Dragon Fire

by Randal Sloan

  “So now you see. I had hoped to spare you from the conflict I foresaw coming, but now I know that’s not to be. Instead, you will be on the inside with those who stand the chance to make the most difference. For that reason, I have a couple of things I need to give you.”

  He reached inside the drawer of the desk where he was sitting, pulling out a rolled-up map. “I would ask you to take this back to your friends and collectively work the magic spells that will allow you to memorize its contents. It’s much too dangerous to risk getting out. I would ask that you return it before you leave the ship and I will insure it gets into a safe place.” He nodded at the understanding in her eyes. “Yes, it’s the most detailed map we have of the path to reach the valley where the entrance to the Land Between the Worlds is located.”

  He reached back into the drawer, pulling out an amulet. “Secondly, I have an artifact that we believe will hide your magical signatures for a limited time. It should be worn by the strongest magical member of your team, which I immediately recognized to be Master Ashcroft’s niece.”

  He laughed, “I wonder about you, daughter, facing off in the arena against the most powerful wizard for generations. Either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid.”

  Carisa laughed too. “Mostly the latter, although it worked out for the good in the long run.” She held out her hand, allowing a small ball of null magic to form on it. “We discovered a new type of magic, for which I have a strong affiliation. Of course, Jailyn can call it forth too, since she has affiliation for all magic. But it has allowed us to come up with some incredible offensive weapons and much stronger defenses.”

  Her father just shook his head. “I should have known you’d do something like that. I see now why you were chosen for this destiny.”

  He reached out to take her hand, the one that didn’t hold the null magic. “I suspect you’d best be returning to your companions before they come looking for you. I don’t believe I would want to be on the pointed end of the stick with them. Go with my blessings and my love, my dear daughter.”

  By this time there were tears in his eyes, but he didn’t care.

  Carisa had a few of her own. “That means a lot to me, Father. I never liked it when we were at odds, and even less so when I knew our quest would take me away into danger. Now that I know that you’re with me, it makes my heart much lighter.”

  She stood. “I love you, Daddy. Always.”

  “I love you too, my little Carisa. Always.”

  It was a good thing Carisa could find her way back without much assistance from her eyes. They were much too full of tears for her to see her way back.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  North by North

  WITH THEIR SHIP underway, Kynin was ready to tell them what he could about their quest. He waited until Carisa returned from her visit with her father. Checking the wards in their section of the ship, he added his own reinforcements to them. Finally, he sat down with his companions.

  “First, let me thank you for your patience. It was decided to keep the information on our quest as limited as possible to reduce the chance of interception of that information by those that might oppose us. Our best chance for success is to be able to slip off undetected on the first leg of our trip, hopefully giving us enough of a head start that we’re able to reach our destination before we can be opposed. Once we have the talismans, we’ll be able to draw on their help to return back to the kingdom. Believe me, that help will be substantial.

  “So to end your suspense, we’re headed due north, crossing out of the official boundary of the kingdom by the North Passage into the Northern Mountains. From there we must cross the Desperare Desert to reach the foothills of the Callisto Mountains. There is a valley there, the Valley of Aldjongate, that has only one entrance, seemingly to dead-end into a mountain cliff. There is actually a single exit there, a portal if you will, which is only visible during a total eclipse of the sun. That leads to the Land Between the Worlds, where the Talismans of Power are hidden. The next eclipse is exactly two weeks from today. Hence, the sense of urgency in the training you completed and our need to travel quickly and lightly.

  “What questions do you have? I’ll answer what I can, although I’ve just told you most of what I know.”

  Carisa quickly spoke up. “One of the reasons my father wanted to see me, he gave me a map of where we must go on our quest. He has directed us to memorize it and return it to him before we depart. I haven’t had a chance to look at it.” She laid the map out in front of them.

  Everyone easily located the Middle Sea, of which the top portion was displayed on the map. Their ship’s current position would be near the bottom of that map. The quest began from the North Shore, a section of the kingdom where few traveled. The tiny bay where it was located had no permanent settlement, with ships making only a few seasonal visits to supply the trappers that lived there. A winding trail was marked, extending up and through the mountains by way of the Pass of Asseere and then across the desert, with a handful of oases marked. It ended at the location of the valley where the entrance to the Land Between the Worlds existed.

  Kynin stared at the map for a moment, comparing the details to his knowledge of their quest. “It matches what little I know. It was rumored that King Gregory commissioned such a map, but it has never been seen before. How did your father get such a dangerous treasure?”

  Carisa smiled. “Apparently my father has been working for some years as the spy master for Master Ashcroft. It was a complete surprise to me. Of course, now he says he’s retired, so that information has limited use to anyone.”

  Kynin returned her smile. “I didn’t know myself until he told me a couple of weeks ago, but it makes perfect sense. As part of your father’s business ventures, he must often travel from one end of the kingdom to the other. His constant emphasis on making deals with as many people as he could made a good camouflage, you must admit. No one ever suspected he had any other motive than the greedy trader, not even Master Dacanay. Not much gets by my Master, I can tell you, so that’s rather remarkable.

