The Cursed (The Cursed Trilogy Book 1)

by Iyanna Orr

  “Why am I here?”

  “You are here because, today, Drake found out his guardian, Garrow, a sorcerer who picked him from the streets when he was a newborn, was more powerful than him. This is where his need for power begins. Today, he’s making a plan to get rid of Garrow.”

  “What does any of that have to do with him?” Chandler asked as he gestured down towards Haakon’s body.

  “How do you know this has anything to do with him at all?” Theodore laughed. “Anyone in this village could have been used as your vessel.”

  “Then why have you been watching him?” As if Haakon was looking for an answer too, he showed Chandler the last three weeks of his time in training. Suddenly, Chandler was overwhelmed by Haakon’s memories and squeezed his eyes closed as the imaged played out behind his eyelids. Theodore had started watching him three weeks before when Haakon had suddenly started working his way to the top of the class. With his height and clumsiness, he hadn’t exactly been able to keep up in the beginning with the smaller kids who were much better adjusted to their body size.

  Suddenly, one day after waking up, he’d noticed that nothing seemed so out of place and strange as he walked to the studio. A few days later, on Theodore’s suggestion, Haakon had joined two other classes of his. While swordsmanship was the first, he’d joined a hand-to-hand combat class and a battle strategy class. Chandler pushed away the thoughts, fought his way back to his own thoughts and looked back to Theodore. The man shrugged and crossed his arms. As he took steps forward, the sound echoed in the nearly empty room.

  “And me?” Chandler asked. “The truth.”

  “You’re here to make sure little boy Drake succeeds in killing him.”

  “Why? What does his guardian surviving have to do with Drake taking over Legacy three millennia from now?”

  “Look, I don’t know what you’ve learned about Drake and how he grew up, but despite what people may believe, Garrow wasn’t an evil man. In fact, he was the white light of his dimension.”

  “He grew up learning Garrow’s tricks.”

  “Yes. Tricks Garrow never used. Think about this, Chandler. The first time this came to be, Drake didn’t succeed. In the original timeline, Drake doesn’t kill Garrow until twenty years from now, and that was only after he’d tortured Garrow to get hold of any and every spell that might not have been taught to Drake as he was growing. When you leave here, I want you to take a good look at this town. I want you to see how it crumbles as we speak. This is what Legacy is, trapped and crumbling as the people wait for the moment it falls.” Theodore was watching Chandler, and he knew the man was waiting for an answer. He sighed, and for a moment, Haakon was coming through loud and clear.

  He is right.

  That was all he said. Chandler waited for more. Haakon was silent, and so was Theodore. They wanted him to agree; to want a man dead because the boy he’d raised as a son wanted to take over the world. But the thing was, Chandler didn’t want him dead. If he’d taught Drake all his life, why couldn’t Chandler know the same things Drake did? It would give him the advantage he was looking for, and maybe he could possibly even win the coming war.

  He looked up, and Theodore was still there watching him. Haakon watched Chandler’s ideas play out, and he knew Haakon was analyzing each moment that could possibly go wrong.

  “Where can I find him?”

  When Theodore told Chandler where it was, Haakon knew immediately where to go. Chandler followed the mixed directions from them and found himself on a road that held at most twenty houses on each side. At the very end, where a road should have continued, the house was there.

  Unlike the rest of the town, the house was two stories and was built of stone. Some jagged rocks were protruding from it in an almost unknowing way, but Chandler could see something no other might possibly acknowledge: the stones were slightly curved and all around the door they stuck out. He walked up the walkway, grabbed the large silver knocker and knocked three times.

  As he waited for the door to open, Chandler felt as if he were being watched and looked around. As his eyes wandered back to the dirt road he’d walked for miles, he could see a girl was standing there, a confused look on her face. Slowly, though, the look was growing more worried as Chandler just stood, watching.

  Julianna, Haakon breathed, and they both watched as she started running toward them. Then Chandler wasn’t in control anymore, and he cursed as he was slammed into the back of Haakon’s mind. Haakon pushed through and stepped back into his body, trying to move toward the girl. Chandler, somewhere in the back of Haakon’s head, noticed the door was opening.

