Blood of Mages (Rift of Chaos Book 3)

by A. J. Martinez

  “You old relic,” Theon said as he paced towards Akielas with an embrace. Theon hugged Akielas tightly and lifted him. “Akielas, the master mage of El Nido. It’s been about three years since we’ve seen you.”

  “That is what they once called me,” Akielas said.

  “How about the reincarnation of Prodigus Kollos,” Theon said solemnly, but then burst into a laugh and hugged Akielas again. “My brother in law. Come, your son in upstairs.”

  “How has he been?” Akielas asked as they walked to the mansion.

  “Oh that boy, all he wants is to see his father,” Theon stated and sighed. “He does not like to play with the others. He mainly keeps to himself.”

  Akielas did not answer for he already knew it was his fault, yet he knew he wasn’t ready to care for his son. He wanted the boy to be happy and live a normal life in El Nido. He did not want him to follow in his footsteps. He wanted to raise his son away from danger and away from his enemies, the Specters. He knew that after Ember burned his house and murdered his wife that she would restlessly sought to end his son’s life. He knew that Ember would destroy everything he loved and that is why he must hide his only son, Ajira.

  “How is his health and his studies?” Akielas asked.

  “He seems to be prone to fevers but he is the best in the mystic arts,” Theon answered.

  “Really,” Akielas said surprised, then laughed.

  “If he is anything like you, it would be in talent,” Theon said. “Your son, he is extremely talented with magic and in swordplay. He might become better than his old man.”

  “What is his innate attribute?” Akielas asked.

  “He is doing extremely well with pyromancy but I think his innate element is air,” Theon replied. “Follow me, I will show you.”

  Akielas’ nieces jumped on him yelling, “Uncle!” He carried them both in his arms. The six year old named Claudia and the eight year old named Ursula. They pulled his long hair and played with his hood. It was like the family he wished he had.

  When they reached the door Akielas noticed that Theon’s wife, Tatiana, forced a smile on her face. “Tatiana, it’s been so long,” Akielas said politely and bowed to her. He gently placed his two nieces down and they ran inside the mansion shouting, “let’s go get Ajira.”

  “Akielas, you came to see your son?” She asked. “He is up in the second floor. The boy has been dying to see his father who has been absent for the past three years.”

  “Tatiana, don’t start,” Theon said, defending Akielas. “You know why he has been away.”

  “He could at least visit his son once a month so the boy won’t feel so lonely,” Tatiana said.

  “I definitely deserve that,” Akielas replied with a frown. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

  “I do it for my sister, Demitra, not for you,” Tatiana remarked then walked away.

  “Come on now.” Theon pulled Akielas trying to avoid an argument and entered the mansion.

  The first thing Akielas noticed were the two griffin statues standing on the edge of the banisters of the coiling stair case to the second floor. The he looked at the glossy marble tiles on the floor followed by the chandeliers in the dome ceiling. There were portraits on the wall of the family and swords as decorations. Looking down the hall to his right he could see the fireplace and the head of a crowned deer as a trophy hanging on the wall. Theon beckoned Akielas to follow him upstairs. They jogged up the coiling staircase and in the second floor there were six rooms. Theon pointed at the last door to the right. Eagerly Akielas stride to his son’s room. The door was already open and saw Ajira swinging a wooden sword in the spacious room. The boy jumped off the bed and fell on the floor with a roll and when he rose to his feet he paused and gazed at his father.

  “I hope I did not interrupt your training,” Akielas said.

  “Papa?” the boy whispered. His eyes moist and lips quivered.

  “Ajira, my boy,” Akielas murmured.

  The boy dropped his wooden sword, ran then jumped with an embrace. Akielas grabbed the boy in the air and spun on the room. “Papa I missed you,” Ajira said.

  “Me too, my boy, me too,” Akielas replied.

  “Are you going to stay longer this time?” the boy asked.

