[A/N] So, time for a new chapter. Why exactly did N want to go in the dungeons? And are Caleb's fears real? Let's find out…[A/N]
N was dragged into the dungeons by the two guards. He closed his eyes and used an enchantment on the two guards. The two guards simply kept going. N saw a lot of people in the dungeons, almost all of them starving. Some were talking to themselves and some were taking stones and tapping the ground restlessly. Others were screaming when he came by or trying to get him to free them. N paid no attention to either of them and simply kept to himself, keeping his eyes closed and all screaming outside.
The guards approached a staircase, which led all the way down to the deepest dungeon.
One of the guards suddenly got an idea, his eyes seemingly blank.
"We should put him down there."
The other guard looked at him, then his eyes became blank too.
"You're right. However, we should take his staff. The king would not like him to keep it in prison, he might use it to break out or assault the guards."
"I agree." The first guard said, taking N's staff, which he willingly gave to the guard.
The other guard then lit a torch and took N downstairs, which took a long while since the staircase was ridiculously long. Seemingly leaking, water drops fell down from the roof, sometimes falling on top of N or the guard. A foul stench was penetrating N's nostrils and it seemed to become increasingly smellier when he got to the bottom. There were no windows and almost no candles down the route, which let N figure they were underground. The candles seemed to burn all the oxygen in the room. There were large intervals in between the candles and as such there were a lot of dark places, only lightened by the guard's torch.
When he got to the bottom, there were more cells, with heavier locks. In there, only one cage was in use. The man in it seemed out of this world, trapped within his own mind. He moved his head and looked at N, shaking his head with a small smile and pointing at his head.
"It gets all of us, my friend. All of us."
N looked at him and rose an eyebrow. The guard then brought N to another door and opened all the locks on it, revealing another staircase. However, this one was a lot shorter, perhaps twenty steps. This place was only lit by one candle, which was situated right outside the prison. N slowly walked down the stairs towards the prison. The prison was only half lit, the part in the back covered in shade. N could slightly distinguish a figure in there. The guard opened the ten locks on the door and pushed N inside. The figure in the shade seemed to move slightly closer and N turned to face the guard once more. The guard closed the locks again and then went up the stairs again.
"See you in a week, archmage."
N looked at the guard as he closed the door and the light faded away, slowly darkening N's face. The figure in the shade came closer and N smiled.
"Perfect…"
The figure in the shade seemingly jumped to N, but N turned around and electrocuted the figure to the ground. The lightning created light and showed a young girl, with long blonde hair up to her waist, with ripped up clothes which were too small for her and had seemingly been worn for at least a few years. Her hair was messy and hung in front of her eyes when she looked up at N. Her face was filthy and was pale underneath it. She was skinny and was covered with bruises.
N came closer.
"Hello, Elyon."
Elyon looked at N. "How do you know my name?"
N smiled at her. "I know a lot about you, princess. I have been researching you. Many believe you to be dead after your disappearance seven years ago."
Elyon looked towards the ground and crept into the shadows. "Leave me alone. Nobody cares about me. Nobody came to search me."
N took out the jewel he had taken before and rose it. It started emanating light and the prison was lit. Elyon had a ghostlike appearance in the light.
"I came to search you. I let myself be arrested and put into the dungeons by Escanor to try and find you."
Elyon looked at N and rose a hand to block the light. "Why?"
N looked back at her and let the jewel stop shining. Elyon was sitting in the shades again and was out of sight again.
"I thought you would want some company…" He said, as he looked in her direction. And then he saw it. Small drops of magic leaving her. It seemed like power was being drained from her. He had once hoped of achieving this. Finding this. And now, it was presented to him here, in this dungeon. He couldn't believe it. Elyon had magical powers! And she was a female of the Royal Line. According to an old tale he had once read, that meant she was… "My dear heart."
Elyon moved in the shades. "How did you know you could find me here?"
N smiled. "A good guess. It would be the only place nobody would ever look for you: why would you be in the dungeons? You're from the Royal Line, you wouldn't be locked up! Yet, here you are…"
Elyon looked at N. N stared at her.
"Why are you here, Elyon? Who brought you here?"
