K ing Caedmon, Brave Camp, Western District…
“This is what’s happening,” Caedmon announced quickly. He seemed to be moving at a hundred miles an hour, pacing around the room and speaking so rapidly that he had to take gulping breaths to refuel every fifteen seconds. Cal and Dom stood just inside the locked room and looked at the rest of the members of Caedmon’s meeting.
Caedmon’s brothers stood together across the room. Sebastian had a drink in one hand and was still covered in the mud from his wrestle with one of the Rebel commanders. To the side of them were Creedwater and Jonas, standing silently and attentively as ever to Caedmon. Waiting more uncomfortably by the wall next to the door were Jaz and Lex. Lex’s uniform was torn from a skirmish with one of the Rebels, but she was otherwise unhurt.
“Dom,” Caedmon whirled around, pointing at the shell-shocked teen, “We need to know whose side you’re on. And the only way I can conceive of to deal with it quickly is to take you to the Oracles and have them tell you the second half of your fate. But because I don’t want to make fifty dangerous and risky trips to the Capitol, the rest of you are coming with us.” Caedmon spun back to face the older men, “Except for you two. You’re only here so you can get clued in on what’s happening.”
“Wait, King Caedmon,” Jonas interjected desperately, “what if you’re caught? If you’re caught the war is over! The Rebels will have you, our king, and the only to people that can replace you!”
“I know, but I’m risking one trip and not two, Jonas,” Caedmon said. He turned to Sebastian and Zander, anticipating their questions before they left their mouths. “You two are coming because if there is ever a time for the Oracles to tell you anything it would be now, during a war.” Caedmon turned to Lex and he saw the girl whom he’d fought alongside with countless times in the past six months.
‘She’s talented. I can’t see her being anything other than a Brave. I can’t even count how many times our situations have been flipped onto their heads, and every time it is always her who shakes of the confusion and adapts to it first.’ Caedmon imagined her torn uniform decorated extravagantly with badges of honor and high ranking.
“You, Alexandria Peck, are headed down a career path that will take you to the Oracles’ pool. That is why you’re coming.” Caedmon faced Cal Campbell. He held Caedmon’s gaze respectfully, yet still with the rookie-like fear behind his eyes.
‘I almost didn’t recognize the Briar Farms swimmers last night,’ Caedmon thought. ‘For a moment I actually thought he had traded the whole group for Delphinia’s finest and nothing less. Cal turned those recruits into subaquatic weapons of mass destruction. He’s going to be a commander, I can see it already. He’s made the list—right now he practically owns the list.’
“And you, Cal, are walking down the same path as Lex. You’re coming in case the Oracles have anything to say to you.” Caedmon turned lastly to Jaz Campbell, whose future Caedmon had yet to fully decipher. He was still fourteen, and was only allowed to enlist because the Braves needed more soldiers in the dawn of Delphinia’s civil war. But Caedmon knew his three older brothers would be—were to be, in Russ’ case—famous and infamous one day. He could only assume it was in their genes.
“Same goes for you Jaz. Even though I am positive I have not yet seen your full potential, I am sure that fame runs in your family. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least to see the Oracles call you to the pool and tell us all just what will make you like your brothers.” Jaz blushed and looked at his feet.
“Great, everyone should be on the same page now,” Caedmon said, finally relaxing a little. “We depart in the morning at seven. Everyone needs to be well rested for the journey to the Capitol. So go now, be packed for four days max. I’m expecting two days. No one tells anyone outside of this room where we are going.” Caedmon faced the two adults,
“Don’t say anything until after we’re gone—and only say it to people who need to know.”
“Yes, sire,” they answered simultaneously. Caedmon looked back at the others,
“I said ‘go’ already, didn’t I?” he asked. Without another word the rest of the company exited Caedmon’s quarters.
D ominic Campbell, Brave Camp, Western District…
Dom held his arms out for balance on the rock. It was the last piece of land unsubmerged that Dom could see in any direction. The water rushed and bubbled up around him and Dom’s heart raced as the perilous waters slowly engulfed the rock he stood on.
A golden circle rose from the depths of the ocean around him. As it neared Dom made out shoulders on either side of the circle and hands pulling it towards the surface. The pale apparition broke the surface with a gasp and shook his head, sending the dangerous water everywhere. He grinned up at Dom and backstroked a few times.
“Come on in, Dom! The water’s fine!” He spun in a circle, dove under, and resurfaced with a splash. When the apparition saw that Dom hadn’t moved a muscle he stopped and treaded water. The level rose high enough that the cold sea grasped onto his feet. Dom yelped and pushed up onto his toes.
“Dominic!” the boy called more sternly. Dom lifted his fearful gaze. “Don’t be afraid of the water.”
Dom looked back down at the water, relaxing. ‘That’s right, I can swim. Ha, I can swim better than Jaz! What was I thinking?’
“Join me Dom! I have a feeling your swan dive is absolutely fabulous!” the boy laughed. Dom chuckled and pencil dropped into the cool water.
When he opened his eyes he was in the underwater, white-tiled room again, completely paralyzed as always. Dom tried to make out the source of light above him, but it was like rocketing up from the deepest part of the bay. He felt as if everything was speeding up, rushing faster, becoming brighter, and getting louder until he finally burst into the air.
