Connor’s chalky brows furrowed as he
contemplated her words. Alarm bells rang in his mind; her anger and
power soiled the air. It tasted dark and sulfurous. Tossing aside
his façade of bumbling gait and frailty, he quickly retraced his
steps. He entered the long dark hallway frantic to reach his
chambers. He paused, slipping his hand into a chink in the masonry
behind a suit of armor standing guard over a dimly lit alcove. A
switch released with a light clink, and a panel of wall grumbled
open behind the heavy armor revealing a secret passage leading to
his study.

Frantic steps drove him up the narrow stone
steps. Fingers of shivers raced up his back as he hastily took down
his scrying bowl, calling upon the swirling waters to show him the
royal family. He sent his aural self out over the rooftops of Veris
and down to the harbor.

The ship was well underway. The sea was calm,
the afternoon breeze filling its sails, driving the ship rapidly
away from shore. Ravyn leaned over the prow soaking up the spray as
the ship crested each trough, rapture filling her eyes. Bryant and
Lareina leaned against a nearby rail laughing as Ravyn absorbed
each salty blast.

Everything looked perfect, but the air
vibrated with discord and a rotten taste was building in his mouth.
Fear gripped Connor. He knew where the evil he had been sensing was
coming from. He’d been scouring the countryside looking for a rogue
sorcerer. The evil had been under his nose all along, no sorcerer,
but a sorceress.

Zelera. It was obvious she’d been unhappy
about losing the throne, but he never dreamed jealousy would lead
her down the path of Darkness. She’d never been as adept at the
Light Arts, where Lareina shined, but he thought she was content
with her role in the royal court.

He began casting a protection spell, draining
his stores of energy and cursing the shortness of time. He grabbed
the skeins of Light that surround all life on Aigerach, weaving
them into a protective net.

He closed his eyes, “Blessed Light, give me
time to save them.”

Returning his gaze to the scrying bowl, he
located the ship, now well out to sea. He focused on Ravyn,
shooting tendrils of protective netting through the aural field,
cloaking her. As the Light wrapped protectively around her tiny
frame, he glanced at Lareina, reading fear in her eyes. Light and
Dark power erupted along the aural field. Streams of colorful Light
sparked as they crashed into black fingers of malignant Darkness.
The streams of Light sputtered feebly as the Darkness smothered it,
choking it. Overwhelming vile flavors filled Connor's mouth as he
watched the Darkness wrap its evil talons around Bryant and Lareina
and claw its way across the deck toward Ravyn. Though he was miles
away from the ship, he struggled not to vomit.

Aboard the ship, Lareina gasped as the sky
smoldered in a smoky black blanket, the image of Zelera’s rage
filled face swimming within it. Zelera’s hatred and jealousy
stabbed deeply into Lareina’s heart, burning her with its
intensity. She summoned all her power, knowing it was not enough to
ward off the imminent attack. She tasted the bitter anger swirling
around her, clawing at her, knowing in her heart that she could not
beat her sister. As waves of despair washed over her, she sensed
the sweetness of the Light, directed at Ravyn. She focused all her
strength on Ravyn, standing paralyzed in the bow. She formed an
image in her mind of safety and security; wrapping her daughter in
a cloak of invisibility.

Tendrils of Darkness wrapped tightly around
Lareina and Bryant, choking off daylight, but the Darkness lashed
blindly about for Ravyn. A vortex formed sucking Lareina deeper
still. She thrust all the Light left within her, around her
daughter’s shivering form, blasting her away from the doomed
ship.

Ravyn found herself wrapped in an iridescent
globe that lifted up into the sky, zipping away from the ship. It
glided with ever-increasing speed northwest, spinning and tumbling
this way and that. Her eyes darted about trying to focus on any
spot for more than a moment; she glimpsed her parents disappear
into the inky Darkness. The Darkness wore a face belonging to her
auntie. It made no sense. Tears flowed down her cheeks.

The Darkness shrieked in frustration, and
tendrils of evil slashed the skies for its missing quarry. Too
late, the colorful shimmering orb was miles away, and Ravyn could
only see the ocean blurring beneath her. Her stomach turned
somersaults as the globe swiveled and spun, searching for safety
and security, following the order imbedded in that last spell.
Heaviness fell on Ravyn’s eyes, and she could no longer keep them
open. Colors blurred, the sweet smell of Light magic easing her
fright, she drifted into dreamless slumber.

