The Sage's Reign Read online

  CONTENTS

  I. Part One: Cry of Concord

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  II. End of Sorrows

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Six moonless nights passed, and time etched away like a pen to paper. Six months in the dark. One by one, regions fell at the hands of the Order of Helix, and all that Prince Remiel’s party could do to quell the ordeal was train themselves further and prepare for the war at their doorstep, all the while keeping updated through Leilana’s radio and occasional travel.

  Rem pushed open the slightly ajar door, tucking away his neck-length scruffy dark hair. “Leilana?”

  Leilana was planted in the center of her room with shut eyes, mumbling charms in the Minsuran tongue, incense illuminating the room in place of lanterns. Uh oh, she was in one of her zones, which meant that his timing was all wrong. Filling any free space around her were open notebooks, every page filled, and Rem didn’t want to overstep his bounds to approach her. One solid misstep, or even a word out of context, and she was sure to chew him out. The last thing that he wanted was to aggravate her. Solus was always better at handling these situations.

  She remained perfectly still, her lips continuing to move at a timed pace, her voice hushed and hollow beneath the crackling wood of the incense. She wasn’t going to hear him if he called her name again, so he would have to rouse her the hard way. He stepped off of his right heel and planted a single toe rather than his foot over one of the nearby books, bringing his left leg over to bypass the remaining paper-bounds. He attempted to keep his footsteps as slow and purposeful as possible, not wanting to risk her snapping out of her fixated stupor.

  “You don’t have to sneak, you know.” Rem flinched at the address in fluent Sentience, cutting through her unwavering concentration. She didn’t open her eyes, but she did lower her head as if drifting between slumber and waking from a long dream. “Is something wrong?”

  “Not wrong at all. I think it’s something you can use to your advantage.” He held up his index finger. “Two things, matter of fact. Gale got wind of where we can find Lunious through his-” Leilana’s eyes snapped open, a guttural snarl rushing past her once pursed lips. Rem nearly fell on his back out of fear alone. Her vengeance was festering for months, but now it was in full bloom. “P-Please don’t shoot the messenger.”

  Leilana cleared her throat, tucking some loose strands of her lengthening wavy hair behind her ear. “Sorry. What else is going on?”

  “You remember that little hint you told us? Solus and I started putting pieces together about places in Adrylis that fit the mold. It has to be someplace recently impacted by magic, particularly fire. Maybe the ash from the flames causes it to rain down.”

  “But that wouldn’t be a permanent occurrence.”

  “I wasn’t done explaining.” Leilana nearly scoffed but decided to withhold her disdain. “Solus had another idea—what if we overlooked something on your map? The only places remaining that could involve smoke would be towns that have a lot of mining. It would explain the idea of ash always falling, and maybe those people get covered in the flakes when they’re working or whenever ash from the mines spread, which would add up ‘cloaked in shadow,’ since it’s the same shade.”

  Leilana’s lips parted. Mining. How had she not considered that? There were farming towns and shrines, and even reserves scattered all over the landscape, and yet mining towns never came up anywhere in her mind. Maybe it was her overanalytical thinking that everything in scriptures had to be sentimental. It made perfect sense. The fates sure did love toying with her head, it seemed.

  “We’re going to find my grimoire, scout out as many places as we can with that description, then we’re going to find our Orb of Concord, end the war, get on with our lives.”

  “Good plan! Great plan!” He collided his fist with hers, and she giggled at the enthusiasm. “Got in all of your meditation for the day? Solus wants to get things rolling while it’s still early out, and Gale’s got our breakfast all packed.”

  “I think I’m prepared enough,” she replied. Resting on her bed was a long metallic staff, freshly polished, basking under the morning glow. She could see dust on the nightstand and assortment of books drifting about, but now that the time to move on had come at long last, there was little left that she wanted to accomplish in terms of cleaning up after herself.

