Soul Forge Saga Box Set

by Richard Stephens

  Rook stared in disbelief.

  “Anyway, to explain my role in her abduction…” He paused and let the word settle in. “That is right, I abducted her.”

  Rook tensed, not sure he could stop himself from attacking Alhena.

  Alhena held up a hand. “It was a necessary evil. Trust me, it had to be done. Not just to save her life, but to save the lives of everyone in the kingdom.”

  Olmar uncharacteristically growled at Alhena. “Fat lot o’ good that did, huh?”

  “You are right. I was unable to prevent the sacking of Zephyr.” Alhena’s voice sounded remorseful. “But we can still save those who survived.”

  “You aren’t making any sense. What’s my wife got to do with this?”

  “Everything. Without her, Ignis predicted all five of the realms that once made up the Great Kingdom would be lost. As for myself, I am not privy to Ignis’ visions. The last time I saw him alive, he sent me out to seek the Aberrator’s aid. Ignis had foreseen Mase’s death, but she had disappeared from Storms End before we got to her.

  “Mase knew of her special ability and experienced much grief as a result. She and her protector, Zorn Mintaka, slipped away from Storms End, eventually making their way to the foothills below Cliff Face where they faded into obscurity. Until Helleden’s minions tracked them down.

  “By the time I returned to Dragon’s Tooth with the necromancer, Ignis was gone. I searched for him until I encountered the Grimward and we learned of Ignis’ passing. Without the Aberrator’s special art, I would never have found Mase. Once we discovered where she had gone, the Aberrator and I hung low, awaiting that fateful day when Helleden’s minions came calling. We tried to put them off, but they were too much for us. I saw Silurian and Melody flee into the mountains during the night. With the Aberrator’s help, I lured Helleden’s creatures away from the Mintaka homestead in an effort to conceal the children’s trail. The minions tracked us up the Slither where we were forced to engage in a futile battle. If not for the intervention of a wandering troop of Kraidic warriors led by the formidable emperor, Krakus the Kraken no less, we might not have survived that day.

  “For whatever reason, from that point onward, Helleden stopped searching out magic users. At least that is what we believed. The Aberrator returned to his home to prepare for my eventual return to the Gulch so that I could fulfill my end of the bargain.”

  “If you knew of Silurian and Melody’s existence, why did you allow them to suffer the dangers of Mount Cinder?” Rook asked. Seeing Alhena’s surprise, he added, “You don’t think they told me what they went through following their parents’ death? She was my wife! They were almost killed several times before King Peter took them into his household.”

  “I searched Cliff Face but couldn’t find any trace of them. The mountains are vast. For all I knew, they had fled south. When I found out King Peter had taken them under his protection I backed off. Ignis and the Grimward were implicit. If the siblings were to someday make a difference in the fight against Helleden, they must be left to find their own way. Any intervention on my part would surely bring attention to them. For them to remain undetected by Helleden, I had to leave them be.”

  “Pfft. Surely you could’ve appointed a non-magical person to safeguard them, even from a distance.”

  “Like I said, I was advised against interfering, but,” he held a finger up, “I could not in good conscience just let them be. So, I became a cleric and took up a position in the Svelte household as a keeper of records. To do so I had to assume my new persona and abstain from any form of magic, lest Helleden became aware of me, and thus, Silurian and Melody.

  “I worked my way into the inner circle of the Royal House’s personal servants. That afforded me access to the records in the Vaults of Lore preserved beneath Castle Svelte. From there, I did keep an eye on Silurian and Melody as best as I could without arousing suspicion. Like I mentioned a while back, I entered Castle Svelte with the king’s blessing.

  “I was there, upon the Plains of Lugubrius, when Helleden’s forces threatened to breach the walls of Carillon. I stood over King Peter as he died, afraid to intervene for fear of Helleden becoming aware of my presence. Not because I was a coward, but to keep from alerting the sorcerer to the fact that someone was about to enter the fray and dispose of him. I cannot explain how hard it was not to intervene. King Peter ordered me to never expose my true identity. Being forbidden the chance to save Peter slew my soul, but I dared not risk Silurian or Melody’s life. King or no, the siblings’ lives were paramount to the grand design.”