Connor collapsed against his workbench
knowing Ravyn was safe, but Lareina had cloaked the girl in
invisibility. He sighed; there was no way he would find her with a
scrying. Her aural trail was lost to him until she came into her
own power. He struggled to push himself upright, staggering to his
cabinet of magical tools. Zelera would know the difference in the
taste of two separate magic forces.

The King and Queen knew he was a Master of
the Light. Everyone else thought he was just a doddering ancient
adviser. It wouldn’t take Zelera long to conclude his talents. He
hurried to gather his more unusual supplies, those rare and
irreplaceable. Bending the Light about him, he draped himself in
invisibility. He hastened out of his rooms, descending the narrow
flight of stone steps. He needed to hide, until Ravyn’s sixteenth
year, some nine years away. In his haste, he nearly ran into Blade.
The boy was sitting on the cold stone steps head buried in his
hands, weeping softly.

Blade was alone. Again. His father had been
King Bryant’s best friend and the General of his army. He was gone
a year now, victim of a terrible hunting accident. Blade’s mother
died two years before while giving birth, along with his little
brother. The King and Queen had taken him into the castle,
providing him with his necessities and an education. Ravyn was his
best friend. Now she would be gone for an eternity, the whole
summer. Blade lifted his head, sensing someone watching him. He
brushed a sleeve across his damp cheek.

Connor had a soft spot for the boy. “Blade,
something terrible has happened. I have no time to go into details.
Even as I speak, Zelera will be looking for me. For your safety
son, you must trust me and come away. Life is going to change
around this castle, and I don’t want you here alone.”

Blade looked around for the person to whom
the voice belonged. It sounded like Connor, though more vibrant.
“Connor, sir, is that you? Where are you?” whispered Blade eyeing
the cold brick walls.

“Yes, son, it’s me. Now keep quiet, and don’t
draw attention to yourself. We’re going to leave this castle, you
and I. I want you to go to the stables and get two horses saddled.
Ride the first horse, and lead the second, which I will ride. You
may have noticed I’m invisible at the moment. We’ll exit the
northern city gates. If anyone asks where you’re going, say the
horses are going to pasture. That’s a chore you’ve done in the
past, isn’t it?”

Blade nodded, wide-eyed as he continued to
search the empty passageway for Connor.

“Wonderful, let’s be on our way. The sooner
the better. I will fill you in on the details when we’re safely in
the hills.”

Blade’s brows bunched up like fuzzy
caterpillars as he tried making sense of what was happening. Connor
must be a practitioner of the Light Arts. Connor had always been
friendly, rarely even scolding him. In fact, he always played games
with Blade and Ravyn, teaching them about the secrets of the
castle. Blade leapt up and started bolting down the stairs. A
gentle hand grasped his shoulder, and he slowed his pace.

Continuing out through the bustling Great
Hall, he pushed open the huge wooden doors. The creaking hinges
seemed to scream, “Someone’s sneak-ing, someone’s sneak-ing.” As he
looked over his shoulder, he saw the castle staff running in all
directions, oblivious to one little boy. He held the door wide for
a moment, hoping Connor was through. He strode across the courtyard
to the gravel path leading down to the stables. He could hear
Connor’s feet crunch the gravel slightly behind his, and adjusted
his cadence to match.

He let out a long-held breath as the stables
came into view. He found Gerord, the stable boy, mucking out the
stalls. The aroma of fresh hay wafted up as Gerord tossed a large
forkful of clean hay into the stall. “Hi Gerord, how’re you today?”
he asked the gangly youth.

Gerord leaned on his pitchfork, brushing the
sweat from his brow, “I’m nearly done with me chores; all that’s
left is to take Midnight and Moonlight up to pasture. With the King
and Queen gone, they won’t get out of the stables much. They like
running free on the range.”

Blade couldn’t believe his luck. “I came down
here ‘cause I’m bored. I’ll go for a ride and take them up for
you.”

Gerord scratched the scraggly scrub on his
chin. “Well, I don’t want the stable-master thinking I’m ditching
me duties, but if you really want to, I’d be heaps grateful. Maybe
I can get home before me supper gets cold for once.”

