Scion’s Sacrifice (The Guardians of Light Book 3)

by R. Michael Card

  There was yet another reference to the ‘dark one.’

  “Thank you Ragnalla, you may go now,” the High Abbot said serenely.

  The girl nodded and padded softly from the room.

  The High Abbot turned to Cassine. “I do not know what great fate put you and Davar together, but it would seem he is to be the last of this six. Ragnalla foresaw one of darkness who would need to go as well. The girl can tell for certain once he returns. So yes, please do bring him to us.”

  “I will,” Cassine, said. “But I’ll require rest before I attempt another teleportation. May I be excused?”

  The High Abbot nodded. “You’re all dismissed. I suggest you prepare yourselves for what is to come.”

  As she left Cassine could hear Tirol’s voice. “Yeah, sure, me against the Blacklord, that’ll work.” This was followed by a slapping sound then Tirol again, “Ow! You do realize you’re stronger than the average woman right?”

  “Suck it up lover, you’re going. Now let’s go back to our rooms and… prepare, shall we?”

  Cassine paused in the hall to let Wyllea and Tirol pass. They were close, his arm around her, hers around him. They even shared a quick kiss.

  “Oh, I’ll prepare you,” he said playfully and she laughed.

  Cassine sighed. She wasn’t sure if her relationship with Davar would ever be that light, that playful, but by all the Gods, she hoped she would have the chance to find out.

  Chapter 10

  Davar saw Cassine appear out of the still morning air. With her next gasped breath, she muttered, “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to that.”

  She’d changed her clothes, now wearing a dress of pale brown, like sand on a beach. He doubted she owned anything vibrant or wild in color or cut. It wasn’t who she was and he didn’t care. She was still a beautiful sight. The dress set off the gold in her eyes, and the belted waist gave good emphasis to her full bust and hips. She also wore a new cloak of thick wool, which was currently pushed back over her shoulders.

  “I think I need to sit,” she said taking a few staggering steps toward him. He rose quickly from where he’d been sitting and was at her side, helping her to the ground. He wanted to help her, do things for her, be needed by her. It was still hard for him to understand, but he was learning.

  Mostly he was thankful that she was here again. Never before had he sought, or felt so comforted by, anyone’s presence as he did with her.

  “Thank you,” she said. There was a weariness around her eyes, a slouch to her posture. She was working herself hard.

  “I can’t say I’m used to hearing those words,” he said with a grin. “But we can talk more later. You look tired, just rest for now.”

  She nodded and he helped lay her back on the soft grasses. She wrapped her new cloak about her and closed her eyes. Soon she was resting peacefully.

  He sat next to her, watching her sleep and marveling at her incomparable beauty. She woke by late morning and smiled to see him looking at her. She reached up to his face and drew it down to hers. They lingered in a long, tender kiss.

  They went for a walk then, through the high mountain forest. While she’d been away, Davar had moved to the forested hill to the south of the plateau. There was better hunting and shelter there. The forest was alive this afternoon as they walked, the trees swaying with in mountain’s breeze, the birds adding their high song to the wash of the leaves in motion.

  “You may not receive the warmest reception when you get back,” she said after a while of silence.

  He gave a short laugh. “I don’t really expect one.” He stopped, turning to her. “You’re… an exceptional woman to have seen past all my faults to that speck of light within me. Even now after what happened… on the road… you still see the good in me. I don’t know how you do it, but I don’t expect that level of sympathy from anyone.”

  He looked away, ashamed for the first time in his life.

  Shame was fairly new for him. An awkward and squirmy feeling inside him, making him feel… like he was sick. His stomach rolled like some heavy lump sat within. He didn’t want to feel this way and before he never would have. This was part of what it was to be a better man but it certainly wasn’t a pleasant part.

  “I wouldn’t blame anyone them for hating me. I’m not the most likable fellow.”

