Hail to the Queen (Sage Trilogy, Book 3) (14 page)

“Well, t
hen to Prattle we go, Princess,” Arimus nodded. “I was just making sure this is what you wanted.”

He began walking away
slowly as Catherine turned to James in awe.

“You’ve changed since we last saw each other,” she said as James glanced down at his robe and laughed.

“More training from Chloe coming to fruition, I guess. This was the first time I attempted it and Jester was so crazy he gave me the time I needed to prepare. I’m glad it worked though. There’s no way I would have won otherwise. He was ridiculously strong.”

“So how did you do it?”

“We’ll talk while we travel,” James said, ushering her forward. They rejoined Arimus who listened attentively as the young Sage continued, slowly letting his robe disintegrate into the air and his former clothes to reappear.

“If you’ve transformed, then you a
re now the strongest amongst us,” Catherine said.

“I doubt it,” James admitted, rubbing his hair. “I’m realizing more and more that we all have the same capabilities. I think Chloe just thought outside of the box so she took risks that others saw no profit in. Think about it. If our souls break, we die. Why would someone play around with that?”

“Why did you?”

“Because she said it was the only way I could become stronger. I had to focus solely on my training.”

“So what did you learn?” Arimus asked.

“The light that engulfs us,” James continued, staring at the palms of his hands. “
We never question where it comes from. All we accept is that it’s like a signal, letting us know that it’s time to pull out our eidolon before it disappears. When it blazes bright, we’re always so quick to unleash our eidolon and attack that we don’t study it at all. We never ask ourselves what it is exactly.”

“So what is it?”

“I think it’s our soul emerging. And if so, this is very important. Because that means that light is the source of our power. We limit our own power by not harnessing it and using it to its full potential. So often we just take our eidolon from it and then put our soul back in its safe when we could achieve so much more. So this time, instead of just reaching for my eidolon, I let it spread. I focused on transforming myself…and my soul - that limitless source of energy, gave me what I needed. One body part at a time, I was able to become stronger than ever, and only because I allowed my soul to simply do what it’s been doing ever since I became a Sage. We can all do it, Arimus.”

“Perhaps, but it sounds as if you
need time to reach that level of power. Jester waited for you out of sport, but your enemy might not be so merciful next time.”

“True,” James said. “But if our enemy is winning already, it’s worth the risk. I’m telling you – Chloe would not have lost a
gainst the Quietus if she hadn’t already been wounded. And I’ve learned recently that Zen-echelon may be afraid of the Sages. It’s got me thinking that we have more power than we realize, and Allay wasn’t just attacked for fun. The siege was planned.”

“If Zen-echelon hates Sages so much, then Kyran and Scarlet will have a difficult time there.”

“Maybe,” Catherine spoke up. “But with Kyran’s stealth and Scarlet’s power, they should have more than enough to retrieve the stone. I mean, I shudder a little whenever I see Scarlet in battle. She’s never lost…never…”

*              *              *              *              *

“Damn,” Scarlet muttered as she leaned onto the hilt of her halberd eidolon. The staff was taller than she was, but it still managed her weight. She closed her eyes for only a second when she growled in rage, picked it up from the deep mud and pointed it straight at Thorn.

“INCI
NERATE!” she bellowed as a tsunami made of lava erupted from her eidolon’s center and threatened to engulf Zen-echelon’s King. He looked up and whistled at the size, but he refused to budge. Instead, he thrust his right palm forward and just as the tsunami was to hit, it flowed around him as if it was dodging at will. The tsunami continued to flow behind him and then came back to life with fury as it flew right back at Scarlet.

Scarlet
’s jaw dropped as she threw up her arms to shield against the wave. The lava hit her with full force, sending her off her feet and into the smoldering mud. She growled as she felt some of her hair burn away, but at least it didn’t hurt that much. She had been hit by her own attack many times before. It was, after all, part of her personal training. She knew that in order to become a great warrior, she had to build up her tolerance to pain, but the way this battle was going, she wasn’t sure if she could take much more.

They had only been fightin
g for about a minute, but in that small window, he had humiliated her both physically and of spirit. She gave her all in striking him down but he refused to even draw the steel sword at his side, a weapon so insignificant compared to an eidolon that it might as well have been a slingshot. He merely dodged and punched her. Each blow of his fists covered in uncanny strength, making her feel as if she would fall unconscious each time one connected. Now she kept her distance, but still, nothing affected him.

“So will you join me now?” Thorn shouted to her as she huffed.

“I’m not finished yet!” she yelled. Thorn chuckled and placed his fists on his hips.

“The hour is growing late, and I want an answer. Tel
l you what, I’ll come over to finish this now, and I promise, that no matter what I do to you…no matter how severe the wound, I will heal you and bring you back to full health. Is that a good proposal?”

“Don’t you touch me!” Scarlet shrieked as Thorn patted the hilt of his steel sword.

“I won’t,” he yelled back as he finally drew the blade. Scarlet grunted and nearly dropped to one knee. She could still feel the imprints of his fists all over his body, and that was when he had been on the defense! Scarlet groaned and cursed the ground as she thought of Chloe, that idiotic prodigy that gained her Sage abilities so easily. What would she do if she was here?

Wait.
Scarlet thought in disgust.
Why am I even thinking about this?

