Omnixius
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DKP 7-24 Its time to act
🕑 Added 2022-03-04 13:47:55 +0000 UTC“How could she have gotten out of the palace?” Alayse demanded as the search began to yield no results. They had pulled every battle priest in the city into the search and scoured every floor room by room at least a dozen times. Now the search parties were reporting that no trace of her was found. They didn't even have evidence of an escape route to justify losing her.
“She had her escape planned long before she set foot in the palace,” Jessivel replied as another woman reported that the southeast halls were empty.
“But we sealed the palace before confronting her,” Alayse argued. “How could she get out without passing one of the checkpoints?”
“She had another way out,” Jessivel said and began to pace.
“What other way out?” Alayse groaned. “If you’re going to say she turned into a dragon and flew away, then where are the witnesses? The guards on the walls and balconies would have noticed a dragon taking flight.”
“No, she couldn't risk taking flight with Sarah alive to hunt her out of the sky. She had another route, something we haven't considered.” Jessivel saw the look Alayse was giving him, so he elaborated on his point. As head of the seekers, he was privy to nearly a dozen incidents of people trying to sneak into the palace before Gersius's reign. None of them got very far or were of particular note except one. A woman with hair like Lilly not only got into the palace unseen but nearly to the king's bed chambers. She was discovered quite by accident and fled not out the palace but into the lower halls.
“The lower halls,” Alayse said as she began to understand. They hadn't bothered to search the lower halls because they assumed nobody would hide their because there was no way out. They contained storerooms for surplus equipment and deeper down the vaults that contained the treasures of the empire. “There must be an escape tunnel. Maybe something long forgotten that even Gersius doesn't know about.”
“There are natural caves under the mountains,” Jessivel added. “All it takes is for one of those to come out someplace in the plains, and she can slip away.” He thought his logic was sound, but suddenly another idea came to mind. He realized that this might all have been planned and that they were being played for fools.
“We have to get to the lower vaults,” he said in alarm and turned to shout orders to nearby men. He sent them to spread the word that every man and woman was to flood the lower tunnels and secure the vaults.
“She wouldn’t go near the lower vaults,” Alayse grumbled as he dashed off at a full run.
“That is exactly where she is going,” he called as she followed.
“Sarah put wards around it to alert her if anybody so much as came near the door,” Alayse countered.
“But Sarah isn't here, is she?” Jessivel replied as Alayse caught up. “Not only is she not here to alert us of an intruder, but we stripped guards from the vaults to help in the search. Those chambers have never been more vulnerable.”
“She's after the sword,” Alayse agreed as the picture came clear. “I wonder if she has anything to do with its enchantments.”
“It would make sense,” Jessivel added as they reached a tunnel that descended at a slight angle to the lower tunnels. “She knows how to weave a magic so powerful it blocks divine blessing.”
“Just like the sword does,” Alayse growled as the idea of losing an enemy this dangerous made her stomach churn. “If the enemy recovers that blade, Gersius and his wives will be at a terrible risk.”
“It's still guarded,” Jessivel reminded as they rounded a corner into stone halls carved out of the mountain. “But I have to wonder if she knows a way past the door. Don't forget that the dragon knight armor was once stored down here, and it was stolen away without anyone noticing.”
“They should have destroyed it,” Alayse said as they entered a vast chamber that ran for thirty meters. Five smaller halls ran off of each side, but the metal door straight ahead went to the stairs that would take them even deeper. Thankfully the space was lit by magical water lights, banishing even the slightest shadow. They ran straight for the door to discover it was slightly open, a sign that somebody had come through in a hurry. It could have been the men summoned from below, or it could have been their intruder.
“She probably waited in a side hall for the guards to run by then went down,” Alayse sighed as they rushed down the steps.
“Sarah's first ward is as the base of these steps,” Jessivel said as they arrived at a room with an arched ceiling. “But if that woman was blocking the warning sense, then I have to suspect she can pass over the wards without detection.”
“I don’t see a ward?” Alayse said as she searched the floor to see nothing but polished stone.
“It's invisible to the naked eye,” Jessivel explained and headed down the next hall. “Only Sarah or another weaver using a detection spell would notice it.”
