Master's Mind: The Dagger of Dragon Rose: Book 1

by John M Leavitt

  Putting his courage to its sticking point, Taren strode purposefully towards the fire, not stopping when he reached the fire’s edge. He half expected to be burned as soon as he touched the fire. What he got instead was a feeling of total peace, a peace that he had not felt in a long time. The warm flames embraced him as he walked towards the altar.

  As he reached the dais, he was finally able to see what was there. A small altar sat atop the pedestal with a similitude of the sun emblazoned on it. In the center was a spherical impression. Taren took his cue and placed the Sun Fire Orb into the divot.

  As soon as the orb was placed upon the altar, the fire leaped into the air. It then split into three equal parts and flew to the arches becoming the magical energy they needed to work as a magical transportation system.

  No sooner had the portals been activated than a woman stepped through each. All three women appeared identical appearance, except for styles of their hair and their manner of dress. They looked at each other, then at Taren.

  They all exclaimed as one, "It’s true!"

  The four siblings stood looking at each other in awe as the weight of realization settled upon all of them in various degrees. One of the women, the one wearing tight pants that stopped at her mid-thigh and a tight shirt that showed her mid-drift, sank to the floor, a look of total disbelief on her face.

  "I... I didn't want to believe him. It's impossible that it could be true,” She looked at the other three, in turn, noticing the similarities in the features. "It is true. I'm a princess?" She looked around again, hoping that someone would tell her that her disbelief was justified.

  The girl in the flowing white gown walked over to her sister who sat on the floor. "You must be Tarea,” She smiled as she spoke. "I am Saria.”

  The last girl, the one wearing a simple brown dress, walked over to the other two. "I am Morganna. It's nice to finally meet all of you.”

  Taren felt as if he didn't belong here. He didn't want to interfere with the sisters' reunion, so he began to walk out of the cave.

  "Taren, where are you going?" Saria called. "You haven't seen us in twelve years, and you are just going to leave?"

  "I just…” he replied as he walked toward his sisters.

  "Well, don't just..,” Tarea replied as she stood and walked over to him. "Come here,” She pulled him into an embrace.

  The other two sisters walked over to their siblings and joined in the long overdue embrace.

  The four were so intent on each other that they didn't notice the cave around them dissolving into nothingness.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  Reunions

  “It’s true!” - Morganna, Tarea, Saria, and Taren Elloy

  "Taren," Shaunna flung herself at him the moment he had materialized. "What happened?"

  Taren smiled broadly as he caught her. "I don't know. One minute I was retrieving the orb, the next I found myself on some mountain pass,” He shuddered at the memory. "It was so cold.

  "Mountain pass," Cera asked. "What mountain pass?"

  "I don't know," Taren answered. "I'd never seen it before.”

  One of the girls that arrived with Taren spoke up. "It was Teal’thal Summit.”

  Shaunna gasped. "Teal’thal Summit; isn't that supposed to be haunted?"

  Taren remembered the light that had led him to the cave. The strange voice that had beckoned him on had seemed so familiar to him. He could understand how people might think the summit was haunted. There was one question that was bothering him though: "Where is this summit?"

  "Teal’thal is the highest mountain in the Range of Broken Heart,” The glow in Cera's eyes was gone, giving the impression that she’d closed her eyes.

  "That would explain why it was so cold. Why would the portals be there?" Taren asked.

  Cera answered. "It is said that the barrier between worlds is thinner at the top of that particular mountain. It is feasible that whoever created the portals was counting on this for the princesses to get home,” As she voiced the last part she gestured to the three sisters that were standing there looking extremely uncomfortable. She approached the three girls. "Greetings, your majesties, I am Cera.”

  The girls didn't quite know what to make of the strange woman. Here was an apparently humanoid figure, but she was completely transparent. The only color was the two blue lights that burned where her eyes should be. For all her strangeness, she was beautiful.

  The three sisters stood silently as the others discussed what had happened. They were nervous around these people, but the fact that Taren apparently knew them was somewhat comforting.