Dom sat up and gasped for a breath, knocking heads with Jaz and falling back onto the mattress with a headache.
“Oh man, that looked like it hurt,” Cal said from the bottom bunk across the room. Jaz was speechless and clutching his head on his knees.
“By the Oracles,” Dom moaned, “I’m gonna have a goose egg there by morning. Jaz are you alright?”
“I’m poking you with a stick next time,” Jaz grunted. “On long enough I don’t even have to get up to use.”
“I’d be fine with that,” Dom said. “Or you could just throw something.”
“Figure it out in the morning,” Cal groaned into his pillow. “Go back to sleep.” Jaz went back to bed and Dom rolled over to keep sleeping; only he couldn’t fall asleep anymore.
‘What if Blaid heard my future and the Oracles won’t tell me because they already told him? Would that make this all pointless? What if we get caught? Caedmon really seems willing to risk everything just to talk to the Oracles. I wish I could remember where all the Rebel guards in the castle were stationed. That way I would know how to get us in without being noticed for sure.
‘What happens if we’re caught while Sagi is saying my fate? Would the Rebels have enough respect for them to wait? Or would they attack then and there? What would the Oracles do? They stopped the Braves from killing me on stage that night, but that’s because the Braves have respect for them. Do Cassandra and Griffin have the same reverence?
‘Griffin. I have to watch out for him. He’ll probably pull a trick from his sleeve at the last second or something. That’s what I need to be waiting for. Every corner we turn, every time we turn our backs, I’ll be waiting for him. As soon as I see that bastard I’m going to use what magic I have and obliterate him.’
D ominic Campbell, Brave Camp, Western District…
There was hardly anyone in the mess hall at six forty-five in the morning, and Dom appreciated the quiet calmness of the empty cafeteria. Lex silently joined them at a table to the side—the first person to sit with them since Dom had arrived. None of them spoke, leaving the silence of the mess hall unbroken.
Breakfast was over in a blink and they returned to their room to grab what they’d packed. Dom had the lightest bag, not owning anything that he needed to bring with him except clothes Cal was letting him wear. Dom had no book; the only one in their room was Jaz’s. He had no extra pairs of boots; Cal and Jaz were different shoe sizes than him. He had no weapon; Dom was positive he wasn’t allowed to possess one until Caedmon could trust him. All that was in the satchel were clothes and a toothbrush.
Caedmon, Sebastian, and Zander met them just inside the entrance. Jonas and Creedwater weren’t there; Caedmon didn’t want any more attention attracted to their departure than necessary. Caedmon didn’t hesitate once everyone was there, and stepped out of the Brave Camp and into the cold.
Dom remembered the dogs at the last second. He gave them a wide berth and eyed them cautiously. The dogs stayed where they were and disregarded the fact that they were leaving. Dom was relieved when they reached the top of the hill past the Brave Camp without incident.
‘Only a whole day of travel left to go,’ he thought.
The cold bit at any bit of skin left open to the elements, which for Dom were his face and ears. They seven trudged through the foot-deep snow for an hour until Dom’s muscles were screaming. They stopped finally by a frozen over creek. Lex passed around a still-warm thermos of mildly flavored tea for everyone to warm up a little.
“How much further?” Zander whined.
“Shouldn’t you know?” Caedmon asked. “Been this way twice already now haven’t you?”
“Once,” Zander corrected, “Blaid drove us back to the Capitol.” Dom almost choked on the tea.
“I can drive?” he gaped at Zander, who chuckled and nodded. “Could,” Dom corrected. “Now I can’t remember anymore.” Cal laughed,
“Sucks for you.” Dom shivered and passed along the thermos, stuffing his cold fists into the pockets of Cal’s coat.
“Further ahead the snow shouldn’t be as deep,” Sebastian said, looking at a handheld. “Hasn’t snowed there in a while. We’ll be able to move faster.” Nobody commented; they only sat there for a few more minutes. Dom’s breaths came out in steam and Caedmon finally got back to his feet.
“We should keep moving,” he said. Zander groaned and Caedmon pulled him to his feet by his coat. “You are the whiniest prince if there ever was one, Zander.”
Sebastian was right about the snow becoming shallower, and the group was able to pick up speed. They passed the barn that Dom and Zander hid in while running from the Rebels and stopped inside in hopes of finding a little heat and a break from the cold. The barn ended up not protecting them from the wintery climate and the group didn’t remain there long.
They remained unnoticed throughout the day. Almost constantly on the move, Lex passed around the food she had packed. Dom took the bag from her for a while, reasoning that he had less to carry in the first place and that it was probably heavy from the food.
“Good news is that it gets lighter the longer we’re gone,” Dom said, pulling on the backpack. Cal scoffed,
“Bad news is that there’s less food the longer we’re gone.” Dom sighed and stuffed a handful of snow into his mouth. The snow at his feet was indented and Dom peered closer, at first thinking that he was looking at wolf tracks. But as he inspected the prints he picked out a shoe print.