Elyon's gaze went to the ground. She muttered some words, barely hearable. "Marcus…"
"Why?" N asked, directly.
His eyes were fixated on this girl. He examined her movements. She was constantly tapping her foot on the ground and her fingers against each other. Her eyes kept moving through the room, except when she looked at him or seemed in deep thought. She had many rips in her clothing. N looked trough the room and saw nothing her clothing could have hooked itself to. She had done it herself, but for what reason?
What happened to this girl in this prison that she had these weird habits? Did they mean something? Then N realized: she was alert. She was taking in as much of the environment as she could. Perhaps something had happened in the room and she was alert, to make sure it would never happen again. Was she raped? He didn't know. He could find out by using his magic, but he thought that to be an invasion of her privacy.
"I don't know. He suddenly was infuriated with me. I don't know why. I was seven at the time, that was seven years ago. I don't really remember much."
N took a seat on the ground. He took the jewel he had taken from the drawer in his chamber.
"This is a jewel from the crown of your mother, Weira. Marcus is the King, which is true, but as prince or princess of his Royal Line, you also get a crown. I wish to give it to you."
Elyon looked at him, suspicion clearly visible in her eyes.
"Why would you want to give me that?"
N rose an eyebrow. "Has a gift become so strange to you?"
Elyon got a little smile on her face. "There's more to it than simply being a gift."
N smiled too. "Indeed, there is. Very well. You see, Elyon, I came here to try and find out if you were still alive. And you are. And I see you are in not such a good shape…" he pointed at her skinny body and her ripped clothing "so, I thought I'd teach you some magic. This jewel will remember those spells, so you can use them at any given time."
Elyon seemed delighted at the news, then became suspicious again. "How can I trust you? You're just a stranger I met about…a few minutes, hours ago? I don't know, I don't have a feel for time anymore. Besides, I can't use…"
Elyon wanted to say something, when a guard entered. She decided to shut it for now. The guard came closer with two plates. He threw them off the stairs, and they flipped over on a stair. The food tumbled through the air and hit the ground in front of the cage. The drink tumbled over and the water flooded into the ground, leaving only a small amount of water left in the glass. Elyon immediately rushed to the front of the cage and stretched her arm to try and get the food and the remainder of the water. The guard laughed as he saw her misery. N did not bother to try and get the food and water, not even when the guard looked at him, as to see his reaction.
'He is probably waiting until I snap. Well, then he can wait for long. I've eaten today, so it won't be today. And I'll make sure it won't happen in the future, either. And Elyon will also not give him that pleasure in the future.'
When the guard noticed he wouldn't do anything, he looked at Elyon, who was still desperately trying to get to the food and water, but she couldn't reach it.
"Better luck tomorrow, kid!" He said, laughingly.
He then closed the door and the light dimmed, with a small ray going over N's face for the last second. N looked for a few seconds as Elyon tried getting her food and water. She hungered for it. He had hoped to find her in a reasonable state, if he would find her. He had wanted to make her an ally for his cause, if he might need one. He would've taught her a few spells and if he needed her he would help her escape. But she was too weak to be of any use. Her behavior and her habit of ripping her clothes open made her seem mad.
"Elyon, do you know magic?"
Elyon looked at him for a second, dumbfounded, then tried reaching for the food again.
"Not as far as I know."
"Pity." N said, as he snapped his fingers.
The food on the ground got back to the plate, which was now floating in the air, and dumped all filth. The water rose back from the ground and refilled the glass again. It all got to the plate and came close enough for N to take it through the bars. He took it and took a bite of the loaf of bread. He drank some water. He looked at Elyon, who was looking dumbfounded at him.
He snapped his fingers again and the same happened for Elyon's food. Elyon happily started eating.
"This bread is a bit old. I think I'd prefer something else. Like a baked egg, that would be nice."
He snapped his fingers and his loaf of old bread changed into a baked egg. Elyon's eyes became bigger.
"You wished you could do this too, wouldn't you?" N asked, getting heavy nods from Elyon. "You can. You are magical, Elyon."
Elyon looked at him. "Really?"
N nodded. "Yes. And I can teach you these small tricks…and more."
