The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1 (38 page)

“
Are
you sure giving Grimm permanent abilities is a good idea?
Especially those that Kala can provide?” Silar asked.

Maevik sighed. “You doubt him too much Silar! Grimm is a
loyal subject now. He will obey all of our orders to the
death.”

“
Again,” Kala chuckled.

“
Exactly
,” Maevik snorted. “Or do you doubt your own
abilities?”

Silar sighed. “Such ‘convincing’ is unpredictable,
especially with a man in his condition. He is
insane
. He was insane
before
we even laid our hands on him, let
alone now we have taken the last shreds of his decaying mind and
bent them to our will!”

“
It
will
hold,” Maevik said. “We have only months now until the time
comes.”

“
I could do a much better job of stopping them
myself,” Kala retorted. “I doubt the girl has attained the ability
yet to do anything of any real damage. I could kill the wizard and
this guard, isolate the girl... hmm, yes, that
pretty
little thing, I’d like to have
her
all alone. I am
sure I could teach her a trick or two. She isn’t married yet, is
she?” He looked to the others, who watched him impassively. “No,
she’s not. Then she’s not been
properly
broken in.” A sickening smile broadened
his face.

“
You will do no such thing,” Rajinal commanded, as
he forced a new candle into the holder and scraped away the
solidifying waxy residue. “We need to remain hidden as Maevik says.
If anything should go wrong and one of them escaped or worse,
if
you
were killed...” He shook his head. “We cannot expose
ourselves to unnecessary risks! If even one of us dies then we
cannot proceed with the return. Use Grimm, Kala, as we have
discussed. Give him whatever you think necessary to stop their band
of travellers in their tracks once and for all.” He set the candle
back in place, lit it by touching a finger to the wick, and their
murderous faces lit up again.

“
I
must go,” Silar announced suddenly, elegantly rising from the
table. “I need to be seen in the palace in a few minutes. It will
arouse suspicion otherwise.” The others nodded their
acceptance.

“
Before you go, Silar, you have not said much lately on how
things are progressing in Aslemer?” Rajinal queried. Silar gave a
thin smile, elevating one of his thin moustaches.

“
Quite nicely. I have secured my position with Emperor Chalize
even further over the last few weeks. The assault on the
Ishlamarian territory was enough to win a great deal of his trust,
and since then I have helped him to expand his reach further north
as well. My ‘alliance’ with him is cemented. He listens to
me.”

“
He still does not suspect your cover story
at
all?
” Maevik wheezed. When Silar shook his head, the old man
harrumphed. “I am surprised, I must say. A runaway wizard? I
thought you would have been seen through months ago! Especially
with that
other
wizard in Olindia. How many of their kind would
Mahalia
really
allow to flee their ranks?”

“
Well what can I say, Maevik? It’s not just the story, it’s
the way you tell it and the way you play the part.”

“
Well done my friend,” Rajinal nodded. “Your hard
work there has paid off well. Even when the dragon is released, we
will need to drive more distrust between as many countries as we
can and sow the seeds of chaos to blind the people to their
ultimate fate. We
will
be vulnerable until we can guarantee the
return.”

“
Just you three concentrate on releasing the dragon
and stopping that girl,” Silar said waspishly, pointing a long,
thin finger at them each in turn. “I will deal with the rest. The
dragon’s prison is more tangled and knotty than Maevik’s
beard
. To unpick it undetected will take time, but we can’t
slack. It is still a massive task, even for us, in spite of how
long we have had to prepare.” He bid a final nod to them all and
then glided out of the door elegantly, his flowing dress robes
sliding across the ground behind him.

“
I
must be off soon too,” Maevik grumbled. “There are many threads to
stitch up now this wizard has interfered.” He shook his head. “We
should have been more prepared for this, especially after what
Grimm managed to recall.”

“
The wizard and this merry band is of no
consequence,” Kala said confidently, waving the man away with a
hand. “I will make sure the princess does not get further then
Gormal. I have a few
new
ideas for Grimm already.”

“
Good,” Rajinal said. “I am progressing well with gathering
the armies.”

“
If you can call that rabble an army any longer,”
Kala retorted. “They have been without authority for
far
too
long!”

“
Tend to your own matters Kala. They are
my
problem. And
remember, we are due to begin the next phase in weakening the
dragon’s prison tomorrow as well.”

“
Well this is actually rather nice, even if the
room
is
a
little small!” Josephine laughed as she bounced up and down on her
bed moments after being shown to her cabin. Everything was in
miniature, scaled down to fit the proportions of the boat. The bed
was just large enough to curl up on and even then it was a squeeze
to avoid her feet dangling off the bottom as she stretched out and
extended her arms as far as they would go to her sides. A small
candleholder complete with a candle sat on a compact bedside table
by the boxy bed and that was all that there was.

“
If it can be called a room,” Thadius muttered as
they crowded into the room. “I’ve seen
stables
with more
conveniences.”

Matthias shook his head. “What did you expect?” he
asked. “You’re a soldier anyway. Have you grown too
comfortable
in Rina and
forgotten what it’s like to travel?”

Thadius opened his mouth to retort, but was interrupted by
Josephine, who said: “It is certainly better than sitting on grass
and rock in the cold of night!” She patted the sheet. “This will do
nicely.” She lay her head down on the pillow and stared up at the
low, wooden ceiling.