  “I will be here for a few hours,” Akielas said. “I wish I could stay longer.”

  “But I have not seen you in a long time,” the boy stated. “I want you to stay here papa. I don’t want you to go again.”

  “I know, I know,” Akielas said. “I promise you that today we are going to have fun together.”

  Akielas did just as he promised. He did everything the boy wanted to do. Akielas wanted to spend an entire day before he faced Ember. They played with wooden swords. They talked about magic and the spells Ajira had learned. He was impressed at how fast the boy learned pyromancy. Theon told him that Ajira was a prodigy in swordplay. He saw how the boy struck with a sword and how he moved when sparring. It was like looking into a mirror. Akielas saw himself in his own son but the boy looked so much more like his mother. The raven hair, the sharp face, the cold stare and he even had the same birth mark on his left cheek as his mother. They ate dinner together and talked about how Ajira was doing in school. The boy loved swordplay and magic but was a horrible test taker just like his mother. Of course, it was only a matter of time before his son asked him the uncomfortable question…

  “Papa, why are you gone for so long? Why do you leave me here alone?”

  Akielas did not know how to answer. The boy had the right to ask. It was just him and his son sitting outside on a table eating a spicy curry with a drink of blended berries. Akielas could not make eye contact but Ajira held his stare. He is going to be stronger than me one day, he thought and was sure of it just by looking at the boy’s eyes.

  “I cannot be here with you because I am living a dangerous life and I don’t want you to be part of it,” Akielas said. “I want you to be here with your aunt and uncle. Away from danger. Away from chaos.”

  “So I will never see you again after today?” the boy asked.

  “Finish your curry, my boy, it is getting cold,” Akielas answered.

  “Will I see you again, papa?” he asked again, shedding tears.

  Akielas sighed, frowned and said, “Ajira, I am sorry.”

  The boy took his plate and slammed it on the ground then grabbed his juice, threw it at his father and ran back into the mansion. Akielas wiped the juice from his clothes with a handkerchief. He stood up and followed the boy. He was embarrassed in front of Theon and Tatiana.

  When he reached the second floor in the mansion he walked into Ajira’s room again and saw him hugging his knees on his bed staring at the walls. Akielas paced into his room and sat down on the bed next to the boy.

  “You know, I probably deserve that,” Akielas confessed. “I know you are young and it is hard for you to understand. I know you hate me for not showing up for years. I know you feel lonely and it is my fault. One day you will thank me and…”

  “Shut up!” The boy bellowed. “You don’t care about me so why don’t you just go.”

  Akielas stood up and walked away. Just before he reached the door, Ajira jumped off the bed, ran after him and hugged him.

  “Please come back soon, papa,” the boy said as he cried.

  “I will. I don’t know long is going to be but I promise you I will return,” Akielas said.

  He then knelt down and embraced his son. Don’t worry my boy, he thought. All the things I have made you go through won’t be in vain. You will live a much better life than I did. I promise you.

  ******

  The sun was beginning to hide on the horizon, bruising the skies as the moon began to shine. Akielas said his final goodbyes to his son and the Sargon family. But before he returned to Kazenolumos he had one last place to visit. He paid for another ride in a horse carriage. It took him to two miles away from where the Sargon’s lived. It was on the outskirts of Lamento city. U
p a few hills, following a winding road. There were very few houses out here. The trees were tall and animals from the woods could be seen running across the road.