  With a sweep of her hand, the flames burning the wood-scented incense promptly ceased to exist, a puffy haze of smoke left to fester in the room. Rem inhaled the aroma, far used to the sensation. She stepped towards the nightstand, clasping her hands around the staff. The bearings were rough on her hands, tearing into her skin the harder that she grasped the weapon, but she was well trained—the pain had gradually minimized to a dull ache rather than outright agony.

  “Are you sure you don’t want one more lesson before we get back out there?” Rem’s face was reflecting into the metal, his confident expression carrying her mind into a comforting place. Leilana couldn’t help but smile. He always did get antsy when change was coming.

  “I’m in the middle of one,” she replied. “I don’t want to tack on too many side-missions knowing that. I’m one step closer to becoming a Warlord, and this task will prove worthy in showing me how much loss has affected my skills.”

  “Well, that loss is going to strengthen you, and all of us as well.” He glanced back when he heard his name and he rested a hand on her shoulder before gesturing towards the door. “I’m going first. Sol’s calling me. Try not to slow me down, yeah?”

  “I don’t plan to.”

  As Rem departed, she allowed her gaze to waver over the surroundings she had familiarized herself with for the last six months. Six grueling months of working to the bone, coming to understand that magic and power can only be formed with her own two hands, ending in the place where they began. The staff in her hands was a symbolism of growth. She could be of better use with two forms of attack, even after she retrieved her grimoire. Her time had come.

  She decided to change clothes after going through the wardrobe in the corner, settling with her white uniform blouse underneath a black vest, dusting off a knee-length tan skirt. She wiggled her toes around her tanned flats, satisfied with the feel. Afterward, she stepped into the hall, where Sien, Solus, and Rem were awaiting her. All three of them stood near the door.

  “Took you long enough!” Sien stated. On her back was a bow and a quiver filled with arrows, her long red hair braided in two pigtails hanging past her shoulders. She was dressed in an ankle-length tanned dress, her boots concealing her legs. “We were worried that you were thinking of backing out!”

  “There’s no way that I’d turn down this kind of opportunity.”

  Solus chuckled, his tied shoulder-length hair practically bouncing with him. “Happy to hear it.” He rested a hand on his dark brown pants, the sleeves of his baggy shirt slightly overlapping his arms. “I was hoping that you would keep the faith.”

  Rem was bouncing in his spot, a big grin plaguing his face. “All in good faith and all that, can we go now? Please? Pretty please?”

  “All right, all right,” Solus laughed, patting the boy’s head. “We’re goin
g. Gale and Luna have given us their regards in advance. All that we need to do is set off. We will return here, someday. For now, we finish what we have begun.”

  “Rula!” Rem called, “We’re leaving! Are you coming?” From the kitchen, Rula came running, his tail swishing back and forth.

  “Actually, I’ve decided to stay here with Lulu and Gale,” he explained.

  Rem raised an eyebrow. “What? Seriously?”

  Rula lowered himself into a position where it appeared that he would pounce, and when he did, Sien caught him in her arms. “Luna says that when Lancett is done taking care of the initial work in Linarus, she wants to go back to help gather people to the city. Once everything is in order, I’ll be able to return home to the mountains. I don’t want to be too far away.”

  “Well, I guess if you’re sure, we won’t stop you.” Sien rubbed the young Dirionus behind his elongated ears, and Rula graciously tilted his head to the left.

  “You were a big help to us,” Solus stated. “We are grateful to you, Rulakinja. Best of luck to you. Your master would be proud of you.” Rula was gazing at each one of them as the words reached his ears before he covered his eyes with the fuzzy limbs. Sien giggled at the embarrassment he was showing off.

  “You guys are too much!” Rula proclaimed. “Stop picking on me!”

  “Aw, no one’s picking on you,” Rem replied, patting Rula’s head. “We just want you to know that you’re loved, no matter what.”

  “Then you don’t think I’m just some monster?” Rula whimpered, staring up at Rem.

  “If anything, I’m a monster too.” Rem bore his teeth, holding up both arms before chomping his teeth down. “A big scary Bloodlinch with spooky powers! Grr!” Rula pounced forward, hitting his face with his tail, causing Rem to falter. Leilana and Sien couldn’t help but laugh. “Rude! Very rude!”