  As if reading their minds, Taren turned to them. "Shaunna, Hope, I would like you to meet my sisters,” He gestured to each in turn. "Tarea, Morganna, and Saria.”

  The three girls were a sight to behold:

  Tarea was clad in clothes that would be considered indecent in a civilized society. She wore tight black pants that stopped just above the knees. Her tight shirt only covered her chest, leaving her midriff bare. Straps over her shoulders kept the garment in place. A black mark covered the left breast as if something had tried to burn the cloth. She wore her knee-length hair in a tight braid with a metal spike at the end. Two swords were strapped to her back. Tattered black shoes were the only covering that adorned her feet.

  Morganna wore a simple brown dress that reached her mid-calf. Her long hair was pulled back into a high ponytail that fell gracefully from the back of her head. She held a crystal staff in one hand. A simple rope belt held a pouch and dagger to her waist. She wore simple brown sandals on her feet. A dark patch, like dark blood, covered her left breast.

  Saria wore a long white gown. She let her hair fall loosely to the small of her back. She wore no shoes. A smooth crystal staff rested easily in her hand. Her skin was paler than the others, and she staggered a bit as she stood there.

  Taren ran to his sister. "Saria, are you unwell?"

  Saria smiled weakly. "I am well. It’s just been a long trip. I could use some rest.”

  "We are safe here. We will rest as long as the three of you need to,” Taren’s thoughts turned to the companions he had lost. Parel and Grathius were missing. Narissa was held captive by the faeries. Cyan was dead. He thought of the high price that had been paid on the quest thus far and the infinite importance of its success. These thoughts were prominent as he turned to his sisters. "We will continue our journey when we are all ready.”

  Cera bowed to the three princesses again. “If you will come with me, I will show you to your rooms.”

  Taren watched the four of them walk into the castle.

  “Did you get it?” Shaunna asked.

  Taren pulled the Sun Fire Orb from his pouch and showed it to her.

  “Are you sure this is what we're looking for?” Hope asked. “It doesn’t look like much.”

  “It may not look like much, but it did allow me to walk through a raging fire unscathed, and then it supplied the power to open the portals that brought my sisters home,” Taren replied.

  Hope opened his mouth to answer, but Shaunna placed her hand on his arm and shook her head. Hope changed what he was going to say, mid-thought.

  “So, what now?” he asked.

  “Now we destroy it,” Taren answered. He walked over to the castle. Laying his hand on the wall he asked. “Cera, is there someplace that I can go to destroy the Orb? Someplace where the others will be safe?”

  A blue light began to pulse out of the base of the castle. Taren watched as the pulse began to thicken into a stream of blue light that led through the gargantuan cavern, to a location on the far side where a room with thick crystal walls had risen out of the ground. It took him a long time to reach his destination. He had not realized how large this subterranean area was until now.

  The thousands of crude stone huts looked out of place against the crystal that lined the cavern everywhere. He had not seen any of the other Crystal Blades since the climactic battle between Maxx and Karan. He figured that the
blades had much to think about in light of this new information.

  As he entered the crystal construct, the opening closed behind him.

  “Thank you, Cera;” He spoke; not really knowing if she could hear him or not. The walls of the construct flashed blue in answer.

  He unwrapped the orb, marveling in the warmth that radiated from it. He cradled the object gently for a moment. He raised it above his head and threw it down as hard as he could.

  The orb bounced a few times, then rolled across the floor, unharmed.

  He retrieved the orb. He examined his surroundings to find a way to put the rest of his plans into action. He noticed a shelf that was formed into the wall with a divot the exact size to hold the Sun Fire Orb. A sense of apprehension came over him as he placed the orb on the shelf and turned to walk to the other side of the room. When he turned to face the orb again, there were three shuriken in his hand.

