Chronicles of Den'dra: A land on Fire

by Spencer Johnson

  “Now that is useful. Let me try one of these.” Igarlin seemed relieved that Alvin wasn’t upset and unnecessarily slid out of the way. Alvin unslung the bow from over his shoulder and notched the arrow. It struck the center of the target and quivered a moment before dissolving. The rest behaved the same until there was only the original arrow sticking out of the target painted on the straw sack.

  “It is too bad that you can’t make swords that way, but an arrow that remains in the wound is only a little better than one that dissolves after killing its mark. How long do these things last after you make them?” Igarlin gaped for a moment, seemingly in shock that Alvin would think to compliment him.

  “I don’t know. At least a few minutes. I haven’t made any that I didn’t destroy sooner than that.”

  “Well, make another of those arrows and… I think that I can rig up a water clock that will stop when the arrow dissolves.”

  “If you get one with a large enough of a drum, you could prop a metal plate over the drip hole…”

  “And if you prop it up with the arrow, the hole will be plugged when the arrow dissolves. That is a great idea.” Alvin moved off with a purpose in his step, leaving Igarlin and Em’risi wondering at the rare display of enthusiasm.

  “Do you want me to form more arrows?”

  “No, not exactly… You said that it takes much less energy to form wood?”

  “Yes?”

  “See that rack of wooden practice swords over there? Halden has been burning through them, literally. I bought the last of the ones available in the market this morning.” Em’risi flinched as Halden threw the charred stub remaining on the handle to the ground.

  “I see what you mean. I should be able to make a couple dozen, but I don’t know how they will stand up with them beating them around like that.”

  “Good point.” Em’risi spied Redzyn standing nervously at the door leading into the castle. “I will leave you to figure that out with them. I have some matters that need dealt with.” Igarlin started for the weapon rack as Em’risi rose and moved across the courtyard towards Redzyn.

  “Princess.” Redzyn disapprovingly ran his eyes over the men practicing in the courtyard. His eyes stopped in disbelief as he saw Arkis practicing. The erin valker was firing arrows and attempting to catch them before they struck the target. He was able to attain the feat if he was more than twenty paces back. Any closer and he wasn’t yet able to accelerate at a rate enough to overcome the arrow. Even then, he was unable to move at that speed for more than a few steps before having to catch his breath.

  “Impressive isn’t it.” Redzyn’s glower deepened before he replied.

  “It is… as you say. Can we speak?”

  “Of course. We can walk while we talk.” Redzyn seemed relieved when Em’risi moved toward the courtyard gates.

  “Fine weather that we are having today.” Redzyn casually glanced up at the clear sky. Em’risi nodded in agreement before letting the awkward silence drag on for a few slow paces.

  “You seem to have something to say to me?”

  “If I may, be blunt that is, people have been talking.” Redzyn dropped back into the awkward silence.

  “That wasn’t blunt so… why don’t you continue until you have aired what is bothering you.”

  “How can you be so sure that I have something to say?”

  “I don’t have to use my Gift to tell the truth. You are being cagy. But if you must know, it is the way yellow and red combine in that particular hue of orange. Please don’t attempt to spare my feelings.”

  “I shouldn’t have presumed.”

  “Colonel Redzyn, you have piqued my interest, continue.” It was an order despite the way she tossed her auburn hair.

  “People have been talking about you.”

  “You said that once before. Please, what have they been saying?”

  “There are rumors that speak to your activities in the Sea Fort.” On seeing Em’risi’s querying glance, he continued. “The people are saying that you are Gifted. I have been trying to keep the rumors from getting out of hand, but now they are being whispered everywhere. Is that gull flying upside down?” Redzyn was distracted by the ungainly flight of the inverted bird before Em'risi could respond to his statement.

  “It would seem so.” Em'risi didn’t tell Redzyn that she recognized Lesarovich’s energy controlling the gull until it spun out of control. The sea gull righted itself and flew off squawking in alarm seconds later.

  “Strange, I have never seen a bird intentionally fly upside down.” Redzyn shook his head as Em'risi returned the conversation to its initial topic.

