Emerald Fire

by Kathryn Blade

  “Splendid,” Loriann said as she approached. “Thank you for saving me.”

  The men guffawed loudly as she passed. One man spoke, “Thank you for letting us have some sport, Lady Loriann.”

  “You are quite welcome,” came the reply as she returned to the camp. Kaegan and the men cleaned and sharpened their blades as she watched. A smile played about her lips as sentries took their posts, the fire was built up again, and the easy conversations from before returned.

  ***

  Their journey continued south, the horizon remained flat, broken only by an occasional hillock or dust devils swirling madly in the hot air. Discontent grew among the men as the heat soared with the rise of the twin suns in the azure sky. A sentry returned with news that a city lay to the southwest less than half a day’s ride. They camped that night beneath the welcoming shade of palm trees growing around an underground spring located by a scout.

  Loriann waited until the evening meal had passed before she rose to address the men. “Lend me your ears,” she called. The dark cape billowed in the ever-present breeze. She paused, waiting until every man faced her.

  “I have witnessed your discontent grow as we have traveled. The city to the southwest is fraught with peril. If you no longer desire to stand with Kaegan and I, you are free to leave. Be gone before the sun rises. If you stay, stay to fight, but do not betray me in battle.” She paused, a hand spiraling skyward until a tower of flames formed. The pale emerald light fell on those near the front of the gathered group. Dust gathered to join the fiery dust devil. Grit stung their eyes and exposed skin. “For if you do, the flames will consume you. Kaegan and I will brook no arguments. Do you understand?”

  The gathered throng of men remained briefly silent, transfixed on the roaring tower of flame. Then a resounding chorus of “Aye,” filled the air. The flame vanished into the ground, sucked downward into the sandy soil. Shards of rough glass, evidence of the flame’s strength, smoldered as it cooled in the night air.

  Kaegan followed Loriann to their bedding at the perimeter of the camp. “That was quite the display, love. Was it necessary to frighten the men?”

  She turned, emerald eyes shimmering with an inner light. “I meant what I said. If they betray us, they are no better than Cedric or Willem Jarin. It’s best we find out now, not in the heat of battle against our primary enemy.”

  “Point taken, my lady. How many do you think we will lose overnight?”

  “A few dozen, I think. Abram and his friends will be the first to go.” Loriann nodded in the direction of the men already gathered, whispering among themselves. “They have no stomach for battle against other men. They can kill beasts without question but hesitate when a man stands before them. It’s best they leave now. They will perish tomorrow if they do not.”

  “We should rest, Loriann. You’ll need your strength for tomorrow,” Kaegan encouraged as he took her hands in his own. He kissed her upturned lips briefly before pulling into the strong circle of both arms.

  “Rage is my energy, Kaegan. It grows by the day as if it knows war is near. You are the only thing that keeps me from freeing it upon on this world. Not even Orizahr will be able to hold me back when I see Cedric and Willem Jarin.”

  He chuckled at her words. “At least let me have Willem. I deserve that much.”

  “As you wish, Kaegan. Make him suffer before you kill him, let him suffer as much as we did the day our babe died.”

  “I’ll do my best, love.” His hand found the hilt of the broadsword, fingers curling about its grip. He sharpened it nightly as he thought of Cedric, Willem Jarin, and the child he and Loriann had lost.

  The steely resolve of their words bespoke their determination to end the two men who had taken their son. They lay beside each other, unmindful of the clumps of grass that lay beneath the bedding. Loriann clutched his hand in her own against her heart. He did not sleep until her eyes closed. His dreams were filled with thoughts of killing Cedric and Willem.

  ***

  Kaegan rode with Loriann at the front of the men that remained. A few dozen men had fled in the night, taking their horses and a measure of the rations with them. Loriann did not speak, choosing to saddle the mare and take the saddle in silence. The remaining men followed without question as Kaegan fell in place by her side. Before the twin suns rose high in the sky, they saw the city.

  “This is Wildspyre,” she called. “Scouts, ride the perimeter but stay out of range of arrows, catapults, and the ballista. Report back with news of what you have seen.”

