Return of the Crown (5 page)

As he followed the aural field of the cottage
up into the blue sky, thoughts of Blade intruded on his search.
Blade should be here for Ravyn’s sixteenth birthingday celebration;
he was late. Connor extended his senses through the aura to fly out
over the forest scanning for the boy, finding no traces of him.

Blade stayed with Connor for a short time but
quickly became restless. Captain Joff found them in the hills and
took Blade under his wing. Joff had quit the service of Zelera, the
Empress of Aigerach. She raised taxes, closed the schools of Light
Arts, and allowed thievery and evils of all kinds to go unchecked.
Joff and his men worked for the wealthier families to protect their
holdings and their kin. Joff would teach Blade swordsmanship that
he might protect himself and fight for his princess when the time
was right.

Blade dropped by the hut often, telling
Connor the news of the country and the tales of his travels. Connor
watched Blade grow from a gangly boy into a strong man of knightly
qualities and virtues. He couldn’t be more proud of him than if he
were his own son.

No sign of Ravyn turned up in all of
Aigerach. Connor frowned; she couldn’t be dead. He’d have known,
wouldn’t he? He pushed out toward the west, toward the sea. The
aura rippled in the distance, pulling him out over the sea. He
opened his senses further, tasting a sweetness of magic reminiscent
of Lareina. Ravyn.

He zeroed in on an indigo thread that sparked
and pulsed, following its flowery scent. He zipped along the
thread, opening his vision to see a dark-haired young woman sitting
under a banana tree. She was playing with the Light, creating a
kaleidoscope of color in the aura surrounding her. Her blue eyes
closed as she concentrated on the wet sand at her feet, and a
little replica of the castle in Veris materialized, only to wash
away with the next wave. Her laughter skipped across the glassy
sea.

If he could find her, Zelera could as well.
He cast a gentle strand of thought into her mind. ‘
Ravyn, it is
Connor, your father’s adviser. I have traced you by the little
magics you are employing. You must stop what you are doing, or
Zelera will trace you as well. Even now, she could be
watching
.’

Ravyn’s eyes looked as troubled as a stormy
sea. ‘
Connor, is that really you, sir? I haven’t talked to you
for so long, but your voice sounds stronger, more powerful. I
remember you sounding, well, old. How do I know it’s you?
’

‘
I would have thought that the little girl
who hid in my wardrobe, the one looking for secret passages to the
dragon’s gold, would remember me
,’ he chuckled.

“Oh, Connor, it is you,” she exclaimed
aloud.

Rowan looked up from the wood he was
measuring. He watched her spin in circles, sand flying from her
feet. “Who is Connor?” he asked.

Ravyn stopped dancing and smiled at Rowan,
“The old man who was my father’s adviser has tracked me by the
magic I was doing. He said I must stop practicing, or I will
attract Zelera’s attention. I’ll tell you everything in a moment,
but first I must finish my conversation with him.”

Instinctively, she wrapped her thoughts
around the tendril that sat waiting, ‘
Connor, what happened to
my parents? Are they dead? Where is Blade? What became of him? How
shall I get off the island? Can you use the Light to bring me
there?
” her words tumbled out in an excited rush.

‘
No, that would attract Zelera’s attention
to us both and that takes more energy than I have to expend. A
transportation spell that immense would leave me completely spent
for days, and extremely vulnerable. And you have not yet learned
enough to protect yourself. As much as I would love to see you, I’m
afraid we must take a mundane approach for your return to Aigerach.
We must also keep you hidden.’

‘
Oh, well it’s never easy is it? Even with
magic. My parents,’
she paused, afraid to finish the
sentence.

‘
Your parents are not dead but are being
held in a state of suspension. Zelera didn’t have enough power or
knowledge to send them to eternal Darkness. For nine years she has
created strife throughout the kingdom, with all the misery and
suffering feeding her powers. Nine years she has delved into the
Dark Arts, growing stronger every day. She’s waiting for you, to
tie up loose ends.’

Ravyn felt heady, excitement flowing through
her veins like lightning. Her parents weren’t dead. Her family
could be whole once more.
‘And Blade?’

