The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1 (71 page)

“
The girl’s shields are
strong!
” Kala’s voice echoed within the stream of
energy. “I can’t fight against them any longer! The energy is too
much!”

“
We
can’t hope to break the barriers once they are fully erected!” came
the voice of Silar. “We must try and force ourselves between the
incomplete ones, delay her and rip as much of the prison as we can
before the shells are sealed!”

Josephine gritted her teeth as she channelled more
energy than she ever had before and moulded it like clay with
invisible hands. Around her, Matthias, Balzan and Thadius craned
over her like vultures. “I could do with some
space
, please!” she barked, her eyes
burning with determination.

“
Of
course,” Balzan whispered distantly, his eyes fixed on the dragon,
and moved away. “Good luck my dear,” he said and patted her on the
shoulder and moved clumsily to the doorway, where he slumped
against the wall, a hand to his mouth, staring at the
beast.

“
You as well Thadius,” she commanded. “I can
feel
your eyes on my
back!”

“
But my
lady
-”

Josephine turned her head to him. “It is alright, my good
knight. Please, leave Matthias and I again.”

Thadius nodded hesitantly. “If you insist. But I will be by
the door with Balzan should you need me.” She nodded. “I have faith
in you,” he smiled and with a bow of his head, moved off
hesitantly.

Josephine took a deep breath and placed her palms
on the stone crenulations. “They are fighting me
so
hard,” she
whispered. “Matthias, I’m afraid.”

The wizard grasped her hand and squeezed it
tightly. “I know. But so are
they
,” he encouraged. “Four of them and only one of
you, and I would wager good money they are more scared of you now
than they have been of
anything
they have faced before. Because
you
can stop them. You
are
destined
to stop them!”

She took a breath, and nodded. “Did you hear
that?” she called to the wind. “Just you
try
and stop me! This is my
destiny!
I am Josephine
Arwell, defender of the phoenix throne and
all
of Triska! You will
fall
at my
feet!
”

Matthias stared at the petrified dragon, who stared angrily
back at him through stony eyes. Josephine worked tirelessly,
directing energy at the creature to try and keep him that
way.

“
I
have created another barrier and I am strengthening it,” she said
after a time. “But…” she took a deep breath and paused.

“
What is it?” Matthias asked. She shook her head
exasperatedly. “How can I
help
you?” Matthias grasped her arms from behind her.
They shook with fatigue.

“
It’s not
enough
. They are
still
fighting me. I might not be able to see them, but
I
know
they are tearing at the dragon. I need to put more distance
between them and Sikaris, make some kind of wards that will repel
them. But I am
so
tired!” Her eyes were heavy with black, sunken bags
stretching down her face. “I can’t hold
on
for much longer. I'm a novice at this
Matthias, and they are ancient experts with what could be hundreds
of years of experience.”

“
Ancient things
crumble
more readily.”

“
That
maybe, but I feel like
I
might crumble at any minute! How do I
look?” she asked. Matthias looked with concern at her face. She was
pale and veins had begun to form across her forehead and her
cheeks. She grimaced at him. “You
face
says it all. Do I look
that
ghastly?”

“
You look as radiant as you
always
do,” he smiled. “Just a little...
rough around the edges.”

“
Your lies are becoming more transparent wizard.” She shook
her head. “I need a distraction. If I think much more about how
tired I am, how much I want to let go of the power, I think I will
collapse!” She held up a hand. “I need you to deflect my mind from
the pain.”

“
Surely you need to concentrate?” he replied.

“
I
am
concentrating!” she snapped back. “But I need you to
distract me from the pain, from panicking myself into
submission!”

Matthias shrugged. “Distract you with what?” he
asked.

“
Just…
talk
to me! About
anything
. The
weather
if nothing else! But
preferably
something
interesting.”

Matthias fumbled, wiping back his hair as it
flailed in the wind. The air was bitter the darker the sky got, as
the sun disappeared beneath the horizon, and his cheeks stung with
the force of the gusty wind billowing around the battlements. “Oh
for the gods’ sakes Josephine, how am I supposed to think
about
chatting
at a time like this?”

“
All
along this journey you haven’t stopped talking to me: telling me
stories, filling my head with information and lessons to be
learned. Now we are finally here, you lose your tongue?”

“
I’m not a bloody court
jester
Josephine!” he snapped back. “Perhaps we
should have told Luccius to stay here after all!
He
could talk for
the
both
of us!”

Josephine groaned and her legs buckled. She fell back against
Matthias, who held her tightly.

“
I’ve got you,” Matthias reassured her. He gripped her around
the midriff and held her up tightly against him. “You’re just cold
and tired.”

“
I
am
freezing,” she replied. “I didn’t realise until you just
said it.”

