The Last of the Firedrakes

by Farah Oomerbhoy

  “You want to search Zorek and Damien’s rooms?” said Vivienne, wide-eyed. She shook her head. “No, no, I can’t. If I get expelled from school, my father will disown me.”

  “Please, Vivienne,” I begged. “I really need to do this.”

  “Why?” she asked, crossing her arms and looking at me very sternly.

  “What?”

  “Why do you really need to do this? Your guardian has many people working for him who are more qualified spies. Just send word to the countess, and she will handle it.”

  “No!” I said, “I have to do this myself. Please just trust me. I would tell you if I could, but I can’t. Not right now.”

  “Then when?” said Vivienne, more softly this time. “Rory, ever since you came here I’ve known that you’re not telling me everything. I’m your friend, and I want to help, but if you don’t tell me anything, how can I do that?”

  I looked down at my feet. What could I say? I wanted to tell her who I really was, but what if she told her parents?

  “You’re right,” I said. “I haven’t been completely honest with you, but there are reasons. And I will tell you. Just give me a little more time. I need to find out what is in that pouch. Please help me, and I promise I will tell you everything.”

  Surprisingly Vivienne hugged me. “I’ll help you, but we’ll talk about it in the morning. I’m exhausted,” said Vivienne, climbing back into her bed.

  I lay down on my bed and covered myself with my blanket. “Thank you, Viv. Good night.”

  “Good night.”

  “Vivienne,” I said tentatively.

  “Yes, Rory.”

  “I hope you won’t say anything about this,” I said, “about the Black Wolf, I mean. I don’t want Damien finding out how I got back.”

  “Your secret is safe with me,” she said, closing her eyes and snuffing out the candle.

  I lay in my bed, looking at the dark ceiling. It would be dawn soon, and I hoped I could get a few hours of sleep before I had to wake up for class. But I couldn’t get Rafe’s face out of my head, and I kept going over everything he said in my mind until dawn broke.

  19

  The Book of Abraxas

  The next day, I walked with Vivienne to the library. Classes were just beginning, and countless students were milling about, trying to navigate their way through the library as quietly as they could. Library monitors were constantly shushing those who were being too loud.

  “Isn’t that Damien, talking to Zorek?” Vivienne whispered.

  I looked over to where Damien was standing, at the far end of the library, where the older books were kept. He was talking to his brother, but they didn’t see us.

  “Come on,” I said softly, pulling Vivienne along with me. I wanted to hear what they were saying.

  We wound our way through the shelves and stopped on the other side of the bookshelf, where Damien and Zorek were standing. I moved closer, and I could see them clearly if I peered through the space between the books.

  I saw Zorek pass the mysterious pouch to Damien.

  “Keep it safe,” Zorek said. “Lily goes through my things sometimes. I don’t want her to accidentally find it.”

  “Lily Brentstaff is a such a social climber,” said Damien with a trace of disgust in his voice. “You know she’s only with you because of who you are.”

  Zorek shrugged. “I don’t care why she’s with me, as long as I get what I want.” He grinned at the thought.

  Damien shook his head, opened the pouch, and took out a small triangular piece of bronze. I couldn’t see it clearly from where I was hiding, but it looked like it had some strange symbols etched into the metal. He inspected it, turning it around in his fingers.

  “Fine,” Damien said, putting it back into the leather pouch. “I’ll keep this safe until we can deliver it to Father.” He patted his pocket. “Did he tell you what it is?”

  “Yes,” said Zorek, “but I don’t know much. All he said was that it was the key to some book.”

  “A book?”

  Zorek nodded. He came closer to Damien and lowered his voice. “I overheard Mother and Father talking, and I heard him mention the ‘Grimoire of Abraxas.’”

  “What’s that?” asked Damien.

  The Grimoire of Abraxas. I had never heard of it. I looked over at Vivienne, who shook her head.

  “No idea,” Zorek shrugged.