  “Letting King Peter die was part of your grand design?” Rook hocked and spat, something no one had seen him do before.

  Alhena inclined his head. “It wasn’t until Silurian and the Group of Five arrived that our deception became evident. Helleden knew at once that Silurian was Mase’s boy. I believe he suspected all along that Mase had children but when Silurian confronted him, he knew.

  “That knowledge changed the outcome of the battle. Helleden slew Javen, Helvius and Alcyonne, but he spared you. Perhaps as a means to track Silurian, I do not know. Whatever the case, as soon as Silurian’s identity became known to him, he surrendered.

  Rook bristled. The three were like brothers to him. “Surrendered himself? How can you stand there and say that? I distracted Helleden with an arrow while Silurian drove his sword through his back. There’s no way Helleden surrendered.”

  Alhena smiled ruefully. “Helleden let Silurian get close to him. He channeled the power of Silurian’s sword to affect his escape.”

  “Escape? Why would he do that? He was about to take the castle.”

  “Because, my troubled friend, when Helleden discovered Silurian’s true nature, the sorcerer’s primary directive took over. As we have recently discovered, Helleden’s actions were driven by the Soul. Helleden had searched the lands for a human vessel strong enough to contain the Soul’s spirit. Discovering that Mase had children who lived, he believed they were the ones the Soul sought. If he had killed Silurian that day, I imagine the Soul would have exacted an extreme retribution on Helleden. The sorcerer did the next best thing. He drained the magic from the Group of Five’s enchanted weapons to facilitate his departure.” Alhena nodded. “Aye, the glow from your weapons died that day, did they not?”

  Rook glanced at the bow strapped over his shoulder.

  “From that point onward, Silurian and anyone related to him was no longer safe. I feared Helleden had gleaned knowledge of Silurian’s sister.

  “Looking back, I am not sure if Helleden was hindered from returning to Zephyr, but at the time, I felt I had no choice but to react. Through tests I cannot explain to you sufficiently to make any sense, I knew Melody had inherited her mother’s ability.

  “My years as Wizard of the North were numbered. I needed someone to take my place, and yet, I knew I must protect Silurian as well. I couldn’t do both until Melody’s life was secure. Since Helleden was attuned to Silurian, hiding him would prove problematic if Helleden returned to the five realms. But Melody—as far as I knew—was an unknown commodity.”

  “Commodity?” Rook was incredulous. “That’s all we are to you? Pieces of merchandise to dispense of as you see fit?”

  Alhena shook his head. “No, of course not. You are twisting my words—”

  “That’s what you said.” Rook looked at the others. “Did he not say that?”

  Pollard’s brows knit together. “Aye, but I don’t think he meant it that way. Hear him out.”

  Rook shook his head, glaring at Alhena to continue.

  “An ill choice of words. My apologies.” Alhena folded his hands together. “Being a rather accomplished wizard, I suspected what the disappearance of Helleden’s body on the battlefield augured. He hadn’t been killed. I had no way of telling when or where he would return, so I acted. During the feast celebrating the victory and King Peter’s life, I chose my time and spirited Melody away.

  “I have asked myself man
y times over the last two decades, would I have done things differently had I known Helleden would not return for another nineteen years? I keep coming back with the same answer. No. The only way to save Melody’s life was to take it from her.

  “It grieved me seeing her stashed away on Dragon’s Tooth. Who was I to decide her life for her, and, for a certainty, the happiness of those close to her? As Wizard of the North, it was my moral obligation to attend to the greater picture. If I had not intervened, I guarantee Melody would, at the very least, have been dragged into the Under Realm and subjugated by the Soul. Had she proven strong enough, her presence would have freed the beast.”

  Olmar cleared his throat. “An’ you believe she was strong enough?”