Scarlet gripped her staff and climbed back to her feet as Thorn slowly approached, giving her a moment to gather herself.
Thorn began increasing the speed of his stride, but she refused to wait for him to come to her. No, she would meet him head on.

Scarlet ran forward, shouting as loud as she could, swinging her eidolon at her sides and using all the information it could give her to devise a plan. At last, just as they were about to clash swords, her eidolon told her that his left side was far weaker than his right – an old hip injury from a battle long ago. It was at least a chance.

Scarlet focused all her attention on his right, preparing to pierce through him as she kept herself open, allowing Thorn to make any wound he desired, even a fatal one. If she was going to lose her first battle to this man, he was going to at least remember her for the rest of his life.

Scarlet jousted forward with all her might, knowing that if he parried, the steel sword was not dense enough to counter her eidolon. To her surprise, he allowed the thrust. Her halberd eidolon stabbed him in the side,
and she continued twisting with both hands as he made no move to stop her assault. He simply took his steel sword in hand and systematically stabbed her over and over, through the right shoulder, her left lung, her stomach, her heart, and so on, until Scarlet’s eyes went soft and her breathing was cut short. Falling unconscious, he allowed her to fall as her eidolon still remained lodged in his side. He snickered and removed it as if it was a bee’s stinger, and then threw it into the mud next to the fallen Sage. He sensed movement behind him and turned.

“Ah, Kyran! My friend! How good to see you!”

Kyran glanced over at Scarlet’s fallen body and then back at Thorn.

“She started it
if you must know,” he chuckled. “Now, how about we go inside and talk? I’m sure you have many questions, and I take it you’ll want to engage me in more of a battle of the mind than one of physical prowess?”

“Something like that,” he muttered. Thorn smiled.

“Wise decision,” he said as he reached down, grabbed a handful of Scarlet’s hair and then began walking toward Kyran, pulling her lifeless body behind him, still face down in the mud. “Don’t worry, she’s not dead. I was very delicate with her.”

“Even if she was, it wouldn’t concern me.”

“Oh that’s right,” Thorn said as Kyran joined him in stride to the castle entrance. “You want her dead anyways. Well, if you choose, I can grant your wish right now. It would save you a heap of trouble…or, do you want her to stay alive for some reason?”

“Allow me to consider it.”

“Oh, come now, this isn’t a test of your allegiance. We haven’t even had a decent conversation yet.”

“Regardless, my hesitation of her immediate death shows that I’m not completely convinced I should abandon my friends and Allay.”

“Point taken,” Thorn said. “But I really don’t care either way. Whether she lives or dies is entirely up to you. Her presence doesn’t affect my plans.”

“
Then keep her alive. Just in case I have to lay siege to your castle.”

“Once again, a smart decision.” Thorn slammed open the castle door and two female servants, dressed in black nightgowns met them in the lobby. Thorn held up the fallen Scarlet by the hair until her feet was da
ngling off the floor. “This woman needs to be bandaged and medicated. A bath wouldn’t hurt either. Make sure she survives.”

The two servants bowed and then took Scarlet off Thorn’s hand
s, carrying her into the bedroom where Kyran and Chloe had talked earlier. The door shut as Thorn clapped his hands together to wipe off the dirt, then he began climbing the stairs in front of them, motioning for Kyran to follow.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “This isn’t a trap. I have no reason to hide my intentions towards you.”

Kyran followed the King cautiously. The stairs spiraled up and up until they reached the tenth floor by Kyran’s count. Thorn smiled back and then opened the door in front of them. Kyran noted that none of the floors below had an actual walkway beyond the stairs. Each “floor” only possessed a room.

They walked inside
and Kyran tried to not look impressed at the grand hall that lay before him. Red and gold carpeted the floor and checkered the tiles on the ceiling. Chandeliers overcrowded the space and banged into each other up above as Kyran saw Thorn motion toward the center. There were two massive thrones sitting in the middle of the room facing each other. Kyran inspected the room for irregularities but found none. It didn’t mean they weren’t there; just that Thorn was powerful enough to know how to fool a Sage. Kyran remained on guard but appeared relaxed as he sat down without a moment’s hesitation into one of the chairs. Thorn sat in the opposite seat and swung a leg into his lap. Kyran noticed that the King didn’t care to remove his muddy clothes, even in such an elegant chamber.

“This room is my conversation piece,” Thorn said as he studied Kyran’s face. “When one enters, they immediately have a million questions. Why are the chandeliers so close? Why are there two thrones in the middle? What’s with the color scheme? When can I see my loved on again? Why are you doing this? Please can
I go now...so many questions…”

“Hmm.” Kyran allowed
himself to say. Thorn smiled again.

“So did you enjoy your time with Chloe? Or are you not convinced it’s her?”

“It’s her,” he said flatly.

“So you’re aware that she’ll be given back to
you if you align with me?”

“I am.”

“And?”

“I accept.”

“Oh, just like that?” Thorn smiled. “So ready to betray your friends and join the enemy that seeks to overtake this world?”

“Maybe you’re the one that needs
a reason to trust,” Kyran replied. “If you’ve watched me…if you know me so well, then you know that I mean what I say. And I’ve lost my only reason to exist in this world. I have no allegiance but to myself.”

“Your abu
ndance of words makes me nervous.”