  “How do you know its name?” Kaegan questioned, brow furrowing at her knowledge of this place. “Baeliton Keep held many secrets. Among them, ancient maps and tomes describing this and other places in the Olde World that have long been forgotten.”

  “Orizahr,” he mused, fingers stroking the scruffy growth of hair on his chin.

  They watched together as scouts rode out. Ballistas fired as the men approached. Massive iron spears fell just short of their path. They turned, half riding to the north and south around the city. Kaegan, Loriann, and the men who stayed behind heard the loud thunk and thud as each ballista was fired, the spears burying into the dirt surrounding the city. The scouts re-appeared, cantering leisurely, just out of reach of the deadly weapons.

  “Lady Loriann, Lord Kaegan, the city’s wall is in poor repair on the southern side. It appears they have archers, ballistas, and possibly petrary. It was difficult to see from the distance,” the lead scout reported.

  “Take care of your mounts, rest and find some food. I will call if you are needed,” Kaegan replied. He gave a curt nod to each man as they passed. “What is our plan?”

  “What do you think, husband? I forget my place at times, taking the lead when a threat arises. I will follow your command this time. Our men must have some sport.”

  “What better way to show them that we will not tolerate an attack than to send them some fire?” he replied. “I saw your eyes flashing last night. Would it not be best to ease the amount of rage you carry? Perhaps it would allow you to better control it when the time comes to face Cedric and Willem.” He glanced at her, seeing the same flickering emerald light, brighter than the color of her eyes, dancing in the depths.

  “Is it necessary that I hold back?” she inquired.

  “I think not. If this city stands in our way or is a threat to the safety of our party, I say end them now. Do what you must,” he replied.

  The men gathered beside Kaegan, forming a long line around the city. It did not encircle the city in its entirety but served only as a show of solidarity and strength. They watched in silence as Loriann rode toward the gate then dismounted near the massive spears piercing the ground.

  She raised a hand, spiraling it skyward, until a towering cyclone of emerald flame rose from the earth. The men could see soldiers gathering on the walls as the ballistas fired again in a lame attempt to kill Loriann. The cyclone of fire sped forward, its base whirling dirt and debris into the air until it grew to at least a rod in width. The tower of flames blew the wooden gate apart. Shards of wood and iron spewed into the air before raining down on the ground. Screams came from within the city as the cyclone split in two, continued to grow, and moved south and north within the walls.

  People tried to escape, running from the gates. Loriann’s arms chopped downward toward the earth. A great crack and roar came as the earth split, furrows two rods in width or more racing around the city to bar any attempts to escape. Some of the people fell into the chasms, their screams growing faint as they disappeared into the depths.

  “Gods! Kaegan, how do you control her? I’ve never seen anything like this,” a man to his right asked.

  “There is no need to control her. She only destroys those who would harm those she cares about. You have no need to worry unless you intend to harm one of us,” Kaegan replied. The man shook his head in response.

  Loriann’s rage appeared to grow in strength. She walked toward the chasm, cloak billowing
in the breeze. A guttural scream burst from her lips as she saw archers run from the opening in the wall. An invisible force rushed toward them, knocking men from their feet, flinging some back against the wall. Some were killed on impact. Others lay broken and unable to continue.

  She turned south, circling the chasm around the city. The men that remained turned to the catapult. Burning barrels of pine pitch flew through the air toward her. A wall of flame raced upward, incinerating the barrels before any could hit the ground. The whirling emerald cyclones of fire died out within the city. Smoke and flames rose, indicators of the destruction that now lay within the walls. The few men that remained on the walls fled. A white flag tied to a long rod was lifted high above the wall. It waved back and forth, signaling the city’s surrender.

  An archer had managed to escape injury and death. He did not see the white flag. He ran toward Loriann, bow raised in the air. Kaegan screamed a warning but it came to late. The arrow pierced the flesh of one arm. The men who were there would tell the tale of what they saw that day. A massive ball of emerald flame, seething and roaring, crossed the chasm. It blew the man’s body apart before incinerating what remained.