“So this was an early warning to let her know somebody was in the lower halls,” Alayse surmised. “Then there are more as you get closer to the vault?”
“Several,” Jessivel answered and turned a corner to find an unwelcome surprise. A priest of Astikar was laying against the wall, his weapon in hand and the side of his face torn wide open. The blood was still wet, but his pulse had long since stopped, indicating the battle was ten minutes old or more.
“She is here,” Alayse whispered and looked up and down the hall. “By the divines, we can’t let her escape with the sword.”
‘It's encased in a block of lead,” Jessivel reminded and hoped that would render it too heavy for the woman to move. Of course, a weaver could make the block lighter and steal it with ease. They reached what was known as the round passage and found two more bodies. One was a woman of Ulustrah, her shield splintered and left arm nearly severed from her shoulder. The other was a priest of Balisha, who had a whole blasted clean through his chest. Both had managed to draw their weapons, but it did them little good. Jessivel took a moment to examine the walls, finding where several weaves blasted small holes in the rock.
“She’s a powerful weaver,” he said while sticking a finger into the hole to test the depth. “I wouldn’t try to block one of her weaves if you value your life.”
“We should have kept Tavis with us,” Alayse grumbled and looked down the three halls that made up the room. “Why did he have to be the one to search her room?”
“Because it could have been magically trapped,” Jessivel explained and turned to the hall on the right. “The stairs down are that way.”
They hurried down the tunnel, passing dozens of side passages and rooms until they reached a broad flight of steps that went even lower. There was another priest of Balisha dead at the bottom of the steps. His face was burned, and his shield bent nearly as badly as his arm. What Jessivel noted of interest was that his sword had blood on it.
“He wounded her, and the drops are still wet,” Jessivel said as he stood up and searched the floor, spotting a trail of blood drops. He followed it to a side passage that twisted around a corner to the left and vanished.
Alayse drew her sword and took the lead, cautiously heading down the passage. She eased around the bend and saw it opened into a small room with an old table. There was blood on the floor beside the table, but Carigarra was nowhere to be seen. She eased into the room to discover the blood trail came to a sudden halt and had to wonder which of the two exits the woman used.
“We have to split up,” she insisted while looking down one of the passages.
“That is a terrible idea,” Jessivel countered as he looked down the other hall. “We should wait for the guards to catch up and start searching in teams of five or more.”
“You sent those men to spread the word, but reinforcements might not arrive for five minutes or more,” Alayse protested. “She could escape by then.”
“And we could end up like the priests in the other rooms,” Jessivel pointed out. “She obviously knows how to fight battle priests. We are far more dangerous if we stick together.”
“Fine, then which hall do we take?” Alayse asked as he looked down each corridor. She could tell he had no idea, and every second that went by made her tension rise. Carigarra was obviously a dangerous opponent, but they couldn't afford to let her escape, even if it meant facing her one-on-one.
“I have no idea,” he said at last. “The blood trail ends at the table, and these halls are swept clean, or she might have left a trail in the dust.”
“Then we have to search them both,” Alayse countered and pointed to the left hall. “You go that way. I will take this one.” Jessivel gave up trying to argue and took the left passage as Alayse hurried down the other. She was grateful for the magical lights as these tunnels would be pitch black without them. Her passage gently curved to the right and then went down at a slight angle. It passed through one small room, then leveled out and went to a single iron door. To her surprise, the door was wide open with the lock broken and cast aside. She peered into a space beyond that was not illuminated by the water lights. She held up her free hand, singing a quick tune and producing light of her own. With the light raised high, she proceeded into the darkness, praying this wasn't a mistake.
The tunnel immediately became uneven as the walls slanted and dripped with water. She realized that this was a natural cave someplace under the mountain, and here the dragon woman would have the advantage. For a brief moment, she thought about going back, but if the woman was wounded, she might be easy prey if found quickly. With nothing more to go on, she pressed on, exploring a cave tunnel that got wide and wider until it opened into a vast natural chamber of ledges and piles of rock.
“You’re a brave one,” a feminine voice that echoed as two said from somewhere in the darkness. “And to come here all alone.”
“I am not alone,” Alayse shouted defiantly to the darkness as her legs began to tremble. “My men are moments behind me.”