  “Turn around!” The girl finally found it in her to shout, and Haakon turned, only to feel a hand go around his neck, lifting him off the ground. It took a few seconds for Chandler to notice Haakon’s body was jerking wildly in the grasp. He went into action, banging against the prison walls that locked him inside and shouted, telling Haakon he needed out. When it refused to work, Chandler got to work trying to find a weak place in the wall. He felt as if there had to be some kind of rule to this; that some kind of strings had to be pulled in just the right way.

  If there was, Chandler needed to find out what because this body, Haakon’s body, was dying. That small thought seemed to reach into his mind because Chandler felt Haakon reaching for him, trying to pull him out. He was afraid. He’d been tossed into a sudden adventure that was never supposed to happen; tossed into a war that had nothing to do with him. He wanted to live long enough to see his daughter grow up.

  This is what surprised Chandler, and he broke the connection, only having joined Haakon partway. Even so, he got over it fast and used the one hand he did have control over to reach up and grip Garrow’s arm. As his fingers dug in, Chandler felt blood drip from the wound he’d caused. Garrow’s grip loosened, and Chandler punched him with all the force he could muster.

  For being a powerful sorcerer, he went down like a ton of bricks, dropping Haakon in the process. Haakon gasped for breath but kept a close eye on Garrow. Then he looked at his arm, the one Chandler was still trapped in, and groaned.

  “This doesn’t feel right at all.”

  “What were you doing?” a voice shrieked right in his ear, and even Chandler winced. He did Haakon a favor as Chandler brought the hand up and covered his ear. Haakon groaned again and muttered for Chandler to stop. He let the arm hang limp. The girl’s, Julianne’s, arms went around them, and as Haakon raised his arm up to hug her, Chandler wondered if he was supposed to do the same. A few seconds later, he let go.

  Send her home, Chandler told him. We have work to do.

  “You need to go home, Julianne.”

  “What’s going on? What are you doing here, Haakon?” she asked, and her voice was shaking.

  “Just get inside.”

  Haakon hesitated for a moment before he gently pushed Julianne towards the street. He turned his back on her as they each grabbed one of Garrow’s legs and dragged him inside.

  When Chandler was finally able to merge completely with Haakon again, Garrow was tied to a chair and his magic snuffed out by whatever herb Haakon had surrounded him with. Chandler just hoped it worked. After searching the house, they found that Drake wasn’t there. Evil or not, Chandler was ready to keep him in his sights at all times, but now, they were just waiting for Garrow to wake up.

  “You have a daughter,” Chandler murmured, looked down at the wooden slats beneath his feet. He felt Haakon prepare to defend himself, but he smiled and shook his head. “I’m not judging,” he told him. “Just curious.”

  She wasn’t supposed to be born, Haakon told Chandler softly. I used to be a part of a rich family. I was the eldest, and so I was expected to be a leader, someone who could help keep the peace. My daughter’s mother took care of the family horses, and she had taken a liking to my mare. I’m not going to give you the gory details. I mean, you are a stranger, but I will tell you that I did love her. I wasn’t just a boy with a crush. When my parents foun
d out, I was disowned, and now, my younger brothers will get everything when they die.

  “What happened to the girl?”

  “She died giving birth to Copelyn.”

  “That’s your daughter.”

  “Yes. She’s still a baby, no more than ten months. I would give my life for her.”

  Just then, Garrow groaned and lifted his head. His eyes were still closed as he slowly rolled his neck around. Chandler saw his eyes flicker back and forth quickly behind his eyelids before they opened. “Are you sure those herbs work?” Chandler asked Haakon quickly.

  They should.

  “Garrow,” Chandler called to him cautiously. Garrow’s eyes looked to him for only a second before he looked down at the circle of dried herbs spread around him.

  “I hope you plan on replacing that. It’s very hard to find,” he said, then looked back up at Chandler. “Where is the other boy? The one I hexed?” The question took him by surprise, but Chandler narrowed his eyes at Garrow.

