The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1 (51 page)

Matthias nodded. “True enough.”

“
Who
is this woman? You think she can help Josephine?” asked Thadius
impatiently.

“
She
is an old acquaintance,” Matthias said. “And yes, I do. One thing
is clear: this is an enchanted poison. I thought about finding a
doctor, but this is beyond any apothecary. Maryn knows a lot about
potions. She might be able to concoct something that can
help.”

“
And
you think she’s nearby?” Thadius asked

“
I
keep track of her movements,” Matthias said. “Or at least, I used
to.”

“
That is…
disturbing
,” Thadius commented, shaking his
head.

“
Are
you saying she’s in Olindia?” Luccius asked.

“
It’s been a while since I have been able to locate her,”
Matthias said. “But she was in Olindia when I last
checked.”

"Do you track
all
your acquaintances?" Thadius
asked.

"Only the
pretty
ones,” Luccius whispered.

"I was looking
out
for her," he replied to Thadius. “It is a
long
story. She could be
long gone by now. But if she
is
still around...”

“
How
exactly can you find her?” Thadius asked.

“
There’s an old method used by wizards to find
people. As I said, I
have
used it before. But I have only ever found it
useful to find people in a short range."

"How
short is ‘short?’" Luccius asked.

"It
depends on the wizard," Matthias said. “And the last few times I
have tried, I met with limited success.”

Luccius nodded. “Well it is worth a try, don’t you think
Thadius?”

The
knight looked uncomfortable between the two men. Finally, he
nodded. “What do you need?” he asked.

“
Simply something personal of Maryn’s. The more personal, the
better.”

“
Well, we’re
buggered
then,
aren’t
we?” Thadius exclaimed, as Matthias began to
rustle in his bag. “Unless you have someth-” He stopped mid
sentence as Matthias pulled out a lock of brown hair. Thadius
raised his brow. "
How
-"

“
Don’t
ask,” Matthias cut him off. “Suffice to say,
this
should
be what I need.” He looked to the horizon. “It’s getting
late again and we’ve barely covered any distance from the
mountains. Perhaps we should stop here and attempt this. The sooner
I try the better.”

Thadius nodded. He eased Josephine out of his arms, laying
her gently onto the ground and exhaled as the weight was lifted
from his body. Luccius pulled a blanket from his bag and placed it
beneath her head. She sighed as if she felt the cotton against her
skin, and he sat by her side and stroked her forehead.

“
It
feels like I’m petting a flagstone,” Luccius said sadly.

Matthias unfurled his map and placed it on the road in front
of him. “I need some stones to weigh it down, so it doesn’t blow
away,” he instructed. “I’ve had this map longer than I’ve been a
wizard and I’m not about to let it get away from me
now.”

“
That explains why it’s been scribbled on so much
and why the parchment smells like a dead
goat
,” Thadius replied, picking up clumps of
rock around them big enough to weigh the parchment down and setting
them along the edges of the stained map. He paused a moment and
squinted at the diagram. “I didn’t get a proper look at this map
before. That place there in northern Aralia:
Vershallah
? That hasn’t been called that
in
years!
” He shook his head. “
Decades
even!” he exclaimed. “Just how long
have
you been a
wizard?”

“
Long enough. Thank you,” Matthias replied, as he shifted the
stones a little, and lowered himself onto his knees and sat cross -
legged on the road, the map laid in front of him. He placed the
lock of hair, still in his hand, on top of the map.

“
How
does this even work?” Thadius asked. “It’s a piece of parchment and
a lock of hair, for goodness sake!”

“
Everything is connected in this world Thadius. Believe it or
not, we all share a common link, even you and me.”

“
I
am
glad,” Thadius said acerbically. “But that doesn’t
explain
how
this all works.”

“
What should happen,” Matthias continued, “is that when I
focus energies into the lock of hair, which I have placed roughly
where we are on the map, I will seek out a match using those
threads of power. They will stretch through the roots of the world
and return to us any echo of Maryn that they find. I should then be
able to decipher where Maryn is. Thereabouts.”

Thadius sighed. “But... but it’s a piece of hair! How does it
even know what to do?”

Matthias smiled. “It’s complicated. The hair
doesn’t know anything. It’s not
alive
Thadius. But it provides a link between
Maryn and I, wherever she is. My mind
translates
that through the earth. I can then
realise the location on the map. Is that any
clearer?”

“
As
mud
,” Thadius exhaled. “Give me a compass any
day.”

“
A
compass wouldn’t help us find Maryn,” Matthias replied. “This
might.”

“
Well get
on
with it then,” Thadius blustered.

“
Why will it only tell us if Maryn is in the
nearby
region?” Luccius
asked. “If everything is connected as you say, then surely we can
find her anywhere?”

Matthias sighed. “Because I’m not strong enough to
extend its range. A powerful enough wizard could drill through the
entire world’s roots searching for a person. A strong enough wizard
could do this with the power of the mind alone: use a memory of a
person to home in on them. But I’m not that strong. No one is. Not
anymore. Time was a wizard could track down a person with a thought
and drop out of the sky on them like a spirit, use the roots in the
ground as a system of travel. But that age is long gone. If I’m
lucky, I can search for Maryn for a few miles. If not, I might only
be able to search the
valley
.”