Elyon looked at him and she nodded.
"How is it with the whole trust thing?" N asked, with a small smile.
"I think I can make an exception on my usual views and I think I can trust you." Elyon said, cheerily.
Elyon seemed happy to learn that she could use magic and would be able to eat properly. N still didn't know if this was a good idea. He would be training a possibly mad girl how to use magic. Powerful magic. Would this girl be able to control it. He would have to train her in controlling herself, becoming fully sane again. Then, a thought came to him. There was, of course, an easier way. A way, to put her powers to good use. He played with the thought. It was a thought he had had before, once. It felt as an old friend returning to him.
"Elyon, you say you have no idea why Marcus put you here."
Elyon nodded. "Yes. Why bring that up again."
"So, to say he put you here unrightfully is a good claim, right?"
Elyon thought a second about this claim. "I guess. Yes."
"And would you not crave for revenge?" N asked, his voice having great emphasis on the last word and seemingly having persuasive power over it.
Elyon thought. "Yes…"
Her eyes were a bit duller than normal. N had enchanted her to give in. He had been suppressing this thought for a long time. But this time, it was for the greater good. He was sure he could handle it.
He was about to speak the words, the enchantment, when a memory emerged.
"Give me the Heart! Come with me!"
"Your desire for something you cannot, should not have, is the chink in the armour of your soul...And that's all I need to make you mine!"
N dropped his food and breathed heavily. The thought of the memory brought back the imagery that accompanied it. Elyon noticed.
"Something wrong?"
N looked at her. The urge to take her powers for himself subdued. The memories of darkness had saved him from the darkness once again. He tried controlling his breathing.
"No," N said, his voice as calm as he could possibly make it at the moment, "Nothing's wrong."
Elyon didn't seem to buy it, but didn't question it. "Ok."
N looked at the jewel he still had in his hand. He handed it to Elyon. "Here. I already told you what it did. Tomorrow, I will start teaching you some spells."
Elyon happily nodded. That being said, N was trying to figure out which spells he should teach her. They couldn't be too advanced, but she had to make an impact if she needed to. He looked at her and saw the energy leaking away from her. The Heart's power…he shook his head again. He would not take her powers from her. After all, that was seemingly already being done. He placed his fingers against his forehead. What spells would he teach her. Perhaps a spell to retract her lost energy to her? That seemed a good spell to teach her. As long as she still had some magical power and a connection, she could use it to reabsorb her powers. It wasn't too hard of a spell either. He would also teach her the spell to transform food. She had to gain weight. He should probably limit her ability to use the spell, since, if she would start eating too much at the same time, she might get sick. And he could not use that. A mediocre attacking spell and a defensive spell would do nicely, then she would at least have a little impact on a battle. Even if she would just be a diversion, every second counted in a duel. Would the enemy, in this case probably Escanor, be distracted for just a second, that might take him out.
Elyon placed her plate on the ground and lay down on the ground. She had a big smile on her face.
"Sir…"
"Call me, N, dear."
"N, what spells are you going to teach me, then? I'm curious now."
N smiled. "That'll be a surprise."
Elyon stayed silent, perhaps accepting this answer, perhaps knowing he hadn't figured out which spells to teach her yet. "Fine, then."
She curled up to a ball. "I'm going to sleep."
N smiled. Of course she hoped that, if she slept now and woke up, tomorrow would have come and he would start teaching her. N thought about the spells he would teach her. The spells he had in mind seemed a good start. He thought he should sleep too. He placed himself against the wall, used some magic to make it feel like a bed, and fell asleep.
…
Taranee was sitting in N's chamber, still reading the book he had given her. She was fascinated by everything in the book. She was wondering how she would be able to apply this. It seemed like the magic was so hard to do that nobody could do this on his own. Taranee wondered who else would have such a high mastery of water, earth, air or quintessence so that she could practice these forms.
As she pondered, she looked outside. She noticed it had become dark outside and she looked at the clock. It was two o'clock in the morning already. She had been reading for ten hours straight. Not that she cared, it was interesting material she was studying. If the material was interesting enough, she was willing to stay up a night.