“I am not so easily fooled,” the voice said as the sound of rocks grinding echoed in the dark. “I could smell you even before you entered the cave. You're the one I sat with at the tea party, the pretty blond with the curly hair.”
“My name is Alayse,” she shouted back. “And you have much to answer for.”
“I have nothing to answer for except the failure of my mission,” the voice growled with a low rumble. “You rodents think you are fighting a just war, but you have no idea what is truly at stake. If you could grasp the danger of what you're doing, you would join us in trying to prevent it.”
“I am following the ones chosen by the dives,” Alayse retorted as she crept forward, searching every shadow for the hidden voice.
“And you believe they are worthy of choosing your leader?” the voice mocked. “Do you realize that you are nothing to them? You are like gold to a dragon, a need, that they greedily hoard.”
“I don't need to see your light to know you are lying,” Alayse replied and stepped over a rise to see the cave went down at a steep slope. “If we were that useless to them, then why do they bother to give us power? Why encourage us to bless fields and hearts so that people might live happily?”
“Does a farmer not name his pig? Does he not bring it food and build it shelter? Doesn't he care for it all the long days of its life until the time comes when the farmer grows hungry? Then what happens, little rodent? What does all that caring mean as the pig roasts on a spit?”
“You can't sway my devotion to lady Ulustrah,” Alayse shouted back. “I have heard Thayle's account of her magical gardens and how the goddess spoke with kindness and love. She bound Thayle into their binding so that she could share in their love.”
“She did what!” the voice roared so loudly it echoed from the cave walls. “My lord is in danger! His plan is already unwrought!”
“Your plan was doomed to fail,” Alayse said with a bold smile, then heard a whistling noise. She barely dived out of the way as a massive stone flew out of the darkness and nearly crushed her.
“I don’t have time to play with you, little rodent. My master needs me at his side!” the voice hissed while the ground shook in thumping rhythm. Alayse looked up to see two strange red lights high above just before fire illuminated the head. A dragon of red scales with black lines loomed just above, glaring down with a sadistic grin. Flames danced between long teeth, and the beast opened its horrid maw to turn Alayse to ash.
An orange light raced across the cave and struck the monster in its open mouth. The beat sputtered and roared, thrashing its long slender neck so violently it collided with the walls. Stones and dust fell in great clouds forcing Alayse back and away from the slope. She stumbled away as the dragon screamed and spit, finally turning its gaze on Alayse as a deep chant filled the air.
“Vile priest of Astikar!” the dragon roared. “I will eat you while you scream for your god's salvation!”
Alayse turned to run and practically fell into the arms of Jessivel. He was lost in a chant, his eyes closed while a red ring formed between his hands. A moment later, it rushed to the ground, glowing with holy light as he grabbed Alayse by the shoulder and shoved her inside.
“What are you doing?” Alayse cried as he stumbled away and raised one arm defiantly.
The dragon took a deep inhale and let loose with a gout of fire that filled the air with brilliant light. Alayse screamed as it washed over but quickly realized that she was not burning. She dared to look up and saw a red glass-like ripple all around her as the fire beat futility against the barrier. When it ended, she turned about to see Jessivel hiding behind a shield of orange light. Though the blessing had protected him from the direct blast, the air was heated to a terrible intensity. She could see blisters forming on his skin as his clothing gave off wisps of smoke.
“Jessivel!” Alayse screamed and turned about in her magical barrier. The dragon was looking at the barrier with interest then let out an aggravated roar.
“I can't waste any more time! The lord is in danger!” it screamed and turned back to run into the darkness. “I will come back for you one day!” it yelled, the words echoing from the walls. “I will feast on your bones.”
Alayse stepped out of the magical barrier and was instantly engulfed in terrible heat. The cave was acting like an oven, holding in the heat and slowly roasting Jessivel to death. She stumbled through the smoldering rocks and grabbed him by the shoulders, his skin tearing where she pulled on it. He let out a low moan of pain, but she ignored it, desperate to pull him to safety. Ten meters away, the heat was still intense but not hot enough to burn, and she laid him down as gently as she could.
“Why would you protect me and not yourself?” she shouted as she set him down.
“The blessing only works when you cast it on someone not of Astikar,” he moaned through blistered lips.