“
And
you are sure it is worth trying to find this Maryn?” Thadius asked.
“I’d rather not go on a wild goose chase for nothing with the
princess like this.” He turned to look at Josephine.

“
I think it’s her best chance, Thadius. Better than
any doctor or apothecary. Contrary to popular opinion, bleeding
is
not
a good way to relieve the fever. All they’d do is cut her
open and stick leeches on her skin. Maryn knows
much
more than that.”

“
Who
is
this woman to you that you have such faith in her
abilities?” Thadius asked.

“
A good friend,” Matthias said with piercing eyes.
“Or at least, she
was
a good friend.” Matthias looked saddened. “We didn’t part
in the best of company.”

“
Did
you try to kidnap her too?” Thadius acerbically.

Matthias smiled mockingly. “Not quite. It’s a long
story. One we
don’t
have time for.”

“
But you
still
think she will help you?” Thadius
continued.

“
She’s a good woman. Whatever quarrel is still
between us, she will help the princess. That much I
am
sure
of.”

Thadius broke off his stare and sighed. “Alright. Let’s get
this bloody started then,” he groaned wearily.

Matthias nodded. “Wish me luck. You might want to step back a
bit. I’m not sure how this will go.” They took a few paces
backward, and when they were at a safe distance, he opened his body
to the world and channelled the earth power through it. If Thadius
and Luccius could have physically seen the Power Matthias now drew,
they would have seen tendrils creeping from the ground like fast
growing plants, sliding up through Matthias’ body and into his
head, snaking through the air to place themselves on the lock of
hair. The hair shone in Matthias’ eyes, as thin wisps of energy
that looked like shoots burst from individual strands of the auburn
hair and arced back into the ground. He channelled the energy
carefully, delicately; connected links where they needed to go. To
Luccius and Thadius, he was just crouching on the ground with a
look of concentration on his face. They sat and waited
patiently.

The
multi - coloured rainbow of strands sunk into the soil, spread
across the land like tendrils. Minutes passed, and Matthias began
to draw a sweat on his forehead. His shoulders ached and he shook
slightly as he kept the flows constant. Across his cheek a thin
black vein began to form.

“
What’s happening?” Thadius asked, sitting forward.

“
It’s alright,” Luccius said, placing a hand on his chest and
stopping him. “It’s a sign of exhaustion. Did you not see it on him
the Mountain pass?”

Thadius shook his head. “It was dark. And I was
somewhat
indisposed
, if you remember? But I recall now come to think of it…
yes. He had the veins on his face then as well.”

Luccius nodded. “It’s a side effect of focusing the earth
power for too long, or too much. The longer he goes on using the
power, the more of those veins will emerge. Eventually his body
will get to a point where he will either have to yield the energy
or he will pass out. There’s only so much you can pull through you
I’m told. In my mind, I see it as a little bit like having
lightning surging through your body. Soon or later, you will burn
up. Of course I have no idea really.”

“
But you
can
feel the energy?” Thadius asked. “You have some
kind of senses that can pick up on what he is
doing?”

“
It’s like the sensation before a storm. The hairs on the back
of the neck stand up when someone channels energy.”

“
What do you feel now?” the knight asked.

“
That Matthias is channelling a
lot
of power,” he
replied.

Thadius stared as another vein began to rupture from
Matthias’ skin across his brow. “The veins all vanish when he stops
using it?”

“
After a while. Though Matthias once told me that if a wizard
tries to draw too much power at one time, it could burn them out
completely. The veins become scars and they damage their ability to
wield the power forever. Like sticking a piece of wood in a flame
for too long. Eventually it will turn to ash.”

Behind them Josephine whimpered, and her eyes flickered. She
looked in pain. Thadius turned and placed a hand on her cheek.
“It’s alright princess,” he whispered, and delicately poured more
water into her mouth. “We’re nearly out of water,” he said.
“There’s barely half a canister left.”

“
We
have to find a town sooner or later,” Luccius replied.

“
By which time we will
all
be as parched as this dust!” he ran his
fingers through the earth. Luccius reached into his bag and pulled
out a small, silver phial about the size of a thumb. “What is
that?” Thadius asked.

“
We call it ‘Beria’ in ansuwan,” he said, and undid
the cork wedged deep in the object. “I have saved it for an
emergency. I would say
this
is emergency enough.” He took a sip and passed it
to Thadius. “You won’t need much.”

The
man took the phial and sniffed at its contents. “It smells
disgusting!” he exclaimed. “What’s in it?”

“
Wormwood flowers, fennel, aniseed, and a fruit from the S’aal
called chisbeth.” He smiled. “Best pick me up I’ve ever
had.”

Thadius stared at it a moment, and then, shrugging, took a
sip. “It feels like my tongue has been set on fire!” he exclaimed,
handing it back.

“
Give it five minutes and you’ll feel as if you could run for
miles,” Luccius replied with a smile.

“
Perhaps we should give it to Josephine,” Thadius
said.

“
If
only it were that simple,” Luccius replied. He looked back at
Matthias. “If it was he wouldn’t be trying so hard.”

“
You’ve known Matthias a long time, haven’t you?” Thadius
asked the ansuwan.

“
Longer than any other man, save my own kin,” Luccius replied.
“Why do you ask?”