  Kaegan kicked his horse into a gallop, desperate to reach her, uncertain how bad the injury might be. He heard the men at his heels, the roar of hooves thundering in the air. She turned as he approached, blood streaming down the arm, dripping onto the earth below. Her face paled, dark circles forming beneath each eye. He vaulted off the horse before it stopped running and caught her as she swayed.

  “Loriann, love, let me see how bad it is.”

  “I can stop the bleeding,” she whispered, grimacing as he examined the area where the arrow protruded from her flesh. “Let me lie on the ground. Break the tip and fletching off, pull the shaft through. Then stand back.”

  He did as she asked, fearing the wound was grave. A tendril of flame projected from a finger touching arrow’s shaft. Fire burned through the wound, along the path of the wooden shaft and cauterized the wound. Amazement and concern melded together as he ordered a man to lift her to him as he sat astride the destrier. “We make camp now. Lady Loriann must be tended to. Make haste!”

  They rode a safe distance from the city, uncertain if the surrender was genuine or a plot. Kaegan nursed Loriann throughout the evening and into the night. She remained awake the entire time, talking quietly with Kaegan and any man who came to inquire of her condition. Dried meat was placed in a pot of water to boil. The broth would help build her strength. He found a healing potion in her pack and poured it onto the wound as she directed.

  She was exhausted and fell into a deep sleep. Kaegan bound the wound with a soft, clean handkerchief found in her pack. The burn appeared to have lessened in severity overnight. His brow furrowed as he puzzled over the strange occurrence. No healing potion could heal that quickly. It was a mystery he would investigate once she woke. No force on earth would disturb her while she slept. He and the men would ensure that.

  ***

  Kaegan woke the next morning to find Loriann sitting by the fire staring into the flames. He went to her, hand touching the handkerchief still tied about the injury. “You should be resting,” he chastised gently.

  “The wound has healed,” she replied, eyes finally meeting his own. “I was foolish yesterday, allowing the rage to take control. It drained me, but the energy has returned. Turning my back on the enemy is a mistake I will never make again.”

  “He paid the price, love. And if it had not come by your hand, I wager every man here would have taken his life for you. I am among those men.” The githok circled overhead, squawking and calling to one other. Kaegan glanced at them, shook his head, and returned his attention to Loriann.

  “I do not doubt your loyalty to me, Kaegan. Love binds our hearts and souls together. The city there,” she tilted her head at the still-smoking walls. “It is a place of evil that must be wiped from our land. Any man or woman who has betrayed another, they come here to live out their days. Those who would sell their souls live there, hungry for the taste of gold. Dark things, things that you cannot imagine, live there and take place within the walls.” She paused, looking skyward at the githok, breathed deeply then closed both eyes briefly. A waft of air stirred the ebony hair. “The assassin’s family lives here. They will not live to see another day. I will find the assassin before the war has ended. He will pay for his part in our child’s death.”

  Kaegan glanced at the city, finding it hard to believe that anything remained after the havoc wreaked by the emerald cyclones that had graced its streets yesterday. Most of the men had risen, milling about as the morning meal was prepared. Some gathered together, staring at the city as he did. “Are you certain destroying what remains will not do more harm than good?”

  Her fingers tugged at the handkerchief, removing the knot that held it there, pulling it downward until the healed wound was revealed. “My energy was drained through healing the wound. The rage was drained after I destroyed the archer. Since our child’s death, the powers have revealed more to me. Each resides within my mind on a gossamer thread, waiting to be harnessed at my will. Yesterday allowed me to gain even more control over those powers. It revealed one that I was not aware existed. The power to heal.”

  She stood, touched his face with one hand, then walked toward the group of men who had gathered to watch the city as it continued to burn. Kaegan followed, certain that she intended to destroy the city. She walked a half dozen yards past the men, raised both hands skyward, then with a slashing downward motion brought those hands toward the earth.

