by John Corwin
"This is where we bury our dead." She knelt next to a tree. "We plant a seed on top of the grave, and the tree uses the body for nutrients." Evadora looked up at me. "Is that okay?"
I smiled gratefully. "I think my mum would like that."
Evadora spread her hands over an open plot and the roots spread the soil open into a neat rectangular hole. She breathed in relief. "I'm so glad my powers are working again."
My friends and I placed Delectra in her grave. I looked at her still form, but didn't know what to say. I thought back to what little I knew about my mother and the words finally came.
"You were a good person. A kind person. Thanks to you, I am good at broom flying and magic." Images of Esma flashed in my mind and the reality that I would never see her again stabbed my heart. "I feel as if I have lost two people today—a mother and a mentor. I will remember the good times we had, how you zapped us mercilessly to teach us magic."
Ambria smiled through her tears. "She was a wonderful teacher."
"Even if she frightened me to death," Max said.
Shushiel bobbed up and down. "It amused me greatly to watch her torture the students."
I picked up a handful of dirt and dropped it into the grave at Mum's feet. "My regret is that we didn't have more time. I think we could have become the best of friends." My eyes stung, but I still smiled. "Even so, I'm so thankful for the time we shared in this world. One day, we will meet again."
I cried silently for a moment, then turned to Evadora and nodded. She moved her hands together, and the earth buried my mother. Yoghra dug into his fur and handed her a small black seed.
Evadora held it over the grave. "With this seed, I give you life evermore." She dropped it into the dark soil and looked at me. "Water it with your tears, Conrad."
I leaned over and let them drip into the dirt. Goodbye, Mum. Rest in peace.
We returned to Queens Gate where a new dawn was breaking over a crisp snowy day. I took a detour from the Fairy Gardens and went to Moore Manor. Galfandor opened the door before I knocked. He didn't seem surprised by the motley crew with me and simply said, "Won't you come in for tea?"
"I should be on my way," Plinth said.
Galfandor shook his head. "I think you should stay for at least one cup, Seer Plinth."
Plinth sagged, his weary face creased with sorrow and regret. "My actions led to the deaths of many of my comrades, and yet, all my good intentions were for nothing. I do not think a cup of tea will help."
"I think conversation and rest will do you well." The headmaster patted his shoulder and motioned us in. "Come, now."
Galfandor seated us around a table in his tea room and a wooden golem in butler livery served us tea. I told the headmaster our tale from beginning to end, telling him of my mother's fate, and Victus's deceit. He said nothing, enduring the interruptions from my friends as they added their own flavor to the story and my moments of silence when I grew too choked up to speak.
When it was over the headmaster looked into his tea for a long moment, as if formulating precisely what to say. First, he turned to Plinth. "You are not to blame for the deaths of your comrades. If there's anything I've learned about prophecy, it's that nothing is set in stone and sometimes the terms are so vague, there are many interpretations."
"In other words, our interpretation was far from the mark," Plinth said miserably.
Galfandor nodded, but added nothing more. He looked at me. "Conrad, I'm proud of you, Ambria, and Max. While I'm profoundly sad for your loss, you rid your mother of Victus's demonic influences, and touched her heart with love she had long forgotten." He smiled kindly at me. "You gave her a greater gift in death than Victus ever gave her in life. For that, she can truly rest in peace."
"Truth," Gwyneth said.
I wiped my eyes and nodded. "I just wish I'd had more time with her."
"As do I." Galfandor sat back and stroked his long beard. "I must say I'm immensely glad to hear Cora is once again among the living. I was uncertain if Naeve would flourish in the reflected world and continue to plot until she broke free."
"It seems that once you have a soul, the reflected world is not a place you want to live," Ambria said. "She was still immortal, but I suppose there's nothing you can actually eat there so she withered away."
"As for Victus, it would appear the Eye of Jura allows him to perfectly mimic anyone, thus slipping through our protections." The headmaster's forehead pinched with worry. "The people he and Delectra replaced are real. I only hope they are still alive."
Gwyneth offered an assuring nod. "The eye can only replicate living people, so they would have had to keep them alive." She bit her lower lip. "I would send someone to their addresses immediately."
"It appears Victus and Delectra used two people for the eye to duplicate their appearances, and then created fake identities." Galfandor stroked his beard. "I remember how impressed I was with their skills when they applied for positions here. In retrospect, it's hardly surprising that they surpassed our expectations."
"So the people they mimicked aren't even real professors?" Max asked.
Galfandor met my gaze. "I doubt it."
In other words, the real "Esma" would never be a professor here. I shook off the strange feeling accompanying that thought and told him what concerned me most. "With the eye, Victus could still be here somewhere."
Galfandor looked to Gwyneth. "Is there any way to detect someone using it?"
"Not that I know of." The relic hunter took a fresh cup of tea and a lump of sugar. "The eye physically alters the person, so they wouldn't even have to carry it with them."
