The Fragile Tower - Book 1 of the No.1 magical fantasy series

The Fragile Tower Chapter 33 - The Unlikely Hero

Ruidic's eyes sharpened on her, their ever-moving greens and blues troubled.

"I didn't see myself saving us, Grace. I saw you."

"And what was I doing?" she asked him, so absolutely certain that she was right that she knew his answer would confirm it.

"You were..." he broke off, and waved his hand in frustration, frightening the dragon-fly away. "It's hard to explain, because when I see, which is not often, it's all strange images which I have to interpret. But you were powerful, and you knew something that would save us..."

"It was understanding, that's all," Grace said, gently. "I could understand enough to tell you what to do. That was the power."

He shook his head, and made to protest again, but she insisted, "Look again. See if you can see now."

He gave her a wry smile. "You think it's as much under my control as that?" But at her determined expression, he shook his head with a sigh, and looked away from her, into the distance. For a moment, his eyes flashed a strong golden-green, and then he blinked, and gave a small sigh.

"All right," he said. "All right."

He looked out at the city, and seemed to be seeing something else. Whatever it was, it brought the same sadness to his eyes there had been when he sat with Benjamin.

Grace tried to smile at him, even though her own disappointment was a strong and bitter note in her mind.

"You get to be the hero," she said, "and in a weird kind of way, it suits you."

She was relieved to see him give one of his smirks, and looked back at her.

"Do you think you can tell me what to do without patronising me?" he asked her, mocking a little.

"I can't promise anything," she said, and then she stepped up to the glass again, sharpening her eyes on that army once again. They weren't far from Naian now, but the cold creatures had almost reached the wall. There were only minutes until they would pour over, and the cold mage would be here soon, too.

"You need to cast a living spell," she told him, as quickly and as clearly as she could. "It's something that will make sense to you, I think. All these plants and animals have life in them, and you undertand it. But this spell needs to be strong and complex enough to protect the whole kingdom."

Ruidic gave a snorting laugh. "There has never been a living spell that complex," he said.

"Yes there has," she told him, firmly. "That's what Cartheno's Fire was. A living spell, of the kind you understand without even having to try." She nodded out to the kingdom beyond the pane of crystal. "I don't know how, but this whole kingdom was built for this spell. It's been waiting for it. Every city has been built around roads that make up one of the thirteen symbols."

She pointed to Naian. "The symbol of revealing," she said. And she gestured to Jiescek. "The symbol of turning." And then she turned so that she could see Osciem. "The symbol of breaking."

She watched as Ruidic studied those cities, and an expression of wonder came over his face. "They've been this way for thousands of years... all for now?" he shook his head. "Who could have done that?"

Grace shrugged. "Someone with sight like yours, I guess All they needed was to see there would be danger here one day. And that's not so hard to predict in a world where there are nightmares and evanescents."

He held his hands out to the glass and traced those lines, and she saw that he understood more than she had told him. His mouth moved, silently for a moment, and then he said, "The people within the cities; and the army there marching. They will be part of it."