‘Not wolves—these were dogs,’ he realized. Dom stood up quickly and looked in both directions that the tracks came from. He spun in circles to make sure there were none nearby, and kept his ears open for the sound of the dogs. He still remembered it from running for his life from them almost a week before.
“Dom, what is it?” Caedmon asked, noticing his alert manner.
“When we ran from the castle the Rebels tried catching us with dogs,” Dom said and the pointed to the tracks with a pale, cold finger. “These tracks are more than likely from them.” Now everyone was checking beneath their feet and searching the woods for the dogs and Rebels. They all held their breaths for a few seconds, each listening so intensely that the silence seemed to howl at them.
“We must keep moving,” Caedmon whispered so quietly that he was almost mouthing his words. Despite his quiet voice Dom still flinched at the break of the silence.
“We are close,” Sebastian whispered. “We should be there just past sunset.” Dom looked at the elongating shadows of the trees around them and estimated just how soon that was. He lifted his gaze and tried to pick out the castle through the leafless trees, but it was still too far and the opaque, white-grey clouds seemed to be too low and obscured his view.
They ran again, and Dom found himself trying to move in silence. He took long, slow breaths with his mouth and treaded lightly. The grey and brown trees whipped by swiftly and for a time all that Dom’s world seemed to consist of was white, brown, grey, and a little blue. The steam of his breaths hit him in the face, warmed it for a moment, and then froze as the winter breeze hit it.
“Bulwark,” Lex whispered to the guys, pointing to their left. They slowed to a halt and peered through the trees, also using them as barriers between them and prying eyes from the castle that was nearby. The broken ice was still greatly noticeable, but the water was freezing around it and keeping the uneven surface the way it was.
“By the Oracles, Dom,” Jaz gasped, looking around the lake at the fallen trees and broken ice. “You did all this?” Dom nodded even though he knew Jaz couldn’t see him from behind the tree.
“Can we keep moving?” Cal whispered, “The castle’s giving me more chills than the cold right now.”
“Agreed,” Sebastian breathed.
“This way,” Caedmon uttered, “We can finally put that secret entrance to use guys,” he said to the princes. Zander and Cal grinned and followed close behind their brother with the rest of the group on their heels.
The seven of them slid along the base of the castle’s towering outer walls with the icy stone and mortar surface gliding beneath their pressed backs. They moved towards the solidified waterfall. For the first time Dom noticed the gap between the wall and the ice. Caedmon didn’t hesitate to sit down and slide in the middle of the two of them. Then, backwards on his stomach, he pushed himself between the bars of a grate at the bottom; half submerged in the ice, and disappeared past the castle wall.
Prince Zander and Sebastian followed suit just as smoothly. Jaz was behind them and Lex entered next. Cal held out an arm for Dom to go after her. Dom pulled off the food bag that added size to him and pulled it behind him as he squeezed into the dark, claustrophobia-inducing gap. With his feet he found the bars and gradually, painstakingly wriggled through the tight spot and into a dark, even colder room.
‘Be wary of Griffin Stratta,’ he recalled eerily.
Dom squinted and groped the space with his eyes desperately for movement. He pulled the backpack back on and took a few blind and cautious steps forward. To his right a small, warm light illuminated the room dimly, but enough that everyone could see. Lex turned the flashlight as if to count and make sure everyone was there and then rest on Cal as he squirmed through the last of the grate.
‘He’s got it out for you just as much as Crane does,’ Dom thought hauntingly again. Chills trickled down his spine and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. There was a drip of water somewhere in the darkness and Dom imagined the Rebel leader standing out there in the abyss of black, simply watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
“Point the flashlight over here, Lex,” Caedmon whispered. She held it at his chest so the king wouldn’t be blinded. “Right next to me on the wall is a ladder in the wall that leads up to the main floor next to the inner portion of the river. It’s usually for maintenance that never happens, but we’re going to use it now. When I reach the top, I’ll stop the make sure the coast is clear. If Ahmet Sarin is right, then he disabled all access to security cameras before the castle was evacuated six months ago. Meaning they can’t use them to find us. Everyone got it?”
“Caedmon, let me go first,” Sebastian whispered. “If anyone’s up there, I don’t want your head to be the first thing they have.” Caedmon was about to argue, but instead sighed and stepped aside to let him go. Sebastian cinched his satchel up tighter and began moving up the ladder.
‘Be wary of her accomplice, Griffin Stratta,’ he remembered. Dom clenched his fists to stop his hands from shaking. ‘It’s just the cold making you shake. You’re fine.’ A boot scuffed behind him and Dom almost screamed when he saw Cal standing over his shoulder. Cal gave Dom a weird look and was about to speak when Lex did,
“Come on guys,” she muttered. “I’m going last since I’ve got the flashlight.” Cal nodded for Dom to go first again.
Dom grasped the freezing iron rung over his head in one hand and began pulling himself up the maintenance shaft. Gusts of cool wind blew down the tunnel and cut Dom through to the bone with icy nips. The shaft was longer than Dom realized, and gave him time to fear what lay waiting at the top.
‘Stratta’s there. Caedmon’s going to look through the top and come face to face with him. We’ll be caught; every one of us will be dead—except for me. I’ll be Blaid again.’