  When he finally arrived at his destination he saw a toppled fence and a broken gate. He stepped out of the horse carriage and slowly walked towards the burned down mansion. The carriage left and the horse neighed as it vanished from sight down the road. Akielas walked pass the broken gate, his lips stretching into a smile, the happiest he had been in days. Sure, it was burned and destroyed but it still felt like home. He could still see it standing. He could still see the tracery on the windows. The winged maiden statues on roof. He could still see Demitra on the long balcony of the second floor. The roses in the garden filled his nostrils with sweet scents. He saw the citrine and jade gemstone on pedestals in the middle of the garden. The granite stones patterned into a spiral in the ground. He could see the blue and purple lead trees reigning over the mansion. Then the front door opened and he saw Demitra walking out, carrying his child in her belly. He went to embrace her but when their fingers touched…she vanished. It all vanished and returned to ashes. Akielas relived the nightmare of that very moment. Ember burning down his home then murdering his wife while he tried to hide Ajira in a safe place. That night, he remembered how Ember used cosmo magic on him and caught him by surprise. While he was bleeding on the floor Ember pierced Demitra’s heart with a kaminyte sword.

  He woke up from his daydream with a gasp. He looked around the burned mansion in a daze and wondered why no one had stepped foot in this area after he left. There were spider webs on the splinters and moss grew on the broken wood and bricks. The garden was now foliage. Blue and purple trees had been knocked down on that dreadful day.

  Akielas walked to the backyard kicking away debris and splinters. There was a large tree trunk in the middle, he jumped over and made his way to the grave of his wife. The gravestone was still there, untouched.

  R.I.P.

  Demitra Neous

  Your love will never be forgotten

  He was happy. He could still feel her presence. “We were together for ten wonderful years,” he whispered as he gazed at her gravestone. “Don’t worry, I will soon join you. I have one last mission before I leave this world. I will avenge you.”

  “Can you?” a voice crept from behind him.

  Akielas spun and drew his sword. His heart pounded his chest looking at Ember’s white mask. “What are you doing here?” he rasped

  “Why are you so surprised? Don’t you recognize my voice,” Ember said. She sat on the fallen tree trunk with her arms crossed, staring at Akielas through that one eye opening in her mask. “You think you are the only who has sweet memories of this place?”

  “What good memories do you have in my home besides destroying it?” Akielas asked and scowled at Ember.

  “You can sheathe your sword,” Ember responded. “I am not here to fight. I just want to talk.”

  Akielas refused to let his guard down yet he knew that she could kill him easily since he had no magic. “How did you know I was here?”

  “Actually, I had no idea,” she answered. She hopped off the tree trunk and strolled around him. “You have no magic, my dear master, do you really think you can defeat me now? I can kill you if I wanted.”

  “Ember, how did you know I was here? Did you follow me?” Akielas asked again, refusing to lower his guard.

  “I told you, I had no idea you were here,” Ember repeated. “The day of the tri-eclipse is near. I am at the cusp of conquering the world. However, my heart brought me here today.”

  Akielas sheathed his sword and lowered his guard. For once he was sure that Ember would cause no harm. “Sounds to me as though you are at war with yourself,” he told her. “Whoever had persuaded you to follow the path of destruction is ripping you apart from inside just like you did to me when you destroyed my home and my family.”

  “Not all of your family,” Ember added.

  “Don’t pity me now,” Akielas snarled. “You took everything from me yet I gave you the world. So tell me, why are you here? Have you become so heartless that you enjoyed watching me break into pieces? Do you enjoy watching me fall?”

  “I know of your son,” Ember stated.

  Akielas remained silent hoping that she was bluffing. She is just playing mind games, he told himself. Ember walked to the grave stone of Demitra and placed a foot on top of the stone.

  “Haven’t you had enough?” Akielas rasped.

  “Akielas, you are here because you know that you will soon die,” Ember said. “So I must let you know now. Once I kill you, I will take Ajira and raise him as my own child, as it should have been.”

  “What!” Akielas shouted and seethed with anger. “You wouldn’t dare.”

  “Of course I would. Once you are dead there will be nothing in my way from claiming my son,” she replied.

  “Your son?” Akielas rasped. “What are you talking about?”

  “Ajira should have been my son,” Ember answered. “Demitra took you from me. She tricked me. That whore. That bitch. That harlot. I hate her so much. Seeing her with you was so painful and then she had the son that I always wanted.”