Taranee thought it time to go home. She picked up the book and placed it in the bookcase. She walked towards the door and snapped her fingers, then opened her hand. The flames on the torches all rushed towards her hand and formed a big flame, leaving N's chamber dark.
She walked to the staircase. The hallway felt cold at this time of the night, all light sucked out of it by the dark of night. The only light was her flame and it gave Taranee a ghostlike appearance. The paintings of Marcus Escanor and his family on the walls seemed to follow her every step with their eyes. Taranee even thought the eyes moved along, following her tracks. She could use magic to make sure, but she didn't think it to be necessary. It probably was just a figment of her imagination.
She opened the door to the staircase, the door handle cold due to the night. She looked up and saw a small light flicker close by. The light came downstairs. She didn't want to hold this person up, so she waited in front of the door. A man in long robes appeared in front of her. He wore black robes, with red ends at the arms and a red circle around his feet. He had long blonde hair and he seemingly had small rubies in his forehead. The middle ruby was as big as the nail of a thumb. His chin was covered in hair, showing he wanted to grow a beard. He also wore a crown, indicating he was of the Royal Line. It was a golden crown, simple in design. It was circular, with signs resembling the Fleur-de-lis sticking upwards, with rubies placed inside the fleur-de-lis. He was holding a candle.
The man looked at her and she immediately recognized him and bowed. He seemed to recognize her too.
"Taranee," he said with a small nod, acknowledging her presence. "What a pleasant surprise. Why oh why are you out here at this hour?"
"Lord Phobos," Taranee said as she rose. "I was studying and forgot the time, my liege. I was planning on going home. But why are you here at this hour?"
She immediately clasped her hands in front of her mouth, as if she realized she shouldn't have said that. Phobos merely smiled at her.
"Don't fret, it's fine. I couldn't sleep and thought a small walk would do wonders. It seems it's only refreshing me and waking me up, however. Such a shame. I might as well look at the garden. Or should I bring you home?"
Taranee was surprised. The heir of the kingdom had just offered to bring her home. Perhaps…he fancied her? Or was he just being a gentleman, such as required of a prince?
"If you wish."
Phobos smiled at her. "Very well. Then I shall bring you home."
Together, they walked downstairs. The staircase seemed cold and void. There were no candles or torches to light the way and the windows provided only some moonlight to lighten the path. Phobos put out the candle, relying on Taranee's fire to show the way. He touched the walls along his path and lead the way. Once downstairs, they took the path to the front doors. The main hall was colourful and warm and light. There were four tables with 2 candles on each of them. There were large paintings on the walls, from different countries and artists. The floor was covered in carpets. They met with some guards on duty. When Phobos told them he was bringing a girl home, the guards bowed and opened the front doors for him. The archers were on guards, in case somebody was about to ambush their prince. Phobos and Taranee walked outside and the doors slowly shut behind them.
As they walked through the garden in front of the castle, Phobos stopped to admire the plants. Some of them seemed to murmur or whisper things. Taranee rose an eyebrow and closed her eyes to hear what they said. Phobos noticed and smiled at her.
"They're called murmurers. They whisper the names of people who have been in the garden today. They are some sort of secret security. These plants are very rare, but since I am fond of flowers, great-grandfather let them come over."
Taranee opened her eyes to Phobos' warm smile. They walked further, past the private houses on the castle grounds. In one of those houses, Cassidy and Caleb lived. Since N was fond of Cassidy, Marcus had let Cassidy live in one of them. When Caleb was born, he simply lived there too.
Phobos suddenly seemed alerted. Taranee was confused as to why, but then she heard it too:
'Unknown…unknown…unknown…'
The murmurers kept chanting the words in a slow rhythm, only audible to the two of them. Phobos seemed to know how the plants worked, as his eyes glanced into the distance. He rose his hand and a small blue glow appeared in the distance. A man was shot from the place and he landed right in front of Phobos and Taranee. The castle doors immediately opened and guards quickly made their way to them. Phobos let the intruder bow to him by force. He then rose his hand and the man looked at him in utter shock. A blue aura came from Phobos' eyes as he looked at the man. The blue aura fell and the man collapsed on the ground. The guards arrived and immediately took the man in.