The moving bodies of the Braves above him made the shadows flicker and dance, and every time he imagined it was a Rebel standing at the top of the shaft.
‘At this point we’d have no time to get away before both exits are blocked,’ Dom thought nervously. A few more hand-over-hands and the group came to a stop. The silence seemed deafening to Dom and the walls seemed closer than before.
‘Keep calm, Dom. Keep calm and remember that Stratta has it out for you just as much as Crane does,’ the little voice in his head guided him. Dom took slow, measured breaths and listened with his eyes closed.
“Clear,” the whisper broke through the silence like a brick shatters a window. Lex moved on before Dom, and he made sure not to make anyone wait on him.
The warmth of the castle reached Dom near the top of the shaft and he pulled himself out of the manhole in the castle floor, rolling aside to give Cal room. Caedmon kept glancing over his shoulder tensely as he held the iron grate in his fingers. Lex and the Princes stayed vigilant while Jaz helped pull Cal out and guide the cover back on the hole as soundlessly as possible.
“Where to from here?” Lex whispered, keeping a steady hand on her sword.
‘He could be around any corner,’ Dom thought in his paranoia. His heart was racing and it suddenly seemed too hot inside the castle. ‘Hot like hell.’
Caedmon pulled out his sword and crept along the edge of the indoor river—the same one Dom had participated in his first interview with Rodney Kirk seven years before. ‘I wonder if he’s still around.’
The group followed in a cluster of apprehension. It occurred to Dom for the first time that day that he was the only one without a weapon. Dom didn’t complain; Caedmon still couldn’t trust him completely yet. But Dom could still wish that he had a little more than uncontrollable magic in his personal arsenal.
Dom vaguely remembered certain areas of the castle they passed through. They had to seldom stop to hide from anyone, which Dom found odd.
‘This place was always crawling with guards and people when it was the monarchy’s castle. I don’t like how empty it is here. It seems almost anyone could jump around the corner at any given moment.’
The barren castle had a haunting feel to it, and Dom wasn’t sure if the others could feel it too. It made his skin crawl and the hair on his arms stand on end. Every little sound sent his heart racing. Dom could almost feel the cold fingers of the dead Braves he left behind reaching for his neck like someone had all those months ago. Only their fingers were bonier, clammier, and sharper.
‘Oh Oracles, Russ’ ghost would be here too,’ Dom thought with terror. He imagined his brother simply appearing at the end of the hall before them, covered in his own blood, Blaid’s sword sticking from his side. Russ would reach out, bloody, clawing fingers and take Dom by the throat, strangling him until there was more life in Russ than in Dom.
‘Scaly eyes,’ Dom was reminded with a chill. ‘It’s like Scaly eyes is here to paralyze me and turn me back into Blaid—Scaly eyes with the rows of short, needle-like fangs, grey-brown pale skin, dark circles around his wretched, yellow-scaled eyeballs and scraggly, black Spanish moss hair framing that gaunt face of pure fright.’
They came around a corner Dom almost screamed. Cassandra’s face stared them down with unanswered intensity in her eyes. The massive painting took up a large part of the wall. Caedmon frowned back at the rest of the group.
“That’s supposed to be a king,” Zander breathed beside Dom. “More specifically it’s supposed to be Caedmon.”
Caedmon didn’t let it openly bother him for too long. They had a few more pressing things to worry about at the moment. Caedmon brought them to the end of the hall where he stopped again, shooting Dom a hating look. Dom frowned and looked past Caedmon, recoiling at what he saw.
To the right of Cassandra’s portrait was one almost just as big of the Blaid of the Rebellion. He held his sword drawn and in his left hand. Blaid sat in a chair and leaned forward, staring down at them as if he knew they were there and that they were all intruders to their own capitol. Dom was horror-stricken that he could ever look that terrifying. Blaid’s pale brown eyes were eerie and unnatural, adding to Dom’s chills even more.
On the left of Cassandra’s painting was Griffin Stratta. Dom almost had a heart attack when he turned and saw Stratta aiming his gigantic sword at Dom. Dom couldn’t even bring himself to look at the painting beyond that, and turned his gaze down the hall to make sure the area was still clear.
They moved on, and Dom recognized the familiar red carpet leading into the throne room. By this point the group couldn’t wait, and as soon as the throne room was in open view, they all began running for it, as if it were a safety zone. Sebastian and Cal slowed to a stop just inside, turning and checking for any Rebels nearby. Everyone had their swords nervously and preemptively drawn for the unknown danger they all sensed on its way.
They came to the font and stopped. Caedmon turned to Dom and sighed, as if already regretting what he was about to say.
“At least one must come up there with you, Dom, but you may choose who you wish for it to be. I have a feeling you may wish to have a little privacy with the Oracles, in case whatever is said turns out not to be the good news we thought it was.”
Dom was floored. Caedmon offering a little confidentiality to him? Dom was expecting that he’d want witnesses with him for whatever was said. He looked between the six other traveling members of the group.
“Your highness, if you would come,” Dom said. “They’ll be calling you up anyway. And since you’re king you should be first to know who has what cards laid out for them.” Caedmon nodded.
