Sinners of Magic (35 page)

Amella glanced at Crystal, who
was turning white, and she reached out and placed her hand on hers,
giving her reassurance. She slipped her free hand into her clothing
and pulled out a knife. The tip glistened when it caught the light
and for a brief moment Amella feared that whoever had entered the
room might have seen it glimmer.

‘
So,
everything is ready?’

Crystal instantly recognised
Forusian’s voice and she started to tremble.

‘
Yes, my
lord, I have the men assembled and they await your
command.’

‘
Phaphos, you
have done well. When I become the king of the elves I will ensure
you are rewarded for your loyalty.’

Amella in return recognised the
voice of Phaphos; he had been one of her father’s most trusted
aides. It was clear Phaphos had betrayed him and her soul wept for
his sins whilst she vowed to slice a dagger through his deserving
heart. Forusian cleared his throat.

‘
So, you
fully understand the plan for tonight? I want no mistakes and I
want no evidence either, do I make myself perfectly
clear?’

‘
Very clear,
sire.’

‘
Good, then I
will see you later; now leave me.’

The echo of footsteps and the
door closing told both Amella and Crystal of Phaphos’s departure.
Amella raised her arm with the knife securely in her hand. She went
to take a step forward, ready to strike, when a rap at the door
caused her to shrink back and lower the blade.

‘
What is it
now?’ Forusian shouted.

‘
Sire, the
keeper Snitterby has arrived with more news.’

Forusian’s good mood could be
heard in the trill of his voice.

‘
Excellent,’
he said. ‘I will see him in the drawing room.’

The door was heard to close and
it became clear after a minute or two that Forusian had left.

‘
What do you
think he’s up to?’ Crystal whispered in Amella’s ear.

‘
I don’t
know,’ Amella replied, hiding the knife back inside her skirt, ‘but
he is sick and his wickedness runs deep; all he wishes to do is
conquer everything in our world.’

They made it to the door and,
once the coast was clear, resumed their hunt for Matt. Crystal’s
knowledge of the castle was very limited because she had been
restricted whilst staying at the castle and her memory failed her
for she’d only toured the corridors and passageways on her first
day of capture. She vaguely remembered certain areas but relied on
Amella’s instincts most of the time.

Eventually they turned in the
right direction and headed straight for the dungeons. Amella noted
there were few guards around, which she thought unusual, then it
suddenly dawned on her they could well be in the field ready to
attack her father’s realm and she shivered uncontrollably.

She pulled herself together and
followed the stone steps, chipped away with time, to descend into
the bowels of the castle. The smell of decay stung their nostrils
and Crystal found she was covering her nose to help stop the putrid
stench reaching her stomach. Cautiously they made their way to the
first stone cell and looked inside but to their dismay they found
it was empty. No guards were to be seen and Amella started to feel
slightly uneasy. They moved to the next cell and then the next, but
to no avail; there were no prisoners at all in Forusian’s
dungeons.

‘
Where the
hell is Matt?’ cried Crystal, trying hard not to become hysterical.
‘I know he’s here somewhere.’

Amella pulled a face.

‘
Forusian
obviously expected you to try and get him out. He may still be in
the castle, but where is another story. Can you think of anywhere
he may hide him? Did he show you any secret chambers or a place
where he could hide someone indefinitely within these
walls?’

Crystal became upset.

‘
No, he
didn’t show me anywhere like that, but I know he does have secret
chambers inside the castle.’

‘
Then we have
no choice, we will have to use magic to find him and this could
make us vulnerable to Forusian. Now, you must help me conjure an
image of Matt to show us where he’s being imprisoned.’

Crystal shrank back.

‘
I can’t do
magic,’ she stammered, tears spilling down her face. ‘I don’t know
how.’

‘
Yes, of
course you do,’ said Amella, whilst her eyes flashed with surprise.
‘The spell we will use is weak and only works within the place
where the person is dwelling. We must find out where Matt is
quickly, otherwise we could be searching forever.’