  “Redzyn, have you ever tried to blow out a fire?”

  “What? No, I mean, yes, I have blown on a fire. Not to blow it out, you blow on a fire to make it burn. What does this have to do with the rumors that are spreading? You aren’t surprised about the rumors, are you?”

  “No, I am not, seeing as I am the one that authorized the rumor in the first place. Your attempts at snuffing the rumors have given them life. You have fanned the fire from an ember planted by Corman, into a crackling fire. The dangerous thing is that, when given a life, rumors begin to take turns that you can’t predict. They don’t always perform the task you created them for at that point.” Redzyn shook his head as he listened.

  “I was once at Shienhin. Made me appreciate my little estate hidden away in a quiet valley among the Garoche Highlands. It was the way the people in Shienhin squabbles incessantly. Sure, they were all smiles when they greeted one another, but hatefully is the only way to describe the way they looked at each other’s backs. There were so many little plots and rumors flying about. Enough to make the head of a young man from a minor house spin like a children’s top. That head is a fair bit grayer except some things haven’t changed. Might I ask what might be your purpose for spreading this rumor?” They ascended a set of stairs that led onto the top of the wall along the sea side of Keom. A flock of gulls took wing as they approached.

  “Hope. Hope and truth. Seeds for a better future. Under my rule, Gifts will not be outlawed. I dislike resorting to such low methods as having Corman manipulate the people. He is getting rather skilled at it though.”

  “You think the people will rally to your name when they find that you are Gifted? That may be. They may even embrace this new idea but what happens when a Gifted decides raise his own banner? If I may use one of Reigns’ own lines, what if a pyromancer should want to kill you? Or any other king he doesn’t agree with.”

  “I would encourage him to try. The law enforcement would be free to use their own Gifted. I would undoubtedly have Gifted among my personal guard. Warders are not so uncommon. It is just that they aren’t easily detected. I understand that it is a new idea, a new society even, that I am proposing. It is for that reason alone that I have been using Corman to prepare the people.”

  “I only hope you know what you are doing. I tremble to think what could happen if a Gifted tyrant rises to the throne.” Redzyn did shiver slightly as he peered around a rampart at the crashing surf below. Em’risi wasn’t sure it was from his comment or a fear of heights.

  “It is for that reason that no one person shall ever again have as much power as Reigns. I also hope that I am doing the right thing. I am not a seer and even then, the future is not clear to them. Rohal, seer of the wooden staff, wrote that moments appear in vision. They are seldom more than an isolated instance with little meaning, until you have seen the event that lead up to that instant and the events that follow. He described it as peering through a key hole. A spot of color or texture with no context, no meaning until time opened the door and revealed the entire scene. Only the Dragon Lords were said to have actually seen more than a fragment of a moment. Their prophecies have been haunting the land for the generations since. Born of blood and fire, wielders of ancient power and yet bound to the ancient blades forged during the Millennium Wars. Wearing a crown cast from the purest ore, the Dragon Lords will walk Den’
dra again. There is no clearer prophecy than that one uttered by Eld’or the Night Soul.” Em’risi gave a light laugh.

  “I beg your pardon, my purpose was not to criticize.” Redzyn seemed slightly bewildered by the odd turn the conversation had taken.

  “It is I who should be begging pardon. I always get contemplative when watching the surf so full of energy, but crushed by the immutable stone. If I were to watch this stone a thousand years, I could still continue watching it another thousand. Enough about the Silent Sea, I trust that the matter of the rumor is settled?”

  “It would seem so.” Redzyn held a palm against the pitted stone of the rampart as the next breaker rolled in. He listened to the roar and watched the masonry like he expected it to quiver at the mighty wave’s impact.

  “Good. Have you heard any news of the Asgare?” Just after Em’risi asked the question, a booming thunderclap rolled up from someplace below. Redzyn cautiously leaned over the edge and stared in puzzlement at the fog pouring out of a small cave opening a little above the water level, but safe from the rolling waves.