“Anyone else?” Dom shook his head; feeling relieved when there was no rejection in Cal or Jaz’s eyes. “Let’s get this done before the Rebels show up then,” Caedmon said, turning to walk up the stairs. Dom glanced at his brothers. Jaz gave him a supportive, quiet clap on the back and let him go.
In a natural synchronization, King Caedmon and Dom ascended the stairs towards the ancient and ever-clear pool of the Oracles. Taking deep, controlling breaths, they stopped in front of the pool and waited for the Oracles to begin surfacing. Dom glimpsed over his shoulder nervously towards the entrance of the throne room to make sure there was still no one there. He honestly half expected Griffin Stratta to be standing there with a sword in hand, waiting for Dom.
The Oracles didn’t come. Caedmon and Dom exchanged uneasy sideways glances as more time passed. Dom began counting, and when he reached fifteen seconds he was sure there was something wrong.
“What on earth?” Caedmon muttered in angry disbelief. “We come all this way, risk so much and they decide not to show up when we need them?”
“They said I could come back after I turned sixteen. Unless Blaid already…” Dom’s voice trailed off and he didn’t dare finish the sentence.
‘Keep calm. Be wary of Griffin Stratta. Don’t be afraid of the water.’
“Oh my God,” Dom gasped. Caedmon’s head snapped in Dom’s direction. “That’s what he meant.”
“Who? What are you talking about?” Caedmon asked anxiously.
“Trust me,” Dom said, kneeling down. He reached a hand out towards the clear water.
“What?! Are you insane?!” Caedmon hissed, yanking Dom back. “You can’t!”
“Tell me where that’s written your highness,” Dom said calmly. Caedmon searched for words but found none for an answer. He didn’t stop Dom from reaching down again and placing a flat hand just below the surface of the crystal clear pool, allowing the pure, cool water to envelop his entire pale-with-the-cold hand.
Immediately the waters churned without bubbles and Dom snatched his hand out. It was perfectly dry, he noticed, as he stood back up and stepped away. He could see the tops of their heads already nearing rapidly, like three rockets firing smoothly higher and higher. The heads broke the surface and with the dry water pouring off their ancient, flawless bodies walked up the few steps there were inside the pool.
Sagi, Achill, and Euphémia smiled at Dom warmly. ‘After all these years, it’s really happening.’ Dom forced a smile in return, but he knew it was empty. He just hoped the Oracles didn’t realize it.
“Welcome back, Dominic Campbell,” Sagi said. “It has been a long seven years, has it not?” Dom couldn’t speak; he only nodded.
“He’s here to hear his fate,” Caedmon said. “If Blaid hasn’t already.” The Oracles laughed.
“Why else would he come to the pool?” Sagi asked. “And you need not worry that Blaid has already heard your fate. He has not, no matter how many times he and Cassandra Crane attempted to call us to the surface. We have a fate to tell Dom, not Blaid.” Relief visibly washed through Dom and Caedmon.
“Dom Campbell, are you prepared to hear your future?” Sagi asked, using his fate-telling tone now. Dom nodded.
“I am, Oracle Sagi,” he replied confidently now. Sagi smiled,
“Good. Dom Campbell, this is the good news of your fate. First of all, you will play a key role in resurrecting the monarchy from the ashes of the rebellion.”
‘That can only partially clean my slate of all the bad news.’
“You will save many lives,” Euphémia stated. “Lives like that of your king,” she nodded to Caedmon, “like that of your brothers and his brothers, like that of Alexandria Peck and Josiah Creedwater, plus countless more.”
‘Still not enough to clear me for killing King Abraham.’
“And finally,” Achill began, the smile already bursting relentlessly across his face, “You, Dom Campbell, will one day be known as General Dominic Campbell of the Brave Army under his majesty the king, Caedmon, the successive leader of General Cecil Jonas.”
Caedmon and Dom gaped at Achill. Dom looked at Euphémia and Sagi for confirmation. Euphémia chuckled at their reactions, confirming the reality of it all. Somehow the bad news had seemed easier to believe for Dom.
‘I was twice a prisoner of the Braves, and they’re saying that one day I’m going to be their leader?’ Dom realized.
“Can you tell us when?” Caedmon finally asked.
“Nothing more, unfortunately,” Sagi told him. “That is all we have to say on this day, for Dom and for you, Caedmon.” Caedmon’s face fell and Dom realized just how much he’d been looking forward to hearing his future.
“Your time will come, Caedmon,” Euphémia told him sympathetically. “You will know. And you will not simply think you know when the time has come; you will be sure of it when the hour dawns. Worry not, Caedmon.”
“I suppose that means you have nothing to say to them either?” Caedmon asked, gesturing to the rest of the group at the bottom of the stairs.
“We do not. But that does not mean we have nothing at all to say to them,” Sagi said carefully. Caedmon couldn’t help but smile when he nodded.
“It is on that note we must leave. That is all we may tell you, Dominic Campbell,” Sagi said. “I shall try this again now, assuming you are in a more appropriate mood for it.”
Sagi stuck out his hand to Dom. A smile grew on Dom’s face as he recalled his reaction to Sagi’s handshake seven years prior.
“It was an honor to meet you, Dominic Campbell,” he repeated. Dom shook Sagi’s hand this time.