  “You mean the one you tried to kill?” Garrow raised a brow.

  “If I’d wanted you or him dead, then it would have been done out on my front step. It was only a small shock, not even enough power to do damage to a mouse, but enough to make it look like it’s done the job right.” Even though Chandler knew something was up, Garrow was telling the truth. Since they’d been let go, neither he nor Haakon had felt particularly weak. “Why are you here? Did that boy send you?”

  “You mean Drake?”

  “Of course, of course, who else?” Garrow grumbled impatiently. “He’s probably in a mood because I sent him away; tried to kill me. The idiot thinks I would teach him everything.”

  “Wait, he already tried to kill you?” Chandler asked, stepping forward.

  “Yes, right after he started rambling about prophecies and Legacy Prime.” Chandler watched Garrow twist his hands in the ropes he was bound with. “Would you mind loosening these? I’ve got something to give you.”

  “To give me? What?”

  “I said that, didn’t I?” Garrow asked impatiently. “Sixteen years ago, when I found Drake on the street, I was given a spell and told to perform it when the sun was highest in the sky.”

  “Noon.”

  “Whatever you want to call it. Come on, boy, we haven’t much time.” Chandler moved forward, ready to release Garrow, but then the old him stood and just walked from the circle, the rope falling from his hands. Chandler stared as Garrow walked into the other room and then looked to Haakon for answers.

  It should have worked.

  “It only works on witches, boy,” Garrow called, and Chandler was suddenly curious to know if he could hear Haakon. “Come in here.” Chandler went into the other room to see he was just sitting at the wooden table. His head was bent low over a small piece of paper where scribbles in another language could be seen. “We have a few minutes, and he’s on his way here. You should probably know I’m going to die. It’s inevitable. Either the spell will kill me, or it will weaken me enough for my ward to kill me, so there’s something you should know before you go back to your own time.”

  “What?”

  “All of this, you being here, it’s already happened. You coming here was no accident, and your vessel being this boy was no accident either. After you leave today, Haakon will have his body back, and he and his daughter will become the very first hunters. Of course, they aren’t the kind that kills you; they go hunting to find facts about people like you, people with abilities. The book you read in the future was written by him and passed through the family until it got to you.”

  “And that means?”

  “It means he’s your ancestor. Now, come on, it’s time.” Garrow turned toward Chandler and gestured him forward. He did as he was told, and Garrow put his hands on Chandler’s shoulders as Haakon muttered, I’m what?

  Only then was Chandler reminded that Haakon didn’t know about his future.

  There was a loud bang at the door as Garrow started to speak. Chandler felt something in the air, but it was so brief that he dismissed it. But then the house was trembling, and a terrible scream came from outside. As Garrow dropped his hands from Chandler’s shoulders, he staggered back and fell against a chair. Chandler reached out toward him, but he shook his head.

  “You need to get out,” he rasped. “Get back to where you need to be.”

  “Theodore,” Haakon said. “We need to find Theodore.”

  “Is there a back door?” Chandler asked as loudly as he dared. Bits and pieces of the house were falling. Stone smashed against the ground as it fell from above. Garrow pointed through another door, and Chandler watched him for another moment. Garrow nodded before Chandler turned and fled.

  It was the middle of the day, and the streets were crowded. The people seeing a familiar face called out to Haakon, but Chandler didn’t slow. He didn’t know how long it would take for Drake to realize what Garrow had done, and he needed to find Theodore.

  Chandler could just see the small hut Haakon had his training in. He picked up speed, pushing it to limits he’d never tested. Moments later, he felt as if he had been shot, yet again.

  He went down with a yell, clutching at his chest as he felt something white hot and barely containable burn through him. The crowd parted as women gasped and pulled children away. Men stepped forward, and Chandler assumed that many of them knew Haakon because they came toward him, trying to help. One clean-shaven man with a loose cotton shirt on leaned over us, and Chandler reached up, gripping it.

  “We need to get to Theodore,” he panted. He felt delirious as the colors he could see intensified and then went dull again. Chandler knew that whatever spell Garrow had performed was going into effect, and he was too weak to move on his own. “Take us to Theodore.”