  “Ember, you were my apprentice. Master and student cannot fall in love,” Akielas said with frustration.

  “Ajira is not the only child she had,” Ember said.

  Akielas was shocked at first but he knew it was another one of her mind games. “Liar,” he snarled. “You are just a jealous, lonely child trying to make the world as miserable as you.”

  “You don’t believe me?” Ember said. She then kicked the gravestone and knocked it down. “Demitra was a whore. She had a daughter with an Amaranth on Ember Island. She was unfaithful to you and I never wanted to tell you because I did not want to break your heart. I wanted you to be happy. She wanted to leave you at some point and she allowed an Amaranth to ravish her because she was dissatisfied with you. She could no longer follow you and your cause back then.”

  “Enough of your lies!” Akielas shouted.

  “Her daughter is now twelve years old. Two years older than Ajira,” Ember said.

  “You can do whatever you want to me but stay away from my son, you bitch,” Akielas snarled.

  “Once I kill you, Ajira will be mine,” Ember replied then disappeared, tossing her cloak over herself and creating a cloud of black smoke. Her laughter lingered and it echoed throughout the area of what was once his mansion.

  “Stay away from my son, Ember!” Akielas yelled. “I will kill you!” He then fell to his knees and punched a hole in the ground. His knuckles bled and his fist trembled. “Did she know where he was all along?... I must win. I must regain my magic. I won’t allow her to take my son.”

  Auron

  When he returned to Kazenolumos, the city was slightly lower than before. Auron gazed up at the mandarak above that expanded for miles above the clouds. He knew that the mandarak would not hold the city for long. I say this place will fall before the tri-eclipse, he predicted. He could see the first level of the city already touching the clouds. It was like a pyramid sinking in the ocean.

  He was on Caim’s floating island and for a moment he was not sure how he would fly to Kazenolumos. After finding comfort in using the Golden Sun he almost forgot about his Eedahlan. The only other way that he could travel the world.

  Auron clapped his hands together and whispered the words, “aerobos Garuda.” He removed his gloves and knelt, then palmed the ground. The magic circle tattooed on the back of his hand shone then appeared on the ground and expanded up to twenty feet in diameter. It was as if he had painted the mandarak with his own maju and it shone opening a portal for his Eedahlan. A shriek echoed from within the dimension of the magic circle. Auron jumped out of the way and the creature rose from the mandarak. It cast a shadow on Caim’s island then it shrank as it descended to its master. The winged creature landed causing sand and grass to billow and trees to rustle. Its wings spread black and red larger
than its body. Its head shaped like a falcon and yellow stripes ran down its belly. Garuda stood on two legs and crossed its arms. Although its body was much like a human it was covered in feathers and fur. Garuda knelt and lowered its head for its master. Auron patted its beak that was longer than his arm. “It is good to see you again my friend,” he said and mounted the Eedahlan. Auron sat on the saddle that was tied to Garuda’s back. “To the city,” he commanded. Garuda shrieked and kicked off the ground. It thudded its wings powerfully. It was faster than Auron using the Golden Sun. “Go to the top level,” Auron said. It flew up and the Effeelions that were in its way were pushed by the force of wind as it jetted towards the third level. When Garuda landed its talons tore the floor. With one hand, it brought Auron down.

  Nehushine and the council gazed up at Garuda but did not seem afraid of it. The old Effeelion carried a large book and hovered on his nimbus. “Why do you bring this Eedahlan?” Nehushine asked.

  “You ask yet you don’t seem surprised,” Auron remarked and chuckled. “It is how I travel when I don’t use my Golden Sun.”

  “Really, why aren’t you using the Valiarmos?” Nehushine asked and came closer to Auron.

  “I left it on Amaranth Island. The tribesmen use special magic that can fix the armor,” Auron explained.

  “I see,” Nehushine said and stroked his beard while staring at the rubble of what was once the dome.

  “Is there something wrong?” Auron asked somewhat worried.