VIII. An Act of Treason

            Rhys heaved gasping for air as the Second Trial concluded.  He touched his face.  Yes, he was real, this was real.  The illusions he had seen had been so real.  Situations of dire importance, ambitions lost, life-or death scenarios, the loss of loved ones, all to determine his resolve.  That had been the Choosing.  A Magus must dedicate themselves to one energy or the other, the ether of life or the nether of death.  He could still hear the nether calling out to him, seductively begging him to let it in... but he had chosen, and he would become master of the ether.   The final trial was at hand.  The Cleansing.  All traces of the nether would be stripped from his body, and he would be prepared for magic of the Twelfth Circle, a white-robed mage with command over the forces of nature themselves!

            He braced himself.  He had survived this far, but the Cleansing was where most apprentices died.

            His vision exploded as magical forces clawed at his body and mind. He shrieked in agony until he had no voice left with which to scream.  His body convulsed, drenched in sweat.  He felt as if his very soul was being ripped apart.  In fact, it was.  Trembling in agony, his mind collapsed and he plunged into the sweet embrace of nothingness.

 

***

 

            Thanus sprinted through the castle halls in his smallclothes, gasping for breath.  Slivers of dawnlight slid through balistraria, piercing the hallways in a series of slashes, but he paid them no mind as he ran.  A serving maid ducked out of the way as he rounded the corner.  Just ahead, the lion-marked doors to the Audience Hall were guarded by Sir Karleton.

            “Prince Thanus,” Karleton offered a quick bow before positioning himself between the prince and the door, “There is no need for you to trouble yourself, Your Highness. My men have the matter well in hand.”

            “Get out of my way,” Thanus growled as he brushed the knight aside with his arm. Karleton’s eyes widened and he nearly fell over in his haste to avoid a physical affront to the prince.

            Thanus threw the door open and surveyed the scene before him.  His father was yelling at two guards to the right, but Thanus paid them no mind.  The dais drew his eye.  Two knights lay dead, one thrown atop the other at the foot of the throne.  On the throne itself was the corpse of Royal Exchequer, posed as a king.  Thanus tried not to think what statement had been layered into the gruesome murder, perhaps indictment the financial corruption of the royal household or a symbolic opposition to taxation.  His eyes wandered up to the massive golden and azure banner of the royal lion of the House of Vael.  A giant H, the final leg continued as a line through the letter, was scrawled in blood atop the sigil.

            “Thanus!” King Uther called to his son.  The king was dressed but disheveled.  His eyes were not only tired, but filled with worry, perhaps even tears.  What possibly could have moved him so? “I told Sir Karleton to keep you out of here!” the king continued, “You don’t need to see this--“

            “I’m not a boy any longer, father.  I’ll need to face the realities of rule sooner or later,” Thanus’s eyes narrowed as he inspected the throne. “They took the royal scepter,” the knight-prince said disgust.

            Thanus looked closer at the knights and he froze in place. Their faces were twisted and charred.  Thanus drew in a deep breath.  They had been killed with lightning.  Thanus knew only one man who could wield such power.

            The king looked at his son, and Thanus saw it in his father’s eyes.  He saw the loss, the fear, the pain.  There was something else.  Something far worse than a scepter.  Thanus opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. His father gripped Thanus’s shoulder, meeting the prince’s eyes with a somber gaze.

“That’s not all they took.”

***

           

“Rhys!  Rhys!” Someone was shaking him.  “Rhys wake up!”

Rhys frowned at the novice shaking him awake.  Where was he?  From the looks of it he was in the Tower Infirmary.  He had survived!  Joy coursed through his veins.  He was a wizard!  He looked down at the white robes he now wore, embroidered with runes sewn with a shimmering red thread.

“Is that any way to address your betters?” Rhys snapped at the boy.

“We’ve received news from Castle Vael, Rhys.  Terrible news.”

Rhys snatched a piece of parchment from the boys hands, his eyes widening, the room spinning.

He had to leave immediately.