"I'm sorry, my lord. He was still out of our vision range when you noticed him."
"Do not worry, it was not your fault." Phobos said, making the guards look at each other with eyebrows risen, "That's why I planted these murmurers, to up the security, even in the most hidden of places."
Phobos made a sign with his hand, showing they could go. The guards quickly left with the prisoner.
"Sometimes, people get the ridiculous idea of assaulting us while we're at the castle. Utterly mad, of course. We still don't really know why. Our guess is they want to hit the king, Marcus Escanor, in his family. He's surely made some enemies in his lifetime."
Taranee nodded. "I guess so. I wouldn't understand why they would assault you for a personal reason. You're very kind."
Phobos made a small bow and nodded at her. "Thank you, Taranee. That means a lot to me."
They walked over the castle grounds and approached Cassidy and Caleb's house. Taranee looked at it and Phobos noticed.
"Do friends of yours live there?" He asked.
Taranee nodded. "Yes. You might know his name. Caleb. He lives there, together with his mother, Cassidy."
Phobos seemed to think. After a while, he spoke.
"Ah, yes. Of course. He recently promoted to the ranks of general? I assume you speak of that Caleb?"
Taranee nodded. "Yes, why? Do you know more Calebs?"
Phobos smiled at her. "Why, yes. I knew this Caleb from the Western country of Idylswylde. And another prince called Caleb III of Lowharth. Perhaps a few more, but I can't remember them as clearly as those two. And then we have our own protégée, Caleb, son of Cassidy."
A light went on in Cassidy and Caleb's house. Taranee and Phobos wondered why the light went on and walked over. Caleb opened the door, a candle in his hand and saw the two of them coming towards him.
"Hi, Caleb." Taranee said. "This is prince Phobos."
Caleb bowed to him and Phobos smiled, then shook Caleb's hand. "I have wanted to meet our very own protégée for some time now."
Caleb smiled. "And I have wanted to meet with our crown prince for some time. You are a member of the High Council?"
Phobos nodded. "Indeed. I heard you would have been allowed to enter, had you already been in the field a few times."
Caleb nodded. "Yes, indeed. But, rules are rules."
Phobos nodded and stroke his beard. "Indeed."
Taranee then interrupted their little chit-chat. "Caleb, why are you awake at this hour?"
Caleb turned his attention to Taranee. "I couldn't sleep. I already had a bad feeling this night and now it seems they've taken N custody. I was just on my way to the castle when you arrived here."
Taranee gasped and Phobos stopped stroking his beard.
"Taken N custody? You've got to be kidding me? That's an outrage!" Taranee exclaimed.
"Don't worry, Taranee." Phobos said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Caleb, calm yourself. Great-grandfather told me about this. N defied a command and to teach N some respect he locked him up for a week. He'll be free in a week. Don't worry. At least, that's what I heard from him."
"Teach him some respect?" Caleb asked, "N is the most respectful man I know!"
"That may be so, Caleb, but N defied a command in the face of the Grand General, That's unheard of. Therefore, N has been locked up. Alas, that's what I have heard. I can't tell you more." Phobos responded.
Caleb breathed heavily, clearly upset with the idea that N was imprisoned. Phobos went to their garden and looked at the flowers. He sniffed some of them and smiled. Taranee was talking to Caleb. Taranee clearly was upset and Caleb tried to calm her down.
"But why would they imprison him? What am I to do in the meantime?" she asked, distressed.
"Did he leave you a command before he last left you?" Caleb asked.
Taranee thought for a little while.
"He told me to study the element of fire from a book…"
Caleb looked her in the eye. "Then you should keep doing that."
A thought hit Caleb. "Did he give you a time to stop?"
"Until he returned, the chamber was mine and I could use it to study fire."
Caleb nodded, before he whispered. "I see. I think…he might have planned his capture."
Phobos stopped looking at the flowers and his interest was caught. He did, however, only pick up fragments of the conversation before this, not being interested. He had heard the word 'planned' and his interest was caught. But due to them whispering, he couldn't hear much of the following conversation.
"What do you mean?" Taranee asked.
"Well, if he said something like that…I think he might have planned for this to happen. I think he planned his capture. Perhaps he wanted to find something there." Caleb explained.