Ambria took out the nose. "Well, we can find anything with this."
"Yeah!" Max bumped the table with his knees as he jolted to his feet, and nearly spilled all our tea. "We can go on a relic hunting expedition."
"I would caution against doing anything right now," Galfandor said. "Victus will likely retreat to lick his wounds after suffering such a brutal defeat at the hands of his son." He offered me a smile. "In the meantime, I think it best if Conrad does whatever he can to help Cora regain her memories. She could be a powerful ally against Victus."
Galfandor succinctly stated exactly what I planned to do. Despite winning a battle, trying to hunt down Victus would be foolish of me. Having Cora back was the only thing that mattered to me right now. "I agree."
Galfandor rubbed his hands together. "Excellent. I will review security protocols and see if there's another way to keep Victus from impersonating someone else." He turned to the ruby spider. "Shushiel, would you mind guarding Conrad for a while longer?"
"It would be my privilege to keep my cousin safe." Her mandibles spread wide into a spider grin.
"What about those golems?" Ambria said. "Victus could replace real people with them!"
"Our security wards can detect golem sparks," Galfandor said. "It troubles me to think that he may have used them."
"He claimed to have locked away all his powerful enemies," I said. "There's no telling what he might have already done."
Galfandor drew in a deep breath. "We will have to remain wary until we determine the depths of his deceit. I will warn the Templars. Perhaps they can ferret out his forgeries."
We said our goodbyes and left for the keep. Plinth gathered his belongings from the lost room once we reached our destination.
"I am sorry for all the trouble I caused you, Conrad." Plinth rubbed his red eyes. "Perhaps Cora will allow me to return to the Glimmer and give my people the burial they deserve."
I managed a tight smile. "I'll speak with her about it soon."
"Very well, then." He looked as if he wanted to say more, then abruptly turned and left.
Ambria yawned and staggered in place. "I'm going to get some sleep. I feel as if I haven't had a wink in days."
"Me too," Max said.
"Go ahead," I told them. "I'm going to complete my deal with Gwyneth."
Ambria hugged me. "I'll see you soon."
&
nbsp; "Yeah, don't make a racket when you come into the room," Max said with a grin. "I'll be asleep before I hit the pillow."
After they left, I reached into the satchel and took out the heart. I looked at the flawed diamond for a long time before reluctantly handing it to Gwyneth. "Is this Saila's heart?"
She took it and traced her fingers down the crack. "No one knows for sure. Some think she sacrificed herself with the thrust of a magic dagger to her heart in an attempt to shield Juranthemon from attack, but her magic failed, and she died with a broken heart."
I thought of the dagger Plinth had used and wondered if it might be the very same. "What does Underborn really want with the heart?"
"He's a collector." Gwyneth put it into her satchel. "The only relics he uses regularly are the map and key."
"I suppose he'll want the nose now," I said. "Tell him I won't appreciate it if it goes missing."
"Perhaps he doesn't even need to know you have it." She winked, but her expression grew serious. "He fooled all of us, Conrad. While I'm not surprised, I do find his deceit where you're concerned rather harsh."
"I guess I'm getting used to all the lies." I managed a wry chuckle. "Thank you for not telling him."
"Of course." She stepped closer. "You're a good person, Conrad. I'm glad I met you." Gwyneth leaned in and kissed my cheek. "Now I know why my sister has such a crush on you." She laughed and backed away. "Don't tell her I said that."
My face burned and my brain seemed to lose control of my body parts. "Um, yes, okay." I wiped the beading sweat on my forehead. "Your secret is also safe with me."
Gwyneth winked once more, turned, and walked away.
Chapter 36
The holidays ended and I spent what little time I had outside of school and Kabash with Evadora and Cora, sometimes in the Glimmer, and sometimes in the Fairy Gardens. Cora was almost like a child in some ways, having lost many of her memories in the transition from life to death and back again.
The real Professors Sideon and Emoora were found, though of course they were not professors at all, but ordinary folk Victus and Delectra had kidnapped in order to mimic their appearances with the Eye of Jura. Galfandor told me their real names, but I didn’t care. Simply seeing the woman who I thought of as Esma would be incredibly painful.
Even now I couldn't stop thinking of her as a person separate from Delectra. She had been as real to me as any other person, and I missed her. Magical defense class was a pale shadow of its former self. Meanwhile, Asha Fellini substituted for both magical defense and enchantments. Seeing the woman who looked so much like Delectra every day was painful at first, but soon turned surreal.
When I met with Ansel and told him the tale of Delectra's death, he burst into laughter. "You finally figured it out."
My heart froze. "You knew?"
He bared his teeth. "Yes, I knew. I figured it out immediately, but only because I knew Delectra too well." Ansel spat on the ground. "She threatened to kill me if I didn't keep quiet."
I remembered how bitter he seemed toward Esma and now it made sense. "I'm sorry she did that."