Blade tended to Midnight and Moonlight,
putting on their bridles and saddles. He tossed a brush, some extra
nails, a pick, and other animal husbandry gear into a saddlebag.
Midnight stamped his feet, eager to be away. Blade untied the
horses, leading both away from the stalls. “Master Connor,” he
whispered, “you here?”

“
Already seated upon Moonlight my friend,
but you had best think what you want to say to me, as I am now
thinking my thoughts to you. You don’t want people to think you
have gone daft, talking to the air. I’ve given you the ability to
hear my thoughts, temporarily, and I can hear yours.
”

Blade chuckled.
Master Connor is a
practitioner of the Light, not a crazy old loon like everyone
thinks.

“
Yes, that’s true, and I will tell you
more once we have made our grand escape.”

Blade mounted Midnight, starting toward the
gate, which Gerord had opened for him.

Gerord stood by the gate, hands on his hips,
“Why’d ya go and saddle them horses, Blade? The horses won’t need
them at pasture.”

Before Blade could think up a suitable
response, the stable-master hollered for Gerord. Blade gave
Midnight a nudge; the horse fairly leapt past the gate, Moonlight
following suit.

Blade leaned close to Midnight’s ears,
talking calmly to the skitterish stallion, easing the horse through
the city streets. The townsfolk were milling about. The crowds from
earlier hadn’t dispersed, in fact it seemed more people packed the
streets. Fearful whispering rasped through the air, and everyone
looked up at the ominous sky.

“I’ve not seen the like before, all dark in
the middle of the day. Something evil has found its way to our
kingdom,” the baker exclaimed.

“Aye, tis dark times that befall us,” moaned
the seamstress, who hovered in her doorway, wringing a length of
fabric in her nervous hands.

“I’ve seen summat like this before, years
ago. You can bet life in this kingdom will not be peaceable like
before. Evil is what you saw, the Dark Arts,” growled an old
grizzled sailor. “It’s time I started my travels again, for I will
not be able to stomach the changes that will occur here.”

Slowly, they picked their way through the
crowds of frightened people. Children clung to their mothers’
skirts, hiding in the folds of fabric. Men stood in front of their
families, as if to ward off the evil they could not see. Finally,
the city gate loomed into view, it's great wooden gates barred.
Blade halted Midnight at the heavy gates, looking to the
keeper.

“Hey, Captain Joff! Why’s the gate
closed?”

“Blade, what are you doing out here? Things
are wrong, very wrong.” He inhaled deeply, as if he could sniff out
what was amiss. “A great evil manifested in Veris today. Nothing is
to pass these gates, for the town’s safety.”

“But, I promised the King and Queen I’d take
the horses to pasture. It’s just a short ride out of town.”

“Ah lad, haven’t you heard? Evil magic swept
out to sea in the direction of the royal ship. The ship exploded,
and only splinters are washing ashore. A couple sailors were found
alive clinging to debris; they said the royal family just vanished.
Zelera took charge of the Royal Court; a dark crown rests upon her
brow.” He paused, chewing on his lip. “Zelera’s hunting for Connor.
She’s named him a Sorcerer of the Dark Arts, saying he killed our
royal family to usurp the throne. She says he underestimated her
power, and is now running for his life. She found tools of the Dark
Arts in his chambers. I didn’t believe it, so she took me to his
chambers, and I saw the forbidden books and tools strewn about.”
Captain Joff shook his head.

Connor held his breath. What would the boy
believe?

“Do you truly believe that about Connor? He’s
been an adviser for so many years, more than anyone can remember.
He always treats everyone with respect, from the lowest servants to
King Bryant himself. I don’t believe it,” Blade cried, racing to
Connor’s defense.

Connor relaxed on his horse, a sigh of relief
escaping his lips.

“Just so, I have my doubts but no proof to
claim otherwise. Zelera ordered the gates shut fast. I have my
orders and severe punishment if I disobey them. Zelera made it
clear she will brook no arguments from anyone. You need to turn
back Blade. I’m sorry.”

‘
Tell him you have no family here, but you
have an uncle in Eagle Heights, and you wish to travel there.
You’ll take the horses to pasture and proceed to Eagle Heights on
foot; it’s only a day’s walk
.’