  “Last I heard, he burnt the fleet in the northern port. In retaliation for that, Reigns started the troop advance.” Redzyn smiled wanly while nodding his head from side to side as if weighing benefits over the consequences. Apparently he had written off the odd weather below as nothing of concern. Em’risi looked over the edge as a flash of light illuminated the fog and the air shivered with another thunderclap. Em’risi laughed a little as she understood where the stormdancer had been going to practice. Redzyn seemed eager to move on down the wall when he saw the Princess’ reaction to the puzzling phenomenon.

  “I was hoping that you had heard something else. The report I read indicated that a large body of troops marched overland from the port after the fire. I would much prefer they have to walk all the way south rather than they had gotten a boat ride to the southern end of the Sea Wall.” Em’risi obliged Savaro’s desire for privacy when practicing as much as Redzyn’s desire to be as far as possible from Gifted workings. A couple minutes later, when they were far enough away that the thunder caps were no different from the pounding waves, Redzyn responded.

  “I still can’t picture him single handedly burning the north port. He was in Yrany, you know. Everyone thought he was a drunk. Did make a wonderful bitter. I still have a locket that he repaired, still is better than when it was new. Wore that ragged cloak and had a beard that looked like it had never met a razor. Now that I think about it, people always steered clear of him even though there was never a smell. Despite his appearance, he kept himself clean. Should have known he wasn’t just a commoner. Never would have guessed him to be a noble from a great house.” Redzyn flinched as he realized what he had said and saw the hard glint in Em’risi’s eyes.

  “A noble? From a great house?” The simple questions made Redzyn uncomfortable enough that he wished he had joined Balinor at the front up north. The way that Em’risi was able to extract information from people made it exceedingly difficult to keep secrets. It occurred to Redzyn that Balinor may have gone to lead the army in the north in order to avoid telling Em’risi this one aspect of the Asgare. Along with every other secret he knew.

  “I am certain that he could play any role he wished should he have the inclination. It was just a manner of speaking.” Redzyn braced himself as he recognized that determined tilt to Em’risi’s head.

  “Ever since my Gift manifested, I was often confused. At first, it was the servants that would tell me they were just speaking of some boy one fancied when I would ask why they fell silent on my entrance to the room. I was isolated in my station, there were only a few people that would talk to me without lying about it being a pleasure to do something for me. Soon even the honest ones started lying. It was often the little things that most would take as encouragement. My tutor telling me that my letters were coming along well. My maid telling me that she thought a green dress, in my father’s colors, complimented my eyes well. At first I did not understand, but then I saw that they did it for most people they liked or respected. These people enjoyed it. It was a social responsibility, to say nice things that they thought people needed to hear, even when they didn’t believe it. I find very little flattery to be honest. The other thing that annoyed me was when people would tell little lies that were meant to protect my feelings. Things that they felt I was better off not knowing the truth of. I grew up in a society where engaging in polite small talk would get the families of any eligible bachelors arranging a marriage. I had to know everything that I could in order to prevent little misunderstandings. What someone might think better left unsaid in my exalted presence, might be the key to preventing a betrothal. You would be shocked to know how many times I extorted or threatened my way out of matrimony.” The way Em’risi looked expectantly at Redzyn when she had finished her oration left little room for him to misunderstand her meaning.

  “If we ever take any prisoners, feel free to assist the interrogators. I doubt that even the most loyal of Reigns’ hounds could resist revealing all his secrets to you.”

  “I can’t compel you to tell me. There are others that could, but I won’t ask that of you.” Em’risi smiled slightly as she leaned against a rampart beside a guard tower.

  “Red hot pincers don’t compare with that little smile of yours. Very well, I will tell you. I suppose you have a right to know in the first place. The Asgare isn’t your common brand of brigand. More like the prince of thieves, or in his case, prince of assassins. Not only in that he is the best among them, but that he comes from a noble house. An heir, or so I am told.” Redzyn paused momentarily as he thought about the possible consequences of telling Em’risi the rest.

  “What house?” Redzyn twitched like he was feeling the aforementioned red hot instruments of torture searing his flesh.