"Like what?" Taranee asked. "And why are we whispering?"
Caleb shrugged. "I don't know his intentions. Whatever or whoever he's seeking down there, it has to be important, otherwise he wouldn't do it. And we're whispering because we're in the vicinity of a man who can say all of this to Marcus, and I doubt N would want that."
Phobos looked up at the sky, not being able to follow their conversation completely.
"I'm getting tired. I guess this evening walk is doing me well, after all. Say, Taranee, shall I bring you home now, then?"
Taranee looked at him. "Yes, sorry. I guess we kinda dawdled off. Sorry, Caleb, we've got to go."
Caleb nodded. With this new insight, his mind was calmed. His heart, however, was not.
"Very well. Keep studying fire. Good night, Taranee. Phobos."
Caleb then went inside and the lights dimmed. Phobos led the way and Taranee followed him. Together, they walked through the cities main streets. They were lit with oil lamps, and the streets were well paved. The houses were close to each other, to make use of the room most effectively, and there was no green in between the houses. All houses were dark at this hour, and had a gloomy shade around them. Taranee didn't feel comfortable, though it seemed Phobos felt fine.
They continued until they came to a small alley. Taranee awkwardly smiled.
"I live in that alley. I don't have the best house to live in…"
Phobos rose an eyebrow. "But, surely you can live with Cassidy or N?"
Taranee's smile disappeared. "They could, but I actually like it here."
Phobos immediately rose his hands to his shoulders, knowing he had said something bad.
"I didn't want to imply you could not…"
"I know," Taranee said, with a small smile. "Don't worry."
Phobos exhaled and lowered his hands.
"Thanks for bringing me home, my liege." Taranee said.
"Call me Phobos."
"Of course, Phobos." Taranee said.
They then stood there, awkwardly, for a little while.
"I really should go inside." Taranee said, slowly moving to the door.
"Oh, yes. Of course." Phobos said.
Taranee opened the door and was gone. Phobos got a small smile on her face and teleported back to the castle.
…
The next day, N started teaching Elyon magic. Over the week, she learned some basic magic, like how to change her food, change her drink to something she liked and how to influence the minds of those who do not know magic. The guards were suddenly a lot nicer. She also learned a basic offensive and defensive spell, as well as a spell to gain information from a person. At least now she would be able to defend herself might the guards try something funny. And now, N was placing a spell on her, as he had seemed intrigued by something she didn't completely follow. He said it had to do with her magical potential, but she didn't really understand it.
N had his hand risen, pointing it in the direction of Elyon, and was murmuring words. Elyon just sat silently. N rose his other hand and Wiera's jewel floated in front of Elyon.
"Imminur ato incantio vocale." N whispered.
The jewel shone for a second and then fell in N's hand. He exhaled and placed it around Elyon's neck. Elyon wanted to speak but N quickly hushed her.
"Listen, when you speak, the first word you say will be the trigger word for the jewel. As I explained to you, somebody is…keeping your magical potential in check." N said, the last part slowly. "This jewel contains a powerful spell which will protect you if you trigger it. The next word you say will trigger that spell. Only use the spell when you are in mortal danger or when I say so. Make it a word that you know, but not often use. Preferably a word that others don't know or often use."
Elyon thought for a while about this word. She then opened her mouth and said the word:
"Honorificabulus."
N blinked a few times. That was quite an excentric word. He rose an eyebrow. Elyon seemed to notice.
"What?"
N smiled. "Nothing, just…excentric. Not heard that word before."
"Then it's perfect, isn't it?" Elyon asked with a smile.
N gave an approving nod. "I guess so."
The door to the cell opened. N and Elyon immediately covered their eyes and Elyon got back into the shadows. N got closer to the bars and noticed the guard come down the stairs with the key in hand.
"Time's up, archmage. You're free once more."
The door opened and N got out of the cell. Elyon tried to make a rush for the exit too, but the guard stopped her in her tracks. N rose his hand towards Elyon, indicating she shouldn't resist. His eyes were deep and Elyon looked at his face and saw the mysteries in them. The mysteries of who he was, what he did, why he did it and what game he was playing. She didn't know the answer to any of them. Elyon tried to probe N, find out his intentions. She felt the magic just fall off of him. Instead, she heard his whisper in her head.