  “It is indeed very important that this map not fall into the wrong hands. I suggest you do as he says. Do your magic memorization spell. I will also place a copy into the Dream World in a very protected place that only I and the Dream Master will be able to access. Perhaps I should get you to assist me, Jailyn, since you’re learning to become a Dream Master. That would allow you to retrieve your own vision of the map if necessary.

  “What other questions do you have?”

  Jesse was still worried about his part of the quest. In a sense, it all depended on him. “Just how difficult is it going to be to retrieve the Talismans of Power once we reach the Land Between the Worlds?”

  “I have no idea, but remember, time runs differently inside the portal, so you’ll have plenty of time to figure it out. The ones that placed the Talismans there expected someone to come for them later, so it has to be possible to do so.”

  Most of them had questions which they knew from the start Kynin would have no answer to, just like Jesse’s question, but the real reason for asking them was to prepare themselves for the journey.

  It wasn’t going to be easy and they all knew it.

  Once more Lord Melthevis met with the Dark Council. This time he was the one summoning them. While he waited for the last one to arrive, Ulrik, of course, he thought back over his meeting with Lord Yedgur, the man who knew more about the Dark Prophecies than any dark sorcerer alive.

  Lord Melthevis considered the man barely sane. It had all gotten to him, it appeared. Barely putting his words together into coherent sentences, it was as if Yedgur no longer completely lived in the same world as the rest of them.

  “You must find a way to change the Prophecy,” Yedgur had finally told him in his most lucid moment. “Form your own Dark Team.” His eyes glazed a moment before he spoke again. “Have the Seekers of Light left on their quest?”

  Lord Melthevis shook his head. “They appear
to still be on the Wizard Island.”

  “Good. They probably realized they couldn’t make the current eclipse so they’re planning to make the second one.”

  Lord Melthevis couldn’t resist. “A second eclipse?”

  “Yes, by a lucky twist of fate, the next eclipse for that location is only a few years away. The path of both eclipses intersect exactly on top of that valley in a near X.”

  The man then started mumbling. Lord Melthevis leaned forward to hear; he could barely understand him. “…more than coincidence, no one knows what it means.” He cackled, the moment of sanity apparently gone. “Fools! You should have killed them all — broken the Prophecy…”

  Lord Melthevis left the man then, his babbling not of any more use. He swore he saw drool dribbling out of his mouth.

  The Council was finally complete. Lord Melthevis fixated Ulrik with a glare for daring to be late. He swore the man had done it on purpose.

  Time to tell them his plan. Starting with Ulrik. “Ulrik, since you finally decided to show up, what is your status? Why have you not killed the weak one?”

  “You know as well as I do they haven’t left the island. They can’t stay there forever. We’ll get them. I’ll bring you back their heads for trophies.”

  “You do that,” Lord Melthevis told him. “Since we’re waiting on your inability to accomplish your task, I have come up with another plan. We know that ultimately the Prophecy speaks of obtaining the Talismans of Callidore. Since the Seekers of Light appear to be waiting for the next eclipse, I propose we form our own dark team and send them to meet that eclipse.”

  That drew a reaction. Most had been so busy worrying about their petty schemes, just like Ulrik, they hadn’t done anything. He heard a few murmurs, from “He’s crazy…” to “Why didn’t I think of that…” and that wasn’t all; some he couldn’t quite make out.

  Haakon at least had the sense to think about what that meant and the courage to speak it aloud. “Aren’t you trying to bend the Prophecies? Is that not heresy? I remember being warned repeatedly about that. There are substantial repercussions for attempting such a thing.”

  “No, I don’t think so. We’re simply looking at our own candidates and training them to do the job, just like the wizards are doing. The Prophecy only says, ‘The Light is the sign,’ not that they have to be the ones that must retrieve the talismans.

  “We have four years until the next eclipse. We build our team, train them, and send them on their quest. What do we have to lose?”

  The Dark Council argued for some time, but in the end they went with Lord Melthevis’ plan. He just hoped Haakon wasn’t right.

  The ship traveled the remainder of the night, dropping anchor in a tiny bay on the North Shore. Still it was mid morning before the group made their way out to the ship’s shore boat with their small collection of travel goods. Carisa’s father met them on the deck, along with a set of travel packs he had pre-packed for them.

  “Each pack contains enough travel rations to last for a month if you’re careful in your use of them. You also have spare canteens that will be essential for crossing the desert. In some parts of the crossing, it’s a considerable distance between one oasis and the next. You also have tents and blankets for sleeping, healing oils for your feet, and various cooking implements scattered between the packs. A couple of folding shovels are included. The packs have been spelled to decrease their weight, because believe me, otherwise they’d get very heavy rather quickly.

  “We tried to think of everything you might need, so that you can worry more about where you’re going and not what you’ll need. I would suggest you use Jailyn’s hounds for scouting out the trail and locating game to supplement your travel rations. I suspect a few predators will be lurking along the way, but the sight of the hounds should limit the problems they’ll cause.