  It was only a few feet there, and the man grunted out a few words Chandler couldn’t hear, but then there were others helping to lift him from the ground. He were carried the rest of the way to the building, where he was dumped inside on a cot. His heart — somehow he knew it was his own and not Haakon’s — was beating double, and he struggled to keep his eyes open.

  There was a commotion, but Chandler couldn’t hear a thing except for Haakon as he banged away inside his head. He was worried, beyond worried, and he yelled and screamed for Theodore. Chandler didn’t even know if Theodore was in the room.

  Stay awake! Haakon commanded.

  Then there was a touch on Chandler’s head, and then he was standing across the room, staring at Haakon’s body. It stayed motionless for a few moments before it shot straight up and looked around the room, Haakon’s eyes landing on Chandler and widening. Chandler looked down and saw that he was in his own body, a solid form in his own dream.

  “Now, you must get back,” Theodore’s voice suddenly came from Chandler’s right, and he flipped around to look at him.

  “What’s going to happen here?” The pain Chandler had felt inside Haakon was dimmer now; close to being gone. “What will Drake do?”

  “He won’t do anything that hasn’t already happened, Chandler,” Theodore said impatiently.

  “Go.”

  Chandler turned to look at Haakon, who was still sitting on the cot. He shrugged slightly and smiled. “At least, I know my future,” he said, looking Chandler over. “I guess it’s time for you to find out yours.”

  Chandler nodded and turned back to Theodore. “How do I get back?”

  “Look inside. You already know,” he said. He waited, expectant, and then Chandler did know. He knew what Garrow had done: he’d given up his power rather than let Drake have it. So, Chandler started to channel it. A few hours ago, he’d known nothing about magic, and now, he had an arsenal. He watched Haakon as he felt the magic taking over, and then everything disappeared.

  It was hours ago that Chandler had woken up in an unfamiliar bed, staring up at the canopy above him. At first, he hadn’t realized how he’d gotten there, but then the woman he thought had been his mother came into the room.


  Immediately, he tore himself away from the bed and across the room, feeling the anger lengthen his teeth, and his wings attempted to stretch out defensively. They continued looking at each other until the anger had passed, and Chandler had gone back to normal. Only then did she sit at the foot of the bed and begin explaining to him that she and Drake wanted him here. They wanted him to help them run Legacy. That was when Chandler found out where he was. After she had left the room, guards were stationed outside and were told to bring him once he’d calmed down.

  And that was what they’d done.

  The guards were taking him down a long corridor. The hall got wider as they walked, and sooner rather than later, they came to double doors that stood fifty feet tall and half as wide. Both doors opened, and Chandler walked inside, leaving them behind. They didn’t follow him as he strode to the throne. Drake sat there, a smirk on his face as he looked down at Chandler. Of all things, he wore a cloak with fur at the hem, which rested ten feet away on the floor.

  “It’s great to see you, son,” he said as Chandler scowled up at him.

  “Yeah? Well, I can’t exactly say the same. But I think I’d rather speak first if you don’t mind… Your Majesty,” Chandler tacked on sarcastically. The smirk froze on Drake’s face, and he didn’t get a chance to speak as Chandler continued. “First, I’d appreciate if you didn’t call me son because I’m not your kid.” Chandler looked up at Drake and continued just as Zafrina walked into the room. Hearing his words, she stopped dead, staring at him. “Second, if we’re doing this, I’m laying down a few ground rules.”

  Drake’s smile was gone by the time Chandler finished speaking. Zafrina had taken her seat soon after he’d begun, but the entire time, her body had drummed with energy waiting to be released. Chandler was somewhat surprised Drake had listened to what he was saying. Obviously, he was working to get Chandler on his side, but something about his sudden attentiveness didn’t sit right.

  When Chandler fell silent, Drake had pulled himself up straight on his throne and looked down at him. He never said a word as the doors behind Chandler opened, and a hand was pressed onto his shoulder. Without taking his eyes from Drake, Chandler reached up and brushed the hand off before turning and leaving by himself.