  “They’re good people,” she said, her soft fingers on his check, pushing his face back toward her until their gazes met. “They’ll see the good in you too, given a little time.”

  “I don’t know how you remain so… positive and optimistic.”

  “It’s a gift.”

  “It must be.” He tried to look away again, but she pressed her hand to his cheek, keeping his gaze on hers. For a moment the forest around them, the birdsong and dappled light, all disappeared. He was lost in those golden eyes.

  “You’ve come a long way, Davar. Trust in that. They’ll see it too,” she said softly.

  At the moment with his guilt and shame wriggling inside him, he couldn’t see what she must be seeing in him, but he nodded. He trusted her, perhaps she was right.

  She smiled, kissed him lightly, then they continued walking, hand in hand.

  After a long silence, she spoke again. “There’s something else you should know.”

  He stopped. There was something in her tone that caused the uneasy feeling in his stomach to turn to dread. “What?”

  It was her turn to look away, but only for a moment, seeming to find some inspiration or courage from the foliage above them. She turned to look him in the eye as she said, “when I returned I spoke with the High Abbot. She told me of a foreseeing. You were involved, at least that’s what they believe. They say you, as well as myself and others, the scions included, will go to face the Blacklord.”

  Davar had to take a moment to digest that. He blew out a long breath, stepping back to lean against a tree. Now it was his turn to seek wisdom from the sun-speckled leaves above them. He swallowed hard.

  “You know I could never…” Where his father was concerned there was so much he could never do. Foremost among them was go back. “I can’t even be within five thousand miles of the man without falling under his sway! I don’t think I’ll ever be free of him.”

  “I don’t believe that.”

  “Oh?” he arched a brow. “What do you believe?”

  She too drew in an extended breath, letting it out slowly. “The future is never set. Things change, this is all that’s certain. You’ve already changed so much. I’ve faith that we can purge all of the darkness within you. Perhaps then your father would no longer have any hold over you.”

  He shrugged, seeking her eyes for strength. He didn’t truly believe any such thing would be possible, but for her sake, he put on a smile. “Perhaps. But that won’t happen overnight.”

  “No. We’ll need time before we leave to face him. Besides, part of the foreseeing was that we would win the battle for St. Antin. I don’t know how long that will take, but it probably won’t happen overnight either.”

  “And who’s doing all this foretelling? Not even my father, with all his vast powers, has the ability to see the future.”

  Cassine’s tone became light, playful. “A Scandian girl.”

  “A Scandian girl?” He shook his head. “How…?”

  “The Gods are ever mysterious.”

  “That’s true enough.”

  He looked up to the branches arching over him again.

  He knew foretelling wasn’t connected to any of the magic talents: mind, body, soul, or spirit. It was simply a gift of the Gods. To whom the Gods gave their gifts was up to them, yet to think some maid from a rough northern culture had a power his father had never possessed...

  Something about that thought gave him hope.

  He felt Cassine lean in against him, her body warm and soft, her head resting on his shoulder.

  Something about what she’d said a moment ago caught at his mind. “So this girl has seen that my father’s
armies will be defeated?

  He felt more than saw Cassine’s nod. “Yes.”

  “Then what?”

  “Then six of us go to the Blacklord and face him.”

  “Six?” he shook his head again. “And what happens then?”

  “Apparently, if the right six people go, your father will be defeated.”

  “And this girl thinks I’m one of the six?”

  “That’s still up for debate, but all the other five have been identified and the sixth was known only as the dark one.”

  “Ah, I see how they could think that might be me, but… Gods, this is a giant mess.” The idea that he and Cassine and the scions would go against his father and have any chance of winning was absurd. Did these people even know how powerful the Blacklord was? This was a man who’d lived for nearly a thousand years, accumulated knowledge and power that had once belonged to the Gods themselves. This was the man who caused a permanent bank of clouds to shroud the sun over all the lands he claimed and could make magically enhanced assassins like others made bread. It was crazy to think they would have any chance against him.

