Prophecy's Quest Read online

  Toormeena tilted her head and frowned, and then she realised it. There was only one reason a person of Keysjhon's status would be here.

  'He has been born,' she whispered reverently.

  'Belon had him barely a turn ago. We knew when he was conceived that he was strongly talented.' Keysjhon exhaled sharply. 'No, not strongly talented, exceptionally talented. She sensed a number of talents over her pregnancy. Being a healer, she knew already he had that talent. But he sent her images using mind-speak, he sends them to me, too. He seems to have mind-hear. When he cried early on, Belon worried about the sound waking me, and he immediately stopped and just waited for her to go to him. Indeed, he no longer cries, he just sends her an image of what he wants. If she is sleeping, he sends to me. We have heard the stories from other parents of talented children, but he is our first child and it was bewildering, at first.' Keysjhon shook his head in wonder. 'Still is, at times. He has shown signs of mind-will. We leave the room for just a few moments and his toy or his blanket will not be in his cot, but when we go back, he has it with him. He could not have gotten out of the cot, he must have used mind-will to move them to him. There are also times when we have no intention of picking him up, and yet, suddenly, we find ourselves, mid-action, mid-sentence, going to him and doing just that. Linuk confirmed he was using the second form of mind-will, for why else would we do something believing it was our own idea when the thought had not even entered our minds? Linuk says he has mind-see, too. No one has been able to confirm shape-change. Linuk says he will need training before he can do that, but she is certain he will prove just as natural at it as he does the other talents. And just earlier this evening, he used empath. Not that we are greatly surprised, the moment he was born and opened his eyes, we knew what he was — who he is.'

  Keysjhon paused for breath, his eyes meeting Toormeena's. The seer could see he was upset, but holding it in. The rush of words and the anxiety in his tone told her that the new father was under a lot of stress. And, from what he was telling her, he had good reason to be.

  'Linuk's warded him,' Keysjhon continued. 'Hidden him from searchers and made sure Colnba and Nisari will not sense him here, but… I do not want this, Toormeena, not my child,' Keysjhon heaved a heavy sigh that verged on a sob. 'I want, more than anything, for you to tell me we are mistaken, that he is not the prophecised saviour, but, as you will see, there is no doubt.'

  Carefully, he shrugged off a backpack and she saw it was holding an infant. Before Keysjhon could take him out, Toormeena crouched and the child looked up.

  The seer gasped as she saw his eyes. She dropped back to sit on the floor. Of course, now that the war had taken place, she knew she would be seeing him soon, but she was still stunned. These were the eyes of the mage who had sent her the vision that was now known as The Prophecy eight centuries ago. Of course, he had been an adult in that vision, but one could not mistake those eyes. Keysjhon knelt and drew back the blanket hooding the child's head, revealing the unique hair. The seer found herself softly reciting The Prophecy:

  'A saviour with hair of silver, blended with midnight's hue.

  He has eyes that are droplets of the ocean's deepest blue.

  Upon him the mark of silent death can be found.

  Which earns him loyalty that is endlessly bound.

  All talents his, from Abbarane's triumph he rides away.

  Behind dawn's light, on valiant charger, white with patched grey.

  Upon Spring Bloom, he must make the journey to find Soul's Death.

  Which can be found within the stone tempered by dragon's breath.

  The key to freedom, the hidden one, he must find.

  This guardian is found in the eyes of the blind.

  To mend the mistakes of the past, he must seek unity,

  And forsake the fallen's pleas to fulfil his prophecy.'

  Toormeena reached out and gently stroked the infant's head. She felt it, all that talent. Keysjhon was right, there was no doubt. Elvan were born with iridescent hair, it was blue, with subtle shades of gold and silver or black with under shades of dark red, gold and orange. Black streaked with silver, like this child's hair, was unheard of. The same was true for elvan eyes, they had iridescent eyes with a variety of colours in them, never straight blue, like the eyes staring up at her now.

  'He must be hidden in Abbarane's triumph,' she told them.

