The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1 (13 page)

“
Me?” she whispered.

Matthias nodded. “The clerics deciphered the stone
further and were presented with premonitions of you using your
power. It was a future echo: an image of what might be. A little
like the captured moment I spoke of earlier, but one drawn from
what
could
be, not what
has
happened.”

The Princess gasped. “But there
must
be a mistake! I
would not even know how to
use
this power!”

“
Your Highness, how much do you
know
about your power?” he
asked.

Josephine glared at him, “I have
never
used them,” she
growled.

“
The circumstances surrounding my daughter’s
condition are complicated,” King Arwell added. “We have
fought
to suppress the
power and hide it from view.”

Matthias nodded. “To keep my people from finding
out?”

The King smiled. “I take it you do not
have
children,
ambassador?” He asked. Matthias shook his head. “Then you would not
then know the lengths that a parent will go to protect them. I know
all too well how Mahalia deals with women who can channel magic.
You
subjugate
them, take them and
lock
them away. When the power first manifested itself,
when Josephine began to break things when she entered a room,
when
windows
would smash at random, the queen and I
considered
asking for your people’s help.
I had even penned a
letter
to your Council requesting their assistance! But then there
came news of the ‘Southern Persecutions.’ I read intelligence that
your people had rounded up women who could use your earth power who
had tried to rise up to throw off your oppression against them and
murdered them in their hundreds. I realised that your kind
could
never
find out what Josephine possessed. It would be too
dangerous to risk bringing your people in. Not to mention that
there have been public hangings here as well, you know, against
possessed women who can use your magics. The masses enjoy a good
witch hunt.” The king’s brow began to bead with sweat as he
continued and he rubbed his hands together nervously whilst
Matthias, Josephine and Thadius listened. “My daughter kept the
power to herself as long as she could, repressed it as she would
have done a bad memory. But the build-up…” he stopped, sighed and
rubbed at his forehead, where a thick vein snaked its way across
his tight skin. The hand he cast across it visibly shook. Beside
him, Josephine had hung her head and a tear was rolling down her
cheek.

“
I killed one of my maids first,” she said, taking
up the story. “I lost control and ripped the skin from her bones!”
Her lips trembled. “I have never
seen
such horror. A mangled
carcass
was all that remained when the guards
came to see the cause of her cries! There was blood everywhere, and
she looked up at me, flayed and
helpless
, before she finally
died.”

“
And
that was only the first,” King Arwell said morosely.

“
I
should have fought harder,” Josephine shook her head.

“
But it was an accident!” Matthias said softly.
“You
couldn’t
have helped it.”

“
It didn’t
look
like an accident,” the king responded. “Princess
or not, the woman was dead at her feet with no explanation, no
indiscretion or crime to account for it. The guards who witnessed
the scene were shocked. But I couldn’t let them spread the word, so
I locked
them
away, in the Traitors Tower. They’re still
there,
save for one, who
died of the cold two years back.”

Thadius shifted. “Erical, Esteban and Julius, Your Grace?” he
asked.

“
Three of the finest men I have had serve me,” the
king said grimly. “But I
had
to protect my daughter.”

Thadius nodded. “It never seemed quite right, some of our
finest men turning traitor.”

King
Arwell nodded. “It was what I had to do to keep my daughter safe.
It was not a noble thing to do by any means. But I felt it was
necessary.” Thadius said nothing.

“
You
said the maid was the first,” Matthias said grimly. “There were
more?”

“
There were two more,” Josephine said. “A hound I bent down to
pet one morning grew so docile at my touch that he began to fall
asleep in my arms. It was almost a half - hour before I realised it
was dead. I had stopped its heart.” She took a breath to steady
herself, and the king placed a hand on her arm. He continued for
her.

“
After the maid died I sought for another way to
help my daughter other than contacting Mahalia. I looked for
someone –
anyone
- who could help Josephine, but who was able to hold their
tongue. I sent out men I trusted to scour the land for someone who
could cure her. All the while my girl was becoming more and more
dangerous to those around her.”

“
Did
you find someone who could help?” Matthias asked.

The
king nodded. “Eventually. But it was too late.” He swallowed. “One
afternoon I found my daughter sitting in her chambers. At her feet,
her mother…” He shook his head.

Thadius gasped. “My gods!” he exclaimed under his
breath.

Matthias took a step towards the princess. “I’m so sorry,” he
whispered.

“
I do not need your
pity
, wizard,” she muttered through a shaking
voice.

“
I’m
not offering any,” he replied softly. “I’m only offering
sympathy.”

“
My mother only wanted to hold my hand to comfort
me. It was a simple gesture. Do you have any
idea
the torment that has placed upon me?
I
killed
my own
mother!
”

Matthias shook his head sadly. He looked to the king at his
side. He had seemed such an almighty man just a minute ago, but now
he looked pale and fragile. The princess herself looked like a
delicate porcelain china figurine, ready to shatter into pieces if
she were so much as touched. Matthias had stumbled into a deep
family torment.