‘
Blade is out there searching for you. He
should have been here by now, but I expect he’ll show up soon.’
He paused. ‘
To leave the island, you need a boat, or a raft. You
will sail to the Southeast. That will return you to the land of
Aigerach. You are currently on an uncharted island
.’

Ravyn smiled at the thought of Blade crossing
the countryside, sword in hand, checking all the castles, caves,
and forests. Her hero. ‘
Connor, I have a friend here, an elf.
His name is Rowan; he is the caretaker of this island. He downed a
balsa tree to make a raft. Somehow he knew a quest was in my
future. I need help with magic though; I need to know what I can
do, how to do it, how to contact you, and so many other things. I
brought a book of my mother’s from the castle to help me, but it’s
old and brittle, and doesn’t tell me anything that seems to
help.
’

Connor smiled, ‘
Obviously, you’ve figured
out a few things on your own, creating quite a ruckus in the aural
field. There are ways to cloak what you are doing, but I’m afraid I
cannot teach that to you from afar. Right now, I want you to keep
the magic to a minimum. I sensed your aunt searching the aural
field earlier. If she finds you, she could send a lot of trouble
your way. However, I do need to show you how to contact me. Do you
sense the colors and scents that make up my thread?
’

Ravyn concentrated on the aura surrounding
her and located two separate threads of magic. One was blues and
purples, while the other was green and gold. The blue thread
smelled a lot like sweet peas, while the green and gold thread
smelled of a pine forest. She knew in a heartbeat she was indigo
and he was golden-green. Intuitively, she followed the trail of his
aura out away from herself and saw the ocean drift past her. She
concentrated on the trail, flying over the desert, across the
mountains, and deep into the forests. The golden-green line
descended into the woods, to a little hut by a stream, and she
gazed into the face of Connor. She knew him in an instant. He
looked younger and stronger, but his eyes were kind and his face
friendly and warm.

'
Wonderful, you have natural skill.
Now you know my aura, but look at the bowl I am using. It is for
scrying. Scrying is a very useful tool to a practitioner of the
Light. Take a bowl and inscribe it with the markings you see
here.
’ He pointed to the runes etched into the edge of the
bowl. ‘
Write these down, and be sure they are exact. This will
help you locate me, and you will be able to scry what lies before
you, so you can beware of pitfalls.
’

Ravyn picked up some parchment, writing down
the strange symbols. ‘
I will not attempt any more magic, unless
it’s a life or death situation. Can you tell me a little of what I
should expect though, what I can and cannot do, what I shouldn’t
try? Mothers book seems to talk only about what lies behind the
magic, how the motivation of the practitioner decides whether the
art is Light or Dark. Are there limits to what I can do?
’

Connor smiled. ‘
There are always limits.
For instance, you cannot raise the dead without serious cost to
your soul. Of course, that lies down the path of the Dark
Arts.’

‘
Oh, that’s horrible.’

Connor cleared his throat,
‘Generally, a
practitioner is limited by what he or she thinks is possible. Magic
is physically exhausting, and you will require extra meals if you
are practicing heavily, along with plenty of rest. If you aren’t
careful and work the Light for too long, you will collapse into a
deep suspended sleep, while your body repairs the damage of
overuse.’

‘
How much is too much? How will I
know?’

‘
It’s different for everyone. It also
depends on what you are doing. Some magic takes a heavy toll, and
you can do the spell once; some magic could be done all day long
for weeks before it would wear you out. I will teach you all about
this later. Suffice it to say, you shouldn’t do anything right now
for other more serious reasons.’

‘
Aunt Zelera tracking me.’

Connor coughed,
‘Every person has an aural
thread which is unique to them, but some are much stronger than
others. You must be very careful when scrying of not crossing other
auras. Once auras cross, your scent and colors become a
beacon.’

‘
So I’ll just call for you and I’ll find
you?’