“Just be quiet!” Alayse snapped and put her hands to his chest. She fell into a sweet song, calling on Ulustrah to grant her healing, and quickly, the golden light began to spread. She was relieved when a hand previously burned into a claw, relaxed as the burns melted away. She pressed on with the song, the healing spreading over the surface of his body until, at last, he took a deep inhale.
“That hurt,” he said, then started to cough.
“What good is a blessing like that if you can’t use it on yourself?” Alasyse shouted in fear and frustration.
“It is a blessing to protect the innocent,” Jessivel coughed and slowly sat up, his singed clothing still smoking in places. “So long as I am alive, it can't be broken.”
“And how did you plan to stay alive?” Alayse demanded to point out the flaw in his plan.
“I don't know. How did you plan to manage it?” he demanded right back. “I can’t believe you went into a cave knowing that woman was a dragon.”
“I thought she might be wounded enough to defeat,” Alayse shot back. “That’s how Gersius got Lilly.”
“Lilly was near death,” Jessivel pointed out. “You had no idea how badly wounded Carigarra was, but you decided to roll the dice and wager your life as the bet. Maybe you should have been a priestess of Youthan.”
“What do you care what I do with my life?” Alayse growled as her eyes fixated on a tiny spec of light drifting through the air. She watched it blend with her own and then noticed there were dozens more flowing from the man before her.
“You can waste your life however you see fit,” he grumbled and stood up before noticing her strange expression. “What are you staring at?”
“Nothing,” Alayse quipped in shock to see light breaking from her own aura and drifting to him. She tried to catch the light with a hand and hold it back, but the effort was pointless.
“Did you hit your head?” he asked and reached up to touch her.
“I said it was nothing!” she shouted and stepped out of his reach. “We –. We should find reinforcements and have this cave explored. I am pretty sure she is gone for good, but we need to know where she got out so it can be sealed.”
“Right,” he replied with a strange expression and turned to peer into the darkness.
“How did you manage to see in here anyway?” Alayse asked as she held up her water light.
“I used this,” he replied and fell into a chant to produce a hammer of Astikar. It shone with an orange light, illuminating the area around him. “You're lucky I had one in my hand when that dragon attacked. I doubt I would have had the time to summon one. One of these days, this charge in without thinking recklessness of yours is going to get you killed.”
“Alright, I admit it. We should have waited for support,” Alayse sighed as she took his point quite clearly. “I just wanted to bring some justice to the women imprisoned in the camps she created.”
“The Father Abbot ordered those camps created,” Jessivel corrected, then pointed out that Prime Yarvine had been the most directly responsible as far as they could tell. The only role Carigarra played was to help make them secure. He then paused and glared at Alayse as a question hung in the air unanswered. He asked what had suddenly panicked the dragon so profoundly that she fled instead of finishing them off. Alayse tried to explain how the beast was taunting her by claiming the divines were not worth worshiping. She then declared the dragon's words to be lies and defended herself by recounting Thayle's story.
“When I told her Ulustrah had altered their bind, she went crazy,” Alayse said. “She said her lord was in danger, and she was out of time.”
“That is strange,” Jessivel said as he tried to puzzle it out. “At least we know she is working for somebody else.”
“You don’t think it’s the old Father Abbot?” Alayse asked.
“No,” Jessivel said with a shake of his head. “The Father Abbot was also working for somebody else. Whoever this person is, all the traitor priests bow their heads in supplication to him. They seem to have a vested interest in stopping the return of the dragon knight.”
“But why?” Alayse asked. “If this was just another war with a Doan warlord, why would the dragons be involved?”
“Because it's something more than that,” Jessivel said and shared his belief that all of this was somehow tied to Balisha. He pointed out that for years people saw the dragon knight as a champion of Astikar, but they now knew he served the dragon queen. Lilly carried the fang blade, and Gersius was her highest priest. Everything seemed to hinge on the struggle between Balisha and Solesta as if their war had never ended.
“It’s funny if you think about it,” Alayse said as they picked their way back through the cave. “Balisha is represented by the moon, while Solesta the sun.”
“Why would that be funny?” Jessivel asked.
“Well, what is the most common name for the moon?” Alayse asked.