“There it is,” Euphémia nodded at Dom. “The part of you that has survived the past seven years.” Sagi’s hand fell to his side and the three Oracles retreated back into their watery residence in immaculate synchronization. Neither Caedmon nor Dom moved until they were no longer visible to the eye and the limpid water was still.
‘Maybe I can clear my name with it all,’ Dom thought. ‘It’s going to take a lot though. And it’ll be tough, because Jonas hates my guts. I don’t know if this will even change his opinion about me.’
“We can’t tell Jonas,” Dom and Caedmon told one another simultaneously.
“Oh,” Caedmon grinned, “Looks like we’re on the same page.”
“He hates me. Knowing that I’m going to replace him when he’s gone will only make old wounds worse for him,” Dom said.
“Exactly,” Caedmon nodded. “The question now is who do we tell?” Dom glanced back at the others.
“We should tell them at least,” he said. “They came all this way with us only to be put on hold by the Oracles.”
“Yes, good point,” Caedmon headed for the stairs and Dom went with him. As they descended Caedmon added, “Now that I think of it, you and Jonas have a lot in common.”
“But I don’t know anything about war,” Dom said. Caedmon scoffed,
“You know more than you think,” Caedmon said. “Cal told us about what you saw on the war table that morning. If he hadn’t mentioned it then we wouldn’t have had the upper hand in the Waratell battle.” Caedmon paused, “And the more I think about it, the more it seems like Blaid conceived the plan for that battle,” he smirked, “only to have you outsmart him days later.”
They reached the bottom of the stairs and Dom could see Jaz trying to decipher what the Oracles had said. Dom found that he was grinning uncontrollably again as Caedmon opened his mouth to tell the others what was going on.
“Well, to say the least, it was good news,” he smiled and everyone smiled with him. Dom looked past Cal’s shoulder and yelped, throwing up a hand,
“Look out!” The arrow swerved up towards the high ceiling and began dropping harmlessly to the ground. The Braves spun on their heels and faced them.
Cassandra laughed at the Braves, throwing back her head maniacally, uncontrollable black curls cascading over her shoulders. Behind her, silent and brooding, approached the one Dom had been warned about: Griffin Stratta, lowering a bow with no arrow and stopping next to his accomplice. He glowered at Dom in an inexorable and uncontained hatred which burned like a hellish fire in his eyes. Dom noticed two swords hanging at his hips. Revolving around them and holding a camera was a short man with brown stubble on his face. He panned the room and settled on the Braves for a moment.
“Clumsy, clumsy, Dominic,” Cassandra called out across the throne room. “You almost got your brother impaled with Griffin’s arrow!”
“Go!” Lex hissed, being the first to break out of the initial shock and pulling at the others’ sleeves towards the stairs. “Go while we’ve got distance!” They began to take a few steps back when all the thrones screeched across the floor until they piled up and blocked the stairs in their path.
“Come back to me Blaid!” Cassandra cried out to Dom. Fear shot up his spine and Dom felt panic rising in his gut.
“We’re trapped,” Jaz gasped. Dom shook his head,
“Not yet, we’re not,” and he raised a hand towards the thrones. The world was pulled out from under Dom and he hit the marble floor hard and fast. Before he could even think of getting back up, an invisible forced pulled him back, dragging Dom across the floor at a high rate. Cal scrambled to grab him, but Dom was out of reach too quickly.
“No! No! No! No!” Dom screamed, clawing at the smooth floors helplessly.
“Dom!” Jaz yelled. Cal held his arm to keep him from running too close to the Rebels. Cassandra’s magic brought Dom to a halt and flipped him onto his back where he came face to face with Stratta.
Dom swung, making sure he didn’t go down without a fight. Griffin roared in anger when Dom landed a solid hit and grabbed him in two fistfuls of Cal’s coat. He clawed at him as Griffin yanked Dom up and brought him crashing down on the solid marble floor as hard as he could manage.
Pain bloomed from the back of his skull and surged through his body. For a few moments Dom couldn’t even bother to move. The room around him spun three different directions at once and blurred like water bleeds ink. All sound came as if it was through a mud filter.
‘Well he certainly didn’t hold anything back,’ thought Dom through the pain.
Two arms wrapped around Dom and pulled him to his feet. The world twisted and turned like a kaleidoscope, slowly returning to normal focus. The arms held Dom close to the body almost caringly, but purposefully pinning his arms to his sides.
‘Focus. You need to stay focused,’ Dom pushed himself. He blinked away some of the fogginess and brought his gaze up to the Braves. Cassandra Crane nestled her head into the crook of Dom’s neck.
‘They need to go. I’ll live. I’ll make it back somehow for sure. They need to get out now while Cassandra’s occupied.’
“Why’d you have to go and take my Blaid from me, huh?” Cassandra asked Dom, holding him close. Dom tried pulling and leaning away, but he felt completely paralyzed. Fear coursed through Dom and he only began to panic more.
“Dom! Snap out of it man! Come on!” Cal yelled furiously. “Don’t just stand there!” Dom felt Cassandra’s jaw shift so she could face Cal.
