Order of The Rose: Forsaken Petal (12 page)

This place probably hasn’t been opened for centuries. What have we gotten into this time?

The lights on the side of the walls began to glow, the room was very large. In the middle of the room there was a large table with twelve chairs surrounding it. Twelve more chairs placed directly behind the ones at the table surrounded the wall.

Tom gasped as he saw that at each of the chairs except four sat skeletons hunched over the table. Twelve skeletons were in the chairs that sat against the walls as well. In the center of the table there were four roses a white, blue, red, and brown one. At the far end of the room a huge tapestry hung on the wall. The tapestry was of a huge battle between men, many of which wore robes of white, blue, brown and red. The men with the robes all had some sort of magic coming from their hands. The other men wore armor and were battling on the front lines with long jagged swords. On their backs, cloaks of white, blue, brown or red billowed as they fought.

Tom walked to the tapestry to study it closer.

“It is a marvelous tapestry isn’t it?”

Tom jumped as he heard the voice of an old man by his side. The man was studying the tapestry along side him.

Where had he come from? Who is he?
There’s no where to run?

The man wore a grey robe, he had the hood off of his head and Tom could see that he had white hair that fell to the middle of his back and a long grey beard. The man wore a necklace that hung around his neck. It was a simple necklace that had a white rose at the end of it.

He looked at Tom. “This tapestry tells a lot about the first days when magic was still new to the world.”

Tom, still staring at the man in disbelief, struggled to find something to say.

“In the beginning there were many wars, much bloodshed. Brother fought brother and fathers killed their own sons, all in the pursuit of greater power, all in the name of magic,” the man said. He stepped closer to the tapestry touching it. “They forgot the true purpose of magic. They forgot that they had been given the sacred privilege to use it for good. Tom, you have been given that privilege to do good as well…” he looked at Tom, “…You have been given the opportunity to prove your worth; to prove that there is still good in this world. Yours is the sacred calling of truth and justice. You must stand up in the darkness and let a light show forth to the entire world that others may also stand.” The man’s eyes seemed to be pleading with him as he spoke, “You must correct our wrongs and make magic a thing of good once again.”

Tom felt a shiver up the back of his spine as he listened to the man.
How can they expect me to right their wrongs? I’m just a kid. I can’t do this, but maybe I can. Maybe people will finally respect me.
He had always wanted to be special; he had always wanted to be able to change things.

The man looked over at Aithnea and Cody who were standing motionless; their eyes looked blankly ahead. “Keep your friends near you at all times they will be a great strength unto you. Trust them, rely on them and remember that you are not alone.”

The man waved his hand slightly and then he was gone. 

“
Wow, that is an amazing tapestry,” Aithnea said.

“
Are you ok Tom, you look as if you just saw a ghost,” Cody said.

Tom just looked at the two staring at them blankly. He slowly closed his mouth and shook his head. He turned from them and looked at the tapestry closer ignoring their stares. “I-I saw a man who said that the tapestry told about the beginning of magic in this world.”

Aithnea looked at Tom in surprise. “You saw someone?”

Cody and Aithnea looked nervously around the room.

“Well, I think I saw someone it may have been…” Tom stopped thinking how ridiculous he must sound, “…Well whoever or whatever it was is gone now.” He rubbed his arms suddenly feeling cold; his breath forming small clouds as he breathed. A chill ran up the back of his neck as the lights on the walls began to flicker. His stomach churned and fear began to seep into his body.

Cody drew his sword and edged toward the door. “I think we’d better leave.”

Tom and Aithnea both walked quickly toward the door. The skeletons looked much more animated than when they had first entered the room. As Tom reached the door the first skeleton began to rise.

“
RUN!” Cody yelled. He was already running down the hallway with Tom and Aithnea right behind him. The lights on the walls dimmed as Tom’s feet pounded on the hard stone floor. He felt a presence of evil closing in behind him. There was a scream through the fog of his fear and he could feel Aithnea reaching out to him with her magic.

Tom fought the fear that was driving him forward and managed to control it enough to stop. Turning, he didn’t see Aithnea behind him.
Where has she gone? Where was she?
The lights were out and all he saw was darkness. Sweat ran down his face and back. He was being overwhelmed with fear, unable to concentrate or think straight.
Aithnea where are you? All there is is darkness. Darkness and evil.

He closed his eyes and trying to shut the fear out. Slowly he began to concentrate on the light cantrip. The fear retreated a little from the power that was growing inside of him. He was able to concentrate on the magical force that Aithnea was pushing toward him. “Mitt-lumen,” Tom spoke the words of the light cantrip and pushed the power inside of him out through his finger. To his amazement and joy a small orange light appeared in the air in front of him just as the rest of the lights in the hallway went completely out.

Aithnea stood at the end of the hallway in the clutches of a skeleton. Its jagged grin sent another chill up Tom’s back. His breath caught in his throat seeing the fear in Aithnea’s eyes. A dagger was at her throat. The fear began to wrap its deadly clutches once again around his heart and the small light dimmed. Tom was losing concentration and control of the magic. The skeleton’s grin widened. There was a horrible cackling from the skeleton and Tom saw hope fade from Aithnea’s eyes.

The light was gone. Tom stood in darkness, the hopelessness making it impossible for him to move. He fell to his knees and bowed his head.
How could I have given up? There is no reason to go on.

The hallway exploded into brilliant light, the skeleton shrieked as it dropped the dagger from Aithnea’s throat. Tom slumped to the ground and watched in shame as John ran past him. A white sphere hurled from Kristiana surged over his head slamming into the skeletons down the hall. Aithnea, now free ran toward Tom, tears freely falling down her face as she ran.

The first skeleton, no longer grinning, pulled a long sword from its sheath and charged John. The two collided in a bone jarring thud. John deflected the skeleton’s sword and smashed another skeleton into the wall, making a loud cracking noise.