“Bal,” Jessivel said.
“And what is the common name for the sun?” she pressed.
“Sol,” he replied as he saw the connection. “Solesta is the goddess of sol, and Balisha is the goddess of bal. Maybe that’s why they have those names?”
“Who can say?” Alayse sighed as she tried not to notice the light coming from his aura.
“There are other names for the moon,” he said as the doorway came into view. “In some lands, it is known as alunan.”
“And some places call the sun Soloahwe,” Alayse added.
He glanced at her before stepping through the doorway and into the magical lights. He was grateful to be back in a space too small to hide a dragon and quickly shut the door behind them. He asked Alayse if the dragon said anything else of use, but all that stood out was that the beast had called her pretty. She wondered if dragons had a fondness for the human form in some way. It certainly seemed as if Lilly and Sarah preferred to use it. Jessivel had no opinion on the matter but did think it warranted a mention in the report they would have to give later. He then reminded her of the sword and suggested they check to the vault to ensure it was still there.
Alayse agreed, and together they hurried back to the halls and made their way to the vaults. Both were relieved to see a dozen guards standing at the ready and suspicious of why they were there. Jessivel had to find Tavis, who had the authority to open the vault before they could get inside to see the sword was still there. With that worry put to rest, they organized a full search of the cave system to discover a tunnel that exited several miles outside the city. The entrance was little more than a sinkhole but easily navigated by a human. Dragon tracks were found beside the hole, indicating that Carigarra must have crawled out as a human and then changed.
The chaos hadn't escaped the surrounding city, and rumors were starting to spread that Gersius was dead and Sarah had flown away in fear. Tavis took command of the palace, ordering it closed to the public and putting out a statement that the imperial family was away on a mission. Jessivel sent men undercover to help spread the rumor that an assassin had been caught and the imperial family was now pursuing a greater plot. In hours it was the talk of the city, and people were beginning to question who was now in charge. So it was to his great relief when Sarah appeared in the northern skies, and the people were able to look up and see the dragons had returned. He waited just outside the landing ring with Jessivel and Alayse, hoping Sarah wouldn’t be too angry that Carigarra had gotten away.
Gersius was full of twisting emotions as the thought of losing Lilly played out in his mind. The attack proved their enemies were bold, resourceful, and willing to take risks. It also demonstrated that the defenses put in place to protect the palace could be circumvented. Tavis explained how Carigarraused weaves to conceal her lies and true nature. He also showed them the ring he possessed and demonstrated its use. Sarahsuggested that the women tasked with questioning visitors should possess such rings to prevent this from happening again. Gersius agreed and charged Tavis to go to the shapers guilds and request twenty rings to be made. Every gate and entrance would have at least one ring from now on, and nobody would be allowed into the palace under an active weave.
Tavis went on with his report, and Gersius was relieved to hear that the headaches were caused by a weave blocking the divine warning. However, he was not at all happy to hear that Tavis proved his point by stabbing Sarah.
Tavis explained the need for decisive action after his spy told him who the woman was. He knew Sarah was in great danger but didn't have any other way to prove it. Thayle asked why he didn't just show Sarah the ring and point out that Carigarra was using a weave to cover her lies. Tavis said Carigarra would have claimed the jewelry was a gift and had no idea they were magical. She could have been ordered to take the items off, but that would have forced her hand. His other option was to strike first and potentially kill the woman, but he assumed Sarah would want to question her.
“I would have been fine with killing her,” Sarah growled as she pulled her hair through the golden ring. “She was an attractive thing, and I had hopes for her, but I would have listened to your explanation. I assume she has gotten away.”
Tavis turned to Alayse and Jessivel, who explained their suspicions and the discovery of the cave under the palace. They also relayed the strange reaction to hearing about Ulustrah and how the dragon fled in a panic.
“I think I can explain that one,” Thayle said with a smile and recounted the story of what happened. Alayse was stunned to hear they severed Gersius from the bind, thinking Lily would kill him. When she killed one of them instead, their leader tried to use some unknown power to dominate Lilly. Thayle explained, seeing his aura reach out to engulf Lilly only to have it thrown back. She suspected he had done the same thing at the party, but the binding somehow protected her.