  “Without a doubt. She was—is—stronger than Silurian, especially in this regard.”

  “An’ if’n we can believe your words, we’d all be dead now were that the case.”

  Alhena raised his eyebrows. “That I cannot say for sure. I cannot know what was in the Soul’s mind. I can only speculate that life as we know it would have drastically changed. We may have become fodder for his minions or mutated to become part of the horde.” He shrugged. “No one can really know.”

  Olmar nodded slowly but said no more.

  “I truly believe I did the only thing that made sense at the time. Training Melody to rise to her full glory and succeed me as Wizard of the North. She required the intervening years to accomplish everything her and I went through. I assure you, she is smarter and wiser than any person I have ever known. She is also the strongest, but until she proves herself, she may never realize her potential. Going forward, she must be included in our plans if we wish to end Helleden once and for all. I see it now.”

  Alhena studied the ground for a few moments. When he looked up, he stared Rook straight on. “I cannot, in good conscience, expect you to forgive what I did. For what it is worth, I have never forgiven myself. Melody is like a granddaughter to me. She is the only family I have. I love her more dearly than life itself. Through her innocence and beautiful outlook on life, she has transformed this cantankerous old curmudgeon into a man who appreciates all the wondrous things life offers to those wise enough to enjoy it. I realized this at her expense. I only hope I can see her one last time before I leave this world to let her know how sorry I am. Your wife is truly one of a kind.” Tears dripped unabashedly from Alhena’s face. He didn’t bother to wipe them away.

  Rook clenched his teeth. His eyes narrowed and his breathing came in short, heavy spurts. He wiped his eyes—a hundred different things needing to be said whirled through his mind.

  He couldn’t decide whether to kill the old man for robbing him of Melody or thanking him for keeping her safe. If what he claimed was true, Melody would be dead had Alhena not done what he did. Perhaps, in a bastardized, maniacal fashion, Alhena had done him a favour, but his intense hurt and sense of betrayal prevented his anger from abating.

  An arrow to the heart would be merciful. He fingered his dagger. Perhaps he should just cut out those disgusting eyes and leave the man to wander the Crypt in real darkness—like the way his life had been without Melody at his side.

  He hated what this staggering revelation was doing to him. He found he finally appreciated the madness Silurian had fallen into all those years ago.

  “If’n it’s all the same to everyone ‘ere, I’d like to say me piece.”

  Rook shot Olmar an angry glare but remained silent.

  Olmar doffed his cap and bowed his head. “I ain’t to bein’ the smartest like, but I’m seein’ the right of Pops’ words. I cannae imagine the torture it ‘as been for ‘im, and surely for all involved, to ‘ave endured such a cruel fate. All I know is it sounds like what ‘e did ‘e did to save this Melody lassie. From what I’m to be seein’ around this fire, she is to be a special lady. In my mind, to know she still lives, far outweighs what was done, right or not. If’n she still be alive, we cannae be nothin’ but thankful for that grace.” He sucked his lips in and chewed on them, his demeanour bashful at having tried to speak philosophically.

  Larina hugged Olmar’s forearm. “I agree. We need to make haste to Dragon’s Tooth, if for no other reason than to reunite Rook with his wife. What’s done, is done. Helleden is the enemy here. He is the reason all of this has transpired. We cannot lose sight of that.”

  “Here, here,” Pollard chimed in.

  Sadyra grabbed Rook’s wrists in her hands and gave them a slight tug. “What say you, Rook Bowman? We can’t change the past, but we sure as hell can forge the future.”

  Rook couldn’t meet her stare.

  “Truce?” Sadyra asked.

  Rook stewed. His mind wouldn’t stop spinning. He wanted to throw up. With more effort than he thought possible, he raised his eyes to look at Sadyra. All he could think of were the years and experiences he and Melody would never encounter together.

  He heaved a great breath, turned his wrists out of Sadyra’s grip, and walked into the darkness.