  “It must be very valuable if Father is being so secretive and paying a king’s ransom for it,” said Damien.

  “It is, but I would not get involved if I were you,” said Zorek. “I suspect our uncle the archmage has some hand in this.”

  I had heard enough. I moved away from the bookshelves and gestured for Vivienne to follow me. The triangular piece in the pouch was a key, a key to a book. I had to find out what exactly the Grimoire of Abraxas was and what it could do, before one of the Blackwaters figured out how to use it or, worse still, gave it to Lucian and Morgana.

  Vivienne and I hurried to our classes; we were so late. We didn’t get a chance to talk about it until later in our room.

  “I really don’t think that we should get involved in this, Rory,” said Vivienne. “This sounds like something to do with the dark arts. It is forbidden.”

  “We’re not learning dark magic,” I said, removing my cloak and hanging it up in the cupboard. “We’re just finding out what the book is and why it needs a key for it to open. If it has something to do with Lucian, then it’s entirely possible that Morgana is behind all this. I have to find out what she’s up to.”

  “Why?” asked Vivienne, sitting down on her bed and glaring at me with her arms crossed. “I’m not going to help you do anything if you don’t tell me what is really going on here. Why are you so interested in what Queen Morgana is doing?”

  I sat down on the bed next to Vivienne. I could tell she was upset, and I wasn’t sure what I should say. She was the closest thing I had to a best friend, and she had helped me so far without telling anyone.

  “I’ll tell you everything,” I said finally, “but you have to promise to have an open mind.”

  Vivienne nodded, but she didn’t smile. I took a deep breath and proceeded to recount my story. She listened without interrupting me, but only until I gave her my real name.

  “Aurora Firedrake, the lost princess of Illiador,” said Vivienne, her eyes wide like saucers. “Are you serious?”

  I nodded. This was it; I had told her. Now I just had to hope that she kept my secret. I was struggling with deciding to go one step further and tell her that I was also a fae-mage, but I think some remnants of good sense prevailed, and I kept that part to myself.

  “But Princess Aurora died nearly fifteen years ago,” Vivienne insisted, shaking her head. “It’s not possible. Everyone knows that Azaren’s family was completely wiped out.”

  “Well, everyone is wrong. I’m still alive,” I said. “Somehow my parents managed to save me by sending me to another world. I am Azaren’s daughter and Morgana is my aunt.”

  “So that means,” said Vivienne thinking, “that you are actually the Queen of Illiador, not Morgana. That’s why you want to find out what she’s up to.”

  “Exactly,” I said, happy that I didn’t have to spell it out for her. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but you can understand why.”

  Vivienne nodded and leaned over to give me a big hug. “Of course I understand, “ she said. “You don’t have to worry, Aurora, you can trust me.”

  I smiled. “I think it’s probably better if you still called me Rory.”

  Vivienne clapped her hand over her mouth. “Oh no! Sorry, sorry.”

  I laughed. “It’s okay, Viv. I know it’s a lot to take in, but you’ll get used to it.”

  * * *

  For days, Vivienne and I searched through dozens of scrolls and books in the library for any mention of the Grimoire of Abraxas, but there was none. We didn’t want to ask any of the professors, since dark magic was forbidden in Eldoren
.

  I continued to work hard at my studies, and I could hold a shield against all nonmagical attacks. Stones and other flying objects would just bounce off my shield. Magical attacks were more difficult to defend against, but I was learning fast, and my magic and concentration were slowly getting stronger. I had warrior skills class almost every day, and my attacks were getting better. I could stun a mouse from a hundred paces, and I even learned how to push someone away from me using only my magic, which was called a push strike.

  We also learned how to control the intensity of stun strikes, luckily not on each other, but on targets set up for practice. I found out about other types of magical attack: fire strikes, crushing strikes, and even lightning strikes. We were still not allowed to use these outside class, as they were too dangerous.