With some reluctance Crystal
came and sat next to Amella, who had cleared away a small area of
the floor and was drawing a four pointed star by scraping into the
stone with her knife.

‘
This is the
symbol of our magic and each corner represents the four elements of
life: earth, air, fire and water. The four points placed below
represent the physical being, but we are unable to find the
physical being and therefore we must seek the spiritual one
instead.’

Amella placed a candle she’d
found lying on a table inside the centre of the pentangle; she
threw her hand, causing a flame to leave her fingers and the wick
ignited.

‘
We must hold
hands and you need to visualise Matt’s face,’ encouraged Amella,
grasping Crystal’s hands. ‘I will use the magic you generate to
show us where he is being kept prisoner.’

Crystal was nervous. She knew
she could not do what Amella asked, but was too afraid of letting
her down to tell her the truth. She held onto Amella’s hands and
closed her eyes. Focusing on Matt, she remembered the last time she
had seen him and became overwhelmed with the pain of losing her
friend once again. His image was growing stronger in her mind and
she felt Amella’s grip tighten. A low chant rose from her lips and
strange symbols were swimming about inside her brain and becoming
entwined with her images of Matt. The chanting grew more urgent and
with it her vision was more intense.

‘
Open your
eyes,’ Amella commanded.

Crystal did as she was told and
to her amazement the picture in her head appeared to float above
the candle. Matt’s surroundings had changed from what her mind had
visualised and she could see he was surrounded by solid stone
walls.

‘
Excellent
work!’ Amella exclaimed. ‘I knew you could do it. Look, he’s in the
castle, just as you suspected. Wait a while and he will walk the
corridors within his own mind to show you where he is being held
captive.’

Sure enough, the vision
floating above them left the place where he was being incarcerated
and walked the corridors to show them the way to his cell. Crystal
gave a gasp of delight.

‘
I know where
he is,’ she laughed, jumping to her feet. ‘He’s close to Forusian’s
own chamber.’ Amella smiled.

‘
Well done,
my sweet child, now we must hurry, the day is almost night and with
it comes the danger it so willingly holds, for without the daylight
I cannot use the brooch to get us out of the castle and away from
here.’

Without another word Crystal
climbed the stairs two at a time, her energy levels soaring in the
knowledge that Matt was alive, and with added gusto she headed
straight for Forusian’s corridor of vile chambers, in the hope of
setting Matt free.

Chapter
23

It seemed to Matt that he had
only been dozing a short while when he awoke to find it late
afternoon. He forced himself out of his flea-ridden blanket, made
his way to the door and looked down at the maggot-filled stew
wriggling on his plate, feeling his gut retch.

The rest of his resolve slipped
away. He believed Arhdel to be dead and a wave of utter despair
washed over him. He fell to his knees, curled up into a ball and
allowed his suppressed tears to finally fall. His cheeks burned and
so did his eyes; he had never known such grief before but once his
tears were spent, he rose from the floor and washed his face with
the last of his drinking water.

Curious sounds were
infiltrating the stone walls and he stiffened, his senses alerted
when he heard a blur of female voices trail along the
passageway.

‘
Matt, are
you in there?’

His green eyes gazed blearily
at the door, his face pensive and solemn. It was obvious to him
that he was hallucinating. As far as he was concerned, Crystal had
no knowledge of this place and would probably never see him alive
again. The metal flap at the bottom of his door flew open and he
jerked his head back when two familiar eyes peered inside.

‘
Matt, it’s
me!’ Crystal rasped, trying to keep her voice low, ‘are you
alright?’

She couldn’t reveal her name
with Amella standing so close by and prayed he wouldn’t blurt it
out when he realised who it was calling his name.

He blinked, focusing upon her
face. She looked so real, her beauty vibrant, and he was astounded
what the brain could do when suffering acute distress.

Crystal rose and her skirt
swished in the dirt; she looked worriedly at Amella.

‘
What’s the
matter with him?’ she asked, confused, ‘why’s he acting so
weird?’

Amella shrugged.

‘
Wouldn’t you
be a little weird if you’d been locked inside there?’