  'You mean, here, in Sal-Cirus? In the same city Keldon resides and Colnba and Nisari also live—' Sarre snorted. 'That's insane.'

  'Sal-Cirus may have been the last city Keldon conquered, but his triumph was taking the capital, Ancoulan. He considers the symbology of conquering the capital as more important historically. The child must stay there until he is seven.' She looked at Keysjhon. 'At that time, Belon must collect him.'

  That made sense to Keysjhon, his rahn's name, Belon, meant dawn. He often called her his 'dawn' and his 'dawning light'.

  'He will begin his training then. You said Linuk warded him?'

  Keysjhon nodded.

  The seer was nodding too. 'Good. My mother sent her to Eirra-kaan several turns ago, the temple there has an extensive library and Linuk will have found those books with the knowledge she needs to train him properly.'

  Keysjhon made a sound of agreement. 'She has only just recently returned from there, she said. She told me that she came back because it was time. I did not understand what she meant, but if your mother told her when to go, she would have told her when to return. Did you know it was Belon and I who would be his parents?'

  Toormeena shook her head. 'My mother told me not to look for that future, to keep him safe. But she may have, or she may just have known when to expect him. In the case of The Prophecy, we did not share all with each other in case Keldon caught one of us — which he did, thus my present situation. My grandfather wrote the verse and my mother explored certain paths. I was told I had done my part and not to purposefully seek any other paths in relation to The Prophecy. It proved a wise strategy, because if he does break me eventually, Keldon will not be able to get all the information he needs to divert The Prophecy.'

  Planes were places mages accessed when using their talent and paths were a part of them. Some paths were possible futures, others were paths of the past. Even a person had paths. A healer, for instance, could use these paths to access a person's nervous system or immune system to heal them. Seers dealt primarily with future paths.

  Reluctantly, Toormeena, withdrew her hand from the tiny head, the fine black and silver curls like silk against her palm. The seer rose as Keysjhon picked up the pack and eased it onto his back. 'Send him back to me when he reaches his Spring Bloom. Until then, dye his hair. Do not tell him, not yet. The least we can do for him is give him what little time we can without the knowledge of the burden that will become his. It will also be easier to hide him from mages if he does not know what he is until he is able to protect himself.'

  'Neither of us can go with him? To Ancoulan?'

  Toormeena's heart wrenched at the anguish in Keysjhon's eyes, and he looked down, to spare her. 'I am so sorry, Keysjhon. But he will know who you are when you see him again.'

  'So not only must we accept our child will have no childhood, we must abandon him.'

  'Not abandon, protect. And just for a short time. It is the only way to keep him safe.'

  Keysjhon looked up at the ceiling and then closed his eyes, tears sliding down his cheeks. He heaved out a breath. 'Battle and facing death was easier than this,' he muttered to himself. Then he looked at Toormeena. 'Can I take him by his mother first? Let her see him just one more time—' the warrior's voice broke.

  Toormeena placed a soothing hand on his shoulder and then gave him a hug. After she withdrew she turned to Sarre. 'Get in contact with the rebels, tell them to get Belon to Ancoulan.' She looked up at Keysjhon. 'You can tarry outside Ancoulan while they find a safe place for him, but before the next full moon, he must be placed.' The seer stroked the tears from one cheek. 'Be assure
d, he is strong. He gets that strength from his parents.'

  Keysjhon gave her a brief smile. 'Is that your way of telling me I am strong enough to endure this?'

  Toormeena did not answer, knowing one was not needed. Keysjhon reached up and placed gentle fingers on either side of her chin, lifting her head, he kissed her forehead. Then he turned and slipped back out to the balcony.

  Sarre started to follow and then turned back. 'Your mother asked me to pass on her love. She said you know you are loved, but it always helps to hear it.'

  Toormeena smiled. 'She is right. Keep safe, Sarre.'

  The seer stood staring out the balcony window long after they had left.

  It had started.

  The Prophecy had begun.

  Day 1 – Dawn (Present Time)

  At-hara Desert

  'Try to keep still, Sershja,' Brynn gently reminded the horse.

