Catalyst(118)

“I'm going to do what Stradus asked. The Book of Shazul is far too dangerous to remain in Premier's hands.” I swept my arms towards the destruction and devastation he wrought. “Look at what he's done already.”

Cynder was going to retort when we heard cheering. I raised my right eyebrow, and Cynder craned his long neck to see what everyone cheered about. King Furlong and Princess Krystal walked among their people, seeing to the wounded. The sight of the rulers of Alexandria raised their people’s spirits. They lifted their tired, dirty faces to smile and wave at them. The princess saw us. She spoke to one of her guards, who ran over to us.

“The princess sends her regards and wants to know if you require anything, Wizard Hellsfire,” the guard said.

I told him what I needed. “And please give Her Highness my thanks.”

The guard, along with a few others, came back later with a cart carrying the materials I needed to construct a pyre.

“You know, this wasn't the first time I ran into one of those annoying birds,” Cynder said as I worked.

“It wasn't?”

“Nope. Years back, me and the old man ran into them. He was much younger then…”

Cynder regaled me with countless stories of him and Stradus and the adventures they’d had, while I built the pyre. Cynder had told me one or two of the stories before, but only to help with a lesson. These were different. They were him remembering an old friend. I saw why Cynder didn't think Stradus could die, with all they had survived together.

The dragon lent his strength to me with his words. I also told stories of Stradus. They weren't as entertaining or numerous as Cynder’s, but I still told them. They helped me remember the man he was, and told of better times. The laughter Cynder and I shared helped hold back the tears.

I spent the rest of the day building the pyre, which consumed all of my remaining strength. Other funerals and burials went on all around me. Dusk was approaching by the time I was done. I lifted Stradus's light body onto the pyre.

“Would you like to do the honors?” I asked Cynder.

Cynder set Stradus's body ablaze with a long stream of fire. “I'm going to miss him.”

“Me too. He was amazing, wasn't he?”

“He sure was, even for a wizard.”

I walked closer to the fire and bowed my head. “May the gods guide him on his journey to the afterlife.”

“We have company,” Cynder said, and motioned with his eyes.

King Sharald walked closer to the pyre. “Goodbye, great wizard.” Sharald bent down and grabbed a handful of dirt. He flung it into the flames, symbolizing Stradus's return to the earth and completion of life. “I'll see you soon, old friend.” Sharald nodded at us, then left.

I stared into the roaring fire as it glistened against the violet-blue sky, consuming my former master's body. I gazed deeper into the flames, seeing the life and magic that lay there. The fire pulled me into it, and I became lost in its translucent beauty.

I enjoyed the warmth, and the flames comforted me. The power wrapped around my spiritual being as I became connected to it. The fire mana within me grew. I explored it, like Stradus would have wanted. Deep within the fire, there was something else—something dangerous. I recognized it. It was the power I had used to defeat Premier.

The powerful, ancient magic called out to me, saying it was mine to command. I wanted to reach out to it and take hold of it. I didn't want to use it, but I did want to explore it. I wanted to know more about it. Therein lay the problem.

Stradus had told me of those whose magic overpowered them and controlled them, or they became lost in it. I worried this could happen to me. Something about this magic was different. It was something I had never experienced before, or learned about in any of my lessons. It wasn’t even in the books I’d read. I stared at Stradus's burning body, wishing he was here now. I needed his advice and wisdom. There was no other wizard I could turn to.

Someone touched me on the shoulder, and I jumped.

“Hellsfire, are you all right?” Krystal asked.

“I'm fine, Your Highness.” I glowered at Cynder from the corner of my eye, for not warning me about her approach. He grinned. I bowed to both her and King Furlong. “Is there something I may do for you, Your Majesty?”

“No,” King Furlong said. “I came over to thank you for what you did in saving my kingdom.”

The princess gave her father a stern look. He looked uncomfortable. “I also came to…apologize for how I treated you earlier. I owe you a great deal, Wizard Hellsfire.”

I fought to hold back a smile. In my humblest voice, I said, “Think nothing of it. You were under Premier's spell. Do you mind if I check you out to see that there are no lingering effects?”