  With deadly accuracy, he threw the stars. All three of them struck the orb, causing it to emit a clear tone. The crystal walls of the construct quickly emulated the tone. The sound rose in volume as the vibrations spread through the crystal walls. The sound was deafening and grew louder as Taren crouched close to the ground with his hands covering his ears, unsuccessfully trying to block it out. He bore it for as long as he could, then He stood, figuring that he'd better get away from here. His motion, coupled with the loud ringing, caused him to stumble. He placed his hand upon the wall to catch himself, and the ringing quickly dissipated.

  His ears still rang, as he regained his balance. Removing his cloak, he rolled it into a ball and placed it on the shelf behind the orb. Running his hand across the surface of the orb, he was disappointed that there were no blemishes in the smooth crystal. He had hoped there to be a little chipping from the sharp edges of the throwing stars. He was taken aback as he noticed the metal fragments lying on the ground under the shelf. The stars themselves had shattered upon contact with the orb.

  Not being one to give up easily, he drew his sword. He had a bad feeling about what he was going to do, but he was going to try anyway. He stood two arms lengths away from the shelf. He measured the distance to make sure that his swing would be true. Raising his sword high over his head, and he swung it in a high arc toward the orb.

  As the blade of his sword struck the crystal surface of the orb, it exploded into thousands of shards of flying blue metal, flying in every direction. He flung his arms up to cover his face, causing the metal to rip through the sleeves of his shirt and embed itself in his arms. He quickly placed his hand on the wall to stop the vibration that was quickly growing again.

  Shaking his head, he threw the useless sword hilt to the floor. He had one last idea that might work, but he was skeptical based on his previous attempts. He drew the Star Fire Sword. The cool crystal was soothing as he held it in his hand. Willing it to life he swung the sword as hard as he could. The orb fell to the floor as the sword passed harmlessly through it, cleaving the crystal shelf from the wall.

  He was downhearted as he picked up the crystal ball and wrapped it back in the cloth. He had not expected that destroying the orb would have been that easy, but he had also not expected almost everything he attacked with to be ripped to shreds.

  As he placed the orb back in his travel pouch he spoke. "Cera, I'm done,” The walls around him melted back into the ground. He was sore and bleeding as he walked back to the crystal castle.

  Shaunna, Hope, and his three sisters were waiting in front of the castle as he returned. Saria was the first to see him as he approached. She ran toward him, holding her strange crystal staff.

  "You are hurt,” She observed.

  "It's nothing, really,” He waved her concern aside.

  "Nonsense, give me your hand,” She grabbed his hand without waiting.

  Blue light flooded from her hand, running up his arm and infusing his entire body. Spots of red light appeared everywhere he had been pierced by the flying metal shards. The red spots quickly faded to a deep purple which quickly brightened and spread until his whole body glowed with a uniform blue light. As the light faded, the shards of blue metal that were embedded in his flesh fell to the floor.

  "You have control of the healing light!" Hope observed, with surprise.

  She looked pale as she did before, and she looked a little tired, but not nearly as tired as she should have,” Aren’t you tired after that?" Hope asked. "It must have taken quite a bit of energy to cover his whole body.

  She shrugged. "I haven't used my own energy to power my healing since I first found I had the ability,” She held up her staff. "Terra provides the power that I need.”

  Hope just stared at her. He had never heard of using an external source to power the healing. He imagined that there had to be a special link between those that shared the power. He supposed that the bond between a Crystal Blade and its wielder would suffice.

  "Taren, what happened?" Shaunna asked.

  “The orb didn't break,” He was sure he was stating the obvious, but he didn't care. He was thinking about the blue katana he had just broken. The sword was made by his human dad for his birth father. His human parents had been on their way to deliver it on the day that the Mother Dragon attacked the castle. He knew that the sword had been forged in the image of Cyan, and having wielded the famed Crystal Blade, the fact took on a special meaning for him.

  "I killed him twice," he said as he bent to retrieve one of the metal shards from the ground

  "What do you mean?" Shaunna asked.

