Page 23 of A Conduit of Light
Theyraced back to the lumen den, maneuvering their beasts over the underbrush, through the dense trees, their laughter at home in the forest that fed them their magic.
Whenthey enteredViridisone by one,Ashmaking sure she was last, bothBaronswere waiting for them on the white marble steps.
BaronHeimlengave each of them a weak smile, nodding as they stepped out of the portal.ButBaronRevich’shead was still, his mouth tipped downward in a frown, his gaze piercing in her direction.
Sheglanced around, unsure of the reason behind his serious demeanor, one she realized she had never actually seen before.
“Ash’Arah, walk with me, please.”BaronHeimlen’svoice was dull and swift.Heturned, heading immediately down the stairs toward the courtyard.
Shepaused and shrugged, unable to identify his purpose asClairanniaraised a single eyebrow in her direction andFiguerahmouthed,good luck.
Shecould feelBaronRevich’sgaze at her back as she hurried down the steps, following the agingBaron, his cloak billowing out behind him.Thelength of it fell off each stair in turn as he descended into the courtyard.Sheturned her head to seeBaronRevichstill, his hands in his pockets at the top of the landing, his expression completely unreadable.Shefrowned back at him, unsure of why he would look at her in such a way, considering he didn’t ever seem capable of it.
AshandBaronHeimlenwalked in silence through the forest of swaying trees and blooming bushes, passing benches and fountains along with an array of exotic birds preening in the glow of the sun, a warm welcome shining through the glass far above them.
Shefelt as if she was a little girl again, about to be chastised for what, she didn’t know.Asfar as she could tell, there were very few rules in theFortress—the main one being, of course, that she couldn’t leaveFelgren’sboundaries.Butno one had remarked on her behavior otherwise.
Asshe pondered what she could have done to deserve a personal outing withBaronHeimlen, they came upon a short wooden door.Itshinges were made of black iron and bars of the same material stretched across the old wood, ending in a lock near the handle.
Thiswas the first doorAshhad seen inside ofViridis.Evenleaving the halls did not produce a door, but a shimmering portal instead, waiting for its patrons to leave at any time of their choosing.
BaronHeimlenplaced a leather-gloved hand in his cloak pocket and produced an iron key.Watchingsilently,Ashstood before the door as he unlocked it with an audible click.
“Iwanted to wait longer before taking you here,Ash’Arah, butIam afraid we cannot waste any more time.”
“Whatis it?”Ashspoke, her voice dry in her throat. “What’sbehind this door?”
“Doyou remember whatIsaid aboutBaronRevichon your first visit toViridis?Aboutthe taskIgave him?”
Shenodded, remembering how she didn’t get to hear the full story due to her impatience with theBaron.Shewas more willing to listen now.
“I’llcut the story short.BaronRevichwas chosen by me as my successor, not only because of his rare ability as a male to use magic, but because of his natural bond to rhyzolm.Yousee, rhyzolm is coveted, yes, by wealthy people who believe it possesses magic and can make channelers out of their children.”Hepaused and pulled a small rhyzolm from his pocket.Ashtook it in her hands, her fingers rubbing the smooth surface.
“It’snot true though, is it?Rhyzolmcan’t create channelers.”
“No, it cannot.Butthat doesn’t mean it doesn’t have magic.Theroots of the trees inFelgrenare the heart of the power the forest possesses.Andthe runoff of water that flows into theHallowMarshesdoes contain some of that power.Butrhyzolm has another purpose to aBaron.”Heheld out his hand for her to give the stone back and she did so, eager to hear more. “Yousee, rhyzolm containsFelgrenmagic.Itis embedded into its core and cannot escape unless the stone is broken.Butpower likes power, and so, for centuries,Baronshave used rhyzolm to find the most powerful channelers.Thestone pulls us to them.Ina way, it is as if the magic ofFelgrenis calling to those who can wield it.”Heplaced the stone back in his pocket.
“IchoseBaronRevichbecause he was not only adept at finding rhyzolm, he was talented atusingit.Hedidn’t know he possessed magic until he dug up his first stone, just a boy, and that night he felt its pull in his village.Itled him to a small cottage.Thefamily inside the decrepit house was unaware that their son was a channeler.Butrhyzolm does not lie, and the story of the young boy who could grow wheat in a marshland trickled from mouth to mouth until it met my ears.
“Usually, aBaroncannot use a rhyzolm to find children channelers, or we might take them toFelgrenearlier.Itspull is strongest when a channeler reaches their later adolescence.Iwas curious about the power of this small child, but more so about the boy who discovered him.Andso,IvisitedRevichoften in his village, watching for more signs of magic.Theday he turned nineteen, barely younger than you are now, he came with me back toFelgren.Histask before him set.Hewas to train asBaron, but more importantly, find me the most powerful channeler on the isle.”
BaronHeimlen’sdark, graying eyes bore into hers, the truth of his story and where it was leading evident on his aging face.
“Andhe found her?InHyrithia?”
Hesmiled to one side. “Ibelieve so, though, he is less sure.Hetells me you are a contradiction—your obvious love ofFelgrenat war with your resistance to show us your true power.”
Shenarrowed her eyes in natural offense, internally huffing at the truth of his words.Shebit her lower lip and broke her gaze from theBaronto the door before them, unlocked, but unopened.
“Youstill haven’t told me why you need such a powerful channeler.Whyyou wanted to break theTreatyand bring me here.”Shestraightened, her stance braver than she felt. “Whatis behind this door?”
BaronHeimlenstepped closer, leaning in to speak softly, “Whatyou are about to see, you will tell to no one.Theonly people who are aware are now you,BaronRevich, and myself.Itwill stay that way,Ash’Arah.”Hisauthority was unsettling.Shewas not in the slightest bit used to being lectured by a man, let alone the most powerful one on the isle.Achill crept up her spine and left bumps on her skin.
Heopened the door, head turning in all directions, to assure of their solitary presence.Sheexpected the door to creak, loudly, as old doors often do.Butthis door seemed well taken care of as it opened into a dark stone hallway, the light ofViridisthe only one to illuminate its entrance.TheBaronnodded for her to enter and she spoke aloud, “Illuminare”, an enhancement spell she had recently learned to make her orb of green light brighter and pulsing, following the beat of her own heart.
Thesound of their footsteps across ancient stone echoed through the narrow corridor, and a heavy scent hung stale in the air that she could not place.Theywalked for some time, her emerald orb pulsing faster to the beat of her pacing heart until another wooden door, the twin of the last, lay before them.Turningsilently behind her to look at theBaron, she took the black key from his outstretched hand.
Thelock clicked in acceptance, and, giving a small shove, she was able to push it open, though it seemed to be caught.Shestumbled out into an expanse of trees, though at what time of day, she couldn’t tell.Ahaze of mist and darkened shadows loomed before them asBaronHeimlenstepped out beside her.