Matthias shifted awkwardly until his arms came free from his
coat and then with a jerk, threw it around Josephine as well so
that it covered them both. “There, is that any better?”

“
A
little. Thank you,” she breathed. Her eyes narrowed as she
concentrated. “Tell me more about your life,” she said.

“
My
life?” Matthias repeated her words.

“
I
barely know anything about yours, and yet you know all about
mine!”

Matthias shrugged. “I’m not really that
interesting!”

“
Now I know
that
to be a lie!” Josephine replied. “I don’t even
know how
old
you are!” she said.

“
Wizards don’t
tell
many people their age,” he said.

“
Why
not?” Josephine asked.

“
It’s quite a private thing to us.”

“
And yet you know
my
age,” she countered. “It seems only fair you tell
me yours?”

Matthias snorted. “Haven’t you done
enough
negotiating
today?”

“
Does that mean you
won’t
tell me?” she asked.

“
I’m old enough to know that the length you’ve
lived isn’t as important as
how
you’ve lived,” Matthias
countered.

“
And how
have
you lived?” Josephine asked him.

Matthias sniffed a laugh. “Now
there’s
a question.”

“
Another one which you are trying to avoid,” Josephine
rebutted. “All I ask is that you-”

“
I’m
only twenty-six,” he said.

Josephine shook her head. “I don’t know why, but I
find that…
disappointing
.”

“
Why?” he asked her.

“
The way you talk, the way you
act!
How people
speak
of you. I expected you to be
much
older. I know
wizards live longer than other people, but aside from that, I don’t
know a great deal about your kind. My father has kept me away from
Mahalia as much as possible, for
obvious
reasons.”

“
He
is a sensible man.”

“
Why do you
act
so old then?” she asked. “You speak as if you are
my father’s age or older!”

“
Because I have to maintain a degree of authority
as a wizard and it helps if you sound as if you are
wizened
by age,” he
said.

She
shook her head. “It is such a strange world you live in Matthias. I
thought my own life was complicated.”

“
It
has its moments,” he said. Josephine grunted. “What is it?”
Matthias asked.

“
They are pushing back against me,
harder
this
time.”

Matthias looked out at the dragon. “It looks as calm as a
millpond out there.”

“
Believe me, in my head this is like a tug of war! Is there no
way we could fight them? Draw them out into the open?” she
asked.

“
I don’t think we
want
to do that,” he replied. “You might know how to
put up a barrier, Josephine, but do you think you could you fight
them in a battle?” he asked. “They are staying hidden for some
reason and that’s working in our favour. If they tried to attack
now, I am not sure that we could win.”

She swallowed. “Then I hope that
they
do not realise
that,” she whispered. She glanced down at the city below. “None of
those people down there even know the danger that is right under
their noses.”

“
Let us hope they never
will
know,” Matthias replied.

The
wind billowed the coat and they both shivered in unison. “Can’t you
put some kind of warmth around us with your power?” Josephine asked
him. “I am freezing!”

“
I
thought about it. But I don’t want to interfere by putting another
power into the mix. Between you and the sorcerers, I daren’t try
anything else right now,” he said warily. “The air is thick with
energy.”

“
Do you think they can actually
see
us?” Josephine
asked.

“
I
hope not. But I wouldn’t rule anything out,” Matthias said
grimly.

“
That’s given me another reason to shiver. So much
for your council stopping them!” Josephine said mockingly. They
couldn’t catch them
or
us!”

Matthias nodded and his teeth chattered. “I had almost
forgotten about Lord Fenzar,” he said.

“
I
do hope Maryn is alright,” Josephine added. “Do you think he would
hurt her if he found her?”

Matthias was quiet a moment. “Maryn can take care of
herself,” he said finally.

Josephine nodded. “That much is certain, if she
has avoided your people for so long!” Josephine shook her head. “To
think she was the same person who helped me all those years ago.
How did
you
meet her?” Josephine asked.

“
Why
would you want to know about that now?” Matthias asked
briskly.

“
Because it is
interesting!
” Josephine responded, as she twisted a
spike of energy inwards, combined it with another and connected
them with the barrier. Neon swirls of energy knotted together at
her command and seemed to hold tight around the
prison.

Matthias rolled his eyes. “If I didn’t know better I would
say you were stalling just to get me to keep talking!”

“
Perhaps I am,” Josephine smiled. “Perhaps the sorcerers
aren’t even out there at all.”

“
That would be a nice thought,” Matthias chuckled. “If you
must know, Maryn and I were friends when I was younger.”

“
Was
that all?” she asked after a pause.

“
What do you mean?” Matthias asked tentatively.

“
She is a
very
pretty lady,” Josephine replied. “And you
are
a man after all,
even if you are a wizard.”