  “I think you’re talking to the right source,” Cassine said. “The Gods sure have made some strange choices in this crazy world.”

  He barked a sharp laugh. “I’ll agree to that.”

  After a lingering moment of silence, she pushed off from him, slipping her hand into his, tugging slightly. “Come on,” she said.

  He pushed himself from the tree and they walked again.

  “That’s all for tomorrow and the future. For now, we’re free, together, alone,” she said, her voice light and carefree. “What should we do?”

  He didn’t know what could have shifted within her to be so joyous after what they’d been talking about, but he found it compelling and contagious. He found himself filled him with a similar buoyancy.

  Inspired, he spun her around to him, taking her in his arms tightly, and pressing his lips to hers. She was surprised but only for a moment before responding to his advance. Her body melted into his, her arms around him, her lips opening to his passion.

  They stayed there, in that warm mutual embrace. One kiss led to another and another, each deeper and more passionate than the last. His hand traced her curves from round hip to a full breast, and there it lingered, caressing through the fabric of her dress. After a moment of this, she pulled away, breathless, light brown eyes catching his. He could see her desire within them. She placed a single finger on his lips, taking a moment.

  “Please,” she whispered, and he could see the effort it took her to say it, “I’m not ready for this… yet. Can you wait for me?”

  Gods, how he wanted her in that moment, his passion a raging flame within him, air caught in his throat. His need was palpable. And though it took a strength of will greater than any he’d ever possessed before, he nodded. His voice was thick when he said, “Yes, Cass, I’ll wait. For you, I will wait as long as it takes. For you, I’ll do anything.” After a moment of reigning in his hunger for her he said, “just so we’re clear, though, I’m more than ready when you are.”

  She gave a light, airy laugh, her eyes darting to his pants. “Oh, I got that feeling.” She cupped his face with a soft hand. “Trust that my feelings for you are true and strong. But when I join with a man, I want it to be more than just of the body. I want to join souls and spirits. Do you think your soul is ready to join with mine?”

  He recalled how they’d been bonded not so long ago. How awkward and jarring it had felt, his darkness with her light. He shook his head, despite however much he wanted to tell her he was ready. He knew his soul still needed more work before it could truly join with one as pure as hers.

  “You’re one infuriating woman, do you know that? Wonderful, pure, beautiful, and so very infuriating.” He leaned in for a brush of a kiss to demonstrate his restraint.

  “And you,” she said, her voice turning solemn, “have the potential to be a great man. Did you know that?”

  He smiled, amazed yet again by what she saw in him.

  “By the way,” she said as they began walking again. “I like it when you call me Cass.”

  They spent the remainder of the day together simply talking. Even though they’d bonded once and had known everything about each other, such deep understanding had faded with time, and they took the time now, to find it once again.

  The next day they teleported back east.

  Davar grunted as if he’d been punched in the gut as the walls of St. Antin Abbey appeared around him. His head swam, but he took several long deep breaths and slowly steadied himself. Both he and Cass had been prepared for this jump and she’d tapped into some of his strength to make the teleportation a bit smoother.

  Instantly, since their hands were already joined, they bonded as they had that first time. This helped them share strength so as not to pass out. Still Davar sat himself down slowly and Cass was leaning heavily on Senia, who again had been the woman’s focus to get here.

  They were in the great bailey of St. Antin, five hundred feet across and three hundred deep, with the impressive fifty-foot walls surrounding them. The Abbey itself was a squat square structure in front of them, four hundred feet to a side and over eighty feet tall. It had not been built for looks but for function, to house an army of fifty thousand men.

  They were surrounded by monks as well as the two scions. Everyone looked a little tense. To ease the tension, Davar gave a tired grin and waved. “I surrender.”

  Senia stared intently at him, as did Wyllea and they turned to each other at roughly the same time.

  “He does seem different. His spirit has changed,” Senia said first.