Tom stood, the fear now gone and only shame and hate remaining, pulled his sword from its scabbard running toward the battle. Hate of the skeleton and shame that he let Aithnea down. Tom yelled and allowed rage to overtake his feelings, hoping that the shame would never return.

Tom slipped by John and swung his sword at the skeleton in his path. His sword hit, breaking the hard bone with a loud crack causing the skeleton to drop his own weapon. The skeleton turned on Tom, lashing out with its clawed hand; it narrowly missed as Tom sidestepped the wicked claw. Tom swung again, wanting to break the skeleton into tiny fragments.
You will pay for what you did to Aithnea.

Arrows flew through the air, one whizzed past Tom hitting the wall behind him. He slashed out with his sword again hitting bone. The skeleton fell with a loud clatter. Two more arrows flew into the battle thudding into the walls around Tom. A flash of hot white light screeched past Tom exploding a skeleton that was about to swing its crude axe toward his head.

Tom kicked out at the skeleton that had fallen and connecting with its head, the skeleton slumped to the ground. John rushed past Tom, engaging two more skeletons who had begun to advance on them. Tom screamed. He felt a sharp pain in his back. He turned and saw a skeleton with red blood dripping from its sharp talons. He raised his sword to deflect yet another blow. Several missiles slammed into the skeleton, knocking it back against the wall. “Mitt-requiro,” Tom yelled as he threw his own magic missiles into the skeleton, the skeleton broke into pieces and it fell to the ground with a crash.

“
Duck Tom,” Cody said, his sword flew over his head catching another skeleton’s sword before it could cut him down.

Cody jumped as Tom rolled under him.

Cody slashed in one smooth movement hitting the skeleton on the shoulder.

Tom stood. “Mitt-flamma,” he spoke, touching his sword at the same time. His sword erupted into flame and he advanced on the skeletons once again.

Cody smashed another skeleton into the wall with his sword causing it to shatter into many pieces. Tom passed Cody with his sword held out toward a skeleton that had made it past John. He swung the flaming sword in an arch over his head bringing it down toward the skeletons head. The skeleton caught the blow with its arm sacrificing it as it brought a small dagger toward Tom’s stomach. Tom stepped to the right. He wasn’t quick enough, but received only a scrape along his side.

John turned; slamming his sword, flat sided, into the skeleton’s back knocking the skeleton forward to where Tom had been. Tom brought his flaming sword down onto the skeleton’s back knocking it to the ground. The rags the skeleton wore turned into flames. The skeleton screamed in agony as Tom jumped past it toward another.

An arrow caught John in the left shoulder yet he continued to push forward, smashing skeleton soldiers into bits of bones. He cleared his way to the archers and began reigning down fury upon them. The first one fell before it had a chance to get a weapon out and the second lost its arm as it lifted its sword against him. The skeleton tried to claw John but it was hit by another bolt of energy, causing it to turn to dust.

Tom stopped concentrating on the flame that surrounded his sword and it went out. He slumped against the wall exhausted from the ordeal of both fighting and of keeping the magic going.

Cody sat down next to him breathing hard, he leaned his head against the wall. “You have brought me problems since the first time I met you,” Cody said.

“
I think that you enjoy it, that’s why you’re still around,” Tom bantered back.

Tom looked at Cody. “What just happened? I was so afraid. I couldn’t concentrate or do anything.”

Cody nodded. “I felt it too; I couldn’t stop running.”

John sat on the floor across the hall from the two boys looking at them. “It’s not your fault; these skeletons used powerful magic that surrounded them. The aura causes fear to all that come near them. If it hadn’t been for Caspin I don’t think I would have been able to face them either.”

Caspin walked up to John and after pulling the arrow from his shoulder laid his hands on him and healed him.

“
Thank you Caspin, it’s a blessing to have you with us.” John rotated his arm several times.

Caspin nodded. He moved to where Tom was leaning against the wall and pulled him from the wall.

Tom winced as sharp pain shot up his shoulder and neck from the wound on his back.

“
They must have had some sort of poison or disease in their fingers. Your wound has already begun to fester,” Caspin said.

Caspin pulled some things from his bag and began to mix a pasty concoction together. He closed his eyes and held the mixture in his hands for a few seconds before spreading the mixture over Tom’s wounds. The mixture was hot as Caspin smeared it onto his back and the pain ceased almost immediately. He then put bandages on the wound and Tom lay gently back against the wall.

“Thank you,” Tom said.

“
There is strong magic in these skeletons,” Kristiana said. She was moving her hand over the lifeless bones. “John, these skeletons weren’t recently animated. I don’t know of a magic that is powerful enough to keep something animated more than a couple of days.” There was concern etched across her face.

Aithnea walked up to Tom and he looked down, ashamed of letting her down. Kneeling in front of him she picked up his hands. “Thank you for your light…” she held his hand tight, “…I know that you feel that you failed me but it was your light that gave me hope to resist the fear.”

Tom looked up slowly the shame burning deep in him. “I couldn’t hold on though.” He trembled remembering the fear.

Aithnea smiled softly then brought his hands to her lips and kissed them lightly. “Without your strength I would have perished before Caspin was able to bless us with his God’s light.” She held Tom’s gaze and whispered, “Thank you for your strength.” She stood still smiling and walked over to examine the remains by Kristiana. Tom continued to look down at his hands.
I don’t deserve her thanks. I will not fail her again.
He remembering the despair in her face as his light began to fade.
He had been unable to save his friend this time, but never again.

Caspin touched Tom’s shoulder and he looked up with tears in his eyes.

“Don’t let the shame mask the great bravery you showed here today,” Caspin said.

Tom wiped the tears from his eyes.