“
Please,
don’t
get up!” Matthias said acerbically to her, as he
set the princess’s bag on the floor. “Let us do all the
lifting.”

“
Well you
all
seem determined to do everything for me anyway, so
why should I fight it?” Josephine replied, a wry grin on her
face.

“
Thadius
is determined to do everything for you, not me!”
Matthias responded. “I’m not a pack horse!”

“
Are you all going to be arguing like this all the
way to Crystal Ember?” Luccius asked, squeezing past Matthias and
sitting next to Josephine on the bed. “Because if you are then I
really need to get a flask of
whisky
to accompany me the rest of the way.” He shook his
head. “I
hate
arguments and you
all
are
extremely
good at starting them.”

“
I
believe arguing is almost sport in Mahalia, is it not?” Josephine
smirked at Matthias.

Matthias opened his mouth to retort cuttingly, but
then closed it and smiled broadly. “Not at all, princess. We simply
debate matters
strongly
.”

“
Ah
,” she said with an equally loaded grin. “Then you,
Matthias Greenwald, are an
expert
at such
debating
.”

“
When I choose to make a point, I do so with clarity and
precision,” the wizard replied.

Luccius shook his head. “It’s like speaking to
a
stone
,” he muttered.

“
I still wish we didn’t have to leave the horses
behind,” Thadius murmured. “They were
good
horses.”

“
This was the only boat leaving here that could accommodate us
for a week,” Matthias replied. “We might as well have ridden to the
mountains if we waited for one that could accommodate the horses as
well. Besides, Madam Landar at the inn promised she would take good
care of them for us.”

“
More likely she will sell them on the first chance
she gets,” Thadius grumbled again. “Or
eat
them!”

“
Eat
them?” Luccius exclaimed.

“
She was Olindian. I could tell by her accent.
You
know
they’ll eat anything that
moves
. I once saw one eat a cricket! What
meat
is there on a
cricket? What is the
point?
”

“
Oh calm yourself, Thadius,” Josephine interjected.
“I like this boat. It is
cosy
. The horses will be fine. When we return to Rina
I will have them sent for, if that will make you feel any better?
And if she
has
eaten them I’ll send her to the stocks.”

They
got underway shortly after they boarded, the boat making quick
progress as it funnelled its way steadily down the river, its
unique mechanisms whirring away inside the hull to propel two
wheels at its rear that pushed the water behind itself with force.
Josephine sat in her little room, quite pleased at getting more
privacy from the others and watched from her porthole window as the
harbour quickly disappeared behind her and the scenery changed to
dense woodland. The sound of birds chirping in the surrounding
trees and the churning, flowing water lulled her into a doze. She
slumped upright by the window for what must have been at least an
hour before she awoke again. She stretched her arms and got up off
the bed, smoothed off her skirt and made her way up through the
narrow walkway between the compartments and outside to the side of
the boat, where she peered over the copper rail and watched the
water slide peacefully by.

“
Enjoying yourself?” Luccius beamed, landing beside her
without warning. She jumped.

“
Oh!
Luccius, you
startled
me! Yes, it is quite lovely,” she replied, closing
her eyes as a light breeze blew her hair back and cooled her
face.

“
Quite picturesque,” he said, tapping his hands on the rail. A
pewter ring on his left finger made a chime as he drummed a tune on
it. “Quite different from being on a seaborne ship.”

“
You
have been to sea then I take it?” Josephine asked.

He nodded. “It was from the Tekri Seaport. I
travelled with a Tekritian Merchant Company vessel. It was pretty
grand. It had the most enormous sails you ever would see! And when
it moved it
forced
its way through the water, like it was master of the ocean
and the waves should have broken before its bow at its
command.”

Josephine sighed. “A most wonderful life you have had Mister
Luccius,” she replied. “To be free as a bird without a care in the
world.”

“
It
has its moments,” he replied. “Though I’d be lying if my life was
as free as you may believe it to be.”

“
How
so?” Josephine asked.

He
shook his head and waved her away. “Oh, it’s nothing. Forget I
mentioned it. Don’t you enjoy your life back in Rina?” he asked,
changing the subject.

“
It
is a nice life,” Josephine sighed. “I want for nothing, for which I
am grateful. But as I said to you before, it doesn’t afford you
much time to get out and see the world. Most of my time I have
spent learning how to rule Aralia when I succeed my father, or
dancing at court.”

“
You’re a good dancer?” Luccius asked.

Josephine’s mouth quirked into a smile. “Well, I practice my
footwork every chance I get.”

Luccius threw out his hands. “Dance with me then,” he
said.

Josephine shook her head. “Oh no, no really I
couldn’t.”

“
Why
not?” the ansuwan asked.

“
It is embarrassing! There is no
music,
for one
thing!”

Luccius gave up, and lowered his hands. “Well,
alright. But you
owe
me a dance, Josephine!”

She smiled. “Very well. But then you owe
me
an explanation of
your previous comment.” Luccius’s ears twitched. “You cannot simply
pique my curiosity with a titbit about your life and then brush it
aside.” The ansuwan face fell and he looked away. Josephine watched
him a moment and then turned her attention to the water again. “I
must come back here to travel in this manner again, when I am done
with this journey,” Josephine said.