  Wyllea shrugged. “He’s not thinking of slaughtering us all. That’s a start.” Wyllea did, however, make several not so subtle glances between Davar and Cassine. Apparently, the mind-reading scion had seen some of his thoughts for the healer. Davar didn’t care.

  “Now if you’ll take me to wherever you’re going to keep me, I really need some rest, so does Cass,” Davar said, trying to rise, but only succeeding on the third attempt. In the end, Wyllea helped him along as Senia did Cass.

  He was led to a small cell inside the abbey, not the dungeons. Apparently, Cass had really helped his cause when here last. Wyllea deposited him on his bunk where he promptly fell asleep.

  When he awoke, there was a different woman in his room. She’d pulled one of the wooden chairs over from the small table in the opposite corner and sat by his bed. She was older, blond hair mixing with white, clear blue eyes met his, a serene smile on an ageless face.

  “Hello,” she said in a light, friendly tone. “Sleep well?”

  Though he’d never seen or met the High Abbot, he’d heard of her, and this woman fit her description. “Yes, High Abbot, thank you.”

  “So you know who I am. I should have expected that. And I know who you are, but you knew that didn’t you? So we’re all introduced. Now, down to business.”

  There was something about her pleasant, straightforward manner that he liked. He could almost imagine her as the grandmother he never knew.

  “There are many here who believe you’re evil and beyond redemption. Cassine seems to think otherwise. I want to hear from you. What do you have to say for yourself, son of the Blacklord?”

  Davar laid there, gaze retreating from her to the ceiling of his chamber. So what did he think of himself? “Had you asked me that a month ago, I would've told you I was evil and past any form of redemption. Well, actually I wouldn’t have said that. I’d have killed you.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, he caught her nod.

  “Now,” he blew out a long breath, “things are different.” He looked over at her, meeting her serene gaze. “I don’t really know what right I have to claim any redemption, but Cass seems to think I’m worth saving.” He considered that for a moment. “I guess I’ve come around to her point of view. I know I’m no saint, and still far from the good man she wants me to be. T
here’s still a lot of black in my soul, but there is nowhere I would rather be than with Cass working on removing that darkness.

  “You call me the Blacklord’s son, but Cass pointed something out to me that I’ve come to realize is true. He may have created me, but he doesn’t see me as a son, only a tool. I'm nothing more to him than an instrument he can use as part of his plan.”

  A thought occurred to him then. “But, I think I really want to be something to someone. I want to feel that connection, that…” he hesitated to say it, “…love.”

  “We all want to be loved,” she said softly. “Go on.”

  “I don’t know what else there is to say, really. Am I going to betray you all? On my own, no I won’t, but if I leave these walls, the Blacklord’s influence within me will be too strong and I'll probably turn on you all. Cass has a hope that if she is able to remove all the darkness from my soul, he won’t have any sway over me. I’ve my doubts: first that so much darkness can be removed, second that even if she can get it all out, the Blacklord still won’t have some control over me. I’m his creature. I fear for everyone should he take full control of me again. I don’t think he’d let go easily.”

  After several long moments of her penetrating gaze, she nodded to herself. “There will be two guards outside your door. They will accompany you everywhere you go. I’ve no doubt you could kill them both rather easily if you chose to, but I don’t think you will. They’re for everyone else’s ease of mind. Cassine will continue to see you and work on your healing. We shall see how that progresses and I shall check in from time to time.

  “You’re free, Davar. You may leave if you like, but I don’t think you will. I trust you because Cassine does. Don’t let us down. And when the time comes I have faith as she does that you will be able to leave these walls and face the Blacklord without coming under his sway.”

  She rose and glided to the door. There she turned and bowed slightly. “Be well, Davar.” And she left.

  Davar was a little stunned at her easy proclamation of his freedom. He wasn’t sure he’d be so trusting in her place. But at least he’d see Cass again soon and that thought allowed him to fall back into a deep slumber.