Author's Note

I’m debating taking out the Rhys stuff and just leaving the Thanus section of this chapter

Reviews

[Leah]

Don't take out the Rhys stuff! I was finding myself wondering what else he had to face during these Trials. I actually wanted more!

I also noticed "Karleton" is spelled three different ways so far. I don't know which one you want, but ou have Karleton, Karelton, and Karlton.

[JR Darewood]

Wow! You devoured all of these all at once!!!! Thanks for the catch on Karleton or whatever I'm calling him. I'm a terrible speller.

So... I actually wrote these *after* writing the entire Part I (like 15 chapters that take place after this one) that picks up where Thanus meets Lade in the dungeons of Vael. Though initially i set it in a Dungeons and Dragon's environment and all the names and stuff were different (so it's the dungeons of Kalaman instead of Vael). So this is part of my attempt to write it in my own world... I'm in the process of converting the other 15 chapters (but I'm only on chapter 6... its kind of a time consuming ordeal... as soon as its done in a few days I'm going to replace all of the book "Unsung Heroes" with the new modified chapters), but I'm really conflicted on whether to keep this prequel or not.

The thing I like about starting it after all these events is that you piece them together as you read. Also, it introduces Lade and Thanus at the same time instead of splitting the narrative, so you have a more solid experience of time and place, and the two characters get to grow on you at the same time. Also, the other story is quite a bit more fast-paced than this one.

I was planning on showing the Trials eventually, but I was thinking of doing them in a flashback from another character, kind of explaining magic gradually bit by bit in a series of chapters instead of dropping it all at once later.

Anyway, the decision about whether to keep these chapters or delete them has been driving me crazy!!!!!!

I'm glad you took a look at this, I think you're the only one that's read it. Thank you!!!!

[Leah]

Oh, wow! So it used to be a fanfiction and you're converting it into your own world? That's pretty cool. I used to write fanfictions and wondered if I should do the same thing, but I think I'll stick with what I'm writing now. If you get a chance, check it out and review!

I really like this prequel. I haven't read the other work that comes after this, but I plan to, for sure! Is this the end of the prequel or is there more? Trying to decide if I need to read Unsung Heroes now or wait!

[JR Darewood]

Yeah, this is the end of the Prequel. Unsung heroes picks up where this leaves off, but I haven't converted it yet. I'm about half-way through it, trying to get it all done and converted this weekend.

[Leah]

Awesome. I'll start on Unsung Heroes, then!

[JR Darewood]

if you can wait a couple of days, it should be done. I'm moving up some of the expositional paragraphs from the prequel into Unsung Heroes so it can stand on it's own, so you might recognize a paragraph here or there. Maybe you can tell me if it's better to keep the prequel or just start from when Thanus and Lade meet in the Dungeons of Vael.

[Leah]

I'll wait a couple of days, absolutely, and I'll let you know what I think!

[JR Darewood]

Okay, it just about killed me, but I just uploaded the new version (b/c the text editor was freaking out it took me more than FOUR HOURS just to cut and paste and upload and try to get it to recognize my indents). FOUR HOURS. OMG THAT WAS FRUSTRATING!!! I'm okay now. I'm going to go meditate....

[Leah]

Holy cow. Four hours?! Okay, I promise to read it ASAP and review (obviously!).

[Leah]

Okay, don't hate me--there must be a glitch or something, but I can't read Unsung Heroes on my computer at work or my laptop at home! It just goes to the chapter but then I can't see the writing. What giiiives?

[JR Darewood]

Hmmmm, i wonder if something went wrong with the upload. What chapter did you click on?

[JR Darewood]

BTW the first stuff is pictures, the writing doesn't start till the prologue

[Leah]

I know, I saw the pictures! They're really cool. It's all the chapters I'm clicking on.. :(

[JR Darewood]

hmmm, they come up fine on my computer.... what browser are you using? maybe I can fix it if I know what browser is failing...

[JR Darewood]

It works fine on my computer on Firefox, Safari and Chrome