  “Monsters aren’t all bad if you’re one then!”

  “All right, all right, enough of the fun. We’ve got to get moving,” Solus stated.

  They spent days at a time traveling by carriage due north, eyes glued to the map that Leilana conjured up. Their set destination was a city called Ocula, where Lunious was last spotted. Gale had connected with him on numerous occasions—getting an ideal lock on his soul’s resonance was mere child’s play for his skill level, but his movements were so stretched out due to the rise and fall of the moonless nights that keeping a proper reading was difficult. It was a miracle that he could maintain on his own, sucking his energy dry while making sure that his guests were welcome and well. It was bound to be painful, but now that they were out of his hair, he could divide his attention better with Luna at his side.

  Leilana was in disarray about her own unique talent as an Arcana. Rem’s lied with his ability to harness the energy in his blood-veins, an uncommon trait due to his Bloodlinch lineage. Ennis possessed the ability to spirit people away into his mind, creating his own perfect world away from reality even after his demise. Gale only needed a simplistic connection with one person before he could track them down, even after their souls became lost to time. Even Sien was capable of healing severe injuries by sheer will. With such an array of powers, where did she stand? Did she really require her grimoire to achieve magical heights like the other mages?

  “Seems like we’ll reach Ocula in a matter of hours at this point,” Solus told Leilana, grazing his fingers over the copious sheets. Rem and Sien were leaning against one another, sleeping, Sien’s head resting on his shoulder while his head was resting atop hers. “We should make a plan for what to do once we arrive. If we walk in blind and Lunious catches us, we’re bound to get ourselves in danger.”

  “Can I help?” Solus glanced over, finding the young Prince awakening from his slumber, holding his head and rubbing his eyes. “I don’t think I can sleep anymore.”

  “Bad dream?” Leilana asked.

  “I still think about Linmus every now and again. This time it was seeing the castle go up in flames while I was outside, just watching. The smoke was rising so high that it felt like my lungs would collapse, and my eyes were burning. I felt so helpless. I couldn’t even think about what was waiting inside, and I can’t imagine what the kingdom looks like now.”

  “It’s best not to think about it,” she stated. “In times like this, you need to keep calm.”

  Rem was carefully adjusting himself from under Sien’s weight. He carefully laid her in the hay pile next to them, reaching for a nearby blanket to wrap around her. She yawned before settling into the newfound warmth. “Thanks for trying, but that didn’t really help me feel better.”

  “It wasn’t supposed to make you feel better, Rem, it was meant to give you an insight. I guess I’m not too great at those either though.”

  “It’s fine, no one’s perfect.” He took a seat opposite Solus, pulling his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs. “All right, plans. What do we have?”

  “My first thought was that we keep a low profile, try to split up and look around,” Solus began. “From my bearings on the map, it doesn’t seem that Ocula is a fairly large place. We should have no trouble exploring.”

  “How would we meet up if someone were to find him?” Rem asked.

  “We’ll find a landmark when we reach the city limits. Someplace that stands out so that we can all identify it on contact,” Leilana stated.

  A hard thrust to the right side of the carriage sent the three reeling to the left, knocking Sien out of her sleep. Solus’s mouth was gaping open at the sight of the chunk of wood missing from the spot where he sat just seconds ago. The splintered wood was steaming; direct evidence that someone using magic had been the assailant. Someone that knew that the Prince of Adrylis was boarding this carriage.

  Rem gripped to one of the remaining walls. “Hey!” Rem shouted at the driver, who was already beginning to pick up speed, the horse whinnying loudly. “You wanna tell us what the hell’s going on up there?! What’s the big deal with us almost getting stomped on?!”

  “I-I’m sorry!” the driver cried out. “It looks like there’s someone trying to slow our movements, and the wheel is starting to give way! I think that it’s best that we stop, and I have you regroup again with another driver in the closest town!”