  “In the foothills of those mountains live a few hermits and trappers, but they should be even less likely to bother you. There are rumors that monsters live in those mountains, so be extremely careful while crossing them. Once you enter the desert, we know of a few tribes that eke a living out of the desert and similarly they should give you a wide berth. If you do make contact with them, attempt to negotiate for their assistance to cross the desert. Kynin, we’ve included some amount of gold in your pack in case that becomes an option.

  “Although we hope we’ve bought you some time ahead of those who would oppose you, you need to stay on alert. Expect trouble when you least anticipate it; that’s usually the way it goes. Also, the closer you get to your destination, the more likely you’ll find that trouble.

  “I can wish I were going with you, but alas, this old man’s turn is done. I can also wish it were to be just a safe trip of leisure for you, but we all know the circumstances are much more serious. So I can only offer my small assistance. Know that you also go with the blessings of the Master Wizard Council, as well as the dedicated of the Church of the Order.”

  He bowed to them all before clasping Carisa in a quick embrace and then waving to Brutus to begin loading the boat. For a few minutes everyone busied themselves with the process of disembarking and then it was only moments later when the group found themselves being rowed swiftly ashore. It was a beautiful crisp morning, with the sea in the tiny bay almost completely calm, so it didn’t take them long to reach the grim shoreline at the tip of the bay.

  For the group of young people it hadn’t seemed completely real until the moment that small boat began rowing back to the ship, leaving them alone on the tiny beach. Now it felt very real. For a moment they stood looking at each other, the urge to panic already edging into their young minds. Everyone’s crazy. We can’t do this! They were all thinking the same thing, although no one voiced it aloud.

  Kynin smiled at the rest of them. While he knew just how difficult their journey might be, he had also traveled enough that he knew how to deal with it.

  “While without a doubt Jailyn is in charge of our group, I have some slight expertise at traveling which may aid our efforts along the trail. Perhaps I can provide some assistance and direct our little expedition for a time.” He looked around the group, seeing nods from everyone.

  Jailyn internally breathed a sigh of relief. She’d been as stricken as the rest of them and had no idea what they needed to do.

  When no one spoke up, Kynin continued, “The most important thing is that we get moving immediately, letting the very act of our traveling along the path settle our nerves. Also, we don’t want to push it very hard today, nor do we want to set up camp in a poorly sheltered spot in the middle of a mountain climb. So I recommend we travel the few hours needed to get us to the area at the foot of the pass where we can set up camp for the night. We’ll also want to take frequent breaks for the first day of travel until everyone can adjust to the pace.”

  He pointed to the lone path that led its way up from the beach. Although for some good distance it was clear, with only slight brush in the way of their travel, eventually it disappeared into the wooded area above them. They could see the mountains although they appeared to be far away. What had looked like only a tiny distance on the map seemed much, much further from their viewpoint on foot.

  “Jailyn, if you would, call your hounds. Although I’m sure we’ll be relatively safe on the early parts of the trail, it would be a good idea to give you some practice in working with them as we travel. Plus, the best chance to find game is going to be in the early part of our journey.

  “As Carisa’s father mentioned, being able to mix some fresh food in with our packs will be very important. Also, during our travel along the path, we should attempt to gather fresh wild greens, berries and nuts to supplement our meals.”

  He smiled at Jailyn. “I know you and Jesse know how to find such things. We probably won’t need any herbs other than a few to flavor our soups that will be the early staple of our diet. If we can find a few eggs, we should gather those to supplement the breaking of our fast in the morning.”

>   Jailyn smiled back at him. “The hounds are already on the trail. They’ve spotted some small game already, but I directed them to look for larger prey since, as you say, this is the best place we have for such. I suggest you take the front and Jesse and I will bring up the rear of our party. Since the hounds know exactly where we’re going, they’ll stay out in front the entire way.”

  When Kynin nodded, he started up the path, his staff at ready, and the others fell in behind him. The quest had begun!

  Kynin was right. As soon as the group started along their way, they immediately felt better. Jailyn concentrated on her connection with the hounds, finding that she could almost see through their eyes while still focusing on the path in front of her. It wasn’t long before the trail took them into the forest. There the trail narrowed a little, but most of the time they could travel two abreast, although a few times they were forced to walk single file.

  It was quiet and rather peaceful, and the trail was easy, but Jailyn knew that wouldn’t last long. She always had at the back of her mind the idea that they needed to be ready for attackers at any moment, but there was no point in worrying about it. They were as ready as they could be and it had to help that she had the hounds. No one was getting past them.

  Despite his talk about resting often, Kynin pushed them pretty hard. The trail mostly went upwards, meaning it didn’t take it long to turn from being just a walk in the woods to hard work. So when they came to a little clearing next to a stream that crossed their path, it was the perfect place for them to rest. The trees overhanging the clearing gave them just the right amount of shade, since the day had grown somewhat warm.

  Jailyn made herself a seat out of a fallen log and the others chose similar spots. “The hounds found a mother deer with her fawn,” she told Kynin when he sat down beside her, “but I instructed them to leave them be. I feel certain we’ll find something else before we leave the forest.”