Chapter Thirty Seven
1144 Words
“Stephen? I don’t understand. W-what are you doing here?”
Luke bent down and hovered desperately over Stephen’s body. He touched him uncertainly, afraid to worsen his condition. Stephen was more than just a council elder, he was Luke’s mentor, his friend. And now, out of fear for magical creatures, Luke had run a sword through the wisest man he knew. What would he tell Sabrina once he returned to Chi? What would he tell his father?
“Come closer my child…”
Luke obeyed the hoarse whisper and brought his ear near Stephen’s hot mouth.
“You need to go back to Chi…It is critical that you obey to my plea…The people need a leader Lucas…”
“What are you saying Stephen? My father sits at the throne, Chi has a leader…”
Stephen knew he had little time before his magic departed from him leaving behind a grotesque, empty shell. Luke had yet to spot the dark veins forming rapidly on Stephen’s body. The prince had yet to discover what he truly was. Stephen knew that once Luke caught a glimpse of his true nature, his judgement would be impaired.
“Your father is dead Luke…”
As if stricken by a heavy blow, Luke catapulted backwards and landed unceremoniously on his behind. It was then that the sun began peeking from the horizon. Brilliant orange hued rays cast themselves across Stephen’s writhing body. Luke’s eyes darted across the dying man’s length. He began shaking his head violently; it just wasn’t possible. Stephen couldn’t be one of them.
“You…you are…you are…”
Stephen choked and coughed on his own blood while flaring his arms, desperate for human contact. He thought of his wife, her scent, her beauty. He thought of how she had fought for his life and how she had risked her own to keep her promise, to protect her kind. He thought of her formidable love for the night sky and how she was convinced that the stars were full of infinite wisdom. He thought of her fiery nature and her warmth…
Stephen cried out in pain; his body was in a ferocious battle with his spirit. Every fiber of his being was in a state of torment; he wished for immortality, craved for it even. If at all gods did exist, they would show him mercy and put him out of his misery. Stephen felt a force pressing his shoulders down, he willed the last of his magic to read Luke’s thoughts.
Why, why would you betray me like this? I trusted you…my father trusted you…
Before his magic finally departed from him, he let a stray tear roll down his ghastly pale cheek.
“Go home…”
Luke watched in horror as Stephen’s eyes darkened completely. His body was covered with equally dark veins. It had been an appalling sight; Luke had witnessed Stephen’s excruciatingly painful death. It was as if his skin had been torn apart by dorylus ants. What had just happened? His friend, the man he had looked up to for years had somehow deceived the whole of Chi. Stephen had been a mage all along. Had Sabrina known? Had his father known?
His father.
Luke was positive he had not misheard Stephen but could the man be trusted? Had he not deceived Luke all his life? Perhaps this was an elaborate plan by the magical creatures. Yes, his father was anything but dead. This was a ruse, a cruel ruse. King Matthias was alive and well, drinking from his favorite chalice, launching knives squarely on targets. His father could not be dead, he simply couldn’t.
“What happened? Who is this?”
“Is that…Luke why does that creature resemble Stephen? It’s uncanny! Even this bloke has a ridiculously large forehead-“
Lawrence stopped himself mid-sentence when Roselidah placed her hand on his shoulder. She then gestured towards a deathly quiet Luke. Lawrence darted his head between Luke and the morbid corpse next to him.
“I do not understand, Stephen is…was human, how is it that he…he…”
“He was a traitor…he lived among our kind for decades unsuspected…He was probably plotting against us all along…”
“That is absurd…Stephen was a council elder, a respected member of the community, the king’s friend! If he wanted to harm us, he would have. Besides, did he not know the exact location of the vessel? If he wished for our kind to be destroyed, he would have done so long ago. I refuse to believe-“
“Oh wake up you fool! These foul creatures are just that, foul! Don’t you see what they have done to us? The pain they have inflicted on our kind? Stephen was one of them and we never…I never…Lawrence what if he was the one who made my father ill? No one would have suspected him…I blamed the girl while all along it was Stephen…”
“You do not know this to be a fact Luke…You know better than to accuse a man who cannot plead his case…Stephen was a noble man who everyone including you looked up to-“
Luke could not take it. He couldn’t contain the overwhelming despair bubbling within him. He buried his face in his hands and let himself be vulnerable. Roselidah, who had been listening to this exchange quietly, approached Luke and placed her hand on his shoulder. Luke did not recoil.
“What are you not saying prince?”
“He said…he said…”
“What did he say Luke?”
“He said that King Matthias was dead, that my father was dead…He said that Chi needed a leader…But it can’t be true, my father has to be alive. How am I meant to believe Stephen anyway?”
Lawrence felt his knees weaken considerably. He bent forward to clutch them, afraid that they would betray his balance. A sudden dread filled him as he pictured his own father on the throne. Lawrence had always been well aware of his father’s ambition. If at all King Matthias was dead and Luke was here…With Baric lying somewhere in the magical realm. His father had no opponents. Chi was in grave danger.
“I think that there is something you ought to know Luke…”
- Writer