‘
Damn
Forusian!’ Crystal cried, her eyes blazing with contempt. She paced
the area for something she could use to get the door
open.

‘
Here, use
the brooch,’ said Amella, throwing it to her. ‘The clasp can be
used as a key; it will open any lock.’

Crystal opened the pin and
pushed the sharp needle inside, listening to the lock turn.

‘
It really
works!’ she cried, stuffing the brooch in her pocket and then
pulling back the door and rushing inside. She threw her arms around
Matt and hugged him tight.

‘
Thank God
you’re alive,’ she declared, feeling him respond to her tender
embrace, and Matt came to his senses, reassured by her touch, the
warmth of her skin melting into his own.

‘
I can’t
believe you’re here,’ he gasped, swallowing back his longing to
kiss her. A sudden burning ignited in his belly before rushing
through his veins as quick as fire. He tried to hold her fast but
she pulled way.

‘
We’ve got to
get out of here,’ she told him, dragging him to where Amella stood
watching them with open curiosity.

His fingers gripped her wrist,
causing her to cry out in pain.

‘
No! We can’t
leave, not until I know for sure whether Arhdel is alive or dead.
He took care of me when we became separated and I look on him as a
friend.’ His voice cracked and a sob escaped his lips. ‘Forusian
tortured him in ways I have never seen or heard of before. I can’t
leave here, not until I know the truth.’

Amella’s expression turned to
one of despair as she listened to Matt’s allegations.

‘
I know
Arhdel and he is a fine warrior. I must agree with you, we cannot
leave until we have found him. Do you have any idea where he might
be? He’s not in the dungeons; we’ve already searched there looking
for you.’

Matt relaxed his grip. Crystal
shuddered and rubbed her arm, shocked at the change in him.

‘
No, I don’t,
but he can’t be far because I was able to hear his screams clearly
enough,’ he said, with a chill in his eyes.

‘
Then we
don’t have a moment to lose,’ said Amella, with a frown. ‘Are you
fit to walk?’

‘
Yes, of
course. I’m a little weak, but don’t worry, I’ll keep
up.’

‘
Good, then
follow me. I have a slight inkling as to where Arhdel might be.’
Crystal held Matt back.

‘
You mustn’t
call me Crystal,’ she insisted, watching Amella check for guards.
‘It’s a long story, but she thinks my name is Nienna.’

‘
Who is she?’
he asked, with growing concern.

‘
She’s a
recluse who took me in when I managed to escape from Forusian. She
found me the night I was trying to hide in the forest. She has a
hut hidden within the trees and she gave me shelter. I was
frightened of her at first, but I’ve come to trust her. She’s the
only person I know who was willing to help rescue you.’

‘
Is she an
elf?’

‘
Yes, I think
so, but she’s very guarded about it. I get the impression something
really bad happened to her like Gzhel and she never talks about her
past.’

Amella turned, hearing their
voices rising, and gave them a cold stare.

‘
Have you
forgotten where you are?’ she hissed. ‘We are not out of danger
yet.’

They fell quiet, following her
in silence, and when a guard appeared they flew into the safety of
the shadows. The soldier didn’t see them and they carried on but
Amella stopped and drew a deep breath. She turned towards them and
her eyes darkened with sadness.

‘
I’m guessing
this is where I think Arhdel might be. I need you both to be brave
when you enter here, for I don’t know what we’re about to find
behind these walls.’

Matt came forward,
trembling.

‘
If he’s
dead, I’ll –’

A wave of sympathy almost
swamped Amella’s hard exterior and, shaken, she took a moment to
recover.

‘
You must
expect the worst,’ she told him, stepping forward, and with her
hand called a flame to the torch pole set outside. The wind licked
at the flame when they entered the passageway and the dark walls
pressed close, creating a measure of claustrophobia. Countless
doors chiselled deep into the stone loomed on each side and Amella
pulled the first deadbolt back to reveal nothing but bare stone
walls. Each chamber was empty and Amella feared the
worst.