“So, he failed at the party because of the bind,” Jessivel said as it all came clear. “He must have hoped to turn her to his side. He assumed she would come willingly once it was broken but was prepared to use this power if needs be.”
“And he did need it,” Lilly said as she hugged Thayle from behind. “But I was still bound to my wives, and they shielded me.”
“None of this leaves this hall,” Sarah declared as she finished dressing and turned to Gersius. “We can’t trust anyone but those closest to us. These open social functions are going to have to end.”
“I have already been consideringthat,” he agreed. He hoped to have more time to build up the empire, but the enemy was using that to their advantage. It was time to act decisively and take the fight to the enemy. There were armies to get into motion and he had the two people he needed to make that happen right before him. He asked them to recount how they had come to be embroiled in this, and Jessivel told him it was Alayse. She was suspicious of Celine from the start and asked for his help to investigate her. As they found inconsistencies, she became more concerned and suspected magic was at play. She was the one who went to Mingfe and asked her to send Shadros to find Tavis. He went to great lengths to highlight her decisiveness and ability to see past the illusion. He also made a point of saying her talents were wasted hunting the fugitives. She was a commander and needed a proper army to command.
Gersius was impressed by the woman's ingenuity and commitment to the throne. It was no secret she and Thayle had a past that left some ugly wounds and that she felt Thayle hadn't earned her title as champion of Ulustrah. Still, when Thayle was in danger, she put all thosefeelings aside and did what needed doing. As demonstrated by the dragon encounter, she was still a little too quick to rush into a fight, but perhaps Jessivel was right. Alayse was a good commander, and attaching her forces to the seekers was a waste of their talents. He needed a new commission to give the bold woman, one that would flourish under her type of leadership. Gams was dealing with the west, and the northern front was still a mystery, but there was a fight about to erupt in the east.
“I agree,” Thayle said over the bind as she listened to his thoughts. “You have my permission to give her command of the whole of the eastern army if you want.”
“I am so happy for her,” Lilly said silently as she clung to Thayle. “But why does itseem like she is trying not to get too close to Jessivel?”
“She does appear to be doing that,” Thayle agreed over the bind.
Gersius, too had noticed how Alayse stood ten paces from the man at all times, even moving away if he stepped closer. It was strange behavior, to say the least, but then those two were known to argue incessantly. Perhaps she was angry at him for something, but according to their accounts, he had just saved her life while burning to protect her. There didn't seem to be any red in her aura, but then he wasn't as well versed in the colors as Thayle was. He put the thought away and, without wasting any more time, asked Alayse if she would like to command the whole of the eastern army. The woman looked as if she would faint and had to glace at Thayle for reassurance. Thayle nodded her approval, so Alayse readily accepted the offer and promised him he would not regret it. She was so overcome that she hadn't noticed Jessivel move to congratulate her until his hand clasped her shoulder. She looked up with gritted teeth and then quickly asked to excuse herself. Thayle told her to run along but asked if she wanted to talk about it later. Gersius didn't realize it right away, but as the two parted, he saw the familiar dance of light and nearly laughed in surprise.
“I hate that I can’t see this,” Sarah grumbled over the bind. “When am I going to get this aura sight? You both have gotten my warning sense and fire immunity.”
“Well, in truth, we might have gotten the warning sense from Gersius,” Thayle said and took Sarah's hand. “But I am sure you will get it any day now.”
“I can't believe those two?” Gersius said silently and then looked at Jessivel. “I wonder if he knows?”
“I will bet he doesn't,” Thayle laughed over the bind. “But Alayse knows, and it must be eating her up. Oh, I can't wait to tell Mingfe.”
“This foolishness can wait till later,” Sarah interjected. “We have dead in the lower halls and a tunnel into the bowels of the palace to seal. We also need to consider what our enemy was hoping to accomplish with all this.”
“Let's invite Tavis and Jessivel to a private meeting where we can discuss what has happened,” Gersius suggested and then invited the two men to follow them. They went into the council chambers, where Lilly stood amazed at the crater blasted in the floor by the hammers of Astikar. Sarah ordered the room empty and the doors guarded until she gave the word then sat on her throne with the others. Tavis and Jessivel brought up chairs, and together they sat down to compare information.