“
I can’t imagine what you both must have gone
through,” he said. “What a terrible thing to have happened to you.
But you said you no longer
feel
the power now?”

The princess nodded. “As my father said, he found
someone who was able to help me. A wise young witch who had
experience in helping women with their powers. She wanted me to
learn how to use my power at first, but with some persuasion by my
father, she taught me how to suppress it. That was over two years
ago. I thought it was
finally
all behind me.” She shook her head. “But now
here
you
are.” She looked at him with steely eyes. “I take it you
meant to take me back to your realm to suppress me?” she asked.
“That was your reason for sneaking up to my
chambers?”

Matthias shook his head. “It is not as simple as
that, Your Highness. You’re forgetting about the prophecy. It
showed you
using
your power. That’s how we knew about
you.”

“
Why would the gods show you a prophecy of
me
,
of
all
people?” the princess asked incredulously. “What do
I
have to do with the
release of the dragon?”

Matthias looked awkward. “We believe…” he stopped.
“
I
believe that you
are destined to stop the dragon from being
released.”

Josephine’s eyes widened. “Me?” she whispered,
stunned. “You think I could stop the
dragon?
” she exclaimed.

Matthias nodded. “I do.”

“
You
cannot
be serious?” The king scoffed. “What deception is
this now?”

“
It’s no trick Your Grace!” Matthias rebuffed.
“Everything I told you about the dragon’s release is true. But I
couldn’t bring myself to tell you everything last night. It was
too
much
to ask of you to believe me about the dragon
and
your daughter’s
role. You do not trust my kind.”

“
So you decided to
kidnap
me?” the princess hissed. “So you could
use me as some sort of…
shield
against that great lump of rock in Olindia?” Her
voice was scathing.

“
It wasn’t the original plan,” Matthias said,
shaking his head. “I was going to raise the subject over the coming
days, when I had earned your trust. But I was ordered to retrieve
you immediately as my people believe you are in danger. It was a
mistake to do it the way I tried, but it
was
borne out of
concern
for your life.”

“
Rubbish!” The king growled. “Concern is not a
trait I
associate
with your kind.
Treachery
, however, suits you down to the ground.” He
scoffed. “You expect me to believe that your people, who despise
women who can use the world’s powers, would
allow
my daughter to use her abilities to
stop the dragon? Why would you make such an exception to centuries
of repression and subjugation? You have killed empresses and
queens: great women throughout
history
, because they
dared
to wield any kind of
power.”

“
She has been selected by the gods,” Matthias
reiterated. “Not
only
that…” he paused, the look on his face
pained.

“
Out
with it!” the king barked. “I have no further
patience
left
for your procrastinations, ambassador. You will tell
me
everything!
Give me the answers I want to know.”

Matthias nodded. “You
deserve
to know. But will you allow me to ask
a question, if it will help me to present you the full
picture?”

The
king nodded begrudgingly. “If it is necessary to obtain the truth,”
he sighed.

“
How
much do you all know about the different powers of this world, and
the Creation?” Matthias asked them all.

“
A
little,” the princess replied. “I began to read into them when my
power first surfaced.”

“
What did you learn?” Matthias asked.

She gestured blankly with her hands. “I read that
there are five powers that run through the world, each of them
different in some way, and they can be used by people and creatures
of the world. That is
all
I know. I do not
know
which one is mine. I did not try to find out any
more about how to use it, only how to get
rid
of it before it hurt anyone else. As for
the Creation,” she began, “I have no
idea
what you are talking about.”

“
I
recall a little, but not much about that from my reading when I was
younger,” Thadius advised. “It marked the beginning of the
world.”

Matthias nodded. “It was time of great confusion
and terrible conflicts which continued for many, many centuries.”
He turned to the princess. “You are correct princess, there
are
five powers. Only,
there used to be only
four
. Back when the world was created, the gods wove
four energies in an unending stream across Erithia. The power
passed through every rock, every blade of grass, and every creature
like a complex tapestry, weaving around everything and stretching
on forever. From what we know they were never
meant
to be used how they are now. When the
world was new the creatures that grew were simplistic. But
then
some of the
emerging animals found ways to tap into the powers and drink the
energy into their bodies. Some, like the first humans who became
wizards, were advanced enough to wield them, whilst others, who
became demons, were driven mad by the force of the energy flowing
into them. They were angry, confused and they broke the
world.”

"Your
point?
” The king growled. “I did not ask for a
history
lesson!”

“
This
is
all relevant, I assure you, Your Grace. But it
is
complicated.” He
took a breath. “The gods themselves couldn’t stop the emerging
demons.”