“As a matter of fact, brother, all he can do is stand there as long as I keep him here,” she said, swaying and pressing Dom into her. Dom tried breaking out of her magic but he could barely get flinches out of his efforts.
“We missed you Blaid,” Cassandra said, her voice vibrating on Dom’s own neck because she was so close. She reached up with one hand and stroked his face. “Are you ready to come back home?” Dom tried pulling away again and Cassandra laughed deafeningly in his ear.
“Look at you struggle,” she cackled, then speaking to his ear so her breaths made him cringe, “Be still little kitten and I can turn you into a lion.”
“No,” Dom grunted, squeezing out the single syllable with all his might. Cassandra gripped the back of his neck and began rasping into his ear. He could make no sense of her words. The darkness outside of the throne room melted through the wide windows and flooded the rest of his vision. Dom was released from Cassandra’s paralyzing magic, and crumpled limply to the cool throne room floor.
“What are you doing to him?!” Cal shouted, hand flying instinctively to his sword as he began to guess the answer. Cassandra raised her head from Dom’s still body.
“Why should you care after what he did to Russ? Hm?”
“We lost him because of you people!” Jaz yelled, pulling at his sword as well, “You’re not about to take another brother from us!” Cassandra laughed,
“How adorable,” she said, looking at Griffin, “Blaid would just love to hear that.”
B laid of the Rebellion, The Capitol…
“Wake up, Blaid,” Cassandra commanded. Blaid’s eyes snapped open. He could hear shouting and looked for the source with excitement. Sitting up, Blaid couldn’t help but smile when he saw the heir to the throne, Caedmon, standing amongst his brothers and Blaid’s own brothers. Blaid laughed at their wide, terrified eyes gazing at him in fear. Cal and Jaz held their swords at him, as if they expected to battle with him.
‘I am far above their level of swordsmanship,’ Blaid thought haughtily. ‘They won’t even have the change to raise their blades before I kill them.’
Griffin Stratta, one of Blaid’s closest friends, held out a hand to help him up. Blaid took it and the sword and dagger he was handed once standing. Caedmon had a hand on his sword, but was obviously hesitating to draw it. Blaid smiled, knowing exactly what it was that made him falter.
‘The Oracles were bluffing for my sake,’ Blaid thought, ‘Dom is too weak for the real world and its harsh truths; he would have tried killing himself.’
“What a convenience Dominic’s brought us,” Blaid gestured to the Braves. “Isn’t it wonderful how I can recall everything, yet Dom is too feeble to do the same?” Blaid reveled in Caedmon’s reaction; his face became pale and his eyes grew wider.
“That’s right Caedmon; I know exactly what the Oracles have destined for him,” Blaid held his hands out.
“Tell us later Blaid,” Cassandra ordered impatiently, “I believe you have some unfinished business?”
‘Patience is a virtue she does not have,’ Blaid remembered with an inward eye roll.
“That’s right, I almost forgot,” Blaid smiled, pulling out his sword and settling his eyes on Alexander the second. Caedmon put himself between Alexander and Blaid defensively. Blaid only laughed.
‘Get out of my head!’ Blaid’s mind shrieked. Blaid blinked, but otherwise allowed no waver. ‘Was that me?’ he wondered. Blaid’s grip on the sword tightened and he extended his right hand.
Alexander was yanked to the floor. He screamed and scrabbled for some grip on the smooth tile floors. But there was none, and soon Blaid grasped the youngest former prince by the neck tightly.
“Stop it!” Alexander cried, twisting in Blaid’s grip.
‘Stop it!’ screamed Blaid’s brain again. Blaid squeezed Alexander’s neck tighter, ‘That was only Alexander. That wasn’t you,’ he reassured himself.
“Quit it, you pathetic little swine!” Blaid spat, holding his sword to Alexander’s throat.
‘Stop! Get out of my head!’ Blaid cringed and plowed on.
“Dom! Come back!” Jaz screamed. “You’re still in there, I know it!”
“Call for him all you want, he can’t hear you,” Blaid taunted, laughing at Jaz. He let go of Alexander’s neck and leveled the sword at him. “On your knees Alexander,” he ordered. Alexander didn’t move, he only gazed up at Blaid, tears of utter betrayal in his eyes.
‘I’m still here!’ the voice screamed. Blaid’s stomach turned sour and his skin felt clammy. The voice in his head roared now. ‘Put down the sword!’
Blaid raised his sword to spite the voice, his hand shaking sickly. He acted like it wasn’t happening and growled at the voice,
“I am in control. You cannot stop me.” A flash of confusion went across Alexander’s face. Blaid’s muscles contracted painfully in his arm, but he still pushed forward despite the fogginess filling his mind, despite the roaring in his ears and the screaming in his mind. He raised the sword squeezing his eyes shut tight for a moment and then blinking rapidly.
“Having trouble there, Blaid?” Alexander asked quietly with a poorly masked smirk, as if it was his final act of defiance: to be laughing at Blaid when he was killed. Blaid blinked again, exhaling through his nostrils.
He switched hands with the sword, tossing it into his right hand. Zander thought it was to show off or something, that he was ambidextrous and just as good with a sword in his right hand. He let his left hand rest on the belt Griffin gave him.