  Just a few meters from them a patrol was refilling their water skins, which was what Brynn and Sariah had been doing. They were lying in the scrub, their dwarven chargers trying to make themselves as flat as possible. Brynn was using illusion to hide them. Kaydyr was soaring high above, giving Sariah a hawks-eye view, which Brynn could also see having received the warrior's permission to link with her.

  Brynn scrutinised the riders as they dismounted. Some held the horses while others took turns at the water pump to fill their water skins. The water pumps were put in before the war and could be found throughout Andarea. Fed by natural springs, they were decorated with animals, both mythical and real, and plants. Kaydyr's vision was so sharp, Brynn could discern the detail of the desert dragon that formed the water pump, he could even see each line of the outspread feathers and each scale of its torso.

  One of the riders looked up at Kaydyr, but his interest seemed to be merely curiosity. Sariah directed the hawk to fly a little lower, just out of bow range.

  'If they are looking at Kaydyr, mayhap there is less chance they will look this way,' Sariah explained.

  What was a patrol doing out here? Normally the patrols did not venture so close to the desert. It was one of the reasons the rebels set up camps and refuges along the southern border. If Abbarane was starting to send patrols out here, they would need to consider moving even further south. Brynn was not sure the rebels had the kind of resources to do that any longer. The occupation by the humans had severely depleted their resources.

  Two of the riders finished replenishing their supplies and started to stretch their legs. Brynn tensed as they walked towards where they were hiding.

  Please, do not get too close, Brynn thought.

  Both horses started to panic as the soldiers sauntered in their direction, talking amiably. One paused, placing his hands on his back and twisting to the side, groaning softly. The other stopped and looked back at his colleague. Brynn could hear the thoughts of Treya and Sershja, their anxiety was rising swiftly as the soldiers came closer.

  There were no mages with the patrol, which was not unusual, Thane Nathan Kennelm, the thane in charge of the patrols, did not think the patrols merited mage protection. It was fortunate for Brynn, because he would not have dared to use his talent for more than illusion otherwise.

  The young mage connected with each horse's minds. 'Sleep,' he willed.

  'What did you just do?' Sariah sent.

  'The horses were panicking, I have simply made them sleep.'

  'And what if those two come closer and discover your illusion — how are we going to get away with two unconscious chargers?'

  Good point, Brynn thought.

  Before he could respond, both men started moving again, continuing their path towards them.

  He had to decide. Did he use his talent to influence the minds of the two men? Could he do it without drawing the attention of Abbarane mages? Should he try to bring the two chargers back into consciousness? They might be too disoriented to ride. A glance at Sariah showed she had reached back and now had a grip on one of her swords in the shoulder harness on her back. She had not drawn it, knowing the sound might alert the soldiers, but she was ready. Brynn turned his attention back to the soldiers. He watched as the boots at his eye level grew larger, the sandy dust they raised making him squint.

  He had to decide, and he had to do it fast.

  'Let's get moving,' the patrol leader called out. 'The sooner we do, the sooner we can complete our loop and get out of this cursed heat.'

  The boots turned around and the soldiers headed back to their horses.

  Brynn could not help himself, he let out a careful, but relieved, breath. Sariah was going to lecture him to within a hairs-breadth of his life for putting the horses to sleep. But it was better than having to fight a patrol.

  Just then the patrol leader frowned. He was looking in their direction and, at first, Brynn thought something about one of the two returning soldiers had caused the patrol leader some concern. Then he yelled, 'Mage!'

  Fate's curse, he must have seen the shimmer of the illusion.

  At the same time, Brynn and Sariah surged up. The blind warrior drawing her sword and activating her armour to fully expand. Brynn drew his short sword and activated the crossbow hidden within his bracer. He dropped the illusion and brought the horses back to consciousness. He used his mind-will to control them, getting them to their feet and instructing them to charge into the patrol.

  That the patrol was full of experienced soldiers was demonstrated by their reaction. They immediately drew their weapons and those who were close to their horses also grabbed their shields. The two soldiers who had been walking back to their horses, spun neatly, drawing their swords.