  "This sword was created in the similitude of Cyan. It's my fault that he died, and I just broke this sword as well,” He paused as a single tear ran down his cheek. "I killed him twice,”

  Shaunna put her hand on his shoulder. "You're exhausted. Come rest.”

  Taren allowed himself to be led through the castle to his room. Shaunna helped him remove his shoes, and helped him into his bed. She sat in the chair next to his bed and watched over him.

  Taren drifted off to sleep, hoping that the dreams wouldn't come.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Advice

  “I killed him twice.” - Taren Elloy

  Shaunna sat in the chair keeping a silent vigil over Taren as he slept. It was clear his dreams were troubled by the way the tossed and turned under the heavy down comforter.

  It wasn't hard for her to guess the source of his nightmares. "I killed him twice,” He'd confessed to her after returning from the failed attempt at destroying the Sun-Fire Orb. She sat at his bedside watching him toss and turn with troubled dreams. He tried to explain what he meant by the statement, but she was not able to understand what he was trying to say.

  She was instantly at Taren's side when he cried out. She wished she actually knew what he was dreaming.

  "Oh Taren,” She sighed quietly as she returned to her chair.

  The hours crawled by as she sat watching the young elf. She was amazed at how quickly she'd come to care for him. She didn't know if the feelings came from the relief that she knew he was alive, after all of these years, or if they were real. He seemed to care for her. He had even told her after Narissa sacrificed herself to save Shaunna's life.

  The thought of the little woman caused a sharp pain in her chest. "What a fool,” she whispered.

  "Who's a fool?" Taren asked.

  She'd been so wrapped in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed that he was looking at her.

  Shaunna smiled sadly. "It's nothing. I'm just remembering the people we've lost.”

  Taren gave a knowing nod and lay back down on the pillow.

  She laughed at the irony of her statement. She had not given death a second thought in many years. Often she was the cause of certain peoples' exit from their dreary existence.

  As if reading her thoughts, Taren began to speak. "Aren't we a pair? A master thief and a master assassin sitting here wondering what we should do next.”

  The comment made Shaunna laugh. "From what I understand, those are roles that neit
her of us asked for, or really wanted.”

  "What do you mean?" He asked

  "I've watched you, Taren. You do not think like a thief,” She paused for a moment. "You try to think of logical ways out of a situation. Often you don't succeed, but I've seen you try. You are too good of a person to fully embrace that part of yourself. Please don't ever change that.”

  Taren blushed at the compliment.

  "You're right,” Taren admitted. "I don't really know why everybody thinks I am so good. I started doing it because I was angry with my parents. When the anger wore off, it was just something to pass the time.”

  Shaunna smiled in understanding.

  "What should we do now?" Shaunna asked.

  Taren sat silent for several minutes, thinking. "I don't know. We have accomplished half of the task that we were sent to do. I don't know how we are supposed to accomplish the second half.”

  Taren's eyes were drawn to the wall behind Shaunna. Small waves began to ripple out from the center of the wall just before the crystalline form of Cera stepped into the room.

  "I am sorry to intrude,” Cera's voice rang softly. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop,” She bowed briefly.

  "It's all right,” Shaunna answered. "What can we do for you?"

  Cera's lips curved into a smile. "I may be able to do something for you. I have an idea.”

  "Cera. We don't have time for this,” Shaunna said with more anger than she had intended. "We need to figure out where to go from here.”

  Cera began to bob up and down on the balls of her feet. "I know, that is where my idea comes in,” She looked directly at Taren as she spoke. "The bard sent you on this quest, didn't he? If he sent you to destroy the orb, he must know that there must be a way to do it. Why not go ask him?"

  Shaunna opened her mouth to say something, but Taren stopped her.

  "I think that's a great idea, but we are over a week’s travel from the bard, do you have a way to communicate with him?

  Cera shook her head. "No, but I can teleport you back to the city.”

  Taren blanched a little at the suggestion. "I don't mean any disrespect, Cera, but I remember what happened last time you tried to teleport me somewhere.”