“How many times do I have to tell you?” he asked the prince. Zander frowned as he stared into his eyes. He leaned forward, speaking to Zander, but saying it loud enough for the whole throne room to hear. “Call me Dom.”
Dom pulled the dagger from his belt and spun, whipping the blade through the air and sending it towards the man he had been so warned about.
‘Be wary of Griffin Stratta, he has it out for you just as much as Crane does,’ Dom thought as the dagger Griffin had just given Blaid sunk up to its hilt in Stratta’s gut. His face was riddled with agony and, Dom thought as he lifted his head to face him, betrayal. Dom hadn’t seen so much emotion on Stratta’s face since the night he was first turned into Blaid.
‘No time to waste,’ Dom thought as Cassandra let out a wild scream that sent chills down his spine. He put the sword back in his left hand and pulled Zander to his feet.
“Go! Go!” he yelled, pushing him forward. Something threw Dom to the floor and he rolled over, using his untamable magic to fight back at Cassandra. She sent blazes of fire and bolts of lightning in his direction, and it was all Dom could do to avoid them and push her back. Griffin coughed and choked, collapsing heavily to his knees. Blood gushed from him like a crimson waterfall.
“Crane,” he gasped. Cassandra paused and Dom had to decide between further engagement while she was distracted, and flight. Looking over his shoulder, Zander had already reached the stairs with the Braves, and Dom knew what the choice had to be. Almost painfully, Dom turned from two of the people he loathed the most in this wretched world, and went after the Braves.
Out of the corner of his eye, Dom saw someone standing alone and fearfully. Dom skidded to a halt, eying the man with the camera who gawked back at him. The camera was still held in Dom’s direction, and caught the unbroken smile that grew on his face.
Dom held out a hand to the man—‘Emory Todd’, he remembered—and the camera flew out of his hand and into the air. Dom caught it, sheathed his sword and held out his hand again. Todd yelped, and the bag over his shoulder pulled at him sharply. Suddenly afraid of his own equipment, he threw off the bag and it sailed through the air to Dom.
Dom looped the bag over his shoulder and met the Braves at the stairs. “Go! Keep going! Go!” he urged them. Looking back, Cassandra ran forward a few steps, looked back at Stratta, still trying to decide between stopping them and saving her accomplice.
“Crane,” Stratta groaned, lying on the floor limply now. She looked back at Dom.
“Long live the monarchy!” Dom shouted at Cassandra, giving her the middle finger with his free hand. The Braves repeated him triumphantly and made their way for the balcony.
“Why are you still standing there?!” Cassandra screamed at the Rebels. “Do you honestly plan on letting them walk away?!” The sound of Rebel soldiers behind them drove the Braves onward and out into the night. Dom sprinted full out with the others, Emory Todd’s camera bag slapping against his leg. Rebels poured outside from the front of the castle and from behind them. Dom remembered this time to look over the edge of the balcony sooner.
“Here!” he shouted, sliding to a stop on the icy walk. The Braves stopped ahead of him and watched him with hesitation as he tightened the satchel and tucked the camera under his arm.
“Come on! It’s not too far!” he egged them on, swinging his legs over the railing. Zander followed him and soon the rest of the party did too. They dropped into the snowy hillside and tumbled, collecting patches of fluffy white on their clothes. They struggled to get to their feet in the knee-deep snow, but once they did Zander made sure to lead the way towards Lake Bulwark.
Dom trudged after them, legs burning with effort, and gazed up at the trees on the other side: their destination. ‘There’s no way we’re going to beat the Braves that way. And after escaping once that way, they already know where we’re headed.’
“This way!” Dom called out, changing course. They looked at where he was going and stopped.
“But we need to go that way!” Lex pointed to the woods.
“But we already went that way! They already know where we’re headed! We’ll never make it across Bulwark in time!” Dom insisted. “Besides, they have better defenses back there than this way!” Caedmon frowned apprehensively,
“How do you know that?” Dom smiled,
“I remember a few things.” Without any more insisting, he turned and headed off towards the mountains that lay beside Bulwark. By the time he looked back they were following, and Dom checked to make sure they had enough distance from any Rebels. A group was trying to skate across the lake to them. Dom reached out and punched the air. The ice before them exploded outwards, sending shards into the Rebels and every other direction. The ice clattered with light plinking noises onto the surface.
They came out of the deepest snow and picked up speed. Mountain winds whipping at them like slaps across the face from icy hands. The area around the lake began lighting up with the orange glow of torch fire as the Rebels started chasing after them.
The Braves trudged up the mountain ceaselessly, pushing their bodies to put just a little more distance between them and the Rebels. Dom and the six Braves seemed to disappear like ghosts into the night on the mountainside. The Rebels were left to catch nothing but the smoke of their torches with bare hands. Dom gazed up at the night sky, pure black as anything could ever be and impossibly wide with the silver stars watching them make their escape from the stolen Capitol of Delphinia.
‘I will bring it back,’ Dom thought with conviction. ‘And I will make sure Griffin Stratta and Cassandra Crane pay for everything they have put Delphinia through with their dignity, their joy, their courage, their comforts, their loves, and finally their lives.'