Sarah was most disturbed by the fact that Carigarra could block the warning. Thayle reminded them that she could also deceive the aura sight and hide her dragon nature. Tavis brought up the fact that the weavers in the camps said Carigarra was the one who created the runes that blocked divine power. Lilly then added to the fire by reminding them that their enemy knew how to break the binding. This proved to be highly distressing to Sarah, who suggested that this was a level of knowledge she had never attained. Unfortunately, she was relatively young when she went into exile with Numidel and hadn't learned much more than fire weaving. She knew there was were terrible ways to tap into the weave, even using living beings as a medium for shaping spells. She recounted the ancient practice of shadow marks but knew almost nothing of how they worked or what purpose they were used for.
Tavis knew even less, his people having long since lost much of their knowledge. This brought the realization to Sarah that she knew secrets of fire weaving that his people had lost. She could teach him how to manage the flame and avoid losing control. Out of curiosity, she asked how he managed it now, and he explained the ash price and even went so far as to lift his shirt.
“That’s barbaric,” Sarah said in disgust as she saw the patchwork of burns. “You mean to say you have marked yourself as a means to absorb the flame.”
“It's the only way my people know to get control back,” he replied. “Otherwise, it grows out of control, consuming the weaver and anyone nearby.”
“Why do so many people suffer to do what is right?” Lilly said with a sad voice as she looked away.
“Because they have lost so much knowledge,” Sarah growled. “Our enemies might know more of the ancient magic, but I can remedy this fire weaving. I know how your people used to control the flames, and when we have time, I will teach it to you. For now, I will give you my blessing and make you resistant to the heat. Maybe it will help give you more control if you are forced to call on the flames.”
Tavis thanked her profusely as Sarah stood and ordered him up. She blew a stream of fire into her hands and then went through her ceremony before pressing the flame to his chest. He immediately felt the warmth of her gift, and she told him to sit so they could move on with the meeting.
“I think we might know something about the ancient magic our enemies don’t,” Lilly said once Sarah was seated. “They didn’t know we could be bound to each other.”
“She's right,” Gersius said as he recalled the shock when their enemies discovered Lilly was bound to the Thayle and Sarah. “They had no idea it could be done and didn't know how to react when it was discovered.”
“Speaking of which,” Thayle interjected. “What was that place we were being held at?”
“A lunar shrine,” Sarah answered with a voice full of concern. “It allows one to access certain types of magic based on the phases of the moon.”
“So it's dedicated to Balisa?” Lilly asked, but Sarah shook her head.
“Hardly,” Sarah replied with a tired sigh. “Even I don't know for sure how they work, but men and dragons of old used them to create certain types of weaves. It didn't require devotion to Balisha, only knowledge of the moon itself.”
“But the moon is Balisha’s home, isn’t it?” Lilly asked.
“Child,” Sarah began with a gentle tone. “Balisha lives in a Heaven, not the moon. The moon is called her domain to honor her with one of the great lights in the sky, but it isn't her home. In fact, there is an old legend that the moon came first, and we dragons originated there. When the divines realized they needed a greater creation, they made Errost and brought us here.”
“Errost?” Thayle asked. “Is that the dragon name for the world?”
“It is, and Lilly should understand the significance,” Sarah said and looked to Lilly.
Lilly sighed and explained that Errost was an old dragon term that meant new home, helping to lend support to Sarah’s legend.
“And now you understand why it is called that,” Sarah said and moved on. “What I am about to explain is only a theory, but it is one we might need to consider. As all of us know there is a moon, and it is associated with the power of Balisha. The fact is there are two moons, and one of them has nothing to do with the goddess.
“You’re talking about the black moon,” Gersius said as he remembered the stories from his childhood.
“I am very much talking about that,” Sarah said and leaned forward to look to her family. “In the beginning, there was bal, but after the battle between Balisha and Solesta, there was a new moon drifting in the sky. It is much smaller than bal and black as midnight. You can only see it by the absence of stars behind it, but even that is hard to the untrained eye.”
“And what purpose does this black moon play with the lunar shrine?” Thayle asked, now curious as to where this was going.