"You will get your playtime and freedom. But stay here for now, it's much safer here."
Elyon hadn't noticed, but the guard had already released her a while ago and had closed the cell again. He and N walked up the stairs. N looked around to Elyon one more time and then the door close again, leaving Elyon all alone in her cell, to ponder the last week and refeel the joys she had felt when meeting this person, the archmage, her friend and mostly her teacher, Nicholas.
Outside the door, there was another guard, who held N's staff. N immediately grabbed it from his hand and inspected it, even searching it with magic. Apparently nothing had been done to it. Still, he would examine it when he got to his chamber to make sure. Magic always left its marks. The guards escorted him out and then he was outside again. It was late in the evening, as N could tell by the amount of light the city generated. He immediately left for Cassidy's house, to tell her he was alright. And to tell Caleb he was alright.
When he arrived, Caleb immediately rushed outside to meet him, Cassidy close behind him.
"Oh, we were so worried!" Caleb exclaimed, near tears. "I thought you were going to lose your mind in there!"
N stiffened. Caleb didn't notice, but Cassidy did more than so. She rose her eyebrows and widened her eyes, but N gave her a meaningful stare.
"Of course not." N said with a smile. "I'm fine. Now, I want to hear what you have been doing the past week. Then I'll tell you what I've been doing…if sitting in a cell, meditating is that exciting to you."
Caleb laughed. "At least you still have some humour left."
N smiled and together they walked inside the house. They sat at the dinner table and Cassidy made them something to eat, correctly guessing N was starving, as his stomach pointed out.
"At first, I was really worried and almost rushed out of the house in a rage…" Caleb started.
"Almost rushed out?" N asked, raising an eyebrow, having a little smile on his face.
"Ok, I rushed out of the house." Caleb admitted, making N and Cassidy smile at each other. "But before I could do anything, Taranee and Phobos showed up."
N rose his eyebrow and wanted to speak, when he noticed Cassidy's stare. She didn't like it when N interrupted herself or Caleb, the former interruption being an exception for she too had to smile at it. So he shut up.
"Taranee was in distress when I told her you had been locked up, while the Crown Prince seemed relatively calm about it. I comforted Taranee and Phobos brought her home. Coming to think of it, I don't even know why they were together in the first place. Anyways, Taranee has locked herself up for the past week in your chamber, studying fire. I have been meeting with the Grand General two times, he apparently wants me to go to Cryssandor and secure some of those jewels. The next time he wanted to tell me the plans, but he had to cancel the meeting for some important event."
N and Cassidy looked at each other and Cassidy nodded. Caleb continued.
"For the rest of the time I've been visiting Taranee or helping mom. That was my week."
N smiled. "It seems like you have had an eventful week. Get some sleep."
"You would tell me how your week has been, N." Caleb said, rejecting the last order. He also noticed N had just said something to make him leave. Well, he wasn't planning to just yet.
N smiled at him. "Indeed, I did say that. Well, I have mostly been sitting on the floor, meditating. I also heard a lot of foul names being yelled to me by other prisoners. The next day, they had lost their tongue. Literally." He chuckled at the thought, while Caleb shook his head.
"Don't worry," N continued, "They were back the next day. Anyways, I've also eaten. And drank water. That's basically it. That's what I've been doing the past week."
Caleb looked at him. "That sounds…dull."
N shrugged. "It's a prison. What did you expect?"
Caleb had to admit that was indeed what he could have expected. So, he decided to let the matter rest.
"And now, off to bed you go. It's late and I think you have another meeting with Marcus tomorrow, am I correct?" N asked.
Caleb seemed surprised. "How did you know?"
"I'm an archmage, Caleb." N said calmly. "I'm supposed to know these things."
Caleb's mind being put to rest, he decided he could use some sleep. He said goodbye to N and kissed his mother on the check, then went to bed. As soon as Caleb was out of hearing range, Cassidy turned to N.
"How did you know Caleb had a meeting with Marcus tomorrow?"