  I remembered the magic Oblek used on me when he was dragging me to his castle. He had used a crush strike on my neck. Now I finally understood how it was done, and if I ever met Oblek again, he was going to be sorry he’d ever laid eyes on me.

  Every other day I had healing lessons, where I learned about different kinds of herbs and plants and their uses and dosage. In Avalonia, the plants were different, so I had a lot of catching up to do.

  The most difficult of all healing classes was magical healing. I learned mainly by assisting the university healers with their patients. I was amazed at what some of them could do just by using the powers within them. Mending bones, regrowing tendons, even knitting flesh.

  Weeks passed, and we still had no idea what the Grimoire of Abraxas was. I finally decided to ask Erien. He always had the highest scores in ancient history, so maybe he could shed some light on this whole situation. That day after classes, I went over to see him in his room.

  “Erien, I need your help,” I said, shutting the door behind me.

  Erien was lying on his bed reading. I pulled up a chair and told him everything that had happened.

  “I’ve never heard of the Book of Abraxas,” said Erien, “but if it is a grimoire, then it must be one of the forbidden texts. You won’t find anything about it in the school library.”

  “But isn’t there some way to find out about this book and what it does?” I asked, leaning forward. “Erien, if Morgana and Lucian are behind this, then we have to find out why she needs the book.”

  Erien nodded. “There is a way. But we should tell grandfather about it first,” he said. “If this has to do with dark magic, then we shouldn’t get involved. We could get expelled from school.”

  “But Uncle Gabriel is in some faraway kingdom,” I insisted. “We are not doing anything wrong. When he’s back, we can tell him what we’ve found out.”

  “Anything that has to do with black magic is wrong,” Erien said.

  “Please, Erien,” I begged, “you know how important this is to me. Morgana ruined my life. I need to know what she’s planning to do next. The only way I am going to survive is if I stay one step ahead of her at all times.”

  Erien sat up in his bed and rubbed his palms over his face. “All right, Aurora,” he said finally. “I understand why you want to do this. I will help you, but remember I can’t make any promises. The forbidden texts were lost or destroyed centuries ago. We still may not find anything.”

  “I couldn’t find anything in any of the books I looked at,” I said.

  Erien shook his head. “You won’t find anything in the ordinary books, “ he said. He came closer and lowered his voice. “But there is a secret library that lies underneath the school. Most people think it is a myth, but I’ve seen it, and the professors know it exists, but only the Mastermage of Evolon holds the key.”

  My eyes widened. “A secret library. But how do we get in?”

  “Leave that to me,” said Erien, pulling on his black leather boots and cloak. “Meet me outside the academy library tonight after dinner.”

  I nodded. “I’ll be there. Thank you, Erien.”

  “You don’t need to thank me, Aurora. We’re family,” Erien said, coming over and giving me a big hug.

  I hugged him back. It was so nice to finally be part of a family that accepted me for who I was.

  That night, Vivienne and I sneaked out of our room after everyone had gone to sleep and met Erien outside the library.

  “I said, ‘come alone,’” Erien whispered when he saw Vivienne.

  “We can trust her,” I said. “She knows who I really am.”

  Erien’s eyes widened. “You told her?”

  I nodded. “I live with her, and she became suspicious.”

  “I hope you didn’t tell her everything,” he said so only I could hear.

  I shook my head. Even Vivienne might not take too kindly to living with a fae-mage.

  “Good,” said Erien, ending the topic. “Come on. We only have a few hours.” He opened the library door with a key he had with him.

  “Where did you get that?” Vivienne asked.

  “I help the mastermage with research,” said Erien. “He has a key that can open any door in the academy, and I just happen to know where he keeps it.”

  Vivienne looked impressed.

  The library was dark and eerie at this time of night. Muted moonlight threw shadows on the walls and floor that seemed to move according to the whims of the cloudy sky. Bookshelves stretched into darkness on both sides of me, and an unnerving silence seemed to settle like a thick shroud over the vast structure.