“You have to understand that this moon didn't exist until after the battle,” Sarah said and explained that she went into exile even as it appeared. As such, she had limited knowledge of its effects, but there was one thing she knew for sure. The moon was what was left of Solesta's body, a burned-out husk left adrift as an eternal reminder of her death. She suspected there was a way to call on some remainder or Solesta's power, provided the caller had a lunar shrine and knew how to track the black moon.
“I'm not sure that's right,” Lilly interjected as she thought back. “I heard them chanting in dragon as they created the weave that severed the bind. They were calling on something or someone they referred to as the unknowable. I heard them ask this thing for its great and ancient power.”
“The unknowable?” Sarah said and sat back perplexed. “I have no knowledge of what that could be.”
Gersius could feel her concern over the bind and read her thoughts to confirm they agreed with his. She was afraid that their enemy had access to lost knowledge that far surpassed her own. He reached over to put his hand over hers, giving his wife a reassuring squeeze.
“Why does that make me feel better?” she asked over the bind.
“It always makes me feel better,” Lilly interjected silently.
“It's reassuring to know somebody is right there to support you,” Thayle added. “It is especially strong when that person loves you.”
Sarah sighed, and Gersius took over, asking their two guests if they knew anything of this unknown being. Neither of them had ever heard of such a thing, but Jessivel suggested they could have the old library scoured for information. It was certainly something worth investigating but what he wanted to know right now was what their enemies hoped to gain by freeing Lilly.
“Why go to such great lengths to claim Lilly but sentence Sarah to death?” he asked.
“Sarah is older,” Jessivel suggested and then explained his idea. He believed that Sarah might be too old for this power to dominate to have worked on her. Lilly would be easier to control, and as such, he might have seen a use for her.
“That could be it,” Sarah agreed. “But I can’t help but shake the feeling he had a personal use for her.”
“You still think he was looking for a wife?” Thayle asked.
“No,” Sarah said and shook her head. “Now that we know for sure he is a dragon, we can safely assume he has no interest in a wife. However, that doesn't preclude his breeding her to produce a brood.”
“That dragon has to be as old as you,” Thayle said with a hint of disbelief. “I don’t think Lilly is large enough to mate a dragon of his size.”
“You’re right,” Sarah said and waved a hand to dismiss the thought. “Perhaps he had another male in mind to do the breeding.”
“I don’t want to talk about that,” Lilly said and looked down. “I don’t like the idea of another man touching me, especially after those nightmares.”
“Oh, I am sorry, child,” Sarah said and held an arm out. “Come sit here. I will hold you for a bit.” Lilly got up and sat in Sarah's lap, leaning into her shoulder as Sarah hugged her tightly. Sarah stroked the side of her head, assuring her that those dreams were past and that Gersius's love would drive them away if they ever came back.
Thayle watched the tender moment with an approving smile, then posited her question. She wanted to know why they had headaches, but Lilly did not. Jessivel answered this one as well, recounting how he and Alayse suspected that Lilly wasn't actually in danger.
“No, she wasn't,” Gersius said as he thought about it. “They were trying to rescue her and free her from her supposed slavery. The warning must not have come because, in their hearts, they believed their actions were in her best interest.”
“I am in danger now,” Lilly said and looked up from Sarah's shoulder. “When he realized his plan had failed, I started to feel the warning. Whatever he hoped to accomplish with me has been replaced with burning anger. The next time we meet, I don't think he will hesitate to try and kill me.”
“The next time you meet, I will be there to stop him,” Sarah said and pressed Lilly's head back to her shoulder. “I promise never to let anyone take you away from me again.”
Gersius knew they were unlikely to be taken by surprise again, but something still bothered him. It was how many dragons were working with their enemy and the sacrificial devotion they displayed. That red dragon took his form inside a space he knew was too small to contain him. It wasn't done to defeat Lilly but to buy time for his master to escape. He sacrificed himself for what he believed in, showing that their enemy was deeply committed to their cause.
“So, what do we do next?” Thayle asked as she spied on his troubling thoughts.
“We show our enemies that we mean to fight them in every way,” Gersius replied and looked at Jessivel. “It's time we dealt with your prisoner and made an example of his crimes. I want the whole of the empire to see that nobody is safe from our wrath, not even the leaders of faith.”
Comments
Sam4005
Ty for chapy.