  “I was just getting to that.” Redzyn averted his eyes when he saw Em’risi’s eyebrow rise questioningly. “House Safrym…” Em’risi started giggling at this point. Redzyn uncomfortably waited for her to regain some composure.

  “Uraken of House Safrym. My mother’s brother. A tragic tale, to be sure.” Em’risi still wore a smile that Redzyn found slightly mocking.

  “You knew?”

  “Balinor told me and if it makes you feel any better, he wasn’t able keep it secret from me long. However, I must ask, why haven't you lectured me on the unsavory reputation of the man claiming to be my uncle? Or were you also just getting to that also?”

  “I felt that such cautions would have been insulting to someone with your… skills at reading people.”

  “That is truly one of the nicest things that anyone has said to me in quite some time.” Em’risi flashed a smile before entering the guard tower and taking the spiral staircase to the bottom.

  “If you already knew, why did you want me to tell you anyway?”

  “A test of sorts. I wanted to know if you would tell me. The others that were at that war council were quite spiteful about the Asgare’s title. You are almost… indifferent to the fact.” From Redzyn’s perspective, Em’risi’s eyes almost sparkled as they stepped out of the dim building into the sunlight.

  “I have no reason to be threatened by his noble blood. If anything, it binds him to you. And now, if you'll excuse me, there are matters that I must attend to.” Redzyn gave a bow and at a nod from Em’risi, departed. Em’risi was about to return to the Sea Fort courtyard when a shadow shifted at the place the guard tower and wall meet. Turning, she was shocked to see a figure dart towards her. There was a knife in his hand and he moved as fast as Arkis. With only a split second to react, Em’risi threw a tangle of energy at him. Fortunately, it resembled Alvin’s energy enough that the man was deflected from his path. Unable to physically respond fast enough to turn her head and see where he had gone, she slipped into her sixth sense. He was a dark blur ringing slightly off pitch at her left. This time, she was able to construct a better weave of energy. It shifted to a gray color tinged with purple and en
snared the assassin. She could sense his astonishment a moment before Alvin’s energy bolstered her defense and tore the man backwards. With an adrenaline fueled surge, Em’risi twisted around and hurled a web of pure purple at the erin valker. He screamed and the stone he was being held against flowed around him. Yanking the energy back in surprise, the air was shattered by a massive lightning bolt that turned a section of the wall into ash.

  Head ringing loudly and eyes blinded from the flash, Em’risi staggered drunkenly. At last she felt cold steadying stone against her palms. The white that filled her vision faded to a purple line that followed a jagged path from her silhouetted hands. In a minute she regained enough of her equilibrium to realize that she was laying on the cobblestones. Her ears were still sounding a muted ringing, but she could see well enough to realize that there were several concerned soldiers trying to rouse Alvin where he lay at the foot of a building wall. Her mind felt numb like what Igarlin described after he had overexerted himself. No one was paying her any attention until she sat up. Enough words made it through the noise in her ears to let her know that the people assembled didn’t recognize her. She was so covered in soot from the explosion that even her clothes were unrecognizable. Even though Alvin had been farther away, he had been affected worse than she. His green oak cloak indicated that he was among her personal guard and so he garnered more attention than the dazed common woman sitting in the middle of the area.

  Climbing to her feet with the help of a slightly concerned bystander, Em’risi slipped away towards the Sea Fort. She could see enough of Alvin’s energy to tell that he was only lightly injured and would recover his senses momentarily. It was only when she was half way there that she realized there might be another of the black robed assassins about. Hoping that in her present state, any assassin would think no more of her, she hurried to the castle and called her maid for a bath. The girl was trustworthy and wouldn’t let slip about what she had seen so as soon as the water was in the marble bath, Em’risi sent the girl to inform Alvin of her condition. The throbbing ache behind her eyes made her want to sink into the bath. Her sixth sense was still sensitive and worsened the head ache every time anyone used their gift within range. Finally able to control herself, Em’risi distanced her Gift as much as possible. The head ache faded shortly after.