  Kraken’s Surprise

  Karvus Kraken noticed the features of the small cave materializing around him—the wizard approached from below. He hefted his axe, the weight still unwieldy in his present condition but at least he had room to swing it.

  Tygra’s bulk emerged first, a coil of rope in his hands. His aide surprised him as he turned back and reached into the tunnel to pull Silurian up the last stretch, and then assisted the female wizard.

  They’d discussed their need of the wizard’s magic if they wished to get by the aquacats but to actually help the Zephyrites went against everything a Kraidic warrior stood for.

  The wizard brushed herself off, her eyes taking in their surroundings and focusing on the axe resting on his shoulder. She nodded faintly and made her way to the bottom of the exit tunnel to look up.

  She lifted her staff as high as possible and turned slowly, her neck craned. “Hmm. Sounds like a lot of them up there.”

  The hissing, mewling growls from above were hard to hear where Karvus stood but he knew what she referred to. When he first began to climb the rope leading topside, the shaft had resounded with the raucous din of the agitated animals. Although he only saw a few of their muzzles peering into the opening; their chatter bespoke of dozens of the carnivorous beasts.

  He thought about climbing anyway but feared the wards may have reset themselves. If they had, there was no way he or Tygra were leaving the fissure without the wizard.

  The wizard looked at her companion, bent over near the entrance to the lower chute, trying to catch his breath. He didn’t look well. Even in the poor light cast by her staff, he appeared ashen.

  Sensing no hostility from either of the Zephyrites, Karvus slid his battle-axe into its holder across his back and strode to where the wizard studied their escape route. “Well? What do you think, wizard? You going to be able to get by them?”

  Melody met Karvus’ glare. “Depends.”

  “On what?”

  “On whether you two help Silurian up the rope.”

  “I don’t need their help,” Silurian muttered from the far side of the cave.

  If Melody heard him, she didn’t respond. Instead, she raised an eyebrow at Karvus.

  “Won’t be easy if he acts like that.”

  “Well, Mister Keen, unless I have your assurance Silurian follows me up the rope, none of us are getting out of here.”

  Karvus bristled. If she only knew who she was dealing with. “Don’t sound like he’s wanting our help.”

  Melody leaned out to study Silurian. “You have to allow them to help you. There’s no other way. We can’t stay down here and wait for your leg to heal, and I can’t risk spending the energy to heal it until we reach the bottom of the mountain.”

  “There’s no way a Kraidic pig’s going to manhandle me. I’d rather stay here.”

  Melody rolled her eyes.

  “He always this agreeable?” Karvus snorted.

  Melody shook her head. “Only when he’s in
a good mood.”

  She stomped around Karvus and approached Silurian.

  “See, I’m fine.” Silurian took two steps and stumbled, catching himself at the last moment—his face pinched.

  “Ya, real fine.” Melody leaned close to him, whispering something Karvus couldn’t hear.

  It took a while but finally Silurian nodded. “Alright, alright. But if I sense the slightest bit of treachery, I slit their throats.”

  “And you expect us to help him?” Karvus threw his hands up in mock helplessness.

  “Nobody’s going to be slitting anyone’s throat.” Melody’s dark look flicked between Silurian and Karvus several times. She raised her voice. “Right?”

  “Ain’t me who’s being disagreeable, sister.” Karvus growled.

  “I am not your sister.” Melody glared at him.

  “Oh, right. You’re the mighty Wizard of the North. Stuck in a hole on a cursed mountain, trapped by a bunch of kittens. Forgive me.”

  Melody’s staff flared brighter.

  Silurian interrupted. “Melody goes first. I will follow her with his help.” He jutted his chin to indicate Tygra. “You can come up last.”

  That didn’t appeal to Karvus. “Why, so you can stick me in the head when I reach the top? I don’t think so.”

  The runes on Silurian’s sword shone faintly but their light intensified as he stepped toward Karvus. “I don’t need to wait. I’m more than happy to oblige right now.”

  Karvus’ axe was in his hands in an instant.