‘
Well, you’ll have to search the aural
plane for me, but you’ll find me easy enough. Helps when you have a
general idea of where to start looking, but a systematic search
will yield results eventually. On another topic, you cannot just
conjure up something from nothing. You must be able to visualize
what you want and know where you are bringing it from. Do you
understand?
’

Trembling, Ravyn felt sweat bead upon her
brow, ‘
Connor, I am tiring. I ate less than an hour ago, but I’m
famished. I can contact you again. Will you do me a favor though?
When you see Blade, tell him I think of him every day, and I miss
him.
’

Connor guided Ravyn back to the island,
easing his aura free, after sending gentle reassurances in her
direction. What luck she had landed on an island an elf was
tending. The elf would construct a sturdy raft. Elves were
excellent survivalists, botanical experts, and readily able to
communicate with wild creatures. Ravyn had a wonderful teacher.
Luck had nothing to do with it; her mother had sent her to a
wonderful sanctuary.

Ravyn reached for the bread Rowan extended in
her direction. “Thank you, I’m starving. Practicing the Light Arts
takes a lot out of you.”

Rowan poured her a glass of cool water. “Did
you learn anything useful?”

“Yes, I did. Most importantly, I learned that
my parents are still alive. They are captive in some sort of void,
suspended in time and space.”

“Well that’s wonderful news. That must make
you feel much better.”

She smiled. “It is fantastic news. But, Aunt
Zelera rules Aigerach with a wicked hand. Connor said I must return
to the mainland so I can fight my aunt.” Her smile faltered. “He
also said I have to stop using magic because that was how he found
me. If he can find me, so can Aunt Zelera.”

“Sounds like good advice. You don’t need a
sorceress hot on your trail. Is this Connor planning on contacting
you again?”

"He taught me how to inscribe a bowl so that
I can scry, and he showed me how to locate him.” She sighed, “He
didn’t give me any tangible instruction in magic either but did
clear up a few things for me. It doesn’t really matter since I’m
not supposed to be using it.” She folded her hands in her lap. She
looked up, a smile waking in her eyes, “Blade’s been looking for
me. Now that Connor knows where I am, he can send Blade to meet me.
Then we’ll travel to Connor where I can finally learn how to master
the Light Arts.” She let out a big breath, blowing stray hair away
from her eyes.

“Can you trust him, Rayvn? Is he leading you
into a trap? Maybe he works for your aunt; maybe he doesn’t want
you practicing magic so you won’t learn something that can save
you.”

Ravyn’s eyes glazed over as she searched for
some clue as to Connor’s intentions. She visualized the day on the
ship, the Darkness descending on her. She calmed herself,
scrutinizing the events. Two separate threads of Light enveloped
her. She recalled the smell of the forest and golden- green threads
wrapping around her protectively. Her eyes flew open wide, “He’s
ok. He helped my mother back on the ship. He tried to save us. I
may not be sure of many things, but I am sure he would never hurt
me.”

Rowan sagged a little, a faint smile tracing
his lips. “I’m glad you have someone who can help you. Once you
leave this island, I can’t do a thing for you. I wish I could leave
and help you on your quest. But, I think this is something you must
do on your own.”

“Well, I won’t really be alone. I will have
all the things you taught me right here,” she tapped her forehead.
“And you’ll always have a place here,” she pointed to her
heart.

Rowan turned away, pointing at the pile of
logs. “These are ready to lash together, and I’ve started on a
sail. Get some supplies together; you’ll need several water gourds,
fruit, jerky, some of the flat bread that keeps for a while, your
new clothes, cloak, and,” he swallowed hard, eyes misting.

Ravyn wrapped her arms around his broad
shoulders. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

As the moon set, Zelera thrashed about her
bed, silken sheets strangling her floundering limbs. Ravyn stood
before her, dark hair streaming in the wind, pulsing with radiant
power. She was creating a void in the darkness that sucked Zelera
into its core. She felt the force pulling her downward, ever
spiraling into the depths of the hell she created. She screamed and
woke, forehead beading up with sweat. She glared at the mirror
across from her bed. The image of her sister and her husband
floated out of the fog into view. She let out a stale breath,
relief washing over her. It was only a nightmare, the same damn one
that haunted her every night.

She rose, wrapping a gauzy black robe around
her, though it did little to protect her from the chill of the cold
stone. Glancing at the smoky hearth, she fired a jet of Darkness
into the embers. They blazed like the depths of hell. The warmth of
the fire did not ease the chill in her heart.