N smiled. "It was as good a guess as any, just more likely."
Cassidy smiled and shook her head. She took a seat. N got closer.
"The event Caleb spoke about…"
Cassidy nodded. "Yes, another Necromantic session."
"I didn't feel anything." N said, "Could it be that the necromancy can't get into the dungeons?"
Cassidy placed a hand on N's chest and channeled some of her former guardian powers to discover if something had happened to N.
"The left side of your chest is rotten and decayed. It shows bones."
N looked under his robes and saw that was indeed the case.
"How did I miss that?" N wondered.
Cassidy seemed fatigued. N got up from his seat and supported her. "Are you alright? You know channeling your powers drains your life force, Cass."
"I'm fine. Thanks, sweety." Cassidy responded.
N smiled at her and gave her a kiss. Cassidy looked at him.
"Why did you let yourself get locked up? I know you, you had a reason."
"I've found her." N said, almost immediately. "Locked up, starving, but alive."
Cassidy seemed confused. "Who are we talking about?"
N's eyes got bigger and he looked at her eyes. Cassidy seemed to have found out.
"Elyon?" She whispered. "But we believed her dead!"
"No, she is not, Cassidy. She's alive, starving, but alive." N said. "And she's magical, too. However, her powers are being drained from her. I don't know by who. It's a variable I hadn't foreseen. I thought I might find Elyon down there, but this…"
Cassidy looked at him. "Does the plan change?"
N shook his head. "No, it does not. I am still aiming to bring Caleb to the throne. And, perhaps, this affaire at Cryssandor will give us the chance."
Cassidy nodded and N rose. "But now, something else must be done."
Cassidy rose an eyebrow. "And what might that be?"
"It is time to assemble the Guardians." N said, the Heart of Kandrakar shining softly on his staff.
Cassidy seemed confused. "Hadn't you already found them?"
"Oh, yes, I have." N said, cheerily. "But finding is something different than assembling them, is it not?"
…
The man walked into the throne room. It was empty. The man wore a dark green robe, with a cross-like light green armour over it. It had lines on them, making it look like the body of a snake. He had blond hair and was wearing a small black ring. He looked around to make sure nobody was around. He had the feeling he wasn't alone. And he was correct. In the distance, a man approached. A crown was on his head. The snake-like man bowed.
"Prince Phobos."
"Cedric," Phobos said. "Tell me. Did the archmage do anything to my sister?"
Cedric rose. "As far is I have seen, nothing has changed. The link is still applied. You are still absorbing her powers. She was, however, wearing a necklace. A jewel of your late mother's crown."
Phobos' eyes widened. "She did not have that when she was put in the dungeons! It must have been that archmage's doing, He has been there!"
Cedric bowed again. "My liege, I did not see anything unusual to it. Then again, it might be a magical object and it can only reveal its secrets when magic is used."
Phobos nodded. "That might indeed be the case. I will check on that personally. I do not trust that archmage. He may be meddling in my plans…"
Cedric looked at Phobos. "And your own mission, if I may ask?"
Phobos grinned. "Yes. I have met the archmage's student. Her name is Taranee. Such a nice girl. She was flattered when I brought her home. I think she might even like me."
Cedric smiled. "So it was a success."
"Oh, yes." Phobos responded. "Certainly. She will trust me soon, if she doesn't already."
Phobos his enthusiasm fell. "The jewel concerns me greatly. That archmage may not meddle with my plans. Even if he doesn't know that he is meddling with them, I don't want any unkown variables at work."
"What are you planning on doing?" Cedric asked.
Phobos thought, then grinned. "This thing that is happening in Cryssandor…perhaps the events there can work in our favour…we shall see how that works out. For now, I think I'll have to go and see my baby sister…"
[A/N] So, instead of two forces going for Cryssandor, we now have a third player in the form of Phobos, who is apparently manipulating Taranee into liking him. And he's also draining Elyon of her powers. Cedric visited N when he had left to investigate if this was still the case, too. Clearly Phobos fears N might screw up his plan…This can only be a prelude for one thing: a whole lot of trouble. Cryssandor's going to be one hell of a mess after this is done. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Review if you want :D [A/N]