  A great rumbling came from within the earth. Horses nickered and stamped the ground as the rumbling turned to a roar. Dust spewed from cracks forming in the earth. Each widened to form fissures, running toward the city as they grew. The walls encircling the city crumbled and fell. The chasm encircling the city widened, chunks of earth breaking from its edge to fall within its depths. A sound louder than a dozen thunderclaps bound together came as the city shivered before falling into the depths of the abyss that formed. The dark, ancient city of Wildspyre was no more.

  Loriann walked toward them in silence. “We should take the morning meal and move south. Skybourne awaits.”

  ***

  Chapter 16

  Ebin, King Derek, and Archmage Orizahr

  Ebin arrived at Waelcombe Keep safely with the full party that joined him on the ride to Riverpoint. Derek and Archmage Orizahr waited in the courtyard as he dismounted. A page appeared, taking the reins from Ebin’s hand, walking the sweaty horse toward the stables.

  “Ebin Quidell! You have returned from your quest. Tell us, was it fruitful?” Archmage Orizahr remarked as the man approached.

  Ebin bowed before speaking, eyes darting from first one man to the other. “Riverpoint is not able to send men to help us fight. They are a small village and fear Cedric’s reprisal. They offer food and other types of aid.”

  Derek waited until Ebin’s compatriots made their way toward the barracks before he spoke. “Food will be greatly appreciated. Tell us what other aid they wish to send.”

  “Loriann found a mushroom there that contains a lethal poison. She taught a few of those living in the village how to harvest and prepare it. It could serve us well in battle.”

  “She excelled with potions. It does my old heart good to hear her work continues,” Orizahr remarked, one hand stroking his beard. “This most certainly is a continuation of the prophecy.”

  “Orizahr and I would like to speak with you privately, Ebin. We feel it is time you learn more about our involvement with the prophecy and Loriann,” Derek stated. “Let us go to the solar.”

  They took their respective seats in the solar. A servant entered with a tray bearing hot tea and freshly baked cookies. Derek waited until the servant disappeared before he spoke. “You are well aware of my former service in Cedric’s court. There are details that I have withheld until now. Cedric charged me with learning more about the prophecy.”r />
  Orizahr looked at the floor, folding softly wrinkled hands together before he spoke. “It was through our efforts that Loriann’s mother was found and murdered by Willem Jarin. We hope to atone for our wrongs by helping defeat Cedric and Willem.” He paused, took a deep breath and proceeded. “Loriann was there when her mother was murdered. So were you, Ebin. You are Loriann’s twin brother. Memory of what happened that day was scrubbed from your memories by your mother before she told you to run and hide.”

  “No! You can’t be telling the truth. I remember my parents. My name is Ebin Quidell, not Astus.” The young man stood, mouth opening then closing. He rubbed his forehead before taking a step closer to Archmage Orizahr. “If I’m Loriann’s brother, why don’t I have powers like she does?”

  “Loriann eagerly accepted the powers passed on by your mother. We are not certain what powers she possesses, or which of those are rightfully yours. The time will come when the powers will be passed on to you, as is your right, Ebin,” Archmage Orizahr continued. “When she returns from Skybourne we will know more.”

  Derek spoke as Orizahr fell silent. “I hope you understand why we hid this from you. Cedric and Jarin would have come for you as they did Loriann. You were not ready to defend yourself. Your sister will see to it that you are prepared for the war to come.”

  Ebin sighed, head resting on the mantle, grateful for the fire that blazed within the hearth. “Perhaps that is why we became friends so quickly. I have a sister. I need time to think, clear my head. Thank you for telling me.”

  ***

  Chapter 17

  Loriann

  The journey to Skybourne continued without incident. The monotonous horizon was broken only by an ivory sea of grass that danced with the wind. Heat soared as twin suns rose overhead in the azure sky. A massive grey form obscured by mists appeared on the horizon as they stopped to make camp for the night. Lightning flashed at its apex. Great rumbling waves of thunder followed on the heels of each bolt. Loriann gazed in its direction for a moment before dismounting. “Skybourne,” she remarked.