  Erien’s hand lit up, pushing back the shadows. We had been taught how to do this in class. I concentrated my magic into the palm of my hand, slowly pushing some of it outward and rolling it between my fingers. A ball of white light swirled, lighting up the aisle in front of me. Vivienne still hadn’t managed to master this concept, and her light kept flickering and going out. Finally she gave up and stuck close to me.

  We wound our way through the countless aisles to the far end of the library. Erien shifted a section of the bookshelf, and it opened inwards like a door, revealing a hidden stone staircase that led downwards, spiraling into darkness.

  “Follow me, “ said Erien, holding his hand out in front of him.

  Vivienne took my hand, and the two of us navigated our way behind Erien. A few hundred feet down, we came to an old wooden door. Erien used the master key, and it opened, the creak of the wood echoing through the silent library.

  We stepped inside, and I held out my hand. The ball of light in my palm cast an eerie glow over the cavernous room. I looked around. We were standing at the top of a massive grand staircase that descended into a huge room that seemed to have no end. Row upon row of books lined the shelves, stretching two stories high all the way to the beautiful vaulted ceiling. The musty smell of leather and dusty books permeated the still air as I walked down the staircase, following Erien.

  This looked like an impossible task. The secret library was huge. How would we ever find the right book?

  “Do you think the Grimoire of Abraxas could be here?” Vivienne asked.

  “No, I don’t think so,” said Erien. “The Book of Abraxas sounds like a forbidden text, and the mastermage would never allow a dark grimoire in the school. It’s too dangerous; anything could go wrong if used without the correct knowledge. But we may be able to find out more about it in some of the other, older books.”

  “How do you know so much about all this?” Vivienne asked Erien, lighting a candle.

  “I’m going to be a historian,” said Erien, puffing out his chest a little. “The mastermage said that I could even be a professor someday.”

  Vivienne laughed. “But you’re a noble. You can’t become a teacher.”

  “Professor Tanko is a noble,” Erien argued.

  “He’s the only one,” Vivienne insisted. “In any case, Professor Tanko is just a baron with limited holdings. You are presently the Earl of Everdale, and after your grandfather, you will be the next Duke of Silverthorne.”

  “I could do both,” Erien said, taking a few books off the shelves and putting them on a nearby wooden
table.

  “Not if you’re on the royal council,” Vivienne said, crossing her arms.

  “You seem to know a lot about the way the kingdom is run,” said Erien.

  Vivienne shrugged, picking up a book. “Father tells me stuff,” she said. “I listen.”

  For hours, we searched through all sorts of books, from ancient symbols and languages to the genealogy of kings, but there was nothing that even mentioned the name Abraxas.

  “We should go back,” said Vivienne finally. “It’s going to be dawn soon, and people will start coming into the library.”

  Erien nodded and started putting books back onto the shelves. “I agree.”

  “No, just a few minutes please,” I said, desperately wishing I would find something.

  The sound of a door closing echoed through the secret library. All three of us froze in our tracks. Someone was coming, and there was nowhere to hide. I looked over to the stairs leading down into the vast room. A ball of light was moving steadily towards us hovering in the hand of a shadowy figure in mage robes. As he came toward us, the light illuminated his face.

  Professor Dekela!

  “What is the meaning of this intrusion?” said the mastermage, raising his hands and sending sparks flying into the air, lighting the candles on the chandelier that hung from the high ceiling. The room lit up. “Erien, you know better than to be down here. I expected more from you, and I showed you this library because I thought you were more responsible than the rest. The books here are not meant to be read by students. You know that perfectly well.”

  “I know, Professor. I’m so sorry,” said Erien, hurriedly putting back the remaining books on all the wrong shelves. “It’s not what you think.”

  Vivienne just stood there, staring at the professor, and looked like she was about to burst into tears.

  “It’s my fault,” I blurted out. I didn’t want Erien and Vivienne to get kicked out of school because of me. “Professor, this has to do with Morgana and the Book of Abraxas.”