Ansel threw up his hands. "Now that you've told me how she really felt, her threat was probably empty." He shook his head slowly. "I should have seen that she truly cared for you, but it's a feeling that is somewhat foreign to me."
I couldn't disagree with his assessment.
Every day, I missed having Della in my head and wished to have Delectra back. Sometimes I cursed having ever gone on the quest in the first place. Each day I struggled to push forward through the depression and hide my true emotions with a smile.
We won the Kabash championship, beating Tiberius Keep handily. The win gave me a brief respite from the miseries of day-to-day life, but even that high was temporary.
Weeks turned to months, and Cora showed little sign of improvement. Even Evadora was worried that she might never be her old self again. Two weeks before finals, Max, Ambria, and I went to the Fairy Gardens to meet with Cora and Evadora for a celebration of life.
We brought a large picnic and spread it out near the pond and in front of the slowly recovering forest. Some of the dryads had returned now that their trees were tall and strong. Even the Lady of the Pond, Mirjana, and her husband, Klave, joined us to celebrate the restoration.
Cora kissed Evadora on the cheek as she gazed at the forest. "It's marvelous, daughter."
"My magic is strong!" Evadora leapt into the air and clapped her hands.
"It's beautiful," Mirjana said. "I am glad the Lyrolai magic is powerful in you, child."
Cora turned to me and held out her hand. "Would you like a walk, Conrad?"
I was so tempted to call her Mum, but resisted and simply nodded. "I'd love to."
We walked down the trail, dryads with their barky flesh peering shyly between the trees. Treek lumbered from within and waved happily at us. "How fare you, Conrad?"
"I'm great," I told him. "It seems you have new friends."
"And new responsibilities," he said. "For the first time in a long while, I am happy." He bowed to Cora. "My Queen."
"For now, that title belongs to my daughter." Cora touched his arm and smiled gently. "Perhaps one day I will remember enough to earn it back."
Treek bowed deeper. "As you say." He turned and went back into the forest. Laughing dryads danced around him, running their hands in his vine hair and over his bark-like skin, much to his delight.
I was too busy looking at him to watch where I was going and tripped, nearly falling flat on my face.
"Oh, are you okay?" Cora took my elbow and helped me up.
"I'm fine." I laughed at my clumsiness. "I was curious what the dryads were doing with Treek."
Cora blushed. "That is at least one thing I remember." Her gaze caught on something on the ground. She leaned down and picked up my chain with the green stone on it. "You must have dropped this." She put the pebble in her palm and her eyes flashed wide.
"Are you okay?" I touched her hand, but she didn't respond to my touch.
She abruptly leapt back and the pebble fell to the ground. Cora blinked slowly and looked at me.
"Are you okay?" I asked. "Did something happen?"
Her eyes filled with tears and she cupped my cheek. "I remembered something when I touched the stone. It was as if it shined a light on memories long forgotten."
My breath caught in my throat as I cherished her gentle touch. "What did you remember?"
"The moment I knew I wanted you to be my son." Cora leaned over and kissed my forehead. "I remember it. I feel it in my heart as if it was yesterday."
I looked up at her and finally dared say the word desperately tearing at my heart. "Mum?"
Cora nodded. "Yes, son, it's me."
I hugged her, my heart swelling until I thought it might burst. "I love you, Mum."
She held me tight. "I love you too, son."
There was still evil in the world, and sorrow in my heart. But today, in this moment, I had found my ray of sunshine. For the first time in a while, I felt as if I had the strength to go on.
Victus could hide, but soon, I would find him and finish this.
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Books by John Corwin:
The Overworld Chronicles:
Sweet Blood of Mine
Dark Light of Mine
Fallen Angel of Mine
Dread Nemesis of Mine
Twisted Sister of Mine
Dearest Mother of Mine
Infernal Father of Mine
Sinister Seraphim of Mine
Wicked War of Mine
Dire Destiny of Ours
Aetherial Annihilation
> Baleful Betrayal
Ominous Odyssey
Overworld Underground:
Possessed By You
Demonicus
Overworld Arcanum:
Conrad Edison and the Living Curse
Conrad Edison and the Anchored World
Conrad Edison and the Broken Relic
Stand Alone Novels:
No Darker Fate
The Next Thing I Knew
Outsourced
Seventh
Mars Rising
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FOREVER BROKEN
When Conrad learns of an ancient artifact that might be able to reverse death, he dares to hope it might return Cora from the grave.
The Broken Relic, however, is highly sought after by collectors though nobody knows exactly what it is. After being kidnapped, chased, and nearly killed, Conrad realized he and his friends will be lucky to survive the preparations for the quest, much less the quest itself.
But the Seers, an organization that gathers prophecies, offers him a dire warning: If he seeks the relic, he may doom the Overworld.
Copyright © 2016 by John Corwin.
Digital eBook Edition.
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
LICENSE NOTES
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people unless expressly permitted by the author. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please go to a digital ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