  “What?!” Rem hissed.

  “We can’t stop now!” Sien exclaimed. “We’re a long way from Ocula! It wouldn’t be smart to walk the whole trip; a thunderstorm is supposed to be brewing soon!”

  “We already paid for a ride to Ocula!” Rem retorted, pointing a finger at the man. “Either return what mileage money we have left or get us there safely! This is still business no matter what!” The man tossed a roughly patched animal hide pouch at Rem, and the Prince set to counting the Nyte coins.

  “There! You’ve got your money, I-I’m not going to risk my life for it! Now all of you get out!” Solus scoffed, leaping off the moving carriage, Rem following right after, Sien in his arms to keep her from getting injured during the ordeal. Leilana waited for the carriage to slow just enough before jumping off, landing in Rem’s arms.

  “Gutless coward!” Rem exclaimed after having set Leilana down, throwing a rock at the traveling carriage as it sped off. “And you’re two hundred coins short! I hope your wheel comes off! I hope that your family doesn’t accept your funds and that your carriage gets set on fire!”

  Solus slapped the prince upside the head. “That is quite enough out of you, Remiel. No need to antagonize the patrons. He was just doing his job.” Rem nearly snarled back at the man.

  “No, what he was doing was being a coward.”

  “What are we supposed to do now?” Sien asked, crossing her arms. “We were close to reaching Ocula, but now without a ride, what would have taken hours is going to take days.”

  “I guess that we’d better start walking,” Leilana concluded.

  Sien groaned. “I was enjoying my nap too.”

  Rustling in nearby bushes set the four back on guard, and Sien slowly drew an arrow
from her quiver to notch into her bow, taking a step back while positioning herself in a proper stance.

  “Perhaps it is true that we are not alone,” Solus concluded, his voice hushed.

  “Think it’s the Order of Helix again?” Rem asked, fingers drumming over the sheath of his blade. “I’m itching to stir up trouble if it is. I think we’ve been practicing enough.”

  “It’s not wise, especially if there’s more than one person out there,” Leilana piped up, hands already reaching for the staff on her back.

  From the trees, a pitchy shockwave resounded, engulfing the four faster than they expected. Leilana and Solus covered their ears while Rem raced to Sien’s side to dispel any afflictions, his head swimming from the increased volume plunging through him. No longer affected deeply by the sound, Sien launched an arrow into the trees. The shockwaves ceased, and a hooded figure emerged from the bushes with flute in hand, fireballs spewing from the instrument with each note played.

  “The hood! That person is in the Order of Helix!” Rem hissed, bypassing one of the strikes. Sien launched another arrow at the assailant, who swiftly dodged, approaching the girl, meeting with her face to face. From beyond the hood, lengthy strands of lavender hair broke through, azure eyes brimming with confidence. The person’s facial structure was thin, but heart-shaped, with rosy lips and a youthful aura. A girl, then. She brought up the flute, slamming it against Sien’s face, knocking her to the ground. Sien cried out in pain, clutching her cheek, blood spewing past her lips.

  Solus was preparing to remove the ribbon from his hair, knowing that the range would be far greater than any damage that he could accomplish with a sword. Rem was already connecting his own sword with the girl’s flute, and every strike that he threw out, she could either dodge or block. She shoved him back with her foot, and Rem was preparing to counterattack when a sharp pain shot through his skull. His hands were trembling as he tried to shield his eyes from the spotting darkness. The world was spinning too fast for him to handle, and he collapsed to the ground.

  Leilana ran to his aide while Sien was brushing her hands along her face, healing the aching wound she had sustained. Once the wound was on the mend, she set to easing her Prince’s discomfort until he was able to rise to a sit, still clutching his head. Solus’s mind was swimming with thoughts of vengeance towards their assailant from the moment that Rem fell, whipping the ribbon from his hair, interlocking it around the girl’s wrist before forcefully dragging her to the ground. Once she was distracted by the sudden impact, he slammed his foot onto her back and removed her hood.