  Sariah drew her second blade and engaged both soldiers. Brynn kept his distance, using his crossbow to take out the patrol leader and to distract the two archers in the patrol and prevent them from targeting Sariah and the horses. Still controlled by Brynn, Treya circled around to come at the patrol from the side. The magnificent, black dwarven charger lowered her horned head and literally swept up the first archer and tossed him over her head.

  A soldier charged Brynn, taking him off guard. But Sershja plunged between them, rearing and using his front hooves to drive the soldier back and make him stumble and fall as he tried to escape. The move gave Brynn time to shoot him in the throat with a bolt from his crossbow.

  He turned his attention back to Sariah. She had killed the two soldiers that had been closest and now was fending off the remaining two soldiers who had swords. The other archer fired an arrow at her, but Brynn used his talent to deflect it and shot at the archer. The archer dove behind the water pump and Brynn pursued.

  Sariah deflected a sword strike made by one soldier and kicked out at the other, getting him in the knee. She thrust her second blade at the first soldier, grazing his side, but his armour prevented any injury. As she drew her second sword back she swung it out, slashing the downed soldier across his shoulder and upper chest. He flinched back and rolled out of reach. The first soldier closed, and they exchanged strikes. Sariah let her opponent manoeuvre her away from the downed soldier. She knew his motive was to protect his colleague, but it served the twin purpose of letting the warrior keep them both in Kaydyr's view, so one could not come in from the side or behind her. She could deal with them one at a time this way. And she did. As soon as the soldier thought he had her where he wanted her, she dropped to her knees and took one sword across both shins. As the soldier fell, she brought her other sword across his throat. Without pausing, she surged back to her feet and charged the remaining soldier. His colleague had bought him enough time to recover and he was ready for her. He was a well-built man and when they clashed, he was able to push her back slightly. But with the close proximity, Sariah was able to elbow him in the chin, and stomped on his instep. Her more heavily-armoured boot crushed the bones in his foot. She had to give him credit, though, because he merely grunted as he drove his pommel into her side, shoving her back and gaining him enough space to swing his sword. She blocked the next two strik
es, then dropped one sword, feigning weakness. She started to back up, allowing him to keep pushing her back. As she parried his strikes, she drew one of her knives. Then, she pretended to stumble back and as he closed to stand over her, she ducked his blade and drove her knife up into his armpit. The blade slid between the armour pieces and he let out a startled gargle as he collapsed against her. Sariah shoved him off. Kaydyr looked for Brynn and saw him engaged with the remaining archer. The hawk kept the young mage in sight as he circled down to Sariah.

  The archer had drawn his sword and was trading strikes with Brynn. Somewhere in the scuffle, the headscarf Brynn had been wearing had come off. The silver in his hair kept catching the early morning light and flashing as Brynn moved. Kaydyr landed on her shoulder, giving Sariah a better vantage point from which to assess whether she should step in to help and what approach to take if she did. Brynn often professed admiration for her ability to fight blind, but the warrior also found herself amazed watching the young elvan in combat. Mostly because he was so very young, but he fought with efficient skill. She knew the kind of training that required and to see someone so young achieve the level of proficiency Brynn exhibited suggested a discipline many children were not ready to apply. And for good reason, they were children after all.

  It was clear her help was not needed, though, as Brynn parried a strike and then engulfed the soldier in mage-fire. The soldier barely had time to scream as Brynn thrust his sword into his exposed throat. The blue of the mage-fire instantly diminished and then dissolved.

  Brynn spent a moment catching his breath, when he finally looked up at Sariah his eyes seemed to be glowing slightly. The light started to fade, but rather than making the young mage look more normal, the dark blue of his eyes seemed even more apparent. Brynn may deny it, but the warrior was certain — she was looking at the Saviour promised by The Prophecy.

  Brynn tossed Sariah a light, cream-coloured scarf. 'To protect your head from the sun today. It will be too hot to wear your helm soon enough,' he told her, tying his own cream-coloured scarf under his chin and adjusting it so it formed a peak shading his face.